Trojan Times: Confessions of a Tournament Grinder

[neugey]

This is a weekly journal for my lone PT2 team. My plan is to specialize in tournament competition this year and build from the winnings. I've also spent $50 on PP and might spend another $50-200 as the year goes on depending on how things go.

The team is named after the Dakota State University Trojans, my alma mater. I am not following a theme; I'm exploring the whole card universe and selecting the parts that play best and going with the flow of the pulls and the market.

My goals is to win a championship some time this year (of course), perhaps multiple. I'm also hoping to reach Diamond level at some point, even if I have a hard time staying there. I also hope to win or finish second in a weekly tournament.

Stay tuned for weekly (on Monday) posts with my progress.

Tournament Bounty Board (started 07/04):


Quick Iron BO5 16 teams No DH (2pack) - ?
Quick Iron BO7 32 teams (4pack) - DONE 07/02

Quick Bronze Historical DOD 8 teams No DH (200PP) - DONE 09/21
Quick Bronze 16 teams BO3 16 teams (750PP) - DONE 07/05
Quick Bronze 16 teams BO5 16 teams (2pack) - DONE 07/06
Quick Bronze 32 teams BO7 32 teams (4pack) - DONE 07/18

Quick Silver Historical 16 teams RRF3 16 teams No DH (1pack) - ?
Quick Silver Live 16 teams RRF3 16 teams (1pack) - DONE 07/22
Quick Silver 1625 Cap Non-Live BO7 32 teams (4pack) - ?
Quick Silver BO7 32 teams (6pack) - DONE 03/23/22
Quick Silver DOD 8 teams (200PP) - DONE 07/06
Quick Silver BO3 16 teams (750PP) - DONE 07/13
Quick Silver Non-Live Bo5 16 teams (2pack) - DONE 07/04

Quick Gold 1750 Cap Non-Live BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Gold Historical RRF3 16 teams No DH (1pack) - DONE 07/25
Quick Gold Live DblEF3 16 teams (2pack) - DONE 07/05
Quick Gold DOD 8 teams (200PP) - DONE 07/05
Quick Gold Live 1875 Cap BO5 16 teams (2pack) -
Quick Gold Non-Live Cap 1625 DOD 8 teams (200PP) - DONE 07/16
Quick Gold 1625 Cap DOD 8 teams (200PP) -
Quick Gold BO3 16 teams (750PP) - DONE 07/14
Quick Gold Non-Live BO5 16 teams (2pack) - DONE 07/20
Quick Gold BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Gold 1875 Cap DOD 8 teams (200PP) -

Quick Diamond Live 1875 Cap BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Diamond 1625 Cap Bo5 16 teams (2pack) - DONE 7/05
Quick Diamond Live 1875 Cap DOD 8 teams (200PP) - DONE 07/20
Quick Diamond BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Diamond DOD 8 teams No DH (200PP) - DONE 07/16
Quick Diamond 1875 Cap BO5 16 teams (2pack) -
Quick Diamond Live BO5 16 teams No DH (2pack) -

Quick Open Non-Live 1875 Cap DOD 8 teams (200PP) -
Quick Open Historical DOD 8 teams No DH (200PP) - DONE 07/23
Quick Open Live 1625 Cap DOD 8 teams (200PP) -
Quick Open Non-Live BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Open 1625 Cap BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Open Live 1625 Cap BO5 16 teams (2pack) - DONE 07/12
Quick Open Live DOD 8 teams (200PP) - DONE 07/08
Quick Open Historical DRRF3 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Open Live BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Open BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Open 1875 Cap BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Open Live BO5 16 teams (2pack) - DONE 07/26
Quick Open Non-Live 1625 Cap BO5 16 teams (2pack) -
Quick Open Historical RRF3 16 teams No DH (1pack) -
Quick Open BO5 16 teams (2pack) -
Quick Open 1750 Cap BO5 16 teams (2 pack) -
Quick Open DOD 8 teams (200PP) - DONE 07/08
Quick Open Historical DOD 8 teams No DH (200PP) -
Quick Open Live 1625 Cap BO7 32 teams (4pack) -
Quick Open Non-Live 1875 Cap DOD 8 teams (200PP) -

Daily Early Iron BO7 64 teams (12.5k PP) -
Daily Gold RRF3 32 teams (1 Diamond pack) -
Daily Diamond Historical (1961) BO7 32 teams No DH (1 Hist pack) -
Daily High Open 1875 Cap BO5 32 teams (10k PP) -
Daily Deadball Open Historical (1910) BO7 16 teams No DH (5k PP) -
Daily Medium Diamond Non-Live 1750 Cap BO5 32 teams (10k PP) -
Daily Gold Low 1500 Cap BO5 32 teams (1 Diamond pack) -
Daily Historical (1986) BO7 32 teams (1 Hist pack) -
Daily Live BO7 32 teams (spec card) -
Daily Bronze BO7 128 teams (15pack) -
Daily Silver BO7 64 teams (15pack) -
Daily Live DRRF3 32 teams (4 gold pack) -
Daily Iron BO7 128 teams (15pack) -
Daily Gold Historical 1625 Cap (1992) BO7 32 teams No DH (2 Hist pack) -
Daily Gold BO7 64 teams (15pack) -
Daily Super Open BO7 32 teams (spec card) -
Daily Gold Super 1750 Cap BO7 32 teams (spec card) -
Daily Gold Early Low 1500 Cap BO5 32 teams (1 Diamond pack) -
Daily Early Diamond Non-Live Medium 1750 Cap BO5 32 teams (10k PP) -
Daily Early High 1875 Cap BO5 32 teams (10pack) -
Daily Early Iron BO7 64 teams (12.5k PP) -
Daily Early Bronze BO7 64 teams (12.5k PP) -
Daily Early Silver BO7 64 teams (12.5k PP) -
Daily Early Open BO7 16 teams (7.5k PP) -

Weekly Saturday Iron Warriors BO3F5 128 teams (spec card) -
Weekly Sunday Early Gold DRRF3 32 teams (10k PP) -
Weekly Sunday Early Silver Historical DRRF3 32 teams (10pack) -
Weekly Sunday Super Open Bo7 32 teams (spec card) -
Weekly Monday Super Non-Live Silver BO7 64 teams (spec card) -
Weekly TWIPT Weekly Showdown (various rules, various reward) -
Weekly Tuesday Super Bronze BO7 128 teams (spec card) -
Weekly Sporer's Sandlot 1981 Cap (1981) BO3F5 64 teams (spec card) -
Weekly 50's Historical (1955) BO7 32 teams No DH (spec card) -
Weekly Mid-week Iron Challenge BO5 64 teams (15pack) -
Weekly Wednesday Super Gold BO7 32 teams No DH (10pack) -
Weekly 70's Historical (1977) BO7 32 teams (spec card) -
Weekly Mid-week Bronze Challenge BO5 64 teams (15pack) -
Weekly Thursday Super 1625 Cap BO7 128 teams (spec card) -
Weekly SnaggleJ's Thursday Silver Non-Live DRRF3 (2000) 64 teams (spec card) -
Weekly Friday Super Diamond BO5 64 teams (15pack) -
Weekly Gold Perfect Point Jackpot BO7 128 teams (50k PP) -

Monthly Heinsohn 1777 Super Cap (1977) BO7 128 teams (spec card) -
Monthly Perfect Monthly Open BO7 128 teams (spec card) -

[neugey]

2019 Season (Preseason/Entry Pool week):

Highlights from my 8 starter packs and 13 regular packs I purchased to start on day 1 March 20th ...
75 Live SP Luzardo
87 2B Snuffy Stirnweiss
71 CF JP Santangelo
88 3B Manny Machado
86 3B Justin Turner (sold off)
67 2B Wally Backman (budget beast)
83 SP Pat Jarvis
95 RF Aaron Judge
95 SP Noah Syndergaard (aka Thor)
86 SP Zack Greinke(sold off)

Tournament rewards 3/20-3/22:
600 PP, 12 regular packs
Key pulls: 73 1B JT Snow, 86 SS Correa, 83 2B Dick Green (sold), 75 CF Lenny Green

Season Summary:
Entry pool record 68-41 (earned an Iron placement!)
Achievement PP - 6265
Top 3 achievements:
In the Wheelhouse - Wally Backman 5 for 5 2RBI 2R game
Throw a Maddux - Jesus Luzardo
Comeback - 8 run comeback

Featured Card of the Week:
68 LF One Hit Wonder Brennan Boesch 2011
Brennan is a great lefty slugger for bronze or capped tournaments. His glove is subpar, but with his bat he is still worth consideration. He’s a very well-rounded hitter for a bronze, though he is probably best to platoon out vs lefty starters. His rating line vs RHP is a solid 62/60/72/48/50. He is also a normal (not pull) lefty hitter. His speed is rather ordinary but at least he’s not real slow.

In real life, Brennan went to high school in the LA area, played for the California Golden Bears and was drafted by the Tigers in the third round. His career peak were his first two major-league seasons with the Tigers. He was a two-time AL rookie of the month in 2010 and his second season (upon which this card is based) saw him hit .283/.341/.458 in 472 PA. He hit a double in the first pitch he saw in the majors, and his first career ML homer was a grand slam. For those looking for a card who is hot coming out of the gates in tournament play, perhaps this card has a little extra something.

[BigRed75]

Thanks for the tip, I'm going to add Boesch to my all-lefty team and see how he goes in the lower leagues

[neugey]

2020 Season 1 (Iron League I155), week of 3/23 - 3/29:

It was a fine week in Iron and did better than expected. 2 nice gold pulls to shore up the starting rotation. Syndergaard and the bullpen pitched out of their mind to get us up over 100+ win mark.

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 5
regular packs x 21

Silver+ pulls from tournament packs:
80 CF Bernie Williams
91 C Gary Sanchez (sold)
88 SP German Marquez
84 3B Josh Donaldson (sold)
88 SP Johnny Beazley
75 RF Grisham
79 3B Seager
70 3B Hunter Dozier (sold)
75 3B Andujar (sold)

League Results:
109-53 record
Playoffs: Lost in Divisional round series 3-2
earned promotion to Bronze level
Achievement PP - 15360PP

Top 3 achievements:
On a Roll - 12 game win streak 1500PP
Down and Out - 17 runs scored in shutout 400PP
Save Streak - 38 games, Kazuhiro Sasaki 1000PP

Awards:
Golden Glove - 3B Machado, SS Tulowitzki, LF Orsulak
Silver Slugger - 1B JT Snow, SS Tulowitzki
Pitcher of the Year - SP Syndergaard
Reliever of the Year - CL Sasaki
All-Star selections: SP Syndergaard, C David Castro, C Craig Biggio, SS Tulowitzki, RF Judge

Featured Card of the Week:
80 CF Bernie Williams - Hardware Heroes 1999
Feel the Bern!!! Was lucky to pull this card and to me he’s always been one of the more likable of the Evil Empire era Yankees. He’s a switch-hitter with an impressive 80 contact and he’s a bit stronger vs RHP. His speed and stealing are about average. His weakness is defense, as he is only a 32 rated CF. Working on training him up at LF as I don’t want him to start at CF too often. But other than that flaw he is a very talented hitter for an 80OVR. He hit .339/.433/.446 in 85 games for me this season with 2.3 WAR.

[neugey]

2021 Season 2 (Bronze league B211), week of 3/30 -4/5


Tougher season, buried in same division with Bronx Bombers, one of the top 3 whales in all of OOTP. Still got promoted though as 16 teams still move up. Blades was the best pull from this week.

I am a few weeks in now into my “cocoon and butterfly” strategy. I’m saving virtually all PP until at least early May, then planning to use stored PP and likely a $100 Perfect Points purchase to make a big push once the market is lower and try to get a few stud SP’s and some other decent pieces.

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 13
regular packs x 24

Silver+ pulls:
71 CL Leclerc
88 3B Machado (dupe, sell)
88 SP German Marquez (dupe, sell)
76 3B Austin Riley
72 CF AJ Pollock
81 SP Burleigh Grimes
74 3B Matt Carpenter (sold)
88 LF Ray Blades


League Results:
League record 76-86
Playoffs: none
promoted to Silver level
Achievement PP - 3600PP

Top 3 achievements:
Throw a Maddux - Pat Jarvis, 400PP
In the Wheelhouse - Snuffy Stirnweiss 5 for 6, 2 2B. 2 HR, 150 PP
XBH Machine - Snuff Stirnweiss 5 for 6, 2 2B. 2 HR, 200 PP

Awards: none
All-Star selections: none

Featured Card of the Week:
55 RP Al Hrabosky, LHP, 1978 KC Snapshot
Being a relief pitcher pre-1980’s was such a thankless job. Take a look at Al Hrabosky. “The Mad Hungarian” could rack up around 7 strikeouts per 9 innings in an era where strikeouts were hard to come by. His 1975 season with the Cardinals was somewhat shocking - he finished with a 1.66 ERA and 1.079 WHIP and led the league with 22 saves, finished 3rd in Cy Young voting, 8th in MVP voting, yet somehow didn’t make the all-star team! In OOTP he features rare stuff for a left-handed iron-tier reliever. This makes him an important asset in iron tournaments or historical salary cap tournaments.

[neugey]

2022 Season 2 (Silver league S256), week of 4/6-4/12

This was a cruel and disorienting week. This was one of those unbalanced 22-team leagues and had a few whales present in our conference. We were badly outclassed in Silver as we continue on in our “cocoon” stage saving virtually all PP. Only won 25% of our games and got demoted but the bright side is next week should bring more winning/PP earnings. Also not a great week for pack pulls … until Easter Sunday night Verlander was drawn!

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 9
regular packs x 29

Silver+ pulls:
75 RP Adam Kolarek
79 RF Jeremy Heredia
79 CL Scott Strickland
79 3B Brian Anderson
72 RP Familia
77 SP Eduardo Rodriguez
81 LF Eloy Jimenez
73 1B Travis Shaw
100 SP Verlander
76 SP Contreras
72 SP Ryu

League Results:
League record 41-121
Playoffs: none
relegated to Bronze level
Achievement PP - 2930PP

Top 3 achievements:
Throw a Maddux - Syndergaard 400PP
Out of Slump - losing streak of 10 - 250PP
Player of the Week - Tulowitzki - 100PP

Awards:
Gold Glove 3B Chapman
All-Star selections: none

Featured Card of the Week:
65 LF Tommy Edman, live
Edman is kind of a manager’s dream. He can play 2B and 3B capably as well as help out as an outfielder. He’s a switch-hitter with decent speed and base running/stealing. He sports better contact and power than most other stereotypical utility players. This graduate from Stanford is a solid depth player to have in tournaments, especially during stretches where your team goes extra innings and/or gets few days off. His position eligibility and .300+ batting average made him an asset in fantasy baseball last year. Will be interesting to see what he can do going forward in real life.

[neugey]

4/13 - 4/19, Week 4 2023 Season, Bronze League B204

This season was a bit of an improvement, but mainly the team struggled with some cold streaks. But in the end, we stayed out of the relegation zone. Will be interesting to see the promotion/relegation setups that will be coming in
the next week or two. Also a good week earning packs from tournament, but not such a good week with the pulls.

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 6
regular packs x 40

Silver+ pulls:
79 SP Jim Hardin
83 SP Eddie Lopat
79 C Astudillo
77 3B Asdrubal Cabrera
85 3B Eugenio Suarez
84 CL Hasegawa PEAK
72 RP Poche
75 C Flowers
74 1B Nick Johnson
76 SP Hitchcock
77 CF Bostock
79 3B Seager
71 1B Abreu
81 2B Dozier
74 SP Zach Davies
70 RP Justin Wilson
70 SP Foltynewicz

League Results:
Team record 68-94
Playoffs: no
promotion/relegation: staying in Bronze
Achievement PP - 5030 PP

Top 3 achievements:
Immaculate Inning - Verlander - 1000PP
Hit for The Cycle - Jeff Cirillo - 400PP
Turning Two - 5 double plays - 200PP

Awards:
Gold Glove 3B Chapman
All-Star selections: none

Featured Card of the Week:
79 SP Jim Hardin 1967 One Hit Wonder
This sidearm thrower from the Orioles late 60’s dynasty and 1970 World Series team was kind of an unsung hero for the team. He wasn’t really a One Hit Wonder as the card indicates, but was just a solid team guy that never made an All-Star game. In OOTP, he sports solid movement and control for a Silver and overachieved for my Bronze league team this week, going 3.31 with a 1.21 WHIP and a 12-7 W-L record. Maybe not someone you’d want to start every week, but you could do worse.

[neugey]

4/20 - 4/26, Week 5 2024 Season, Bronze League B205

This week brought about an improved record and huge first-time-ever surprise … winning Perfect Points on the TWIPT stream! Syndergaard pitched great this week. 1B/DH Don Hurst and LF/CF Lyman Bostock helped carry the offense. Still a week or two away from making big investments into the team and still saving PP (125k in the bank right now). Did fairly well in tournaments this week and finally pulled some Diamond cards!

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 0
regular packs x 33
Gold packs x 4
Won 10k in TWIPT twitch stream giveaway!

Silver+ pulls:
75 C Don Slaught
72 LF Conor Jackson
71 SP Carlos Martinez
75 RP Caleb Ferguson
70 SP Vince Velasquez
81 SP Jim Merritt
74 CF Jonathan Villar
85 3B Eugenio Suarez
86 DH Ohtani
81 CF Buxton
83 2B Moustakas x 2
73 2B Brandon Lowe
76 2B Shed Long Jr
70 SP Foltynewicz
90 SP Warren Spahn
90 C Will Smith
86 CF Bader
72 3B Nick Senzel
93 SP Chris Sale
90 3B Jose Ramirez
92 SP Bieber
70 SP Mike Minor
76 SP Ron Robinson

League Results:
Team record 87-75
Playoffs: yes, wildcard, lost in wildcard game
promotion/relegation: promoted to Silver level
Achievement PP - 8645 PP

Top 3 achievements:
Throw a Maddux - Johnny Beazley 400PP
Triple Dinger - Stuffy McInnis, 4 for 4, 3 HR, 4 RBI - 400PP
Walk Off Slam - Ray Blades, 400 PP

Awards:
Gold Glove - C Reese McGuire, SS Tulowitzki
All-Star selections: Judge, Syndergaard, Beazley

Featured Card of the Week:
59 Live SP Roy Oswalt
I use Owsalt for iron tournaments and he seems to be the barometer for the rest of the team. When he pitches well, the team advances and makes some noise. When he is scuffling, it’s usually a first-round exit. I don’t know if he gets talked about as much as some of the other iron pitchers. But with 63 stuff and 70 control, he’s a solid option even if not the top option. He may not exactly be Roy Oswalt, but he’s good enough to give you some solid innings.

[rburgh]

But we're both outclassed by the Magik.

[neugey]

4/27 - 5/3, Week 5 2024 Season, Silver League S275

I landed in a relatively easy division this week but the bats were pretty quiet this week and team finished second in the division, 9 games out of first. But it was a fairly good week for PP earning at least. I was also happy with two of my pulls - LF/C Cliff Johnson and 90 CF Tommy Leach. We will see how things shape up this week, but this will likely be the last week of hunkering down inside our cocoon and we make our real monetary investment plus spend almost all the PP saved thus far. Planning on doing a before and after shot of the team this time next week just for dramatic effect. Until then, buying some various bronze-gold tournament pieces and trying to step up our tournament success, which has been faltering as of late.

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 0
regular packs x 28
Gold packs x 0

Silver+ pulls:
71 C Jorge Alfaro
83 LF Cliff Johnson
90 CF Tommy Leach
73 SP Mike Sirotka
70 RF Kole Calhoun
70 SP Jim Bouton
83 RF Jeff McNeil
72 CL Mike Marshall
70 SP Wacha
76 SP Braden
70 SP Wainwright
79 LF Canha



League Results:
Team record 75-87
Playoffs: no
promotion/relegation: stayed at Silver
Achievement PP - 7755 PP

Top 3 achievements:
Immaculate Inning - Warren Spahn - 1000PP
Throw a Maddux - Syndergaard - 400PP
Rocket Game - Spahn - 800PP

Awards:
Gold Glove - none
All-Star selections: SP Spahn

Featured Card of the Week:
90 OVR Snapshot 1907 CF Tommy Leach, PIT
This week I pulled a nice card in CF Tommy Leach who has ample quantities of the stuff I love - contact, power, speed, and defense. Well, he’s a bit light on the defense as a 70, but I’ll work with it for now. But the speed is no joke, he stole 32 bases in only 110 games. He should train up wonderfully at LF and I’ve already started that process. As far as the real Tommy Leach, he won a World Series in 1909 with the Pirates. I suppose good things are going to happen when you have Honus Wagner on your team. Tommy probably would’ve been an All-Star but doubt they had those back then. He certainly was no slouch, racking up 47.1 WAR and 2143 hits over 19 seasons. Apparently he also hit 49 inside the park home runs in his career. I know it was the dead ball era and things were weird - but still - damn impressive in my book!

[rburgh]

He played in Forbes Field, where the CF had to take a bus to and from the dugout every half inning to avoid delaying the game. It's no surprise that the single season triples record is held by a Pirate (John "Chief" Wilson) as well.


I trained the 85 Benny Kauff, who's very similar to Leach, to LF and he has logged 8.4 WAR in 3 seasons there, and went from 35 in CF to 69 in LF. I will move on from him when I get (back) to the Gold level as I have coped with most of the other early problems on that team.

[rburgh]

I won the Bronze daily yesterday and was 2nd in a 16 team Bo3. Netted 16 packs, which provided no immediate help to the main team and no bronze cards of interest. But I will probably net upwards of 6000 PP's by selling off the cards. And that will help me buy a nice piece for my main team.

[neugey]

Originally Posted by rburgh

I won the Bronze daily yesterday and was 2nd in a 16 team Bo3. Netted 16 packs, which provided no immediate help to the main team and no bronze cards of interest. But I will probably net upwards of 6000 PP's by selling off the cards. And that will help me buy a nice piece for my main team.

You're welcome. I have yet to win a Daily myself. I have finished second in the Daily Low Cap a few times.

[neugey]

5/4 - 5/10, Week 6 2025 Season, Silver League S264

Even in a relatively weak division, the team struggled to keep pace this week. General Manager Mike Bauer had decided that he has seen enough and decided now was the time to enact Operation Butterfly.

The owner made a big investment as requested and thus Bauer set about to make a furious wave of acquisitions for this next season. Many contracts were signed and tryouts were conducted in a series of practice sessions. When the dust settled, only 4 incumbent Trojans kept their active roster spot (C Cliff Johnson, 2B Snuffy Stirnweiss, SS Troy Tulowitzki and CL Jose Mesa). Bauer said a lot of demotions were necessary to improve the pitching prowess, defense and raw hitting ability the team will need to make the next step.

“We are very excited about the new active roster we’re about to unveil next week, but you can expect to see some changes here and there as we figure out how to maximize our potential”, said Bauer. “There’s only 4 players on the new roster that have been guaranteed they’ll keep their active roster spot. So as you can see, we’re definitely serious about getting the best performance possible, and we have a lot of quality players beyond the 26 men we’re going to start out with, that’s for sure. You can also expect to see some of those reserve players show up at various special tournaments around the country all season long.”

Bauer then turned the press conference over to Manager Sparky Anderson, who answered some questions on the team’s renewed approach and then brought out the new roster:

88 Peak C Manny Sanguillen
83 One Hit Wonder C/1B/LF Cliff Johnson
97 Special Edition 1B Jeff Bagwell
100 Live 1B/OF Christian Yelich
97 Special Edition 2B Robinson Cano
87 Snapshot 2B Snuffy Stirnweiss
91 Special Edition SS Troy Tulowitzki
80 Peak 3B/Utility Bill Russell
90 Live 3B/2B Jose Ramirez
99 Special Edition LF/DH Carl Yastrzemski
92 Special Edition CF/RF Ichiro Suzuki
91 Special Edition RF Dave Winfield
100 Live OF Mike Trout

100 Peak SP Bob Gibson
100 Peak SP Lefty Gomez
99 Special Edition SP Greg Maddux
95 One Hit Wonder SP Matt Harvey
91 Special Edition SP Eddie Plank
94 Special Edition RP Bert Blyleven
95 Special Edition RP Randy Johnson
94 Snapshot RP Smoky Joe Wood
87 Peak RP Jose Mesa
93 Live RP Josh Hader
93 Special Edition RP Joe Nathan
89 Peak RP John Franco
100 Peak CL Rob Dibble

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 0
regular packs x 47
Gold packs x 0

Silver+ pulls:
86 RF Strawberry
87 CL Jose Mesa
70 RP Chaz Roe
90 3B Kris Bryant
74 C Tim Blackwell
78 SP Luke Walker
71 SP Adrian Houser
71 RP Vinnie Pestano
73 SS Tim Anderson
72 RP Colin Poche
71 RP Wade Davis
79 RF Max Kepler
85 3B Eugenio Suarez
72 RP Grant Dayton
71 LF David Peralta
93 SS Gleyber Torres

League Results:
Team record 72-90
Playoffs: no
promotion/relegation: stayed at Silver
Achievement PP - 5370 PP

Top 3 achievements:
In the Wheelhouse - Stuffy McInnis 5 for 6 - 175PP
Pitcher of the Month - Syndergaard - 200PP
Run Streak - Tommy Leach, 125PP

Awards:
Gold Glove - 1B McInnis, 3B Chapman
All-Star selections: RP Brendan McKay

Featured Card of the Week:
80 PEAK SS Bill Russell

The featured card of the week is no stranger to many. He’s a legendary center who led his Celtics to many …. oh wait, oops … This is an interesting card, because it comes with good defensive skill at SS and RF stock. Russell also is decent on the base paths, and pretty good with the bat (66 contact, 89 avoid Ks). When I saw this card it seemed to be screaming to me - “train me!!!”. And so I am. I’m giving him a shot at 3B and hope he will do nicely there until I can invest more at the 3B position in the coming months.

[neugey]

5/11 - 5/17, Week 7 2026 Season, Silver League S276

The new and improved Trojans made their debut this week and had a good outing. Yastrzemski was far and away the big star this season. He finished first place in All-Star voting, made a serious run at the AL batting title and was named regular season MVP (a first for me in PT20 or PT21!). The team had designs on getting to the World Series, but was foiled in game 7 of the ALCS. On the tournament side, the teams were in a serious funk this week for whatever reason. But at least I had one lucrative pull - a gold Les Bell card whose market value is through the roof due to missions that sold for around 30k! That in addition to earning over 20k in achievements for the season. Up to gold level next week and will see what that competition is like. Good luck all!


Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 0
regular packs x 21
Gold packs x 0

Silver+ pulls:
72 RP Familia
78 RP Seranthony Dominguez
86 1B Yordan Alvarez
88 SP Chris Carpenter
74 2B Jurickson Profar
85 3B Les Bell (sold for 30k!)
70 RP Chaz Roe
76 RP Blake Treinen
80 C Gus Triandos
77 CL Will Harris


League Results:
Team record 106-56
Playoffs: qualified (won division), lost in ALCS series 3-4
promotion/relegation: promoted to Gold
Achievement PP - 20,985 PP

Top 3 achievements:
Triple Play - 2000PP
On A Roll - Winning streak of 13 - 1500PP
Most Popular All-Star - Yastrzemski - 400PP


Awards:
Reliever of the Year - Dibble
MVP - Yastrzemski
Great Bat - Yastrzemski, Bagwell
Gold Glove - Sanguillen,
All-Star selections: LF Yastrzemski (highest vote getter), LF/1B Yelich, 1B Bagwell, CL Dibble, SP Harvey, SP Gomez,
RP Blyleven

Featured Card of the Week:
1990 SP One Hit Wonder Dana Kiecker, BOS
Never heard of this guy so I looked him and boy he truly was a one-hit wonder. Had one respectable season with Boston and then got shelled the following year and that was it for him. But in Perfect Team, he seems a bit more valuable. He’s a roundball pitcher with great movement, and unlike other high movement pitchers, he is well rounded
enough in the stuff and control ratings so he doesn’t get hammered too coften. He hasn’t been a world-beater but has been somewhat solid for my Silver tournament teams. You could do worse.

[neugey]

5/18 - 5/24, Week 8 2027 Season, Gold League G311

This week the team gelled and their efforts were rewarded. The division title was won and the Trojans not only reached the World Series, but swept it. SP Bob Gibson and CL Rob Dibble (or Gibby and Dibby as I refer to them) dominated regular season play and led the team to a 99 win season. A struggling 1B Bagwell was benched for 1B/OF Don Baylor. This move immediately paid off, as he hit two dingers in his Trojans debut. And in the playoffs, he led the team with 24 RBI's, including a 11-game RBI streak through the post-season! He was certainly a major reason for the WS win and it will be quite some time before I forget the mammoth effort he put in. The team is ecstatic to win their first title, but of course next week will be a bigger challenge with the advancement to Diamond level.

Tournament progress was pretty average this week. The big pull was CL Chapman, who will provide bullpen depth whether active or on the reserve level. Another major investment was made, as we used saved PP to acquire ace lefty SP Matt Kilroy for a reasonable 63K. The rotation for next week now appears to be Gibson-Gomez-Maddux-Kilroy-Harvey. We'll continue to invest in our pitching staff along with the occasional budget hitter.

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 0
regular packs x 28
Gold packs x 0

Silver+ pulls:
73 C D’Arnaud
82 RP Dave Veres
76 2B Sol White (Negro league)
74 3B Matt Carpenter
97 CL Aroldis Chapman
77 SP Andrew Heaney
72 C Austin Barnes
86 CF Bader
73 LF Gurriel Jr


League Results:
Team record 99-63
Playoffs: won division, won Gold World Series 4 games to 0 sweep
promotion/relegation: promoted to Diamond level
Achievement PP - 14240PP

Top 3 achievements:
Save streak - 33-game save streak by Dibble - 1000PP
RBI streak - 11-game RBI streak by Don Baylor - 1000PP
Win streak - 10-game Win streak by Bob Gibson - 175PP

Awards:
Great Bat - none
Gold Glove - none
All-Star selections: SP Gibson, CL Dibble, 2B Cano, SS Tulowitzki, CF Suzuki

Featured Card of the Week:
78 Peak RF Sam Rice
This card has nice ratings for a 78 silver card. He has plenty of contact and speed
and the outfield defense isn't too bad. But what is much more profound is the story of the man
behind the card. The immense tragedy he overcame, his lucky break to get into the
majors and then to make the Hall of Fame, it's simply incredible. So today I went from not knowing
anything about this player to him now being one of my favorites. An incredible story -
read his wikipedia page to see for yourself.

[neugey]

5/25 - 5/31, Week 10 2029 Season, Diamond League D356
Managed to survive around .500 level and avoid demotion. Some very tough
cards and teams out there. Saving PP again until I feel I see there's something
worth pulling the trigger on.


Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 0
regular packs x 25
Gold packs x 0
won giveaway on Rich's stream - 10k PP

Silver+ pulls:
80 SP Stroman
72 RP Grant Dayton
78 SP Zac Gallen
74 CF Jonathan Villar
74 3B Matt Carpenter
81 CL Jansen
96 3B Matt Chapman
71 C Jorge Alfaro
79 SP Ted Lilly
80 SP Chris Archer
86 CF Bader
85 3B Eugenio Suarez
70 SP Wainwright
79 LF Canha

League Results:
Team record 79-83
Playoffs: no
promotion/relegation: staying in Diamond
Achievement PP - approx 8500PP

Top 3 achievements:
6 game HR streak - RF Winfield 1000PP
Plate the Runners - LF Yastrzemski 4 for 4, 2 HR, 9 RBI's, 400PP
Power inning - 4 HR in 1st inning, 1000PP

Awards:
HR champion - Dave Winfield
Great Bat - Yastrzemski
Gold Glove - none
All-Star selections: LF Yastrzemski

Featured Card of the Week:
Taking a week off on this, game has been experiencing downtime and not prepared.

[Canadaleaf]

Just jumping in to say I enjoy reading your weekly post!

[neugey]

6/1 - 6/7, Week 11 2030 Season, Diamond League D357
This week the team struggled but still managed to tread water around the .440 mark amidst a big whale in our division. Had a good week with tournament victories offset by lousy pulls ... until Sunday June 7th happened. We pulled 100 Jimmie Foxx, 100 DeGrom and 93 Lolich in a span of 3 packs! Foxx has a better eye at 1B than Bagwell so I want to give Foxx a shot there even if it means Bagwell is in the reserves for a while. We now sit at 50k but have a lot more sellable assets to work with. Also starting to hoard more silver/bronze/iron cards that I don't have in the reserves because the instant income of auctioning or quick-selling is feeling less important than holding in case of value boosting due to future missions.

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 0
regular packs x 41
Gold packs x 0

Silver+ pulls:
74 C Yan Gomes
87 CL Osuna
82 SP Orval Grove
83 LF Ellis Burks
82 LF Tommy Pham
87 CL Nick Anderson
75 RF Alex Verdugo
76 SP Ted Wilks
93 SP Blake Snell
100 1B Jimmie Foxx !!!
70 1B Eric Hosmer
70 RP Aaron Bummer
93 SP Mickey Lolich
100 SP DeGrom !!!
70 RF Aoki

League Results:
Team record 71-91
Playoffs: no
promotion/relegation: staying in Diamond
Achievement PP - 6850PP

Top 3 achievements:
Hi Def Inning - Gibson 4K's in one inning - 2500PP
Comeback (9 runs) - 400 PP
Contact inning (9 hits in 9th inning) - 400PP

Awards: none
All-Star selections: LF Yastrzemski

Featured Card of the Week:
91 Peak Legend LF Don Baylor
I decided I really need to feature Baylor because he pretty much single-handedly helped the Trojans win their Gold seasons championship a few weeks ago. He had an RBI streak for the entire playoffs that season! So I did some research and was surprised to see he was a member of the 1987 Twins World Series team. Despite living in a Twins market and being around all the hoopla of that, I really didn't remember Baylor being on the Twins. But his stats were very minor that year, so I wonder if he was hurt and/or not on the post-season roster. Anyway, Don had a fine career in various spots, won the MVP with Angels in 79 (139 RBI's!), manager of the year with the Rockies, and was a big part of the 86 Red Sox post-season.

Also Don has some interesting historical/racial info in his bio. He was the first black
player at Stephen F Austin High School in Austin, Texas. Apparently he was also a talented football player and had a scholarship opportunity to play football for the Longhorns and would have been the first black player in school history there, but chose baseball instead. Sad to hear he passed away in 2017.

[neugey]

6/8 - 6/14, Week 12 2031 Season, Diamond League D358
Ouch! The team got completely destroyed this week and finished with a .333 record. The offense really seems to be falling behind badly in Diamond level. It's to the point where I am even considering forfeiting defense for offense at multiple positions. The only pitcher who showed up was Maddux, and no one else really put much together before getting lit up. The tournament luck was also MIA and I grow more and more frustrating that I can't ever seem to place in the top 4 of a 32-team daily. Will have to continue to tinker.

Tournament earnings:
200 PP x 0
regular packs x 20
Gold packs x 0

Silver+ pulls:
82 RF Champ Summers
72 1B Carlos Santana
74 SP Ryan Vogelsong
78 SS Chris Taylor
77 CL Ian Kennedy
87 CF George Springer
75 RF Joe Carter
70 3B Hunter Dozier
77 SS Tony Kubek
79 SP Lance Lynn
87 CL Taylor Rogers
79 C Buster Posey
74 SP Bumgarner

League Results:
Team record 54-108
Playoffs: hell no
promotion/relegation: relegated to Gold level
Achievement PP - 2890PP

Top 3 achievements:
Out of Slump - snapped 12-game losing streak - 250PP
In the Wheelhouse - Suzuki 5 for 5 - 150PP
In Control - Greg Maddux - 100PP

Awards: none
All-Star selections: RP Blyleven

Featured Card of the Week:
Peak 88 C Manny Sanguillen
Sanguillen, who finished his career with a lifetime .296 batting average, also hits very well in OOTP. He can also get it done defensively. He has been a huge value for me and
survives nicely at Diamond level. I'd definitely recommend him for seasons and tournament play. The downside is he doesn't walk often at all. But for a guy who had a nice career and helped the Pirates win two World Series, he sure seems like someone has become more underrated as time as gone on. He's still proudly a Pirate and has a BBQ stand at PNC Park. Damn it, now I'm hungry.