2046 Post 3 - Roster Ruminations

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RichY
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2046 Post 3 - Roster Ruminations

Post by RichY » Thu Feb 25, 2021 7:57 am

THE RED ROOTERS
A Riyadh Red Crescent Fan Site
04/03/46, by Omar Khayyam


“Fools, your reward is neither here nor there.”

For those who don't recognize my name, I share it with a mathematician, astronomer and poet who lived around 1000 A.D. My father was a teacher and was always immensely proud that we shared the same surname as the venerable Mr. Khayyam. So when he had a son it was a fait accompli that I would be named Omar. I was obliged to read his poetry in and out of school and I didn't take a particular shine to it. I was much more interested in football (soccer to the Americans who may read this) and later, as it came to the region baseball, but as an adult I can appreciate him more. So in that vein let's examine the the waxing red moon's roster and some math and look for the poetry in them.

“Youth, like a magic bird, has flown away...”

The distinguished Luis Gracia will throw the first pitch in Red Crescents history and the symbolism of that shouldn't be lost on anyone. In his stellar 18 year career, Gracia has been consistently very good, a team leader and extremely durable. He's an exemplary player and will help set the tone in the locker room. How much on field production he has left remains to be seen but his overall contribution to the team is predictable. Thirty four year old knuckle baller, Manual Pena will join Gracia in the fight to stave off the inevitable. Pena's performance dipped last year with his strikeout, walk and home run rates worsening. This may very well be his knuckleball's last dance but that geriatric jester of a pitch will be dragging it's heels and mocking hitters as it's hauled off to the dungeon. Juan Nicto who has also had a nice BBA run will see if he can extend his shelf life in the UMEBA. Nicto saw his home run rate rise alarmingly last year and the Crescents will hope it was an outlier as he has been fine in that regard throughout his career. Two more BBA vets in Luis Oliva and Francisco Cardona will round out the staff though the starting rotation and the roster as whole will likely be in flux, as you would expect on an expansion team.


“We are in truth but pieces on this chess board of life, which in the end we leave only to drop one by one into the grave of nothingness.”

The relief corps will also be a veteran unit with only Gustavo Munoz and "Cha Cha" Carrasco under 30 years old. Roles will likely be fluid as the season progresses and as effectiveness dictates but it should give manager James Pickford enough options to play with. Guys like Munoz, Javier Gonzalez and Zhi-xin Chen will likely get the high leverage opportunities early on and southpaws Wayne Mawle and Derrick Falter will ideally see more work against lefty hitters. Sean Gardner will be the swingman and will likely see some starts before the season ends. It's a group the should produce plenty of groundballs to keep the infielders busy. There's enough depth at AAA to plug any holes left by injury and ineffectiveness.

“A hair divides what is false and what is true.”

On the position side there will be guys getting their first opportunities and some, likely getting their last. Rule 5 snags Wes Makepeace(LF/DH) and Mike Martin (CF) will get plenty of at bats after seeing some success at the AAA level last year. Makepeace looks like a solid hitter posting a 161 wRC+ in 72 games with the Luanda Anglers last season and he will slot into the DH role due to his uninspiring defense. Martin, at first glance projects to have a career as platoon bat versus lefties and solid defensive center fielder however, he posted reverse splits in 2045. With nothing much to lose he should get the lion's share of starts in center to see if that becomes a trend or if it was an anomaly. His glove is good enough there though not award worthy and his bat won't play on the corners. Playing time will be more scarce for 20 year old first baseman Ivan Thomas as he makes the leap from A ball where he was probably good enough to be promoted after his age 18 season but played the last three seasons there. The Red Crescents will hope getting out of A ball purgatory will help Thomas reach his potential. At first base veteran Alfredo Luna will be the strong side platoon partner with Bob Frazier sliding in against lefties. Thomas will still get the occasional start at there and at DH. His playing time could increase as the season progresses though there will be no need to rush the youngster.

Juan Martinez is another player who the team hopes will blossom in the desert that is an expansion team roster. Martinez was stuck in the Madison Wolves organization where his production in AAA was just OK and not good enough to force the team to promote him. However he is talented, a noted tough competitor, posses leadership skills and is still only 25 years old. The Crescents are gambling that his uninspiring AAA numbers were more due to a lack of challenge than true skill. He will be under team control for the next 6 years and might be closest thing to a “star” the team will have in these rough early seasons if he plays to his potential. Of course that may not happen but the 3 year minimum commitment won't hurt much as the team shouldn't be anywhere near the salary cap threshold for awhile and his salary decreases after this year.

On the last chance side of the ledger is third baseman Juan Dominguez. Domiguez had nice numbers as he progressed through the minors but not when he got to AAA and in a handful of AB's in the bigs. One knock on Juan is his reported lax work ethic. This might account for his stagnation or he might just be another guy that needs opportunity and challenge. He will also be under team control for sometime so he figures to get a long leash but if he can't succeed here it's doubtful he get the chance anywhere else.

Strong infield defense will be very valuable with the pitching staff producing a large amount of ground balls. That's where the trio of Nikita Schipper, Rodrigo Rios and Swiss army knife Leonardo Rincon will come in. All are strong defenders with versatility and all are also pretty poor hitters. So much so that their negative offensive value will probably erode most if not all of their defensive value. Still, someone has to play there and forcing an aging pitching staff to watch dribblers sneak though the infield, botched double plays and easy grounders booted is no way to treat your elders.

In the vein of helping the pitching staff, the team signed veteran receivers Mike Schofield and Pablo Espinoza who are both solid defenders and game callers. Even though they are a righty/lefty duo they won't be strictly a platoon pair. Schofield will get most of the starts and will be rested against the occasional righty by Espinoza. Schofield has good power which should play well in The Prince's Palace and he should at least contribute offensively with the occasional homer.

Veteran right fielder Aurelio Lopez was signed because... (points to an imaginary character Peter Brand in the corner), he gets on base. He has a career .360 OBP to go along with some gap power which should play well in Riyadh's home park. Sure, maybe that's wasted on a 60 something win team but he might at least be a trade piece when the deadline rolls around. His salary is modest enough anyways to not worry much about it and watching good baseball players is better than watching bad ones.

“Don't cry upon your losses, don't measure today with tomorrows...believe in now and be happy today.”

Expansion baseball itself is never easy to watch but this team has it's share of compelling stories to follow. The Red Crescents will take their first official step on this opening day and just existing is reason enough to celebrate so...


“Drink wine and look at the moon and think of all the civilizations the moon has seen passing by.”
El Paso Chili's GM 2046-
Riyadh Red Crescents GM 2046
Mumbai Metro Stars GM 2045, Won United Cup

allenciox
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Re: 2046 Post 3 - Roster Ruminations

Post by allenciox » Mon Mar 01, 2021 9:25 am

Should be interesting watching the two expansion teams and how they improve over the next few years.

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