For the fourth season in a row, our offensive production decreased.
TEAM POSITION PLAYER WAR BY SEASON
| 2057 | 2058 | 2059 | 2060 | 2061 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WAR | 32.5 | 30.8 | 21.3 | 16.0 | 10.8 |
| RS | 843 | 764 | 741 | 658 | 675 |
Our pitching production also decreased. This was the result of poor starting pitching; the bullpen was significantly improved. I believe that our strong pen helped us win 30 of 49 1-run games, which helped us exceed our expected record by 10 games.
TEAM PITCHING WAR BY SEASON
| 2057 | 2058 | 2059 | 2060 | 2061 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WAR | 14.5 | 19.1 | 16.6 | 17.1 | 15.6 |
| RA | 729 | 655 | 735 | 690 | 738 |
| 2057 | 2058 | 2059 | 2060 | 2061 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WAR | 47.0 | 49.9 | 37.9 | 33.1 | 26.4 |
| RD | +114 | +109 | +6 | -32 | -63 |
| PYTH | 92 | 92 | 82 | 77 | 74 |
| WINS | 100 | 92 | 82 | 78 | 84 |
- Concern: Improve production at second base without hurting defense.
Plan: Bill Atkinson and Candrakesa Surati will compete for the job or perhaps platoon, unless we can obtain a young second baseman via trade, free agency, or the Rule 5 draft.
- Concern: Improve production at shortstop without hurting defense.
Plan: John Jowers is the incumbent, but I have no confidence that he can stay healthy. I'll be on the lookout for another Jowers or equivalent, assuming that we can't find a real shortstop via trade, free agency, or the Rule 5 draft, none of which seem likely.
- Concern: Find a center field platoon partner for António Hernández who can both play defense and post positive WAR.
Plan: To quote a famous guy, I have concepts of a plan. No, that's a lie. All I can offer you is hopes and prayers.
- Concern: Right field fell short of 3.0 WAR goal (only 1.3 WAR accrued).
Plan: Play Clancy Lee in right field and resist the urge to play him in center field. Find a platoon partner for Lee.
- Concern: Designated hitter earned only 0.6 WAR.
Plan: After the initial free agent feeding frenzy, shop the bargain bins for a DH. Alternatively, hope that one of my AAA guys breaks out.
Second Base: Bill Atkinson suffered a severe sophomore slump. No one stepped up. We played nine different players at the keystone. None of them could post positive WAR. Production dropped from +0.1 to -1.6 WAR. This was a real dumpster fire.
Shortstop: Jowers was not the same after his injury ridden 2060, no longer able to play shortstop at a high level. We thought we had the answer when we traded for Serrano, but he lasted two weeks before incurring a season ending injury. Like second base, we played nine different players at shortstop, with similarly miserable results. Production decreased from -0.7 to -1.7 WAR.
Center field: This was a bright spot. We traded for last season’s Gold Glove winner Ed 'Mister' Rooney, who became the first franchise centerfielder for us since arriving in Montreal. We improved from 1.0 to 3.0 WAR, with Rooney starting 70 games for us after the trade.
Right field: We played Clancy Lee in left field, so we needed to find someone new for right field. Roosevelt Davis exploded out of the blocks in early 2061 but faded badly down the stretch. His contact has taken a step backward. Our production here decreased from 1.3 WAR to -0.1.
Designated hitter: We tried to run it back with Don Moore, but he was not the answer. Eventually we promoted our 2060 first round pick, Denes 'Shadow' Terovolas. Production improved from -0.1 to +0.6 and should get better with a full season of Terovolas.
Let’s review each position:
CATCHER
Calvin Johnson and Jamie Behnke combined for 3.0 WAR. The 40-year-old Johnson has played his last season with the Blazers, but he gave us over 16 WAR during his six seasons. He is the last starter remaining from our Johnson League championship roster. Behnke, 29, is the heir apparent; he started 84 games and graded out with 14.6 framing runs, second in the league. Loren Hall, also 29, will assist Behnke with catching duties. Both are defense-first catchers.
FIRST BASE
Team captain Dan 'Tangles' Wilkinson, only 23, put up another solid season, hitting .297/.340/.540 (143 OPS+) with strong defense, earning 3.5 WAR.
SECOND BASE
Tsu-bahr Hru had an extreme platoon split, hitting .274/.341/.452 (122 OPS+) and earning 0.6 WAR in 28 starts against left-handed pitching, but canceling it out with -0.6 WAR versus right-handers. He has world class speed, stealing 27 bases in 29 attempts. He can hold down the short side of the platoon. I have no idea who can be his platoon partner.
THIRD BASE
Tom 'Gauntlet' Allen came down to earth after his stellar ROTY season, but managed 2.2 WAR in 128 starts. He hit .256/.314/.450 (112 OPS+).
SHORTSTOP
After trading for Reynaldo Serrano to play shortstop, he tore his ACL after 18 starts. When we acquired him, the plan was to send him to the Development Lab for strength and conditioning after the season. But that won’t be possible, as he will not return from injury until Spring Training.
LEFT FIELD
I said that if I could resist playing Clancy Lee elsewhere, he would put up 3 WAR as a left fielder. He honored my confidence in him, putting up 3.1 WAR in 135 starts, hitting .294/.343/.470 (127 OPS+), stealing 22 bases in 25 attempts, and playing solid defense.
CENTER FIELD
Finally, after years of yearning for a franchise player at the position, we traded for Ed Rooney. Rooney won the Yogi Zimmer Diamond Glove last season and put up 4.8 WAR. This season, in 70 starts with us, he recorded 2.2 WAR and continued playing elite defense. I believe that his presence was a big factor in our improved record in the last two months of the season.
RIGHT FIELD
In April and May, Roosevelt Davis started the season hitting .325/.366/.584 (162 OPS+) in April and .304/.398/.510 (154 OPS) in May, recording 2.2 WAR. He improved from 45 to 50 overall, and his potential went from 50 to 60. It was a very heady time. Then reality set in. In July and August, he hit .186 and .174. He bounced back with a 141 OPS+ in September. Who is Rosie? Is he the April/May superstar, the July/August quad-A player, or something in-between? My hopes for 3 WAR from RF evaporated in July; we finished with -0.1 WAR.
DESIGNATED HITTER
We signed Don Moore to start against right-handed pitching. Like Davis, he started fast but faded soon thereafter. We finished with essentially zero WAR.
SUMMARY
If Reynaldo Serrano returns from injury intact, we should be significantly better in 2062. First base, third base, shortstop, left field, and center field should each be near our target 3 WAR. Catcher will likely be closer to 2 WAR, but we can live with that if they stay healthy and provide elite pitch framing.
I think right field and designated hitter are set to improve. If we can get 3 WAR between the two of them, that would be a big improvement, but I think there is upside beyond that.
Second base is the burning issue to be solved. We have a couple of prospects in the pipeline, but they will not be ready for 2062.
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT PLAN
- Concern: Second base generated negative WAR
Plan: At this time, we don't have a plan. Our prospects are not ready, free agent second basemen are as scarce as hen's teeth, and teams want our first born in trade talks. We'll pursue all avenues.
- Concern: Right field generated net zero WAR
Plan: Right now we have a platoon of Roosevelt Davis and Herman 'Sheriff' de Jonge. We have a BBA ready prospect, left-handed-hitting Manny Burgus who could assume the strong side of the platoon, bumping Davis to DH. Burgus is a plus defender; Davis is below average. Ziya Türkes is also in the mix.
- Concern: Designated hitter generated net zero WAR
Plan: Denes Terovolas is the default choice here. Davis may platoon with him.
