FABL -- Chicago Chiefs

[mjj55409]

After having been running things up in Montreal for the past 9 seasons, I've left Montreal to take a new opportunity with the Federal Association's Chicago Chiefs. The Chiefs are an historic franchise--the oldest FABL franchise--and they have not had a great deal of success. In 1917 they won a World's Championship (topping the Cleveland Foresters in 6 games). In 1928, Chicago won 95 games and a Federal pennant, but lost that championship series to the Philadelphia Sailors, 4 games to 1.

From the offical league history:

The Chicago Chiefs represent the oldest professional ballclub still extant, having been the franchise owned by William Whitney when he founded the Century League in the fall of 1875. Along with the Philadelphia Keystones, the Chiefs are the lone remnant of that inaugural season. The Chiefs' success on the field has not lived up to their historical significance as the team had only two Century League pennants (1877, 91) and one Federal Association pennant and world title (1917) to its credit through the first 50 seasons of its existence. Still, the legacy of founder William Whitney lives on in his son William W. Whitney Jr (better known as W. Washington Whitney, or just Wash Whitney). The younger Whitney oversaw the construction of a splendid baseball palace on the banks of the Chicago River: Whitney Park which opened in 1920 to much excitement as a state-of-the-art venue with excellent sightlines and a welcome cooling breeze that blows through the large open windows on the concourses on summer days from the nearby river.

See more at the league website: http://legendsport.com/index.php/fig...m-info/flb-chi

[mjj55409]

The amateur draft was completed early this month and we should have all the new draftees signed shortly. And so now is a good time to look at the current state of the Chiefs. Once we have more of the recent crop of draftees signed, we'll do a look at the key prospects.

Clearly the best thing the Chiefs have going for them is "Mr. Automatic"--Bob Martin. The 27-year-old first baseman became a regular in 1929. Since then, he has not played in fewer than 151 games each season, and he has collected at least 200 hits in each season. He has led the Fed in hits in 3 of the last 4 seasons. He won the batting crown in 1932 (hitting .351), and he finished 2nd this past season to St. Louis's young phenom Freddie Jones (who hit .386). Martin is young enough--and seems durable enough--that he is a good piece to build around.




Outside of a couple of workhorses in Red Hampton and Ernie Newman, the pitching cupboard is rather bare. Ron Coles is an interesting pitcher. He throws four pitches, and he was a starter in high school prior to being drafted, but he has not started at all as a professional. I think we'll work on stretching him out this spring to see if he can handle a starter's workload.

[DD Martin]

This has been a crazy Throwdown Tuesday in the FABL. Good luck with the Chiefs!

[mjj55409]

Chicago Chiefs Top Prospects

1 (8th Overall) -- OF Bennie Griffith, 22-years-old
Acquired: Drafted 1934, 5th overall

Griffith was just drafted in last December's draft. Interestingly, at the time I was drafting 6th for Montreal, and I had really wanted to draft Griffith for the Saints. Outside of pitcher Bobo White as the first overall pick, Griffith was the player I liked the most in that last draft. He has unrivaled speed that translates well to the outfield. I'm really excited to watch Griffith play center field in Whitney Park.


2 (9th Overall) -- P Al Miller, 19-years-old
Acquired: Drafted 1933, 4th overall

Miller split time in his debut season between class C and class A, going a combined 13-5 with a 3.24 ERA and 123 strikeouts in 158 innings. He'll start 1935 at class AA Memphis. Miller has all the makeup of an ace, and I'm expecting to see him pitching in Chicago in a couple of years.


3 (68th Overall) -- OF Ernie Carson, 20-years-old
Acquired: Trade with Chicago (7/2/1934)

The Chiefs have 5 prospects in the top 100, 3 of those came in a series of trades last July with the cross-town rival Cougars. Carson split his time between class B and class C last season, hitting .316/.350/.449. He has decent speed and is projected as a top of the order bat. He did not look good playing in center last year, so he'll be playing a lot of right field in 1935.


4 (75th Overall) -- OF Ed Reyes, 21-years-old
Acquired: Trade with Chicago (7/2/1934)

The Cuban-born Reyes was originally drafted by the Cougars in the 1st round (15th overall) in 1931. He spent 1934 in class AA, hitting .362/.417/.465. He has a sweet swing that would fit in well in the Chiefs lineup. Reyes will likely open the season at class AAA Fort Wayne, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him get some time in Chicago before the summer is over.


5 (84th Overall) -- P Bill Ross, 22-years-old
Acquired: Trade with Chicago (7/2/1934)

Ross spent all of 1934 in class A (Lincoln in the Cougars system, and Cedar Rapids for the Chiefs). He fashioned a 6-3 record with a 4.28 ERA. He's not a big swing and miss pitcher like Al Miller, but like Miller, Ross's best pitch is his change-up. He doesn't walk many and has good poise on the mound. I'm looking forward to 1936 and a rotation headed by Miller and Ross.

[mjj55409]

The Chiefs made a couple of transactions in January.


2B Mose Christopher claimed on waivers from New York Gothams

The incumbent second baseman in Chicago is veteran Phil Mullaney (.289-2-38). Mullaney's glove isn't nearly good enough to make up for his below league average bat. He is a good clubhouse presence however. We also have 23-year-old Red Moore--who was another one of the players acquired from the Cougars in last July's blockbuster deal. But while Moore has good potential, he hasn't yet played a game above class AA.

Mose Christopher has started 515 games at second for the Gothams over the past 4 seasons, though he spent most of last season at class AAA Toledo, hitting only .196 in 20 games in New York. Christopher is only 29, has a good glove, and good speed (he led the FA in stolen bases in 1930 with 23).



Acquired P Charlie Bingham from the independent San Diego Conquistadors in exchange for minor league pitcher Joe Blansit

Bingham was drafted in the 3rd round (44th overall) in 1931 by Detroit. He refused to sign with the Dynamos, however, and instead went the independent team route. He spent a lot of time on various reserve rosters before logging 88 innings out of the bullpen for San Diego in 1934. Bingham throws right around 90 mph and features a knuckle-ball which generates a lot of ground balls. We'll see Bingham in Spring Training but he'll like get his first taste of being a professional starting pitcher in class AAA Fort Wayne this summer.

[mjj55409]

As the club gathers in Tampa for their annual spring training, here is a look at the key players the Chiefs have in camp.


C - Tom Aiello (.310-6-54), Hank Odegaard (.288-0-33), Len Wells (.115-0-3)

The 28-year-old Aiello is the starting catcher. The 33-year-old Odegaard has been around since 1925. Odegaard has a great presence in the clubhouse; it's like having another bench coach around. He'll have the backup position for as long as he can strap the shin guards on.


1B - Bob Martin (.369-11-84), Red Fox (.333-1-7)

Bob Martin has one of the sweetest swings in the game. Red Fox is his long time caddy.


2B - Mose Christopher (.329-7-34 (AAA)), Phi Mullaney (.289-2-38), Jim Thompson (.249-1-41)

Mose Christopher is a recent waiver claim from the Gothams. Both Mullaney and Thompson can backup second and short stop.


3B - Len Jones (.317-6-85), Thompson

I would love to see more power out of Jones, but he does have a solid glove. Thompson's ability to play all infield positions gives him an inside track on the utility spot.


SS - Bill White (.299-5-62 (AAA)), Joe Foy (.339-1-30), Mullaney, Thompson

White was acquired during last December's draft from Brooklyn. The 23-year-old will be given every opportunity to claim the starting position.


LF - Jim Hampton (.319-12-101), Ed Reyes (.342-0-49 (AA)), Dave Shaffer (.286-0-12)

Hampton gets a bit over shadowed with Martin on the club, but like Martin, you can pencil in 150 starts and 200 hits for Hampton. And the 33-year-old shows no sign of slowing down. Ed Reyes is Chicago's 4th ranked prospect, and he will been given some long looks this spring.


CF - Red Sharp (.219-7-64), Jim Stinson (.331-2-17), Bennie Griffith (DNP), Paddy Smith (.335-8-84 (A))

Red Sharp is just keeping the position warm until one of Griffith or Smith is ready.


RF - Ron Rattigan (.338-4-50 (AAA)), Les Woodward (.290-7-77), Shaffer

Rattigan is a first baseman who was acquired in a deal with Brooklyn in 1930. He has shown enough in the minors to warrant an opportunity, but as a first baseman, he is blocked by Martin. He hasn't played RF as a professional, so he will be learning a new position, but we have the time to be patient (at least until one of the prospects is ready). Rattigan will be given every opportunity to learn the position so that we can get his bat into the lineup.


P - Jim Crawford (11-7, 4.70), Ron Coles (6-3, 1.94), Jim Simmons (7-14, 5.15), Stan Reichman (4-7, 4.52), Don Basinger (12-12, 4.97), Jim Spencer (5-7, 6.25), Charlie Bingham (3-0, 3.25 (AAA)), Red Hampton (17-10, 5.64), Ernie Newman (12-16, 5.19)

The pitching staff is a big work in progress in Chicago. The interesting arms to watch this spring will be Charlie Bingham, who was just acquired from San Diego, and Ron Coles, who will be given his first opportunity to start as a professional. Coles has been pitching--quite effectively--out of the bullpen since he was drafted out of Knoxville High School in 1927.

[Tiger Fan]

Rattigan, Aiello and White. Chiefs should be known as Brooklyn West.

[mjj55409]

Originally Posted by Tiger Fan

Rattigan, Aiello and White. Chiefs should be known as Brooklyn West.

I thank you for your deals with the previous regime.

[mjj55409]

After posting the above Spring Training roster update, I've decided to also bring into camp a trio of promising young pitchers:

19-year-old Al Miller is one of the jewels of the farm system. He had a good professional debut in 1934, and the scouting consensus is that he's farther along in his development than I initially thought. I don't expect Miller to break camp with the Chiefs, but I'm open to be surprised.

22-year-old Bill Ross is the club's 6th ranked prospect, and 23-year-old Bob Walls is the 7th ranked prospect. Ross has pitched in class A, and Walls has spent each of the last two years at class AA. Walls was drafted with the 9th overall selection in 1932. Walls probably should have spent 1934 in class AAA rather than repeating class AA. Of the three pitchers, Walls is perhaps the one I'd be most inclined to rush to Chicago this summer.



l-to-r, Bob Walls, Bill Ross, Al Miller

[mjj55409]

The Chiefs open the Spring exhibition games with a 5-1 week, scoring 41 runs over the the 6 games. The pitching staff allowed 33 runs, 6 of which were unearned. The fielding overall showed a lot of winter-time rust.


Highlights

* Rookie outfielder Ed Reyes hit .533 on the week with 3 doubles, 4 runs, and 4 runs batted in. Fellow outfielder Jim Hampton is hitting .556. The club will experiment with an outfield arrangement of Reyes in left and Hampton in right next week.

* Ron Coles had a successful first professional starting assignment: allowing 3 hits and 2 runs (both unearned) in 4 innings with 0 walks and 3 strikeouts.


Transactions

* Assigned P Al Miller to class AA Memphis
* Optioned 1B Bob Carpenter to class AAA Fort Wayne
* SS Mike Pierce was designated for assignment and placed on waivers
* OF Clarence Sandifer was designated for assignment and placed on waivers
* 2B Slim Ford was designated for assignment and placed on waivers

[mjj55409]

The Chiefs have 7 wins and 5 losses this spring, tied with the New York Gothams. Washington leads the FA clubs with 8 wins.


Highlights

* The experiment to try Ron Coles as a starting pitcher is going well. As I mentioned, the 25-year-old Coles had not started a game since being drafted out of high school in 1927, spending all his time as a professional pitching out of the bullpen. To me, in this time frame, relief pitchers have very little value. Coles throws 4 pitches and has a live arm (throws 94-96 mph) with a curve ball that is big swing and miss pitch. Prior to camp, the Chicago scout--Rube Carter--considered Coles a shutdown reliever. Now after working as a starter for the past two weeks, Carter has this to say about Coles: "[he] is a polished four-pitch starter who has front of the rotation abilities." If Coles can function as a rotation anchor, then we can afford to be patient with Al Miller.

* Most of the bats are doing well--Mose Christopher (.444), Tom Aiello (.462), Jim Hampton (.500), and Bob Martin (.423) all seem primed for a good season.

* There are two young outfielders who are threatening to skip class AAA and head north with the Chiefs: left fielder Ed Reyes (AA) and center fielder Paddy Smith (A). The incumbent center fielder--Red Sharp--is all glove and no bat, and he is hitting just .158 this spring. Smith is hitting .304 with 2 triples and 1 stolen base. Smith also bring a good glove to all 3 outfield positions. Reyes has been hot all spring (he's hitting .414 with 3 doubles and leads the club with 7 runs batted in); so much so that we've moved Hampton to right field. And Hampton has looked decent in right (he has the arm; he threw out one runner at third base this week). So I'm starting to think that the oufield in Chicago this summer will be: Smith/Sharp in center, Reyes in left, and Hampton in right.


Transactions

* Assigned P Bill Ross to class AA Memphis



l-to-r, Ron Coles, Ed Reyes, Paddy Smith

[Jay_Bourne]

I like the first phrase completion and Washington leading the FA into the srping training... very unsual for us!

[mjj55409]

Just 5 games remaining in Florida this week before the club heads to New York to open the season--on April 16th--with a series with the Gothams. Most of the cuts have been made, and they are now just 27 players left in camp. The following is a look at the Chiefs opening roster.

Catcher (3)

C - Tom Aiello (.421/.463/.632), Len Wells (.333/.357/.519), Hank Odegaard (.176/.176/.353)

At 33, Odegaard's effective playing days appear over. He's on the roster solely for his clubhouse presence. So I'll be expecting the 28-year-old Aiello to be doing the heavy lifting. I'll be surprised if Odegaard does more than start on doubleheader days.


Infielders (6)

1B - Bob Martin (.375/.381/.525)
2B - Mose Christopher (.353/.478/.588)
3B - Len Jones (.314/.390/.314)
SS - Bill White (.194/.250/.278)
Bench - Jim Thompson (.250/.371/.464), Phil Mullaney (.267/.389/.467)

Christopher leads all Chiefs batters by walking in 22% of his plate appearances this spring. We'll have patience with the 23-year-old White at shortstop. Shortstop option Joe Foy was optioned to Fort Wayne after hitting .172 and striking out in 50% of his plate appearances.


Outfielders (6)

LF - Ed Reyes (.404/.451/.638)
CF - Paddy Smith (.316/.350/.421)
RF - Jim Hampton (.487/.535/.564)
Bench - Dave Shaffer (.389/.542/.667), Jim Stinson (.333/.429/.667), Ron Rattigan (.238/.319/.429)

Big changes in the outfield--3 rookies make the team: Reyes, Smith, and Rattigan. Rattigan won the final spot over Red Sharp (.136/.259/.273) because of his age (26), his plus bat, and his ability to backup first base.


Pitchers (8)

P - Ron Coles (1-1, 6.00), Jim Crawford (0-0, 2.19), Charlie Bingham (2-0, 3.00), Jim Spencer (1-0, 4.27), Jim Simmons (0-1, 7.45), Red Hampton (1-1, 4.09), Ernie Newman (1-0, 4.15), Max Plourde (1-1, 7.36)

I'd like to see the top 3 make the majority of starts. Plourde is on the staff because he is 24-years-old, throws a 98 mph fastball, and is out of options.


Transactions

P Al Siebert was designated for assignment and put on waivers
P Claude Alexander was designated for assignment and put on waivers
P Stan Reichmann was designated for assignment and put on waivers
P Don Basinger was designated for assignment and put on waivers
1B Red Fox was designated for assignment and put on waivers
Optioned P Gary Heuser to class AAA Fort Wayne
Optioned 1B Buck Montgomery to class AAA Fort Wayne
Optioned OF Red Sharp to class AAA Fort Wayne
Optioned OF Les Woodward to class AAA Fort Wayne
Optioned IF Joy Foy to class AAA Fort Wayne
IF Mike Pierce cleared waivers and was assigned to class AAA Fort Wayne

[mjj55409]

CHIEFS ACQUIRE PITCHER BROWN

The Kings and the Chiefs announced a trade this afternoon. Chicago will send Brooklyn its 6th round pick in the 1935 draft in exchange for pitcher Larry Brown.

The 26-year-old Brown was originally drafted in the 1st round (4th overall) by Detroit during the 1926 draft. He was acquired by Brooklyn in a deal in February of 1929. He has appeared in 33 games for Brooklyn going 7-7 with a 5.75 ERA. He's a three-pitch (fastball, curve, and change-up) pitcher who throws in the low 90s.

Brown is out of options and was in a roster crunch in Brooklyn. Brown's addition likely means that Ernie Newman (who threw 236 innings for Chicago in 1934) will not make the club. Replacing Newman with Brown means that all the pitchers heading north with the Chiefs are under age 30.

[mjj55409]

The Best of the Rest?

It's Opening Day, and the prognosticators have released their updated predictions for the upcoming season.




It's expected to be a two team race--between New York and St. Louis--for the FA pennant, with Chicago topping the rest of the contenders. It's not a bad prediction for the Chiefs, especially when you consider that we will be fielding 5 rookies: Ed Reyes, Paddy Smith, Bill White, Ron Rattigan, and Charlie Bingham.

The outfield is particularly unsettled with two new starters in Reyes and Smith, a new bench option in Rattigan, and with Jim Hampton playing right field for the first time. There is also a new keystone combination in Mose Christopher and Bill White.

Batters (1934 stats)



The pitching staff is also in flux. Red Hampton and Ernie Newman were the horses in 1934, but Newman is now in Fort Wayne and Jim Crawford and Ron Coles will be looked at to step up and lead the staff. And we were excited by what we saw with the rookie knuckle-baller Charlie Bingham in the spring.

Pitchers (1934 stats)



We are also closely monitoring the waiver wire, so the fringes of the roster could change a little over the next week.

[mjj55409]

Chicago's first 12 games of the season are against New York and St. Louis--the two odds on favorites to battle for the FA pennant this season. The first six games are on the road--there is one more in St. Louis today--and then we head to Chicago to open the season with three against New York and three against St. Louis.

The Chiefs were ready on Opening Day in New York as they jumped on Rabbit Day for 8 runs. But Jim Crawford couldn't hold on, and the Chiefs fell 9-8 in 10 innings. The Chiefs continued to score and put up 9 the next day, and Ron Coles cruised to a 9-3 win. On Thursday, the Chiefs were shut-out 1-0 by Hardin Bates, though Red Hampton only allowed 3 hits in the tough-luck loss. Chicago then split the first two games with St. Louis--losing 7-4 on Saturday and winning 8-1 on Sunday.




It's only 5 games, so too early to draw any kind of conclusions, but it's nice to see Paddy Smith bust out of the gate like that. Mose Christopher is dealing with a sprained ankle, so he may get a day off this week.




Ron Coles and Jim Crawford each had 2 starts this week, and Red Hampton had the other start. Hampton pitched brilliantly against the Gothams, allowing only 3 hits, but his team mates were unable to push any runs across. Coles won both of his starts, but Crawford has looked rusty. In 13 innings, Crawford has allowed 14 runs and 23 hits. There are no upcoming off days, so Charlie Bingham is scheduled to make his FABL debut as a starter in this afternoon's tilt with St. Louis.

[mjj55409]

The Chiefs began the week by losing the series finale in St. Louis. Then we lost 2 of 3 to the FA leading Gothams, before finishing strong with a weekend series sweep of St. Louis. The 4-3 week brings the season record to .500. This week we have 3 games in Detroit followed by a 3 game weekend series in Chicago with Washington. The series with the Eagles is the beginning of a stretch of 13 straight home games.




After such a good Spring, Ed Reyes is having difficulty adjusting to the real games. What worries me the most is the 0 walks and 7 strikeouts. Reyes did go 3 for 4 in yesterday's win over St. Louis, so we'll see if he can build on that. The week's hottest bat belonged to Bob Martin: .414 with 3 doubles and 1 triple. Len Jones, Mose Christopher, and Bill White each homered this week.




It was a mixed bag of pitching results for the week. Jim Crawford finally had a decent start; he tossed a complete game 3-2 victory over the Gothams. Ron Coles, meanwhile, was knocked around pretty good by New York: 8 runs on 9 hits and 5 walks in 5 innings. With 6 games this week sandwiched around an off day, we'll need just three starters--Crawford, Coles, and Hampton will draw the starting assignments.

[mjj55409]

Time for a double-take: your Chicago Chiefs are in 1st place. I'm not sure if this is the season that we are in the race, but I do think the next competitive window for the Chiefs is starting to open. At the very least, it's nice to have matched New York and St. Louis in wins.

Chicago started the week by winning 2 of 3 in Detroit, and then swept the weekend series with Washington. The 3 games with Washington was the start of a 13 game home stand. Next week has the Keystones in town for 3 games followed by 3 with Boston and 1 with Pittsburgh (a 4-game series with the Miners which starts on Sunday).




Jim Hampton is having a start to this season that is reminiscent of his 1928 campaign. In 1928, Hampton led the FA in runs (135), hits (253), doubles (43), and average (.397). If it wasn't for Hampton's team mate Joe Masters and his 56 home runs and 195 runs batted it, Hampton would have been a serious contender for the Whitney. Last week, Hampton (.407), Len Jones (.435), and Bob Martin (.423) had the hot bats. On the season, the Chiefs are leading the FA in runs scored (6.1 per game).




Even though there are more walks than I would like to see, the staff as a whole has allowed the fewest runs in the FA. Allowing the fewest runs and scoring the most is a nice formula for success. There are no off days this week, so Jim Simmons will pick up a start. Simmons looked good in his earlier start against St. Louis (9 innings, 1 run).

Minor League News and Notes

* In 3 starts for class AA Memphis, 19-year-old Al Miller threw 22 innings, giving up 11 hits, 1 walk, 1 run, and striking out 21. He has since been promoted to class AAA Fort Wayne.

* Speaking of Fort Wayne, they are currently tied with St. Paul (at 9-3) for the Century League lead.

* Bennie Griffith has been playing a good center field for Fort Wayne. He is hitting .306/.433/449 and his 7 stolen bases leads the CL.

* Ernie Carson is learning right field for class AA Memphis, and he is hitting .320/.382/.360.

[mjj55409]

7 games at home in the middle of a long home stretch. Should be good, right? Nope, 1-6 last week, which really hurts. The series with Boston was particularly brutal: the Chiefs were outscored by the Minutemen 24-5. And then--to top it off--Chicago lost to Pittsburgh 6-1 on Sunday. There are three more with Pittsburgh at home next week before we travel to Boston to see if we have better luck at Cunningham Field.




An offensive dud of a week like last week is not supposed to happen when we are playing all of the games in the friendly confines of Whitney Park. But look at these numbers:

Tom Aiello - .095
Mose Christopher - .087
Ed Reyes - .176
Bob Martin - .240
Jim Hampton - .292

Only Paddy Smith (.333) showed up with his bat last week. Tom Aiello really needs to start hitting soon, but as there are no other catching options, his job is safe. Ed Reyes is not so lucky. He is heading to Fort Wayne to see if he can find the swing he had in the Spring. Taking his place will be #2 prospect Bennie Griffith, who was hitting .311/.422/.459 with 11 stolen bases at Fort Wayne. Griffith will take over in center with Paddy Smith moving to right and Jim Hampton returning to his natural spot in left.




Ron Coles is scheduled for 2 starts this week. If he makes both, he'll go over his previous high water mark for innings pitched of 51.1 (in 1931). Jim Simmons's start this week did not go so well: he did not make it out of the 3rd inning, giving up 8 runs on 8 hits, in a 10-4 loss to Boston. Charlie Bingham will be getting the extra start this week.

[mjj55409]

05/13 vs Pittsburgh, W, 5-4 (12)
05/14 vs Pittsburgh, L, 7-9
05/15 vs Pittsburgh, L, 1-4
05/16 Off
05/17 @ Boston, L, 2-3
05/18 @ Boston, W, 3-1
05/19 @ Boston, W, 5-3

The Chiefs lose the Pittsburgh series at home, 3 games to 1, and win the Boston series on the road, 2 games to 1. The next 9 games are on the road: 3 each with Philadelphia, Washington, and Pittsburgh.

The Fed remains jumbled, as even Detroit--which has started a complete tear down--remains 4 games off the pace.




Because I would like to generate a little more offense there, I'm starting to work Anders Adriansen into the mix at short stop. In response, both Bill White (.500) and Adriansen (.429) hit well in split duty. There will be more of the same this week. Jack Brown (.400) has started to steal some playing time away from Mose Christopher (.190) as well. After a good April, Christopher is hitting .213/.262/.262 in May. Rookie Paddy Smith (.360) continues to show that he belongs.




The Chiefs have completed a deal with Brooklyn: sending a 4th round pick in the upcoming draft in exchange for P Chuck Murphy, who is out of options. Murphy was originally drafted in the 1st round (12th overall) by me for Montreal in 1930. He was traded to the Kings in 1933 in the deal for Milt Fritz. He hasn't had a great deal of success, but he is also just 26-years-old and has thrown only 118 FABL innings. We can spend the remainder of the season to see whether Murphy has a future in Chicago. To make room for Murphy, Jim Spencer--who has an option remaining--will go to Fort Wayne.

With a full 7 games this week, both Charlie Bingham and Murphy will pick up starts. As noted in last week's update, Ron Coles has now surpassed his high water mark in innings pitched. He is currently on pace for 250+ innings. He leads the FA in quality starts (7) and strikeouts (35). As an aside, he is also swinging the bat well: he is hitting .333/.368/.611 with 2 doubles and 1 home run.




Edited to add: There is a current opening in the league: the defending champion Cleveland Foresters are available (the current GM took over a massive rebuilding project in Detroit). The Foresters have a great collection of young and veteran talent. They would be a great club to get your feet wet with. If you are interested in joining a great and active league, send me a pm.