Posted by jfranco77 on 1/2/2025 10:40:00 AM (view original):

Posted by schwarze on 12/29/2024 9:39:00 PM (view original):
League 3, Pick #22
1982 St. Louis Cardinals
Here are the Cardinals seasons selected before my turn in league 3 (I already had my Indians team):
2004 St. Louis Cardinals (footballmm11)
1942 St. Louis Cardinals (toysboys)
2006 St. Louis Cardinals (chewy3344)
1934 St. Louis Cardinals (calhoop)
1950 St. Louis Cardinals (gworear)
1921 St. Louis Cardinals (kstober)
1964 St. Louis Cardinals (mllama54)
2009 St. Louis Cardinals (DarthDurron)
1969 St. Louis Cardinals (3dayrotation)
1925 St. Louis Cardinals (Jtpsops)

Damn... I really was hoping 1969 would make it to me. I really wanted the Gibson/Carlton combo. When it finally got to me, my choices were 1949, 1981 and 1982. Actually 1981 and 1982 are similar, with the main difference being Templeton vs Ozzie Smith at SS... so it was really 1949 vs 1982. 1949 has some nice pieces with Red Schoendienst playing 2B and 3B, Stan Musial and Enos Slaughter covering 1B and OF. The pitching staff has Brecheen, Pollet, Wilks, Munger, Brazle, Hearn, Lanier, Staley... basically 3 SPs with 200+ IPs and a bunch of guys with 116-132 IPs. This seemed like a managerial pain in the butt. I decided on 1982, but I'm not really happy about it. Andujar, Kaat, B.Forsch are SPs with Sutter, A.Rincon, Bair, Littell as RPs. The offense has D.Porter, K.Hernandez, Herr, Smith, Oberkfell, McGee, G.Hendrick, L.Smith. This is a great $100M roster, but a terrible unlimited cap roster. Will will be ranked last in offense and near the bottom in pitching. Is it too late to change to 1949? Prediction 69 wins.

I still can't figure out how the '34 Cardinals were not a round 1 pick.

LOL.... I accidentally drafted 1934 Cardinals in round 1 (meant 1933)., But once I lost out on 1933, there was no way I was going to be in the same division as the much better 1933 team (basically the same roster + Hornsby). I had them on my list for round 2, but I picked too low to get them/

Top 16 Pick:
#6 1959 Dodgers

I really wanted the 93 Braves. I also looked at the two 2004 teams taken immediately after my pick. I knew this team would likely face off against Dodgers teams from the same era. The more I looked at things the more I see how bad a pick this was. Hopefully I can win in a division where all the teams are similar. That should not be how I am looking at the team I chose here. Prediction: just over .500, wildcard

The Rest:
League 2, Pick 20
1925 Yankees
This will be the team I have the most "What if" questions about if they fail.

The first is team choice. I loved the idea of using the 1995 team with so many of my favorites. I also looked long and hard at the 1986 Giants with a rotation of Vida Blue and Steve Carleton. I really want to see how that team would have done.

The next will be my Ruth decisions. I built the roster and put it in with two Ruth pitchers. Then I took it out and went with none. Then I built it with one. Then I went back the original. I am running with two Ruth pitchers. In the end I decided that they were a huge improvement over the other pitcher options. That means that two Veach and Combs playing instead of Ruth (with Meusel to get time against lefties). That is a huge loss in power, but they will still contribute well as far as average goes. I am hopeful that even if others went this way the access to Veach will be the difference for me. Prediction: 98 wins and the division title.

League 3, Pick 17
1969 Cardinals
Carlton and Gibson should make a good rotation. Lots of good bats (Tore, Simmons, Brock, and Pinson). Will have to play some lesser bats to have even a decent defense. Luckily Brock will only play the field against RH pitching with Flood getting to play center against Lefties (and be a defensive replacement the rest of the time. Prediction: Loses the division by 2 games.

League 6, Pick 21
2011 Braves
I was very happy that I could still pick a braves team. The tigers teams I was looking at would have been lead by players who have not done well for me. There were a few Braves teams I was interested in. Looking at the divisional alignments made the decision for me. One of the teams would have put me with the 1911, 13 and 15 teams. No thanks. The other would have left me in a position to end up with 1993 which I would not do. The 2011 Braves would put me in the West no matter who Jtpsops took.

The team gives me Chipper and Freeman to anchor the offense. The defense is solid, especially the speedy outfield. Lots of quality relievers. Some starters. I am happy facing off against the very modern teams in the division. Looking at this team to fight for a wild card. Prediction: sub .500 team (but a sub .500 team will win the division).

League 7, Pick 19
1996 O's

How many home runs can a rotation of Mussina/Mussina/Wells/Wells give up in a season? Hopefully a number that can be offset by the offense 96 brings. Alomar, Anderson, Cal, Bonilla, Murry... they also provide decent defense with Cal playing short and third so Bonnila can just hit. Overall I like the team but they will get crushed by the competition in this division. Prediction: 65 wins. Ugly.

League 8, Pick 18
2010 Twins

Eh. Using every pitching slot for my roster build. Only my two Pavano clones have over 200 IP. Four guys in the 100's along with a pile of relievers to finish out the pitching. None of it is great. Lots of good defense. I feel comfortable against RH pitching with Maur and Thome. Span and Revere add speed. 2004 should win the division easily. Prediction: 73 wins

Overall:
I put my over on teams in the next round at 1.5 with a hope that I don't fall shy. Still annoyed at my wasted top 16 pick.

Some interesting stats on the years selected in round 2.

East
Earliest Season: 1902 Pirates
Highest Earliest Season: 1921 Yankees
Latest Season: 1970 Braves
Smallest Latest Season: 1908 Naps
Biggest gap between earliest and latest: 59 years (Braves, 1911 to 1970)
Smallest gap between earliest and latest: 4 years (Naps, 1904 to 1908 & Athletics 1910 to 1914)
.
Central
Earliest Season: 1913 Naps
Highest Earliest Season: 1978 Phillies
Latest Season: 2010 Braves
Smallest Latest Season: 1929 Giants
Biggest gap between earliest and latest: 57 years (Red Sox, 1919 to 1976)
Smallest gap between earliest and latest: 8 years (Giants, 1921 to 1929)
.
West
Earliest Season: 1939 Pirates
Highest Earliest Season: 2015 Dodgers
Latest Season: 2024 Braves
Smallest Latest Season: 1988 Athletics
Biggest gap between earliest and latest: 65 years (Indians, 1952 to 2017)
Smallest gap between earliest and latest: 8 years (Dodgers, 2015 to 2023)

Here are the biggest gaps between consecutive teams...
55 years: Braves (1915 to 1970)
54 years: Phillies (1912 to 1966)
47 years: Dodgers (1968 to 2015)
46 years: Indians (1952 to 1998)
40 years: Giants (1961 to 2001)

One team in the middle of a large gap (20+ years in both directions)
72 years: 1961 Giants (between 1929 and 2001)
61 years: 1966 Yankees (between 1938 and 1999)
52 years: 1951 Red Sox (between 1919 and 1971)
47 years: 1995 White Sox (between 1974 and 2021)

I had 9 of 16 teams advance from Round 1. I knew I would have high picks in a couple leagues and I was hoping for the Braves, Twins and Phillies. I didn’t get a high pick for Twins or Phillies, which was fine, since the teams I had my eye on went first. I got #3 for the Braves, but pedro snagged 1993 ahead of me (not surprisingly).

League 6, Pick 3: 1946 Detroit Tigers
Great American Ball Park

I’ve used modern Tigers teams/players a fair bit (my 2014 Tigers team won the World Series in Round 1), but I didn’t want to go that route again. Problem is, other than Cobb, I have very little usage of/feel for earlier Tigers players. I looked at Cobb teams, but the pitching was so bad and none stood out as clearly better than the others.

I eventually settled on 1946. With Hal Newhouser and Dizzy Trout leading the charge, I should have decent enough pitching to do well in my division, especially with an offense lead by Hank Greenberg, that includes some sneaky good players in George Kell, Roy Cullenbine, Barney McCosky and Pinky Higgins. They also have very good defense and will likely need it.

I’m optimistic about this team within my division and modern teams – the Cobb offenses may give us some trouble.

Prediction: 92-70

League 2, Pick 4: 1919 Boston Red Sox
West Side Grounds

With all the Pedro teams gone, there seemed to be two options: Take a team led by Williams or Ruth, or look for a more balanced team without stud hitters. I went for the former. The Williams teams had deeper offenses, but I couldn’t stomach the pitching, so Ruth it is.

Hopefully Ruth can carry a solid-but-not-spectacular pitching staff, because there isn’t much in the lineup outside of him. I have a few decent .300+ hitters, but went all defense at 2B, SS and 3B at the bottom of the order. Should be interesting.

This team has A LOT of innings, so I should at least have flexibility if someone isn’t performing. Ray Caldwell, Carl Mays, Waite Hoyt and Herb Pennock are the main starting pieces, and George Dumont provides a nice back-end bullpen option.

Ballpark was a challenge here. I don't have the lineup to go with a Palace of the Fans-type park, even with all the innings on my staff. I also didn't want to pick a park that boosts lefty homers, as it would also benefit Williams and Yaz when they come to town. I opted for West Side Grounds to mildly inconvenience visiting righty power hitters.

Not sure which way to go with this team. I think they’ll advance, but probably won’t dominate.

Prediction: 88-74

League 4, Pick 9: 1933 Pittsburgh Pirates
Municipal Stadiums

I felt like some of the good Athletics teams remaining would be in some tough divisions and not guaranteed to do well. The Pirates offered some good, balanced rosters that should at least ensure competitiveness.

The usual cast of characters rounds out the offense: Arky Vaughan, the Brothers Waner, Pie Traynor and a pleasant surprise in Freddy Lindstrom. The defense is top notch as well.

Waite Hoyt makes another appearance for me, joined by Ray Kremer and Larry French, with Leon Chagnon and Bill Harris in the pen.

I’ve had a lot of success in the past with some of these 1930s Pirates teams, so I’m optimistic this time around. I think this division is going to see a lot of runs scored.

Prediction: 87-75

League 7, Pick 9: 2010 Baltimore Orioles
Nationals Park

With 6 Phillies teams gone in the first 8 picks, Orioles was the way to go. This team jumped out at me almost immediately for three reasons: Jake Arrieta, the bullpen and defense. It’s a balanced team, with few studs, so I foresee a wide range of possible outcomes. Thankfully I avoided the 70s teams in my division.

My lineup consists of Miguel Tejada x2, Brian Roberts, Nick Markakis, Justin Turner, Garrett Atkins and Adam Jones.

Behind my Arrietas, we have a solid Millwood season, but we’ll be relying on another Millwood and Guthrie, which is going to cause some problems. Hopefully they can keep it close, because our bullpen is top notch, with Koji Uehara x2, Mike Gonzalez, Cla Meredith, Matt Albers and David Hernandez.

I really don’t know how to feel about this team. Feels like one that will need to win its division to advance.

Prediction: 83-79

League 1, Pick 15: 1909 New York Giants
Palace of the Fans

I waffled hard between the 1995 Yankees and 1909 Giants here. I ultimately would’ve been in the Yankees Central division against 30s and 60s teams, so I decided that would be an awful fit.

Christy Mathewson will have to do a lot of heavy lifting with this Giants team, but we should be up against relatively similar opposition in our division. The rest of the staff is solid, while not spectacular.

This is another good defensive team, that should help with what is likely to be a lot of balls in play. I went with Palace of the Fans to hopefully have my defense come into play more for an advantage. Just like with my Red Sox team, I sacrificed offense around the IF for superior defense, so Cy Seymour (x2) and Chief Meyers (x2) are going to have to lift a heavy load.

This team could surprise, but I’m not holding my breath.

Prediction: 78-82

League 3, Pick 20: 1925 St. Louis Cardinals
Palace of the Fans

I was excited to grab a solid Indians team here, but sadly, they had already been selected and I missed it. So I pivoted to this team.

The good news? This team is going to score A LOT of runs. Especially in Palace of the Fans, which I chose so I could at least see some fireworks on my way down. This division is going to see a lot of offense.

Rogers Hornsby (x2) and Jim Bottomley (x2) will provide the bulk of the offense, though Chick Hafey, Ray Blades, and even Taylor Douthit can rake as well. Defensively, we’ll be a little weak at 2B because of Hornsby, but everywhere else, we should be elite. I’ve used Douthit in the past and he had well over 60+ plays one year. He’s going to get a workout in this league.

My pitching staff has…a lot of innings. That’s about the only positive. Hopefully Jesse Haines, Allen Sothoren and Flint Rhem can slow the bleeding enough for my offense to do its work.

Once again, I see a wide range of possible outcomes, but I feel weirdly optimistic about this team.

Prediction: 86-76.

League 5, Pick 21: 1908 Chicago White Sox
Astrodome

This is similar to my 1909 Giants team: Weak offense, solid defense and great pitching in a division with largely similar (yet better) teams.

Ed Walsh is going to carry the load, with help from Frank Smith, Doc White and Frank Owen. Nick Altrock will contribute a bit as well.

Defensively this team is elite, which will be needed. No one on this team slugs over .476 and even the .300+ hitters are lightweights. We have zero power, so I went with Astrodome to virtually eliminate homers from our opposition and hope we can do just enough to scrape together some 2-1 wins.

I don’t expect much from this team, but hopefully they surprise me.

Prediction 81-81

League 8, Pick 23: 1929 Washington Senators
Palace of the Fans

Here we go again. Palace of the Fans is a trend for me, as I have a lot of solid contact hitters with little power and lots of IP on the pitching side.

I actually feel good about this team. We got bumped to the Central, so avoided all the Big Train teams and should be able to hang with our division mates.

I feel like some people may have missed Nick Altrock on this team, as he only had a few PA as a hitter and is not listed with pitchers on Baseball-Reference. He and Garland Braxton will form the rotation. Beyond that, it’s middling pitchers who will simply be tasked with preventing an onslaught of runs that my offense can’t overcome.

Joe Cronin and Buddy Myer are godsends for this team, as they can provide top defense around the infield and still hit. Goose Goslin, Joe Judge, Sam Rice and Muddy Ruel round out the lineup. This team will hit and the defense should help my pitching just enough to win me some games.

Prediction: 85-77

League 6, Pick 24: 2022 Atlanta Braves
Crosley Field

Picking last turned out to be a huge advantage here. I got to avoid the strong early 1900s teams (apologies again to joerat, who’s 1970 team is in a division with teams 50+ years earlier). I also didn’t want to go against the two Maddux teams in the Central, so modern team it was.

I went back and forth between 2020 and 2022. 2020 had Freddie Freeman, Cole Hamels and Pablo Sandoval, but ultimately, I mad the tough decision to pass on them for 2022, which brings Robinson Cano, Kanley Jansen and Raisel Iglesias. I think the bullpen help will be more valuable.

I have a 6-man rotation featuring Spencer Strider, Max Fried, Kyle Wright and Charlie Morton, which should be passable. As long as they can keep games close, my bullpen should slam the door (even with relying on the modern relievers schwarze eschews). Jansen, Iglesias, Will Smith, and Collin McHugh provide an elite pen with a TON of strikeouts, that should help with some of the older teams.

Despite losing Freeman and Sandoval, this lineup is still strong, with Cano, Matt Olson, Ronald Acuna, Marcell Ozuna and Austin Riley. The defense is also strong, which will be needed against those earlier teams.

I went with Crosley Field to boost my homers a bit, and it's -1 for hits, which should help a bit against the early 20th century teams.

Top to bottom, I feel like the Braves franchise is one of the deepest in this round. I see a lot of strong teams, so I’m not sure how confident to be, but I like this roster.

Prediction: 88-74

League 4, Pick #21
1938 Pittsburgh Pirates

I traded with Schwarze to move up in the Yankees draft and down in this draft right when my turn was up. While they were on my short list, I had a feeling that Schwarze was trading up to get 1913 A's. I was leaning Pirates with this pick, but also considered making a fun pick and going with the 1932 A's if they made it. There were a few similar 30's Pirates teams I was looking at and I felt one would last. Luckily my top choice 1938 made it, so the trade worked out perfectly. Here's how I narrowed it down:
First, I needed a team with Waner, Waner, Arky, which puts me between 1932 and 1940. 34 and 35 were taken round 1 and 33 was already gone for round 2.
Next, I new pitching was not going to be great in the Pirates league, so Cy Blanton (1935-1939) was a must for this team. That leaves 1936-1939 as available years. The next best starter (IMO) who played during my available years was Red Lucas who finished in 1938.
And finally, but also right at the top in terms of importance, is that 1938, and only 1938, has Heinie Manush. I could have started with this, but I am building a story here.
Not only is Heinie awesome, but I feel like my 4 superstars are very similar players, which allows me to pick a park that fits everyone's skill set. Paul Waner's best season is at 1B, which makes it easier to fit all these guys in the lineup. Here is my line-up with batting averages

1928 P. Waner .370
1927 P. Waner .380
1928 H. Manush .378
1935 A. Vaughan .385
1929 L. Waner .353
1926 H. Manush .378
1938 A. Vaughan .322
1937 A. Todd .307
1938 P. Young .278

My only hesitation here is that 1938 Arky (SS-B/A) is playing out of position at 3B. I hate doing that, especially with 1935 Arky being below average at SS. The pitching is not spectacular on this team and could use as much help as they can get on the defensive side, but they won't get it. With all these great hitters and almost no power (35 Arky with a team high 19 homers), Palace of the Fans was an easy choice for Ballpark. I didn't do a deep dive on the other teams in the league, but I don't think there are many dominant left-handed pitchers in this league (maybe a couple in the A's league - Blue and Plank). All 4 of my stars (first 7 spots in my lineup) hit left-handed, but I don't think that will be an issue.

I actually really like this team, and I think the pitching depth is adequate. Just worried about the defense on the left side of the infield, but this might be the top hitting team in the league. All the strong pitching in this league is elite at homer prevention, but with a slight weakness for OAV. That should play into my team's strengths...I hope...

My general approach to round 2 was based on the following guidelines (not hard and fast, just guidelines):
-- The pitching will be noticeably worse in round 2; I also expected (and my research seemed to confirm) that many of the top remaining teams would have pitching that was more similar in quality compared to the teams in round 1. Accordingly, I prioritized offense more in this round than in round 1. In many of the leagues, I believe there were teams available that had demonstrably superior offense, while (comparatively) few teams had demonstrably superior pitching. This was, obviously, not universally true. Again, just a guideline.
-- Defense, especially range, will be even more important in this round. Lots of offense, lots of plus-offense parks, lots of balls in play.
-- Avoid modern era teams due to the three-headed monster of (a) low IP/G relievers (b) low IP/162 pitchers generally, requiring most teams to use 12 or 13 pitching spots on the roster (c) comparatively little flexibility on offense.footballmm11's 2023 Twins were an extreme case, but the few modern teams I did try to build all fell victim to the same plight to some degree. I could add a 4th: in general, modern teams to do not have many players with A+++ range, and where possible (see my previous point) I wanted those players. Accordingly, I only have 1 team from the past 50 years of MLB, and that one (the '75 Pirates) are barely within that era.
-- Worry less about divisional alignment. Very different from round 1, where you could avoid certain teams entirely by putting yourself in the other league. Here, you play 14 games against your divisional rivals (and a total of only 42), compared to 12 games against the other clubs in your half (total of 96). Yes, division still matters when it comes time for the playoffs, but the ultimate goal here is to win enough games to be one of the 6 to advance to round 3, and mathematically, the division you're in is going to matter a lot less this time around.

Ultimately I think of my 10 teams, 5 have a legit chance to advance. Against this quality of owners, I'll take it...

League 1: 1929 Giants (pick 12)
I was already planning to go with the Giants here, and after the 1921-22 Ruth squads and the 37-38 DiMaggio/Gehrig/Dickey squads got chosen, my decision was made. Giants it would be. I built teams for every remaining Mays season, but in general they all had front-line pitching that either wasn't very good - hard to get excited about 550 innings of Johnny Antonelli - OR likely to be very homer-prone (my round 1 Perry/Marichal disaster definitely influenced me here). I built a few deadball era teams but thought the offense just wasn't good enough; I will be surprised if the median team in this league doesn't score ~1200 runs. I pivoted to the Ott-era Giants and liked those a lot better. I'm very surprised neither 1932 nor 1935 was selected. Hubbell/Luque would be an excellent rotation this league, and the offense on those clubs would be exceptional in this round. Ultimately went with 1929. Ott should mash in this round, Terry and Lindstrom will take somewhat of a hit from normalization but are still very strong. Bob O'Farrell (a SIM favorite of mine) and Shanty Hogan should give this club exceptional offense at the catcher spot, a comparative rarity in Giants' history. Travis Jackson has a great glove at SS, and there are 4 A+ range players on this team - granting that not all of them will play every game. Edd Roush will see playing time against the deadball staffs. Carl Mays brings almost 700 innings of deadball pitching to supplement Hubbell. The staff allows neither walks, nor HRs, and in a battle of balls-in-play, our offense should have the advantage against most teams. I like this club and think they are one of my strongest in round 2
Offense (in all cases stats reflect likely starters only): .351/.420/.544
Pitching (in all cases stats exclude garbage time guys): .227 OAV, 1.06 WHIP, 2.00 BB/9, 0.15 HR/9

League 2: 1932 Dodgers (pick 14)
Just by the numbers, this team is a long shot. Assuming an efficient draft, such that the top 12 teams in each draft advance, then anything later has to be considered a gamble. Almost everything I said above about the Giants could be repeated here. Ruth-era Sox teams and deadball-pitching Sox teams had been picked, steering me to the Dodgers. I wanted a high-offense club here for similar reasons. Looked long and hard at 1930 - again, I'm surprised no one picked them. Vance and Luque (again) would given that club great pitching for this league. 1932 loses Luque but adds Jack Quinn, and brings clones of Lefty O'Doul and Hack Wilson. Defense is weak in the OF but very strong in the infield. I expect this team to lead the league in runs scored, though I don't like them nearly as much as the Giants. I'll be happy with a .500 record and overjoyed if they play well enough to secure a spot in round 3.
Offense: .336/.399/.544
Pitching: .239/1.11/2.07/0.25

League 3: 1904 Naps (pick 10)
After my success with the 21 Indians in round 1, I would have loved to have had the '19 Indians here. But no surprise that crazyamos took them off the board as the first Cleveland team selected. Cleveland is one of the few franchises that, IMO, still had elite pitching teams left: the deadball-era Joss clubs. I built most of them and easily liked 1904 the best. Joss pairs with Bernhard and Earl Moore, should be as good as any club in the league. And I think 1904 has easily the best offense of the clubs from the era. Not great, certainly not compared with the Giants/Dodgers - but clones of Lajoie and Flick (who always seems to do well for me) plus Bradley's 1902 season normalizes very well and we can add 02 Hickman to the mix. A+ range at 1B and SS and overall a defense that is better than average for the era. I think this team will make the playoffs.
Offense: .338/.381/.486
Pitching: .218/0.96/1.51/0.07

League 4: 1911 Athletics (pick 4)
An easy choice to take what I believed was clearly the best available A's off the board after 3 Pirates teams had been chosen. The usual suspects are here on offense and the mound. A+ range at 1B and 3B. I'll be very disappointed if this is not a playoff team.
Offense: .332/.404/.462
Pitching: .205/0.97/2.23/0.05

League 4: 1975 Pirates (pick 24)
Pick 24, 'nuf ced. Oh how I wanted 1924...I'm stunned they lasted until pick 17, I had them in my top 3 for the Bucs. By the time it got to me, I thought the Fam-i-Lee era clubs were the only ones worth considering. This team is not good. But the 1975 club sneaks in Randolph at 2B (a huge weak spot for the Pirates in this era) and brings Sam McDowell into the rotation. They will be fun for me to play - I started collected cards in '76 so there's a lot of memories here, and I was a Bucs fan from an early age, despite growing up in Boston. The 1979 title was a joy, and I ended up going to college in Pittsburgh, so a lot of sentimental value in a club that will be lucky to win 70 games.
Offense: .311/.381/.509
Pitching: .215/1.09/2.73/0.35

League 5: 1912 White Sox (pick 4).
1920 was clearly the best Pale Hose team, IMO. No surprise when Pedro "Efficient Market" Cerrano grabbed them at #2, first overall ChiSox team taken. But I had 1912 not that far behind them. I almost went Cubs here, but I thought the bottom-barrel Cubs teams were a lot better than the bottom-barrel White Sox teams, I did very well with 1915 in round 1. This team has basically the same pitching (Walsh/Cicotte); the offense much worse (no Jackson, no Collins), but the defense is excellent, and I think the bats will do enough to win for Big Ed.
Offense: .314/.379/.429
Pitching: .205/0.89/1.78/0.07

League 5: 1932 Cubs (pick 18)
Basically a carbon copy of my Dodgers selection above, right down to the same season and for most of the same reasons, with the big exception being Rogers Hornsby. Interestingly, this club loses Hack Wilson, but the 1932 Dodgers get him. Thought we might be the only Hornsby team in this league
until Efficient Market grabbed 1931 with the final pick. Hartnett, Hornsby, Cuyler, Stephenson...good chance to lead the league in runs scored (no worse than second behind '31), and excellent gloves from Billy Herman and Woody English - if they can crack the lineup. Pitching is not good. A .500-mark would have to be considered a win here.
Offense: .355/.432/.549
Pitching: .238/1.14/2.27/0.32

League 6: 1973 Braves (pick 11)
I confess that I hated this league and both of these teams...this was purely a fun pick. 70 wins would be an accomplishment.

League 7: 1966 Phillies (pick 17)
Another gamble. Two weak franchises...the 2nd best teams in this league might not be as good as the top 7-8 in some of the others. I built a lot of teams from both franchises and they were coming out eerily similar. I almost took 1958 here - and am a little surprised that no one did - but ultimately went with 1966. .500 would be a success.
Offense: .311/.386/.488
Pitching: .220/1.03/1.97/0.62

League 8: 1933 Reds (pick 15)
I did look at 1923; I liked 1923's pitching a little better, but I liked 1933's offense a lot better. Lombardi a hair worse than Hargrave, SS basically a wash. but IMO Bottomley > Daubert, Grantham > Fonseca, High > Pinelli, Rice/Hafey > Harper/Roush, and a deeper selection of choices for the DH slot. Schwarze is a better owner than me, so he'll probably beat us in the standings by 15 games. Similar to my 3 others clubs from this era (Cubs, Dodgers, Giants), these Reds can rake. I'll be disappointed if we're not top-2 in runs scored. Jack Quinn (again?) joines Rixey and Lucas in a staff that will allow plenty of hits but few walks and homers. I give this club a 20% chance of making the playoffs, despite their being a #15 pick.
Offense: .332/.401/.543
Pitching: .248 (UGH)/1.11/1.68/0.15

Thanks again to schwarze for running this. GL to all in round 2 and beyond.

Round 2 write-ups

1919 Cleveland - Pick 2
I only entered three teams in Round 1. All advanced, and a late season winning streak got us a top 16 pick in this round. Having not done any real research, not expecting a top 16 pick, I was overwhelmed by the choices. I narrowed my search to teams in the 1910s or 1920s, who would have the possibility of great offense and great pitching. I was attracted to the possibility of running two Tris Speakers, with a decent supporting cast of hitters around them, and the excellent pitching staff that two Stan Coveleskis, two Joe Woods, and two Ray Caldwells will give me. I hope these guys will win 90 and advance, although I wouldn't be surprised if they don't.
Tris Speaker was a racist, a bigot, a fighter, and a gambler. He was also unbelievably fast, an extraordinary hitter, and the kind of guy who plays my favorite baseball - flashy and strong defense, great speed, and power to the gaps. I'll enjoy watching Speaker's exploits in the box scores even if the rest of the hitting lets me down.
Offense: .331/.412/.484
Pitching: .210/1.02/.09, 1.82 ERA

1934 Chicago White Sox - Pick 14
I did almost no research into Chicago franchises. I built a 1969 Cubs team I really liked - and that nobody picked, but didn't think that the Billy Williams, Ernie Banks, and Ron Santo power seasons would play well enough. I also built a 1914 White Sox team with absurdly good pitching and lousy hitting. I almost drafted them but wanted better bats. (Funnily, the owner who drafted right after me wanted the club I took and then immediately selected the 1914 franchise I thought about taking. We'll see who made the better choice!) The team I selected has excellent offense, for a franchise not known for its great bats. Two Al Simmons, Luke Appling, two Zeke Bonuras, Jimmy ***** and the gang can hit a lot, and have strong team defense. The pitching is pretty bad compared to the earlier teams, but Ted Lyons, Whit Wyatt, Monty Stratton and friends are good for a 20s-50s team. The 1920 White Sox are in our division and will be way better than us. Really curious how we fare compared to the 1914 squad. This team will be lucky to go .500 and advance. Could win under 80 games, though.

Offense: .341/.409/.510
Pitching: .231/1.11, 0.24, 2.48 ERA

1937 New York Yankees - Pick 8
Having just played a Ruth/Gehrig team from the early 1920s, I was underwhelmed by Carl Mays' pitching and wanted something different. I looked long and hard at the 1999 Yankees, but didn't think they would compete as well as the Gehrig/DiMaggio squads of the late 30s. The talent pool of the 1937 and 1938 squads is almost identical, except the early team gets Lazerri as a 2B and the later team Gordon. I liked the 1937 team better, and barracuda took the 1938 team just ahead of me anyway. This team is the best of my three, but the Yankees competition is stiffer than that in the Cleveland league.

I'll be disappointed if these guys don't win 90 and advance, but it's entirely possible they won't.
Offense: .345/.435/.595
Pitching: .214/1.12/0.29, 2.16 ERA.

First pitch for all leagues is only about 5 hours away. I wanted to get at least get a few thoughts down before the seasons began.

I was able to advance 8 teams out of 14 through to round 2 which matched my hope and pleasantly exceeded my expectation. There were a few round 1 teams which came down to the wire:

The 1928 Braves, although finishing 27 games out of first place in the NL East at 80-82 were able to hang on in a neck-and-neck race down to the last day vs. 4 other teams to gain a wild card berth.

The 1907 Cubs were also in a neck-and-neck race with basically 6 other teams for either a wild card or league championship in the NL but their 90-72 record was not good enough. The only 90-win team to fail to advance. Been there before.

The 1908 Red Sox, which had been tied for first place overall in the entire tournament at the 134-game mark ended up as the only 101-win team not to land in the top 16.

My Round 2 teams:

1912 Senators. League 8, top-16 pick 11, Twins/Senators pick 2. Even though my 1908 Red Sox fell out of the top 16, my Big Train-powered 1925 Senators was able to hang on to earn me the #11 pick overall. Besides the 1993 Braves, this was the team I wanted more than any other given my limited scouting. Most of the later-career Walter Johnson teams including all of 1922-1927, which added some strong hitting and some support starting pitching, were all taken in the first round. All three teams in the 1925-1927 range won over 96 games. These 1912 Senators were the only remaining Walter Johnson team that had some decent complimentary pitching. It is the only Senators team with Hippo Vaughn (which yields me over 650 innings). It is also the only Senators team that has Barney Pelty (which gives me a stud 284 inning starter). Clark Griffith made a cameo appearance so I get some bullpen help as well. The offense is also better than most of the pre-1920 Senators. 1b Chick Gandil, 2b Bill "Duke" Kenworthy, 3b Howie Shanks and SS John Knight all hit over .300. Their fielding is pretty decent as well, given the era. Clyde Milan and Tilly Walker should do okay in the OF and Germany Schaeffer has a couple of seasons that give me a good combined DH. Catcher is a weak spot. I am in a division with 1909, 1917 and schwarze's 1921. Therefore, we are hoping for enough wins to get a wild-card to round 3. I might also add that this is the the second Senators/Twins team that was taken. redcped took 2004 Twins with pick #7 overall.

2012 Phillies - League 7, pick 1, Phillies pick 1. This was the first pick in the Phillies/Orioles draft and my reward for my 1908 Red Sox finishing #17 overall in round 1. I ordinarily look first at deadball teams and there were still a couple of Pete Alexander teams left (1912 was taken by schwarze #2 in this draft and 1914 was not taken at all). I was curious about 1901 with Ed Delahanty/Roy Thomas/Doc White/Al Orth but I just thought there were too many holes. Then there is the Robin Roberts/Richie Ashburn era with just not enough depth (and too many HRs allowed) to go there. 2012 seemed like a pretty balanced team with Halladay/Cliff Lee/Hamels to start and Papelbon x 2 to close with assorted set-up guys. It was the only Phillies team with these pitchers that had Jim Thome (3b and DH) which makes a difference. Carlos Ruiz, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Jimmie Rollins are all pretty solid. Also we have one of my sim-favorites, Juan Pierre, making his only Phillies roster appearance in 2012. This team should do okay.

1934 Cardinals - League 3, pick 6, Cards pick 4. I had 14 teams in round 1 and the Cardinals were one of the two franchises that I did not use. I thought it would be fun to try them out here and I have had enough of Cleveland for a while. The one disadvantage is that since I did not have any Cardinals teams in round 1, I did not have a feel for how different eras performed. I remember seeing 1933 get taken and seeing that Hornsby and Vance were on the team that year in addition to the usual Gas House Gang suspects. I noticed that Vance was also on the team in 1934 so I built a team and liked it. I noticed that several of the better Hornsby teams were already used in round 1 and I did not think many pre-WW2 Cardinals teams would be used. I was satisfied that Vance x 2, Dizzy Dean (start and close), Bill Walker, mediocre-but-not-terrible Jesse Haines and a whole lot of innings-eating Burleigh Grimes would work with the Frisch/Medwick/Ripper Collins offense. Optimistic here, as well

2019 Yankees - League 1, pick 7, Yankee pick 3. The Yankees were the other franchise I did not use in round 1 so I only looked at them. A lot of early Yankee Ruth teams left. Just about all of the Mantle teams available. Some of 21st century loaded rosters were still available. First place I looked, true to form, was the deadball era to see if there were any gems. Maybe I should have stayed down in the 1909-1912 range. There was always complimentary pitching to Russ Ford x2 in each of these teams. In retrospect, maybe there would have been enough offense on one of those teams to challenge. But no, I started looking more modern and have never played Aaron Judge before so I got distracted. 2019 has Judge x 2, Stanton x 2, LeMahieu x 2 and the benefit of Troy Tulowitzki having played five games. Starting pitching is not so great with Sabathia, Severino, Tanaka etc. Hoping I can get enough early innings to get to Aroldis x 2, Britton x 2, Betances and Chad Green. Not sure how we will do playing in current Yankee Stadium but it will be fun to read the play-by-plays.

1988 Athletics - League 4, pick 10, A's pick 5 - Things got interesting in the draft at this point. I was originally scheduled to pick at #15 in this league but got to trade up to #10 here in a trade with footballmm11 that actually involved 3 drafts. This is the first of those. Anyway, I had the 1989 A's in the first round and they started really strong then faded a bit but won 92 games. Other teams of this vintage did well also. 1987 won 103 games and 1985 won 86. I was surprised by how well the pitching held up. No real stars in the rotation but the relief staff, led by Eck x2, was strong. Almost all of the pitching from 1989 was on the roster in 1988. The only difference was no Mike Moore but add Steve Ontiveros x 2. Nice upgrade. The offense is also similar with the major exception of no Mr. Rickey Henderson in 1988, Nevertheless, Dave Parker, Canseco handle the outfield in 1988 and the same infield (McGwire, Tony Phillips, Walt Weiss and Lansford) returns intact. Playing in a division with 1971, 1973 (pedro uh-oh) and 1986.

1915 Braves - League 6, pick #16, Braves team 8 - Waiting for footballmm11 to pick at #15, I had built a 1925 Tigers team but knew there was no chance he was going to scoop them up and he did. However, this is actually a team I built as a potential top 16 pick given the destruction that schwarze's 1917 number 1 overall pick in round 1 did. Of course, that was a very special team and the only Ed Walsh appearance outside of the CWS years. Still, there is a lot of similar offensive talent here: Sherry Magee x 2, Johnny Evers x 2 and Red Smith are good. Fred Snodgrass and Joe Connolly are added, as well. As for the pitching we do have Jesse Barnes, Nehf, Tyler, Rudolph, and Tom Hughes. In addition, we also have Dolf Luque x 2 so we have a lot of good innings. In the same division with schwarze's #3 overall pick 1911, RTG's 1913 and joerat1's 1970. As far as the overall Braves league goes there are only two Maddux teams in the league so we are hopeful our pitching will get us through to the next round.

1958 Dodgers - League 2, pick #17, Dodgers team 8 - This is another pick that was traded in the footballmm11 deal. I went from #23 to #17. He is the one that proposed the trade but this was a feature I loved. By moving out of #23 I would almost certainly not getting stuck with only one franchise to pick from. There are a lot of Red Sox options still on the board but I liked the Dodgers better. A lot of pitching to look at any time from Koufax's rookie season until present. Of course, a lot of those teams were taken in round 1 but there are still a lot left. Many of these teams remaining don't have great offense but down here in the Duke Snider era that is not the case. All of the Koufax/Campanella teams were taken but I love this 1958 team hitting. Obviously we have Snider x 2 but we also have Elmer Valo and Carl Furillo platooning the third position in the outfield. Jim Gentile and Gil Hodges will play 1b and some DH, switch-hitting Jim Gilliam will play 2b and Pee Wee Reese will play SS. Reese (out of position) or Gilliam will play 3b. Koufax x 2 and Drysdale will anchor the SP with a second Drysdale and Newcombe (great WHIP but HR liability) also starting. Unlike all modern Dodger teams, this bullpen is not very good. Will hope many of our games don't come down to that (we know they will).

1920 Cubs - League 5, pick #20, Cubs pick 12 - This was the part of the draft pick trade where I went down in the order. I went for #9 to #20 but I really love how it ultimately worked out. The best thing about a lower-down pick is that you have more control over which division you play in. If you can slide in under the wire to get the 12th pick of your chosen franchise, you have total control. With the Cubs, every team from 1906-1911 was used in round 1 and every one of them finished with at least 90 wins. schwarze picked the 1912 team with the #1 overall pick given that success. Outside of that era, Cubs pitching is not all that good until maybe the late 2000s except for some of the years that Pete Alexander was on the team, especially 1918-1920 when Claude Hendrix and Hippo Vaughan were on the staff as well. Of these seasons, only 1919 was used in round 1. I was really hoping for either 1918 or 1920 but really hoped for 1920 since it might escape the same division as 1912. As luck would have it, 1918 was taken but 1920 was not so I jumped on it. Especially since it was going to be located in the central division. We like our pitching vs our division opponents from 1931, 1932 and 1944 but the manager not so much. Will be fun nonetheless!!

Great writeups by everyone who chose to do so. Thanks!

My current interest in WIS baseball is very low and I was thinking about abandoning it altogether. But then one of my two first-round teams advanced and I felt compelled to continue. However, my enthusiasm for WIS was not stoked by this and therefore I did little to no research. The malaise I'm in has me eschewing the obvious, long-held, tried-and-true wisdom and formulaic team building. I take no delight in a rote approach. So, my recent teams have mainly focused on utilizing players I like and/or followed or on building a team far out of the norm.

I used the latter for my Pirates team. I chose 1939 and took an offensive approach in a league I knew would be dominated by dead-ball pitchers, slap hitters and anti-HR parks. On paper the team looks foreboding;

• 30 Klein .386 .436 .687
• 33 Klein .368 .422 .602
• 35 Vaughan .385 .491 .607
• 34 Vaughan .333 .431 .511
• 28 Waner .370 .446 .547
• 27 Waner .380 .437 .549
• 28 Manush .378 .414 .575
• 47 Elliot .317 .410 .517

Not so much through 8 games: 0-8 with .242 .277 .318
Last in the league in runs scored averaging 3.25/game.

This can't continue this badly all season, can it?

Pick #1
1912 Chicago Cubs
In round 1, every year between 1906 and 1913 was selected, except 1912. These seven teams averaged 93.2 wins in round 1. The roster has the usual cast of characters with M.Brown, Reulbach and Toney leading the pitching staff, and Chance, Evers, Sheckard, F.Schulte and C.Williams leading the offense. The catching is a bit weaker with no Johnny Kling, so I am using a Frank Chance season as a platoon catcher. It feels like this team would have won at least 90 games had it played in round 1. Since the 1906-1911 & 1913 seasons are not playing this round, 95-100 wins should be achievable. We predict 98-64.Time for a mid-season update

It's time for a mid-season update.

Current Record: 53-28 .654
Expected Win%: .675
Overall Rank: 4th
League Rank: 1st
Rank-Offense: 4th
Rank-Pitching: 1st

This has been a very streaky team. They started off winning their first 6 games of the season, then went on a 7-16 run and was sitting in last place in the NL East despite an expected winning% near .700. This team eventually got to #1 overall before losing 4 of their last 5 games. In between the early losing streak and these last 5 games, they went 39-8. They have been extremely lucky in 1-run games, going 18-5 (they started off 1-4 in 1-run games).

Clearly, the pitching is what drives this team. Their three SPs are ranked 2nd, 4th and 5th in the National League in ERA. '05 Reulbach (12-5, 2.65), '09 M.Brown (14-7, 2.85) and '08 M.Brown (14-6, 2.91) have accounted for 73% of the team's innings and 76% of their wins. The two Mordecai Browns are ranked 1-2 in the Cy Young race. '178 Fred Toney has been good in relief (4-2, 10/13 in saves, 2.70). '06 Ed Reulbach (5.96) has struggled.

The offense doesn't have any stars, but is balanced throughout the lineup as seven regulars have OPS between .725 and .818. Somehow, we are 4th in runs scored despite playing our home games in the Astrodome.

Grade: A+
This was the #1 overall team selected, and they certainly have the talent to finish in the top 8 overall. I expect some regression in 1-run games, but their Expected Win% is still higher than their actual win% so maybe this team still can win near 100 games.

Quote post by schwarze on 1/30/2025 7:25:00 PM:

Pick #3
1911 Boston Braves
I mentioned that I had three teams that I liked. Besides the 1912 Cubs, I also really liked the 1993 Braves (the only version available with both Chipper and Maddux) and the 1911 Boston Braves. Had pedrocerrano not taken 1993, I'm not sure which year I would have taken. I'm glad he made the decision easy for me. Excluding the Maddux seasons, the Braves franchise have not had many winning seasons. Sure, there are some years with Spahn, Mathews and/or Aaron, and I expect a few of those teams to get selected. What's the best way to neutralize those teams (and the modern 2010+ teams)? Draft some deadball pitching. My 1917 team had Ed Walsh and he crushed it. This 1911 team has Cy Young, Lefty Tyler and Big Jeff Pfeffer. I just like saying Big Jeff Pfeffer. Yes, Cy Young is a downgrade from Ed Walsh, but this team's offense should be better than my 1917 team. Mike Donlin, Bill Sweeney, Fred Tenney & Harry Steinfeldt are the key cogs. Sadly, Jack "Chief" Meyers is not on the roster. Still can't believe I left him off my 1917 team. There are only 3 deadball teams. In fact, 1970 Braves in are in the NL East. I expect my low-HR pitchers to do quite well and I would be shocked if this team didn't approach 100 wins.

Current Record: 38-43 .469
Expected Win%: .524
Overall Rank: 118th
League Rank: 9th
Rank-Offense: 6th
Rank-Pitching: 7th

It's really hard to miss a prediction more than I missed on this team. For most of the season, this team was the worst of the Top 16 teams selected. They went on a tear to briefly sniff .500 before their current 3-7 run. Why does this team suck? Well, early on, their two best hitters (both Mike Donlins) were the worst hitters on the team and their best pitcher ('08 Cy Young) was abysmal. Also, the team was 3-8 in 1-run games. So good players significantly underperforming and bad luck.

'05 Donlin is hitting again (up to .323) and '01 Donlin is better than he was early in the season (up to .270). But '08 Cy Young is still pitching very poorly (7-10, 5.09). I really thought my deadball pitching would mute all the modern Braves teams, but we're not even in the top half of the NL in pitching.

This team really isn't that great defensively. We have committed the fourth most errors and the team's range is roughly league average.

Grade: D-
To think I passed up on some really great teams to select this piece of crap team. Forget about 100 wins... My new goal is to get this team to .500.

Posted by schwarze on 12/28/2024 4:49:00 PM (view original):
Top 16 Draft
Pick #13
1907 New York Giants
I considered other franchises but felt that the seasons I wanted (from those franchises) might last based on the round 1 results. I had a feeling that there would be a number of seasons with Willie Mays or Barry Bonds clones so I definitely wanted a deadball season here. It was between 1905 and 1907. The two rosters are similar with the main difference between Mike Donlin or Cy Seymour as the team's best hitter. I went with 1907 b/c Seymour is a better defensive outfielder. Of course, Mathewson provides 700 innings of awesome pitching. Joe McGinnity adds another 600 innings. Red Ames, Hooks Wiltse and Dummy Taylor will fill out the pen. Dan McGann, Sammy Strang, Roger Bresnahan, Art Devin and John McGraw (376 PA) all provide some nice on base percentages. Bill Dahlen is my weakest hitter but provides A+ range at SS. I am shocked 1905 didn't get selected (although 1904 did). There was only one Mays season (1961) and two Bonds seasons (2001, 2006) selected, so my read was off. Eight of the twelve teams are from 1904-1929. I will temper my excitement with this team and project 86 wins.

Current Record: 49-32 .605
Expected Win%: .633
Overall Rank: 10th
League Rank: 1st
Rank-Offense: 2nd
Rank-Pitching: 4th

Unlike my other two "Top 8" selections, this team was hot right from the start. Thru 27 games, this team was 22-5 and was at the top of the overall standings. Since then, the team has played .500 ball (27-27) so maybe this team isn't as good as that early record indicated.

All three of my starting pitchers are among the top 5 in Cy Young. '08 Mathewson (16-5, 3.23) started off red hot, going 13-2, 2.19 - then slumped, going 0-4 in his next 7 starts, allowing 41 runs in 42.2 innings. He's pitched better (3-0) in his last 5 starts and is 1st in Cy Young. '09 Mathewson started off terribly, sporting a 5.59 ERA through his first 9 appearances (pitching out of the pen). Over his next 22 relief appearances, he got his era down to 3.36 before before losing a game by allowing 5 runs in 0.2 IPs. Since then, he's moved back into the rotation and has gone 8-2, 3.44. Overall, he is 13-8, 3.72 and 8/8 in saves and is 3rd in Cy Young. '04 Joe McGinnity (12-10, 3.38) has been consistent and is 4th in Cy Young.

The bullpen is what is holding this team back (which is why I was using '09 Christy there). '04 Dummy Taylor, '15 Hooks Wiltse, '02 McGinnity, '13 Wiltse, '11 Ames and '13 Ames have combined to go 9-9, 8/16 in saves with an ERA of 5.62.

The offense has been led my MVP favorite, '05 Cy Seymour (.374, .405, .554).. His brother '03 Cy Seymour (.313, .352, .388) has been solid as well. Both Rogers Bresnahans have been hitting (.322 and .307). I am somewhat amazed this team is hitting as well as it is, playing home games in the Astrodome.

With an 11-10 record in 1-run games, the team is basically average in close-game luck.

Grade: A
Based on the entirety of the first half, it appears my 86 win projection is low, but if we isolate just the last 54 games where I won just half, maybe 86 wins is about right. Is there another 22-5 run in this team, or will I win win, lose, win, lose my way to 40 wins in the second half and finish with 89 wins? The good news is that most of my inter-league games are done and the Yankees have been crushing the Giants, for the most part. Based on their high expected winning%, I am hopeful that this team could be a top 8 team.

Posted by schwarze on 12/29/2024 3:39:00 PM (view original):
League 7, Pick #2
1912 Philadelphia Phillies
I didn't see any Browns/Orioles team that was head and shoulders better than the others so I was going to select a Phillies season. The top pick was 2012 Phillies (calhoop) which was a very solid choice. This was one of the six Phillies rosters that I built. In round 1, I used the 1913 Phillies and they went a respectable 84-78, finishing third in the division behind 1916 (94 wins) and 1915 (90 wins). The other two round 1 deadball Phillies teams also finished over .500 (1917 w/86 wins and 1911 w/82 wins). All those deadball teams are not playing in round 2. In fact, the NL East division includes 1908, 1910 and 1966! There are nine post-1960 Phillies teams that will find it difficult to hit HRs against Pete Alexander, Earl Moore and Eppa Rixey. With basically the same roster as my 1913 team, I think this team can win 92 games and if things break right, maybe even approach 100 wins.

Current Record: 42-39 .519
Expected Win%: .494
Overall Rank: 84th
League Rank: 5th (NL East leader)
Rank-Offense: 10th
Rank-Pitching: 2nd

When I decided to put this team in the Astrodome, I figured my pitching would be near the top of the league (only trailing 2014, playing in Petco). '15 Pete Alexander is first in Cy Young and has been money in the bank (15-5, 2.28). Sadly, none of my other deadball pitchers have done anything. '16 Eppa Rixey is 5-13, 4.69. '03 Earl Moore is 11-13, 3.93. '19 Alexander is having another disappointing season (7-7, 6/9 saves, 4.01 era - not even among the top 25 in ERA). He also sucked for me in round 1 for my 1913 Phillies team. Due to poor pitching depth in the bullpen, I've been using '19 Pete as my main RP. I tried starting him a few times, but after a 12-hit, 7-run, 6-inning game vs a modern Phillies team, his ERA was over 5, so I scrapped that.

Even still, with the 2nd ranked pitching staff, I assumed that we'd be much better than barely over .500. If my offense was at least league average - we would be. But the offense stinks (10th in the NL). My two Gavvy Cravaths are doing fine (.892 & .877 OPS). My two Sherry Magees have been decent (.752 & .737 OPS). The problem is I have three very weak spots in the lineup, at catcher (Moran .553 ops), at second baseman (Knabe .513) and at third base (Lobart .597).

Just looking at win% and exp wn%, you might think we've getting lucky. But we are actually 12-15 in 1-run games. We also have lost four or five games by 10+ runs, as my bullpen pitchers (not named Alexander) don't keep things close when the SP gets removed.

Grade: C-
Given how early this pick was, I should have selected a team that performed better than a .500 team. This team is trending in the wrong direction, going 2-7 in their last 9 games (now at 42-41). As it stands now, this team would qualify for round 3, but would be dropped anyway (as I have 8 teams with better records). What a wasted early pick this was. Ironically, the top Phillies team selected (2012) is doing even worse (36-47 thru 83 games).

Posted by schwarze on 12/29/2024 4:03:00 PM (view original):
League 8, Pick #5
1921 Washington Senators
Here are the top four picks in league 8:
1 - 2004 Twins (redcped)
2 - 1912 Senators (calhoop)
3 - 1919 Reds (glowguy)
4 - 1930 Senators (pedrocerrano).

When my turn came up, I decided I could wait on the Reds franchise since there were a number of Reds seasons that I liked. Of the six rosters I built for the Senators/Twins franchise, 2004, 1921, 1929 and 1971 were my top choices. 1971 is similar to my 100-win 1970 team, with one key exception... 1971 is missing Luis Tiant. So it was between 1921 and 1929. The '29 offense was slightly better with Joe Cronin & Buddy Myer replacing Donnie Bush & Bucky Harris. 1929 has the sneaky dead pitcher Nick Altrock (who was born in 1876) and got one at bat (got a hit!) in October 6, 1929 at the age of 53. Garland Braxton is also on the '29 team. But I preferred getting two stud Walter Johnsons with 1921.

In round 1, I used the 1922 Senators (very similar roster). They went 80-82 in round 1 (won a very weak NL East) and that included a 16-30 record in 1-run games, plus they had to deal with those really strong 1925, 1926, 1927 teams that combined to win 298 games. Also, I incorrectly rostered 1918 Walter Johnson instead of 1913 Walter Johnson. I wanted the extra innings. '18 Johnson went 20-28, w/4.09 ERA in 427 innings. The very worst 1913 Johnson had a 3.52 ERA in 355 innings. Most '13 Johnsons had ERAs in the low 3's. So given the easier competition, the chance that my 1-run game luck won't be as bad and the fact that I upgraded my Johnson, this team should win close to 90 games.

Current Record: 45-36 .556
Expected Win%: .566
Overall Rank: 43rd
League Rank: 1st
Rank-Offense: 8th
Rank-Pitching: 4th

I'm glad I didn't draft 2004 (36-47), 1971 (39-44) or 1929 (40-43). All three teams are performing poorly. However, my pre-draft analysis on this 1921 team was spot on. We are 10-10 in 1-run games (much better than my unlucky 1922 team in round 1). My '13 Walter Johnson (13-8, 3.17) is 3rd in the Cy Young race. My '12 Walter Johnson (14-10, 3.55) in 4th in the Cy Young race, despite being the worst of the four '12 Johnsons (others are at 2.46, 2.60 & 3.29). I have gotten a lot from my two Jim Shaws (who was not available in 1922). '19 Shaw is not great, but 8-12, 4.51 era is acceptable when I have two stud Johnsons. '18 Shaw has appeared in 59 games (6-6, 13/19 saves, 3.86) is way better than anything I had last round.

Although we are ranked 8th in runs scored among AL teams, we are first among the four AL East teams (i.e., three deadball teams). We are playing in the Astrodome, so I am not expecting big offensive stats. '28 Goose Goslin (.310, ..387, .414) is the team's best hitter. '21 Sam Rice is only hitting .266 but that's up from .213 thanks to a 21-game hitting streak he's currently on.

The fielding (58+ & 10- plays) is among the best in the AL. In fact, even the fielding% is league average, which is good for a 1920's team.

Grade: A
This was one of my top choices (among all franchise) and I was thrilled to get them with pick #5 in this league (4th pick among AL teams) . As the current #1 seed in the AL, I can't really complain about anything. Respectable hitting, great pitching, solid defense, average luck. I think my prediction of 90 wins is still reasonable.