Making The Move Upstate: A Buffalo Nickels Story - Page 4

dward1 · 03-26-2020, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Englishtide73

I finally figured out how to have the leagues intertwine in one universe. I’m thinking about going with an association cuz I wanna have everyone drawing from the same player pool. Unless that happens anyway without joining the association? Thanks for your help!

can you explain exactly what you want? I've had so much experience building multi-league universes maybe if I get the Big View I can help

Englishtide73 · 03-26-2020, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dward1

can you explain exactly what you want? I've had so much experience building multi-league universes maybe if I get the Big View I can help

All the leagues are in one universe and I’m wondering do they all share in the same talent pool or is it all different because it’s separate leagues? Here’s an example John Doe is in league 1 would he be available to a team in league 2?
I want all the teams to share in the same pool.

dward1 · 03-26-2020, 03:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Englishtide73

All the leagues are in one universe and I’m wondering do they all share in the same talent pool or is it all different because it’s separate leagues? Here’s an example John Doe is in league 1 would he be available to a team in league 2?
I want all the teams to share in the same pool.

when he becomes a free agent yes. draft you have to set it up via an association I believe or they have separate drafts.

if free agents, you have to be clear about if you want to reset service time or not when switching leagues

Englishtide73 · 03-26-2020, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dward1

when he becomes a free agent yes. draft you have to set it up via an association I believe or they have separate drafts.

if free agents, you have to be clear about if you want to reset service time or not when switching leagues

What don’t you like about being in an association?

dward1 · 03-26-2020, 04:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Englishtide73

What don’t you like about being in an association?

I've used them many times before but the interface is a bit clunky, playoffs can look strange sometimes. I don't remember much else, haven't used them in a long time

Englishtide73 · 03-26-2020, 10:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dward1

I've used them many times before but the interface is a bit clunky, playoffs can look strange sometimes. I don't remember much else, haven't used them in a long time

Ok here’s a question about finances. I saw on your one post where you show the payroll in each of your associations. One was 10 million and the next one was something like 7.2 million. Here’s my question do you have to change each teams budget or is there something in league settings?
Right now I’m running 3 leagues in the USA and when I expand into Mexico and Canada I don’t want there budgets as high as the USA.

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 03:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Englishtide73

Ok here’s a question about finances. I saw on your one post where you show the payroll in each of your associations. One was 10 million and the next one was something like 7.2 million. Here’s my question do you have to change each teams budget or is there something in league settings?
Right now I’m running 3 leagues in the USA and when I expand into Mexico and Canada I don’t want there budgets as high as the USA.

under financials in the league settings you can change this

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 05:23 AM

Game 3
This Buffalo crowd was roaring, savoring the home field advantage after their team took a game in Vegas. The local journalists had pretty much all decided this was more important than the relegation series in ’57, which makes it the biggest games in Buffalo history. There is the expectation of bigger games in the future, but you must win these first for those games to appear. Of course, even with the focus completely on this game and Vegas, several banners poking fun at Rochester made their way into the stadium. "Enjoy your offseason Roosters" was one of the more fit-to-print ones.

The strain of back to back starts on two-days rest for Jared Farr started to show in the third inning. Four straight hits opened the account and while Farr eventually wriggled out of the inning and the early lead was gone, Lights led it 3-2.

After the Nickels pulled back even in the next half, Farr immediately gave it back. It's clear he was rushed back. He easily could have simply started tomorrow in game four, but was rushed back for game three. The talk around that decision had started today and will continue on for a while.

Jason Kuruc came on and poured gas on the Light, failing to retire a single batter as the lead opened up to 6-3.

A strong start from Malik Luster, also on two days rest but only his second one, not his third, meant the comeback never really felt on. Sergio Mejia took over and finished with a 6-up, 6-down save.

The Lights have overcome their early, very nervous start to the final to take the lead here in Buffalo.

Player of the game: Justin Carree (4 shutout innings, 2 H, 0 BB, 2 K)

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 05:25 AM

by Brian Brick for the Buffalo Ball

I mean…are they watching these guys? Jared Farr was taking 29 seconds between pitches in the opener, in the season he was at 19. He was out of gas, and lucky to get through 5 with 1 run. And on 2 days rest…again Thomas rolls him back out. He’s managing like a desperate rookie and not the most decorated manager of all time. He could have easily waited another day.

The Zamora error and this one are just the sign of a guy too obsessed with relying on the few guys he trusts, and not realizing they simply weren't those same guys he trusted all year without proper rest.

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 05:55 AM

Game 4
Well Gerry Thomas certainly isn't letting the press influence him. After his aggressive pitcher usage strategy had failed twice with Zamora and Farr, he's leaning into it and bringing Ben Buchanan back on two days rest. This one won't be as controversial in one way because Buchanan threw just 72 pitches last time out and wasn't heavily used before that but in another way it might be. Buchanan led the league in WHIP this season and has a career 3.19 ERA but there's a feeling around the team and the fans that he's never really fully convinced. He's been in and out of the rotation over two years, playing different roles, and clearly not been viewed as a key player. He's got a chance to change that tonight.

The Lights are a team that lefties have an advantage against, six of their starters hit lefty and their regular season OPS was 70 points lower vs left handed pitchers.

Early on, Buchanan looked locked in and ready to convince. Sometimes he's had the reputation as a guy who sort of just floats along, he does his work, he pitches well, but he doesn't dominate a game or impress himself on it. Today, he was the center of it and looked to want it. He was ready to make the leap.

An early Adam Stromgren home run had given him backing, but no other backing arrived. Nick Rincon had settled in and was matching Buchanan through five.

Buchanan has never been known as a pitcher who can go deep in games, five was the most common prediction for innings he'd go in even a good start. But he finished the fifth, finished the sixth, finished the seventh, and went into the eighth. Zamora took over, a more rested Zamora and finished comfortably thanks to three insurance runs in the bottom of the eight.

Ben Buchanan has made a big step establishing himself as a key player in this Nickels squad, and the Nickels have made a step back even in this Finals series.

Player of the game: Ben Buchanan 7.1 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3

Game 5
What a stage to make your first ever top level start. Josh Rieger has been excellent out of the pen for Buffalo (24.2 IP, 17 H, 3 BB, 29 K) and excellent as a starter in Portland (2.91 ERA, 0.97 WHIP over 25 starts) but this is a new one. The 29 year old is a late bloomer of the type common in this new age of baseball, but he really could bloom.

Hector Chavez, the Lights starter, was about as far from Rieger in inexperience as you can possible get. He made his debut back in ’44 as a 19 year old and is now 39 with 406 top-level starts and 2800 innings under his belt. It's a beautiful juxtaposition between the well-traveled Chavez and Rieger making his first steps in the top flight, for the so-crucial fifth game in this series.

The Lights put two men on base and pressure on the first-time man immediately in the first, when he got Art Rivera to ground out for the third out you could see him exhale as he left the mound. He conceded in the second but the Nickels struck back to take the lead via their coldest player.

Jose Rodriguez came into the game with a .400 playoff OPS, but that’s forgotten as the ball flew over the fence. 2-1, Buffalo.

Zamora and Bresnahan were loosening in the 5th, as Rieger seemed set to face the next three lefties and then leave to a well-deserved ovation and the lead. But Staffen, who doubled the first run in, doubled again. And then the big blow: Quinn Reed, the leadoff man, turned the title odds on a dime with a pulled HR. The Lights went ahead 3-2 and Rieger left the mound to much more muffled applause. Bresnahan in.

Joe Duncan had never hit a triple, not in the league, not in the tournaments, not in the playoffs, he later said this one in the fifth inning was his first since high school. The lead-footed contact hitter could then jog home on a two-run from Chris Yates. 4-3 to Buffalo and the odds swing back.

A triple of their own lead to a tying single and Zamora is in. After a K and a single, it was that man Quinn Reid again. And that man hit his second home run of the game. Zamora had cracked. Is he just completely out of gas? The devastating changeup is faster than normal and floating more often instead of diving, Reid hit one of them out. It was a four-run explosion, Lights 7-4.

The runs simply weren't stopping, Stewart made it five straight half innings with runs scored and it was 7-5.

Zamora finally ended the run on runs in the 7th, giving Buffalo a platform to continue their comeback against the Lights pen. Which we did, a Yates double, a wild pitch and then a flubbed fly ball by the two-homer man Reid meant it was 7-6 and the tying run was on. Rookie reliever Diegel got the next 2 batters and catching up would be delayed another inning. The basic mistakes hadn't completely stopped for the Lights yet.

Mejia came on to try for a two-inning save again. He got a double-play to end the 8th and end the Nickels consecutive innings scored streak at 5.

Bottom 9, middle of the order, 3-4-5, with the lead in the Finals on the line.

The 3-2 to Peterson, strike 3 looking. 1 out.

Yates, soft fly ball to right, 2 out.

2 strikes to Stromgren, but he keeps the game alive with a single.

Two strikes to Zavala, and he keeps the game alive with a single. First and third. Winning run on first, tying run just 90 feet away.

Jose Rodriguez, the 0-2, hit hard right over third base, it looked for a second that it might skip down the line and win the game but suddenly there was Jim McGill appearing and back-handing the ball. He sets, fires, a strong hard throw all the way across but Rodriguez had broken from the box quickly, is one of the fastest runners on the team and is going full-tilt down the line. The ball arrives, Sahlen Field holds their breath…out. And he was.

Ballgame. 7-6 the final. 3-2 is the series. Back to Vegas the series goes and it is all in the hands of the Lights.

Player of the game: Chris Yates (2-5, HR, 2B)

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 02:14 PM

It was the first of October and just a brilliant day at Omnibus Park. 61 degrees and clear skies, you couldn’t imagine a better day for baseball.

Both teams rolled out their aces for the third time in the series, this time with proper rest. Each had won once with their main man on the hill, Jared Farr getting the win in the opener for Buffalo and Malik Luster getting one in Game 3 for the Lights. One more win for Luster and the Lights would be on the edge of the money-spinning global competitions with a shot at the truly great heights of the Champions League. Buffalo wanted a win, and a Game 7.

Right off the bat, the Lights took control as Farr still looked a bit off. A Nick Davis solo home run in the 2nd inning made the score 3-0 Lights and the celebratory run through the Strip that had been promised looked on.

Not so fast my friends. This Buffalo team, who has proven so resilient this season, did it again. They scored seven runs the next two times at the plate, getting contributions up and down the lineup. 7-3, Nickels with their ace on the mound and suddenly emerging lefty-killer Ben Buchanan lined up for game 7?

Farr, however, wasn’t up to the task. He could not complete the 5th inning and by the time he exited the lead had been halved. 7-5.

Gerry Thomas was almost visibly hemming and hawing in the dugout over when to bring in his bullpen Ace Jorge Zamora. He knew he needed to win both games and wound up trying to coax a few innings out of Jason Kuruc, who delievered 1.2 clean frames, but then also, and with disastrous consequences, John Tucker.

Tucker roared onto the mound to strike out the two big righties in the middle of the Lights order on 6 pitches. He looked electric. But a single and then a painful first pitch hit by pitch cued up Ryan Brugger for a massive at-bat. Brugger battled throughout an agonizingly drawn out 10 pitch at-bat before pulling a rocket grounder to the right field fence to tie the game. Zamora was finally brought in, a few batters too late in the bottom of the 7th.

In the 8th, BJ Peterson, the rookie and burgeoning captain, turned the narrative completely. A blown lead was suddenly restored with a 410-foot blast off Sergio Mejia. The Nickels had the lead and Zamora on the hill.

In the bottom half, the lead was gone. Jim McGill’s 2-out double sent the game to the 9th, tied at 8. A Nickels threat was dealt with when Mallow ground up, and the bottom of the order coming up for the Lights suggested we might see extra inning baseball in Game 6.

But we didn’t. With 1 out, Brad Dailey hammered a floating changeup up, away and over the right-center field fence and the Las Vegas Lights

Player of the game: BJ Peterson (2-4, HR, 2B, BB)

Series Recap
34-29, the Nickels actually outscored the Lights in what turned out to be a highscoring Finals.

MVP was Quinn Reid, his 2-HR night in Game 5 was without a doubt the turning point of the series. He hit 3 HRs total. Leo Staffen and Brad Dailey, both under the radar and bottom of the order type players, also delivered big Finals.

For Buffalo the lack of performance from Farr and Zamora are the two things they will rue. Both had been so good and led them all season, including in the first round. They combined for 20 IP and 17 earned runs.

What’s Next
The Lights will go on to face Toronto in a Champions League Qualifier. If they win they will become the first USBL2 team to ever win this Best-of-3 Qualifier. If they lose they will enter the Global Cup. After their adventure on the international stage is over, the Promotion/Relegation Playoff looms. This is a great team and will be favored to join the USBL and knock founding member Memphis down for the first time in the Blues history.

For Buffalo, they will play a Global Cup Qualifier against the WBA2 second-placed team, the Boston Colonials. There’s still a chance of bringing in huge cash, up to double of the annual budget if they win the title, but no chance of moving up to the USBL anymore.

The Las Vegas Lights are your 2063 USBL2 champions.

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 02:19 PM

A few days later and I've cooled down a bit. They beat us, but really it could have gone either way. We outscored them, they just won 3 1-run games and a 2-run game. What I do regret was overusing Zamora throughout the season and definitely in the playoffs and rushing Farr back on 2 days rest for the second time. I'm proud of our guys, we were right there and we performed in the Finals. But the Lights are a great team also, I wish them the best and hope they get promoted. If not, we will probably battle them again next year.

It's hard to get the guys focused now after their main goal of a title and promotion was denied but winning this Qualifier gives us a chance at making a ton of money for the club in the Global Cup. These big tournament knockout stages are where the cash comes in, and it's hard to make that up elsewhere.

Englishtide73 · 03-27-2020, 05:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dward1

under financials in the league settings you can change this

I think this is my last question lol! When you adjust the financials do you also adjust the global financial efficiency?

Englishtide73 · 03-27-2020, 05:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dward1

It was the first of October and just a brilliant day at Omnibus Park. 61 degrees and clear skies, you couldn’t imagine a better day for baseball.

Both teams rolled out their aces for the third time in the series, this time with proper rest. Each had won once with their main man on the hill, Jared Farr getting the win in the opener for Buffalo and Malik Luster getting one in Game 3 for the Lights. One more win for Luster and the Lights would be on the edge of the money-spinning global competitions with a shot at the truly great heights of the Champions League. Buffalo wanted a win, and a Game 7.

Right off the bat, the Lights took control as Farr still looked a bit off. A Nick Davis solo home run in the 2nd inning made the score 3-0 Lights and the celebratory run through the Strip that had been promised looked on.

Not so fast my friends. This Buffalo team, who has proven so resilient this season, did it again. They scored seven runs the next two times at the plate, getting contributions up and down the lineup. 7-3, Nickels with their ace on the mound and suddenly emerging lefty-killer Ben Buchanan lined up for game 7?

Farr, however, wasn’t up to the task. He could not complete the 5th inning and by the time he exited the lead had been halved. 7-5.

Gerry Thomas was almost visibly hemming and hawing in the dugout over when to bring in his bullpen Ace Jorge Zamora. He knew he needed to win both games and wound up trying to coax a few innings out of Jason Kuruc, who delievered 1.2 clean frames, but then also, and with disastrous consequences, John Tucker.

Tucker roared onto the mound to strike out the two big righties in the middle of the Lights order on 6 pitches. He looked electric. But a single and then a painful first pitch hit by pitch cued up Ryan Brugger for a massive at-bat. Brugger battled throughout an agonizingly drawn out 10 pitch at-bat before pulling a rocket grounder to the right field fence to tie the game. Zamora was finally brought in, a few batters too late in the bottom of the 7th.

In the 8th, BJ Peterson, the rookie and burgeoning captain, turned the narrative completely. A blown lead was suddenly restored with a 410-foot blast off Sergio Mejia. The Nickels had the lead and Zamora on the hill.

In the bottom half, the lead was gone. Jim McGill’s 2-out double sent the game to the 9th, tied at 8. A Nickels threat was dealt with when Mallow ground up, and the bottom of the order coming up for the Lights suggested we might see extra inning baseball in Game 6.

But we didn’t. With 1 out, Brad Dailey hammered a floating changeup up, away and over the right-center field fence and the Las Vegas Lights

Player of the game: BJ Peterson (2-4, HR, 2B, BB)

Series Recap
34-29, the Nickels actually outscored the Lights in what turned out to be a highscoring Finals.

MVP was Quinn Reid, his 2-HR night in Game 5 was without a doubt the turning point of the series. He hit 3 HRs total. Leo Staffen and Brad Dailey, both under the radar and bottom of the order type players, also delivered big Finals.

For Buffalo the lack of performance from Farr and Zamora are the two things they will rue. Both had been so good and led them all season, including in the first round. They combined for 20 IP and 17 earned runs.

What’s Next
The Lights will go on to face Toronto in a Champions League Qualifier. If they win they will become the first USBL2 team to ever win this Best-of-3 Qualifier. If they lose they will enter the Global Cup. After their adventure on the international stage is over, the Promotion/Relegation Playoff looms. This is a great team and will be favored to join the USBL and knock founding member Memphis down for the first time in the Blues history.

For Buffalo, they will play a Global Cup Qualifier against the WBA2 second-placed team, the Boston Colonials. There’s still a chance of bringing in huge cash, up to double of the annual budget if they win the title, but no chance of moving up to the USBL anymore.

The Las Vegas Lights are your 2063 USBL2 champions.

I see you’re having qualifiers to your champions league. How do you set it up? Do you have a tournament qualifier or do you just go to schedules and put them in and making it a tournament game?
I was thinking of making little qualifier tournaments just so stats are kept.

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Englishtide73

I see you’re having qualifiers to your champions league. How do you set it up? Do you have a tournament qualifier or do you just go to schedules and put them in and making it a tournament game?
I was thinking of making little qualifier tournaments just so stats are kept.

I should make them tournament games I guess but I make them playoff games manually.

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Englishtide73

I think this is my last question lol! When you adjust the financials do you also adjust the global financial efficiency?

I've never touched that, you mean global financial coefficient?

the financial model is a bit of a headache and about 10 years past due for a revamp to be honest

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 07:12 PM

A new situation and a new challenge for our team. Buffalo has never sniffed the global stage, and even if this is a "second-tier" tournament, there's a chance of $3 million going to the winner. Our budget is $3.2 million for next season. So, there's nothing "second-tier" there. Boston is a very good club, they've made the knockout stage in the past 3 Baseball Cups, making the semis in '61 and the finals last year. They made the semis in the Cup of the Americas last year and have finished 1 game off the top in the WBA2 each of the past two seasons. That's why they are ranked 19th globally and maybe going up in the rankings. But we are climbing as well, to take down a geographical rival in a way, someone we see as our equals in the WBA system would be a nice little thing to cherish as we enter the international stage.

Game 1
Our guys were not intimidated, we went into Boston and Jared Farr absolutely dealt a gem. BJ Peterson blasted a first inning home run and Farr/Rieger/Zamora kept them off the board. 3-0 win. We were a game away from international competition. The homers seem to often come early for us, as in first inning even.

Player of the game: Jared Farr 6.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 K

Game 2
The second game wasn't so clean, but no one will remember that. They will just remember that we were the first Buffalo team to make it to international play. Buchanan made it through just 3.1 innings but we scored 11 runs. Boston had been the solid favorite

Player of the game: Adam Stromgren (3-5, 2B)

dward1 · 03-27-2020, 07:46 PM

We see our friends the Americans again, New York went on to actually win the Cup of the Americas and come into this group as the overwhelming favorite to go through.

Quebec are an interesting side, they've already won promotion back to the WBA finally. They dominated the league for stretches (back to back leagues in '45 and '46 and back to back Champions Leagues in '52 and '53) and are returning after four years in the second tier.

Yomiuri were expected to be one of the dominant teams when the Asian Super League was created back in 2053, but just now won their first title. They broke Shanghai's run of 4 straight titles.

We'd be ecstatic to go through. The format is shorter than the Cup of the Americas or Champions League, 6 games. Tie breaker is run differential. Top from Group B (our group) will play #2 from Group A and vice versa.

Group A got underway yesterday and is a much tougher group with 3 top level teams.
-Toronto (#7 in global rankings, WBA)
-Sydney (#8, WBA)
-Hartford (#26, USBL)
-and in a shocking rise over the past two seasons, Manila (#63, ASL). The Sharks had finished dead last in the ASL 4/5 years and were dead last in the global rankings two years ago. Now they are in the Global Cup hobnobbing with the Toronto's, the Sydney's and the New York's.

dward1 · 03-28-2020, 03:23 PM

Never put boundaries on your team.

In our Cup of the Americas review I sent to our guys, I was almost effusive in my praise of their fight, their effort and their performance going 5-5 against a pretty tough group.

Is 8-0 better than 5-5?

I think so. After the devastation that came from falling in the USBL2 final vs the Lights we got off the mat and dispatched Boston. Making it to the Global Cup was a big accomplishment and I made that clear...I didn't even put a goal for advancement. Well, going 6-0 in the Group means you will advance.

We mashed Big Jim Williams (12-1 in the WBA and had destroyed us in the Cup of the Americas) in the opener and comfortably beat New York to move the season series against the Manhattan Monsters to 2-1.

Next was Quebec, with Leo Yaag, their Aussie starter who went 16-1 in the WBA2. We beat him as well, Bresnahan and Zamora delivered 4.2 hitless relief innings.

Day 3 saw us play Quebec again and Dave Vega didn't get out of the first inning. Joe Duncan hit 3 doubles and Rieger went 5 scoreless. The momentum was building, we still had two games vs the weaker Asian side Yomuiri left. One more win would probably see us through.

That's not what our guys wanted though...Jared Farr (in the midst of some contract chaos) delivered 7 shutout vs Yomuiri in yet another comfortable win.

Game 5 wasn't comfortable, it went to 12 innings against the Tokyo-based club before BJ Peterson delivered. He seems to hit his homers in the 1st inning or late and clutch.

9 more runs, another starter knocked out before they got 5 outs, another Rieger win, and another win over New York.

The Global Cup group stage was over and we were 6-0. It happened so fast it's still hard to process. It's a week that should give our guys belief and kind of changes our goals as a club and as a front office.

Players of the week
Chris Yates 444/429/667...1095 OPS
Jared Farr 14.1 IP, 14 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 14 K
Danny Bresnahan 6.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 K
Jorge Zamora 8 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 7 K
Jose Rodriguez 364/423/591...1014 OPS

Now in reach is an international trophy, $3.4 million and certainly the biggest moment in Buffalo history. This might already have been.

We've got Hartford next, who we split against in the Cup of the Americas. They beat us in the crucial 7th game, essentially eliminating us on a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 11th. It's time for revenge and truly with the way we've played these last 8 games we are the favorites against the Dark Blues.

dward1 · 03-29-2020, 10:10 AM

I'm basically just enjoying the ride at this point. It's unreal what these guys are doing. I never thought we'd see this in year two and really we can't take credit for most of this. It's all them. Hartford proved absolutely no obstacle in the rolling machine that is the Buffalo Nickels. We've come to Dallas and are just thrashing the rest of the world.

Farr dominated in the opener and Duncan had 4 hits, a double and triple among them as we had yet another breather win, 5-1.

Game 2 we once again had to pick up Buchanan, he lasted just 2.2 innings but allowed only an unearned run. It was Bresnahan again, delivering 3.1 shutout innings before handing it over to his partner Zamora for the final 3. 2-1 was the final.

Jose Rodriguez delivered another monstrously clutch home run in a tournament, tying the game in the 7th. He was a bit anonymous in the regular season and the Baseball Cup but he's not stepped up and hit enormous homers in the Cup of the Americas, the playoffs and now the Global Cup.

Bresnahan has been an absolute pro. This guy was at the top of the world, the US's best pitcher early in his career, the best pitcher in the WBA probably for 5 seasons. And now he's lost his spot in the rotation for a USBL2 team and been told his contract option will be declined and he's delivering his best work. All credit to Danny, 10 shutout innings in the Cup now. And that makes it 10 wins, 0 losses in the Global Cup for your Nickels. Pinch me.

Up next, Sydney and the finals. Once again, they will have a much larger collection of talent according to all the evaluators. We've got 1 regular in BJ Peterson rated above 3 stars by these "evaluators" and 2 relievers. Sydney has 4 5-star relievers alone. 6 regulars rated above 3 stars and all 5 relievers above it. That doesn't matter to our guys on the field. You even see Stromgren and Zavala playing cards in the clubhouse, the chemistry is just brilliant right now.

Not everything is picture perfect...while the announcement that this huge cash infusion is going to lead to a 1 or 2 year "freeze" on service time with lots of the Elita TV money being spread around to players to make up for their hypothetical raises went across adequately, it didn't for our ace.

Jared Farr was going to be a free agent and even though that means he qualifies for a ton more money disbursed from this Elita pool he wants to go. I've told him I'll talk with him after the Global Cup, but he's arguably our cornerstone. Not arguably, we don't even have a reliable starter besides him. But he does deserve a shot to go and we might be able to get huge money for him...we will think on it.

But first, Sydney and the chance to bring back a stunning trophy to Buffalo. Twice in three years a second tier team has won this young Global Cup competition (Milwaukee and San Diego) raising questions about the interest and effort level of the big sides, but we don't care. On the field it has seemed like everyone has wanted to win but we've just smashed them. That trophy will go up and we will celebrate it no matter what.

03-27-2020, 05:23 AM	#68
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	Finals, Buffalo Games Game 3 This Buffalo crowd was roaring, savoring the home field advantage after their team took a game in Vegas. The local journalists had pretty much all decided this was more important than the relegation series in ’57, which makes it the biggest games in Buffalo history. There is the expectation of bigger games in the future, but you must win these first for those games to appear. Of course, even with the focus completely on this game and Vegas, several banners poking fun at Rochester made their way into the stadium. "Enjoy your offseason Roosters" was one of the more fit-to-print ones. The strain of back to back starts on two-days rest for Jared Farr started to show in the third inning. Four straight hits opened the account and while Farr eventually wriggled out of the inning and the early lead was gone, Lights led it 3-2. After the Nickels pulled back even in the next half, Farr immediately gave it back. It's clear he was rushed back. He easily could have simply started tomorrow in game four, but was rushed back for game three. The talk around that decision had started today and will continue on for a while. Jason Kuruc came on and poured gas on the Light, failing to retire a single batter as the lead opened up to 6-3. A strong start from Malik Luster, also on two days rest but only his second one, not his third, meant the comeback never really felt on. Sergio Mejia took over and finished with a 6-up, 6-down save. The Lights have overcome their early, very nervous start to the final to take the lead here in Buffalo. Player of the game: Justin Carree (4 shutout innings, 2 H, 0 BB, 2 K)

03-27-2020, 05:25 AM	#69
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	Thomas is managing like a desperate rookie by Brian Brick for the Buffalo Ball I mean…are they watching these guys? Jared Farr was taking 29 seconds between pitches in the opener, in the season he was at 19. He was out of gas, and lucky to get through 5 with 1 run. And on 2 days rest…again Thomas rolls him back out. He’s managing like a desperate rookie and not the most decorated manager of all time. He could have easily waited another day. The Zamora error and this one are just the sign of a guy too obsessed with relying on the few guys he trusts, and not realizing they simply weren't those same guys he trusted all year without proper rest.

03-27-2020, 05:55 AM	#70
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	Finals, Buffalo Games, Part 2 Game 4 Well Gerry Thomas certainly isn't letting the press influence him. After his aggressive pitcher usage strategy had failed twice with Zamora and Farr, he's leaning into it and bringing Ben Buchanan back on two days rest. This one won't be as controversial in one way because Buchanan threw just 72 pitches last time out and wasn't heavily used before that but in another way it might be. Buchanan led the league in WHIP this season and has a career 3.19 ERA but there's a feeling around the team and the fans that he's never really fully convinced. He's been in and out of the rotation over two years, playing different roles, and clearly not been viewed as a key player. He's got a chance to change that tonight. The Lights are a team that lefties have an advantage against, six of their starters hit lefty and their regular season OPS was 70 points lower vs left handed pitchers. Early on, Buchanan looked locked in and ready to convince. Sometimes he's had the reputation as a guy who sort of just floats along, he does his work, he pitches well, but he doesn't dominate a game or impress himself on it. Today, he was the center of it and looked to want it. He was ready to make the leap. An early Adam Stromgren home run had given him backing, but no other backing arrived. Nick Rincon had settled in and was matching Buchanan through five. Buchanan has never been known as a pitcher who can go deep in games, five was the most common prediction for innings he'd go in even a good start. But he finished the fifth, finished the sixth, finished the seventh, and went into the eighth. Zamora took over, a more rested Zamora and finished comfortably thanks to three insurance runs in the bottom of the eight. Ben Buchanan has made a big step establishing himself as a key player in this Nickels squad, and the Nickels have made a step back even in this Finals series. Player of the game: Ben Buchanan 7.1 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 Game 5 What a stage to make your first ever top level start. Josh Rieger has been excellent out of the pen for Buffalo (24.2 IP, 17 H, 3 BB, 29 K) and excellent as a starter in Portland (2.91 ERA, 0.97 WHIP over 25 starts) but this is a new one. The 29 year old is a late bloomer of the type common in this new age of baseball, but he really could bloom. Hector Chavez, the Lights starter, was about as far from Rieger in inexperience as you can possible get. He made his debut back in ’44 as a 19 year old and is now 39 with 406 top-level starts and 2800 innings under his belt. It's a beautiful juxtaposition between the well-traveled Chavez and Rieger making his first steps in the top flight, for the so-crucial fifth game in this series. The Lights put two men on base and pressure on the first-time man immediately in the first, when he got Art Rivera to ground out for the third out you could see him exhale as he left the mound. He conceded in the second but the Nickels struck back to take the lead via their coldest player. Jose Rodriguez came into the game with a .400 playoff OPS, but that’s forgotten as the ball flew over the fence. 2-1, Buffalo. Zamora and Bresnahan were loosening in the 5th, as Rieger seemed set to face the next three lefties and then leave to a well-deserved ovation and the lead. But Staffen, who doubled the first run in, doubled again. And then the big blow: Quinn Reed, the leadoff man, turned the title odds on a dime with a pulled HR. The Lights went ahead 3-2 and Rieger left the mound to much more muffled applause. Bresnahan in. Joe Duncan had never hit a triple, not in the league, not in the tournaments, not in the playoffs, he later said this one in the fifth inning was his first since high school. The lead-footed contact hitter could then jog home on a two-run from Chris Yates. 4-3 to Buffalo and the odds swing back. A triple of their own lead to a tying single and Zamora is in. After a K and a single, it was that man Quinn Reid again. And that man hit his second home run of the game. Zamora had cracked. Is he just completely out of gas? The devastating changeup is faster than normal and floating more often instead of diving, Reid hit one of them out. It was a four-run explosion, Lights 7-4. The runs simply weren't stopping, Stewart made it five straight half innings with runs scored and it was 7-5. Zamora finally ended the run on runs in the 7th, giving Buffalo a platform to continue their comeback against the Lights pen. Which we did, a Yates double, a wild pitch and then a flubbed fly ball by the two-homer man Reid meant it was 7-6 and the tying run was on. Rookie reliever Diegel got the next 2 batters and catching up would be delayed another inning. The basic mistakes hadn't completely stopped for the Lights yet. Mejia came on to try for a two-inning save again. He got a double-play to end the 8th and end the Nickels consecutive innings scored streak at 5. Bottom 9, middle of the order, 3-4-5, with the lead in the Finals on the line. The 3-2 to Peterson, strike 3 looking. 1 out. Yates, soft fly ball to right, 2 out. 2 strikes to Stromgren, but he keeps the game alive with a single. Two strikes to Zavala, and he keeps the game alive with a single. First and third. Winning run on first, tying run just 90 feet away. Jose Rodriguez, the 0-2, hit hard right over third base, it looked for a second that it might skip down the line and win the game but suddenly there was Jim McGill appearing and back-handing the ball. He sets, fires, a strong hard throw all the way across but Rodriguez had broken from the box quickly, is one of the fastest runners on the team and is going full-tilt down the line. The ball arrives, Sahlen Field holds their breath…out. And he was. Ballgame. 7-6 the final. 3-2 is the series. Back to Vegas the series goes and it is all in the hands of the Lights. Player of the game: Chris Yates (2-5, HR, 2B) Last edited by dward1; 03-27-2020 at 05:59 AM.

03-27-2020, 02:14 PM	#71
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	Finals, Vegas Games, Part 2 It was the first of October and just a brilliant day at Omnibus Park. 61 degrees and clear skies, you couldn’t imagine a better day for baseball. Both teams rolled out their aces for the third time in the series, this time with proper rest. Each had won once with their main man on the hill, Jared Farr getting the win in the opener for Buffalo and Malik Luster getting one in Game 3 for the Lights. One more win for Luster and the Lights would be on the edge of the money-spinning global competitions with a shot at the truly great heights of the Champions League. Buffalo wanted a win, and a Game 7. Right off the bat, the Lights took control as Farr still looked a bit off. A Nick Davis solo home run in the 2nd inning made the score 3-0 Lights and the celebratory run through the Strip that had been promised looked on. Not so fast my friends. This Buffalo team, who has proven so resilient this season, did it again. They scored seven runs the next two times at the plate, getting contributions up and down the lineup. 7-3, Nickels with their ace on the mound and suddenly emerging lefty-killer Ben Buchanan lined up for game 7? Farr, however, wasn’t up to the task. He could not complete the 5th inning and by the time he exited the lead had been halved. 7-5. Gerry Thomas was almost visibly hemming and hawing in the dugout over when to bring in his bullpen Ace Jorge Zamora. He knew he needed to win both games and wound up trying to coax a few innings out of Jason Kuruc, who delievered 1.2 clean frames, but then also, and with disastrous consequences, John Tucker. Tucker roared onto the mound to strike out the two big righties in the middle of the Lights order on 6 pitches. He looked electric. But a single and then a painful first pitch hit by pitch cued up Ryan Brugger for a massive at-bat. Brugger battled throughout an agonizingly drawn out 10 pitch at-bat before pulling a rocket grounder to the right field fence to tie the game. Zamora was finally brought in, a few batters too late in the bottom of the 7th. In the 8th, BJ Peterson, the rookie and burgeoning captain, turned the narrative completely. A blown lead was suddenly restored with a 410-foot blast off Sergio Mejia. The Nickels had the lead and Zamora on the hill. In the bottom half, the lead was gone. Jim McGill’s 2-out double sent the game to the 9th, tied at 8. A Nickels threat was dealt with when Mallow ground up, and the bottom of the order coming up for the Lights suggested we might see extra inning baseball in Game 6. But we didn’t. With 1 out, Brad Dailey hammered a floating changeup up, away and over the right-center field fence and the Las Vegas Lights Player of the game: BJ Peterson (2-4, HR, 2B, BB) Series Recap 34-29, the Nickels actually outscored the Lights in what turned out to be a highscoring Finals. MVP was Quinn Reid, his 2-HR night in Game 5 was without a doubt the turning point of the series. He hit 3 HRs total. Leo Staffen and Brad Dailey, both under the radar and bottom of the order type players, also delivered big Finals. For Buffalo the lack of performance from Farr and Zamora are the two things they will rue. Both had been so good and led them all season, including in the first round. They combined for 20 IP and 17 earned runs. What’s Next The Lights will go on to face Toronto in a Champions League Qualifier. If they win they will become the first USBL2 team to ever win this Best-of-3 Qualifier. If they lose they will enter the Global Cup. After their adventure on the international stage is over, the Promotion/Relegation Playoff looms. This is a great team and will be favored to join the USBL and knock founding member Memphis down for the first time in the Blues history. For Buffalo, they will play a Global Cup Qualifier against the WBA2 second-placed team, the Boston Colonials. There’s still a chance of bringing in huge cash, up to double of the annual budget if they win the title, but no chance of moving up to the USBL anymore. The Las Vegas Lights are your 2063 USBL2 champions.

03-27-2020, 02:19 PM	#72
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	Gerry Thomas Post Finals Diary A few days later and I've cooled down a bit. They beat us, but really it could have gone either way. We outscored them, they just won 3 1-run games and a 2-run game. What I do regret was overusing Zamora throughout the season and definitely in the playoffs and rushing Farr back on 2 days rest for the second time. I'm proud of our guys, we were right there and we performed in the Finals. But the Lights are a great team also, I wish them the best and hope they get promoted. If not, we will probably battle them again next year. It's hard to get the guys focused now after their main goal of a title and promotion was denied but winning this Qualifier gives us a chance at making a ton of money for the club in the Global Cup. These big tournament knockout stages are where the cash comes in, and it's hard to make that up elsewhere.

03-27-2020, 07:12 PM	#77
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	Thomas Diaries: Global Cup Qualifiers A new situation and a new challenge for our team. Buffalo has never sniffed the global stage, and even if this is a "second-tier" tournament, there's a chance of $3 million going to the winner. Our budget is $3.2 million for next season. So, there's nothing "second-tier" there. Boston is a very good club, they've made the knockout stage in the past 3 Baseball Cups, making the semis in '61 and the finals last year. They made the semis in the Cup of the Americas last year and have finished 1 game off the top in the WBA2 each of the past two seasons. That's why they are ranked 19th globally and maybe going up in the rankings. But we are climbing as well, to take down a geographical rival in a way, someone we see as our equals in the WBA system would be a nice little thing to cherish as we enter the international stage. Game 1 Our guys were not intimidated, we went into Boston and Jared Farr absolutely dealt a gem. BJ Peterson blasted a first inning home run and Farr/Rieger/Zamora kept them off the board. 3-0 win. We were a game away from international competition. The homers seem to often come early for us, as in first inning even. Player of the game: Jared Farr 6.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 K Game 2 The second game wasn't so clean, but no one will remember that. They will just remember that we were the first Buffalo team to make it to international play. Buchanan made it through just 3.1 innings but we scored 11 runs. Boston had been the solid favorite Player of the game: Adam Stromgren (3-5, 2B) Last edited by dward1; 03-29-2020 at 10:20 AM.

03-27-2020, 07:46 PM	#78
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	Global Cup Preview We see our friends the Americans again, New York went on to actually win the Cup of the Americas and come into this group as the overwhelming favorite to go through. Quebec are an interesting side, they've already won promotion back to the WBA finally. They dominated the league for stretches (back to back leagues in '45 and '46 and back to back Champions Leagues in '52 and '53) and are returning after four years in the second tier. Yomiuri were expected to be one of the dominant teams when the Asian Super League was created back in 2053, but just now won their first title. They broke Shanghai's run of 4 straight titles. We'd be ecstatic to go through. The format is shorter than the Cup of the Americas or Champions League, 6 games. Tie breaker is run differential. Top from Group B (our group) will play #2 from Group A and vice versa. Group A got underway yesterday and is a much tougher group with 3 top level teams. -Toronto (#7 in global rankings, WBA) -Sydney (#8, WBA) -Hartford (#26, USBL) -and in a shocking rise over the past two seasons, Manila (#63, ASL). The Sharks had finished dead last in the ASL 4/5 years and were dead last in the global rankings two years ago. Now they are in the Global Cup hobnobbing with the Toronto's, the Sydney's and the New York's. Last edited by dward1; 03-27-2020 at 07:52 PM.

03-28-2020, 03:23 PM	#79
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	Global Cup Group Stage Never put boundaries on your team. In our Cup of the Americas review I sent to our guys, I was almost effusive in my praise of their fight, their effort and their performance going 5-5 against a pretty tough group. Is 8-0 better than 5-5? I think so. After the devastation that came from falling in the USBL2 final vs the Lights we got off the mat and dispatched Boston. Making it to the Global Cup was a big accomplishment and I made that clear...I didn't even put a goal for advancement. Well, going 6-0 in the Group means you will advance. We mashed Big Jim Williams (12-1 in the WBA and had destroyed us in the Cup of the Americas) in the opener and comfortably beat New York to move the season series against the Manhattan Monsters to 2-1. Next was Quebec, with Leo Yaag, their Aussie starter who went 16-1 in the WBA2. We beat him as well, Bresnahan and Zamora delivered 4.2 hitless relief innings. Day 3 saw us play Quebec again and Dave Vega didn't get out of the first inning. Joe Duncan hit 3 doubles and Rieger went 5 scoreless. The momentum was building, we still had two games vs the weaker Asian side Yomuiri left. One more win would probably see us through. That's not what our guys wanted though...Jared Farr (in the midst of some contract chaos) delivered 7 shutout vs Yomuiri in yet another comfortable win. Game 5 wasn't comfortable, it went to 12 innings against the Tokyo-based club before BJ Peterson delivered. He seems to hit his homers in the 1st inning or late and clutch. 9 more runs, another starter knocked out before they got 5 outs, another Rieger win, and another win over New York. The Global Cup group stage was over and we were 6-0. It happened so fast it's still hard to process. It's a week that should give our guys belief and kind of changes our goals as a club and as a front office. Players of the week Chris Yates 444/429/667...1095 OPS Jared Farr 14.1 IP, 14 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 14 K Danny Bresnahan 6.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 K Jorge Zamora 8 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 7 K Jose Rodriguez 364/423/591...1014 OPS Now in reach is an international trophy, $3.4 million and certainly the biggest moment in Buffalo history. This might already have been. We've got Hartford next, who we split against in the Cup of the Americas. They beat us in the crucial 7th game, essentially eliminating us on a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 11th. It's time for revenge and truly with the way we've played these last 8 games we are the favorites against the Dark Blues.

03-29-2020, 10:10 AM	#80
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	Global Cup Semifinal I'm basically just enjoying the ride at this point. It's unreal what these guys are doing. I never thought we'd see this in year two and really we can't take credit for most of this. It's all them. Hartford proved absolutely no obstacle in the rolling machine that is the Buffalo Nickels. We've come to Dallas and are just thrashing the rest of the world. Farr dominated in the opener and Duncan had 4 hits, a double and triple among them as we had yet another breather win, 5-1. Game 2 we once again had to pick up Buchanan, he lasted just 2.2 innings but allowed only an unearned run. It was Bresnahan again, delivering 3.1 shutout innings before handing it over to his partner Zamora for the final 3. 2-1 was the final. Jose Rodriguez delivered another monstrously clutch home run in a tournament, tying the game in the 7th. He was a bit anonymous in the regular season and the Baseball Cup but he's not stepped up and hit enormous homers in the Cup of the Americas, the playoffs and now the Global Cup. Bresnahan has been an absolute pro. This guy was at the top of the world, the US's best pitcher early in his career, the best pitcher in the WBA probably for 5 seasons. And now he's lost his spot in the rotation for a USBL2 team and been told his contract option will be declined and he's delivering his best work. All credit to Danny, 10 shutout innings in the Cup now. And that makes it 10 wins, 0 losses in the Global Cup for your Nickels. Pinch me. Up next, Sydney and the finals. Once again, they will have a much larger collection of talent according to all the evaluators. We've got 1 regular in BJ Peterson rated above 3 stars by these "evaluators" and 2 relievers. Sydney has 4 5-star relievers alone. 6 regulars rated above 3 stars and all 5 relievers above it. That doesn't matter to our guys on the field. You even see Stromgren and Zavala playing cards in the clubhouse, the chemistry is just brilliant right now. Not everything is picture perfect...while the announcement that this huge cash infusion is going to lead to a 1 or 2 year "freeze" on service time with lots of the Elita TV money being spread around to players to make up for their hypothetical raises went across adequately, it didn't for our ace. Jared Farr was going to be a free agent and even though that means he qualifies for a ton more money disbursed from this Elita pool he wants to go. I've told him I'll talk with him after the Global Cup, but he's arguably our cornerstone. Not arguably, we don't even have a reliable starter besides him. But he does deserve a shot to go and we might be able to get huge money for him...we will think on it. But first, Sydney and the chance to bring back a stunning trophy to Buffalo. Twice in three years a second tier team has won this young Global Cup competition (Milwaukee and San Diego) raising questions about the interest and effort level of the big sides, but we don't care. On the field it has seemed like everyone has wanted to win but we've just smashed them. That trophy will go up and we will celebrate it no matter what. Last edited by dward1; 03-29-2020 at 10:18 AM.