Expanding Westward: The Fresno Outlaws

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Nice deal, Dawg. Hopefully those prospects don't turn around and bite you in the a**.

Thanks. Even if they do it'll be a few years down the road, and they're in the NL now anyways, so with no interleague play the only way they could hurt me is in the World Series. Not that important of a series .

I've been trying to make this sound as journalistic, like you're reading it in the paper or on the internet, as possible. Is it working?

[PotatoOfCouch13]

Absolutely! The team notes at the end are a nice touch!

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Absolutely! The team notes at the end are a nice touch!

Thanks. The reason I more or less abandoned the first person/GM type point of view is because that requires some storyline and creative writing, and I'm not very good at creative writing and stuff like that. Journalistic type writing is more my strong suit which was why I switched to a newspaper type format.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Please let me know of anything I can do better. Like if you think it would be better if I used a little more detail in regard to individual player performances or anything else.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

You are doing pretty much everything that I like in a Dynasty. Articles, but not too many. Good writing, that is grammatically sound, that's a personal fetish though. Pictures, do I sound 5 ? And, to top it all off, transactions! Those really do me in! Keep it up!

I'm a grammar freak too, lol. I've made a nice habit of irritating my friends by constantly correcting their grammar whenever they talk. I've been trying to kind of "capture the moment" or at least convey the correct mood of the article in the pictures I've been using. Like how I used Thames after an apparent K for my first weekly article and Aybar after hitting a homer for the second week. There have actually been quite a few resignings and milestones and stuff already but if I did an article for every one theres been so far I'd be at like 80 posts in this thread by now, and I don't want to bog things down by posting whenever anything happens so I'm gonna nail all that in my monthly update. Thanks though!

[filihok]

Outlaws sell high on Wandy, get Kershaw

ahem...Rodriguez and two prospects for the next Sandy Koufax? Dodger fan will have a hard time continuing to read this dynasty...

Though, Barry B*nds sucking might let me stick around long enough for you to redeem yourself.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

ahem...Rodriguez and two prospects for the next Sandy Koufax? Dodger fan will have a hard time continuing to read this dynasty...

Though, Barry B*nds sucking might let me stick around long enough for you to redeem yourself.

Hey bro, they offered it to me .

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Kershaw impresses in second start with the Outlaws

The Outlaws young ace impressed in his second start with the Outlaws, going 8 innings, allowing three runs, five hits, no walks, and eight strikeouts

The Outlaws had another .500 week against the Rangers and Orioles. They took two of three from the Rangers, nearly sweeping them, and narrowly avoided a sweep at the hands of the Orioles.

We won the first two games of the Rangers series, and lost game three by only two runs.

Marshall pitched decent in the first game, going 6 innings and allowing three earned runs. Jesse Carlson pitched very well in relief to earn the save, going the final three innings of the game, striking out three, and allowing no baserunners. The offensive star of the game was Ross Gload, getting four hits in five at bats, including a homer and knocked in five of our six runs. The Rangers could manage only three runs, giving us the 6-3 win. Game two was a lot closer and more exciting than the last one. We put up four in the first, but with this pitching staff no lead is ever safe. We both got a run in the second and sixth innings to keep it a four run game, but in the ninth inning we hit a spot of trouble. Randor Bierd came in to finish out the game, and failed to do so, allowing five hits and two runs in two thirds of an inning. Brandon League came on to get the final out. Barry Bonds also collected his first homer as an Outlaw, a three run shot. Game three was a nail biter. Both pitchers pitched well, Cha Seung Baek went 7 2/3 innings allowed two runs, however none earned, and struck out 5, while Kason Gabbard went eight, allowed no runs, and struck out 6. The game was tied at 0 going into the bottom of the eighth when the Rangers capitalized on a Dallas McPherson error to put up the only two runs of the game and get the 2-0 victory.

We suffered the same fate against the Orioles in our next series as the Rangers had against us in our previous series.

Kuo went only four innings in a somewhat embarrassing game one, allowing four runs (three earned). The bullpen was again an issue, as Bierd allowed two more runs, and League a run as well. We staged a mini three run rally in the bottom of the eighth to pull within three, but couldn't get any closer and lost 7-4. We turned to David Aardsma in game two, as Kershaw needed an extra day off and management didn't want to risk damaging such a valuable arm. Aardsma could make it through only three innings due to stamina issues, but allowed only one run in those three innings. The bullpen crumbled however, with Bierd and Schroeder combining to allow three runs in the final two innings of the game and blowing the lead for us, and giving the Orioles the 4-2 win. We turned to Kershaw in game 3 to try to avoid the sweep, and he did not disappoint. Kershaw went 8 innings, allowed three runs, no walks, five hits, and struck out 8, his best start of his young career. Geoff Jones nearly blew Kershaw's incredible start however, allowing a run in the ninth and putting two more runners off before getting out of it and helping us to a 7-4 victory.


Team Notes:

• Aybar has responded well to being moved up to the #2 spot in the batting order, going 7-17 (.411), with 5 walks, 5 runs, and collecting a hit in every game.
• Geoff Jones has pitched extremely well this season (1.93 ERA) and their rumblings that he may be moved into the closers role, from the set-up role.
• Marcus Thames raised his batting average about 50 points over the past week, from around .220 to .270, and may be moved up in the order.

NOTE: I know this write-up lacked detail, but I had previously simmed every game individually in PBP GM mode like I do with all my games so I know what happened for when I do my write-up, but I forgot to save when I turned my computer off and I didn't feel like watching all the games over again in PBP so I just simmed through the week.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Oh, another thing. I decided to turn peaks back on, its simply way too difficult to evaluate talent, especially in the draft, without it on. And I simply can't afford any mistakes of any sort with this team since its an expansion team with little financial wiggle room.

[DarthJaker]

It's not Claton Kershaw is it?

i was thinking of blake Dewitt becuase i thought Kershaw a 3B

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Outlaws get speedy outfielder Carl Crawford from Rays

The Outlaws acquired Crawford (80/82) in exchange for home run king Barry Bonds (75), RP Jesse Carlson (76/79), relief pitcher prospect James Humphrey (47/85), and 4,000,000 dollars

This trade marks the end of the brief Baroids Bonds experiment in Fresno. The Outlaws acquired speedy Carl Crawford in exchange for DH Barry Bonds, lefty reliever Jesse Carlson, talented prospect James Humphrey, and 4 million dollars.

The trade isn't terrible for the Rays, but it does make you wonder. Carl Crawford had been the face of the franchise since he'd been in the league and was a big time fan favorite in Tampa, and Tampa was clearly heading in a positive direction with a 15-6 record and a one game lead and trading Crawford would seem to be counterproductive. However, Bonds does supply the team with a very, very good patient veteran hitter, something they lack besides Cliff Floyd, who matches up in no way besides character and baggage to Bonds. Jesse Carlson is also a huge asset to the bullpen. The Rays bullpen had been mediocre at best this season, and Carlson is a young, talented lefty who had been solid this season with the Outlaws. The book on Humphrey is still yet to be written, but the cash never hurts.

On the Outlaws side it looks very good. With Crawford and Kershaw the Outlaws are now a team with an identity, a face, and hope. Crawford is a fantastic defender, a 60 stolen base threat, an excellent contact hitter, solid power, has no health concerns, and is an awesome clubhouse guy. He should step in immediately and become one of the team's leaders and prevent what happened with the Rays, that feeling of imminent losing for so many years, from ever happening in Fresno. On the trade Crawford said, "I really loved my time in Tampa, if it wasn't for them I wouldn't be where I am today, and I really wish they would've liked to have been there for the new chapter in the franchise. However, this marks a new chapter for my own life. This team has shown that it has good management, a bright GM, and a good direction and I look forward to my future here as well."


NOTE: My scouting is pretty bad (+/- 7) so its possible/probable that the ratings I gave are off.

[filihok]

Kershaw impresses in second start with the Outlaws

The Outlaws young ace impressed in his second start with the Outlaws, going 8 innings, allowing three runs, five hits, no walks, and eight strikeouts

Would someone fire Colletti already...hey, that rhymes. And if it rhymes, it must be made so.

Can I get an update on the trash that the Dodgers got back...

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Sure, but you're not gonna like it .

Wandy is 0-3 with a 5.30 ERA in three starts in 18 2/3 innings as a Dodger. Hes walked 10, K'd 11, and allowed 24 hits.

Enriquez is a 95 peak and in his only start since the trade, at Rookie ball, he went 7 2/3 innings and allowed one run.

Robb has made one start, is an 83 peak, and has a 2.08 ERA in 4 1/3 innings in that one start.

[filihok]

Yeah...i don't see equal value here...

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

They offered it to me, I just made the players available.