N.L. EAST PREDICTIONS

Wichita Tradio 1st N.L. East Last Season: 103-59

The Tradios have improved each season under manager themehl and last years 103 win season had the fans buzzing in Wichita of a possible World Series title, but Salem crushed their hopes by sending the Tradios home after the 1st round. The Tradios didn't sit around and mope, but instead went out and signed one of the top hitters in Ott in Bartolo Sardinha. Sardinha makes the Tradios an instant front runner to be the team to represent the N.L. in the World Series with his 57 Home Runs, 154 Rbi's and .320 BA. With Tyreace Parrott along side Sardinha, Wichita will have one of the best offenses in the Majors. Wichita couldn't ask for a better rotation than Tomas Benitez, Ray Hundley, and Oswaldo Arias. The big 3 combined for 56 wins last season. Cy Young award winner Benitez led the group with 21 wins and a ridiculous 2.00 Era. The Tradios great pitching and high powered offense have the fans going crazy in Wichita again as they expect to be parading the streets at seasons end.

Prediction: 110-52 1st N.L. East

KEY LOSSES: Edgard Mantalban, Rafael Marquez 4.39 Era, Brian Price 34 Home Runs, 128 Rbi, .303 BA, Javier Estrella 24 Home Runs, .308 BA, Carl Pillette 26 Saves, 3.48 Era, Hootie Wolf 2.84 Era, Julian Ozuna 2.32 Era

KEY ADDITIONS: Tim Adams - Promoted, Amos Dunwoody - Promoted, Al Martin - Promoted, Al Parrish - FA, Pascual Nieves - FA, Bartolo Sardinha - FA, Neifi Valenzuela - FA

Trenton Tractors 2nd N.L. East Last Season: 102-60

The Trenton Tractors knocked off the defending World Series Champs last season and looked primed for another World Series run until they met hot Helena in the National League Championship Series and were swept out of the playoffs. With the loss of Ricardo Perez and Tony Martin, the Tractors may have a tough time keeping up with the Tradios this season. Ace Al Castillo and his 20 wins from last season head the starting rotation for the Tractors and SP Anthony Sanders should cushion the blow of losing Perez and keep the Tractors in contention for the playoffs. Trenton relies on the long ball for offense as Benji Perez, Merv Zito, and Edwin Brow each mashed over 40 Home Runs last season while driving in 367 runs. The Tractors offense will keep them in the running for the N.L. East, but the loss of Perez may be the difference in Trenton finishing atop the league.

Prediction: 93-69 2nd N.L. East

KEY LOSSES: Chip Leon, Tony Tavarez 2.76 Era, Ricardo Perez 3.74 Era, 18 W, 196 K's, Tony Martin 10 W

KEY ADDITIONS: Samuel Gross - FA, Javier Mairena - FA, Matt Magnante - Trade

Toledo Raptures 3rd N.L. East Last Season: 91-71

Toledo was the only team that didn't make any moves in the offseason to better their team and it could cost them dearly in the competitive N.L. East. Willie Campbell was the only player to reach over 100 Rbi's last season for the Raptures and if they hope to challenge for the N.L. East, they will need more production out of their offense as they finished in the bottom of the league in scoring runs last season. With no true Ace, The Raptures may find it hard to reach 90 wins again this season, but if they can get it to the 9th inning and Jeffrey Simmons, they will likely walk away winners as Simmons posted a 3.56 Era and 40 saves for Toledo last season. Unfortunately for Toledo, there is too much talent in the N.L. East to contend and will likely have them looking up from the cellar all season long.

Prediction: 78-84 4th N.L. East

KEY LOSSES: NONE

KEY ADDITIONS: NONE

Indianapolis Thunder Road 4th N.L. East Last Season: 79-83

Management wasn't happy with last seasons below .500 ball and they showed how serious they were about winning by making moves that could put the Thunder Road in position to make the playoffs this season. Indianapolis struggled to hit the long ball last season but with newly aquired Benji Rosado and Jose Martinez that shouldn't be a problem as both of these guys belted 40 Home Runs apiece last season. Roscoe Morris and Esteban Molina led the way for the Thunder last season winning 29 games and with the addition of Alex Lee Indianapolis is looking to make some noise in the N.L. East. Offense kept the Thunder from making the playoffs last season, but with the additions of Rosado and Martinez, the fans should be catching plenty of souvenir balls and watching the Thunder fight all the way to the end for a playoff spot.

Prediction: 91-71 3rd N.L. East

KEY LOSSES: Grover Wood 3.92 Era, 35 Saves, Phil Suzuki, Kris Rushford, Daniel Carroll 28 Home Runs, 109 Rbi, .327 BA, Posiedon Dodd

KEY ADDITIONS: Benji Rosado - Trade, Jason Peterman - Trade, Alex Lee - Trade, Orlando Bravo - Trade, Jose Martinez - Trade, Brent Latham - Rule 5, Patrick Judd - Promoted, Sammy Rosado - Promoted, Wes May - Promoted

A.L. NORTH PREDICTIONS

Portland Rogues 1st A.L. North Last Season: 96-66

The Portland Rogue enjoyed their 1st A.L. North Division Title under manager Ridney and what a season it was that saw the Rogue beat not 1, not 2 but 3 100 win teams in the playoffs in route to the franchises first World Series berth. The Rogue kept the nucleus of their team intact and bolstered their bullpen by adding Garrett Duff and Julian Ozuna. All-Star Emmett Chiasson leads the offense by slugging 50 Home Runs and totaling 122 RBI's last season. The Rogue pitching staff have the luxury of pitching in a pitcher's park and Spud Logan took advantage of that by going 12-5 and posting a 4.09 ERA last season. Logan hopes to better those numbers to help lead the Rogue to their 2nd straight Division title. Solid hitting and solid pitching should keep the Rogue on top of the Division and like last year, anything can happen in the playoffs.

Prediction: 93-69 1st A.L. North

KEY LOSSES: Angel Zurbaran, Efrain Woodson

KEY ADDITIONS: Julian Ozuna - FA, Garrett Duff - FA

Montreal Mallards 2nd A.L. North Last Season: 78-84

The Mallards fell just short of finishing .500 last season and a lot of the problem had to do with poor pitching. The Mallards signed 4 free-agents to try to solve their pitching woes. Most notable is Gene Hague who signed a 4 year 41 Million dollar contract and the Mallards are hoping he is worth every penny. Hague is leaving one hitters park, where he posted a 31-40 record and a 5.42 ERA over 3 seasons, to go to another hitters park. The Mallards are hoping Hague's numbers improve but past results say the Mallards just spent a ton of money on wishful thinking. Offensively, Douglas Quinn and Mike Taylor both drove in 100 runs and hit over 20 Home Runs last season but the Mallards are lacking a true power bat as no one hit 30 Home Runs for them last season. The Mallards lack of power and average pitching in a hitters park are not a good combination and will leave the Mallards again falling short of .500.

Prediction: 71-91 4th A.L. North

KEY LOSSES: Victor Javier, Cesar Abreu , Taylor Guerrero, Wally Blair

KEY ADDITIONS: Dean Duffy - FA, Robert Henderson - FA, Gene Hague - FA , Albert Merced - FA

Seattle Stormbringers 3rd A.L. North Last Season: 77-85

The Stormbringers are looking to turn the corner this season and fight for a playoff spot. Rudy Hernandez and Bob Gunderson hope to continue bashing the ball as they did last season when they combined for 76 Home Runs and 197 RBI's. Seattle shouldn't feel the loss of Fred Seay and his .282 BA and 16 Home Runs as they upgraded with Javier Estrella. Young 25 year old George McPherson paces the pitching staff with his 17 wins last season and 3.92 Era. Health will be the big issue for Seattle and could be the difference in Seattle contending for the Division or staying out of the North cellar.

Prediction: 85-77 2nd A.L. North

KEY LOSSES: Fred Seay .282 BA, 16 HR'S, Herm Banks

KEY ADDITIONS: Nate Soriano - FA, Javier Estrella - FA, Bill Hammond - FA , Bud Case - FA, Benny Lee - CLAIMED OFF WAIVERS

Pittsburgh Pirates 4th A.L. North Last Season: 68-94

The Pirates took a step back last season which was due to their pitching woes. The Pirates only had 3 pitchers with an Era under 5.00. Pitcher Al Romo led the Pirates with 11 wins but is hoping to step up this season and post more wins. Pittsburgh is hoping the addition of Michael Chase will help their pitching problems and lead to more wins this season. I don't think there is a pitcher in Ott that wants to throw to Al Roberts and who blames them with his 40 Home Runs and 132 Rbi's. Robert's is a Rbi machine averaging 132 Rbi's a season in his young career and if he stays healthy will be a shoe in for the HOF. The Pirates have a solid offense that could have them contend for the Division but with the pitching woes, the Pirates will probably be fighting for third in the A.L North.

Prediction: 72-90 3rd A.L. North

KEY LOSSES: Mac Satou, Placido Vega .281 BA, 39 SB, 100 RUNS , Mike Gomes, Jiggs Clontz, Tony Rosado

KEY ADDITIONS: Sid Rivera - PROMOTED, Johnny Tollberg - FA, Michael Chase - FA , Donaldo Maduro - RULE 5, Benji Sanchez - RULE 5

N.L. NORTH PREDICTIONS

Cincinnati Red Stockings 1st N.L. North Last Season: 114-48

The Red Stockings led the Majors with 114 wins last season, but a second round playoff series lost to the Tractors have them hungrier than ever to return to the World Series and bring the Trophy back home to Cincy. The Stockings made sure that the starting pitching would stay intact with the re-signing of Lou Brock and his 17 wins and 3.33 ERA. 6 time Cy Young award winner Donald Zhang leads the way for Cincy and is only 6 wins away from 200 career wins. The stockings missed Pablo Mendoza after he went down early last season with a torn ACL. Mendoza hit 21 Home runs in only 43 games last season and if he comes back true to form, I'm not sure any team will be able to stop Cincy from returning to the World series. Cincy did lose pop in the lineup when they traded away Jose Martinez to the Thunder Roads, but Cincy has plenty of fire power even with the loss of Martinez's 40 Home runs. If there's a weak spot on this Cincy team, it would have to be the bullpen. With the Red Stockings starting pitching and offense, Cincy should still be able to pound their way to another North Division Title and deep run in the playoffs.

Prediction: 108-54 1st North

KEY LOSSES: Harry Delgado - 24 Home runs and .304 BA. Jose Martinez - 40 Home runs, 106 RBI, 109 R, and .304 BA.
KEY ADDITIONS: Richie Thompson - FA

Chicago Freeway 2nd N.L. North Last Season: 61-101

The Freeway are looking at another long season as they continue to rebuild. With no talent on the starting pitching rotation, limited offensive weapons and a shaky bullpen, The Freeway are probably looking at another 100 loss season. MVP Al Rosado may be wasting his talents in Chicago this season with limited save opportunities, but with Rosado only being 26, he hopes to stick around and be a big part in the rebuild process that will eventually help the Freeway to a North division title and deep run in the playoffs. The Freeway were at the bottom of the league last season in offense and losing Al Alvarez 40 Home runs won't help the Freeway's offensive woes. Chicago promoted Justin Pote to the majors hoping to make up for the loss of Alvarez, but with Pote's low contact and batting eye, Manager Coneheads may be wishing he would have re-signed Alvarez while leaving Pote in the minors for 1 more year of development. The future is bright for Chicago as young players like Miguel Ortiz start to bring their talents to the big leagues and turn the Freeway into a contender instead of a pretender.

Prediction: 59-102 4th N.L. North

KEY LOSSES: Geronimo Alvarez, Al Alvarez - 41 Home runs and 105 RBI, Junior McCartney, Vic Sanchez

KEY ADDITIONS: Justin Pote - Promoted, Charles McCallum - Promoted, Archie Wolcott - Rule 5, Shouta Uchida - Rule 5

Hartford Whalers 3rd in N.L. North Last Season: 57-105

The Whalers struggled last season to find wins but they are hoping that the offense can lead them to more victories this season. The pitching staff is still below par as David Baerga leads the way with his 4.90 ERA. Aging Kyle Key is in the last year of his contract and by his 2 wins and 6.07 ERA last season, next season can't get here fast enough for the Whalers. J.R. Kirwan's 37 Home runs and 120 RBI will keep opposing pitchers on their toes as Ralph Nelson, Julian Seanez , and Julian Moraga will help put pressure on opposing defenses. Pitching will still be the Whalers kryptonite and will keep the Whalers from making an impact on the playoff race this season.

Prediction: 65-97 2nd N.L. North

KEY LOSSES: Torii Kent, Gene Hague , Eduardo Melo

KEY ADDITIONS: Benji Torrealba - FA, Julio Gonzales - FA, Samuel Burks - FA, Mac Satou - FA

Madison Labradors 4th N.L. North Last Season: 55-107

The fans are hoping new management is what the Labradors need to get back to their winning ways. Madison struggled in all aspects of the game last season, but Madison has dropped some dead weight and added talent by promoting within but they still have a long way to go to start to be considered playoff contenders. Edgard Ferrer and Troy Nixon led the way offensively last season by belting 30 and 36 Home runs. It's going to take a lot more than that though with the Labradors lacking quality pitching as Sean Williams and his 7.58 ERA is leading the rotation. The Labradors will be fighting to stay out of the cellar this season and with no major talent additions and the loss of Trajano, the fight will last all season long.

Prediction: 62-100 3rd N.L. North

KEY LOSSES: Rafael Trajano 4.65 ERA, Matty Ugueto, Robert Henderson, Wesley Tracy 25 Home runs

KEY ADDITIONS: Johnny Hutch - Rule 5, Alex Satou - FA, Miguel Mercado - FA, Fergie Douglas - FA, Sammy Figureoa - FA, Earl Mayne - Promoted, Harry Wilkins - Promoted, Lee Carlson - Promoted

Encore?


After just missing the playoff field for the previous 3 years, the Volcanoes finally broke through last year. Not only did they make the playoffs, they upset The Tradio in the opening round of the playoffs. Now what?

The small town Salem franchise usually grows their talent in the farm system. This off season they entered the FA market by signing second-tier starting pitcher Clarence Allen (14-10 4.03 with Iowa) to replace Hong-Chih Ishida (9-7 5.52). The V’s could no longer be patient with the 24yr old from Tokyo with the core of their team getting into their prime years. The 32 yr old Allen has shown he can toss a lot of innings (225 last year), which is something that attracted Salem’s management interest. Salem has had hot and cold experiences with FA pitchers in the past, so what comes out of this is anyone’s guess.

Salem went into the trade market looking to find LF Eric Alexander (.272 39-114) a new home and they found a match they liked with division mate KC. JT Smalley brings an exceptional glove and 20 HR power to SS and allows captain Jimmy Posada (.285 9-72) to take his declining range to the less demanding LF position. It is anticipated that a further move to 3B could be in Posada’s future, since thirdbaseman Tony Alvarez is in the last year of his contract. While the V’s are sacrificing some of Alexander’s power, the offset in defensive improvement in LF (where Alexander performed in a Manny-esque manner) and the addition of a potential gold glover at SS is expected to out weigh any negative offensive impacts. Salem has finished second to Cincinnati in runs scored the past two years. Sacrificing a few runs to improve the whole left side of the defense will certainly make the Salem pitching staff a much happier lot. The V’s hope is that the change might squeeze out a few more victories, which they will need to compete in the NL West.

Salem returns a gold glove catcher who shot down 36% of those running against him last year, Harry Moreno (.265 5-45). The light hitting Dominican is loved by the pitching staff, almost as much as his agent apparently loves him. His contract demands after the GG award was won were out of this world (Salem’s GM remarked after reading the proposal, “Are these pesos or dollars we are talking about?”), and with Wendell Welch getting ready in the minors this could be Moreno’s farewell season in Salem. Welch was hurried to the show last year and it showed(.184 2-11 in 184 AB), but he returned to form after he was sent back for more seasoning. He probably will stay at AAA this year while fellow Dominican Al Rivera backs up Moreno. Rivera’s bat did well in the September playoff push last year (.286 2-9 in 91 AB), though he leaves a lot to be desired behind the plate.

Ron York’s numbers were down a bit from his MVP season the previous year, but he still led the league in RBI’s for the second straight year (.290 47-157). The 27 year old York enters his prime with 236 career HR’s already. He is more than adequate with the glove at the first base sack.

Secondbaseman Paulie Coffie has won just about every award he can win. He’s been an all-star, a silver slugger, and a gold glove at second base. He won his first batting title last year (.345 17-67 62 SB’s) after just missing the title a couple season’s ago. The speedster is now in the top 5 all-time base stealers in Ott’s history with 424 stolen bases. He has some pop too…he averages about 17 dingers a year from his leadoff spot. It’s a shame the MVP voters value power above all else....Coffie puts the caffine in the whole lineup but cannot even get on the MVP ballot. Talk about life on the “D” list!

32 yr old Tony Alvarez (.261 20-77) enters probably his last season as the V’s slick fielding third sacker. He has been a model of consistency since arriving, averaging 20 HR and 86 RBI from the number 7 spot. Salem is salivating at the thought of 21 yr old Julio Mercado’s power potential to emerge, but for now Mercado will stay at AAA. If another power hitter, former first round pick Jose Lucano tears up AAA this year, he could force Posada to 3B as he takes over the left fielder position next year.

Gerald Hujimoto was given the CF job last year as a rookie and he didn’t disappoint (.277 32-91), with excellent defense thrown in for good measure. Look for more RBI’s as he moves to Alexanders #5 slot in the batting order. Huji certainly has the ability to improve even more as his bat matures.

Junior Gill (.298 50-128) patrols RF like a junk-yard dog and used his lighting bat last year to notch his second 50 HR season in his time with Salem. He makes impossible plays look routine. Runners have just stopped trying to take the extra base on him. His talents are noticed…he’s been in the running for the past two MVP awards, though he has not (as yet) won.

Salem has not been able to improve their pitching to the point where they can be a top-notch contender. Steve Hoffman (14-8 3.74) and Jim Stone (14-6 4.22) show promise for a couple of 24 yr olds that were rushed to the bigs. After the before-mentioned Allen, the V’s have a triplett of 25 yr olds: Magglio Nunez (12-5 3.72) ,who came up as a 20 year old, has been 25-9 the past two seasons. Lefty Walter Mailman (5-5 4.33) has been up and down the past three seasons and just needs to show some consistency. Henry Hutton (6-4 3.68) was called up towards the last part of the season and was surprisingly instrumental in Salem’s playoff run.

Salem has always had a top-notch bullpen led by David Gonzales (31 saves, 3.36 ERA). Veterans Ozzie Cheng and Frank Kim did not have good years last year and they are looking to rebound. Rookie Ozzie Riley notched a 1.64 ERA in 38 games after his call-up. Ivan Martin and long reliever Chris Ramirez round out the staff. More relievers are on the way at AAA.

Finally, the bench players are not in focus as of this writing. Ralph Karl was called up as a 10 day fill in and stayed for the remainder of the season hitting .300 with 20 HR in just 260 AB. Can he repeat this performance? Veterans Pedro Rincon and John Padden really offer very little in the way of offense. Other than Welch, Lucano, and Mercado very little offense is on the way to the big club.

Encore? KC is much improved and then there’s that pesky team in Helena to deal with. It is hard to see KC making up all the ground in one year and passing Salem. This could be one of the hardest divisions, and the Volcanoes should be right in the thick of it.

SHOW ME THE MONEY...

This was one of the biggest spending on FA's that Ott has seen since the world was created. Wichita Tradio led the way with big FA signings of Bartolo Sardinha, Pascual Nieves, and Al Parrish. The Tradios spent over 152 Million with the largest contract coming from Sardinha and his 104 million over 5 years. Sardinha is worth every penny if he keeps performing the way he has the past 5 seasons. Sardinha is averaging 54 Homeruns and 153 RBI's the last 5 seasons. Bartolo is a one man wrecking crew and could be the key to getting the Tradio's to the World Series and GM Themehl another ring.

Not to be out done, the Charlotte Flyers went on their own spending spree signing Tony Martin, Joaquin Mesa, Eduardo Mendoza, Brian Ishida, and most notable Yuniesky Ortiz. The Flyers are hoping their 152 Million spending spree will get them back to the playoffs after a 5 year hiatus.

Cincinnati Red Stockings only had one goal this FA signing and that was making sure Lou Brock stayed a Red Stocking. It took a 5 year max contract, but Brock will be suiting up for the Stockings and hoping to help lead them back to a World Series title.

Kansas City Baseball Furies are hoping to get back to their winning ways by signing Ricardo Perez and Frank Ono. Perez has been a dominant pitcher and the Furies hope, with the money they spent on him, that he will continue his dominating ways.

With the insane amount of money being thrown at FA's this season, there's going to be a lot pressure for these players to perform to the expectations of the owners and fans. Only time will tell which ones will be up to the task.

WILL IT EVER END?

It started in Season 1 with just a division title and nothing more and then season 2 rolled around and despite 105 wins still led to just a division title and an early exit in the playoffs at the hands of the Scranton Red Barons. After season 3 and a World Series ring later, we knew this owner was special but who knew what this franchise had brewing. Led by Greats Donte Booker and Bryan Gold New has won 5 World Series and 16 straight Division Titles... What's that... A typo you say... Nope, that's right the AL South has never seen another team or owner at the top of the standings other than the Santa Fe Techocrats. The Techocrats have played in over 60% of the World Series in Ott and have averaged a whopping 114 wins a season with 2 seasons of 126 win seasons which are Ott best. Luck? I think not... Skill? Sounds about right. New has traded and drafted his way with precision at making the Techocrats the best franchise in Ott. If there was ever a Hall Of Fame for owners, there's no doubt New would head the list with his unheard success with the Techocrats... Which brings me to what is a Techocrat??? Technocracy is a hypothetical form of government in which engineers, scientists, and other technical experts are in control of decision making in their respective fields. That's right it's a smart mother....well you get the point. New couldn't have picked a more fitting name cause with his expert decision making, he has made the Techocrats the most successful and coveted franchise in Ott. Will it ever end? 3 teams in the AL South sure hope so...