2039 Atlantic City Gamblers Season Preview

[jleddy]

2038 Review
The Atlantic City Gamblers finished ’38 with a 76-86 record, an eight-win improvement from the previous season but not quite the 90-win campaign the team enjoyed in 2036. The Gamblers out-performed their Pythagorean Record by two wins en route to a second-place finish in the Johnson League’s Atlantic Division. Offensively, the team was essentially middle-of-the-pack in all statistics, however thanks to playing all their home games in spacious Trump Park, the Gamblers lead the Johnson League in triples and finished 3rd in slugging percentage. On the mound, the team struggled during the year as one of only three teams in the Johnson with an ERA north of 5.00 and a league-worst WHIP (1.45).

Key additions (2038 stats): SS Reece Wareham (126 OPS+, 4.7 WAR), 2B Lloyd Braun (89 OPS+, 3.5 WAR), SP Celio Marin (112 ERA+, 4.5 WAR), SP Júlio Alicea (95 ERA+, 3.2 WAR)

Key departures (2038 stats): C Allan MacHugh (95 OPS+, 1.5 WAR), SS Derrek Kennedy (72 OPS+, -0.9 WAR)

Offense Preview
The Gamblers offense features a pair of accomplished players in Lloyd Braun and Reece Wareham, making up a new double-play combo who hit a combined 64 home runs in 2038. Last season’s second baseman Keith Dean moves off the position to make way for Braun but will likely see his share of at-bats as a super-sub around the infield and possibly some time at DH. Superstar first baseman Adrián Salazar anchors the offense coming off a league-leading 50 home run campaign. Salazar’s huge year saw him finish runner-up in Silk Silver Slugger voting and earned the 25-year-old an off-season extension for six years at $109M. One player who did take home hardware last season is incumbent center fielder Millard Younger, winner of the Gillstrom Newcomer of the Year. A repeat of his .318/.364/.588 line near the top of the order will be a catalyst for what looks like an improved offense. Incredibly consistent left fielder Ricardo Hernández will continue to provide pop (average of 30 home runs last four seasons) and Diamond Glove defense. Fan favorite Bucky Dornster returns at the hot corner and will look to bounce-back after a down year at the plate. Should Bucky reclaim his All-Star form from a few seasons ago, it will go a long way in determining Atlantic City’s success. The biggest hole in the lineup, both offensively and defensively, is at catcher, a position that plagued the Gamblers last season. A spring training battle between minor league free-agent signee Nate Wood, 21-year-old prospect José Barajas and 2038 reserve Marc-André Paré will be watched closely by Atlantic City management. Don’t overlook the impact that newly-promoted hitting coach Salvatore Caprioglio means to the offense. The long-time hitting coach for Charm City has spent the last two years in the Gamblers’ minor league system (Single-A Long Island in 2037 and Double-A Trenton in 2038), watching both teams make the playoffs. Revered across all of baseball, Capriolgio’s addition could be worth a couple of wins or so on merit alone.

Projected Lineup
LF Ricardo Hernandez
SS Reece Wareham
CF Millard Younger
1B Adrian Salazar
3B Bucky Dornster
2B Lloyd Braun
DH Keith Dean
RF Stanley R. Perimutter
C Nate Wood

Bench
1B Gustavo Aguilera
OF John Noble
INF Aubrey Montgomery
OF Brian Bender
C Marc-Andre Pare
INF Edgardo Baez

Pitching Preview
If Atlantic City hopes to improve on their 2038 record and return to above .500 baseball, they’ll need to lean on their pitchers to put them in a position to win. Enter new pitching coach Tom Rodriguez who signed a two-year deal in November. Rodriguez joins the Gamblers after two successful years as pitching coach for the Edmonton Jackrabbits, including last year’s Landis Champion season. General Manager Joshua Biddle helped Rodriquez out during free agency, inking a pair of starters in Celio Marin and Julio Alicea. Marin, after spending the start of his career bouncing between the bullpen and rotation, was given a chance last year by Rockville to be a full-time starter and he delivered with a 16-7 record and respectable 4.14 ERA. Atlantic City is expected to hand Marin the ball every five days and hopes he continues his mid-career renaissance as well as add his championship experience. Alicea, a diminutive lefty from Puerto Rico, brings a workhorse mentality to the Gamblers, topping 200 innings in each of the past three seasons. Rounding out the rotation are returners Dusty Welch, André Georges and Francisco Barrera, all who made over 30 starts each last season. Biddle strengthened the bullpen as well, signing José Ordóñez and Clarence McCall, both whom are expected to see significant innings during the season. Getting the call in the ninth inning will be returning closer Ignacio Martínez and his league-leading 42 saves. Cutting down on the long-ball will be something Rodriguez will work on with Martinez to help lower his 4.23 ERA from last year.

Projected Rotation
SP Celio Marin
SP Dusty Welch
SP Andre Georges
SP Julio Alicea
SP Francisco Barrera

Bullpen
LR Yu Vgotmael
LR Yositoshi Ota
MR Clarence McCall
MR Vaclac Vroonland
MR Lucio Gomez
SU Jose Ordonez
CL Ignacio Martinez

Unanswered Questions
Who’s going to get out the lefties? The Gambler’s bullpen is likely to feature one, two at most, lefties who you wouldn’t call great. In a league dominated by left-handed mashers, the inability to offset opposing hitters late in games could be an issue.

Who’s designated as designated hitter? With last year’s starting second baseman Dean moving off the position to make room for Braun, a trio of Aguilera, Noble and Dean will see plenty of at-bats during the year at DH. Moving these chess pieces around the board to optimize a position that requires boatloads of production will be a year-long chore unless one literally steps up to the plate.

BBA.tv Rating: 9.1
Salazar is appointment viewing every time he’s at bat and the addition of new faces along with breakout sophomore Younger make this a fun team to watch this season.

2039 Prediction
After writing checks for $145.5M to sign Alicea, Braun, Marin and Wareham, plus new hitting and pitching coaches, Biddle is looking for these high-profile additions to continue to build on last year’s season. With a payroll ($109.9M) right up against the salary cap, Atlantic City is amongst the big boys so expectations will be high. Chasing down Rockville for the Atlantic Division title will be a tall order but the Johnson League wild card seems wide open. Look for the Gamblers to finish 87-75 and be in the thick of the playoff hunt through fall.