The Aftermath

[NYY #23]

With a 17-10 month the Monks moved into first place and now hold a 4 1/2 game lead over the Rangers.
With eight more long balls Pedro Torres moved up to second on the career home run list.

Career Home Run Leaders
1) Sergio Munoz - 620
2) Pedro Torres # - 614

[NYY #23]

The Monks went 17-10 in June and hold a six game lead in the AL West. It would be nice to go out on top, so hopefully we can keep up the pace.

The Monks had a pitching heavy top of the draft selecting Henry Wicks, Rob LeJune, Mike Green, and Tom Anderson with four of our top five picks. Centerfielder Bill MacDonald, drafted in the fourth round, was the only position player among the top five picks.

32 year old Jesus Reyes of the Reds hit his 2000th career hit while 34 year old Ivan Dominguez of the Nationals hit the 300th home run of his career.

Closer to home Pedro Torres hit four home runs this month and now needs just 2 home runs to tie, and 3 home runs to move into first place on the career home runs list.

Career Home Run Leaders
1) Sergio Munoz - 620
2) Pedro Torres # - 618

[NYY #23]

With Pedro Torres needing just two home runs to move into a first place tie I travelled with the team to Kansas City where the Monks were taking on the Royals. I wanted to be on hand for when the special occasion happens. Torres would bat second, and in the top of the first picked up a one out single. His next at-bat came in the fourth, which resulted in a weak groundout.

Torres would lead off the seventh inning with career home run number 619:



He'd get an at-bat in the eighth, and pick up a single to cap off a 3-4 night with an RBI and 2 runs scored as the Monks beat the Royals 4-1.

[NYY #23]

Needing one home run to move into a tie on the career home run list and two to move into first place Pedro Torres was batting fifth against the Royals. Torres stepped to the plate for the first time in the first inning, and picked up a single.

In the fourth inning Torres hit a long fly ball that I thought had a chance, but died on the warning track. Torres would lead off the sixth inning, and with one swing made history:



Torres was tied for the career home run lead, and would get his first crack at taking the lead in the seventh, but he picked up a single. Torres would get his second crack in the eighth and jumped into first place on the career home run list with his second home run of the game:



Congratulations to Torres.

[NYY #23]

The Monks finished July with a 13-11 month, but opened up an 11 game lead in the AL West.

The injured Ramiro Contreras, Mike Copeland, Tom Peterson, and Terry Hopkins were selected to the All-Star game.

37 year old Enrique Bueno of the White Sox picked up the 2500th hit of his career this month, while 35 year old Gary Rice of the Conquistadors hit the 300th home run of his career.

[NYY #23]

The Monks finished August with a losing record, going 11-15. With an 8 1/2 game lead in the AL West there shouldn't be too much to worry as long as we can get ready for the postseason in September.

32 year old Joe Numbers of the Angels and 34 year old Jack Wotton of the Athletics each hit their 300th career home run.

[NYY #23]

The Monks wrapped up the season with a 22-13 record to finish the year with 99 wins, and another AL West title. With the best record in baseball we're ready for the playoffs to begin.

Former Monk Cipriano Castillo won the 200th game of his career last month. David Julio of the Twins slammed his 300th career home run, as did 36 year old Luis Rosa of the Reds. Then finally 32 year old Mike Erwin of the Brewers saved the 300th game of his career.

[NYY #23]

The Monks will attempt to win a World Series in my final year as General Manager, and that journey begins against the Marlins. A 13-2 win in Game 1 would give us quite a bit of confidence, and although it wouldn't be that easy the rest of the series the Monks knocked off the Marlins in five games.

Chad Clark and Mark Henderson each went deep twice and Mike Copeland won both of his starts while striking out 17 batters in 15 innings. In his first year as a starter Copeland is turning into a star, while we haven't missed Christian Johnson.

[NYY #23]

Next up for the Monks was the 97 win Indians, who we split the season series with this year. The Monks would be hot this series though, and beat the Indians in four straight games. I'm not 100% positive, but I'm virtually certain that this was the first time the Monks swept a playoff series.

Jose Carlos Hernandez won MVP of the Series after hitting .471 while Pedro Torres went deep once. Next up for the Monks is the Padres, who beat the Phillies in six games in the NLCS.

[NYY #23]

I've been with the Monks a long time, and had a lot of fun over the years with the Monks. It's been a long run of success in San Antonio, and with a four game sweep of the Padres we won our eighth World Series.

I can't think of a better way to go out, and when Pedro Torres went deep in the third inning of Game 4 it seemed right. It was the second home run of the series for Torres. There is a part of me that almost doesn't feel right walking away from the team while Torres is still playing. He's been with the Monks for 15 years and in those 15 years he's played in all but 48 games. But when Torres opted out of his contract after the World Series I knew that it was time to decline the offer of a one year extension from my owner.

[NYY #23]

This whole idea started as an offshoot of my Worst to First dynasty to change things up while I took a break. Now that I'm back doing that I feel like it's a good time to end this since I'm running two teams in the same universe. Not to mention I'm just not sure where to go next. Edward Bishop Jr was my latest GM character, and in 24 year on the job he's taken teams to the playoffs 19 times and won 11 World Series rings. 2075, 2071, 2070, 2067, 2066, 2065, 2064, and 2063 with the Monks, 2059 with the Angels, 2056 with the Nationals, and 2053 with the Astros.

There are plenty of offers on the table offering opportunities to get a team over the hump, or completely rebuild, but I've already got more rings than fingers, and I'm just not sure where the challenge is, or the excitement is. Honestly if I was going to stay on as a General Manager there isn't a good reason to leave San Antonio.

I had a couple of ideas about evolving the league, but I'm going to put those on the backburner for now and move forward and see how things turn out for the Monks and some of the players that I've gotten to know so well.

[NYY #23]

I figured the best way to do this would be an annual check-in to see how things were going. I have about 77 players on the shortlist from my time with San Antonio, and I'm going to move forward until their stories are told. At least the key ones. A couple players Like 32 year old Luis Ramos must have caught my eye at some point, for some reason. But Ramos is playing in AA and hit .188 in his major. He puzzles me more for why did I shortlist him, because I can't figure out a good reason. But anyway…

The biggest story of the offseason for the Monks was Pedro Torres moving on, and signing a two year $38 million contract with the Mariners. It's a shame he didn't stay in San Antonio, and Torres made a good impression in Seattle, hitting .282 with 30 homers, 71 RBI, and a WAR of 3.9.

In order to replace Torres at first base the Monks sent reliever John Rogers and second base prospect Rick Quintero. Rogers was a pitcher I liked quite a bit out of the pen. He had a 2.69 ERA in 70 1/3 innings for a 1.5 WAR his last year in San Antonio, and similar stats in Baltimore.

The Monks also lost Jose Sepulveda after he went 15-8 with a 3.39 ERA. He signed a 6 year $87 million contract with the Reds. I think they made the right choice letting him walk, and I think the Reds are having buyer's remorse after a torn labrum in Spring Training ended his season.

The Monks finished in second place in 2076 with a 96-66 record, two games behind the Gators. The Gators didn't have any problems in the Wild Card round, defeating the Orioles in four games with Parsons winning Series MVP after hitting .529 with a home run and 4 RBI. In the Division Series Randy Pruitt won MVP after hitting .643 with a home run and 6 RBI as the Monks "upset" the Knights with a 4-1 series win, although the underdog Monks won 8 more games than the Knights.

The Monks would face off against the 98 win Gators in the ALCS, and would get out quickly to a 3-1 series lead, but the Gators would win the final three games to capture the series and end the Monks season.

Patrick Parsons won a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Award for the Monks, while Chad Clark won the Silver Slugger Award at third base.

[NYY #23]

During the offseason the Monks made a couple of moves. The first is probably more of a non-move, but they allowed right fielder Terry Hopkins to depart via free agency after putting up 14.2 WAR in San Antonio over three years he signed a seven year $113 million contract with the Padres.

The second move was trying five prospects, including LF Rick Jones and SP Greg Peters to the Twins for 34 year old starting pitcher Jorge Ramirez. That completed the purge of anything of value in the Monks farm system, who now is ranked last in farm system rankings.

The Monks would suffer on the field, finishing with an 85-77 record, 11 games out. We'll see if they rebound next year, but if not I will just focus on the remaining players.

Patrick Parsons and George Phillips each won Gold Gloves for the Monks. Mike Copeland finished third in Cy Young Award voting.

[NYY #23]

The Monks rebounded in 2078 to finish with a 99-63 record, four games behind the Astros. Despite being tied for the second best record in baseball their playoff berth was short, being eliminated in the Wild Card round by the Boston Red Sox in five games. But with trades and other moves the Monks are becoming a different team.

Spencer Samuels signed a one year deal with the Dodgers before the season and finished his Monks career with a 34-36 record with 177 saves and a 2.94 ERA. I always viewed him as a key member of our bullpen.

Jose Carlos Hernandez is under contract through next season with the Monks, and this year passed 2500 career hits. He finished the year with 2560 career hits, and at the age of 35 has a fair shot at reaching 3000 hits.

38 year old Sergio Gallegos also passed 2500 career hits this year. He's a free agent after this year, and will need a little bit of luck to reach 3000.

Former Monk Eddy Cook was dropped from the Hall of Fame ballot. He had a career record of 75-55. Pedro Jimenez was also dropped from the ballot. The former Cy Young winner went 106-69 during his career with injuries taking a big toll.

Todd Thomas was another former ace, winning a pair of Cy Young Awards for the Monks. Injuries also took a major toll on Thomas, as he finished with a career record of 88-70 with a 3.70 ERA, not accumulating enough service time to appear on the Hall of Fame ballot.

Pedro Torres broke his string of 13 straight 30 home run seasons when he finished the year hitting .284 with 11 home runs and 35 RBI. The 39 year old will be looking for a new home after his 1.4 WAR season.

Ramiro Contreras won the Cy Young Award this season after he went 14-6 with a 2.13 ERA, striking out 230 batters in 219 2/3 innings. Teammate Mike Copeland finished third after going 21-8 with a 3.07 ERA in 217 innings.

[NYY #23]

After the Monks finished the season with a 78-84 record it's officially time to stop covering the Monks, and just focus on the players that I was following. Let's take a look at the retired players and what year they retired.

Retired Players - 2076
SP Cam Gross
C Mauricio Maio
CL Julian Williams

Retired Players - 2077
3B Pat Thompson

Retired Players - 2078
SP Cipriano Castillo
SP Jesus Cedeno
LF Jamie O'Quinn

Retired Players - 2079
SP Ramiro ConterasSS Michael Gibbs
SP Alex Terry
1B Pedro Torres
2B Alberto Vazquez

Milestone Watch - 3000 Career Hits
Jose Carlos Hernandez (36) - 2634
Sergio Gallegos (39) - 2541

Mike Copeland won his first Cy Young Award after going 19-6 with a 2.53 ERA.

Patrick Parsons had another big year for the Monks hitting .316 with 26 home runs and 80 RBI.

[NYY #23]

Retired Players - 2076
SP Cam Gross
C Mauricio Maio
CL Julian Williams

Retired Players - 2077
3B Pat Thompson

Retired Players - 2078
SP Cipriano Castillo
SP Jesus Cedeno
LF Jamie O'Quinn

Retired Players - 2079
SP Ramiro ConterasSS Michael Gibbs
SP Alex Terry
1B Pedro Torres
2B Alberto Vazquez

Retired Players - 2080
SS Sergio Gallegos

Updates
SS Jose Carlos Hernandez - did not play
SP Pat Robinson, TB: 1-8, 7.87 ERA
RP Jose Sepulveda, CIN: 5-6, 5.57
RP Dallas Sparks, COL: 6-3, 2.42
C Mark Henderson, SA: .213, 14 HR, 33 RBI
RF Terry Hopkins, MON: .206, 5, 28 - reached 300 career home runs
RP John Rogers, LAN: 5-3, 4.09
RP Spencer Samuels, CHN: Injured
3B TONY MOYAJÉREZ, MIL: .274, 8, 22
SP MIKE COPELAND, SA: 18-9, 3.11
CL MATT FOX, SA: 6-5, 40 SV, 1.82
CF RUDY PRUITT, TBA: .239, 10, 34
RP TODD ROBBINS, NO: 4-1, 4 SV, 3.25
SP HOU YUAN, ATL: 13-10, 3.94
3B CHAD CLARK, SA: .286, 10, 44
CF PATRICK PARSONS, SA: .282, 25, 92
RF GEORGE PHILLIPS, SA: .216, 19, 44
RP RON FIELDS, SA: 6-6, 3 SV, 3.30
C FRED HERNÁNDEZ, MON: .257, 24, 65
SP MICHAEL LINES, TBA: 1-4, 7.78
CF RICARDO RAMOS, VAN: .226, 12, 27
RP OWEN TAYLOR, SA: 2-7, 5.78
C TIM COLE, SA: .301, 5, 45
C DOUG CORRIGAN, SA: .358, 4, 39
SP BRIAN DONOVAN, SA: 3-1, 3.61
CL WAYNE MOORE, ATL: 4-7, 4.02
RP HENRY WICKS, SA: 4-7, 5.68
2B HARRY DAVIS, SA: .295, 14, 64
RP ANTÓNIO ESCOBAR, MIL: 5-1, 2.91
RP GREG PETERS, MIN: 2-6, 4 SV, 3.49
C OSCAR GRANT, SA: .317, 13, 73
RP NATHANIEL GRAHAM, MON: 4-2, 17 SV, 2.87

[illeracula]

Originally Posted by NYY #23

Retired Players - 2079
1B Pedro Torres

How did Torres play over the final few seasons? How close to 700?

Still have to wait till 2084 to see his plaque...

[NYY #23]

I reallized that I never finalized things with this dynasty, so wanted to go foward and wrap things up officially....

SP Cam Gross - With a 120-85 career record and 3.50 ERA Gross had a good career, but not necessarily a great career. His career would suffer once leaving San Antonio, going 84-34 with a 3.38 ERA with a WAR of 23.9 in San Antonio in 6 years, and a 36-51 record with a 3.68 ERA and WAR of 3.8 in six years after leaving San Antonio. His Hall of Fame metrics are all below average, and his voting percentage of 2.2% reflects that.

CL Julian Williams - Williams was an unusual case, he officially retired in 2076, but stopped playing in 2074. Because of that I've missed him on the ballot. Williams had a short 10 year career in the majors, and had a record of 47-59 with 307 saves. Williams had a career ERA of 3.10 and WAR of 13.6. He debuted on the ballot with 23.3% last year, and saw his totals fall to 12.1% this year, but will remain on the ballot.

C Mauricio Maio - Maio will be making his debut next year on the ballot. I considered him one of my key players in San Antonio, with a career batting average of .268 with 422 career home runs and 1040 RBI. 1 MVP Award, 2 Gold Gloves, 4 Silver Slugger Awards, 9 rings, and a 10 time All-Star. His JAWS score is below the catcher average (57.2 vs. 67), but his HOF Monitor of 211 exceeds the average. His WAR of 65.7 would rank last among all Hall of Fame catchers. His home runs would rank 8th, on-base percentage 4th, ISO 3rd, wOBA 3rd, and wRC+ 13th. I may be a little bit biased, but I think he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.

Retired Players - 2077
3B Pat Thompson

Retired Players - 2078
SP Cipriano Castillo
SP Jesus Cedeno
LF Jamie O'Quinn

Retired Players - 2079
SP Ramiro Conteras
SS Michael Gibbs
SP Alex Terry
1B Pedro Torres
2B Alberto Vazquez

Retired Players - 2080
SS Sergio Gallegos

Retired Players - 2081
SS Jose Carlos Hernandez
SP Pat Robinson

Updates
It took six years and $153 million to lure Mike Copeland to the National League and the St. Louis Cardinals, and he delivered his first season there with a Cy Young Award after going 19-6 with a 2.79 ERA.

SP Mike Copeland,SLN: 19-6,0 SV ,2.79
RP José Sepúlveda,CIN: 3-0,0 SV ,5.7
RP Dallas Sparks,COL: 0-0,0 SV ,0
C Mark Henderson,SA: .198,24, 56
RF Terry Hopkins,MON: .236,16, 46
RP John Rogers,LAN: 5-5,16 SV ,1.99
RP Spencer Samuels,CHN: 4-4,1 SV ,3.67
3B Tony Moyajérez,FW: 0,0, 0
RP Matt Fox,SEA: 2-2,4 SV ,2.12
CF Rudy Pruitt,TBA: .206,10, 33
RP Todd Robbins,NO: 11-4,3 SV ,3.78
SP Hou Yuan,MIL: 12-9,0 SV ,3.95
3B Chad Clark,CHA: .263,10, 49
CF Patrick Parsons,SLN: .263,15, 48
RF George Phillips,SA: .188,12, 34
RP Ron Fields,SA: 0-0,0 SV ,0
C Fred Hernández,MON: .254,18, 63
RP Michael Lines,TBA: 0-0,0 SV ,0
CF Ricardo Ramos,VAN: .287,12, 43
SP Owen Taylor,SA: 5-7,0 SV ,3.76
C Tim Cole,SA: .306,1, 4
C Doug Corrigan,CLE: .206,1, 5
RP Brian Donovan,PHI: 1-4,0 SV ,6.41
CL Wayne Moore,ATL: 0,0, 0
RP Henry Wicks,SA: 2-9,18 SV ,3.42
SS Harry Davis,SA: .271,9, 47
CL António Escobar,LAR: 1,0, 0
CL Greg Peters,MIN: 0,0, 0
C Oscar Grant,PIT: .284,14, 44
RP Nathaniel Graham,NO: 3-1,0 SV ,2.4

[NYY #23]

C Mauricio Maio - Maio received 66 percent of the votes his first year on the ballot, giving me encouragement that he'll make it into the Hall of Fame eventually.

CL Julian Williams - Williams saw his vote totals fall to 7.2% in his third year of eligibility.

Retired Players - 2077
3B Pat Thompson

Retired Players - 2078
SP Cipriano Castillo
SP Jesus Cedeno
LF Jamie O'Quinn

Retired Players - 2079
SP Ramiro ConterasSS Michael Gibbs
SP Alex Terry
1B Pedro Torres
2B Alberto Vazquez

Retired Players - 2080
SS Sergio Gallegos

Retired Players - 2081
SS Jose Carlos Hernandez
SP Pat Robinson

[NYY #23]

Updates

C Mark Henderson, SA: .216,4, 24
3B Terry Hopkins, MON: 0.22,18, 43
RP John Rogers, LAN: 4-2,1 SV ,4.09
RP Spencer Samuels, CHN: 2-2,0 SV ,5.08
3B Tony Moyajérez, MON: 0.2,0, 1
SP Mike Copeland, SLN: 17-10,0 SV ,3.61
RP Matt Fox, MIA: 3-4,8 SV ,3.27
CF Rudy Pruitt, TBA: .209,7, 21
RP Todd Robbins, NO: 3-6,4 SV ,4.97
SP Hou Yuan, MIL: 11-12,0 SV ,5.06
3B Chad Clark, MIL: .185,3, 11
CF Patrick Parsons, SLN: .295,13, 52
RF George Phillips, SA: .103,0, 2
C Fred Hernández, MON: .255,17, 56
RP Michael Lines, Tac: 0-0,0 SV ,0
LF Ricardo Ramos, VAN: .238,7, 23
C Tim Cole, SA: .218,2, 22
C Doug Corrigan, NYN: .136,0, 2
SP Brian Donovan, PHI: 4-1,0 SV ,3.12
RP Henry Wicks, SA: 1-2,0 SV ,4.56
2B Harry Davis, SA: .279,6, 42
C Oscar Grant, PIT: .285,18, 44
RP Nathaniel Graham, MIN: 3-1,1 SV ,3.55