DELMARVA Baseball League - Page 61

Nickphillies · 08-12-2015, 09:53 PM

Hot team? You weren't kidding.

illeracula · 08-13-2015, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nickphillies

Hot team? You weren't kidding.

Yeah, this one is going to be a tough series to win.

illeracula · 08-13-2015, 02:02 PM

2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 2 (Best of 7)
I am in a tough spot here... Game 2, at home, and its a must win and my top 2 pitchers arne't rested and ready to go. Brown is at 77% and Pearson is at 57%. Its not worth throwing them on short rest, I just think we have a better chance to win when we have them at 100%. Game 3 and 4? Yes... so who is going to go in Game 2?

I have 4 options:
Joaquin Hernandez (16/14/14), Miguel Angel Gonzalez (16/15/17), Armando Lopez (12/11/16) and Miguel Contreras (10/14/18)... Contreras hasn't started since the all-star break, so I am not sure he is an ideal choice, Lopez has been in the pen of late, and has never started in the playoffs, Hernandez got roughed up in his first playoff start, but finished the season strong, and Gonzalez has been a solid playoff performer over his career (2-1 2.23, 4 SV, 0.94 WHIP). The downfall of Gonzalez is that he only has 2 solid pitches... ugh, this is a tough choice...

The Iron Pigs are going with Jason Nixon in game 2. Nixon went 14-8 3.75 during the regular season, got roughed up in the one game he pitched in the Brewers series and didn't face the Cavaliers this season. Nixon is 27, and will be making his 7th playoff appearance, he pitched as a reliever during last years playoffs...

With the right on the hill the Iron Pigs switched up the last 4 hitters of their lineup. Pepe Santana is the only player remaining from yesterdays bottom part of the lineup and he moves from CF to LF... Jose Escamilla is 1-11 versus today's pitcher, and Pepe Santana is 2-3, with a HR. No one else has a hit, in limited AB's (3 or under).

SS Gordon Purkis, RF Santiago Baez, C Antonio Castaneda, 3B Tom Anderson, 1B Ralph Anderson, DH Kevin Barber, LF Pepe Santana, CF Walt Martin, 2B Jose Escamilla

The bottom 1/3 of the Cav's lineup has just gone gold with all 3 players hitting between .190 and .193... I decided that I am going to give Flores a rest in today's game despite being 1-2 with a HR during his career against Nixon. Robinson Lopez will make his first start of the playoffs instead. Lopez will play 2B and Torres will move over to SS. I decided to to keep Frank in the lineup as he is 4-10 lifetime against Nixon.

RF Sergio Rodriguez, CF Sergio Galvez, 1B Francisco Gallegos, LF Bob Short, DH Leonard Lawson, C Henry Rojas, SS Pedro Torres, 3B Bryant Frank, 2B Robinson Lopez

Its hard to tell what is going to happen with both teams having little experience to each other... can we contain the Iron Pigs this game? Do we even pitched to Tom Anderson? I am nervous, hopefully Miguel Angel Gonzalez isn't and he is ready to go. Let see what he has to bring...

Time to play ball:
The first inning, was fun filled, as the Iron Pigs jumped out to an early lead. After MAG struck out lead-off man Purkis, he would give up a soft single to Santiago Baez. Baez would end up on third after an Antonio Castaneda double down the RF line. This would bring up Tom Anderson with runners on 2nd and 3rd and Anderson would hit a deep fly ball to center, which would score Baez. Ralph Anderson would ground out, but the Iron Pigs would score 1 to take the lead.

The Cav's wouldn't waste anytime getting that one run back, however, as the #2 hitter Sergio Galvez would hit a 3-2 fastball over the left-center field wall (436ft). The next hitter Francisco Gallegos would follow suit with a solo-HR over the left-center field wall (408ft), which would give the Cav's the lead. Bob Short would double following the Gallegos HR, but would be stranded... After 1 the Cav's would hold a 2-1 lead.

The second inning went by quick for both teams, but third was a different story. with 2 outs, Santiago Baez would again single softly, this time into LF, bring up Antonio Castaneda. Castaneda would promptly give the Iron Pigs the lead with a 2-run line drive HR down the left-field line (374ft). Tom Anderson would ground out to end the inning. But the Iron Pigs would take the 3-2 lead after 2 1/2.

The Cav's would answer back in their half of the 3rd. Sergio Rodriguez would reach on a error by the RF. He would move to second, when Sergio Galvez was drilled by the pitch. The Rodriguez would move over to 3B when Gallegos would hit into the 6-4-3... Rodriguez would score the tying run on a Bob Short double. Then Short would come around to score on Leonard Lawson's 2-run HR over the CF wall (417ft). The Cav's did their damage with 3 unearned runs, and reclaimed the lead 5 to 3.

An ugly fourth inning would allow the Iron Pigs to cut the lead. Ralph Anderson started the inning off with a single. He would steal second. After a Barber strike out he would come home to score on a Pepe Santana single. That is all the Pigs would get, but after 3 1/2 they cut the lead to 5-4.

The Iron Pigs would take the lead in the 6th. Ralph Anderson doubled with 1 out, and with 2-outs he would score on a Pepe Santana triple. With Santana on third, Walt Martin would bring him home with a HR down the right-field line (378ft). Giving the Iron Pigs the lead once again 7 to 5.

Armando Lopez would come in and shut down the Pigs in the 7th, and in the bottom half the Cav's would try to chip away at their lead. Lead-off man Bryant Frank would hit a solo HR over the left-center field wall (424ft), a hit that would end up chasing SP Nixon from the game. The Cav's would go down in order after the HR, but they did chip away at the Iron Pigs lead and with 2 innings to go they trail the Pigs 7-6.

In the 8th the Pigs would get an insurance run, thanks to a lead-off double by Tom Anderson. Anderson would be removed from the game, however after pulling up limp. Two batters later Kevin Barber who drive in PR Dave Bullock with a double down to left-field line. After 7 1/2 the Iron Pigs lead 8-6.

Down 8 to 6 the Cav's would need to something if they wanted to keep from falling back 2 games to 0 in the series, and losing both games at home... The Iron Pigs brought in Arturo Ramirez to close the door and he would be facing the #6 hitter Henry Rojas to start things off... Rojas grounds out to short for the first out of the inning. Trevor Parker would pinch hit for Pedro Torres and single to left. Juan Hernandez would pinch hit for Bryant Frank. Hernandez would ground out to first moving Parker to second... Down to their last out, #9 hitter Robinson Lopez would single to right, scoring Parker. The Cav's now had the tying run on the bases with the top of the line coming up... Sergio Rodriguez tied the game with a triple to deep-center... With 2-outs and the winning run at 3rd, the Iron Pigs pulled their closer Ramirez and brought in Edmond Scott. Scott would battle Galvez to a 2-2 count, but Galvez would win the battle with a single over the short-stops head!!!! Rodriguez trots home and the Cav's have an incredible walk-off victory in game 2 of the DelMarVa Championship Series!! Winning the game 9-8. A HUGE WIN.

The series is now tied 1-1

W: David Moran (1-0)
L: Arturo Ramirez (1-1)
HR: WLM: Walt Martin (1), Antonio Castaneda (1), NFK: Francisco Gallegos (1), Leonard Lawson (1), Bryant Frank (1), Sergio Galvez (1)

POG: WLM: Antonio Castaneda, 2-5, 2B, HR, R, 2 RBI

GM/Game Notes: Uh, not really sure what to say about this game, but wow. We just never gave up, we came from behind in the 1st, the 3rd and the 9th. Yes we lost the lead a few time as well, but we didn't give up and we kept on fighting. It says something about these guys... Miguel Angel Gonzalez threw better than his line score shows, one or two bad pitches was the difference. He ended up going 6 innings, allowing 9 hits and 7 runs. He didn't walk anyone and struck out 8. His game score was a 34... Armando Lopez threw 2 innings, giving up 3 hits and a run, while striking out 3 and David Moran pitched the 9th, walking 1 and striking out 1. Its nice having a solid bullpen to lean on... Arturo Ramirez won game 1, lost game 2 and blew saves in each game. It will be interesting to see if he is still their go to guy the rest of the series... The Cavaliers scored a playoff high 9 runs, only 11 hits. This is the second time during the playoffs the Cav's reach 11 hits. Every starter, but Pedro Torres had a hit, but every slot had at least 1 hit, when Trevor Parker stroked a PH single... Bob Short (both doubles) and Sergio Gavlez each had 2 hits, Galvez and Leonard Lawson each had 2 RBI... The Iron Pigs raked out 12 hits, the most against the Cavaliers staff this post-season, with Santiago Baez, Antonio Castaneda, Ralph Anderson and Pepe Santana all collecting 2. Castaneda, Santana and Walt Martin each had 2 RBI... Ex-Cav's Jose Escamillia went 0-4 and Pablo Feitas PH and went 0-1... Each team had at least one double, triple and HR... Jason Nixon went 6 innings for the Iron Pigs, allowing 7 hits and 6 runs, 3 of which were earned. He didn't walk anyone and struck out 4. His game score was 43... The Iron Pigs did take advantage of MAG's lack of ability to hold runners close, stealing 3 bases... Tom Anderson, the hero in Game 1, went 1-3 with an RBI, but left injured running out his double. His status for Game 3 is unknown at this time.

With the series tied we now have our #1 and #2 rested and ready to go in what is essentially a best of 5 series. That win was huge, and I hope we can take that momentum into Wilmington and win 2 of 3...

illeracula · 08-13-2015, 05:00 PM

2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 3 (Best of 7)
After winning game 2 I am feeling better, because I know I now have Paul Brown and Cornell Pearson rested and ready for games 3 and 4. It makes a huge difference knowing they are in your rotation. Brown has struggled recently, but seemed to break out of it during last series. I hope he is ready and brings his A game to Wilmington. He has always been very reliable for me during the playoffs (5-2 2.64 8 GS).

I am not sure if what I am doing makes sense or not against the lefty, but I juggled the lineup some to get right handed hitters in the game. Leonard Lawson and Henry Rojas will take a rest this game with Juan Hernandez and John O'Donegan getting the call in their place... Right or wrong, I feel like its the right move.

This is actually probably our best defensive lineup with the Catcher slot being a wash... O'Donegan will be a short leash as he hasn't hit well during his playoff career (3-32 .094). Hernandez is 1-5 for his playoff career, but Leonard Lawson has been hitting the ball well these playoffs (.308-2-6) I just like the righty/lefty match better... LL will be the first bat off the bench. Sergio Galvez is 2-13 and Francisco Gallegos 0-6 lifetime versus Mills, that could be huge...

LF Sergio Rodriguez, CF Sergio Galvez, 1B Francisco Gallegos, DH Bob Short, C John O'Donegan, RF Juan Hernandez, 2B Robinson Lopez, 3B Bryant Frank, SS Pedro Torres

The Cav's will be facing Irving Mills. The first lefty they will face during this series. Mills had a solid year for the Iron Pigs (10-2 2.19, 11 GS, 53 G), and had to mediocre starts during the Conference Championships. He is making his 4 playoff start, 3rd this season, and his 8th post-season appearance (1-0 6.55). He is a ground ball pitcher, with a GB% of over 70. The Cav's will need to manufacture their runs this game.

Tom Anderson who was hurt during game 2 has been listed as day-to-day with a mild hamstring strain. The Iron Pigs are going to take Tom and his 17% performance loss over anyone else and he will be in the lineup... and with that the Iron Pigs will be trotting out the same offensive lineup for game 3 as they did for game 2. There are a lot of "hot" hitters in the Iron Pigs lineup with their top 4 hitting over .310 during the playoffs. Antonio Castaneda is 4-20 with a Hr against Brown over his career and Pepe Santana, who may be the deciding factor for game 3, is 8 for 19 against Brown.

SS Gordon Purkis, RF Santiago Baez, C Antonio Castaneda, 3B Tom Anderson, 1B Ralph Anderson, DH Kevin Barber, LF Pepe Santana, CF Walt Martin, 2B Jose Escamilla

Will Brown be able to slow down the Iron Pigs bats? Will the Cavaliers lineup changes work out for the better or cost them a run or two? Can the Cavaliers carry the momentum from an crazy game 2 into game 3? I sure hope so, but there is only one way to find out...

Time to play ball:
Both teams went down 1-2-3 in the first. In the second the Cav's would catch a break, with 1-out John O'Donegan would hit a deep fly ball to center, it appeared that Walt Martin was camped under it, but he would drop it allowing O'Donegan to reach 2nd with a 2-base error. After a ground-out O'Donegan would cross the plate on a Robinson Lopez single. After 1 1/2 the Cav's would opening up the scoring 1-0.

The score remained unchanged 1-0 until the top of the 4th. With two-outs John O'Donegan hit a solo-HR, taking advantage of the short-RF wall (337ft). Earlier in the inning Francisco Gallegos was throwing out trying to stretch a double into a triple. I guess we've never heard of that "never make the first or last out at third base saying"... After 3 1/2 the Cav's held on to 2-0 lead.

Two innings ago Francisco Gallegos would make a bone-head move, making the first out of the inning at third, but in the 6th he would make up for it. with 2-outs he would take Mills 0-1 offering over the left-field wall (376ft). Thats all the Cav's would get, taking the 3-0 lead after 5 1/2.

In the bottom of the 6th Jose Escamillia would stroke a 2-2 single to right, for the first hit of the game for the Iron Pigs. The next batter Gordon Purkis would double down the left-field line, moving Escamilla to third. Santiago Baez would ground out to short, scoring Escamilla. Then Brown would step it up and strike out Antonio Castaneda and get Tom Anderson to ground out. The Iron Pigs would get one, however, cutting the Cav's lead to 3-1 after 6.

The Cav's would answer back in the 7th. After an O'Donegan strike-out and a Hernandez fly-out, Robinson Lopez would single to right. The next batter Bryant Frank would touch-up mills for the 3rd Cavaliers HR of the game, hitting a blast into the right-centerfield bleachers (414ft). Torres would strike out to end the inning, but the Cav's would get the run back, plus one. After 6 1/2 the Cav's hold the 5-1 lead.

The Cav's would pour it on in the 8th. It started with a lead-off walk to Sergio Rodriguez, which was followed by a Sergio Galvez FC. Galvez would move to second on a single by Francisco Gallegos. The next batter Bob Short would single to right to load the bases. John O'Donegan would single to center, scoring Galvez, keeping the bases loaded, and chasing starter Mills. Leonard Lawson, pinch-hitting for Hernandez would greet Vicente Rosas would a sac-fly to deep center, scoring Gallegos, and moving Short up to to third. With runners on first and third, Robinson Lopez would single to center, scoring Short and moving O'Donegan to second. The next hitter, Bryant Frank would single to left, scoring O'Donegan. Pedro Torres would fly-out ending the inning. But when the dust settled, the Cav's would score 4 runs on 5 hits to increase their lead to 9-1.

Paul Brown has been good for an ugly inning it seems over his past few starts, and this game was no different. The only problem is it was in the 8th, he was on a roll, and I had no one up in the bullpen... Jose Escamilla would get the inning started with a double to left. Gordon Purkis would go down swinging for out #1. Alec Case would PH and single into left, moving Escamilla to third. Antonio Castaneda would double to left-center, scoring both Case and Escamilla. With 2-runs in already, good 'ole Tom Anderson would add 2-more with a HR down the left-field line (358ft). With the bullpen active, Brown would strike out Ralph Anderson, then get Kevin Barber to fly out to end the inning. The Iron Pigs would get all 4-runs back, cutting the Cav's lead to 9-5 after 8.

In the 9th the Cav's would add some insurance. Lead-off man Sergio Rodriguez would walk, and Sergio Galvez would follow that with a 2-run HR clearing the RF line (333ft) by feet. Francisco Gallegos would scorch a single to right, but he was erased when Bob Short hit a liner back to first. John O'Donegan would end the inning with a ground out. The Cav's would add 2 insurance runs to increase their lead to 11-5, as we head into the bottom of the 9th.

Teo Ha, the only rested lefty in the pen, would come in to face the Iron Pigs lefties. Pepe Santana would lace a ball towards second, and Robinson Lopez would make a diving play and throw him out at first for out #1. The next batter Walt Martin would hit a ball into the left-center field cap that Leonard Lawson would track-down. Then switch-hitter Jose Escamilla would fly out to deep center to end the game. Another wild one in the books. The Cav's would take the win 11-5, and take a 2-1 series lead.

Cavaliers lead the series 2-1

W: Paul Brown (1-0)
L: Irving Mills (0-1)
HR: NFK: Francisco Gallegos (2), Sergio Galvez (2), Bryant Frank (2), John O'Donegan (1), WLM: Tom Anderson (4)

POG: Francisco Gallegos, NFK: 4-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, RBI

GM/Game Notes: Another wild game, which saw the Cav's collect the most hits and score the most runs during the 2026 post-season. Lead by Gallegos who had 4, Lopez who had 3 and Frank and O'Donegan who each had 2... John O'Donegan had a great day for a guy how hasn't seen much time lately. O'Donegan would collect 2 hits, 2 RBI's and score 3 times in 5 AB's. Giving Rojas a much needed day off... Paul Brown was on fire, not allowing a hit till the 6th, but then he would do his normal (of late) one inning blow up. he did complete 8 innings, allowing 7 hits and 5 runs. He walked 2 and struck out 8, for a game score of 54. It wasn't pretty, but he will take the win... Robinson Lopez was injured for the first round of the playoffs and almost left-off the roster for the Series. I am glad I decided to add him. He is having a solid series since joining the starting lineup. Today he had 3 hits, 2 RBI's and a run... Bryant Frank is stepping it up, its almost as if he can see the writing on the wall that his time in Norfolk is done after this season and he wants that title, just in case. Today Frank had 2 hits and 3 RBI's, including a HR... Jose Escamilla, had 2 hits and scored 2 runs, having his best game of the series... Tom Anderson and Antonio Castaneda, the big bats of the Iron Pigs, each had a hit and an RBI. Anderson connected on his 4th HR, despite playing at only 80%... Irving Mills gave up only 8 HR's over 531 batters faced during the regular season, today he gave up 3 over the 32 batters he faced! Mills was hit hard, allowing 9 runs, 8 of which were earned, on 9 hits, a walk and an error. He did strike out 6. His game score was only 31... Ex-Cav Jose Matos made his first appearance this series, going 1.0 inning, allowing a hit.

I was worried about starting O'Donegan and Hernandez, but it somewhat paid off. Hernandez didn't do much, but O'Donegan came through. Lawson even had sac-fly, so it worked out nicely. Now we are up 2-1 and have Pearson on the hill for game 4. The series is far from over, but I am feeling good about our chances. Game 4 will be big, and hopefully things will settle down. I really believe this series was just going to be a bunch of lower scoring games, battled out by singles, doubles and stolen bases. Boy have I been wrong so far...

illeracula · 08-14-2015, 04:25 PM

2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 4 (Best of 7)
Cornell Pearson has been there every time I needed him this season and today won't be any different. In what may be his only start of the Championship Series I will need Pearson to get me over the top and give us a big 3-1 lead. I need/want this game, because game 5 we face their ace and game 6 we have no idea who will be pitching... so for the sake of being safe, I will need Pearson to come through one more time... Pearson has been lights out this playoff season, allowing just 9 hits over 16 innings, and just 1 run. Hopefully he can carry that fire into this game...

Facing another lefty, John O'Donegan will be behind the plate and Juan Hernandez in RF. I am not 100% sure about having Hernandez in the lineup again, but we won last game, so I am going with it again... Robinson Lopez will be in the lineup again, but instead of playing for Flores, he will be in for the slumping Pedro Torres (.152 in playoffs). So again our defense will be tight, and our bats should be pretty solid as well.

We have some experience against Juan Rosario (he played in the MarVa Conf for most of his career) and most of it isn't great. John O (4-9) and Robinson Lopez (4-13) are the only Cav's that have hit over .250 (12+ AB's) against Rosario. Hopefully they will see the ball better against him today...

LF Sergio Rodriguez, CF Sergio Galvez, 1B Francisco Gallegos, DH Bob Short, C John O'Donegan, RF Juan Hernandez, 2B Robinson Lopez, 3B Bryant Frank, SS Claudio Flores

Juan Rosario will be making his 2nd playoff start of his career, his first won went great , as he shut-out the Brewers over 7.1 innings, allowing just 4 hits and striking out 6. He has put together one of his best seasons of his career, since moving over to the Delaware Conference this past season. Rosario was actually in the Cav's system from 2018-2019 in AAA. He joined the Cav's along with John Phillips in 2018 and was sent to Ocean City with Roberto Perez for Francisco Reyes... He is out to show the Cav's they made a mistake by getting rid of him.

The Iron Pigs have some experience with Pearson, with Pepe Santana being the top hitter hitting 7-18 with 2HR's. However, Pearson has kept Castaneda (8-30) and Tom Anderson (2-12) somewhat in check. Anderson is still listed as day-to-day and will be once again playing at, what he claims, as 80%... The Iron Pigs run out the same line-up as they have the past 2 games.

SS Gordon Purkis, RF Santiago Baez, C Antonio Castaneda, 3B Tom Anderson, 1B Ralph Anderson, DH Kevin Barber, LF Pepe Santana, CF Walt Martin, 2B Jose Escamilla

Two hot pitchers, ready to battle in the DelMarVa Championships. Maybe this game will be the low scoring game that I have predicted from the start...

Time to play ball:
The Cav's would get things started early, as lead-off man Sergio Rodriguez would single to center to start the inning. After a strike-out and a ground-out, that moved him to 2B, Rodriguez would come home to score on a stand-up double by Bob Short... The Cav's would take the early 1-0 lead.

I always question Bryant Frank's defense when I run him out there, and today it caught up to me. With 1 out, Ralph Anderson would hit a routine grounder to 3rd where Bryant Frank would flub it and he would be safe. The next batter Kevin Barber would double to left-center, moving Anderson to 3rd. Anderson then would score easily on a Pepe Santana sac-fly ot center. After 2 innings of play the score is tied at 1.

The Iron Pigs would threaten again in the 3rd... Jose Escamilla singled to lead things off, then with 1-out he would try to go from first to third on a Santiago Baez single to left. Testing the rookie, Jose Hernandez's, arm, which turned out to be a mistake a perfect throw got Escamilla at 3rd. The next batter, Castaneda, would go down swinging and the score would remain tied at 1.

After innings 3-4-5-6-7 went scoreless the Cav's would finally break the silence... facing new pitcher Edmond Scott he Cav's would put together a 2-out rally. After a 2-out single to right by Sergio Rodriguez. Scott would walk Galvez and Short to load the bases. Bob Short would come through with a 2-run double to right-center, scoring Rodriguez and Galvez. Eric Loveland would come to replace Scott, and Henry Rojas would hit for John O. Rojas would connect on the 2nd pitch he saw single to right, and scoring both Gallegos and Short. Juan Hernandez would go down swinging, but the Cav's would score 4, taking a 5-1 lead after 7 1/2.

With a 5-1 lead, Cornell Pearson will take the hill to face the Pigs #3, 4 and 5 hitters. Helton and Moran are ready in the pen... Antonio Castaneda grounds out to short for out #1, Tom Anderson would pop out to second for out #2, and Ralph Anderson would fly out to center field to end the game... The Cav's win 5-1 and now hold a 3-1 series lead.

W: Cornell Pearson (1-0)
L: Edmund Scott (0-1)

POG: Cornell Pearson, NFK, 9.0 IP, 5 H, R, 0 ER, BB, 6 K, PI 121, PS 84, GS 80

The Cavaliers lead the series 3-1

GM/Game Notes: Finally a pitching a duel. The Iron Pigs bullpen was only #6 in the Delaware Conference and their struggles continue in this series. Game 1, blow save, game 2, blown save and loss, game 3, Cav's scored 8 runs in the final 3 innings and today, 4 in the 8th... Juan Rosario put together another solid post-season start going 7 innings, and only allowing 4 Cavalier hits. He lowered his post-season ERA to 0.63. The downfall of Rosario is his stamina, rated at a 9, and it showed today, being pulled after 100 pitches. His game score today was a 70... Cornell Pearson yet another wonderful post-season start. This season in the post-season he is now 3-0, allowing 1 ER and 2 R's, for a 0.36 ERA! Today he went all 9, allowing just 5 hits, he did walk 1 and struck out 6. His game score was an 80. I needed Pearson to come through for me and he did, he has just been amazing all post-season, well really all season... Bob Short had his 2nd 2-double game of the series. Today he went 2-4, with a run and 3 RBI's... Sergio Rodriguez went 4-4, scoring two times and stealing a base... John O'Donegan couldn't continue the success in back-to-back starts, going 0-3, but Henry Rojas picked him up with a big 2-run PH single in the 8th... The Iron Pigs had 5 hits, 4 singles, the only extra-base hit was a double by Kevin Barber, which moved Ralph Anderson to third. He was the only Iron Pig to reach third, he also scored the lone run... Juan Hernandez didn't have a hit, going 0-4 with 2 strike-outs, but he might of made the biggest play of the game. Throwing out Escamilla at 3B in the 3rd inning, was a big momentum shifter for Pearson. He was the last base-runner to touch second base.

There is just not enough words that can be said about how well Pearson pitched. He has been amazing all season long, and I am happy that he has finally broke-out. I almost traded him each of the last 3 seasons, thinking he just was never going to put it all together. Well 2026 he has done that and more. I think I could even tolerate an "off" year next season...

illeracula · 08-17-2015, 01:52 PM

2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 5 (Best of 7)
Game 5 brings us a rematch of game 1 starters. Both starters put together great games, with the Iron Pigs Gonzalez going 8 innings and allowing just 1 earned run, while striking out 8, and the Cav's Coronado going all 9, allowing 5 hits, 1 earned run, while striking out 8 of his own... What will game 5 bring? The same pitching duel? A blow out of epic proportions? Who knows, but if the previous games of this series are any indication its going to be a tough fought battle.

Coronado has had a great post-season so far, and we hope he can continue it for one more start. During his two post-season starts he is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA, allowing just 13 hits in 16 innings. This is going to be a huge game for him, and we will need him to step it up.

With Pedro Torres and Claudio Flores unable to hit the ball with much consistency this series they will be on the bench again. Robinson Lopez will be in the #7 slot again, and batting 9th is the Short-stop making his first post-season start Carlos Franco. I am not sure what to expect with Franco, but he has a solid glove and I hope he brings that to the game today, more than anything else... I am hoping this lineup will be able to touch Gonzalez for more than 4 hits today, but it might be smart of us to play some small ball if we can get guys on base...

RF Sergio Rodriguez, CF Sergio Galvez, 1B Francisco Gallegos, LF Bob Short, DH Leonard Lawson, C Henry Rojas, 2B Robinson Lopez, 3B Bryant Frank, SS Carlos Franco

For as good as Coronado has been in the playoffs, so has Gonzalez. He is making his 3rd start and over the first two he was 0-0 2.25, allowing 13 hits and striking out 12 in 16 innings. He just hasn't been able to get any run support... its really hard to believe this kid is still only 23 years old...

For the Iron Pigs they go back to their starting lineup the used against Coronado, including the game 1 hero Tom Anderson. Anderson is still suffering from a slight hamstring strain and he is still claiming to be playing at about 80%... The Iron Pigs lineup was shut down by Coronado in game 1 and they are out for revenge against him this game...

SS Gordon Purkis, RF Santiago Baez, C Antonio Castaneda, 3B Tom Anderson, 1B Ralph Anderson, 2B Kevn Barber, DH Dave Bullock, LF Pablo Freitas, CF Pepe Santana

The ace, Gonzalez, is going up against red-hot lefty Coronado in game 5. A must win for the Iron Pigs if they want to play tomorrow. The Cav's would like to finish it off today and not have to worry about the final 2 games. The last game in Wilmington before the series heads back to Norfolk... who will it be??

Time to play ball:
After 3 the game is tied at 0-0, with the Cavaliers going hit-less and striking out 5 times, and the Iron Pigs collecting 3 hits...

In the 4th, after a Tom Anderson single, Sergio Rodriguez made a great catch on a Kevin Barber fly out down the RF line, but as he caught the ball he collided with the wall and ended up having to be removed from the game. Rookie Juan Hernandez was brought in to take his place, he will play CF with Sergio Galvez shifting to right. A double-play would end the threat and after four the game is still tied at 0.

With one-out in the top of the 5th Leonard Lawson would single to left, for the Cav's first hit of the game. That is all the fun they would have, and after 4 1/2 it is still 0-0.

The game would remain tied (Coronado went 7, Gonzalez 8.2) until the 10th when the Cav's finally broke open the goose eggs... With the Iron Pigs close, Arturo Ramirez, on the hill for his second inning, Leonard Lawson got the inning started with a single to right. Henry Rojas would fly out to the warning track in center. Robinson Lopez would draw a 3-2 walk to put runners on 1st and 2nd. Bryant Frank would strike out swinging... setting up Claudio Flores. On the 0-2 count Flores would take a defensive swing and hit a ball down to first, where Ralph Anderson would flub the play and the bases would be loaded... Juan Hernandez would come up to the plate and with two outs, the bases load, a 1-2 count, he would deliver a single to right-center field, scoring Lawson and Lopez. The rookie did it, bringing in 2 and giving the Cav's a HUGE 2-0 lead.

In the bottom half of the 10th Armando Lopez would be called upon to close out the game... Power hitting catcher Antonio Castaneda would strike out swinging. Tom Anderson would follow with a single to right. Ralph Anderson trying to make up for his error in the top of the 10th would just miss the 3-2 change-up and fly out to deep right-center... Kevin Barber would them fly out to shallow right, ending the game, and giving the Cavaliers the 2-0 victory and the 2026 DelMarVa Championship!!!!

W: David Moran (2-0)
L: Arturo Ramirez (1-2)
S: Armando Lopez (1)

POG: Ricardo Gonzalez, WLM, 8.2 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 8 K, 97 PI, 57 PS, 86 GS

Cavaliers Win the Series 4-1!!!

GM/Game Notes: Wow. Not much else could be said about this game. The Cavaliers had some issues scoring runs all season and had to rely on solid pitching and that is exactly what happened today and boy did they get it. Carlos Coronado went 7, shut out innings, allowing 6 hits, while walking 3 and striking out 1. He threw 114 pitches, 69 for strikes and posted a 63 game-score. He didn't have his A game, but he brought it... Eric Helton pitched a shut-out inning (8th), allowing a hit and walking one, David Moran pitched a perfect inning (9th) and Armando Lopez a shut-out inning, allowing a single... Arturo Ramirez had a rough series, he blew a save in Game 1 and Game 2, took 2 losses (1 & 5), and own game 2. Crazy series for the closer of the Iron Pigs... Ricardo Gonzalez held the Cav's to just 2 hits, who thought he could get any better than his game 1 performance... Leonard Lawson had two hits for the Cav's, and Francisco Gallegos had 1 hit, which was the only extra base hit for the Cav's a double... Tom Anderson went 3-5, Kevin Barber went 2-4 with a double, the only extra-base hit for the Pigs...

This had to be one of the most fun series I have ever played in. Yes its my 7th title here in Norfolk, and yes I think we can win next season too, but I am going to soak this one it. Nothing beats the first title, then last years title, which was a battle to win including a huge mid-season trade, and then this season. This year had it all. But these last 5 games were fun to play, they were wire to wire excitement and tension. Crazy... And yes I am very surprised we took the series 4-1, I figured we would be going home the losers this year, especially after game 1, and even more surprised that we won in 5 games.

Series MVP:
This was a really hard one to pick this season. I just didn't know where to go. My best player was Carlos Coronado, but can someone who had to ND's really get the MVP? He went 16 innings and psoted a 1.13 ERA and we only one 1 of his 2 starts... so that being said I could go with the Iron Pigs Gonzalez who went 16.2 IP, allowed just 6 hits and posted an ERA of 0.54! Crazy... While I debate the MVP with myself here is a list of the past DelMarVa Series MVP Winners:

2013 MVP of Series: Javier Uberuaga, Washington Senators, SP. 2-0, 15 IP 13 H, 3 BB, 9 K, 2.40 ERA
2014 MVP of Series: Carlos Rodriguez, Norfolk Cavaliers, RP. 1-0, 3 G, 2 SV, 5 K
2015 MVP of Series: Bruce Walker, Lewes, .450-2-10
2016 MVP of Series: Jose Rodriguez, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. .240-3-10, 5 R's
2017 MVP of Series: Miguel Contreras, Norfolk Cavaliers, SP. 2-0 16 IP, 8 H, R, 5 BB, 18 K
2018 MVP of Series: Derek Campbell, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. 11 H, 3 R, 3B, 2 HR, 10 RBI's
2019 MVP of Series: Matt Hollis, Norfolk Cavaliers, SP. 1-0, 9 IP, 9 K
2020 MVP of Series: Leonard Davis, Lewes Braves, OF. .481-2-4
2021 MVP of Series: Jamie Trulilio, Milford Clippers, SP. 2-0, 15.1 IP, 7 H, 9 BB, 8 K, 0 R
2022 MVP of Series: Seth Bennett, Milford Clippers, SP. 2-0, 1.42 IP, 9 H, 3 BB, 3 K, 1 R; 1-2 2B, 2 RBI
2023 MVP of Series: Cristobal Diaz, Lewes Braves, SP. 2-0, 13.2 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 16 K's, 0 R
2024 MVP of Series: Totoya Ogawa, Lewes Braves, 1B. 6 H (6-13), 2B, HR, 5 R, 2 RBI
2025 MVP of Series: Bob Short, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. .533-2-4 (8-15), 2 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 6 R

Here are a list of the finalist: Tom Anderson (.400-4-7), Ricardo Gonzalez (0-0 0.54), Carlos Coronado (0-0 1.13), David Moran (2-0 0.00, 2.2 IP, 3 G), Leonard Lawson (.333-1-4) and Sergio Rodriguez (.316-0-1, 5 R's)... but in the end, the MVP of the 2026 series is the same player who won the MVP last season, and our first multiple award winner, Congratulations to Bob Short the 2026 MVP of the DelMarVa Championship Series.

Game 1: 2-4, HR, R, RBI
Game 2: 2-4, 2 2B, R, RBI
Game 3: 1-5, R
Game 4: 2-4, 2 2B, R, 3 RBI
Game 5: 0-4

2026 MVP of Series: Bob Short, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. .333-1-5 (7-21), 4 2B, HR, 5 RBI, 4 R

In the end I went with a player on the winning team, and he did something in every game, but the last one. Congrats to Bob Short.

illeracula · 08-17-2015, 02:12 PM

Cavaliers KO Iron Pigs: Today the Norfolk Cavaliers won the 2026 League Championship with a 2-0 victory over the Wilmington Iron Pigs at Iron Pigs Ballpark. They won the series 4-1 and it was 7th time the victors have won the league title.

During the MarVa Conference Western Division regular season Norfolk posted a 103-59 record and claimed first place.

What's it like to win it all? "Words can't describe it," said the jubilant Cavaliers skipper. "It really hasn't sunk in. Maybe it will sink in when we go ride around Norfolk with the trophy. Right now, it's just a lot of fun. This is the one you work for ever since you first picked up a baseball. This is what you dream of and this is what you work toward all year."

In defeat, the Iron Pigs manager told the press, "There's not that much difference," he said. "I know we got beat 4-1, but bad teams don't make it to the League Championship. They just executed better than we did. We're a good baseball team. The Cavaliers were just better this time around. We'll be back again."

Norfolk Cavaliers Win 'Fall Classic' and Get Invited to the White House: Besides winning the big game and all of the accolades that go along with it, the President of the United States has already let the team know that he would like them to visit later this year. When speaking of the call he received from the POTUS, Cavaliers Manager, Arthur Ray, seemed a bit flustered. "He told us that he wants to meet the boys that won the Series and asked if we would come to the White House. I told him, "Hell Yes...er-Yes Sir, Mr President". While the date has not yet been decided, we will be reporting upon the exciting event.

==
In the end the Cavaliers won by being to score more runs. Yes I know that is how it is done, but these games were really all battles, our pitching staff was able to hold off their big offensive bats and our bats were able to eek out a few extra runs. Two of these games go extra's, one ends in a walk-off and one ended up in a shut-out... I mean really crazy series. The most fun one I can remember that is for sure.

The "big" difference of this series was injuries. We had our full-time all playing at 100%, where the Iron Pigs were down 3 players, and had one of their starts at 80% for games 2-5. Iron Pigs offensive players that missed the series:
Matt Fisher: .321-30-81
Alonso Martinez: .295-35-114
Chris Simpson: .270-10-52

Pretty big void in the offensive... Feels good to have title 7 under the belt and now I need to focus on the off-season and make sure we are built for title 8. The Senators keep getting tougher, and they have the budget to give us a run for the money. So we will see.... for the time being I am going to enjoy holding the title belt for consecutive years for the first time since '18-19... Congrats to the team...

NYY #23 · 08-17-2015, 02:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by illeracula

2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 5 (Best of 7)
Game 5 brings us a rematch of game 1 starters. Both starters put together great games, with the Iron Pigs Gonzalez going 8 innings and allowing just 1 earned run, while striking out 8, and the Cav's Coronado going all 9, allowing 5 hits, 1 earned run, while striking out 8 of his own... What will game 5 bring? The same pitching duel? A blow out of epic proportions? Who knows, but if the previous games of this series are any indication its going to be a tough fought battle.

Coronado has had a great post-season so far, and we hope he can continue it for one more start. During his two post-season starts he is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA, allowing just 13 hits in 16 innings. This is going to be a huge game for him, and we will need him to step it up.

With Pedro Torres and Claudio Flores unable to hit the ball with much consistency this series they will be on the bench again. Robinson Lopez will be in the #7 slot again, and batting 9th is the Short-stop making his first post-season start Carlos Franco. I am not sure what to expect with Franco, but he has a solid glove and I hope he brings that to the game today, more than anything else... I am hoping this lineup will be able to touch Gonzalez for more than 4 hits today, but it might be smart of us to play some small ball if we can get guys on base...

RF Sergio Rodriguez, CF Sergio Galvez, 1B Francisco Gallegos, LF Bob Short, DH Leonard Lawson, C Henry Rojas, 2B Robinson Lopez, 3B Bryant Frank, SS Carlos Franco

For as good as Coronado has been in the playoffs, so has Gonzalez. He is making his 3rd start and over the first two he was 0-0 2.25, allowing 13 hits and striking out 12 in 16 innings. He just hasn't been able to get any run support... its really hard to believe this kid is still only 23 years old...

For the Iron Pigs they go back to their starting lineup the used against Coronado, including the game 1 hero Tom Anderson. Anderson is still suffering from a slight hamstring strain and he is still claiming to be playing at about 80%... The Iron Pigs lineup was shut down by Coronado in game 1 and they are out for revenge against him this game...

SS Gordon Purkis, RF Santiago Baez, C Antonio Castaneda, 3B Tom Anderson, 1B Ralph Anderson, 2B Kevn Barber, DH Dave Bullock, LF Pablo Freitas, CF Pepe Santana

The ace, Gonzalez, is going up against red-hot lefty Coronado in game 5. A must win for the Iron Pigs if they want to play tomorrow. The Cav's would like to finish it off today and not have to worry about the final 2 games. The last game in Wilmington before the series heads back to Norfolk... who will it be??

Time to play ball:
After 3 the game is tied at 0-0, with the Cavaliers going hit-less and striking out 5 times, and the Iron Pigs collecting 3 hits...

In the 4th, after a Tom Anderson single, Sergio Rodriguez made a great catch on a Kevin Barber fly out down the RF line, but as he caught the ball he collided with the wall and ended up having to be removed from the game. Rookie Juan Hernandez was brought in to take his place, he will play CF with Sergio Galvez shifting to right. A double-play would end the threat and after four the game is still tied at 0.

With one-out in the top of the 5th Leonard Lawson would single to left, for the Cav's first hit of the game. That is all the fun they would have, and after 4 1/2 it is still 0-0.

The game would remain tied (Coronado went 7, Gonzalez 8.2) until the 10th when the Cav's finally broke open the goose eggs... With the Iron Pigs close, Arturo Ramirez, on the hill for his second inning, Leonard Lawson got the inning started with a single to right. Henry Rojas would fly out to the warning track in center. Robinson Lopez would draw a 3-2 walk to put runners on 1st and 2nd. Bryant Frank would strike out swinging... setting up Claudio Flores. On the 0-2 count Flores would take a defensive swing and hit a ball down to first, where Ralph Anderson would flub the play and the bases would be loaded... Juan Hernandez would come up to the plate and with two outs, the bases load, a 1-2 count, he would deliver a single to right-center field, scoring Lawson and Lopez. The rookie did it, bringing in 2 and giving the Cav's a HUGE 2-0 lead.

In the bottom half of the 10th Armando Lopez would be called upon to close out the game... Power hitting catcher Antonio Castaneda would strike out swinging. Tom Anderson would follow with a single to right. Ralph Anderson trying to make up for his error in the top of the 10th would just miss the 3-2 change-up and fly out to deep right-center... Kevin Barber would them fly out to shallow right, ending the game, and giving the Cavaliers the 2-0 victory and the 2026 DelMarVa Championship!!!!

W: David Moran (2-0)
L: Arturo Ramirez (1-2)
S: Armando Lopez (1)

POG: Ricardo Gonzalez, WLM, 8.2 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 8 K, 97 PI, 57 PS, 86 GS

Cavaliers Win the Series 4-1!!!

GM/Game Notes: Wow. Not much else could be said about this game. The Cavaliers had some issues scoring runs all season and had to rely on solid pitching and that is exactly what happened today and boy did they get it. Carlos Coronado went 7, shut out innings, allowing 6 hits, while walking 3 and striking out 1. He threw 114 pitches, 69 for strikes and posted a 63 game-score. He didn't have his A game, but he brought it... Eric Helton pitched a shut-out inning (8th), allowing a hit and walking one, David Moran pitched a perfect inning (9th) and Armando Lopez a shut-out inning, allowing a single... Arturo Ramirez had a rough series, he blew a save in Game 1 and Game 2, took 2 losses (1 & 5), and own game 2. Crazy series for the closer of the Iron Pigs... Ricardo Gonzalez held the Cav's to just 2 hits, who thought he could get any better than his game 1 performance... Leonard Lawson had two hits for the Cav's, and Francisco Gallegos had 1 hit, which was the only extra base hit for the Cav's a double... Tom Anderson went 3-5, Kevin Barber went 2-4 with a double, the only extra-base hit for the Pigs...

This had to be one of the most fun series I have ever played in. Yes its my 7th title here in Norfolk, and yes I think we can win next season too, but I am going to soak this one it. Nothing beats the first title, then last years title, which was a battle to win including a huge mid-season trade, and then this season. This year had it all. But these last 5 games were fun to play, they were wire to wire excitement and tension. Crazy... And yes I am very surprised we took the series 4-1, I figured we would be going home the losers this year, especially after game 1, and even more surprised that we won in 5 games.

Series MVP:
This was a really hard one to pick this season. I just didn't know where to go. My best player was Carlos Coronado, but can someone who had to ND's really get the MVP? He went 16 innings and psoted a 1.13 ERA and we only one 1 of his 2 starts... so that being said I could go with the Iron Pigs Gonzalez who went 16.2 IP, allowed just 6 hits and posted an ERA of 0.54! Crazy... While I debate the MVP with myself here is a list of the past DelMarVa Series MVP Winners:

2013 MVP of Series: Javier Uberuaga, Washington Senators, SP. 2-0, 15 IP 13 H, 3 BB, 9 K, 2.40 ERA
2014 MVP of Series: Carlos Rodriguez, Norfolk Cavaliers, RP. 1-0, 3 G, 2 SV, 5 K
2015 MVP of Series: Bruce Walker, Lewes, .450-2-10
2016 MVP of Series: Jose Rodriguez, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. .240-3-10, 5 R's
2017 MVP of Series: Miguel Contreras, Norfolk Cavaliers, SP. 2-0 16 IP, 8 H, R, 5 BB, 18 K
2018 MVP of Series: Derek Campbell, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. 11 H, 3 R, 3B, 2 HR, 10 RBI's
2019 MVP of Series: Matt Hollis, Norfolk Cavaliers, SP. 1-0, 9 IP, 9 K
2020 MVP of Series: Leonard Davis, Lewes Braves, OF. .481-2-4
2021 MVP of Series: Jamie Trulilio, Milford Clippers, SP. 2-0, 15.1 IP, 7 H, 9 BB, 8 K, 0 R
2022 MVP of Series: Seth Bennett, Milford Clippers, SP. 2-0, 1.42 IP, 9 H, 3 BB, 3 K, 1 R; 1-2 2B, 2 RBI
2023 MVP of Series: Cristobal Diaz, Lewes Braves, SP. 2-0, 13.2 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 16 K's, 0 R
2024 MVP of Series: Totoya Ogawa, Lewes Braves, 1B. 6 H (6-13), 2B, HR, 5 R, 2 RBI
2025 MVP of Series: Bob Short, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. .533-2-4 (8-15), 2 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 6 R

Here are a list of the finalist: Tom Anderson (.400-4-7), Ricardo Gonzalez (0-0 0.54), Carlos Coronado (0-0 1.13), David Moran (2-0 0.00, 2.2 IP, 3 G), Leonard Lawson (.333-1-4) and Sergio Rodriguez (.316-0-1, 5 R's)... but in the end, the MVP of the 2026 series is the same player who won the MVP last season, and our first multiple award winner, Congratulations to Bob Short the 2026 MVP of the DelMarVa Championship Series.

Game 1: 2-4, HR, R, RBI
Game 2: 2-4, 2 2B, R, RBI
Game 3: 1-5, R
Game 4: 2-4, 2 2B, R, 3 RBI
Game 5: 0-4

2026 MVP of Series: Bob Short, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. .333-1-5 (7-21), 4 2B, HR, 5 RBI, 4 R

In the end I went with a player on the winning team, and he did something in every game, but the last one. Congrats to Bob Short.

Congratulations on the back to back wins! I think your decision in game 2 to not go with Brown or Pearson on short rest was key. Nice work, and now it's time for three in a row!

illeracula · 08-18-2015, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYY #23

Congratulations on the back to back wins! I think your decision in game 2 to not go with Brown or Pearson on short rest was key. Nice work, and now it's time for three in a row!

Thanks. Its nice when it all comes together. The last 2 seasons have been battles and I have a feeling the Senators will be running us down soon, but for now we will bask in the title.

Three in a row is possible, since the same team should be returning next season with one or two minor changes. One thing that might be a worry is our starters. Brown, Pearson, Coronado will all be back, but #4 and #5 will both be young kids. We will see how it goes...

Now its time to get the off-season started...

illeracula · 08-18-2015, 02:05 PM

Off-Season Report #1
Before the off-season rewards have been announced, before the free-agents filed, and before the arbitration hearings the off-season has already been quite busy. We are one month into the off-season and teams are already wheeling and dealing...

Firings:
The Georgetown Sixteens, seem to fire someone every season and this year they cleaned house again. Letting GM Bill Brown (2 seasons) and MGR Jeff Callahan (1 season) after short stints with the team.

The Salisbury Ports decided to part ways with GM Ramon Mireles after 2 seasons. Mireles was the GM of the Iron Pigs from 2013-2022, just couldn't get anything going in Salisbury. He said he didn't have the time to invoke his theory into Salisbury. The Ports however weren't happy with the -18 game swing.

Free Agents:
There are a lot of hyped free-agents this upcoming season. As teams are frantically trying to extend their stars. These players include: CL Luis Deleon, OF Ricardo Hidalgo, 1b Matt Martin, SP Pedro Rivera, SP Brad Rose, 1B Francisco Reyes and CL Ed Yoder just to name a few. The free-agent season might be really crazy this year, with a lot of money changing hands.

Trades:
Christiana Blue Hens: Acquired SP Juan Torres (10-6 3.50) and $800,000 for prospect SP Jesus Miranda (AAA, #74) from the Salisbury Ports.

New Castle Colonials: Received MR Juan Fernandez (4-1 3.04) from the Richmond Cardinals for 2 prospects: RF Juan Aleman (A), LF Dave Snyder (A, #182)

Georgetown Sixteens: Got a new RF in Vance Burns from the Ellicott City Express for minor leaguer LF Jesus Rodriguez (AAA) and RF Kyel Olgethorpe (SA)

Lewes Braves: Acquired ex-Cav King Brock (.262/.335/.435, 13 HR) from the Chesapeake Blue Crabs for SS Rick England (.279/.340/.558, 2 HR) and LF Mario Ventura (A). I hope Brock can find a home in Lewes.

Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs: Received SP Mason Stanley (14-11 3.79) from the Milford Clippers for LF Roberto Alvarez (.283/.310/.467, 26 HR) and RF Pedro Valdes (A).

Ellicott City Express: Have a new SS in town. They traded for SS Gordon Purkis (.222/.306/.297, 5 HR) from the Wilmington Iron Pigs for CF Eugene St. John (.263/.311/.402, 11 HR) and CF Christian Palmer (SA)

Dover Generals: Gave up 4 prospects for MR Yoo-hyun Kim (1-5 3.05, 4 SV). The Lewes Braves received 3B Werner Porter (AAA), SP Johao Penalva (AA), LF Steve Kelly (SA) and CF Sergio Beneits (SA, #118). The Braves dumped Kim's $7M+ salary.

Retirements:
Francisco Durango has decided to retire at the age of 42. Durango finished his career with a solid season in Georgetown last year hitting .237-6-36. He was the first player in the DBL to steal 60+ bases, doing so in 2013. He is a well-known player in the DBL and retires with a .298 lifetime average, collecting 1941 hits. He was a 6-time all-star, and one of 12 players who have scored over 1000 runs.

Catcher Richard Taylor is also calling it quits at the age of 44. Taylor was one of the most feared power hitters when on the field, but injuries hurt him throughout his career. He won 1 Glove Wizard Award and is a 6-time All-Star. He finishes his career with a life-time .270 average with 251 HR's, 985 R's and 809 RBI's.

MR Eisse Bookelman and MR Will Wilson are both hanging up their cleats. They were trying to beat each other to 1000 games pitched this season, but injuries and age caught up with them. Bookelman finishes with 965 games, Wilson 976 (all-time leader). They are one of 4 players with over 900 games pitched. Wilson finishes with 200 career saves and a 76-58 record with a 3.38 ERA. Bookelman finishes with 129 saves, a 76-61 record with a 3.96 ERA.

And Cho-Yeong An, a 2 time all-star who won 20 games as a rookie in 2014. He finishes his career 110-101 with a 4.01 ERA. He started 224 games and pitched in 443 games over his career. He makes this list, because he is a player I had on my list of "wants" for a long time. He 19-9 2.80 in 2018 and that was the only season he came close to matching his rookie campaign.

Injuries:
Domingo Valencia continues to struggle getting healthy. He should be ready for spring, but his strained groin muscle just won't heal. The 29-year old was having an MVP'esq season before suffering the injury. He should be able to lift weights again in 2 weeks.

Team Report:
Budget: $148,000,000 (11th)
Payroll: $97,280,000 (10th)
$ for Free-Agents: $31,650,000
$ for Extensions: $21,650,000
Fan Interest: 98

Bill Parker increased our budget by 4$M this season. We are 11th out of 30 teams so still in the upper half.

Arbitration:

We are going to get hit with 2 big raises this season, Short and Gonzalez. Not too bad. I am looking to moving Frank and possible signing longer term deals with Lawson, Short and Gonzalez. I do feel like I need to make my mind up with Armando Lopez, his salary is getting a little crazy and he is sort of a pitcher without a position. Do I start him? Close him? Trade him? Something to thing about this off-season.

Free Agents:
SS Augusto Rodriguez only had 79 AB's this seasons failing to reach his 150 vesting option, which was worth $5,650,000. Rodriguez a 4-time Glove Wizard Award winner has seen his abilities drop over the past few seasons. The Cav's will not try to renegotiate with him and we will be saying goodbye to him. ARod came to Norfolk via the inaugural draft in 2013, a 17th round pick. He has been with the Cav's since 2015 and he will be missed. He is the last of the "original" Cavaliers. There will be great debate if ARod's #16 will hang on the Cav's Hall when his career is over.

SP/MR Miguel Contreras pitched 147.1 innings this season falling 2.2 innings short of his vesting option requirement of 150. Contreras is still a solid pitcher, but on the "ace" that he once was. His velocity is down to the mid-80's when it was once in the upper 90's, which in turn has made his "stuff" drop from a 18 to a 8. Contreras has pitched with the Cav's since 2017 and is 2 wins shy of 250. He has won the Golden Arm Award 7 times and holds almost all the Cavaliers career pitching records. ERA: 2.29, Wins: 175, Starts: 295, IP: 2142.2, K's: 1866... as well as plenty of single season records. His #29 will join the others on the Cav's Hall-of-Fame when he retires that is for sure.

Other Free Agents this season include Adrian Otero, who signed for depth and pitched in 1 game. John O'Donegan who was a play-off hero and maybe back with this team. Have I given up on Baldwin and Bolton? Ira Daniels and Jeffrey Millers, both 3* players who haven't seen any big-league time yet.

All-in-all there are 21 free-agents most of them minor leaguers who will never see the big's. I could probably use a little parring of my minors.

We did sign Chris White to a minor league deal. He was a free-agent to be. Last season he hit .341-3-9 in AA. Just a fresh body with lots of power.

Trades:
I am looking into pulling off a trade or two this off-season. Mainly I want to get rid of Bryant Frank and his $5M salary. With Bob Short aiming to get a huge raise this season I am looking to make sure my budget numbers work. I enjoyed having money to play with during the mid-season something I haven't been able to do in Norfolk in a few years.

We pulled off a minor deal with the Newark Millers. Trading free-agent to be MR Jeffrey Miller for a 15th round draft pick. I figured if we could get something for him it was better than nothing.

Injuries:
Sergio Rodriguez who was hurt during the last game of the DelMarVa Championship series was diagnosed with a torn menisucs. He will be out of base-ball activities for around 4 weeks, however he will be with the team when they visit the White House.

Retirements:
Pitching Coach Werner Meade has decided to hang it up. He has been with Norfolk since the beginning (I think, I can't pull up his file). I remember Meade as a guy who didn't have great ratings, but I was always afraid to let go, because our pitching always was strong. He had a great career and I am sorry I can't share his stats at this time.

Personnel:
With pitching coach our only hole to fill we have started our search. We are in talks with Francisco Burgos who has "legendary" skills. He has been the pitching coach for the Vancouver Bears in single-A for the past 7 seasons... He likes our offer, but nothing has been signed yet... a week later he signs on for a 5-yr deal worth $560,000/yr. We like his ratings: Handle Rookies, Veterans, Players: Legendary, Teach Pitching: Legendary... hopefully that is all we need.

Coming up:
-Off Season Awards
- Arbitration Hearings
- Free Agent Filings
- Rule-5 Draft
- Winter Meetings
- 2027

illeracula · 08-18-2015, 02:50 PM

Glove Wizard Award Winners in DE Conf Announced: What does it take to win a Glove Wizard Award? It's a combination of good hands, knowing how to play the hitters, all-out hustle and a willingness to sacrifice your body to make a play. Good speed and a good arm never hurt, either, but not always required. This year's all-defense team in the Delaware Conference consists of:

Pitcher: Fernando Fareles (Milton Brewers)
Catcher: José Perales (Newark Millers)
First Baseman: Alonso Martínez (Wilmington Iron Pigs)
Second Baseman: Berend Middelkamp (Milton Brewers)
Third Baseman: Tom Anderson (Wilmington Iron Pigs) - 5th time
Shortstop: Cisco Benítez (Milford Clippers) - 2nd time
Left Fielder: Emory Phillips (Milford Clippers)
Center Fielder: Mike Johnson (Milton Brewers)
Right Fielder: José Montoya (Christiana Blue Hens)

MVConf Names Glove Wizard Award Choices for 2026: The Glove Wizard Award winners don't get the recognition of the home run hitters, but they are very much appreciated by managers, their teammates and by the fans, who know the value of defensive excellence. Great defense makes a difference in baseball. This year's top glovemen in the MarVa Conference are:

Pitcher: Bartolo Morán (Salisbury Ports)
Catcher: Luis Romero (Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs)
First Baseman: Francisco Gallegos (Norfolk Cavaliers) - 2nd time
Second Baseman: Steven Jefferson (Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs)
Third Baseman: José Bueno (Ocean City Tourists)
Shortstop: Anthony Lucarelli (Richmond Cardinals) - 4th time
Left Fielder: Tyler Forrest (Ocean City Tourists)
Center Fielder: Felipe Herrera (Salisbury Ports) - 2nd time
Right Fielder: Sergio Rodriguez (Norfolk Cavaliers)

Comments:
There were only 5 repeat winners of the 18 Glove Wizard Awards given out, which is a pretty high amount of new winners. Two Cavaliers, Sergio Rodriguez and Francisco Gallegos walked away with a Glove Wizard award, it was the second time Gallegos won the award, winning it in 2024. There were also 2 rookies that walked away with the award, both in the Delaware Conference Mike Johnson of the Brewers and Jose Montoya of the Blue Hens.

Record Holders:
Kent Davis and Peter Peters both have won the Award 7 times, Davis in center, Peters in right. Mike Simmons, who didn't win it this year, stands as the only player with 6.

illeracula · 08-18-2015, 03:16 PM

Johnson Best Rookie This Year: It was a standout 2026 season for Mike Johnson. The center fielder for the Milton Brewers has been named the winner of the Delaware Conference Newcomer Award. He hit .274 in 156 games with 179 hits and 72 RBIs and scored 112 runs.

Torres Is MVConf's Best Rookie: The top-ranked rookie performer in the MarVa Conference was Norfolk second baseman Pedro Torres. It was announced today by league officials that he had been named the winner of the 2026 Newcomer Award. Torres chalked up some good season stats, including a .292 batting average and .359 on-base percentage, while racking up 10 home runs, 49 RBIs and 61 runs scored.

Comments:
Mike Johnson was the talk of the 2025 draft, and he ended up being the first man taking by the Milton Brewers out of the U. He signed a minor league deal for a whooping $9,350,000 signing bonus. After playing in 65 games in A-ball the Brewers gave him a cup-of-coffee. That cup translated convinced the Brewers that he was ready, and in 2026 he was given a starting job.

The Brewers have had Newcomer of the Year winners 4 times now, in 2017 with 1B John Bean, 2018 with SP Carlos Hernandez and last season OF Edward Barnes.

Pedro Torres signed a minor league contract out of the Dominican Republic with the Washington Senators in 2020. In 2024 he was traded to the Cavaliers. And this season he got the call when injuries struck the Cavaliers and he hit the ball so well, he stayed in the starting line-up wherever the Cav's could fit him. He played 4 games at 1B, 87 at 2B, 15 at third and 18 at shortstop.

I have no issue with Johnson walking away with the award he by far put together the best season, but I am surprsied that (and happy) that Torres won the MarVa award. He had a great year, but I figured our catcher Henry Rojas would end up beating him out (.297-18-65, 83 G). Either way I am happy with the results.

This is the Cavaliers 6th time to have a Newcomer of the Year winner. In 2013 OF Pablo Freitas won the award, in 2013 SS Tony Soto, in 2018 SP Arturo Ramirez and in 2020 C John O'Donegan. Its nice to see a rookie from Norfolk back on the list. I make a lot of trades, but I always make sure I have a nice pipeline of youth and we have these 6 awards to show for that.

illeracula · 08-18-2015, 03:26 PM

DEConf Top Skipper is Guardio of Milton: Milton Brewers field manager Guilherme Guardio has brought a winning attitude to the team and the city. His no-nonsense approach, work ethic and baseball experience has paved the way for success.

This season the Brewers parlayed his managerial skills and some talented ballplayers into a first place spot in the Delaware Conference Southern Division standings. Milton finished the year with a 91-71 record.

To everybody's delight Guardio was voted the 2026 Delaware Conference Manager of the Year by the baseball writers.

"Mr. Guardio doesn't take any stuff. If you aren't doing your job, he's not afraid to call you on it," noted one of his ballplayers. "But the team wouldn't want to play for anyone else. He's tough, demanding, but he treats everyone fairly and doesn't play favorites. Nobody gets pampered on his ballclub."

Ray Garners MVDIV Top Skipper Award: The Norfolk Cavaliers coaching staff broke out the bubbly when Manager Arthur Ray was announced as 2026 MarVa Conference Manager of the Year.

He skippered the Cavaliers to a 103-59 record this year and a first place finish in the MarVa Conference Western Division.

To a man, they all agreed that their boss was most deserving of the award. All had glowing words to say about this year's winning manager.

"He just has a way with people. Coaches and players alike love him."

Comments:
Guardio took over the helm of the Brewers in 2025 and in his second year he took a young team and shocked the DBL with a conference title. This is the third time Guardio has won the manager of year, winning in 2014 and 2016 with the Dover Generals. He has managed 4 different teams, since 2013, with the exception of 2022 when he was a bench coach. His overall record is 1037-1069 .492 with 4 playoff appearances.

Ray has been in Norfolk since 2017 when he signed on as the bench coach and in 2023 he took over as the manager. He has won the Manager of the Year award ever since. In his 4 seasons as the Cavaliers manager he has compiled a career record of 434-214 .670, with 4 playoff appearances and 2 titles.

illeracula · 08-18-2015, 03:44 PM

Top DEConf Pitcher Announced: The Golden Arm Award for 2026 has been presented and the Delaware Conference winner is Ricardo González of Wilmington.

"It's always nice to receive an award like this," said González. "I just hope I can improve on my performance next year and be in the running again," the Iron Pigs star told reporters.

González excelled with an impressive 24-4 record in 34 starts. In 240.1 innings he yielded 163 hits and 60 walks, while striking out 310 and compiling a fine 2.10 ERA.

MVConf Gives Best Pitcher Award: This year there was no one better on the mound than Cornell Pearson. Posting 23 wins and a 2.16 ERA was only part of the story for the Norfolk superstar. For his outstanding performance in 2026 he was chosen as the MarVa Conference Golden Arm Award winner.

From start to finish Pearson never let up. In 32 starts he recorded 23 wins and 4 losses, 233 innings, 204 strikeouts, 36 walks, yielded 169 hits, and permitted opposing batters to hit .198 against him.

Comments:
No real surprise here. The 23-yr old Gonzalez is a beast winning the award for the second time. He became the first player in DBL history to strike out 300 in a season and he seems to keep getting better. I am curious of what next season will bring...

This seasons that Pearson had was the season I have been waiting for him to have. His ratings have always been great, but he has always slumped at one point or another. The past few seasons he started off red-hot only to slump so much in the 2nd half that I almost traded him away. Him winning this award makes me feel good, because I stuck to him. I just hope he can return in 2027 and put

illeracula · 08-18-2015, 03:58 PM

Ricardo Hidalgo Gets Best Bat Trophy: It was a pay-raising season for Christiana's left fielder. Regardless of where Ricardo Hidalgo signs on next year, this 2026 Delaware Conference Silver Slugger Award will be considered a marquee pickup.

He excelled with 203 hits, 34 doubles, 6 triples, 52 home runs and 127 RBIs while compiling a .320 batting average.

Jason Atkins Captures Best Bat Trophy: Jason Atkins, the Washington center fielder, certainly made an impression on MarVa Conference pitchers this past season. He punished them for 191 hits in 593 at-bats, 31 doubles, 3 triples, 56 home runs, and 136 RBIs and scored 132 times.

That standout hitting earned him the MarVa Conference Silver Slugger Award for 2026.

Comments:
Hidalgo is a free-agent this season and I will be surprised if he resigns with the Blue Hens. he won the triple crown this season with a monster year, proving how good he is if he can stay healthy. Looking at his injury log you see a long list of injuries. In fact since he came up in 2019 this is the second season that he has played in 140+ games (2021). Last year 114, the previous 86. I would be weary of signing him, but he is a total stud when he is on the field.

Jason Atkins finished the seasons with the leagues 6th best average and 2nd in RBI's, as well as leading the league in runs, total bases, extra base hits and WAR. At 26-yrs old I don't think this will be the last time we see his name under Silver Slugger...

illeracula · 08-24-2015, 01:46 PM

Off-Season Report #2

Off-Season Report
WAR Leaders:
Milton Brewers, +3.2
Annapolis Admrials, +2.3
Washington Senators, +2.2
Georgetown Sixteens, +2.1
Newark Millers, +1.7

WAR Losers:
Salisbury Ports, -9.7
Dover Generals, -9.1
Ocean City Tourists, -9.1
Baltimore Barons, -6.9
Lewes Braves, -6.7

Free Agents:
The free-agents field so the crazy season will now itensifiy:
This year's top free agents, courtesy of BNN, are:
1. Ricardo Hidalgo, 28 year-old left fielder
2. Shawn Brock, 32 year-old starting pitcher
3. Robert Walker, 39 year-old starting pitcher
4. Shumei Ishikawa, 27 year-old third baseman
5. Miguel Contreras, 38 year-old closer
6. Jaime Trujilio, 30 year-old starting pitcher
7. Vincent Parker, 33 year-old starting pitcher
8. Manuel Martínez, 29 year-old shortstop
9. Oliver Nelson, 26 year-old starting pitcher
10. Germán Alvarado, 29 year-old starting pitcher

Free-Agent Signings
The big names:
SP Pedro Rivera (Milton Brewers), 3 years / $49,200,000 - Rivera has 152 career wins all with the Ocean City Tourists over his 12-year career. He is a model of consistency, and will make a nice addition to the Brewers staff. At 34-years old he still has a couple more good years left.

C Marvin Martin (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $23,500,000 - When Healthy Martin is an above average, but he hasn't been healthy much over the past 2 seasons. Last year he played in 27 games, the year before 78. He his a lifetime .261-209-849 hitter and has been in the league since 2013. At 38, Martin is ready for a resurgence.

LF Ricardo Hidalgo (Washington Senators), 6 years / $105,600,000 - The Senators now have the reigning Delaware Conference (Hidalgo) and MarVa Conference (Jason Atkins) Silver Sluggers in their out-field. Falling to the Cavalires in the final months over the pat 2-seasons the Senators look to change that with adding another bat to their already powerful offense. Hidalgo is injury prone, but when he is healthy he is lethal as he proved last season. With the addition of Hidalgo the Senators now have 3 players who hit over 50 HR's and drove in 125 runs in their lineup, last season!!

CL Ed Yoder (New Castle Colonials), 3 years / $39,800,000 - Even at 32 Ed Yoder is still on of the games best closers. Last season for hte Blue Crabs and Admirals he saved 35 games and posted a 1.73 ERA. This was the 8th time in his career that he has topped the 27 save mark. He now has 273 career saves and should hit 300 this season, making him the 3rd DBL player to reach that mark.

The others:
C Byran Pearson (Newark Millers), 2 years / $1,460,000
CL Eugene Carpetner (Annapolis Admirals), 2 years / $7,040,000
SP Cesar Ayala (Seaford Blue Jays), 2 years / $1,430,000
SP Jacob Holder (Seaford Blue Jays), 2 years / $3,720,000
SP Tyrone Parker (Seaford Blue Jays), 2 years / $1,480,000

Trades:
Annapolis Admirals: Acquired RF Armando Vazquez (.320/.357/.487, 16 HR) from the Ocean City Tourists in return for MR Kevin Snyder (2-5 5.37, 15 SV) and prospect C Harris Marshall (SA, #93)

Seaford Blue Jays: Acquired prospect MR Jacob Young (0-0 1.35, 2 SV, #12), SS Dan Riddell (.259/.304/.369, 5 HR) and $950,000 cash, from the Christiana Blue Hens for LF Felipe Pagado (.295/.368/.547, 37 HR).

Dover Generals: Acquired OF Tom Dundee (.240/.285/.401, 15 HR) and $1,200,000 cash from the Seaford Blue Jays in return for MR Jesus Espinosa (2-8, 4.16, 13 SV) and LF Vincente Aguilera (A)

New Castle Colonials: Acquired MR Tariel Ratishvilli (5-7 3.53, 4 SV) from the Georgetown Sixteens for minor leaguer 3B Falco Evers (A)

Dover Generals: Received SS Tim Barber (.231/.302/.409, 18 HR) and 3B Roman Segard (A) from the Christiana Blue Hens for C Everett Foley (.240/.327/.380, 3 HR).

Salisbury Ports: Acquired MR Jesus Rodriguez and his salary ($2,400,000) from the Ellicott City Express in return for SS Yok-sing Gong (AAA) and 2B Ed Millers (SA)

Richmond Cardinals: Sent 2B Dan Bernard (.251/.340/.356, 5 HR) and $3,000,000 cash to the Seaford Blue Jays for SP Howard Hanson (7-9 5.21).

New Castle Colonials: Dealt a prospect SP Greyson Jacques (A, #11) and another minor leaguer (3B Joe Lacy, SA) to the Baltimore Barons in return for SP Jesse Meyers (8-7 3.80, 1 SV)

Team Report:
Budget: $148,000,000 (11th)
Payroll: $103,040,000 (7th)
$ for Free-Agents: $24,730,000
$ for Extensions: $4,940,000
Fan Interest: 100

Arbitration:

Before the Arbitration date we came to terms with 4 players. I also tried to shop Bryant Frank around, but wasn't pleased with what is out there. I will have to do it again down the road, but I don't foresee him in a Cav's uniform to start the 2027 season.

I am not a huge fan of the amount of money Armando Lopez is going to make, but I figured he had one more year of arbitration and then I didn't want to lose him. So I extended him. Yes I know that makes me sound a little crazy, but I did it. He agreed to a 3yr deal: year 1: $8,300,000, year 2: $8,500,000, year 3: $9,300,000.

After what he did this season and throughout the playoffs I felt like I had to get Carlos Coronado locked up for a few more years. I feel like we got him at a nice discount. We signed him for 4 year deal, with the 4th year being a team option: year 1: $6,490,000, year 2: $7,490,000, year 3: $7,490,000, year 4: $8,490,000.

Leonard Lawson was set to get some crazy arbitration numbers over the years, so I felt like I should get him before that happened. I singed the 24 year old to a 4 year deal, which is very favorable to us (I think). Year 1: $6,740,000, Year 2: $7,470,000, Year 3: $7,470,000, Year 4: $8,470,000.

And finally we signed Bob Short to a deal, this deal was a little more costly than I wanted but it was the only way I could get him through is Arbitration years, and not go broke. We have him on 4 year deal, with the 4th year being a team option. Year 1: $10,490,000, Year 2: $11,490,000, Year 3: $11,490,000, Year 4: $11,490,000.

The rest of the players went to arbitration and here is how it turned out:
Robinson Lopez: WON - $3,600,000
David Moran: LOST - $2,310,000
Bryant Frank: WON - $5,000,000
Miguel Angel Gonzalez: LOST - $3,500,000
Mark Bolton: WON - $850,000

All in all I am pleased with how the arbitration hearings went. Nothing to crazy. So I will chalk this year up to a win for my arbitration.

Free Agents:
SS Augusto Rodriguez, SP/CL Miguel Contreras, MR Adrian Otero, and C John O'Donegan all became free-agents.

I did try to resign O'Donegan, but he wanted a multi-year deal worth way too much for my blood. I have 2 hot-shot catchers in the minors who hopefully will be ready in a year or two, making me shy away from the multi-year deal.

Roster Moves:
We added 3 players, SP Alberto Ramos, 2B Edgardo Perdnard, and 3B Angel Hernandez to our 40-man roster to protect them from the up coming Rule-5 draft.

Rule-5 Draft:
We didn't draft anyone, but we did lose 2 players:
2B Nelson Barrera - Barrera will try to make the team for the Georgetown Sixteens and we wish him luck. He has been toiling around in our AA system the past 2 years. We signed him in 2019 out of the Dominican, and I think he will put up some average numbers for the Sixteens. Great with the glove, decent with the bat, no power. From Alexis Shelton "Destined to be a career minor leaguer" so we will see.

RF Steve Ingram - Ingram was our 2nd round pick in the 2022 draft and never became the player we expected. He still has some growth to do. He is a below average contact hitter, that shows off some power, and an slightly above average fielder. He hasn't played above A ball for us in Norfolk. From our scout Alexis Shelton: "Ingram is a below average hitter. Too timid at the plate, and just ins't consistent enough to be reliable".

I will have to keep an eye on these guys to see how they do.

GM Notes:
At this time I am not sure what my off-season goals are. I know right? How could I not be prepared... well we have so much youth that is ready to be called up I am feeling that growing from within makes more sense. I have to figure out if I want to keep Frank around or deal him and if I deal him I will try to do it during the Winter Meetings. I would like a prospect in return, and will not deal away my prospects either.

I will have to break down my roster and see what I have, so I don't go into 2027 unprepared. Watching the Senators boost themselves up is quite scary, so I better start to focus on things now...

Coming up:
- Cavaliers Team Report
- Winter Meetings
- 2027

illeracula · 08-25-2015, 03:50 PM

Cavaliers Roster Overview for 2027

Going into winter meetings I figured I should break down my team and see what I may need or want for the 2027 season. For the most part this team is the same team that won the Championship last season, with the only "real" exception the loss of Miguel Contreras. I did lose my back-up catcher John O'Donegan, a middle reliever who threw in 1 game and my 3rd string short-stop... this break down, however may make me chase down John O for another year or two deal. We will have to see...

The Offense:
We have 20 position players on our 40-man.

Catcher:
Henry Rojas (L)
Mark Bolton (L)
Mike Baldwin

We could live with these 3 catchers on the roster, but I think I would rather have a better back-up for Rojas. Bolton has average ratings, but just hasn't been able to hit in Norfolk. He is also a lefty. Baldwin is a better hitter than Bolton, but isn't a good fielder. It is going to be a tough call. We are waiting for Gino Macciocchi to be ready and he will make a nice RH back-up catcher with Rojas. Macciocchi is 21 and a switch hitter, he played 34 games in AAA last year and may end up there again. (Contact: 8/10, Gap: 14/14, HR: 6/16, Eye: 5/9, K's: 7/9)

First Base:
Francisco Gallegos (S)

Francisco is our only true 1B on the roster, but we have many other players that are capable of playing the position. The 2-time Glove Wizard winner is a solid hitter and will be back in the middle of the lineup in 2027.

Second Base/Shortstop/Third Base:
Robinson Lopez (2B/3B)
Pedro Torres (2B/SS)
Claudio Flores (SS)
Bryant Frank (2B/SS)
Mario Vazquez (S) (SS/2B)
Carlos Franco (3B/SS/2B)
Angel Hernandez (3B)
Edgardo Perdnard (2B)

This is where the offense side of the ball gets a little interesting. Last season we had 4 primary guys, which will be how it is (most likely) again this season. Here is how it broke down last year:
Lopez played 60 games at 2B, 72 at 3B and 13 at SS.
Torres played 4 games at 1B, 87 at 2B, 15 at 3B and 18 at SS.
Flores played 11 games at 2B and 110 at SS.
Frank played 18 games at 2B, 38 at 3B and 18 at SS.

I would like a little more stability in the infield this season and maybe even a lefty. I am not sure it will be worth blowing up these 4 guys, but maybe it will. I have a feeling Frank won't be happy not-starting. Plus we have Angel Hernandez who is pretty much ready to contribute (Con: 9/9, Gap: 11/11, Power 12/13, Eye: 10/12, K's: 8/8), but really only plays 3B, so that may play into my decision.

I'd like to use Torres at 2B, Lopez at 3B and then Flores at SS. Flores isn't the fielder I thought he was going to be, but maybe with another year under his belt he will get better. That leaves Frank the odd man out. Vazquez is a fielder not really a hitter. Perdnard is a fragile guy, but stormed on the scene last year when I rule-5'd him and converted him into a hitter. Franco is the only reserve who doesn't have any options.

Outfield:
Sergio Galvez (L) (CF/LF/RF/1B)
Sergio Rodriguez (LF/RF/CF/1B)
Bob Short (L) (LF/RF)
Leonard Lawson (L) (LF)
Trevor Parker (L) (RF)
Juan Hernandez (CF/RF/LF)
Juan Taveares (RF/CF)

The outfield is pretty set, and will work the same was as last season. Galvez in CF, the power bat, Rodriguez in RF the stealer, Short in LF, consistency, Lawson at DH with Parker filling in everywhere else.
Here is the position break-down from last year:
Galvez played in 156 games, all but 4 in CF.
Rodriguez played 127 games in RF, 12 in LF.
Short played in 97 games in LF.
Lawson was my primary DH playing in 142 games.
Parker played 31 games in LF and RF, 7 in CF and DH'd the rest.

Hernandez only played 17 games with the Cav's last season. A big booming bat, with speed, he is on the cusp of making this team for good. He was rated the #69th prospect in the DBL, however I am not sure if he is "ready" or if I am "ready". Hernandez would need to take over Parker's role, or I would need to move someone.

Tavares was the DBL's #98 prospect last season, but only played in 64 games after tearing his ACL. He is expected to miss about 4 more months. Tavares will be back in AAA this year, but will be ready soon.

The problem is, if I don't make any moves, our starting 4 will all be in Norfolk for 3 more seasons...

On the cusp, and not on the 40-man:
Oliver Ramos (1B) - More of a DH type, but knows how to play first. His bat is just about ready for the bigs. (Contact; 11/14, Gap: 12/13, HR: 10/16, Eye: 12/14, K's: 8/9) Last year in AAA he hit .341-28-110. At 22 he could probably use another year of seasoning, but should see some Cav's time this season.

Ramon Lorenzo (SS) - The defensive SS of the future. Last season he played in AA and this year he will move up to AAA. His ratings are just about big-league ready, but at 20 years old he could use some more growth (Contact; 9/11, Gap: 14/14, HR: 4/10, Eye: 7/11, K's: 12/16). In AA last year he hit .300-16-88, and his future is very promising. He could see his way to the Cavaliers later in the year depending on how he develops.

Blake Quirke (LF/CF) - Quirke moved up from A to AAA this season and excelled at each spot. A: .281-11-56, AA: .315-7-17, AAA: .329-4-12. He is close and its nice to see, as he is one of MY first round picks. I'd like him to see AAA again this year, but he is another one who is creeping up on us... (Contact; 9/11, Gap: 13/13, HR: 11/14, Eye: 7/9, K's: 10/14)

Dennis Nichols (C) - He might be an answer to my back-up-catcher problem, but he hasn't played over A ball yet. At 23, he hit .255-12-62 in A last year. But he has decent ratings and could fill in just as good as Bolton and Baldwin. Plus he is a righty that will work nicely with Rojas. (Contact: 7/8, Gap: 14/14, HR: 8/12, Eye: 10/12, K's: 6/7)

Offense thoughts:
Our line-up is pretty set, but I do think there are some questions that need to be answered. Do I move Frank? Do I keep Parker as my rotating outfielder? And finally who is going to be my back-up infielder? Frank? Franco? At least the starters are set.

Here is the proposed lineup for opening day:
Sergio Rodriguez - RF
Sergio Galvez - CF
Francisco Gallegos - 1B
Bob Short - LF
Pedro Torres - 2B
Henry Rojas - C
Leonard Lawson - DH
Robinson Lopez - 3B
Claudio Flores - SS

The Pitchers:
We have 18 pitchers on the 40-man and a minor leaguer who is pretty much going to be on the 40-man by the time spring training rolls around, but one thing we don't have is a true lights-out closer. I have some ideas about that, but I am not sure...

Starters:
Paul Brown
Cornell Pearson
Carlos Coronado (L)
Joaquin Hernandez

These four are my 1-4 for the season. I really like Hernandez, and during his time with the Cav's he was really solid. His season ended early with injury however. Brown and Pearson will once again will be the heart and soul of the of the staff. I look forward to seeing Coronado this year after a very successful season.

The Maybe Starters:
Miguel Angel Gonzalez
Armando Lopez

Not sure what to do with these two guys. Both want to start, but I think they fit better as relievers. Lopez is the stronger stater, only because he has more pitches, so he may contend for that #5 slot. He would of been in the rotation last year, but he was pitching to good out of the pen.

Middle Men:
David Moran (L)
Eric Helton
Teo Ha
Alberto Sanchez

Moran and Helton both pitched in 50+ games and were my set-up men. They will most likely fill the same role this year. Ha was another lefty in the pen, but wow he isn't nearly as good as I thought he'd be. Maybe this year will be better. Sanchez had a decent year, but only pitched in 17 games. With the starters going deep in games, our bullpen doesn't that much use.

The others:
Boyd Martin (L)
Michael Meagher
Luis Manuel Gonzalez
Lazzaro Tadiotto
Alberto Ramos
Angel Rivera
Allen Williams
Ryan Williams

Martin pitched in 14 games, 13 starts for the Cav's last season. Meagher pitched in 9 games of relief. Tadiotto and LM Gonzalez both pitched in 1 game. These are the only guys who have any big league experience.

Ryan Williams and Allen Williams are ready to contend for a roster slot. Angel Rivera and Alberto Ramos will contend for the #5 start slot, but will most likely be demoted or traded.

Closer:
None.
I think we will head into spring with a 3-way competition for closer. Miguel Angel Gonzalez, Ryan Williams and Boyd Martin. I think we are covered with option years that no matter what we decided to do we will be fine. I will have to check that out as we get closer to the regular season (if I am looking right, only Angel Rivera has no options).

On the cusp, and not on the 40-man roster:
Ernie Kennedy (SP) - He will be the front runner for the Newcomer of the Year award assuming he can stay healthy. He still isn't as developed as he could be, but wow does he look good. (Stuff: 13/15, Movement: 12/12, Control: 12/17) He has a nice status of 17, throws in the mid-90's gets more grounders than fly-outs and has 4 pitches rated 12 or above. He was the #3 prospect in the DBL this season and the Cav's #1. Look for him to make his debut in 2027, unless something crazy happens.

Pitching Thoughts:
I am not sure what to think. The starters are set. The set-up men are set. The closer and the backend of pen? Open for competition.

Here is what I have in mind for the slots/battles:
1) Paul Brown
2) Cornell Pearson
3) Carlos Coronado (L)
4) Joaquin Hernandez
5) Ernie Kennedy (L) / Armando Lopez

Set-up
1) David Moran (L)
2) Eric Helton

Closer
1) Miguel Angel Gonzalez / Boyd Martin / Ryan Wiliams

Middle Guys
1) Alberto Sanchez / Lazzaro Tadiotto
2) Teo Ha (L) / Boyd Martin
3) Michael Meagher / Ryan Williams / Angel Rivera

I don't think I will be reaching out to any free-agents, but I do I might look for a lock-down closer. However the 2 closers are off the market already.

illeracula · 08-26-2015, 03:54 PM

Off-Season Report #3

WAR Leaders:
Milton Brewers, +6.6
Annapolis Admirals, +4.7
New Castle Colonials, +4.6
Newark Millers, +2.4
Georgetown Sixteens, +1.9

WAR Losers:
Salisbury Ports, -9.7
Ocean City Tourists, -9.1
Dover Generals, -8.6
Baltimore Barons, -5.3
Milford Clippers, -5.0

Free Agent Signings:
The Big Names:
SP Luis Deleon (New Castle Colonials), 3 years / $40,800,000 - Deleon started his career as a closer, then moved to starter for 6 1/2 seasons, then the Lewes Braves went to him as their full-time closer. He will head into the Colonials starting rotation. He has 99 career wins and 102 career saves.

3B Shumei Ishikawa (Washington Senators), 4 years / $48,000,000 - You probably haven't heard for Ishikawa, because he has just entered the DBL via Japan. He is probably the top international free-agent joining the DBL in 2027 and the Senators gobbled up the 3B. It will be interesting to see how the 27 year old's skills convert to the DBL.

2B Ramon Granados (Milton Brewers), 4 years / $50,400,000 - Ramon wasn't going to make this list, but his big contract earned him a slot. Last season in New Castle Ramon set career highs for average, homers, runs and RBI's. He will join the Brewers as their primary 2B.

SP Miguel Contreras (Milford Clippers), 2 years / $30,000,000 - One of the games all-time top starters, who has 248 career wins, will join the Clippers starting staff to go after #250. Last season he had a solid season, but his ratings keep falling. The 7-time Golden Arm winner is looking to hold down the #2 slot for the Clippers. The Cav's fans will miss him and it will be interesting to see what he has left.

SP Robert Walker (Lewes Braves), 2 years / #33,100,000 - At 39 years old Walker won 15 games for the Clippers. The Braves hope as a 40 year old Walker still has some umph in his tank. He makes a return to Lewes with this 2-yr deal after spending 4 seasons in Milford. His last season in Lewes was his best season a Golden Arm season which saw him go 25-6 2.26. He looks like he is still going strong at 40.

1B Matt Martin (Seaford Blue Jays), 4 years / $69,600,000 - Martin seems to be getting better with age, putting up a solid season last year .273-38-95 for the Salisbury Ports. Next season will be his first not in Salisbury and he is looking to play for a winning team. He was one of the biggest offensive free-agents available.

MR Jerry Copeland (Dover Generals), 2 years / $6,560,000 - Is border line to be on this list, but he once a top pitcher in DBL, but as he has aged he is now a solid reliever. He returns to Dover where he spent the first 11 years of his career. He currently stands at 184 wins for his career and the 38 year old would love to get 16 more.

SP Shawn Brock (Ellicott City Express), 4 years / %53,200,000 - Brock continues to get contracts, because he continues to be consistent. He will give you 200 innings a year and win 10 games. This contract was hard to resist as the Express doled out a lot for Brock, the question is can he live up to it?

SP Jamie Trujilio (Annapolis Admirals), 2 years / $10,540,000 - Jamie had a down year in 2024 posting some of the worst stats of his career then he spent 2 seasons in Lewes and turned around his luck. Now he is an above average starter with 23 wins over the past 2 seasons. The Admirals hope he will be able to continue that success this season.

SP German Alvarado (Lewes Braves ), 4 years / $63,100,100 - The Lewes Braves might of signed the biggest free-agent starter on the market and at 30 years old, the should be enjoy it. Last season he had a little off year going 16-8, but the previous year he won 20 games and that is what the Braves are looking for. The Braves have now added 2 solid starters to a depleted starting staff.

The Others:
MR Elmer Hawkins (Ellicott City Express), 1 year / $2,240,000

Extensions:
OF Jeff Lewis (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $32,000,000 - The 35 year old had some injuries that kept him down to 114 games last season, but he still hit .333-20-81, earning him the extension.

Trades:
Washington Senators: Acquired SS Pedro Rivas (.201/.253/.265, 2 HR) and prospect LF Pedro Meracdo (AA) from the Newark Millers for veteran 2B William Jones (.224/.302/.346, 5 HR) and $2,510,000 cash.

Chesapeake Blue Crabs: Acquired CL George Meyer (5-4 3.15, 1 SV) from the Lewes Braves in exchange for prospects SP Bill Storms (A, #35) and C Wayne Harrison.

Baltimore Barons: Received 2B Leon Bermudez (.263/.326/.428, 13 HR) from the Georgetown Sixteens for SP Greyson Jacques (A, #11) and SP Nelson Monroe. Jacques has now been traded 2 times in the past 14 days.

Washington Senators: Acquired MR Russ Dillon (2-2 2.76, 1 SV) from the Newark Millers for RF Manuel Davila (AA) and 3B Bob Crawford (SA).

Washington Senators: Looking to bulk up their pitching staff after making a huge offensive splash via free-agency the Senators acquired another MR Angel Cruz (2-0 4.40, 2 SV) in exchange for prospects SP Carlos Reyes (A, #95) and LF Dave Hudson (A) from the Baltimore Barons.

Georgetown Sixteens: Reached a deal with the Milford Clippers sending LF Javier Macias (A) to Milford in return for LF Emory Phillips (.277/.305/.432, 18 HR).

New Castle Colonials: Acquired MR Dale Norton (7-1 1.32, 4 SV, #101) from the Richmond Cardinals for CF Steve Moon (A, #130) and C Jim Jackson (A).

Injuries:
Richmond Cardinals: Will be without 2B Tony Keith to begin the season after Keith broke an elbow in his arm. The story that is coming out of Richmond is Keith was shaking hands at a fan meet and greet when his elbow popped. Last season Keith hit .260-13-65 for the Cardinals.

Team Report:
Budget: $148,000,000 (11th)
Payroll: $103,040,000 (7th)
$ for Free-Agents: $24,730,000
$ for Extensions: $4,740,000
Fan Interest: 100

GM Notes:
Well after looking over my roster I have decided to sit still for the rest of the off-season at least until February. I would like to move Bryant Frank and Teo Ha at a minimum. I will trade for prospects, my depth in the minors is just a little too talented to go out and chase a vet... the other guy on the block, but not very high-up is Armando Lopez.

I may end up leaning towards a 6-man rotation, but I am not sure. why you ask? well its because I have a lot of good young pitchers who are budding and ready to go. I am thinking, but who knows. This is one reason why I have put Lopez on the maybe trading block. He is a solid pitcher and I'd hate to lose him, but it'd be a nice budget saver and it will allow me to get someone up who is similar to him.

Nothing is pressing, as we are ready for the 2027 season in our current state. I am getting excited and ready to play this year out.

Coming up:
- Preseasons
- Spring training
- top 100 Prospects / Top minor league systems
- Opening Day

illeracula · 08-28-2015, 03:58 PM

Off/Pre-Season Report #4 - 2027

WAR Leaders:
Milton Brewers, +10.9
New Castle Colonials, +5.1
Georgetown Sixteens, +4.6
Annapolis Admirals, +4.4
Lewes Braves, +3.8

WAR Losers:
Salisbury Ports, -11.6
Ocean City Tourists, -7.4
Dover Generals, -6.2
Baltimore Barons, -3.7
Richmond Cardinals, -3.3

Free Agent Signings:
3B Cliff Jones (New Castle Colonials), 1 year / $8,400,000 - Jones is 43 and can still hit pretty well. Last season he hit .253-3-31 in 76 games. Missing a lot of time with injuries. He has been injury plagued during most of his career. He is currently 5th on the all-time hit list with 2244.

SS Manuel Martinez (Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs), 6 years / $101,200,000 - A one-time can't miss product, he has been ravaged with injuries over his career. Last season he played in 146 games with the Baltimore Barons hitting .294-20-87. The Dawgs will be looking for the same kind of output based on the amount of money they have dished out for this 29 year old.

1B Francisco Reyes (Georgetown Sixteens), 2 years / $26,800,000 - Reyes still believes he has more "umph" in his tank at 37 years old. Last year he had an off season hitting just .247-30-88. We will see what this season brings, but one thing is for sure this future hall-of-famer should hit #600 early on this year, he sits at 598 currently (He is the only player in the DBL with over 500 HR's).

SP Oliver Nelson (Milford Clippers), 7 years / $100,800,000 - Nelson has 1 winning season over his 7 year career, yes just 1, but the Clippers see something in this 27 year old to dish out a 7 year deal. This deal made most of us go "huh?".

C Andy Kohl (Annapolis Admirals), 1 year / $5,800,000 - A one-time icon of power, the 35 year-old catcher is now nothing more than a back-up. He will fight for playing and and try to redeem his .228-3-19 2026 season. He has a career line of .297-418-1246 and should put some fans in the seats in Annapolis at least at the beginning of the season.

CL Marcos Estrada (Georgetown Sixteens), 2 years / $11,220,000 - Another aging icon that has decided to sign with the Sixteens. Estrada went 2-7 4.57 with 19 saves last season for the Blue Crabs and this season he will try to close games for the Sixteens. The past ace has 226 career wins and a record 2792 strikeouts.

CL Frederick Taylor (Milton Brewers), 3 years / $9,330,000
MR Rudy Richards (Baltimore Barons), 2 years / $7,720,000
LF Joe Middleton (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $13,100,000
MR Arturo Herrera (Chesapeake Blue Crabs), 2 years / $6,080,000
SP Vincent Parker (Baltimore Barons), 2 years / $14,400,000
1B Berend Middelkamp (Milton Brewers), 4 years / $37,320,000
SP Vicente Rosas (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $9,680,000
SP Jorge Jiminez (Lewes Braves), 3 years / $15,900,000

MR Julio Saldana (Georgetown Sixteens), 1 year / $1,840,000 - I like to see this kid keepin' on keepin' on. After a rough season in 2019 (3-4 6.37) he sat out the 2020 season unsigned. One day I was trolling the free-agents and saw this kid with solid ratings so I signed and in 2021 for the Cavaliers he went 3-0 1.36 in 14 games, and has had a job ever since. I keep trollin' for guys just like him, heck you never know what you will see... but its nice to see him still throwing well 745 games over his career...

SP Bob McCord (Dover Generals), 2 years / $8,600,000
MR Vincente Angel (Dover Generals), 1 year / $2,000,000
2B Justin Collins (Ellicott City Express), 1 year / $3,360,000

MR Javier Castro (Unsigned) - Castro is the oldest pitcher in the DBL and is still trying to find a deal. He still has some decent ratings (10/10/16, 72% GB) and put together a decent 2026 year (5-5 4.32, 60 G). Over his career he has pitched in 882 games for 11 different teams. Always a nomad and always consistent I am curious to see where he goes next...

Extensions:
SP Guillermo Alfonso (Christiana Blue Hens), 5 years / $70,000,000 - Alfonso has put together two solid season in Christiana going 16-9 last season and 17-9 the season before. This is a big deal that should keep Alfonso in Christiana During his prime, he is only 29 years old.

Trades:
Dover Generals: Received SP Matt Rollins (6-12 4.18) and $2,400,000 cash from the Salisbury Ports for minor leaguers 2b Artie Greene (A, #192) and CL Shawn Anderson (A).

Milton Brewers: Received CL Dennis Marshall (3-2 2.24, 2 SV) from the Lewes Braves for prospect CL Roberto Chavez (AAA, #25) and SS Loren Barnes (A)

Team Report:
Budget: $148,000,000 (11th)
Payroll: $103,040,000 (7th)
$ for Free-Agents: $24,730,000
$ for Extensions: $4,740,000
Fan Interest: 100
Expectation: Reach the Playoffs

GM Notes:
I have still not done anything, until this week. I reached out to the Seaford Blue Jays and are in discussions with them. I am waiting to hear back. I have worked out a deal sending prospects, Teo Ha and Bryant Frank in return for prospects. They are probably getting the better end of the deal, but its the best I could work out right now and as we get close to the Spring Training I figured its time for me to start looking and shopping...

Coming up:
- Spring training
- top 100 Prospects / Top minor league systems
- Opening Day

illeracula · 08-31-2015, 03:37 PM

Spring Training Report

Final Spring Leaders:
Southern: Dover Generals: 15-9 (+2)
Northern: New Castle Colonials: 15-9 (+1)
Eastern: Ocean City Tourists: 15-9 (+2)
Western: Norfolk Express: 19-5 (+4)

AVG: Sergio Rodriguez (Norfolk Cavaliers): .456
HR: Matt Fisher (Wilmington Iron Pigs): 8
RBI: Matt Fisher (Wilmington Iron Pigs): 19

ERA: 3 with 0.00
W: Maofumi Hashimoto (Dover Generals): 4
K: Rodney Glatz (Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs): 31

Off-Season Report:

WAR Leaders:
Milton Brewers, +10.9
Annapolis Admrials, +5.8
New Castle Colonials, +5.1
Georgetown Sixteens, +4.2
Lewes Braves, +3.8

WAR Losers:
Salisbury Ports, -11.6
Ocean City Tourists, -6.6
Baltimore Barons, -3.7
Richmond Cardinals, -3.3
Dover Generals, -3.0

Free Agent Signings:
SP Esteban Calamacho (Richmond Cardinals), 2 years / $6,520,000 - A free-agent out of Cuba Estaban will bring his mid-90's heat to Richmond and try to wow the fans. At 28 years-old he has above average ratings and should be able to win 15+ games.

SP Brad Rose (Ellicott City Express), 2 years / $14,800,000 - Rose is 28 year-old ace and this is a big deal in EC. Last season he was injuried for most of the year and he is still injuried for another couple of weeks, but in his first 6 games he went 5-0 1.52. It will be intersting to see how he returns from injury and if he can duplicate the success that allowed him to put up back-to-back 14 win seasons. He is injury prone, but when he is on the mound he is dangerous.

SS Jose Escamilla (Dover Generals), 1 year / $1,780,000

1B Enzo Allard (Seaford Blue Jays), 1 year / $6,810,000 - Enzo is 30-years-old, a 2-time all-star, a 5-time glove wizard winner at 1B and a team leader, yet it took till spring training for him re-sign with the Seaford Blue Jays. He played the market and it didn't work out for him, which I am shocked. Last season he hit .290-19-84, for his career he is .286-146-533, his struggles for a long-term deal are sort of mind boggling.

MR Miguel Martinez (Wilmington Iron Pigs), 1 year / $720,000
SP Hsin-ping Kun (Annapolis Admirals), 1 year / $860,000
CL Alexander Jordan (Annapolis Admirals), 1 year / $1,420,000
MR Al Rayner (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $8,800,000

OF Herminio Bovay (Dover Generals), 1 year / $3,200,000 - Herminio came up in 2018 and was instantly one of the fastest players in the DBL. He put together an amazing season in 2021 hitting .371 and stealking 68 bases, but ever since that season he has battled injuries. Last year he only played 43 games, but still put up a .337 average. He can hit when he plays and in a lineup with Pedro Galvan the Generals now have 2 of the best base stealers in DBL history. They are ready to make things happen.

SP Tommy Rutledge (Christiana Blue Hens), 1 year / $810,000
MR Dan Nelson (Georgetown Sixteens), 1 year / $780,000

DH Roberto Perez (no team), One of the top hitters in the game and 2x Silver Slugger award is still looking for a team. Perez played with the Senators in 2026 hitting .274-15-49. Rumor has it he is looking for a one year deal worth around #3M. The 37-yr-old wants to prove he still has something left in his tank.

Injries:
LF Jose Lopez (Chesapeake Blue Crabs) - herniated disc, 5-6 weeks (3/11)
3B Jorege Fernandez (Lewes Braves) - torn ACL, 8 months (3/12)
CF David Durant (Georgetown Sixteens) - concussion, 4-5 months (3/12)
CF Tyler Forrest (Ocean City Tourists) - ankle soreness, DtD (3/13) - the second injury during the off-season due to a meet and greet. They may be banned soon.
SS Nelson Barrera (Georgetown Sixteens) - torn labrum, 4 months (3/13)
MR Jose Romano (Newark Millers) - shoulder inflammation, 7 months (3/20)
MR Augusto Perez (Ocean City Tourists) - torn ulnar collateral ligament, 13 months (3/23)
3B Claude Bond (Chesapeake Blue Crabs) - fractured rib, 4 weeks (3/24)
SP Brad Jones (Newark Millers) - hamstring strain, 2 months (3/25)
C Julio Jaramillo (Washington Senators) - fractured rib, 3 weeks (3/30)

Coming up:
- Cav's spring report
- top 100 Prospects / Top minor league systems
- Opening Day

08-12-2015, 09:53 PM	#1201
Nickphillies All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2014 Posts: 634	Hot team? You weren't kidding. __________________ FHM Beta Tester

08-13-2015, 02:02 PM	#1203
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 2 2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 2 (Best of 7) I am in a tough spot here... Game 2, at home, and its a must win and my top 2 pitchers arne't rested and ready to go. Brown is at 77% and Pearson is at 57%. Its not worth throwing them on short rest, I just think we have a better chance to win when we have them at 100%. Game 3 and 4? Yes... so who is going to go in Game 2? I have 4 options: Joaquin Hernandez (16/14/14), Miguel Angel Gonzalez (16/15/17), Armando Lopez (12/11/16) and Miguel Contreras (10/14/18)... Contreras hasn't started since the all-star break, so I am not sure he is an ideal choice, Lopez has been in the pen of late, and has never started in the playoffs, Hernandez got roughed up in his first playoff start, but finished the season strong, and Gonzalez has been a solid playoff performer over his career (2-1 2.23, 4 SV, 0.94 WHIP). The downfall of Gonzalez is that he only has 2 solid pitches... ugh, this is a tough choice... The Iron Pigs are going with Jason Nixon in game 2. Nixon went 14-8 3.75 during the regular season, got roughed up in the one game he pitched in the Brewers series and didn't face the Cavaliers this season. Nixon is 27, and will be making his 7th playoff appearance, he pitched as a reliever during last years playoffs... With the right on the hill the Iron Pigs switched up the last 4 hitters of their lineup. Pepe Santana is the only player remaining from yesterdays bottom part of the lineup and he moves from CF to LF... Jose Escamilla is 1-11 versus today's pitcher, and Pepe Santana is 2-3, with a HR. No one else has a hit, in limited AB's (3 or under). SS Gordon Purkis, RF Santiago Baez, C Antonio Castaneda, 3B Tom Anderson, 1B Ralph Anderson, DH Kevin Barber, LF Pepe Santana, CF Walt Martin, 2B Jose Escamilla The bottom 1/3 of the Cav's lineup has just gone gold with all 3 players hitting between .190 and .193... I decided that I am going to give Flores a rest in today's game despite being 1-2 with a HR during his career against Nixon. Robinson Lopez will make his first start of the playoffs instead. Lopez will play 2B and Torres will move over to SS. I decided to to keep Frank in the lineup as he is 4-10 lifetime against Nixon. RF Sergio Rodriguez, CF Sergio Galvez, 1B Francisco Gallegos, LF Bob Short, DH Leonard Lawson, C Henry Rojas, SS Pedro Torres, 3B Bryant Frank, 2B Robinson Lopez Its hard to tell what is going to happen with both teams having little experience to each other... can we contain the Iron Pigs this game? Do we even pitched to Tom Anderson? I am nervous, hopefully Miguel Angel Gonzalez isn't and he is ready to go. Let see what he has to bring... Time to play ball: The first inning, was fun filled, as the Iron Pigs jumped out to an early lead. After MAG struck out lead-off man Purkis, he would give up a soft single to Santiago Baez. Baez would end up on third after an Antonio Castaneda double down the RF line. This would bring up Tom Anderson with runners on 2nd and 3rd and Anderson would hit a deep fly ball to center, which would score Baez. Ralph Anderson would ground out, but the Iron Pigs would score 1 to take the lead. The Cav's wouldn't waste anytime getting that one run back, however, as the #2 hitter Sergio Galvez would hit a 3-2 fastball over the left-center field wall (436ft). The next hitter Francisco Gallegos would follow suit with a solo-HR over the left-center field wall (408ft), which would give the Cav's the lead. Bob Short would double following the Gallegos HR, but would be stranded... After 1 the Cav's would hold a 2-1 lead. The second inning went by quick for both teams, but third was a different story. with 2 outs, Santiago Baez would again single softly, this time into LF, bring up Antonio Castaneda. Castaneda would promptly give the Iron Pigs the lead with a 2-run line drive HR down the left-field line (374ft). Tom Anderson would ground out to end the inning. But the Iron Pigs would take the 3-2 lead after 2 1/2. The Cav's would answer back in their half of the 3rd. Sergio Rodriguez would reach on a error by the RF. He would move to second, when Sergio Galvez was drilled by the pitch. The Rodriguez would move over to 3B when Gallegos would hit into the 6-4-3... Rodriguez would score the tying run on a Bob Short double. Then Short would come around to score on Leonard Lawson's 2-run HR over the CF wall (417ft). The Cav's did their damage with 3 unearned runs, and reclaimed the lead 5 to 3. An ugly fourth inning would allow the Iron Pigs to cut the lead. Ralph Anderson started the inning off with a single. He would steal second. After a Barber strike out he would come home to score on a Pepe Santana single. That is all the Pigs would get, but after 3 1/2 they cut the lead to 5-4. The Iron Pigs would take the lead in the 6th. Ralph Anderson doubled with 1 out, and with 2-outs he would score on a Pepe Santana triple. With Santana on third, Walt Martin would bring him home with a HR down the right-field line (378ft). Giving the Iron Pigs the lead once again 7 to 5. Armando Lopez would come in and shut down the Pigs in the 7th, and in the bottom half the Cav's would try to chip away at their lead. Lead-off man Bryant Frank would hit a solo HR over the left-center field wall (424ft), a hit that would end up chasing SP Nixon from the game. The Cav's would go down in order after the HR, but they did chip away at the Iron Pigs lead and with 2 innings to go they trail the Pigs 7-6. In the 8th the Pigs would get an insurance run, thanks to a lead-off double by Tom Anderson. Anderson would be removed from the game, however after pulling up limp. Two batters later Kevin Barber who drive in PR Dave Bullock with a double down to left-field line. After 7 1/2 the Iron Pigs lead 8-6. Down 8 to 6 the Cav's would need to something if they wanted to keep from falling back 2 games to 0 in the series, and losing both games at home... The Iron Pigs brought in Arturo Ramirez to close the door and he would be facing the #6 hitter Henry Rojas to start things off... Rojas grounds out to short for the first out of the inning. Trevor Parker would pinch hit for Pedro Torres and single to left. Juan Hernandez would pinch hit for Bryant Frank. Hernandez would ground out to first moving Parker to second... Down to their last out, #9 hitter Robinson Lopez would single to right, scoring Parker. The Cav's now had the tying run on the bases with the top of the line coming up... Sergio Rodriguez tied the game with a triple to deep-center... With 2-outs and the winning run at 3rd, the Iron Pigs pulled their closer Ramirez and brought in Edmond Scott. Scott would battle Galvez to a 2-2 count, but Galvez would win the battle with a single over the short-stops head!!!! Rodriguez trots home and the Cav's have an incredible walk-off victory in game 2 of the DelMarVa Championship Series!! Winning the game 9-8. A HUGE WIN. The series is now tied 1-1 W: David Moran (1-0) L: Arturo Ramirez (1-1) HR: WLM: Walt Martin (1), Antonio Castaneda (1), NFK: Francisco Gallegos (1), Leonard Lawson (1), Bryant Frank (1), Sergio Galvez (1) POG: WLM: Antonio Castaneda, 2-5, 2B, HR, R, 2 RBI GM/Game Notes: Uh, not really sure what to say about this game, but wow. We just never gave up, we came from behind in the 1st, the 3rd and the 9th. Yes we lost the lead a few time as well, but we didn't give up and we kept on fighting. It says something about these guys... Miguel Angel Gonzalez threw better than his line score shows, one or two bad pitches was the difference. He ended up going 6 innings, allowing 9 hits and 7 runs. He didn't walk anyone and struck out 8. His game score was a 34... Armando Lopez threw 2 innings, giving up 3 hits and a run, while striking out 3 and David Moran pitched the 9th, walking 1 and striking out 1. Its nice having a solid bullpen to lean on... Arturo Ramirez won game 1, lost game 2 and blew saves in each game. It will be interesting to see if he is still their go to guy the rest of the series... The Cavaliers scored a playoff high 9 runs, only 11 hits. This is the second time during the playoffs the Cav's reach 11 hits. Every starter, but Pedro Torres had a hit, but every slot had at least 1 hit, when Trevor Parker stroked a PH single... Bob Short (both doubles) and Sergio Gavlez each had 2 hits, Galvez and Leonard Lawson each had 2 RBI... The Iron Pigs raked out 12 hits, the most against the Cavaliers staff this post-season, with Santiago Baez, Antonio Castaneda, Ralph Anderson and Pepe Santana all collecting 2. Castaneda, Santana and Walt Martin each had 2 RBI... Ex-Cav's Jose Escamillia went 0-4 and Pablo Feitas PH and went 0-1... Each team had at least one double, triple and HR... Jason Nixon went 6 innings for the Iron Pigs, allowing 7 hits and 6 runs, 3 of which were earned. He didn't walk anyone and struck out 4. His game score was 43... The Iron Pigs did take advantage of MAG's lack of ability to hold runners close, stealing 3 bases... Tom Anderson, the hero in Game 1, went 1-3 with an RBI, but left injured running out his double. His status for Game 3 is unknown at this time. With the series tied we now have our #1 and #2 rested and ready to go in what is essentially a best of 5 series. That win was huge, and I hope we can take that momentum into Wilmington and win 2 of 3... Attached Images __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England.. Last edited by illeracula; 08-13-2015 at 05:00 PM. Reason: left out galvez and his HR

08-13-2015, 05:00 PM	#1204
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 3 2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 3 (Best of 7) After winning game 2 I am feeling better, because I know I now have Paul Brown and Cornell Pearson rested and ready for games 3 and 4. It makes a huge difference knowing they are in your rotation. Brown has struggled recently, but seemed to break out of it during last series. I hope he is ready and brings his A game to Wilmington. He has always been very reliable for me during the playoffs (5-2 2.64 8 GS). I am not sure if what I am doing makes sense or not against the lefty, but I juggled the lineup some to get right handed hitters in the game. Leonard Lawson and Henry Rojas will take a rest this game with Juan Hernandez and John O'Donegan getting the call in their place... Right or wrong, I feel like its the right move. This is actually probably our best defensive lineup with the Catcher slot being a wash... O'Donegan will be a short leash as he hasn't hit well during his playoff career (3-32 .094). Hernandez is 1-5 for his playoff career, but Leonard Lawson has been hitting the ball well these playoffs (.308-2-6) I just like the righty/lefty match better... LL will be the first bat off the bench. Sergio Galvez is 2-13 and Francisco Gallegos 0-6 lifetime versus Mills, that could be huge... LF Sergio Rodriguez, CF Sergio Galvez, 1B Francisco Gallegos, DH Bob Short, C John O'Donegan, RF Juan Hernandez, 2B Robinson Lopez, 3B Bryant Frank, SS Pedro Torres The Cav's will be facing Irving Mills. The first lefty they will face during this series. Mills had a solid year for the Iron Pigs (10-2 2.19, 11 GS, 53 G), and had to mediocre starts during the Conference Championships. He is making his 4 playoff start, 3rd this season, and his 8th post-season appearance (1-0 6.55). He is a ground ball pitcher, with a GB% of over 70. The Cav's will need to manufacture their runs this game. Tom Anderson who was hurt during game 2 has been listed as day-to-day with a mild hamstring strain. The Iron Pigs are going to take Tom and his 17% performance loss over anyone else and he will be in the lineup... and with that the Iron Pigs will be trotting out the same offensive lineup for game 3 as they did for game 2. There are a lot of "hot" hitters in the Iron Pigs lineup with their top 4 hitting over .310 during the playoffs. Antonio Castaneda is 4-20 with a Hr against Brown over his career and Pepe Santana, who may be the deciding factor for game 3, is 8 for 19 against Brown. SS Gordon Purkis, RF Santiago Baez, C Antonio Castaneda, 3B Tom Anderson, 1B Ralph Anderson, DH Kevin Barber, LF Pepe Santana, CF Walt Martin, 2B Jose Escamilla Will Brown be able to slow down the Iron Pigs bats? Will the Cavaliers lineup changes work out for the better or cost them a run or two? Can the Cavaliers carry the momentum from an crazy game 2 into game 3? I sure hope so, but there is only one way to find out... Time to play ball: Both teams went down 1-2-3 in the first. In the second the Cav's would catch a break, with 1-out John O'Donegan would hit a deep fly ball to center, it appeared that Walt Martin was camped under it, but he would drop it allowing O'Donegan to reach 2nd with a 2-base error. After a ground-out O'Donegan would cross the plate on a Robinson Lopez single. After 1 1/2 the Cav's would opening up the scoring 1-0. The score remained unchanged 1-0 until the top of the 4th. With two-outs John O'Donegan hit a solo-HR, taking advantage of the short-RF wall (337ft). Earlier in the inning Francisco Gallegos was throwing out trying to stretch a double into a triple. I guess we've never heard of that "never make the first or last out at third base saying"... After 3 1/2 the Cav's held on to 2-0 lead. Two innings ago Francisco Gallegos would make a bone-head move, making the first out of the inning at third, but in the 6th he would make up for it. with 2-outs he would take Mills 0-1 offering over the left-field wall (376ft). Thats all the Cav's would get, taking the 3-0 lead after 5 1/2. In the bottom of the 6th Jose Escamillia would stroke a 2-2 single to right, for the first hit of the game for the Iron Pigs. The next batter Gordon Purkis would double down the left-field line, moving Escamilla to third. Santiago Baez would ground out to short, scoring Escamilla. Then Brown would step it up and strike out Antonio Castaneda and get Tom Anderson to ground out. The Iron Pigs would get one, however, cutting the Cav's lead to 3-1 after 6. The Cav's would answer back in the 7th. After an O'Donegan strike-out and a Hernandez fly-out, Robinson Lopez would single to right. The next batter Bryant Frank would touch-up mills for the 3rd Cavaliers HR of the game, hitting a blast into the right-centerfield bleachers (414ft). Torres would strike out to end the inning, but the Cav's would get the run back, plus one. After 6 1/2 the Cav's hold the 5-1 lead. The Cav's would pour it on in the 8th. It started with a lead-off walk to Sergio Rodriguez, which was followed by a Sergio Galvez FC. Galvez would move to second on a single by Francisco Gallegos. The next batter Bob Short would single to right to load the bases. John O'Donegan would single to center, scoring Galvez, keeping the bases loaded, and chasing starter Mills. Leonard Lawson, pinch-hitting for Hernandez would greet Vicente Rosas would a sac-fly to deep center, scoring Gallegos, and moving Short up to to third. With runners on first and third, Robinson Lopez would single to center, scoring Short and moving O'Donegan to second. The next hitter, Bryant Frank would single to left, scoring O'Donegan. Pedro Torres would fly-out ending the inning. But when the dust settled, the Cav's would score 4 runs on 5 hits to increase their lead to 9-1. Paul Brown has been good for an ugly inning it seems over his past few starts, and this game was no different. The only problem is it was in the 8th, he was on a roll, and I had no one up in the bullpen... Jose Escamilla would get the inning started with a double to left. Gordon Purkis would go down swinging for out #1. Alec Case would PH and single into left, moving Escamilla to third. Antonio Castaneda would double to left-center, scoring both Case and Escamilla. With 2-runs in already, good 'ole Tom Anderson would add 2-more with a HR down the left-field line (358ft). With the bullpen active, Brown would strike out Ralph Anderson, then get Kevin Barber to fly out to end the inning. The Iron Pigs would get all 4-runs back, cutting the Cav's lead to 9-5 after 8. In the 9th the Cav's would add some insurance. Lead-off man Sergio Rodriguez would walk, and Sergio Galvez would follow that with a 2-run HR clearing the RF line (333ft) by feet. Francisco Gallegos would scorch a single to right, but he was erased when Bob Short hit a liner back to first. John O'Donegan would end the inning with a ground out. The Cav's would add 2 insurance runs to increase their lead to 11-5, as we head into the bottom of the 9th. Teo Ha, the only rested lefty in the pen, would come in to face the Iron Pigs lefties. Pepe Santana would lace a ball towards second, and Robinson Lopez would make a diving play and throw him out at first for out #1. The next batter Walt Martin would hit a ball into the left-center field cap that Leonard Lawson would track-down. Then switch-hitter Jose Escamilla would fly out to deep center to end the game. Another wild one in the books. The Cav's would take the win 11-5, and take a 2-1 series lead. Cavaliers lead the series 2-1 W: Paul Brown (1-0) L: Irving Mills (0-1) HR: NFK: Francisco Gallegos (2), Sergio Galvez (2), Bryant Frank (2), John O'Donegan (1), WLM: Tom Anderson (4) POG: Francisco Gallegos, NFK: 4-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, RBI GM/Game Notes: Another wild game, which saw the Cav's collect the most hits and score the most runs during the 2026 post-season. Lead by Gallegos who had 4, Lopez who had 3 and Frank and O'Donegan who each had 2... John O'Donegan had a great day for a guy how hasn't seen much time lately. O'Donegan would collect 2 hits, 2 RBI's and score 3 times in 5 AB's. Giving Rojas a much needed day off... Paul Brown was on fire, not allowing a hit till the 6th, but then he would do his normal (of late) one inning blow up. he did complete 8 innings, allowing 7 hits and 5 runs. He walked 2 and struck out 8, for a game score of 54. It wasn't pretty, but he will take the win... Robinson Lopez was injured for the first round of the playoffs and almost left-off the roster for the Series. I am glad I decided to add him. He is having a solid series since joining the starting lineup. Today he had 3 hits, 2 RBI's and a run... Bryant Frank is stepping it up, its almost as if he can see the writing on the wall that his time in Norfolk is done after this season and he wants that title, just in case. Today Frank had 2 hits and 3 RBI's, including a HR... Jose Escamilla, had 2 hits and scored 2 runs, having his best game of the series... Tom Anderson and Antonio Castaneda, the big bats of the Iron Pigs, each had a hit and an RBI. Anderson connected on his 4th HR, despite playing at only 80%... Irving Mills gave up only 8 HR's over 531 batters faced during the regular season, today he gave up 3 over the 32 batters he faced! Mills was hit hard, allowing 9 runs, 8 of which were earned, on 9 hits, a walk and an error. He did strike out 6. His game score was only 31... Ex-Cav Jose Matos made his first appearance this series, going 1.0 inning, allowing a hit. I was worried about starting O'Donegan and Hernandez, but it somewhat paid off. Hernandez didn't do much, but O'Donegan came through. Lawson even had sac-fly, so it worked out nicely. Now we are up 2-1 and have Pearson on the hill for game 4. The series is far from over, but I am feeling good about our chances. Game 4 will be big, and hopefully things will settle down. I really believe this series was just going to be a bunch of lower scoring games, battled out by singles, doubles and stolen bases. Boy have I been wrong so far... Attached Images __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-14-2015, 04:25 PM	#1205
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 4 2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 4 (Best of 7) Cornell Pearson has been there every time I needed him this season and today won't be any different. In what may be his only start of the Championship Series I will need Pearson to get me over the top and give us a big 3-1 lead. I need/want this game, because game 5 we face their ace and game 6 we have no idea who will be pitching... so for the sake of being safe, I will need Pearson to come through one more time... Pearson has been lights out this playoff season, allowing just 9 hits over 16 innings, and just 1 run. Hopefully he can carry that fire into this game... Facing another lefty, John O'Donegan will be behind the plate and Juan Hernandez in RF. I am not 100% sure about having Hernandez in the lineup again, but we won last game, so I am going with it again... Robinson Lopez will be in the lineup again, but instead of playing for Flores, he will be in for the slumping Pedro Torres (.152 in playoffs). So again our defense will be tight, and our bats should be pretty solid as well. We have some experience against Juan Rosario (he played in the MarVa Conf for most of his career) and most of it isn't great. John O (4-9) and Robinson Lopez (4-13) are the only Cav's that have hit over .250 (12+ AB's) against Rosario. Hopefully they will see the ball better against him today... LF Sergio Rodriguez, CF Sergio Galvez, 1B Francisco Gallegos, DH Bob Short, C John O'Donegan, RF Juan Hernandez, 2B Robinson Lopez, 3B Bryant Frank, SS Claudio Flores Juan Rosario will be making his 2nd playoff start of his career, his first won went great , as he shut-out the Brewers over 7.1 innings, allowing just 4 hits and striking out 6. He has put together one of his best seasons of his career, since moving over to the Delaware Conference this past season. Rosario was actually in the Cav's system from 2018-2019 in AAA. He joined the Cav's along with John Phillips in 2018 and was sent to Ocean City with Roberto Perez for Francisco Reyes... He is out to show the Cav's they made a mistake by getting rid of him. The Iron Pigs have some experience with Pearson, with Pepe Santana being the top hitter hitting 7-18 with 2HR's. However, Pearson has kept Castaneda (8-30) and Tom Anderson (2-12) somewhat in check. Anderson is still listed as day-to-day and will be once again playing at, what he claims, as 80%... The Iron Pigs run out the same line-up as they have the past 2 games. SS Gordon Purkis, RF Santiago Baez, C Antonio Castaneda, 3B Tom Anderson, 1B Ralph Anderson, DH Kevin Barber, LF Pepe Santana, CF Walt Martin, 2B Jose Escamilla Two hot pitchers, ready to battle in the DelMarVa Championships. Maybe this game will be the low scoring game that I have predicted from the start... Time to play ball: The Cav's would get things started early, as lead-off man Sergio Rodriguez would single to center to start the inning. After a strike-out and a ground-out, that moved him to 2B, Rodriguez would come home to score on a stand-up double by Bob Short... The Cav's would take the early 1-0 lead. I always question Bryant Frank's defense when I run him out there, and today it caught up to me. With 1 out, Ralph Anderson would hit a routine grounder to 3rd where Bryant Frank would flub it and he would be safe. The next batter Kevin Barber would double to left-center, moving Anderson to 3rd. Anderson then would score easily on a Pepe Santana sac-fly ot center. After 2 innings of play the score is tied at 1. The Iron Pigs would threaten again in the 3rd... Jose Escamilla singled to lead things off, then with 1-out he would try to go from first to third on a Santiago Baez single to left. Testing the rookie, Jose Hernandez's, arm, which turned out to be a mistake a perfect throw got Escamilla at 3rd. The next batter, Castaneda, would go down swinging and the score would remain tied at 1. After innings 3-4-5-6-7 went scoreless the Cav's would finally break the silence... facing new pitcher Edmond Scott he Cav's would put together a 2-out rally. After a 2-out single to right by Sergio Rodriguez. Scott would walk Galvez and Short to load the bases. Bob Short would come through with a 2-run double to right-center, scoring Rodriguez and Galvez. Eric Loveland would come to replace Scott, and Henry Rojas would hit for John O. Rojas would connect on the 2nd pitch he saw single to right, and scoring both Gallegos and Short. Juan Hernandez would go down swinging, but the Cav's would score 4, taking a 5-1 lead after 7 1/2. With a 5-1 lead, Cornell Pearson will take the hill to face the Pigs #3, 4 and 5 hitters. Helton and Moran are ready in the pen... Antonio Castaneda grounds out to short for out #1, Tom Anderson would pop out to second for out #2, and Ralph Anderson would fly out to center field to end the game... The Cav's win 5-1 and now hold a 3-1 series lead. W: Cornell Pearson (1-0) L: Edmund Scott (0-1) POG: Cornell Pearson, NFK, 9.0 IP, 5 H, R, 0 ER, BB, 6 K, PI 121, PS 84, GS 80 The Cavaliers lead the series 3-1 GM/Game Notes: Finally a pitching a duel. The Iron Pigs bullpen was only #6 in the Delaware Conference and their struggles continue in this series. Game 1, blow save, game 2, blown save and loss, game 3, Cav's scored 8 runs in the final 3 innings and today, 4 in the 8th... Juan Rosario put together another solid post-season start going 7 innings, and only allowing 4 Cavalier hits. He lowered his post-season ERA to 0.63. The downfall of Rosario is his stamina, rated at a 9, and it showed today, being pulled after 100 pitches. His game score today was a 70... Cornell Pearson yet another wonderful post-season start. This season in the post-season he is now 3-0, allowing 1 ER and 2 R's, for a 0.36 ERA! Today he went all 9, allowing just 5 hits, he did walk 1 and struck out 6. His game score was an 80. I needed Pearson to come through for me and he did, he has just been amazing all post-season, well really all season... Bob Short had his 2nd 2-double game of the series. Today he went 2-4, with a run and 3 RBI's... Sergio Rodriguez went 4-4, scoring two times and stealing a base... John O'Donegan couldn't continue the success in back-to-back starts, going 0-3, but Henry Rojas picked him up with a big 2-run PH single in the 8th... The Iron Pigs had 5 hits, 4 singles, the only extra-base hit was a double by Kevin Barber, which moved Ralph Anderson to third. He was the only Iron Pig to reach third, he also scored the lone run... Juan Hernandez didn't have a hit, going 0-4 with 2 strike-outs, but he might of made the biggest play of the game. Throwing out Escamilla at 3B in the 3rd inning, was a big momentum shifter for Pearson. He was the last base-runner to touch second base. There is just not enough words that can be said about how well Pearson pitched. He has been amazing all season long, and I am happy that he has finally broke-out. I almost traded him each of the last 3 seasons, thinking he just was never going to put it all together. Well 2026 he has done that and more. I think I could even tolerate an "off" year next season... Attached Images __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-17-2015, 01:52 PM	#1206
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 5 2026 DelMarVa Championship - Game 5 (Best of 7) Game 5 brings us a rematch of game 1 starters. Both starters put together great games, with the Iron Pigs Gonzalez going 8 innings and allowing just 1 earned run, while striking out 8, and the Cav's Coronado going all 9, allowing 5 hits, 1 earned run, while striking out 8 of his own... What will game 5 bring? The same pitching duel? A blow out of epic proportions? Who knows, but if the previous games of this series are any indication its going to be a tough fought battle. Coronado has had a great post-season so far, and we hope he can continue it for one more start. During his two post-season starts he is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA, allowing just 13 hits in 16 innings. This is going to be a huge game for him, and we will need him to step it up. With Pedro Torres and Claudio Flores unable to hit the ball with much consistency this series they will be on the bench again. Robinson Lopez will be in the #7 slot again, and batting 9th is the Short-stop making his first post-season start Carlos Franco. I am not sure what to expect with Franco, but he has a solid glove and I hope he brings that to the game today, more than anything else... I am hoping this lineup will be able to touch Gonzalez for more than 4 hits today, but it might be smart of us to play some small ball if we can get guys on base... RF Sergio Rodriguez, CF Sergio Galvez, 1B Francisco Gallegos, LF Bob Short, DH Leonard Lawson, C Henry Rojas, 2B Robinson Lopez, 3B Bryant Frank, SS Carlos Franco For as good as Coronado has been in the playoffs, so has Gonzalez. He is making his 3rd start and over the first two he was 0-0 2.25, allowing 13 hits and striking out 12 in 16 innings. He just hasn't been able to get any run support... its really hard to believe this kid is still only 23 years old... For the Iron Pigs they go back to their starting lineup the used against Coronado, including the game 1 hero Tom Anderson. Anderson is still suffering from a slight hamstring strain and he is still claiming to be playing at about 80%... The Iron Pigs lineup was shut down by Coronado in game 1 and they are out for revenge against him this game... SS Gordon Purkis, RF Santiago Baez, C Antonio Castaneda, 3B Tom Anderson, 1B Ralph Anderson, 2B Kevn Barber, DH Dave Bullock, LF Pablo Freitas, CF Pepe Santana The ace, Gonzalez, is going up against red-hot lefty Coronado in game 5. A must win for the Iron Pigs if they want to play tomorrow. The Cav's would like to finish it off today and not have to worry about the final 2 games. The last game in Wilmington before the series heads back to Norfolk... who will it be?? Time to play ball: After 3 the game is tied at 0-0, with the Cavaliers going hit-less and striking out 5 times, and the Iron Pigs collecting 3 hits... In the 4th, after a Tom Anderson single, Sergio Rodriguez made a great catch on a Kevin Barber fly out down the RF line, but as he caught the ball he collided with the wall and ended up having to be removed from the game. Rookie Juan Hernandez was brought in to take his place, he will play CF with Sergio Galvez shifting to right. A double-play would end the threat and after four the game is still tied at 0. With one-out in the top of the 5th Leonard Lawson would single to left, for the Cav's first hit of the game. That is all the fun they would have, and after 4 1/2 it is still 0-0. The game would remain tied (Coronado went 7, Gonzalez 8.2) until the 10th when the Cav's finally broke open the goose eggs... With the Iron Pigs close, Arturo Ramirez, on the hill for his second inning, Leonard Lawson got the inning started with a single to right. Henry Rojas would fly out to the warning track in center. Robinson Lopez would draw a 3-2 walk to put runners on 1st and 2nd. Bryant Frank would strike out swinging... setting up Claudio Flores. On the 0-2 count Flores would take a defensive swing and hit a ball down to first, where Ralph Anderson would flub the play and the bases would be loaded... Juan Hernandez would come up to the plate and with two outs, the bases load, a 1-2 count, he would deliver a single to right-center field, scoring Lawson and Lopez. The rookie did it, bringing in 2 and giving the Cav's a HUGE 2-0 lead. In the bottom half of the 10th Armando Lopez would be called upon to close out the game... Power hitting catcher Antonio Castaneda would strike out swinging. Tom Anderson would follow with a single to right. Ralph Anderson trying to make up for his error in the top of the 10th would just miss the 3-2 change-up and fly out to deep right-center... Kevin Barber would them fly out to shallow right, ending the game, and giving the Cavaliers the 2-0 victory and the 2026 DelMarVa Championship!!!! W: David Moran (2-0) L: Arturo Ramirez (1-2) S: Armando Lopez (1) POG: Ricardo Gonzalez, WLM, 8.2 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 8 K, 97 PI, 57 PS, 86 GS Cavaliers Win the Series 4-1!!! GM/Game Notes: Wow. Not much else could be said about this game. The Cavaliers had some issues scoring runs all season and had to rely on solid pitching and that is exactly what happened today and boy did they get it. Carlos Coronado went 7, shut out innings, allowing 6 hits, while walking 3 and striking out 1. He threw 114 pitches, 69 for strikes and posted a 63 game-score. He didn't have his A game, but he brought it... Eric Helton pitched a shut-out inning (8th), allowing a hit and walking one, David Moran pitched a perfect inning (9th) and Armando Lopez a shut-out inning, allowing a single... Arturo Ramirez had a rough series, he blew a save in Game 1 and Game 2, took 2 losses (1 & 5), and own game 2. Crazy series for the closer of the Iron Pigs... Ricardo Gonzalez held the Cav's to just 2 hits, who thought he could get any better than his game 1 performance... Leonard Lawson had two hits for the Cav's, and Francisco Gallegos had 1 hit, which was the only extra base hit for the Cav's a double... Tom Anderson went 3-5, Kevin Barber went 2-4 with a double, the only extra-base hit for the Pigs... This had to be one of the most fun series I have ever played in. Yes its my 7th title here in Norfolk, and yes I think we can win next season too, but I am going to soak this one it. Nothing beats the first title, then last years title, which was a battle to win including a huge mid-season trade, and then this season. This year had it all. But these last 5 games were fun to play, they were wire to wire excitement and tension. Crazy... And yes I am very surprised we took the series 4-1, I figured we would be going home the losers this year, especially after game 1, and even more surprised that we won in 5 games. Series MVP: This was a really hard one to pick this season. I just didn't know where to go. My best player was Carlos Coronado, but can someone who had to ND's really get the MVP? He went 16 innings and psoted a 1.13 ERA and we only one 1 of his 2 starts... so that being said I could go with the Iron Pigs Gonzalez who went 16.2 IP, allowed just 6 hits and posted an ERA of 0.54! Crazy... While I debate the MVP with myself here is a list of the past DelMarVa Series MVP Winners: 2013 MVP of Series: Javier Uberuaga, Washington Senators, SP. 2-0, 15 IP 13 H, 3 BB, 9 K, 2.40 ERA 2014 MVP of Series: Carlos Rodriguez, Norfolk Cavaliers, RP. 1-0, 3 G, 2 SV, 5 K 2015 MVP of Series: Bruce Walker, Lewes, .450-2-10 2016 MVP of Series: Jose Rodriguez, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. .240-3-10, 5 R's 2017 MVP of Series: Miguel Contreras, Norfolk Cavaliers, SP. 2-0 16 IP, 8 H, R, 5 BB, 18 K 2018 MVP of Series: Derek Campbell, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. 11 H, 3 R, 3B, 2 HR, 10 RBI's 2019 MVP of Series: Matt Hollis, Norfolk Cavaliers, SP. 1-0, 9 IP, 9 K 2020 MVP of Series: Leonard Davis, Lewes Braves, OF. .481-2-4 2021 MVP of Series: Jamie Trulilio, Milford Clippers, SP. 2-0, 15.1 IP, 7 H, 9 BB, 8 K, 0 R 2022 MVP of Series: Seth Bennett, Milford Clippers, SP. 2-0, 1.42 IP, 9 H, 3 BB, 3 K, 1 R; 1-2 2B, 2 RBI 2023 MVP of Series: Cristobal Diaz, Lewes Braves, SP. 2-0, 13.2 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 16 K's, 0 R 2024 MVP of Series: Totoya Ogawa, Lewes Braves, 1B. 6 H (6-13), 2B, HR, 5 R, 2 RBI 2025 MVP of Series: Bob Short, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. .533-2-4 (8-15), 2 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 6 R Here are a list of the finalist: Tom Anderson (.400-4-7), Ricardo Gonzalez (0-0 0.54), Carlos Coronado (0-0 1.13), David Moran (2-0 0.00, 2.2 IP, 3 G), Leonard Lawson (.333-1-4) and Sergio Rodriguez (.316-0-1, 5 R's)... but in the end, the MVP of the 2026 series is the same player who won the MVP last season, and our first multiple award winner, Congratulations to Bob Short the 2026 MVP of the DelMarVa Championship Series. Game 1: 2-4, HR, R, RBI Game 2: 2-4, 2 2B, R, RBI Game 3: 1-5, R Game 4: 2-4, 2 2B, R, 3 RBI Game 5: 0-4 2026 MVP of Series: Bob Short, Norfolk Cavaliers, OF. .333-1-5 (7-21), 4 2B, HR, 5 RBI, 4 R In the end I went with a player on the winning team, and he did something in every game, but the last one. Congrats to Bob Short. Attached Images __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England.. Last edited by illeracula; 08-17-2015 at 01:54 PM. Reason: fix short's stat line

08-17-2015, 02:12 PM	#1207
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	Cavaliers KO Iron Pigs Cavaliers KO Iron Pigs: Today the Norfolk Cavaliers won the 2026 League Championship with a 2-0 victory over the Wilmington Iron Pigs at Iron Pigs Ballpark. They won the series 4-1 and it was 7th time the victors have won the league title. During the MarVa Conference Western Division regular season Norfolk posted a 103-59 record and claimed first place. What's it like to win it all? "Words can't describe it," said the jubilant Cavaliers skipper. "It really hasn't sunk in. Maybe it will sink in when we go ride around Norfolk with the trophy. Right now, it's just a lot of fun. This is the one you work for ever since you first picked up a baseball. This is what you dream of and this is what you work toward all year." In defeat, the Iron Pigs manager told the press, "There's not that much difference," he said. "I know we got beat 4-1, but bad teams don't make it to the League Championship. They just executed better than we did. We're a good baseball team. The Cavaliers were just better this time around. We'll be back again." Norfolk Cavaliers Win 'Fall Classic' and Get Invited to the White House: Besides winning the big game and all of the accolades that go along with it, the President of the United States has already let the team know that he would like them to visit later this year. When speaking of the call he received from the POTUS, Cavaliers Manager, Arthur Ray, seemed a bit flustered. "He told us that he wants to meet the boys that won the Series and asked if we would come to the White House. I told him, "Hell Yes...er-Yes Sir, Mr President". While the date has not yet been decided, we will be reporting upon the exciting event. == In the end the Cavaliers won by being to score more runs. Yes I know that is how it is done, but these games were really all battles, our pitching staff was able to hold off their big offensive bats and our bats were able to eek out a few extra runs. Two of these games go extra's, one ends in a walk-off and one ended up in a shut-out... I mean really crazy series. The most fun one I can remember that is for sure. The "big" difference of this series was injuries. We had our full-time all playing at 100%, where the Iron Pigs were down 3 players, and had one of their starts at 80% for games 2-5. Iron Pigs offensive players that missed the series: Matt Fisher: .321-30-81 Alonso Martinez: .295-35-114 Chris Simpson: .270-10-52 Pretty big void in the offensive... Feels good to have title 7 under the belt and now I need to focus on the off-season and make sure we are built for title 8. The Senators keep getting tougher, and they have the budget to give us a run for the money. So we will see.... for the time being I am going to enjoy holding the title belt for consecutive years for the first time since '18-19... Congrats to the team... Attached Images __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-18-2015, 02:05 PM	#1210
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	Off-Season Report #1 - 2026/2027 Off-Season Report #1 Before the off-season rewards have been announced, before the free-agents filed, and before the arbitration hearings the off-season has already been quite busy. We are one month into the off-season and teams are already wheeling and dealing... Firings: The Georgetown Sixteens, seem to fire someone every season and this year they cleaned house again. Letting GM Bill Brown (2 seasons) and MGR Jeff Callahan (1 season) after short stints with the team. The Salisbury Ports decided to part ways with GM Ramon Mireles after 2 seasons. Mireles was the GM of the Iron Pigs from 2013-2022, just couldn't get anything going in Salisbury. He said he didn't have the time to invoke his theory into Salisbury. The Ports however weren't happy with the -18 game swing. Free Agents: There are a lot of hyped free-agents this upcoming season. As teams are frantically trying to extend their stars. These players include: CL Luis Deleon, OF Ricardo Hidalgo, 1b Matt Martin, SP Pedro Rivera, SP Brad Rose, 1B Francisco Reyes and CL Ed Yoder just to name a few. The free-agent season might be really crazy this year, with a lot of money changing hands. Trades: Christiana Blue Hens: Acquired SP Juan Torres (10-6 3.50) and $800,000 for prospect SP Jesus Miranda (AAA, #74) from the Salisbury Ports. New Castle Colonials: Received MR Juan Fernandez (4-1 3.04) from the Richmond Cardinals for 2 prospects: RF Juan Aleman (A), LF Dave Snyder (A, #182) Georgetown Sixteens: Got a new RF in Vance Burns from the Ellicott City Express for minor leaguer LF Jesus Rodriguez (AAA) and RF Kyel Olgethorpe (SA) Lewes Braves: Acquired ex-Cav King Brock (.262/.335/.435, 13 HR) from the Chesapeake Blue Crabs for SS Rick England (.279/.340/.558, 2 HR) and LF Mario Ventura (A). I hope Brock can find a home in Lewes. Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs: Received SP Mason Stanley (14-11 3.79) from the Milford Clippers for LF Roberto Alvarez (.283/.310/.467, 26 HR) and RF Pedro Valdes (A). Ellicott City Express: Have a new SS in town. They traded for SS Gordon Purkis (.222/.306/.297, 5 HR) from the Wilmington Iron Pigs for CF Eugene St. John (.263/.311/.402, 11 HR) and CF Christian Palmer (SA) Dover Generals: Gave up 4 prospects for MR Yoo-hyun Kim (1-5 3.05, 4 SV). The Lewes Braves received 3B Werner Porter (AAA), SP Johao Penalva (AA), LF Steve Kelly (SA) and CF Sergio Beneits (SA, #118). The Braves dumped Kim's $7M+ salary. Retirements: Francisco Durango has decided to retire at the age of 42. Durango finished his career with a solid season in Georgetown last year hitting .237-6-36. He was the first player in the DBL to steal 60+ bases, doing so in 2013. He is a well-known player in the DBL and retires with a .298 lifetime average, collecting 1941 hits. He was a 6-time all-star, and one of 12 players who have scored over 1000 runs. Catcher Richard Taylor is also calling it quits at the age of 44. Taylor was one of the most feared power hitters when on the field, but injuries hurt him throughout his career. He won 1 Glove Wizard Award and is a 6-time All-Star. He finishes his career with a life-time .270 average with 251 HR's, 985 R's and 809 RBI's. MR Eisse Bookelman and MR Will Wilson are both hanging up their cleats. They were trying to beat each other to 1000 games pitched this season, but injuries and age caught up with them. Bookelman finishes with 965 games, Wilson 976 (all-time leader). They are one of 4 players with over 900 games pitched. Wilson finishes with 200 career saves and a 76-58 record with a 3.38 ERA. Bookelman finishes with 129 saves, a 76-61 record with a 3.96 ERA. And Cho-Yeong An, a 2 time all-star who won 20 games as a rookie in 2014. He finishes his career 110-101 with a 4.01 ERA. He started 224 games and pitched in 443 games over his career. He makes this list, because he is a player I had on my list of "wants" for a long time. He 19-9 2.80 in 2018 and that was the only season he came close to matching his rookie campaign. Injuries: Domingo Valencia continues to struggle getting healthy. He should be ready for spring, but his strained groin muscle just won't heal. The 29-year old was having an MVP'esq season before suffering the injury. He should be able to lift weights again in 2 weeks. Team Report: Budget: $148,000,000 (11th) Payroll: $97,280,000 (10th) $ for Free-Agents: $31,650,000 $ for Extensions: $21,650,000 Fan Interest: 98 Bill Parker increased our budget by 4$M this season. We are 11th out of 30 teams so still in the upper half. Arbitration: We are going to get hit with 2 big raises this season, Short and Gonzalez. Not too bad. I am looking to moving Frank and possible signing longer term deals with Lawson, Short and Gonzalez. I do feel like I need to make my mind up with Armando Lopez, his salary is getting a little crazy and he is sort of a pitcher without a position. Do I start him? Close him? Trade him? Something to thing about this off-season. Free Agents: SS Augusto Rodriguez only had 79 AB's this seasons failing to reach his 150 vesting option, which was worth $5,650,000. Rodriguez a 4-time Glove Wizard Award winner has seen his abilities drop over the past few seasons. The Cav's will not try to renegotiate with him and we will be saying goodbye to him. ARod came to Norfolk via the inaugural draft in 2013, a 17th round pick. He has been with the Cav's since 2015 and he will be missed. He is the last of the "original" Cavaliers. There will be great debate if ARod's #16 will hang on the Cav's Hall when his career is over. SP/MR Miguel Contreras pitched 147.1 innings this season falling 2.2 innings short of his vesting option requirement of 150. Contreras is still a solid pitcher, but on the "ace" that he once was. His velocity is down to the mid-80's when it was once in the upper 90's, which in turn has made his "stuff" drop from a 18 to a 8. Contreras has pitched with the Cav's since 2017 and is 2 wins shy of 250. He has won the Golden Arm Award 7 times and holds almost all the Cavaliers career pitching records. ERA: 2.29, Wins: 175, Starts: 295, IP: 2142.2, K's: 1866... as well as plenty of single season records. His #29 will join the others on the Cav's Hall-of-Fame when he retires that is for sure. Other Free Agents this season include Adrian Otero, who signed for depth and pitched in 1 game. John O'Donegan who was a play-off hero and maybe back with this team. Have I given up on Baldwin and Bolton? Ira Daniels and Jeffrey Millers, both 3* players who haven't seen any big-league time yet. All-in-all there are 21 free-agents most of them minor leaguers who will never see the big's. I could probably use a little parring of my minors. We did sign Chris White to a minor league deal. He was a free-agent to be. Last season he hit .341-3-9 in AA. Just a fresh body with lots of power. Trades: I am looking into pulling off a trade or two this off-season. Mainly I want to get rid of Bryant Frank and his $5M salary. With Bob Short aiming to get a huge raise this season I am looking to make sure my budget numbers work. I enjoyed having money to play with during the mid-season something I haven't been able to do in Norfolk in a few years. We pulled off a minor deal with the Newark Millers. Trading free-agent to be MR Jeffrey Miller for a 15th round draft pick. I figured if we could get something for him it was better than nothing. Injuries: Sergio Rodriguez who was hurt during the last game of the DelMarVa Championship series was diagnosed with a torn menisucs. He will be out of base-ball activities for around 4 weeks, however he will be with the team when they visit the White House. Retirements: Pitching Coach Werner Meade has decided to hang it up. He has been with Norfolk since the beginning (I think, I can't pull up his file). I remember Meade as a guy who didn't have great ratings, but I was always afraid to let go, because our pitching always was strong. He had a great career and I am sorry I can't share his stats at this time. Personnel: With pitching coach our only hole to fill we have started our search. We are in talks with Francisco Burgos who has "legendary" skills. He has been the pitching coach for the Vancouver Bears in single-A for the past 7 seasons... He likes our offer, but nothing has been signed yet... a week later he signs on for a 5-yr deal worth $560,000/yr. We like his ratings: Handle Rookies, Veterans, Players: Legendary, Teach Pitching: Legendary... hopefully that is all we need. Coming up: -Off Season Awards - Arbitration Hearings - Free Agent Filings - Rule-5 Draft - Winter Meetings - 2027 __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-18-2015, 02:50 PM	#1211
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	2026 Glove Wizard Award Winners Glove Wizard Award Winners in DE Conf Announced: What does it take to win a Glove Wizard Award? It's a combination of good hands, knowing how to play the hitters, all-out hustle and a willingness to sacrifice your body to make a play. Good speed and a good arm never hurt, either, but not always required. This year's all-defense team in the Delaware Conference consists of: Pitcher: Fernando Fareles (Milton Brewers) Catcher: José Perales (Newark Millers) First Baseman: Alonso Martínez (Wilmington Iron Pigs) Second Baseman: Berend Middelkamp (Milton Brewers) Third Baseman: Tom Anderson (Wilmington Iron Pigs) - 5th time Shortstop: Cisco Benítez (Milford Clippers) - 2nd time Left Fielder: Emory Phillips (Milford Clippers) Center Fielder: Mike Johnson (Milton Brewers) Right Fielder: José Montoya (Christiana Blue Hens) MVConf Names Glove Wizard Award Choices for 2026: The Glove Wizard Award winners don't get the recognition of the home run hitters, but they are very much appreciated by managers, their teammates and by the fans, who know the value of defensive excellence. Great defense makes a difference in baseball. This year's top glovemen in the MarVa Conference are: Pitcher: Bartolo Morán (Salisbury Ports) Catcher: Luis Romero (Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs) First Baseman: Francisco Gallegos (Norfolk Cavaliers) - 2nd time Second Baseman: Steven Jefferson (Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs) Third Baseman: José Bueno (Ocean City Tourists) Shortstop: Anthony Lucarelli (Richmond Cardinals) - 4th time Left Fielder: Tyler Forrest (Ocean City Tourists) Center Fielder: Felipe Herrera (Salisbury Ports) - 2nd time Right Fielder: Sergio Rodriguez (Norfolk Cavaliers) Comments: There were only 5 repeat winners of the 18 Glove Wizard Awards given out, which is a pretty high amount of new winners. Two Cavaliers, Sergio Rodriguez and Francisco Gallegos walked away with a Glove Wizard award, it was the second time Gallegos won the award, winning it in 2024. There were also 2 rookies that walked away with the award, both in the Delaware Conference Mike Johnson of the Brewers and Jose Montoya of the Blue Hens. Record Holders: Kent Davis and Peter Peters both have won the Award 7 times, Davis in center, Peters in right. Mike Simmons, who didn't win it this year, stands as the only player with 6. __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-18-2015, 03:16 PM	#1212
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	2026 Newcomer of the Year Winners Johnson Best Rookie This Year: It was a standout 2026 season for Mike Johnson. The center fielder for the Milton Brewers has been named the winner of the Delaware Conference Newcomer Award. He hit .274 in 156 games with 179 hits and 72 RBIs and scored 112 runs. Torres Is MVConf's Best Rookie: The top-ranked rookie performer in the MarVa Conference was Norfolk second baseman Pedro Torres. It was announced today by league officials that he had been named the winner of the 2026 Newcomer Award. Torres chalked up some good season stats, including a .292 batting average and .359 on-base percentage, while racking up 10 home runs, 49 RBIs and 61 runs scored. Comments: Mike Johnson was the talk of the 2025 draft, and he ended up being the first man taking by the Milton Brewers out of the U. He signed a minor league deal for a whooping $9,350,000 signing bonus. After playing in 65 games in A-ball the Brewers gave him a cup-of-coffee. That cup translated convinced the Brewers that he was ready, and in 2026 he was given a starting job. The Brewers have had Newcomer of the Year winners 4 times now, in 2017 with 1B John Bean, 2018 with SP Carlos Hernandez and last season OF Edward Barnes. Pedro Torres signed a minor league contract out of the Dominican Republic with the Washington Senators in 2020. In 2024 he was traded to the Cavaliers. And this season he got the call when injuries struck the Cavaliers and he hit the ball so well, he stayed in the starting line-up wherever the Cav's could fit him. He played 4 games at 1B, 87 at 2B, 15 at third and 18 at shortstop. I have no issue with Johnson walking away with the award he by far put together the best season, but I am surprsied that (and happy) that Torres won the MarVa award. He had a great year, but I figured our catcher Henry Rojas would end up beating him out (.297-18-65, 83 G). Either way I am happy with the results. This is the Cavaliers 6th time to have a Newcomer of the Year winner. In 2013 OF Pablo Freitas won the award, in 2013 SS Tony Soto, in 2018 SP Arturo Ramirez and in 2020 C John O'Donegan. Its nice to see a rookie from Norfolk back on the list. I make a lot of trades, but I always make sure I have a nice pipeline of youth and we have these 6 awards to show for that. Attached Images __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-18-2015, 03:26 PM	#1213
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	2026 Manager of the Year DEConf Top Skipper is Guardio of Milton: Milton Brewers field manager Guilherme Guardio has brought a winning attitude to the team and the city. His no-nonsense approach, work ethic and baseball experience has paved the way for success. This season the Brewers parlayed his managerial skills and some talented ballplayers into a first place spot in the Delaware Conference Southern Division standings. Milton finished the year with a 91-71 record. To everybody's delight Guardio was voted the 2026 Delaware Conference Manager of the Year by the baseball writers. "Mr. Guardio doesn't take any stuff. If you aren't doing your job, he's not afraid to call you on it," noted one of his ballplayers. "But the team wouldn't want to play for anyone else. He's tough, demanding, but he treats everyone fairly and doesn't play favorites. Nobody gets pampered on his ballclub." Ray Garners MVDIV Top Skipper Award: The Norfolk Cavaliers coaching staff broke out the bubbly when Manager Arthur Ray was announced as 2026 MarVa Conference Manager of the Year. He skippered the Cavaliers to a 103-59 record this year and a first place finish in the MarVa Conference Western Division. To a man, they all agreed that their boss was most deserving of the award. All had glowing words to say about this year's winning manager. "He just has a way with people. Coaches and players alike love him." Comments: Guardio took over the helm of the Brewers in 2025 and in his second year he took a young team and shocked the DBL with a conference title. This is the third time Guardio has won the manager of year, winning in 2014 and 2016 with the Dover Generals. He has managed 4 different teams, since 2013, with the exception of 2022 when he was a bench coach. His overall record is 1037-1069 .492 with 4 playoff appearances. Ray has been in Norfolk since 2017 when he signed on as the bench coach and in 2023 he took over as the manager. He has won the Manager of the Year award ever since. In his 4 seasons as the Cavaliers manager he has compiled a career record of 434-214 .670, with 4 playoff appearances and 2 titles. __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-18-2015, 03:44 PM	#1214
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	2026 Golden Arm Winners Top DEConf Pitcher Announced: The Golden Arm Award for 2026 has been presented and the Delaware Conference winner is Ricardo González of Wilmington. "It's always nice to receive an award like this," said González. "I just hope I can improve on my performance next year and be in the running again," the Iron Pigs star told reporters. González excelled with an impressive 24-4 record in 34 starts. In 240.1 innings he yielded 163 hits and 60 walks, while striking out 310 and compiling a fine 2.10 ERA. MVConf Gives Best Pitcher Award: This year there was no one better on the mound than Cornell Pearson. Posting 23 wins and a 2.16 ERA was only part of the story for the Norfolk superstar. For his outstanding performance in 2026 he was chosen as the MarVa Conference Golden Arm Award winner. From start to finish Pearson never let up. In 32 starts he recorded 23 wins and 4 losses, 233 innings, 204 strikeouts, 36 walks, yielded 169 hits, and permitted opposing batters to hit .198 against him. Comments: No real surprise here. The 23-yr old Gonzalez is a beast winning the award for the second time. He became the first player in DBL history to strike out 300 in a season and he seems to keep getting better. I am curious of what next season will bring... This seasons that Pearson had was the season I have been waiting for him to have. His ratings have always been great, but he has always slumped at one point or another. The past few seasons he started off red-hot only to slump so much in the 2nd half that I almost traded him away. Him winning this award makes me feel good, because I stuck to him. I just hope he can return in 2027 and put Attached Images __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England.. Last edited by illeracula; 08-18-2015 at 03:45 PM. Reason: cleaner pic

08-18-2015, 03:58 PM	#1215
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	2026 Silver Slugger Award Winner Ricardo Hidalgo Gets Best Bat Trophy: It was a pay-raising season for Christiana's left fielder. Regardless of where Ricardo Hidalgo signs on next year, this 2026 Delaware Conference Silver Slugger Award will be considered a marquee pickup. He excelled with 203 hits, 34 doubles, 6 triples, 52 home runs and 127 RBIs while compiling a .320 batting average. Jason Atkins Captures Best Bat Trophy: Jason Atkins, the Washington center fielder, certainly made an impression on MarVa Conference pitchers this past season. He punished them for 191 hits in 593 at-bats, 31 doubles, 3 triples, 56 home runs, and 136 RBIs and scored 132 times. That standout hitting earned him the MarVa Conference Silver Slugger Award for 2026. Comments: Hidalgo is a free-agent this season and I will be surprised if he resigns with the Blue Hens. he won the triple crown this season with a monster year, proving how good he is if he can stay healthy. Looking at his injury log you see a long list of injuries. In fact since he came up in 2019 this is the second season that he has played in 140+ games (2021). Last year 114, the previous 86. I would be weary of signing him, but he is a total stud when he is on the field. Jason Atkins finished the seasons with the leagues 6th best average and 2nd in RBI's, as well as leading the league in runs, total bases, extra base hits and WAR. At 26-yrs old I don't think this will be the last time we see his name under Silver Slugger... Attached Images __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-24-2015, 01:46 PM	#1216
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	Off-Season Report #2 - 2026/2027 (12/1/2026) Off-Season Report #2 Off-Season Report WAR Leaders: Milton Brewers, +3.2 Annapolis Admrials, +2.3 Washington Senators, +2.2 Georgetown Sixteens, +2.1 Newark Millers, +1.7 WAR Losers: Salisbury Ports, -9.7 Dover Generals, -9.1 Ocean City Tourists, -9.1 Baltimore Barons, -6.9 Lewes Braves, -6.7 Free Agents: The free-agents field so the crazy season will now itensifiy: This year's top free agents, courtesy of BNN, are: 1. Ricardo Hidalgo, 28 year-old left fielder 2. Shawn Brock, 32 year-old starting pitcher 3. Robert Walker, 39 year-old starting pitcher 4. Shumei Ishikawa, 27 year-old third baseman 5. Miguel Contreras, 38 year-old closer 6. Jaime Trujilio, 30 year-old starting pitcher 7. Vincent Parker, 33 year-old starting pitcher 8. Manuel Martínez, 29 year-old shortstop 9. Oliver Nelson, 26 year-old starting pitcher 10. Germán Alvarado, 29 year-old starting pitcher Free-Agent Signings The big names: SP Pedro Rivera (Milton Brewers), 3 years / $49,200,000 - Rivera has 152 career wins all with the Ocean City Tourists over his 12-year career. He is a model of consistency, and will make a nice addition to the Brewers staff. At 34-years old he still has a couple more good years left. C Marvin Martin (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $23,500,000 - When Healthy Martin is an above average, but he hasn't been healthy much over the past 2 seasons. Last year he played in 27 games, the year before 78. He his a lifetime .261-209-849 hitter and has been in the league since 2013. At 38, Martin is ready for a resurgence. LF Ricardo Hidalgo (Washington Senators), 6 years / $105,600,000 - The Senators now have the reigning Delaware Conference (Hidalgo) and MarVa Conference (Jason Atkins) Silver Sluggers in their out-field. Falling to the Cavalires in the final months over the pat 2-seasons the Senators look to change that with adding another bat to their already powerful offense. Hidalgo is injury prone, but when he is healthy he is lethal as he proved last season. With the addition of Hidalgo the Senators now have 3 players who hit over 50 HR's and drove in 125 runs in their lineup, last season!! CL Ed Yoder (New Castle Colonials), 3 years / $39,800,000 - Even at 32 Ed Yoder is still on of the games best closers. Last season for hte Blue Crabs and Admirals he saved 35 games and posted a 1.73 ERA. This was the 8th time in his career that he has topped the 27 save mark. He now has 273 career saves and should hit 300 this season, making him the 3rd DBL player to reach that mark. The others: C Byran Pearson (Newark Millers), 2 years / $1,460,000 CL Eugene Carpetner (Annapolis Admirals), 2 years / $7,040,000 SP Cesar Ayala (Seaford Blue Jays), 2 years / $1,430,000 SP Jacob Holder (Seaford Blue Jays), 2 years / $3,720,000 SP Tyrone Parker (Seaford Blue Jays), 2 years / $1,480,000 Trades: Annapolis Admirals: Acquired RF Armando Vazquez (.320/.357/.487, 16 HR) from the Ocean City Tourists in return for MR Kevin Snyder (2-5 5.37, 15 SV) and prospect C Harris Marshall (SA, #93) Seaford Blue Jays: Acquired prospect MR Jacob Young (0-0 1.35, 2 SV, #12), SS Dan Riddell (.259/.304/.369, 5 HR) and $950,000 cash, from the Christiana Blue Hens for LF Felipe Pagado (.295/.368/.547, 37 HR). Dover Generals: Acquired OF Tom Dundee (.240/.285/.401, 15 HR) and $1,200,000 cash from the Seaford Blue Jays in return for MR Jesus Espinosa (2-8, 4.16, 13 SV) and LF Vincente Aguilera (A) New Castle Colonials: Acquired MR Tariel Ratishvilli (5-7 3.53, 4 SV) from the Georgetown Sixteens for minor leaguer 3B Falco Evers (A) Dover Generals: Received SS Tim Barber (.231/.302/.409, 18 HR) and 3B Roman Segard (A) from the Christiana Blue Hens for C Everett Foley (.240/.327/.380, 3 HR). Salisbury Ports: Acquired MR Jesus Rodriguez and his salary ($2,400,000) from the Ellicott City Express in return for SS Yok-sing Gong (AAA) and 2B Ed Millers (SA) Richmond Cardinals: Sent 2B Dan Bernard (.251/.340/.356, 5 HR) and $3,000,000 cash to the Seaford Blue Jays for SP Howard Hanson (7-9 5.21). New Castle Colonials: Dealt a prospect SP Greyson Jacques (A, #11) and another minor leaguer (3B Joe Lacy, SA) to the Baltimore Barons in return for SP Jesse Meyers (8-7 3.80, 1 SV) Team Report: Budget: $148,000,000 (11th) Payroll: $103,040,000 (7th) $ for Free-Agents: $24,730,000 $ for Extensions: $4,940,000 Fan Interest: 100 Arbitration: Before the Arbitration date we came to terms with 4 players. I also tried to shop Bryant Frank around, but wasn't pleased with what is out there. I will have to do it again down the road, but I don't foresee him in a Cav's uniform to start the 2027 season. I am not a huge fan of the amount of money Armando Lopez is going to make, but I figured he had one more year of arbitration and then I didn't want to lose him. So I extended him. Yes I know that makes me sound a little crazy, but I did it. He agreed to a 3yr deal: year 1: $8,300,000, year 2: $8,500,000, year 3: $9,300,000. After what he did this season and throughout the playoffs I felt like I had to get Carlos Coronado locked up for a few more years. I feel like we got him at a nice discount. We signed him for 4 year deal, with the 4th year being a team option: year 1: $6,490,000, year 2: $7,490,000, year 3: $7,490,000, year 4: $8,490,000. Leonard Lawson was set to get some crazy arbitration numbers over the years, so I felt like I should get him before that happened. I singed the 24 year old to a 4 year deal, which is very favorable to us (I think). Year 1: $6,740,000, Year 2: $7,470,000, Year 3: $7,470,000, Year 4: $8,470,000. And finally we signed Bob Short to a deal, this deal was a little more costly than I wanted but it was the only way I could get him through is Arbitration years, and not go broke. We have him on 4 year deal, with the 4th year being a team option. Year 1: $10,490,000, Year 2: $11,490,000, Year 3: $11,490,000, Year 4: $11,490,000. The rest of the players went to arbitration and here is how it turned out: Robinson Lopez: WON - $3,600,000 David Moran: LOST - $2,310,000 Bryant Frank: WON - $5,000,000 Miguel Angel Gonzalez: LOST - $3,500,000 Mark Bolton: WON - $850,000 All in all I am pleased with how the arbitration hearings went. Nothing to crazy. So I will chalk this year up to a win for my arbitration. Free Agents: SS Augusto Rodriguez, SP/CL Miguel Contreras, MR Adrian Otero, and C John O'Donegan all became free-agents. I did try to resign O'Donegan, but he wanted a multi-year deal worth way too much for my blood. I have 2 hot-shot catchers in the minors who hopefully will be ready in a year or two, making me shy away from the multi-year deal. Roster Moves: We added 3 players, SP Alberto Ramos, 2B Edgardo Perdnard, and 3B Angel Hernandez to our 40-man roster to protect them from the up coming Rule-5 draft. Rule-5 Draft: We didn't draft anyone, but we did lose 2 players: 2B Nelson Barrera - Barrera will try to make the team for the Georgetown Sixteens and we wish him luck. He has been toiling around in our AA system the past 2 years. We signed him in 2019 out of the Dominican, and I think he will put up some average numbers for the Sixteens. Great with the glove, decent with the bat, no power. From Alexis Shelton "Destined to be a career minor leaguer" so we will see. RF Steve Ingram - Ingram was our 2nd round pick in the 2022 draft and never became the player we expected. He still has some growth to do. He is a below average contact hitter, that shows off some power, and an slightly above average fielder. He hasn't played above A ball for us in Norfolk. From our scout Alexis Shelton: "Ingram is a below average hitter. Too timid at the plate, and just ins't consistent enough to be reliable". I will have to keep an eye on these guys to see how they do. GM Notes: At this time I am not sure what my off-season goals are. I know right? How could I not be prepared... well we have so much youth that is ready to be called up I am feeling that growing from within makes more sense. I have to figure out if I want to keep Frank around or deal him and if I deal him I will try to do it during the Winter Meetings. I would like a prospect in return, and will not deal away my prospects either. I will have to break down my roster and see what I have, so I don't go into 2027 unprepared. Watching the Senators boost themselves up is quite scary, so I better start to focus on things now... Coming up: - Cavaliers Team Report - Winter Meetings - 2027 __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England.. Last edited by illeracula; 08-24-2015 at 01:48 PM. Reason: formatting

08-25-2015, 03:50 PM	#1217
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	Cavaliers Roster Overview for 2027 Cavaliers Roster Overview for 2027 Going into winter meetings I figured I should break down my team and see what I may need or want for the 2027 season. For the most part this team is the same team that won the Championship last season, with the only "real" exception the loss of Miguel Contreras. I did lose my back-up catcher John O'Donegan, a middle reliever who threw in 1 game and my 3rd string short-stop... this break down, however may make me chase down John O for another year or two deal. We will have to see... The Offense: We have 20 position players on our 40-man. Catcher: Henry Rojas (L) Mark Bolton (L) Mike Baldwin We could live with these 3 catchers on the roster, but I think I would rather have a better back-up for Rojas. Bolton has average ratings, but just hasn't been able to hit in Norfolk. He is also a lefty. Baldwin is a better hitter than Bolton, but isn't a good fielder. It is going to be a tough call. We are waiting for Gino Macciocchi to be ready and he will make a nice RH back-up catcher with Rojas. Macciocchi is 21 and a switch hitter, he played 34 games in AAA last year and may end up there again. (Contact: 8/10, Gap: 14/14, HR: 6/16, Eye: 5/9, K's: 7/9) First Base: Francisco Gallegos (S) Francisco is our only true 1B on the roster, but we have many other players that are capable of playing the position. The 2-time Glove Wizard winner is a solid hitter and will be back in the middle of the lineup in 2027. Second Base/Shortstop/Third Base: Robinson Lopez (2B/3B) Pedro Torres (2B/SS) Claudio Flores (SS) Bryant Frank (2B/SS) Mario Vazquez (S) (SS/2B) Carlos Franco (3B/SS/2B) Angel Hernandez (3B) Edgardo Perdnard (2B) This is where the offense side of the ball gets a little interesting. Last season we had 4 primary guys, which will be how it is (most likely) again this season. Here is how it broke down last year: Lopez played 60 games at 2B, 72 at 3B and 13 at SS. Torres played 4 games at 1B, 87 at 2B, 15 at 3B and 18 at SS. Flores played 11 games at 2B and 110 at SS. Frank played 18 games at 2B, 38 at 3B and 18 at SS. I would like a little more stability in the infield this season and maybe even a lefty. I am not sure it will be worth blowing up these 4 guys, but maybe it will. I have a feeling Frank won't be happy not-starting. Plus we have Angel Hernandez who is pretty much ready to contribute (Con: 9/9, Gap: 11/11, Power 12/13, Eye: 10/12, K's: 8/8), but really only plays 3B, so that may play into my decision. I'd like to use Torres at 2B, Lopez at 3B and then Flores at SS. Flores isn't the fielder I thought he was going to be, but maybe with another year under his belt he will get better. That leaves Frank the odd man out. Vazquez is a fielder not really a hitter. Perdnard is a fragile guy, but stormed on the scene last year when I rule-5'd him and converted him into a hitter. Franco is the only reserve who doesn't have any options. Outfield: Sergio Galvez (L) (CF/LF/RF/1B) Sergio Rodriguez (LF/RF/CF/1B) Bob Short (L) (LF/RF) Leonard Lawson (L) (LF) Trevor Parker (L) (RF) Juan Hernandez (CF/RF/LF) Juan Taveares (RF/CF) The outfield is pretty set, and will work the same was as last season. Galvez in CF, the power bat, Rodriguez in RF the stealer, Short in LF, consistency, Lawson at DH with Parker filling in everywhere else. Here is the position break-down from last year: Galvez played in 156 games, all but 4 in CF. Rodriguez played 127 games in RF, 12 in LF. Short played in 97 games in LF. Lawson was my primary DH playing in 142 games. Parker played 31 games in LF and RF, 7 in CF and DH'd the rest. Hernandez only played 17 games with the Cav's last season. A big booming bat, with speed, he is on the cusp of making this team for good. He was rated the #69th prospect in the DBL, however I am not sure if he is "ready" or if I am "ready". Hernandez would need to take over Parker's role, or I would need to move someone. Tavares was the DBL's #98 prospect last season, but only played in 64 games after tearing his ACL. He is expected to miss about 4 more months. Tavares will be back in AAA this year, but will be ready soon. The problem is, if I don't make any moves, our starting 4 will all be in Norfolk for 3 more seasons... On the cusp, and not on the 40-man: Oliver Ramos (1B) - More of a DH type, but knows how to play first. His bat is just about ready for the bigs. (Contact; 11/14, Gap: 12/13, HR: 10/16, Eye: 12/14, K's: 8/9) Last year in AAA he hit .341-28-110. At 22 he could probably use another year of seasoning, but should see some Cav's time this season. Ramon Lorenzo (SS) - The defensive SS of the future. Last season he played in AA and this year he will move up to AAA. His ratings are just about big-league ready, but at 20 years old he could use some more growth (Contact; 9/11, Gap: 14/14, HR: 4/10, Eye: 7/11, K's: 12/16). In AA last year he hit .300-16-88, and his future is very promising. He could see his way to the Cavaliers later in the year depending on how he develops. Blake Quirke (LF/CF) - Quirke moved up from A to AAA this season and excelled at each spot. A: .281-11-56, AA: .315-7-17, AAA: .329-4-12. He is close and its nice to see, as he is one of MY first round picks. I'd like him to see AAA again this year, but he is another one who is creeping up on us... (Contact; 9/11, Gap: 13/13, HR: 11/14, Eye: 7/9, K's: 10/14) Dennis Nichols (C) - He might be an answer to my back-up-catcher problem, but he hasn't played over A ball yet. At 23, he hit .255-12-62 in A last year. But he has decent ratings and could fill in just as good as Bolton and Baldwin. Plus he is a righty that will work nicely with Rojas. (Contact: 7/8, Gap: 14/14, HR: 8/12, Eye: 10/12, K's: 6/7) Offense thoughts: Our line-up is pretty set, but I do think there are some questions that need to be answered. Do I move Frank? Do I keep Parker as my rotating outfielder? And finally who is going to be my back-up infielder? Frank? Franco? At least the starters are set. Here is the proposed lineup for opening day: Sergio Rodriguez - RF Sergio Galvez - CF Francisco Gallegos - 1B Bob Short - LF Pedro Torres - 2B Henry Rojas - C Leonard Lawson - DH Robinson Lopez - 3B Claudio Flores - SS The Pitchers: We have 18 pitchers on the 40-man and a minor leaguer who is pretty much going to be on the 40-man by the time spring training rolls around, but one thing we don't have is a true lights-out closer. I have some ideas about that, but I am not sure... Starters: Paul Brown Cornell Pearson Carlos Coronado (L) Joaquin Hernandez These four are my 1-4 for the season. I really like Hernandez, and during his time with the Cav's he was really solid. His season ended early with injury however. Brown and Pearson will once again will be the heart and soul of the of the staff. I look forward to seeing Coronado this year after a very successful season. The Maybe Starters: Miguel Angel Gonzalez Armando Lopez Not sure what to do with these two guys. Both want to start, but I think they fit better as relievers. Lopez is the stronger stater, only because he has more pitches, so he may contend for that #5 slot. He would of been in the rotation last year, but he was pitching to good out of the pen. Middle Men: David Moran (L) Eric Helton Teo Ha Alberto Sanchez Moran and Helton both pitched in 50+ games and were my set-up men. They will most likely fill the same role this year. Ha was another lefty in the pen, but wow he isn't nearly as good as I thought he'd be. Maybe this year will be better. Sanchez had a decent year, but only pitched in 17 games. With the starters going deep in games, our bullpen doesn't that much use. The others: Boyd Martin (L) Michael Meagher Luis Manuel Gonzalez Lazzaro Tadiotto Alberto Ramos Angel Rivera Allen Williams Ryan Williams Martin pitched in 14 games, 13 starts for the Cav's last season. Meagher pitched in 9 games of relief. Tadiotto and LM Gonzalez both pitched in 1 game. These are the only guys who have any big league experience. Ryan Williams and Allen Williams are ready to contend for a roster slot. Angel Rivera and Alberto Ramos will contend for the #5 start slot, but will most likely be demoted or traded. Closer: None. I think we will head into spring with a 3-way competition for closer. Miguel Angel Gonzalez, Ryan Williams and Boyd Martin. I think we are covered with option years that no matter what we decided to do we will be fine. I will have to check that out as we get closer to the regular season (if I am looking right, only Angel Rivera has no options). On the cusp, and not on the 40-man roster: Ernie Kennedy (SP) - He will be the front runner for the Newcomer of the Year award assuming he can stay healthy. He still isn't as developed as he could be, but wow does he look good. (Stuff: 13/15, Movement: 12/12, Control: 12/17) He has a nice status of 17, throws in the mid-90's gets more grounders than fly-outs and has 4 pitches rated 12 or above. He was the #3 prospect in the DBL this season and the Cav's #1. Look for him to make his debut in 2027, unless something crazy happens. Pitching Thoughts: I am not sure what to think. The starters are set. The set-up men are set. The closer and the backend of pen? Open for competition. Here is what I have in mind for the slots/battles: 1) Paul Brown 2) Cornell Pearson 3) Carlos Coronado (L) 4) Joaquin Hernandez 5) Ernie Kennedy (L) / Armando Lopez Set-up 1) David Moran (L) 2) Eric Helton Closer 1) Miguel Angel Gonzalez / Boyd Martin / Ryan Wiliams Middle Guys 1) Alberto Sanchez / Lazzaro Tadiotto 2) Teo Ha (L) / Boyd Martin 3) Michael Meagher / Ryan Williams / Angel Rivera I don't think I will be reaching out to any free-agents, but I do I might look for a lock-down closer. However the 2 closers are off the market already. __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-26-2015, 03:54 PM	#1218
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	Off-Season Report #3 - 2026/2027 (01/11/2027) Off-Season Report #3 WAR Leaders: Milton Brewers, +6.6 Annapolis Admirals, +4.7 New Castle Colonials, +4.6 Newark Millers, +2.4 Georgetown Sixteens, +1.9 WAR Losers: Salisbury Ports, -9.7 Ocean City Tourists, -9.1 Dover Generals, -8.6 Baltimore Barons, -5.3 Milford Clippers, -5.0 Free Agent Signings: The Big Names: SP Luis Deleon (New Castle Colonials), 3 years / $40,800,000 - Deleon started his career as a closer, then moved to starter for 6 1/2 seasons, then the Lewes Braves went to him as their full-time closer. He will head into the Colonials starting rotation. He has 99 career wins and 102 career saves. 3B Shumei Ishikawa (Washington Senators), 4 years / $48,000,000 - You probably haven't heard for Ishikawa, because he has just entered the DBL via Japan. He is probably the top international free-agent joining the DBL in 2027 and the Senators gobbled up the 3B. It will be interesting to see how the 27 year old's skills convert to the DBL. 2B Ramon Granados (Milton Brewers), 4 years / $50,400,000 - Ramon wasn't going to make this list, but his big contract earned him a slot. Last season in New Castle Ramon set career highs for average, homers, runs and RBI's. He will join the Brewers as their primary 2B. SP Miguel Contreras (Milford Clippers), 2 years / $30,000,000 - One of the games all-time top starters, who has 248 career wins, will join the Clippers starting staff to go after #250. Last season he had a solid season, but his ratings keep falling. The 7-time Golden Arm winner is looking to hold down the #2 slot for the Clippers. The Cav's fans will miss him and it will be interesting to see what he has left. SP Robert Walker (Lewes Braves), 2 years / #33,100,000 - At 39 years old Walker won 15 games for the Clippers. The Braves hope as a 40 year old Walker still has some umph in his tank. He makes a return to Lewes with this 2-yr deal after spending 4 seasons in Milford. His last season in Lewes was his best season a Golden Arm season which saw him go 25-6 2.26. He looks like he is still going strong at 40. 1B Matt Martin (Seaford Blue Jays), 4 years / $69,600,000 - Martin seems to be getting better with age, putting up a solid season last year .273-38-95 for the Salisbury Ports. Next season will be his first not in Salisbury and he is looking to play for a winning team. He was one of the biggest offensive free-agents available. MR Jerry Copeland (Dover Generals), 2 years / $6,560,000 - Is border line to be on this list, but he once a top pitcher in DBL, but as he has aged he is now a solid reliever. He returns to Dover where he spent the first 11 years of his career. He currently stands at 184 wins for his career and the 38 year old would love to get 16 more. SP Shawn Brock (Ellicott City Express), 4 years / %53,200,000 - Brock continues to get contracts, because he continues to be consistent. He will give you 200 innings a year and win 10 games. This contract was hard to resist as the Express doled out a lot for Brock, the question is can he live up to it? SP Jamie Trujilio (Annapolis Admirals), 2 years / $10,540,000 - Jamie had a down year in 2024 posting some of the worst stats of his career then he spent 2 seasons in Lewes and turned around his luck. Now he is an above average starter with 23 wins over the past 2 seasons. The Admirals hope he will be able to continue that success this season. SP German Alvarado (Lewes Braves ), 4 years / $63,100,100 - The Lewes Braves might of signed the biggest free-agent starter on the market and at 30 years old, the should be enjoy it. Last season he had a little off year going 16-8, but the previous year he won 20 games and that is what the Braves are looking for. The Braves have now added 2 solid starters to a depleted starting staff. The Others: MR Elmer Hawkins (Ellicott City Express), 1 year / $2,240,000 Extensions: OF Jeff Lewis (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $32,000,000 - The 35 year old had some injuries that kept him down to 114 games last season, but he still hit .333-20-81, earning him the extension. Trades: Washington Senators: Acquired SS Pedro Rivas (.201/.253/.265, 2 HR) and prospect LF Pedro Meracdo (AA) from the Newark Millers for veteran 2B William Jones (.224/.302/.346, 5 HR) and $2,510,000 cash. Chesapeake Blue Crabs: Acquired CL George Meyer (5-4 3.15, 1 SV) from the Lewes Braves in exchange for prospects SP Bill Storms (A, #35) and C Wayne Harrison. Baltimore Barons: Received 2B Leon Bermudez (.263/.326/.428, 13 HR) from the Georgetown Sixteens for SP Greyson Jacques (A, #11) and SP Nelson Monroe. Jacques has now been traded 2 times in the past 14 days. Washington Senators: Acquired MR Russ Dillon (2-2 2.76, 1 SV) from the Newark Millers for RF Manuel Davila (AA) and 3B Bob Crawford (SA). Washington Senators: Looking to bulk up their pitching staff after making a huge offensive splash via free-agency the Senators acquired another MR Angel Cruz (2-0 4.40, 2 SV) in exchange for prospects SP Carlos Reyes (A, #95) and LF Dave Hudson (A) from the Baltimore Barons. Georgetown Sixteens: Reached a deal with the Milford Clippers sending LF Javier Macias (A) to Milford in return for LF Emory Phillips (.277/.305/.432, 18 HR). New Castle Colonials: Acquired MR Dale Norton (7-1 1.32, 4 SV, #101) from the Richmond Cardinals for CF Steve Moon (A, #130) and C Jim Jackson (A). Injuries: Richmond Cardinals: Will be without 2B Tony Keith to begin the season after Keith broke an elbow in his arm. The story that is coming out of Richmond is Keith was shaking hands at a fan meet and greet when his elbow popped. Last season Keith hit .260-13-65 for the Cardinals. Team Report: Budget: $148,000,000 (11th) Payroll: $103,040,000 (7th) $ for Free-Agents: $24,730,000 $ for Extensions: $4,740,000 Fan Interest: 100 GM Notes: Well after looking over my roster I have decided to sit still for the rest of the off-season at least until February. I would like to move Bryant Frank and Teo Ha at a minimum. I will trade for prospects, my depth in the minors is just a little too talented to go out and chase a vet... the other guy on the block, but not very high-up is Armando Lopez. I may end up leaning towards a 6-man rotation, but I am not sure. why you ask? well its because I have a lot of good young pitchers who are budding and ready to go. I am thinking, but who knows. This is one reason why I have put Lopez on the maybe trading block. He is a solid pitcher and I'd hate to lose him, but it'd be a nice budget saver and it will allow me to get someone up who is similar to him. Nothing is pressing, as we are ready for the 2027 season in our current state. I am getting excited and ready to play this year out. Coming up: - Preseasons - Spring training - top 100 Prospects / Top minor league systems - Opening Day __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-28-2015, 03:58 PM	#1219
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	Off/Pre-Season Report #4 - 2027 (03/01/2027) Off/Pre-Season Report #4 - 2027 WAR Leaders: Milton Brewers, +10.9 New Castle Colonials, +5.1 Georgetown Sixteens, +4.6 Annapolis Admirals, +4.4 Lewes Braves, +3.8 WAR Losers: Salisbury Ports, -11.6 Ocean City Tourists, -7.4 Dover Generals, -6.2 Baltimore Barons, -3.7 Richmond Cardinals, -3.3 Free Agent Signings: 3B Cliff Jones (New Castle Colonials), 1 year / $8,400,000 - Jones is 43 and can still hit pretty well. Last season he hit .253-3-31 in 76 games. Missing a lot of time with injuries. He has been injury plagued during most of his career. He is currently 5th on the all-time hit list with 2244. SS Manuel Martinez (Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs), 6 years / $101,200,000 - A one-time can't miss product, he has been ravaged with injuries over his career. Last season he played in 146 games with the Baltimore Barons hitting .294-20-87. The Dawgs will be looking for the same kind of output based on the amount of money they have dished out for this 29 year old. 1B Francisco Reyes (Georgetown Sixteens), 2 years / $26,800,000 - Reyes still believes he has more "umph" in his tank at 37 years old. Last year he had an off season hitting just .247-30-88. We will see what this season brings, but one thing is for sure this future hall-of-famer should hit #600 early on this year, he sits at 598 currently (He is the only player in the DBL with over 500 HR's). SP Oliver Nelson (Milford Clippers), 7 years / $100,800,000 - Nelson has 1 winning season over his 7 year career, yes just 1, but the Clippers see something in this 27 year old to dish out a 7 year deal. This deal made most of us go "huh?". C Andy Kohl (Annapolis Admirals), 1 year / $5,800,000 - A one-time icon of power, the 35 year-old catcher is now nothing more than a back-up. He will fight for playing and and try to redeem his .228-3-19 2026 season. He has a career line of .297-418-1246 and should put some fans in the seats in Annapolis at least at the beginning of the season. CL Marcos Estrada (Georgetown Sixteens), 2 years / $11,220,000 - Another aging icon that has decided to sign with the Sixteens. Estrada went 2-7 4.57 with 19 saves last season for the Blue Crabs and this season he will try to close games for the Sixteens. The past ace has 226 career wins and a record 2792 strikeouts. CL Frederick Taylor (Milton Brewers), 3 years / $9,330,000 MR Rudy Richards (Baltimore Barons), 2 years / $7,720,000 LF Joe Middleton (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $13,100,000 MR Arturo Herrera (Chesapeake Blue Crabs), 2 years / $6,080,000 SP Vincent Parker (Baltimore Barons), 2 years / $14,400,000 1B Berend Middelkamp (Milton Brewers), 4 years / $37,320,000 SP Vicente Rosas (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $9,680,000 SP Jorge Jiminez (Lewes Braves), 3 years / $15,900,000 MR Julio Saldana (Georgetown Sixteens), 1 year / $1,840,000 - I like to see this kid keepin' on keepin' on. After a rough season in 2019 (3-4 6.37) he sat out the 2020 season unsigned. One day I was trolling the free-agents and saw this kid with solid ratings so I signed and in 2021 for the Cavaliers he went 3-0 1.36 in 14 games, and has had a job ever since. I keep trollin' for guys just like him, heck you never know what you will see... but its nice to see him still throwing well 745 games over his career... SP Bob McCord (Dover Generals), 2 years / $8,600,000 MR Vincente Angel (Dover Generals), 1 year / $2,000,000 2B Justin Collins (Ellicott City Express), 1 year / $3,360,000 MR Javier Castro (Unsigned) - Castro is the oldest pitcher in the DBL and is still trying to find a deal. He still has some decent ratings (10/10/16, 72% GB) and put together a decent 2026 year (5-5 4.32, 60 G). Over his career he has pitched in 882 games for 11 different teams. Always a nomad and always consistent I am curious to see where he goes next... Extensions: SP Guillermo Alfonso (Christiana Blue Hens), 5 years / $70,000,000 - Alfonso has put together two solid season in Christiana going 16-9 last season and 17-9 the season before. This is a big deal that should keep Alfonso in Christiana During his prime, he is only 29 years old. Trades: Dover Generals: Received SP Matt Rollins (6-12 4.18) and $2,400,000 cash from the Salisbury Ports for minor leaguers 2b Artie Greene (A, #192) and CL Shawn Anderson (A). Milton Brewers: Received CL Dennis Marshall (3-2 2.24, 2 SV) from the Lewes Braves for prospect CL Roberto Chavez (AAA, #25) and SS Loren Barnes (A) Team Report: Budget: $148,000,000 (11th) Payroll: $103,040,000 (7th) $ for Free-Agents: $24,730,000 $ for Extensions: $4,740,000 Fan Interest: 100 Expectation: Reach the Playoffs GM Notes: I have still not done anything, until this week. I reached out to the Seaford Blue Jays and are in discussions with them. I am waiting to hear back. I have worked out a deal sending prospects, Teo Ha and Bryant Frank in return for prospects. They are probably getting the better end of the deal, but its the best I could work out right now and as we get close to the Spring Training I figured its time for me to start looking and shopping... Coming up: - Spring training - top 100 Prospects / Top minor league systems - Opening Day __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..

08-31-2015, 03:37 PM	#1220
illeracula Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Delaware Posts: 3,931	Spring Training Report - 3/31/2027 Spring Training Report Final Spring Leaders: Southern: Dover Generals: 15-9 (+2) Northern: New Castle Colonials: 15-9 (+1) Eastern: Ocean City Tourists: 15-9 (+2) Western: Norfolk Express: 19-5 (+4) AVG: Sergio Rodriguez (Norfolk Cavaliers): .456 HR: Matt Fisher (Wilmington Iron Pigs): 8 RBI: Matt Fisher (Wilmington Iron Pigs): 19 ERA: 3 with 0.00 W: Maofumi Hashimoto (Dover Generals): 4 K: Rodney Glatz (Virginia Beach Surf Dawgs): 31 Off-Season Report: WAR Leaders: Milton Brewers, +10.9 Annapolis Admrials, +5.8 New Castle Colonials, +5.1 Georgetown Sixteens, +4.2 Lewes Braves, +3.8 WAR Losers: Salisbury Ports, -11.6 Ocean City Tourists, -6.6 Baltimore Barons, -3.7 Richmond Cardinals, -3.3 Dover Generals, -3.0 Free Agent Signings: SP Esteban Calamacho (Richmond Cardinals), 2 years / $6,520,000 - A free-agent out of Cuba Estaban will bring his mid-90's heat to Richmond and try to wow the fans. At 28 years-old he has above average ratings and should be able to win 15+ games. SP Brad Rose (Ellicott City Express), 2 years / $14,800,000 - Rose is 28 year-old ace and this is a big deal in EC. Last season he was injuried for most of the year and he is still injuried for another couple of weeks, but in his first 6 games he went 5-0 1.52. It will be intersting to see how he returns from injury and if he can duplicate the success that allowed him to put up back-to-back 14 win seasons. He is injury prone, but when he is on the mound he is dangerous. SS Jose Escamilla (Dover Generals), 1 year / $1,780,000 1B Enzo Allard (Seaford Blue Jays), 1 year / $6,810,000 - Enzo is 30-years-old, a 2-time all-star, a 5-time glove wizard winner at 1B and a team leader, yet it took till spring training for him re-sign with the Seaford Blue Jays. He played the market and it didn't work out for him, which I am shocked. Last season he hit .290-19-84, for his career he is .286-146-533, his struggles for a long-term deal are sort of mind boggling. MR Miguel Martinez (Wilmington Iron Pigs), 1 year / $720,000 SP Hsin-ping Kun (Annapolis Admirals), 1 year / $860,000 CL Alexander Jordan (Annapolis Admirals), 1 year / $1,420,000 MR Al Rayner (Ocean City Tourists), 2 years / $8,800,000 OF Herminio Bovay (Dover Generals), 1 year / $3,200,000 - Herminio came up in 2018 and was instantly one of the fastest players in the DBL. He put together an amazing season in 2021 hitting .371 and stealking 68 bases, but ever since that season he has battled injuries. Last year he only played 43 games, but still put up a .337 average. He can hit when he plays and in a lineup with Pedro Galvan the Generals now have 2 of the best base stealers in DBL history. They are ready to make things happen. SP Tommy Rutledge (Christiana Blue Hens), 1 year / $810,000 MR Dan Nelson (Georgetown Sixteens), 1 year / $780,000 DH Roberto Perez (no team), One of the top hitters in the game and 2x Silver Slugger award is still looking for a team. Perez played with the Senators in 2026 hitting .274-15-49. Rumor has it he is looking for a one year deal worth around #3M. The 37-yr-old wants to prove he still has something left in his tank. Injries: LF Jose Lopez (Chesapeake Blue Crabs) - herniated disc, 5-6 weeks (3/11) 3B Jorege Fernandez (Lewes Braves) - torn ACL, 8 months (3/12) CF David Durant (Georgetown Sixteens) - concussion, 4-5 months (3/12) CF Tyler Forrest (Ocean City Tourists) - ankle soreness, DtD (3/13) - the second injury during the off-season due to a meet and greet. They may be banned soon. SS Nelson Barrera (Georgetown Sixteens) - torn labrum, 4 months (3/13) MR Jose Romano (Newark Millers) - shoulder inflammation, 7 months (3/20) MR Augusto Perez (Ocean City Tourists) - torn ulnar collateral ligament, 13 months (3/23) 3B Claude Bond (Chesapeake Blue Crabs) - fractured rib, 4 weeks (3/24) SP Brad Jones (Newark Millers) - hamstring strain, 2 months (3/25) C Julio Jaramillo (Washington Senators) - fractured rib, 3 weeks (3/30) Coming up: - Cav's spring report - top 100 Prospects / Top minor league systems - Opening Day __________________ --- Check out my OOTP dynasty, the DelMarVa Baseball League: DelMarVa Baseball League. and the spin off: DelMarVa Baseball League - 2037 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England. DelMarVa Baseball League - 2039 WBC Tournament - Won by Team USA - New England..