I'm Mounties GM Taylor Bettencourt. Ask me anything!
Hey r/VANMounties! I am the general manager of your Vancouver Mounties, Taylor Bettencourt. I am back on this subreddit to answer your questions and listen to your opinions regarding the team. It's been a few years since I did my first AMA here. Well, times have certainly changed. I hope to see you at the Northwoods Outpost during the season to cheer on your Vancouver Mounties! Bring on your hard hitting questions!
Edit: I'm signing off now, I got to get back to work. Thank you all for your questions! I guess I'll be back in 2045, hopefully we will have won a championship by then.
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Thebestpersonhere 215 points · 2 hours ago
Hello Mr. Bettencourt. I have a bachelor's degree in architecture, so I know a thing or two about designing structures, including stadiums. As many people on this subreddit have pointed out, there have been many construction workers that have gone in and out of our stadium in the past few weeks. I visited the stadium a few days ago to see what's going on. I've made some calculations and have noticed that the park factors of this stadium are now drastically different than they were last season. While the probability of home runs seem the same, it seems that the probability of hits will be higher this season. So, this means that the Northwoods Outpost is not a pitcher's park anymore. What do you have to say about this?
----MountiesGM 261 points · 2 hours ago
----Thank you for your question. I have to say your calculations look spot on to me. Yes, as an organization we decided it would be best to change the park factors of our stadium in order to fulfill this team's offensive potential at home. The Vancouver Times released a great article last season that describes our situation perfectly. We want this team to have the advantage anywhere we play, and this means that our ballpark should cater to our team's strengths, not the other way around.
CrispyChocolateBar 156 points · 2 hours ago
Congratulations on your team's success last season and winning GM of the year. Do you think this Mounties team has what it takes to win the Landis?
----MountiesGM 196 points · 2 hours ago
----Thank you for your question. Of course I believe this team can win the Landis. The problem is that many other GM"s in this league think the same thing about their own teams. But there is one thing that other teams in this league do not have, our offense. Sure, pretty much every team has great offense, but they do not have OUR offense. As the players continue to progress, I think we will progress in the playoffs. The key this season is to win the division title in the competitive Pacific division and beat Yellow Springs. We're not scared of Boise, Rockville, Edmonton, or any other team in the Johnson League. But, Yellow Springs is a challenge we need to overcome.
Mountiesaregood 129 points · 2 hours ago
The salary cap situation doesn't look great after this season. A lot of what you do is going to ride on whether Aaron Stone opts out of his contract after the 2043 season. Also, the Menne contract isn't great. I know Mounties fans wanted him to be re-signed when you did the last AMA, but that's a lot of money to give to a now 3 WAR player. Seeing how San Fernando was in a similar situation and was able to trade Juan Mendoza to Portland, what are your plans for dealing with the Menne contract, and the salary cap situation as a whole?
----MountiesGM 150 points · 2 hours ago
----Thank you for your question. Well, Stone and Menne are both still capable players in the prime of their careers, so I don't expect them to fall off a cliff any time soon. As for the contract situation, we knew what we were getting into when we handed out those contracts. If we get to the point where we have to make some trades to alleviate the salary cap situation, that's what we will do. Though, it would hurt to see Menne playing for Portland.
Emoji101 95 points · 2 hours ago
What's your favorite album of all time?
----MountiesGM 118 points · 2 hours ago
----Thank you for your question. That is a tough one. There are so many great albums that I constantly listen to. I will have to say my favorite album of all time is Rodeo by Travis Scott. I'm actually listening to it right now. Yeah that album came out in 2015, but that album has held up so well over the years. I get happy every time I hear it.
TheBiggestVanFan 77 points · 2 hours ago
Hi! Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to do this. I'm sure you receive a lot of phone calls from other GM's. Speaking of that, are there any trades or signings that have almost happened in the past that you regret not pulling the trigger on?
----MountiesGM 99 points · 2 hours ago
----Thank you for your question. Yes, of course. I'm not going to name any of them, but one of them actually nearly happened last season. I was talking to a GM for a starting pitcher. We threw names at each other, and while we were close to a deal, it never materialized. Life goes on. We got into the playoffs regardless, so our young players learned what it means to lose in the playoffs. We hope that hunger drives them this season. Actually, there was a big signing in the past that we nearly made. It was for a first baseman that currently plays in the Heartland division. That's all I will say on that.
ApplePie321 50 points · 2 hours ago
Are there any teams that you think will surprise the league this season?
----MountiesGM 64 points · 2 hours ago
----Thank you for your question. I think Omaha will be like Seattle last season. Omaha severely underperformed and I don't think that will last much longer. I see that Jacksonville's new GM is making some moves too, so they're a team to watch out for. Brooklyn will be an interesting team to watch too.
RememberBlockbuster 43 points · 2 hours ago
What are your expectations for the team this season?
----MountiesGM 60 points · 2 hours ago
----Thank you for your question. This team has all the tools to win a Landis. The key to our success is health. Last season, we lost many pieces in our bullpen. That's we looked to address this off-season, mainly by signing a few guys to minor league contracts and by signing Jose Luna to a big money deal. We were lucky last season to not have many injuries to our hitters. Knocking on wood, hopefully that luck can carry into this upcoming season.
