-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
October 7
Red Sox @ Indians
Red Sox 2 - Indians 5
Indians win series 3-1
A great start by Nagy helps the Indians bring our season to a premature end. Nagy went seven innings, allowed only two runs on eight hits, and struck out four. Tony Peņa killed us at the plate, going 2-4 with a double, a triple, and two RBI's. Barry Larkin again went 2-5, and Mo Vaughn and Naehring drove in runs in the season-ending loss.
HTML Code:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 + R H E
Red Sox (BOS) 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 10 0
Indians (CLE) 0 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 x 5 13 0
BOSTON ab h bb r hr bi k sb avg
B. Larkin (SS) 5 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 .329
R. White (CF) 5 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .311
N. Garciaparra (DH) 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .310
M. Vaughn (1B) 4 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 .313
M. Greenwell (LF) 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .308
M. Stanley (C) 4 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .267
B. Boone (2B) 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 .278
T. Nixon (RF) 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .265
T. Naehring (3B) 4 2 0 1 1 1 0 0 .262
TOTALS 37 10 2 2 1 2 4 0
HR: T. Naehring
BOSTON ip h bb hr r er k pit ERA
J. Moyer 4.0 9 0 0 4 4 4 78 4.68
M. Stanton 0.2 1 2 0 1 1 1 19 4.50
T. Gordon 2.1 2 1 0 0 0 0 48 5.15
H. Slocumb 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 15 4.85
TOTALS 8.0 13 3 0 5 5 5 160
CLEVELAND ab h bb r hr bi k sb avg
K. Lofton (CF) 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .336
O. Vizquel (SS) 4 3 1 1 0 1 0 1 .307
A. Belle (LF) 4 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .282
M. Ramirez (RF) 4 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 .344
J. Thome (3B) 3 2 1 2 0 0 1 0 .305
E. Murray (1B) 4 3 0 1 0 1 0 0 .292
B. Giles (DH) 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .318
C. Baerga (2B) 4 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .310
T. Pena (C) 4 2 0 1 0 2 0 0 .279
TOTALS 35 13 3 5 0 5 5 1
2B: T. Pena
3B: T. Pena
GIDP: E. Murray
CLEVELAND ip h bb hr r er k pit ERA
C. Nagy 7.0 8 2 1 2 2 4 109 4.67
P. Assenmacher 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 16 4.60
J. Mesa 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 15 4.77
TOTALS 9.0 10 2 1 2 2 4 140
WP: C. Nagy
LP: J. Moyer
SV: J. Mesa
WP - Charles Nagy
LP - Jamie Moyer
SV - Jose Mesa
HR - Tim Naehring (1)
============================================================================
THE REST OF THE PLAYOFFS
YANKEES vs. MARINERS
The Mariners manage to force a Game #5 with the help of Sterling Hitchcock! Hitchcock threw a complete game shutout, allowing three hits and three walks, while striking out six. Offensively they got homers out of A-Rod and KGJ (Ken Griffey Jr., in case you were stumped :p)
Series tied 2-2
ASTROS vs. ROCKIES
The Astros also manage to force a fifth game, as they got a strong start out of Mike Hampton. Hampton went seven innings and allowed two runs on six hits. His counterpart, David Nied, was nearly as effective, allowing six runs over six innings.
Series tied 2-2
DODGERS vs. MARLINS
Wow. The Marlins ALSO force a decisive Game #5 (meaning my series was the only one that didn't go five games, go figure), after Chan Ho Park blows it and allows them to put three runs on the board in the top of the ninth.
Series tied 2-2
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
THE REST OF THE PLAYOFFS
YANKEES vs. MARINERS
The Yankees pull it out in the end with a strong start from David Cone. Cone went 7 2/3 innings and allowed only two runs while striking out a whopping 15 batters. Whoda thunk the Mariners would've lost both games that Randy Johnson made the start in.
Yankees win the series 3-2
ASTROS vs. ROCKIES
The Rockies blow their early 2-0 series lead and allow the Astros to win the series and advance to the NLCS. Drabek allows only two runs in seven innings, and the offense goes nuts and puts up 12 runs. Biggio collected four RBI's, while Abreu and Bagwell had three each.
Astros win series 3-2
DODGERS vs. MARLINS
The Dodgers advance to the NLCS on a strong start by Ismael Valdez. Valdez falls one out short of a complete game, going 8 2/3 innings and allowing just two runs while striking out six. Raul Mondesi went 3-4 and drove in three runs.
Dodgers win series 3-2
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
AMERICAN LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
YANKEES vs. INDIANS
Yankees win series 4-1
The Indians barely showed up to play in this series. They win the most regular season games in all of baseball, but only manage to win one game in the ALCS against the Yankees? And it took them 13 innings to do it at that!? They also got outscored 37-21 in the series.
DODGERS vs. ASTROS
Dodgers win series 4-1
The Dodgers win the NLCS and advance to the World Series where they will play the Yankees. They dropped the first game of the series 11-3, but won the next four, outscoring the Astros 28-9 in their four wins.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
1996 MLB WORLD SERIES
YANKEES vs. DODGERS
Yankees win series 4-2
The Dodgers took an early series lead, winning the first two games of the series, and looked like they would win the series as they were heading back to LA with a 2-0 series lead. But the Yankees were just too much and they won the next four games in a row to claim the World Series title of 1996.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
OFF-SEASON PLAN
Our first season was quite successful in terms of wins and losses, but we're going for that ever elusive World Championship. And now that the season is over and the World Series victor has been declared, it's time to look towards the off-season and what we're looking to do.
IMPROVE THE DEFENSE
Defense was a big problem for us this season, as we had one of the lowest rated defensive teams in the league (bottom five easily, though I'm not sure exactly where). We had Mo Vaughn and Barry Larkin make 13 errors, Jeff Frye made 12, and the combination of Bret Boone, Tim Naehring, and Freddy Sanchez made 16 errors at third base this season*. Not only that but Mike Stanley only threw out 23% of runners that ran on him and he average almost a steal a game against. The outfield defense of Greenwell, White, and Nixon is actually pretty solid so no problem there. Regardless, when we've got guys like Jeff Suppan, Brad Radke, and Jamie Moyer in the starting rotation, all guys who pitch to contact and are vastly more effective with a strong infield defense behind them, we can't afford to have that kind a defense that's gonna make close to fifty errors on the infield.
The positions we're mainly looking to address are first base, third base, and second base (we feel that Mike Stanley's bat largely makes up for the less than stellar defense)
- FIRST BASE - With Mo Vaughn's contract expiring it should be fairly easy to improve here. The problem is, there aren't many great defensive first baseman in the league who may be available right now. Our main and/or most likely target (depending on how you look at it) is John Olerud of the Toronto Blue Jays. Olerud's got a very nice glove, and a solid bat to boot. Other possibilities include Mark Grace, Rafael Palmeiro, and David Segui.
- THIRD BASE - Naehring's contract is also coming off the books this season, so this could/should be another easy upgrade. However, the problem again is lack of defense strong third basemen in the league. The most likely trade possibility would be White Sox third basemen Robin Ventura. Edgardo Alfonzo may be a trade candidate, and Wade Boggs could be a free agent after the season.
- SECOND BASE - The most likely scenario here is that we hand the reins over to incumbent second baseman and top prospect Freddy Sanchez. Sanchez looks like he'll have a very nice glove at second base already, though his range is a little lacking, and he did hit decently in his 58 big league games this season. The only trade or signing possibility would be Mets second basemen Jeff Kent, who could be made available as the Mets look to be rebuilding.
SIGN-AND-TRADE MO VAUGHN
After Mo Vaughn's spectacular season he's gonna be leaving one way or another, and there's no way in hell I'm letting him leave town without getting something in return. Chances are he'll go in a deal like the ones thought about above and bring us something to improve the defense.
ACQUIRE A BIG HITTER
With Mo Vaughn leaving one way or another, that's gonna leave an enormous void (especially in the power department) in the middle of our line-up that we'll have to fill. Rondell put up almost a .900 OPS this season, but I doubt that will happen again, and Nomar should improve on his .868 OPS and .505 slugging percentage moving forward, as should Nixon, but I'm not expecting twenty homer seasons out of Mike Greenwell and Mike Stanley again. I'm not really sure how I'm gonna fill this hole. The free agent market looks pretty barren this off-season. Ray Lankford is the only big bat with the chance to be on the market this season, and center field is already taken by Rondell White. I'm gonna look into trading with a rebuilding team to get an All-Star hitter, but I also don't want to mortgage the farm this off-season. Possibilities on the trade front could be Ivan Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, and the aforementioned Jeff Kent, though any of them would probably cost me everything in my farm worth trading, and then some.
That's basically what we're looking at doing this off-season. I may also look to improve at catcher, as I'm not sold Stanley will repeat his 20+ homer .800+ OPS from this season. The defense is my biggest concern, and signing-and-trading Mo Vaughn will likely occur as an effect of one of the other two goals.
EXPIRING CONTRACTS
Y=We're looking to resign
N=We're not looking to resign
A=Arbitration-eligible
2B Bret Boone - Y
1B Mo Vaughn - N
C Joe Oliver - Y
OF Phil Clark - Y
OF Alex Cole - N
1B Reggie Jefferson - N
OF Shane Mack - N
3B Tim Naehring - N
SP Butch Henry - Y
RP Heathcliff Slocumb - Y
RP Tom Gordon - N
RP John Doherty - N
RP Scott Service - N
OF Troy O'Leary - A/Y
2B Jeff Frye - A/Y
RP Rich Garces - A/Y
* - I know errors aren't the best way of judging a players defense, but BBM doesn't give you much to work with for defensive stats so I went with it. In fact, most of Larkin's errors are probably a factor of his above-average range more than anything.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
BREAKING NEWS
SOX AND GIANTS COMBINE FOR HUGE TRADE
BONDS TO BOSTON
The Red Sox and Giants combined to make one of the biggest trades in Major League Baseball since Babe Ruth was sent from the Red Sox to the Yankees in 1918. The trade will send Barry Bonds to Boston in exchange for seven players. Top Sox prospects CF Michael Coleman and C Jason Varitek will be going to San Francisco, along with LF Mike Greenwell, 1B Juan Diaz, SP Jin Ho Cho, OF Troy O'Leary, and RP Steve Ontiveros.
The Giants finished 1996 67-95, which put them last in the NL West. They're trading a huge bat, but they're obviously in a rebuilding stage, and they're getting some of the Red Sox best prospects, so this works out to a fair deal for them. The Red Sox finished 98-64, and made the playoffs as the Wild Card. They were bounced out after the first round however, and this trade is seen as a precursor to a Mo Vaughn trade. They were unhappy with Mo's defense at first base, but were unwilling to trade him without first getting a big bat to replace him.
(Since I already wrote all the player ratings and shiz out in the trade approval thread I'm just gonna copy and past them over here instead of posting eight screenshots and making this page way longer than necessary)
LF Barry Bonds (94), 32 years old, 3.65M until Free Agency (1998)
85 contact/96 power/83 speed/99 eye
78 arm/76 range/87 fielding/83 health
for
CF Michael Coleman (67/92), 21 years old
69 contact/64 power/80 speed/73 eye
73 arm/73 range/62 fielding/75 health
C Jason Varitek (73/92), 24 years old
67 con/75 pow/62 spd/74 eye
74 arm/75 hand/72 field/88 health
1B Juan Diaz (71/86), 22 years old
76 con/68 pow/68 spd/77 eye
73 arm/69 rng/68 field/76 health
LF Mike Greenwell (81), 33 years old, 2.15 mil until Free Agency (1997)
88 con/80 pow/73 pow/82 eye
81 arm/72 rng/76 field/77 health
SP Jin Ho Cho (65/88), 21 years old
79 end/71 con/62 pow/63 mov
54 fastball/75 curve
69 def/71 hit/76 health
OF Troy O'Leary (79), 27 years old, 950K until arbitration (1996)
78 con/81 pow/70 spd/74 eye
76 arm/74 rng/90 field/80 health
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
BREAKING NEWS
RED SOX AND JAYS SWAP FIRST BASEMEN
VAUGHN FOR OLERUD
Today the Red Sox completed their sign-and-trade deal of Mo Vaughn. Throughout the season it had been widely speculated that the Mo would not be returning to the Red Sox for the '97 season. They were reportedly unhappy with his defense, and with Nomar locked in at DH that wasn't an option. After trading for Barry Bonds from the Bay Area they were able to send Vaughn packing to Toronto for Toronto's first baseman John Olerud straight up.
One of the Red Sox main goals this off-season was to improve upon the defense, which ranked as one of the worst in 1996. They accomplish that beautifully by ridding themselves of Vaughn's concrete glove and acquiring the much more sure-handed Olerud. Olerud doesn't possess quite the bat Vaughn had, but it's still very solid, and the recent acquistion of Barry Bonds makes up for the loss of Vaughn's bat and then some.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
BREAKING NEWS
RED SOX NOT DONE DEALING
ACQUIRE DEFENSIVE WHIZ CIRILLO
The Red Sox make their latest in a flurry of deals that has already brought Barry Bonds to Boston, and sent fan favorite Mo Vaughn to Toronto. This deal brings defensive-minded third baseman Jeff Cirillo to Boston from Cincy. In return the Reds acquire C Scott Hatteberg and 1B Morgan Burkhart.
Cirillo's bat isn't anything to write home about, but his glove, however is. He's got one of the best gloves at third base in baseball, and his bat is good enough to warrant a starting job at the Major League level. The Red Sox had major issues getting production of any sort out of third base in 1996, and with Cirillo they should get some, and even if he doesn't hit well he'll keep runs off the board with his glove.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
No big surprise that this award goes to Manny, as he was on a whole different planet this season. He led the league in batting average and home runs, and finished third in RBI's, behind only A-Rod and his teammate Albert Belle. Additionally he finished fifth in OBP, first in SLG%, and first in OPS. He also helped lead the Indians to the best record in baseball and a trip to the ALCS (which they lost against the Yankees). If he hadn't gone down with a broken jaw for four weeks he probably would've won the Triple Crown and broken some records.
Again, not a big surprise. Johnson finished first in strikeouts, ERA, opposing batting average, opposing on-base percentage, opposing slugging percentage, and opposing OPS. He was on a whole different stratosphere, the only one who came remotely close to him was Clemens, who finished second to Johnson in most of the categories mentioned above. He helped his team to a five game ALDS defeat at the hands of the eventual World Series champion Yankees.
I'm shocked this didn't go to Nomar. The only stats Jeter finished ahead of Nomar in were hits, runs, steals, batting average, and OBP (and even then they were pretty close in all those stats). Jeter's team did win more games, however, and did win the World Series, and I think that probably has a lot to do with why this award went to Jeter over Nomar. (Just for comparison, Nomar's season).
GOLD GLOVES
P - BOS Brad Radke (1)
C - TEX Ivan Rodriguez (5)
1B - DET Tony Clark (1)
2B - NYY Chuck Knoblauch (1)
3B - DET Travis Fryman (1)
SS - BAL Cal Ripken (3)
OF - KCR Johnny Damon (1)
OF - BAL B.J. Surhoff (1)
OF - SEA Ichiro Suzuki (1)
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Larry had a monster season for the Rockies. He helped them to tie for the second best record in the National League by tying for the NL lead in homers, third in RBI's, second in batting average, and first in OPS. His team made it to the playoffs, but was knocked out in the first round by the Houston Astros, who went on to lose to the Dodgers in the NLCS.
Harnisch managed to win this in spite of his team, the Mets, finishing dead last in the NL East (given it was a very tight race). Pete finished tied for second in the league in wins, second in ERA, and either first or second in all of opposing batting average, opposing on-base percentage, opposing slugging percentage, and opposing OPS.
Berkman wins this award by helping his team to the playoffs in his first season in the bigs, and posting a very respectable line of .301/.405/.451 with 12 homers and 93 RBI's. His team played in the NLCS, but lost to the Dodgers.
GOLD GLOVES
P - ATL Greg Maddux (7)
C - COL Charles Johnson (2)
1B - STL John Mabry (1)
2B - COL Eric Young (1)
3B - NYM Edgardo Alfonzo (1)
SS - PIT Jay Bell (2)
OF - PIT Orlando Merced (1)
OF - SDP Tony Gwynn (6)
OF - FLA Gary Sheffield (1)
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Quite possibly because Jeter played the field is why he won the award over Nomar. The Yankees winning the World Series shouldn't have anything to do with since the judging should come solely from the regular season.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Quote:
Originally Posted by
mattynokes
Quite possibly because Jeter played the field is why he won the award over Nomar. The Yankees winning the World Series shouldn't have anything to do with since the judging should come solely from the regular season.
Yeah, I was gonna mention that too. But I forgot about it as I was typing the other stuff, lol. Still, Nomar got robbed :p.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Quote:
Originally Posted by
mattynokes
Quite possibly because Jeter played the field is why he won the award over Nomar. The Yankees winning the World Series shouldn't have anything to do with since the judging should come solely from the regular season.
Also, the fact that Jeter played defense shouldn't have put him over the hump against Nomar. If anything the fact that Jeter played defense hurt his value, considering he made 20 errors :p.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
NOTABLE TRANSACTIONS
OFFSEASON - MONTH #2
AVERY TO MILWAUKEE
http://www.yankees2000.com/y2k/uploa...ery-764186.jpg
SP Steve Avery (81), CF Jerome Walton (67) to Milwaukee
SS Jose Valentin (80) to Atlanta
Good deal for both sides. Atlanta is stacked with pitching (Maddux, Glavine, Smoltz, and Schmidt all rated 90+) so they didn't really need Avery, and they were badly in need of a starting shortstop. Milwaukee gets a solid starter to help them compete.
DURHAM HEADED SOUTH TO ATLANTA
http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve...brewers_nc.jpg
RF Jermaine Dye,
RP John Rocker,
SS Jeff Blauser,
RP Chad Fox,
P Mike Cather,
RF Dwight Smith to
Chicago
2B Ray Durham,
CF Chris Singleton to
Atlanta
Originally this trade didn't include Dye going to Chicago, but when I saw the trade I didn't think it was fair so I forced Dye to Chicago to make it more fair for both sides. I'm still a bit iffy on it, but I think it's close enough. This trade probably makes Atlanta the favorite to win the NL East going into next season.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
BREAKING NEWS
SOX TRADE STANLEY
BRING IN GOLD GLOVE CATCHER AUSMUS
The Red Sox made another move, trading catcher Mike Stanley, along with a million dollars, to the Padres in exchange for another catcher, the 27 year old Brad Ausmus. Stanley put up a solid .267/.363/.456/.819 with 21 homers and 75 RBI's last season, but he struggled mightily on defense, allowing almost a steal a game and throwing out only 23% of would-be basestealers. Ausmus wasn't nearly as effective with the bat, barely managing a .700 OPS, but he is much more proficient with the glove.
The Padres needed a guy with a little pop, and Stanley provides that. Not exactly in spades, but he's a solid home run threat, and he's a fantastic on-base guy. We've been aiming to improve our defense all-around this off-season, and Ausmus is such a good defensive catcher there was no way we could pass up the opportunity to acquire him. We also feel the rest of the line-up is good enough to make up for the loss of Stanley's bat.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
BREAKING NEWS
COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE ANNOUNCES REALIGNMENT
MOVES MADE IN EFFORT TO SUPPORT COMPETITIVE BALANCE
Today the Commissioner of Major League Baseball, Bud Selig, announced that some realignment will be taking place for the upcoming baseball season. He said the moves were made in an effort to maintain the competitive balance baseball currently has, restore any it has lost, and to improve it moving forward. The commissioner also stated that he was concerned about the amount of 100+ win teams this past season (2), and the number of 95+ loss teams this season (5, 3 of which were 100+).
The new divisions will look as follows (last seasons record in parentheses):
AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST
CLEVELAND INDIANS (102-60)
BOSTON RED SOX (98-64)
BALTIMORE ORIOLES (87-75)
TORONTO BLUE JAYS (74-88)
NEW YORK METS (73-89)
AMERICAN LEAGUE CENTRAL
CHICAGO WHITE SOX (84-78)
ST. LOUIS CARDINALS (84-78)
PITTSBURGH PIRATES (76-86)
MILWAUKEE BREWERS (72-90)
MINNESOTA TWINS (60-102)
AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST
SEATTLE MARINERS (98-64)
CALIFORNIA ANGELS (94-68)
COLORADO ROCKIES (88-74)
TEXAS RANGERS (73-89)
NATIONAL LEAGUE EAST
NEW YORK YANKEES (104-58)
FLORIDA MARLINS (84-79)
ATLANTA BRAVES (83-80)
PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES (79-83)
MONTREAL EXPOS (76-86)
NATIONAL LEAGUE CENTRAL
HOUSTON ASTROS (91-71)
CHICAGO CUBS (83-79)
CINCINNATI REDS (82-80)
DETROIT TIGERS (67-95)
KANSAS CITY ROYALS (62-100)
NATIONAL LEAGUE WEST
LOS ANGELES DODGERS (88-74)
SAN DIEGO PADRES (83-79)
SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS (65-97)
OAKLAND ATHLETICS (59-103)
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
With the off-season now over and the regular season ready to start, lets see what the computer is projecting for the league. I've highlighted the teams that would make the playoffs, based on these predictions, in blue.
Well the computer's got us pegged for 100 wins, which is a bit on the high side in my opinion. We added a big bat in Bonds, but we didn't do much (anything) to improve the pitching staff, besides acquiring a more defensive-minded catcher, and that's where our problems tended to lie for most of last season. Though a full season of Brad Radke should help, and the improved defense infield defense should help everyone. We probably lost a little bit on offense, too. We added Bonds, but traded Vaughn, Greenwell, and Stanley, all of whom made up a huge portion of the offense. I also expect Cleveland to win more than 89 games, and I'm sure we'll be neck-and-neck with them all season.
I also don't think the AL Central will be nearly as bad as the computer seems to think, especially without Cleveland to compete with. I highly doubt the only team to finish above .500 will be the White Sox. I think the Cardinals, Pirates, and White Sox will all battle it out pretty this season.
Similar situation in the west. I think Seattle will be as good as ever, especially with A-Rod getting another year under his belt. I think this division is going to be highly competitive with the addition of Colorado, and subtraction of Oakland.
I think the computer is really off with the predictions of Atlanta and New York here. They're both looking really good going into the season, but the likelihood of them both winning 100 games while they're gonna be beating up on each other and playing in one of the better divisions in baseball? Slim to none. I think Atlanta wins the division, as predicted here, but they won't win 108, and this division will be extremely competitive.
I doubt Houston blows this division out of the water like the projection suggests. Cincy and Chicago were both solid last season, and Kansas City and Detroit's win totals will benefit from not competing with the likes of Cleveland and the White Sox.
Now the NL West I'm not sure about. Oakland, San Diego, and San Fran' will all benefit from playing in a less competitive division. Los Angeles does have a very good team, however. One of two things happens here. The Dodgers absolutely kick the sh*t out of the rest of the NL West and blow this division out of the water, or the division is extremely, extremely competitive.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
OPENING DAY ROSTER
It's almost time to start the new 1997 season! But first let's take a look at what the team is gonna be putting on the field for the season
THE LINEUP + BENCH
Well it's different from last year opening day line-up in just about every way. The only hold over from last year's line-up is Nomar. Clark, Hosey, and Frye were on the opening day roster last year, but only Frye started and he's not starting this season. Anyways, this line-up should really be able to put up some runs.
THE OFF-SEASON ACQUISITIONS
BONDS, OLERUD, CIRILLO, AND AUSMUS
Bonds will really help this offense, so long as he stays healthy, and he's probably even a marginal upgrade defensively over Vaughn. He should make up for the losses of Vaughn, Greenwell, and Stanley offensively, and even then some a little bit. Olerud was mainly acquired for his glove, but he's got a solid bat and should be capable of .280/.380/.450 with 20 or so homers and possibly 100+ RBI's. Our other two off-season acquisitions, Cirillo and Ausmus, really aren't anything to get excited about offensively, but they're magicians defensively. The pitchers will be happy to have Cirillo at the hot corner, and to have Ausmus behind the plate calling the game.
THE HOLDOVERS
NOMAR, NIXON, LARKIN, AND WHITE
Nomar and Nixon were both rookies last season, and put together fantastic seasons in spite of that. Nixon put up a .790 OPS, and Nomar's was around .850. And they should both improve upon that even more this season. Nomar should hit .300, as he did his rookie year, and he could hit as many as 30 homers. The addition of Bonds as protection in the line-up should really help his numbers. Nixon should add a bit of power and a bit of contact. I'd say he's good for .270/.350/.480 with 20 homers this season. Our two big mid-season acquisitions from last season. Larkin put up a .318/.369/.504/.873 line with us after coming over from Cincy last season. This season I would expect a little less power and a little more on-base percentage from him. He also stole 17 bases with us, and I think with a full season that number could get as high as 30-35. White showed huge power with us last season, hitting 25 homers and managing a .542 slugging percentage. I doubt he repeats that, but he should still be a solid bat in the #2 hole.
WHERE'S SANCHEZ?
If you find yourself asking the above question in red, the answer is he's in AAA. Originally I had plans to play Sanchez at second base for this season, but I decided that another season at AAA would be beneficial. Boone is also an excellent offensive and defensive player and is the better option for us at this point.
THE BENCH
I think this team has excellent depth. Frye had an excellent season last season as the starting second baseman and should do very well coming off the bench. Phil Clark did well filling in for Nixon against lefties, and he'll be doing so again this season. Oliver was an excellent back-up catcher for us, and the other two probably won't see the field much, but they're nice too I guess :p.
THE STARTING ROTATION + BULLPEN
THE ROCKET
Roger had a Cy Young caliber year last year, and if not for Randy Johnson's monster season in Seattle he probably would have won the award. It would be reasonable to expect more of the same this season, especially with roughly the same talent on offense, and a vastly improved defense. Some of those balls that were hits down the third base line or through the right side of the infield will turn into outs this season.
BRAD RADKE AND JEFF SUPPAN
We should greatly benefit from a full season of these two guys, especially Radke. These two guys should be happier than anyone about the improved defense as well. They rely heavily on the hitters putting the ball in play, and having those balls in play turning into outs. Last year the team we had wasn't suited well to their pitching styles, and this year we are.
MOYER AND HENRY
Moyer and Henry were a couple of unlikely heroes for us last season. They combined to go 21-16, and were pretty reliable on a start-by-start basis. These two are also guys that rely on the ball being put in play, so the additions of Olerud and Cirillo will help them greatly as well.
THE 'PEN
The 'pen is a concern of mine. It's largely unchanged from last season, but it wasn't very good last season. Garces was solid in the closers role, as in he converted his saves, but every time he took the mound I wanted to look away from the screen because he always put runners on and gave me a scare. The rest of the bullpen had similar problems, too. This could be one area we'll have to address at the trading deadline this season.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
The next post is gonna be the start of the new season! Here's to a successful season and a World Championship!
:)
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
April 2
Blue Jays (0-0) @ Red Sox (0-0)
Blue Jays 3 - Red Sox 6
Always good to open the season with a win, especially at home! Clemens pitched well, going six innings and allowing three on six hits while striking out six. The only mistake he made was giving up a bases loaded double to Delgado in the third. Bonds was 0-4 with a walk and an RBI in his Boston debut, and Nomar collected two hits in four at-bats, with an RBI.
WP - Roger Clemens (1-0)
LP - Juan Guzman (0-1)
SV - Rich Garces (1)
HR - Brad Ausmus (1)
April 3
Blue Jays (0-1) @ Red Sox (1-0)
Blue Jays 7 - Red Sox 8
Two in a row to open the season! Radke goes six and allows four runs on six hits, including two homers, but it was just enough to earn the wins. Olerud had a great game, going 3-4 with 4 RBI's. Bonds went hitless again, but walked twice and scored.
WP - Brad Radke (1-0)
LP - Roy Halladay (0-1)
SV - Rich Garces (2)
HR - N/A
April 4
Blue Jays (0-2) @ Red Sox (2-0)
Blue Jays 2 - Red Sox 8
A season-opening sweep of the Jays! Can't complain about that! Suppan pitched a beautiful game, going 7 2/3 innings and allowing only one run on five hits. We were held hitless into the sixth inning by Hentgen, but we exploded for eight runs in the final three innings. Boone and Nixon went back-to-back in the sixth to end the no-hitter, and Bonds got his first Red Sox hit.
WP - Jeff Suppan (1-0)
LP - Pat Hentgen (0-1)
SV - Mike Stanton (1)
HR - Bret Boone (1), Trot Nixon (1)
Thoughts: I certainly can't complain about a season opening sweep now can I! We played very, very well in that series, and the only thing that even made it close was the bullpen giving up runs in the first and second games. Our biggest off-season acquisition, Barry Bonds, struggled in the first series (1-9, .111 BA), but it's only three games and it'd be wise to bet that it doesn't last too long.
================================================================================
AROUND THE REST OF THE LEAGUE
The New York Yankees win two of their first three games in the National League. Bernie Williams homered twice in the series, and Raines is batting .625 through the first three games. Gooden also threw a complete game shutout in the second game of the series, striking out nine in the process.
Interestingly, the National League West is a combined 1-10. The one win was LA's season opening win over the Expos. Don't think I've ever seen anything quite like that since I've started playing this game.
(I kinda liked doing this with the playoffs this past season, so I think I'm gonna include with probably every update from now on. There will probably be anywhere from 2-6 little notes like this every time.)
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
April 6
White Sox (3-0) @ Red Sox (3-0)
White Sox 1 - Red Sox 8
Bonds suffered through another poor game, going 0-4 with a walk. Fortunately we got fantastic games out of Nomar and Rondell White, though. Both of them went 3-5 with two RBI's, with Rondell scoring two runs and Nomar scoring one. Moyer threw a gem as well, allowing just one run over 7 1/3 innings on six hits.
WP - Jamie Moyer (1-0)
LP - Wilson Alvarez (0-1)
SV - Stan Belinda (1)
HR - N/A
April 7
White Sox (3-1) @ Red Sox (4-0)
White Sox 1 - Red Sox 3
Never thought I'd start out the season 5-0, that's for damn sure! Clemens threw another gem, going 7 1/3 innings and allowing just one run and striking out five. The big hit of the game came when Jeff Cirillo hit a bases-loaded single to plate Bret Boone and Jeff Olerud.
WP - Roger Clemens (2-0)
LP - Erik Hanson (0-1)
SV - Rich Garces (3)
HR - N/A
April 8
White Sox (3-2) @ Red Sox (5-0)
White Sox 1 - Red Sox 3
Rondell White started things off hot to help us win six in a row to start the season. He ripped a ball in the gap that turned into an inside-the-park home run. Oh, and stop me if you've heard this before, but Radke threw a complete game. In the nine innings he allowed just one run on five hits and one walk, and struck out five.
WP - Brad Radke (2-0)
LP - Kevin Tapani (1-1)
SV - N/A
HR - Rondell White (1)
Thoughts: WOW, SIX AND ZERO! This season literally could not have gotten off to a better start! The only that's keeping me from unbridled excitement over this start is the fact that I've been concerned about the competitive balance in my league, and a 6-0 start doesn't exactly make me feel good about that, haha. At any rate, Bonds is still struggling like hell to get hits, batting just .150 on the season. Luckily he's still drawing walks (he's got six of them, which is twice as many hits as he has) and getting on base. Olerud and Nixon are picking up the slack for him at the moment, as both of them have OPS over 1.000 and five or more RBI's.
NIXON'S SEASON LINE
===========================================================================
AROUND THE LEAGUE
MARLINS, PADRES, CUBS, AND PIRATES ALL LOCK UP PITCHERS
The Marlins, Padres, Cubs, and Pirates all came to contract extensions with some of their better starting pitchers. Florida signed Kevin Brown to a five-year extension at 3.60 million dollars per season, while Pittsburgh signed Jon Lieber to a three-year extension at 2 million per season. Trachsel resigned with the Cubs for three years at 2.35 million per season, and San Diego signed Joey Hamilton for two years at 1.35 million.
NL EAST ON FIRE
The National League East features three one-loss teams, and the two with more than one loss are both only one game below .500. The Yankees lead the division at 6-1, with the Braves and Phillies sitting a half game back at 5-1, and Florida and Montreal bringing up the rear at 3-4.
RANGERS START SEASON HOT
The Rangers are currently leading the AL West with a record of 6-1, good for 1.5 games over the 4-2 Mariners. A big reason for their hot start is the play of left fielder Juan Gonzalez. Gonzalez is hitting an astounding .467/.529/.967/1.496, and has already hit five homers and driven in 18 runs.
RED SOX STARTERS KEEPING OPPOSING BATTERS AT BAY
The Red Sox have enjoyed unprecedented success from their starters at this early stage of the season. The starters are a combined 6-0 and the highest ERA on the staff is Radke's 3.00. They're enjoying a league best rotation ERA of 2.28, and none of the starters have allowed more than four earned runs in a start this season. They've combined to give up just 11 runs in roughly 33 innings of work.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Probably no updates again this weekend, guys. I'm going home to see my girlfriend this weekend for Valentine's Day.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
April 10
Red Sox (6-0) @ Pirates (1-5)
Red Sox 5 - Pirates 13
The Pirates hand us our first loss of the season in rather embarassing fashion. Jeff Suppan actually started this game well, allowing only one hit through the first four innings, but he imploded in the fifth and allowed seven runs in the inning. All told he went 4 2/3 and allowed seven runs on seven. The bullpen didn't fare any better as Mike Stanton and Heathcliff Slocumb combined to go an inning and allow six runs on nine hits. We did get to Denny Neagle for five runs in the first three innings, but Paul Wagner shut us down the rest of the way, pitching six innings of two-hit shutout baseball.
WP - Paul Wagner (1-0)
LP - Jeff Suppan (1-1)
SV - N/A
HR - Bret Boone (2)
April 11
Red Sox (6-1) @ Pirates (2-5)
Red Sox 6 - Pirates 15
Another embarassing loss at the hands of the Pirates. On the bright side Bonds bat seems to be getting started, as he went 3-5 with two runs and his first home run of the season. On the negative side, basically everything else. We had plenty of scoring opportunities (we had 12 hits and drew five walks) but failed to capitalize on them, and the pitchers got throttled.
WP - Esteban Loaiza (1-2)
LP - Jamie Moyer (1-1)
SV - N/A
HR - John Olerud (1), Barry Bonds (1), Nomar Garciaparra (1)
April 12
Red Sox (6-2) @ Pirates (3-5)
Red Sox 4 - Pirates 9
Well there goes the 6-0 start I suppose. The pitchers got taken out behind the woodshed again, Clemens allowed four earned (and one unearned) runs in three innings, and the bullpen allowed four in the final six innings. Zane Smith pitched decently, only four runs over seven innings, but we had trouble getting the big hit again as we collected ten hits in the game.
WP - Zane Smith (2-0)
LP - Roger Clemens (2-1)
SV - Francisco Cordova (1)
HR - N/A
Thoughts: Our hot start got turned around about as quickly as it got started. The Pirates really took us out behind the woodshed in this series, outscoring us approximately 35-15. It was largely due to poor play by the rotation. One positive we can take away from the series is that Bonds is starting to hit like he's capable of. In the series he was 6-11 with five runs, a double, his first homer of the season, two RBI's, and two walks. He raised his season line to .290/.436/.419/.855.
====================================================================
AROUND THE LEAGUE
BLUE JAYS AGREE TO MASSIVE DEAL WITH DELGADO
The Blue Jays agreed to a huge contract with their young star slugger Carlos Delgado. The deal is good for five years (through 2001) at 4.9 million dollars per season. The contract ties Delgado for the highest salary in baseball with White Sox first baseman Frank Thomas.
Padres left fielder Rickey Henderson recently reached a significant milestone in his career, collecting hit #2,500. Henderson is already a sure-fire Hall-of-Famer, but if he's able to play a couple more seasons at a serviceable level he's got a really solid shot at 3,000 career hits.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
April 13
Red Sox (6-3) @ Orioles (3-6)
Red Sox 8 - Orioles 5
Brad Radke helps us get off the schenid by throwing seven solid innings of four run baseball. Olerud and Bonds got the job done at the plate. Olerud went 2-5 with a homer and three RBI's, and Bonds went 1-3 with two walks, a homer, and three runs.
WP - Brad Radke (3-0)
LP - David Wells (2-1)
SV - Rich Garces (4)
HR - John Olerud (2), Barry Bonds (2)
April 14
Red Sox (7-3) @ Orioles (3-7)
Red Sox 3 - Orioles 5
Jeff Suppan started the game well again, but imploded in the last inning and allowed the winning runs to score. All told he went 6 1/3, allowed four earned runs (five total) on six hits. Scott Erickson did a very good job of keeping our bats quiet, allowing just three runs over seven innings on six hits and two walks.
WP - Scott Erickson (1-0)
LP - Jeff Suppan (1-2)
SV - Arthur Rhodes (1)
HR - N/A
April 15
Red Sox (7-4) @ Orioles (4-7)
Red Sox 11 - Orioles 3
The offense really came to play in this game. The only player who didn't get at least one hit was Bonds, and even he walked twice and scored one. Nomar went 4-5 with a double and a homer, and we also got homers from Jeff Cirillo, Bret Boone, Barry Larkin, and Rondell White. Moyer also had a good start, going seven innings and allowing only two runs while striking out seven.
HTML Code:
BOSTON ab h bb r hr bi k sb avg
B. Larkin (SS) 6 2 0 2 1 2 1 0 .191
R. White (CF) 6 2 0 1 1 1 0 0 .340
N. Garciaparra (DH) 5 4 0 1 1 2 0 0 .340
B. Bonds (LF) 4 0 2 1 0 0 1 0 .238
J. Olerud (1B) 5 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 .409
B. Boone (2B) 4 2 1 2 1 1 2 0 .273
T. Nixon (RF) 5 2 0 1 0 1 1 0 .308
J. Cirillo (3B) 4 1 1 2 1 2 0 0 .333
B. Ausmus (C) 5 2 0 1 0 1 1 0 .190
TOTALS 44 16 5 11 5 10 8 0
2B: B. Boone (4), B. Larkin (3), N. Garciaparra (2)
HR: B. Boone (3), J. Cirillo (1), B. Larkin (1), R. White (2), N. Garciaparra (2)
HBP: N. Garciaparra
BOSTON ip h bb hr r er k pit ERA
J. Moyer 7.0 7 2 1 2 2 7 119 4.42
S. Belinda 2.0 1 0 0 1 0 3 37 2.45
TOTALS 9.0 8 2 1 3 2 10 156
WP - Jamie Moyer (2-1)
LP - Sidney Ponson (0-2)
SV - N/A
HR - Bret Boone (3), Jeff Cirillo (1), Barry Larkin (1), Rondell White (2), Nomar Garciaparra (2)
Thoughts: We're 8-4, and yet we're still sitting two games back of the Indians. Oh the joys of playing in the same division as that formidable line-up. We'll have a chance to make up some ground on them soon, however; we're playing them for three games in Cleveland from the 24th-26th of April. Before then we've got six home games, three against the Jays and three against the Mets.
Just when I think Bonds is starting to hit, he proves me wrong. He was only 1-11 in the series against the Orioles. Fortunately he's still getting his walks, though. He walked four times against the Orioles and now has 12 on the season. Once he starts to hit like he's capable of our lineup is going to be very, very formidable.
In the mean time, the combination of Nomar, Rondell, and Olerud are getting the job done. They've combined for six homers, 31 RBI's, and a line of .363/.423/.559/.982.
RONDELL WHITE
NOMAR GARCIAPARRA
JOHN OLERUD
JUAN GONE CONTINUING TORRID PACE
A few days ago I wrote about how Gonzalez was hitting a baseball with the authority that Robocop exerts on criminals. Well he hasn't stopped hitting like that. He's hitting .397/.453/.862 with nine homers and 26 RBI's in only 13 games. That means he's averaging nearly a homer per game and two RBI's a game, which in my opinion is rather unpredecented. Obviously he can't keep it up like this all season, but it'll be interesting to see if he just completely falls off the face of the earth, or if he's able to keep up an MVP level performance. His Rangers still lead the AL West by 1/2 game over the Mariners.
EASTERN DIVISIONS SHAPING UP STRONG
If things continue as they have the first two weeks of the season, we will have two very intriguing and fun season long playoff races in the AL and NL Eastern divisions. The AL East is currently led by the AL-best Cleveland Indians at 10-2, but the Red Sox aren't far behind at 8-4, and neither are the Blue Jays at 7-6. The NL East is even more exciting, with all the teams having a .500 or better record currently. The Yankees lead the division at 11-2, Atlanta is just behind them at 9-4, and Philly, Montreal, and Florida bring up the read at 8-5, 8-6, and 7-7 respectively.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
April 17
Blue Jays (7-6) @ Red Sox (8-4)
Blue Jays 1 - Red Sox 7
Woody Williams practically handed this game to us on a silver platter. In just five innings of work he gave up 10 hits, three homers, three walks, and seven runs to us. The Barry's were the biggest contributors at the plate. Larkin went 4-5 with a grand slam and a steal, while Bonds went 1-3 with a walk and a two run homer. Clemens did his part too, pitching seven innings of one-run ball.
WP - Roger Clemens (3-1)
LP - Woody Williams (2-1)
SV - N/A
HR - Bret Boone (4), Barry Larkin (2), Barry Bonds (3)
April 18
Blue Jays (7-7) @ Red Sox (9-4)
Blue Jays 1 - Red Sox 14
Radke gave us one of his characteristically long, strong starts. He threw a complete game and allowed just one run, which was on a Carlos Delgado solo homer in the 4th, and struck out six. He threw only 89 pitches in this complete game! We really went nuts offensively too. Rondell went 3-5 with two homers and five RBI's, Bonds went 2-4 with two RBI's, and Olerud went 1-4 with a three run homer.
HTML Code:
BOSTON ab h bb r hr bi k sb avg
B. Larkin (SS) 4 1 1 3 0 0 1 0 .250
R. White (CF) 5 3 0 3 2 5 1 0 .333
N. Garciaparra (DH) 3 2 1 1 0 1 0 0 .350
B. Bonds (LF) 4 2 1 2 0 2 1 0 .265
J. Olerud (1B) 4 1 1 2 1 3 2 0 .385
B. Boone (2B) 5 2 0 0 0 2 3 0 .283
T. Nixon (RF) 5 2 0 1 0 1 1 0 .354
J. Cirillo (3B) 5 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 .298
B. Ausmus (C) 4 3 0 2 0 0 1 0 .224
TOTALS 39 16 4 14 3 14 12 0
2B: B. Bonds (2)
HR: J. Olerud (3), R. White 2 (4)
HBP: N. Garciaparra
BOSTON ip h bb hr r er k pit ERA
B. Radke 9.0 4 1 1 1 1 6 89 2.90
TOTALS 9.0 4 1 1 1 1 6 89
WP - Brad Radke (4-0)
LP - Juan Guzman (0-3)
SV - N/A
HR - John Olerud (3), Rondell White 2 (4)
April 19
Blue Jays (7-8) @ Red Sox (10-4)
Blue Jays 6 - Red Sox 10
Some spotty defense nearly cost us this game. A Jeff Cirillo error with two outs on the board led to three runs, as well as Jeff Suppan being pulled after just 3 2/3 innings. Fortunately the bullpen settled in and kept us in the game long enough for the offense to let us win it. Everyone who came to bat in this game got a hit, including Bonds going 3-5 with three runs and an RBI, raising his batting average to .296. Olerud, Boone, and Nixon all drove in two runs.
HTML Code:
BOSTON ab h bb r hr bi k sb avg
B. Larkin (SS) 5 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 .246
R. White (CF) 5 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 .338
N. Garciaparra (DH) 5 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 .338
B. Bonds (LF) 5 3 0 3 0 1 1 0 .296
J. Olerud (1B) 4 3 0 1 0 2 0 0 .411
B. Boone (2B) 3 2 0 2 0 2 0 0 .304
T. Nixon (RF) 4 1 0 1 0 2 0 0 .346
J. Cirillo (3B) 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .300
B. Ausmus (C) 3 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 .231
TOTALS 37 15 2 10 0 9 3 0
2B: B. Boone (5), B. Larkin (5), B. Bonds (3), R. White (3), T. Nixon (4)
GIDP: T. Nixon
BOSTON ip h bb hr r er k pit ERA
J. Suppan 3.2 7 0 1 6 3 3 65 6.04
H. Slocumb 0.0 1 1 0 0 0 0 9 9.64
B. Shouse 2.1 1 0 0 0 0 1 24 0.00
M. Maddux 2.0 0 1 0 0 0 2 32 10.38
R. Garces 1.0 1 1 0 0 0 2 24 1.42
TOTALS 9.0 10 3 1 6 3 8 154
WP - Mike Maddux (1-0)
LP - Tim Crabtree (1-1)
SV - N/A
HR - N/A
Thoughts: Our sweep over the Blue Jays pulls us into a two-way tie for first place in the East with the Indians. Hopefully we can beat the Mets up like we did the Blue Jays. That shouldn't be too hard considering the Mets are 3-13 and have a team ERA of 5.33, but if we can do that we might be able to take the lead from the Indians, and hopefully we'll play well head-to-head and put a nice gap between us in the standings.
Bonds may actually be starting to hit now. His season line stands at .296/.441/.519/.960, and in his last ten games he's hitting .378/.500/.703/1.203. If nothing else we can depend on him to get on base via walks. He's currently tied with California's Jim Edmonds for the league lead in times walked with 14.
Brad Radke is looking like an early Cy Young candidate. He's 4-0 with an ERA of 2.90. He's walked only six and struck out 23 in a league leading 31 innings pitched. He also ranks in the top ten in the American League in opposing batting average, opposing OPS, and opposing on-base percentage.
====================================================================
AROUND THE LEAGUE
Nothing interesting to report about, so I'll just show you the full league standings.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
One thing of note, and a couple questions for my loyal readers.
These "AROUND THE LEAGUE" things I've started doing with every update are probably gonna replace the Monthly Updates I was doing. I pretty much key in on the things I would with the monthly updates, and there's no point in me repeating myself and posting it twice. The things from the monthly update I will still be doing are the Clemens and Nomar update, and the team stats/leaders update. I also may still do the league leaders because I don't talk about that too much. But no more standings, transactions, milestones, etc. for monthly updates.
First question: Do you like the new addition to the regular updates? The new addition being the aforementioned "AROUND THE LEAGUE" part.
Second question: What things do you think I can/should improve on? For example, would you like me to key in on Nomar and Clemens a little more? Am I posting too frequently? Things like that.
Third question: What do you think of my writing/writing style? Is it too predictable or anything like that, for example?
Fourth question: Do you think I went through the off season too quickly? Also, did you think the trades I made were unfair, or do you think I made too many of them?
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
#1: Yes, the league updates are nice to see.
#2: Yes, the theme of the dynasty is to profile Nomar and Clemens. So as nice as the league updates are, if they're going to take away from hearing about Nomar/Clemens, then it's not worth it. I would think standings/big happenings would suffice in that department.
#3: No, nothing bad about the writing, but the whole Valentine's and going home to the woman was kind of predictable ;)
#4: Yes, I actually thought you went WAY too fast. I like taking the off-season slow and really profiling what my team is doing. As soon as the off-season ends, what's your team looking to add/subtract this winter? If you run a Rule V Draft, what were the results? How about a Top 10 Prospects list or something of that nature? And etc...
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
I think you're doing fine. The only problem I have is that mostly all of your pictures come up as Red Xs
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Quote:
Originally Posted by
mattynokes
#1: Yes, the league updates are nice to see.
#2: Yes, the theme of the dynasty is to profile Nomar and Clemens. So as nice as the league updates are, if they're going to take away from hearing about Nomar/Clemens, then it's not worth it. I would think standings/big happenings would suffice in that department.
#3: No, nothing bad about the writing, but the whole Valentine's and going home to the woman was kind of predictable ;)
#4: Yes, I actually thought you went WAY too fast. I like taking the off-season slow and really profiling what my team is doing. As soon as the off-season ends, what's your team looking to add/subtract this winter? If you run a Rule V Draft, what were the results? How about a Top 10 Prospects list or something of that nature? And etc...
Thanks for the criticisms. Now let me address them.
1. Okay, good I'm glad people are liking them
2. This is something I'm having a hard time with. I know I should focus more on Clemens and Nomar, but I'm having a somewhat difficult time figuring out exactly how to do so. Any suggestions in that department are more than appreciated.
EDIT: Actually, just came up with an idea in regards to this one. I'll make a post about it very shortly.
3. Haha, I meant predictability in regards to the writing, but whatever :p. The only reason I've had time to write on this at all this weekend is because the woman is sick and so we haven't spent as much time together as we normally would.
4. I kinda thought I went too fast too, but I didn't know what else to do. I did do the add/subtract thing, but beyond that I wasn't sure where to go. Those are some good ideas that implement in the future though. The top prospects and Rule V thing that is. I've also been trying to find this old winterball program I remember having in the first online league I played in three or four years ago. But I haven't had any luck.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
rockiesfan4ever
I think you're doing fine. The only problem I have is that mostly all of your pictures come up as Red Xs
I don't think there's anything I can do about that for you, sounds like it's probably something to do with your browser or something :-\. Unless someone else is having similar difficulties. If so, please let me know so I can get to the root of the problem.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
I NEED YOUR HELP!
I don't think I'm focusing on the focal points of this dynasty enough (the focal points being Nomar and Clemens), and I need your help with that! What I want to do is do a sort of mailbag/interview/questionnaire thing directed at the main characters, Nomar and Clemens, and that's where you, my readers, come in. I want the majority of these questions to come from you. I'll ask questions of my own occasionally, but I think it would be much better if they came from you! Obviously I'll be writing the answers, and I'll be writing it from the perspective as if I were one of them. It'd be like if you were a journalist interviewing them at a post-game news conference or in the club house before or after a game. I'd like to do this on a regular basis, but it depends on the volume of questions I receive so it'll probably be fairly random.
Anyways, just PM the questions you want to ask Nomar and/or Clemens to me. Or you can even get on AIM and IM me and I'll make a note of what the question was and who asked it and then at the next "press conference" it'll be included!
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Quote:
Originally Posted by
YEAH DAAAAWG
I NEED YOUR HELP!
I don't think I'm focusing on the focal points of this dynasty enough (the focal points being Nomar and Clemens), and I need your help with that! What I want to do is do a sort of mailbag/interview/questionnaire thing directed at the main characters, Nomar and Clemens, and that's where you, my readers, come in. I want the majority of these questions to come from you. I'll ask questions of my own occasionally, but I think it would be much better if they came from you! Obviously I'll be writing the answers, and I'll be writing it from the perspective as if I were one of them. It'd be like if you were a journalist interviewing them at a post-game news conference or in the club house before or after a game. I'd like to do this on a regular basis, but it depends on the volume of questions I receive so it'll probably be fairly random.
Anyways, just PM the questions you want to ask Nomar and/or Clemens to me. Or you can even get on AIM and IM me and I'll make a note of what the question was and who asked it and then at the next "press conference" it'll be included!
Oh, and by the way, feel free to submit any number of questions at a time.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Just thought I'd throw out some example questions too ;).
EX:
What do you think your team needs are?
What would you like to see the front office address in the draft?
What do you think of the way you've been playing of late?
What do you think of your chances in the postseason?
etc.
Also, I've decided that this is going to take the personage of a Press Conference type environment. So you guys will essentially be reporters asking these questions to the players after a game, so you'll need names for your reporters. You can either come up with them on your own, or I'll make something up. For example, RF4E submitted a question already and the name I'd probably use for him would be something like Rocky F. Evers IV.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
April 20
Mets (3-13) @ Red Sox (11-4)
Mets 1 - Red Sox 2
This game featured quite the pitching duel between two unlikely guys. On our side Moyer went eight innings and gave up just one run on three hits, struck out nine, and didn't allow a hit until the fifth inning. As for them, Paul Byrd also went eight innings, for the complete game, and allowed just two runs on eight hits and struck out six. Nomar had an RBI in spite of going hitless, while Bret Boone went 2-4 with an RBI and Bonds and Larkin scored the runs.
WP - Jamie Moyer (3-1)
LP - Paul Byrd (0-3)
SV - Rich Garces (5)
HR - N/A
April 21
Mets (3-14) @ Red Sox (12-4)
Mets 3 - Red Sox 6
Clemens put in a solid seven innings to earn his fourth win of the season. Over those seven innings he allowed three runs on six hits and a walk, and struck out four batters. Nomar went hitless (again), but scored a run. The rest of the offense had his back, too. Rondell went 3-5 with two runs and Bonds went 1-3 with a two-RBI single and two walks
WP - Roger Clemens (4-1)
LP - Cory Lidle (0-4)
SV - Rich Garces (6)
HR - N/A
April 22
Mets (3-15) @ Red Sox (13-4)
Mets 6 - Red Sox 5
Ahhh, just a couple runs from a(nother) sweep! We were able to get to Rick Reed early (4 ER in 3 2/3 innings), but the bullpen really shut us down, especially the guy who got the win. Mark Fyhrie went 3 1/3 PERFECT innings. Nomar had a good game at the plate, going 3-5 with a run scored, but it was for naught.
WP - Mark Fyhrie (1-0)
LP - Mike Stanton (0-1)
SV - John Franco (1)
HR - John Olerud (4)
Thoughts: We're still tied for first at 13-5 going into our series with the Indians. We're pretty evenly matched right now. We're both 7-3 in our last ten games and we've both got our #3/#4/#5 guys going in the series (potentially #3/#4/#1 because we both have an off day right before the series). One major difference, though, is how we've been winning. We've been doing it with hitting, as we've got a team line of .307/.378/.478/.856 to their .263/.339/.433/.772. They've been doing with pitching as they've got a team ERA of 3.09 to our 4.27.
====================================================================
AROUND THE LEAGUE
NL EAST, AL WEST FEATURING TIGHT RACES
The NL East and AL West are shaping up to be the two most exciting divisions in baseball this season. In the AL West the Mariners recently took the lead over from the Rangers and are 12-6, but even now the Rangers are only 1.5 back at 11-8, and due to going 7-3 in their last ten games the Rockies have thrown their hat in the ring and also sit 1.5 back at 11-8 with the Rangers. And in the NL East we have the Braves and Yankees tied at an MLB best 14-5, and the Phillies are just 1.5 back at 13-7.
TIM BELK HITS FOR CYCLE
An unlikely fellow here. Belk is rated at just 63/65, but somehow managed to get on the field for the Reds long enough to hit for the cycle. Belk even did it the natural way, singling in the first, doubling in the second, tripling in the fifth, and homering in the seventh.
OAKLAND MULLING OPTIONS WITH #1 PICK
With the Amateur Draft just about six weeks away the A's are mulling the options they have with the #1 pick. Potential targets have reportedly been young lefty Johan Santana, righty Brandon Webb, third basemen Garrett Atkins, and center fielder Cory Sullivan.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
April 24
Red Sox (13-5) @ Indians (13-5)
Red Sox 6 - Indians 10
Not exactly the way I was hoping to start this series. Jeff Suppan allowed four earned runs in just 2 1/3 innings, and then another four runs scored on an error while he was on the mound. Nomar went 2-4 with a homer, two runs, and a walk at the plate, and Bonds and Ausmus both had two-run homers.
WP - Bartolo Colon (3-0)
LP - Jeff Suppan (1-3)
SV - N/A
HR - Brad Ausmus (2), Barry Bonds (4), Nomar Garciaparra (3)
April 25
Red Sox (13-6) @ Indians (14-5)
Red Sox 3 - Indians 9
Not the best start by mister Jamie Moyer. He lasted just 1 1/3 inning before giving up six runs and getting pulled immediately after giving up a grand slam to Albert Belle. The opposing starter, Brian Anderson, fared much better, pitching all nine innings and allowing just three runs and striking out five. Boone tripled and Nomar and Nixon drove in runs, but otherwise the offense was pretty much nonexistent.
WP - Brian Anderson (2-1)
LP - Jamie Moyer (3-2)
SV - N/A
HR - N/A
April 26
Red Sox (13-7) @ Indians (15-5)
Red Sox 7 - Indians 5
Well at least we managed to salvage one game in this series, although Stan Belinda nearly blew that for us when he allowed three runs in the eighth to make it a two-run game. Clemens put in a solid effort, allowing two runs over 6 1/3 innings while striking out five and giving up six hits. Jeff Cirillo dealt the crippling and game-winning blow in the eighth when he hit a three run homer to left-center field. However, Nomar, Rondell, and Barry Larkin all collected two hits and an RBI each as well.
WP - Roger Clemens (5-1)
LP - Dennis Martinez (0-1)
SV - Rich Garces (7)
HR - Jeff Cirillo (2)
Thoughts: Well that didn't go nearly as well as I was hoping it would. The Indians outscored us 24-16 in taking two of three from us, and we were lucky to salvage the last game of the series and keep their lead at only a game. Fortunately our next couple weeks are fairly easy. We've got the Rangers who will be formidable, but after that we have the Blue Jays, Orioles, Mets, and then the Orioles again, before we play the Indians for the second time this season.
====================================================================
AROUND THE LEAGUE
CARD'S THIRD BASEMAN REACHES MILESTONES ON CONSECUTIVE DAYS
St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Gary Gaetti has reached two significant career milestones on two consecutive days. The first milestone he reached was getting his 2000th hit on April 23rd, and the second was scoring his 1000th run on April 24th. Gaetti has enjoyed a rather impressive career as a major league third baseman. He's amassed over 2,000 hits, over 300 homers, exactly 1,000 runs, over 1,000 RBI's, and is a two-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove award winner.
COMMISHES OFFICE VETOS EDMONDS TO ATLANTA
The Commissioner's Office has decided to veto a trade that would send one of the game's best young players, center fielder Jim Edmonds, from California to Atlanta. Atlanta was going to be acquiring Edmonds for ten players, the best of which was 1B prospect Randall Simon who is peaked at an 86. Other than Simon no one had a peak higher than 82, and many of the players California was getting were simply AAAA players or veterans hanging on to the majors by a thread. The Commissioner vetoed it on the grounds that California was getting very little of value in return for a player of very high quality and value, and due to the league's concerns with competitive balance.
ATLANTA TAKES SOLE POSSESSION OF FIRST PLACE
In what has already been a hotly contested division, Atlanta has been the most recent team to shift the balance of power. They're currently on a nine game winning streak and at 18-5 they're exactly one game ahead of the New York Yankees.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
April 27
Rangers (12-10) @ Red Sox (14-7)
Rangers 0 - Red Sox 14
We embarassed the Rangers in just about every way possible on a baseball diamond. Radke completely shut down their lineup, pitching a complete game, four-hit shutout with 11 K's. We went off offensively as well. Larkin, Bonds, and Nixon all homered and drove in three runs, Rondell White was 3-3 with two walks, Nomar drove in two runs and tripled, and the list goes on.
HTML Code:
BOSTON ab h bb r hr bi k sb avg
B. Larkin (SS) 5 2 1 3 1 3 0 0 .242
R. White (CF) 3 3 2 2 0 1 0 0 .357
N. Garciaparra (DH) 5 2 0 1 0 2 1 0 .333
B. Bonds (LF) 3 3 0 3 1 3 0 0 .304
J. Olerud (1B) 3 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 .407
B. Boone (2B) 5 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 .288
T. Nixon (RF) 4 1 1 2 1 3 1 0 .286
J. Cirillo (3B) 4 2 0 1 0 1 1 0 .297
J. Oliver (C) 5 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 .200
TOTALS 37 16 6 14 3 14 6 0
2B: J. Olerud (7), B. Bonds (6), R. White (5)
3B: B. Larkin (1), N. Garciaparra (1)
HR: B. Larkin (3), B. Bonds (5), T. Nixon (2)
BOSTON ip h bb hr r er k pit ERA
B. Radke 9.0 4 2 0 0 0 11 109 2.70
TOTALS 9.0 4 2 0 0 0 11 109
WP - Brad Radke (5-0)
LP - Kevin Gross (2-3)
SV - N/A
HR - Barry Larkin (3), Barry Bonds (5), Trot Nixon (2)
April 28
Rangers (12-11) @ Red Sox (15-7)
Rangers 5 - Red Sox 3
Roger Pavlik exacted his revenge for the previous days blow out. Pavlik held us to just three runs over seven innings and struck out eight. Our one big hit was a two RBI triple by John Olerud in the eighth. Otherwise the offense was pretty stagnant, as we managed just five hits and three walks the whole game.
WP - Roger Pavlik (1-2)
LP - Jeff Suppan (1-4)
SV - Jeff Zimmerman (2)
HR - N/A
April 29
Rangers (13-11) @ Red Sox (15-8)
Rangers 8 - Red Sox 3
Rondell White hit his fifth homer of the season as our second batter of the game, but Rick Helling settled down from there and shut us down pretty effectively. Helling went eight innings and allowed only two runs to us, on five hits and two walks. Olerud also went 3-3 with a two-run homer, but offense was non-existent otherwise.
WP - Rick Helling (2-1)
LP - Jamie Moyer (3-3)
SV - N/A
HR - John Olerud (5), Rondell White (5)
Thoughts: Well the blowout in the first game was fun, but I'd definitely trade that one huge win for the two smaller ones the Rangers eked out in the series.
Since its the end of the month the stuff I'd normally say here I'm gonna save for the monthly updates.
====================================================================
AROUND THE LEAGUE
PHILLIES AND REDS DEALT MAJOR BLOWS TO PITCHING STAFFS
The Phillies and Reds were both dealt significant blows to their pitching staff and playoff hopes. In Cincy, staff ace Bret Saberhagen went down for approximately two weeks with a dislocated shoulder. Saberhagen has been enjoying a successful season so far, with an ERA just over 3.00.
As for Philly, they were dealt even more devastating news when they found out he would miss about a month with a fractured ankle. Schilling was 4-0 with an ERA under 2.00 at the time of his injury.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Man, how filthy has Radke been in a Boston uniform!? Since he was traded, how do his career numbers look?? It'll take me a little while to get used to the new alignment, though!
And seeing as you're taking questions:
With Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens playing in the same city, have you or any of your players been approached by Greg Anderson or Brian McNamee? :D
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
Radke's Boston #'s:
21 GS, 14-1 W-L, 3.23 ERA, 152 1/3 IP, 30 BB, 100 K, .229 BAA, 10 CG, 3 SHO
Pretty filthy if you ask me :) ;).
As for the question, Clemens will address it at the next press conference :p.
-
Re: Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )
STANDINGS AND LEADERS
APRIL
AMERICAN LEAGUE
DIVISIONAL
WILD CARD
BATTING LEADERS
PITCHING LEADERS
NATIONAL LEAGUE
DIVISIONAL
WILD CARD
BATTING LEADERS
PITCHING LEADERS
