TVT 2037.7 - 2037 Season Review

[StormZ_23]

Just before we start this article, yes we shortened the name of the publication (The Vancouver Times) into an abbreviation and will be doing this for every article to come.

Well, there it is, the end of another baseball season in Vancouver without the playoffs. We all expected this and no one should be too mad at this organization. In fact, they finished much better than many would have ever expected. They finished with a record of 75-87 and at one point during the season they held a record of 71-72. Keep in mind that many predicted that this team would finish around the 100 losses mark. We never thought they had the talent necessary to get into the playoffs, but they definitely stuck around long enough to keep things interesting. Now, let’s talk about this past season in depth.

We will start with the bats. The bats were always projected to be quiet this season and for the most part, that assessment was correct. The Mounties ranked towards the bottom of the league in team hits, average, and basically anything that involved offensive production. Who needs home runs anyway? However, there were a few guys that hit very well, most notably Rashardo Menne III, Hotha Popo, and Ki-seop Park. Menne in just 101 games held a line of .327/.430/.507 and a 4.7 WAR, meaning if had played a full season, he would have been in the conversation for some major awards. Popo hit well enough to net a couple prospects from the Madison Wolves as he had a line of .285/.398/.375 and 3.1 WAR in 104 games, which was also enough to be the Mounties representative in the all-star game. Ki-seop Park played well enough to earn a 4 year contract extension. He sported a line of .268/.310/.414 and had the 6th most stolen bases in the league with 65. Even J.J. McQuade has had a decent time with the Mounties. Being on his third team this season definitely lit a fire under him as he sported line of .273/.318/.466 with 1.0 WAR in 44 games. Yes, this is a small sample size but if he can turn into a 3-4 WAR player next season, the Mounties could have a nice trade chip on their hands. Some other players had some notable stats as well. Guy Webb led the team with 23 home runs, Chester Larkin enjoyed a nice line of .279/.328/.433 in his 58 games on the big league roster, and…I guess applaud Scott Harper for 19 home runs and leading the team in RBI’s with 82. Yeah, overall the offense is definitely below league average and they really need to upgrade at least half of the starting lineup to have a chance at the playoffs in the future. Fortunately, the Mounties have some solid prospects that can fill in those roles but they are at least 2-3 seasons away. The offense wasn’t amazing and we don’t expect it to get better any time soon so we are going to have to live with what we got and hope Menne can stay healthy for a full season and McQuade can have a career resurgence. Both things might be a lot to ask but it's nice to be optimistic.

Next, let’s talk about pitching. Throughout the season, 9 different pitchers had started a game for the Mounties, mainly due to long term injuries. Basically, this season was like auditions to see who can stay in the organization for the long haul. The two best pitchers of the season were José Zamora and Juan Guerrero. Guerrero has had the potential to be a number 2 or 3 pitcher since he was a prospect. Despite not having the production of his 2035 season, he had a decent season with a 12-14 record and 4.37 ERA. Something to keep a lookout on was how many home runs he gave up. He gave up 41 home runs in 33 starts this season, which has been a notable trend since last season when he gave up 31 home runs in just 24 starts. Guerrero is a sidearm pitcher so that definitely puts him at a disadvantage but he plays at such a pitcher friendly park that this trend could be worrying for the future. Zamora had an excellent breakout season. He ended the season with a 18-14 record and 3.73 ERA in 243.2 IP, which was the 4th most innings pitched in the league. His last month of starts definitely inflated his ERA as every Mounties player decided they couldn’t play good baseball in September as they lost the majority of their games that last month of the season. Zamora is definitely a nice piece for a playoff rotation, not as an ace but maybe at a number 2 or 3 spot if keeps developing well. Top prospect José Arellano also made his major league debut this season after another successful season in AAA. He started 6 games with mixed results, which resulted with a 0-2 record and a 5.89 ERA. To be fair, September was a bad month for everyone and he did have a couple solid starts, most notably his last two starts. Spring training will dictate where Arellano starts next season. As for the rest of the starting pitchers, not many had noteworthy seasons as they all had similar stats. There were some nice relievers in the bullpen as well as Alexandre Doyle, Jesús Zapata, and midseason signing Roberto Muñíz were all good out of the bullpen. Everyone else, not so much. However, one name to look out for is Alejandro Ramríez. He had a great season before he got injured and just recently had a setback with his recovery so he won’t fully recover until March at the earliest. There are rumors that he will transition into a starter next season so that will be an interesting storyline for next season. Overall, the pitching was average this season and there could at least a few guys that can stay for the long haul. With even more pitching prospects possibly coming up next season, the Mounties pitchers should be solid for years to come.

And that is it. There is a possibility we will review some of the prospects in the minors as well, however everyone at the office is lazy so don’t count on it any time soon. Thanks for reading!

[RonCo]

I'm really interested to see how Vancouver moves forward. Interesting set of players at the core.