MLB 117152: Twist w/ a Hero League (World Series Losers)

We soon will be launching Twist with a Hero (Season Two) – World Series Losers. This will be the second of what I hope to be many seasons for Twist with a Hero. Our first season featured “Lovable Losers” (all eligible teams had to have lost at least 90 games in the selected season). With Season One wrapping up very soon, we are ready to begin filling the open spots for our second season.


THE PREMISE:

I love twist leagues, but some of the teams I’d like to use aren’t ideal because they are extremely weak at one position or because they come from an era in which the WHIPs and OAVs are a little too high. Being able to select a “franchise hero” could help even things up a little. (Who wouldn’t like to see if they could improve the 1968 Cardinals by adding a big bat like Rogers Hornsby or Albert Pujols to the roster?)

Another thing that bugs me is that the same few choices get used in virtually every single twist league. It seems like it’s hard to be competitive if you don’t select one of those oft-used, cookie-filled teams. To curb that effect, each iteration of the Twist w/ a Hero League will feature a sub-theme to significantly narrow the list of available teams to choose from. Season Two’s sub-theme will be World Series Losers. Owners will be limited to selecting from among the teams/selected seasons that played in and lost the World Series.

Other future possible sub-themes are listed below.

THE RULES:

1. Basic rules--

• $110 MM cap.
• Clones – No
• DH – No
• WW- No
• Trades - No
• AAA – No.
• Injuries – On.

2. Your team. Subject to restriction by the "sub-theme," you may pick any single season team from MLB history, and twist any player on their roster. (Rosters are determined by baseball-reference.com). No 200K exceptions. Limit one team per owner per season. However, if we have not filled the league within one week following the end of our current regular season, I will open it up for owners to have a team in both the NL and AL.

3. Your hero. You are allowed to select one “hero” to improve your roster. A “hero” must come from the same franchise as the team you have selected, and cannot have a salary over $9,999,999.

4. Team blacklist. Teams are exclusive each season. Teams that make the playoffs will be blacklisted for all future seasons.

5. Heroes blacklist. Heroes used in one season will be blacklisted for use as heroes the following season. They will be removed from the blacklist before the season after that. (Example: If a team uses 1934 Jimmie Foxx as their hero in Season One, no team can use any version of Foxx as its hero in Season Two. All versions of Foxx would be available to use again in Season Three.)

6. Stadium. Use the stadium your team actually played in. If that stadium is not available in WIS, then use WIS Park.

7. Division alignment. Divisions will be realigned and teams will be placed in chronological order of the selected seasons.

8. Team Names. Include your selected season and franchise in your team name.

9. Sub-Theme. Season Two’s Sub-Theme is “World Series Losers.” Eligible teams must have lost the World Series in the selected season.

Future Sub-Themes Include (not necessarily in the order listed):

1. World Series Winners- Eligible teams must have won World Series in the selected season.

2. World Series Losers- Eligible teams must have lost the World Series in the selected season.

3. Playoffs? Don't talk about the Playoffs!- Eligible teams must have made it to the playoffs, but not the World Series, in the selected season.

4. Wildcard Teams- Eligible teams must have been a wildcard team in the selected season.

5. Wait 'Til Next Year- Eligible teams must not have qualified for postseason play.

6. 100 Game Winners- Eligible teams must have won 100 games in the selected season.

7. .500 Club- Eligible teams must have finished the season with a record of no more than two games below or above .500.

8. Lovable Losers - Owners will be limited to selecting from among the teams that lost at least 90 games in the selected season.

9. Cardinals vs. Cubs- 12 Cardinals teams, 12 Cubs teams, 1 great rivalry

10. Dodgers vs. Giants- 12 Dodgers teams, 12 Giants teams, 1 great rivalry

11. National League Rivalries- 6 Cardinals and 6 Cubs teams in the NL; 6 Dodgers and 6 Giants teams in the AL.

12. Yankees vs. Red Sox- 12 Yankees teams, 12 Red Sox teams, 1 great rivalry

13. Evil Empire vs. The World- 12 Yankees teams in the NL; 12 different American League franchises represented in the AL.

14. Expansion Teams- Choose an expansion team in its first 10 years of existence.

15. Movin’ On- Choose a team in its final 10 years before moving to a new city (examples include 1944-’53 St. Louis Browns, 1948-’57 Brooklyn Dodgers, etc.).

16. Cactus League- Choose from teams that currently play Spring Training ball in Arizona.

17. Grapefruit League- Choose from teams that currently play Spring Training ball in Florida.

18. California Dreamin’- Choose from Padres, Angels, LA Dodgers, SF Giants and Oakland A’s.

19. Big Apple- Eligible teams include Yankees, Mets, Brooklyn Dodgers and NY Giants.

20. Windy City- Eligible teams include Cubs and White Sox (or Chicago Whales if you’re daring).

21. Show Me State- Eligible teams include Cardinals, Royals, Browns & KC Athletics.

22. Keystone State- Eligible teams include Pirates, Phillies and Philadelphia A’s.

23. Buckeye State- Eligible teams include Reds and Indians/Blues/Naps.

24. Swing States- In honor of the Presidential Election, select from teams that played in Pennsylvania, Ohio or Florida.

25. Beltway Connections- Choose from franchises that play or have played their home games in Baltimore or Washington, D.C.

26. 1776 League- Choose from teams from the original 13 colonies (includes Massachusetts, New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Georgia)

27. SEC- Choose from teams that played in Florida, Georgia, Texas & Missouri.

28. Big Ten- Choose from teams that played in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana or Illinois.

29. Pac 12- Choose from teams that played in California, Arizona, Colorado or Washington.

30. NHL Original 6- Choose from teams that played in Montreal, Toronto, New York, Detroit, Chicago & Boston.

31. Original 5 Hall of Famers- Select from teams whose rosters include either Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Christy Mathewson, Honus Wagner or Walter Johnson.

32. HOF Ballot- Roster must include at least one player who appears on the 2017 Hall of Fame Ballot (http://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/hof_2017.shtml)

33. Home Run Kings- Select from teams whose rosters include one of the Top 10 all-time career HR leaders (as determined by baseball-reference.com).

34. Longball Legends vs. Leaders- 12 teams must feature rosters which include Top 5 all-time HR Kings, 12 teams must feature rosters which include Top 5 active career HR leaders (as determined by baseball-reference.com).

35. Hit Kings- Select from teams whose rosters include one of the Top 10 all-time career hits leaders (as determined by baseball-reference.com).

36. Stolen Base Kings- Select from teams whose rosters include one of the Top 10 all-time career stolen base leaders (as determined by baseball-reference.com).

37. Strikeout Kings- Select from teams whose rosters include one of the Top 10 all-time career strikeout leaders (as determined by baseball-reference.com).

38. The Juice Is Loose- Select from teams whose rosters include notable players cited in the Mitchell Report; choose from any player listed at http://www.baseball-reference.com/friv/mitchell-report-players.shtml.

39. Disney Favorites- Select from teams whose rosters include a player named Mickey, Minnie or Donald (first or last names eligible)

40. Deadball Era- Choose a team from 1919 or before.

41. The 1920s- Choose a team from the 1920s.

42. The 1930s- Choose a team from the 1930s.

43. The 1940s- Choose a team from the 1940s.

44. The 1950s- Choose a team from the 1950s.

45. The 1960s- Choose a team from the 1960s.

46. The 1970s- Choose a team from the 1970s.

47. The 1980s- Choose a team from the 1980s.

48. The 1990s- Choose a team from the 1990s

49. 21^st Century- Choose a team from 2000-2016.

50. Something Old, Something New- 12 teams from the Deadball Era; 12 teams from the 21st Century.

51. NL East- Choose from franchises that currently play in the NL East.

52. NL Central- Choose from franchises that currently play in the NL Central.

53. NL West- Choose from franchises that currently play in the NL West.

54. AL East- Choose from franchises that currently play in the AL East.

55. AL Central- Choose from franchises that currently play in the AL Central.

56. AL West- Choose from franchises that currently play in the AL West.

57. Beasts from the East- 12 teams must feature rosters from franchises that currently play in the NL East; 12 must feature rosters from franchises that currently play in the AL East.

58. Fly Over Country- 12 teams must feature rosters from franchises that currently play in the NL Central; 12 must feature rosters from franchises that currently play in the AL Central.

59. Wild, Wild West- 12 teams must feature rosters from franchises that currently play in the NL West; 12 must feature rosters from franchises that currently play in the AL West.

60. We are open for other suggestions…

Heroes Blacklist for Season Two

Alexander, Pete
Alomar, Roberto
Beltran, Carlos
Beltre, Adrian
Burnett, A.J.
Garciaparra, Nomar
Gibson, Bob
Gwynn, Willie
Hernandez, Willie
Higuera, Teddy
Jackson, Joe
Johnson, Randy
Kershaw, Clayton
Lowe, Derek
Maddux, Greg
Mays, Willie
Richard, J.R.
Ruth, Babe
Seaver, Tom
Vaughan, Arky
Williams, Ted
Wilson, Don
Wilson, Hack

Please feel free to claim your franchise/selected season in this thread.

I will choose my franchise/selected season no earlier than 12th.

Twist w/ a Hero (World Series Losers)

1. sawbuxx - 1918 Chicago Cubs
2. matt121888 - 1926 New York Yankees
3. ybjsports - 1927 Pittsburgh Pirates
4. greenmissile - 1941 Brooklyn Dodgers
5. Chisock - 1942 New York Yankees
6. zephyr1949 - 1954 Cleveland Indians
7. SandyAmoros - 1956 Brooklyn Dodgers
8. pmwksw - 1962 San Francisco Giants
9. fatboydad54 - 1966 Los Angeles Dodgers
10. steve9955 - 1967 Boston Red Sox
11. jumpfame - 1968 St. Louis Cardinals
12. Yaz2Schill - 1971 Baltimore Orioles
13. ETSTim - 1974 Los Angeles Dodgers
14. fatboydad54 - 1976 New York Yankees
15. ybjsports - 1982 Milwaukee Brewers
16. willclark - 1983 Philadelphia Phillies
17. wildbillhagy - 1985 St. Louis Cardinals
18. GuerillaZen1- 1990 Oakland Athletics
19. specsman - 1996 Atlanta Braves
20. trd3 - 1997 Cleveland Indians
21. frank_drebin - 2003 New York Yankees
22. richabbs - 2009 Philadelphia Phillies
23. mars2010 - 2012 Detroit Tigers
24. combalt - TBD


sawbuxx; matt121888; greenmissile; Chisock; zephyr1949; SandyAmoros; pmwksw; fatboydad54; steve9955; Yaz2Schill; ETSTim; ybjsports; willclark; specsman; trd3; frank_drebin; mars2010; jumpfame; wildbillhagy; GuerillaZen1; combalt; richabbs

I'll take the 1941 Brooklyn Dodgers.

Welcome, greenmissile.

Where are the Cardinals fans? I thought the '68 Cards and '85 Cards would have been two of the first teams off the board!

I'll take the 1983 phillies

do i need to claim my hero now or just when we start?

You can claim your hero when you enter your roster. Remember, heroes are not exclusive, so several owners theoretically could end up with the same player as their team's hero in the same season.

sawbuxx has informed me that he wanted the 1918 Cubs, not the 1910 Cubs. (I'm guessing I read his sitemail when I was wearing my glasses instead of my contact lenses.) Sorry for any confusion.

I will take the 1966 L.A, Dodgers (swept by the O's)

I'm going to take the 2012 Detroit Tigers.

I'm in with the 1974 Dodgers. Hero: Mike Piazza.