This year we look at the 2042 Omaha Hawks franchise team (then known as the Indianapolis Grasshoppers).
The team record: We won’t pretend this was an earth-shattering team that went all the way to win the Landis, no instead, this was a team in the middle of a rebuild and only 2 seasons into new front office management with Justin Niles at the helm. This squad finished 6th in the division with a record 69-93, a 5 game improvement over the prior season, and a 20 game improvement over 3 seasons prior.
The offense:
They scored an average of 4.51 runs per game and were led by outfielder Emilio Rodriguez, who signed as a free agent before the season started. Sunshine put up a 4.8 WAR batting .338/.371/.631.
Behind sunshine was 1st baseman Jesus Alvarado, who some will remember as having one good season. Well, this was it. He hit .312/.395/.550 this season with 27 home runs before fading fast and being run out of Omaha by the end of 2034. He would go on to have 40 at-bats in the BBA and UMEBA after leaving Omaha before hanging it up.
An outfield consisting of Aymeric Barajas, Robinson Peralta, and Manuel Freyta was starting to show some youth, but Barajas coming by way of trade, and Davis coming off a monster 2031 season.
Behind the plate, Juan Garza was replaced by Bob Wagner, who also came by way of trade, and Wagner at age 23 didn’t disappoint with a 3.2 WAR offensively.
Around the infield, Patrick Lue handled first base while current Hawk Emilio Morales enjoyed his rookie season in the BBA by handling second base. Morales managed 14 home runs in his rookie season, something that is now looked at as very uncharacteristic. Lukas Bourdon disappointed at shortstop while Jim Tremblett showcased some additional youth talent at third base, finishing with a 2.1 WAR despite a .221 batting average.
We couldn’t leave the offense without discussing the only other member of this team who is still with the Hawks today. Jimmy Starks Jr. made his debut in 2032 playing in 112 games and batting .302/.389/.467 in what was a spark of hope for Omaha fans.
All in all, the offense wasn’t great by any means, only accumulating a 16.5 batting WAR, but the teams WRC+ was right at 100, and their 184 team home runs was nothing to scoff at. This club’s biggest issue may have been their stolen base %. They stole 174 bases successfully and were caught 138 times. That means out of 901 singles hit by this club, they gave away 15% of these by being thrown out attempting to swap a bag.
The pitching staff:
While the offense was looking younger, the pitching was clearly behind. They gave up 5.07 runs per game on average, but the staff’s biggest issue may have been with their age and unreliability. When you look at all your starting pitchers and not one has a winning record, it’s typically not a good sign.
Let’s start first by pointing out that this was one of many opening days when Joe Clements was handed the ball. Clements was the club's workhorse during the rebuilding seasons and 2032 was no different. Clements tossed 204 innings with a 4.79 ERA in 2032, not bad for a 23-year-old pup.
Two pitchers were actually better though, at least statistically speaking, 25-year-old Jose Reyes had a 4.11 ERA and a 2.6 WAR. It goes without mentioning that he also had 16 losses on the year just to showcase his lack of run support from the offense. 33-year-old Jose Rivera was also not an awful pitcher during his 28 starts, throwing to a 5.36 ERA but a 4.79 FIP.
Jose Cisneros was the 5th man in the rotation most of the season, throwing an ERA under 5 after Mike Bailey was dealt away in May.
W Millard Mccoy and Mario Lopez were the most stable in the pen. Tony Caraballo who came by way of trade mid-season made his presence felt with an ERA under 4. 2032 was also the season that the current club franchise leader in saves would debut. It was a small debut, only pitching in 2 games and giving up 3 runs in the process.
The final effect:
As mentioned this wasn't a team that made the playoffs however this was a team to remember simply because it was the final team that would ever take the field for the franchise while in the city of Indianapolis. That off-season the team relocated to its current location in Omaha, Nebraska. While a 69 win season is nothing to write home about typically, it did show the continued upward progress that the front office was making and prefaced the next season when Omaha would jump to 82 wins, their first winning record in 5 attempts.
