Vancouver 2013 Preview

[indiansfan]

Vancouver Mounties 2013 Preview

The Mounties off season goal was to get under the salary cap, but to keep the team in the playoff hunt another league. They made a blockbuster deal with Des Moines, that was panned by several owners, along with another significant deal and some FA signings. They got under the cap, are they going to make it back to the playoffs? I think they gave themselves a good shot. Let's take a look at the new 2013 Mounties

Additions: SP Roy Buckley, C Zach Rouse, SP Bertolameu Bolota, MR Valentine Smith, 1B Ken Gould. SP Chris Lee, CF Wei-quo Chong, SP John Ballance, C Desi Stanley

Subtractions: LF Ed Mansfield. MR Pancho Diaz, MR Marty O'Dooley, SP Gary Jones, C Roark Dempsey, CF Steve Faulkner, SS Trent Wolf

Catching: Vancouver traded away Roark Dempsey and got Desi Stanley back in the deal, so Stanley will start behind the plate this year. Stanley is older but $ 5 million cheaper and doesn't have the defense that Dempsey had. He should provide a solid bat this season and hopefully he can justify the $10 mil he will make next year. The team is hoping newly acquired Zach Rouse is will develop into Stanley's replacement.

Infield: It looks like Vancouver will open with an infield of the great Douglas Newhouse at 1B, Francisco Cruz at 2B, Duncan Harvey at 3B and Pedro Pineda at SS. The only newer face is Cruz as it will be the 4th season together for the other three. Newhouse signed an extension in the November that will let him retire a Mountie. At nearly 40 the question is how long until his performance starts to decline. While he and Harvey may not combine for the 65 homers they did last year, they should provide upward of 50. Pineda should improve from the dismal .238 he hit last season and continue to give the team solid defense at SS. Cruz will not only give the team a solid bat and glove at 2B, but his versatility allows him to play anywhere in the infield. That could be important on a team that has "age" issues. I expect Pat Hathaway to see more at bats this season than last, spelling Newhouse and Harvey when necessary or filling in for injury. If Harvey falters, don't be surprised to see Hathaway take his job. This 27 year old would be starting on most teams (he certainly would be on mine!).

Outfield: The Mounties dealt 2/3rd of the outfield with Faulkner and Mansfield sent away in the off season. They took with them nearly $20 million in contracts. This season will see Ken Strout and Fernando Morales in LF, Wei-quo Chong in CF and slugger Jacob Bryantin RF. Bryant is one of the best hitters in the MBBA. Last season he was traded to Vancouver from Carolina and Frick League pitchers were happy to see him go. He finished 2012 with these stats: .311 AVG, .968 OPS, 50 2B, 47 HR and 142 RBIs. Is it any wonder he won the Sawyer Silk Trophy? While nobody expects those numbers every year, Bryant will be counted on to lead the offense. After Bryant, there isn't much to get excited about in the outfield. I guess you could say you get what you pay for. Chong will provide solid defense in CF but only an average bat. Strout should provide solid defense in LF and could hit 20 homers and about .275. He spent a lot of time in the minors and should be a good platoon against righty pitchers. He will need to be paired with a platoon against lefties and frankly I think there should be some guys on the waiver wire better than what Vancouver has on the roster.

DH: Jeremy Finch will be the team's everyday DH again this year. Finch's production dropped significantly the last two seasons, particularly his power numbers. It will be tough for him to hit his 2010 numbers again, but he should provide a solid bat and help anchor the middle of the lineup. He's not a very good fielder, but could still play outfield if need be or to fill in for an injury.

Offensive/Defensive Summary: The Mounties have a solid offense without any major holes. They may not have the offense they had in 2012, but they will still have one of the top hitting teams in the JL, with a defense that won't hurt the pitching staff.

Starting Pitching: The Ace of this staff is Robbie Sargent, one of the best starters in league history. His 265 wins rank 3rd on the all time list and if anyone is a lock to be a 1st year inductee it is Sargent. While still one of the top SP in the league, age has started to take its toll. With this offense, he still will win a lot of games, but he will appear human from time to time. Getting a shot at the #2 spot will be career reliever John Ballance. He has the talent, just not the endurance. I'm surprised that Des Moines never start to start him. It will be interesting to see how this works out. I think he is going to prove to be a valuable addition and should fill the hole left by Gary Jones. The #3 starter will be last year's "reliever turned starter" Pete Bedford. His 17-13 record in 2012 demonstrated that you can have a 3 stamina and still be an effective starter. Starting two guys with low stamina might put a bit more of a burden on the bullpen, but both of these guys have the talent to win a ton of games. Don't be surprised to see 55 wins from these three. The #4 and #5 spots will definitely be a step down. It looks like Charlie Schaffer and Roy Buckley will fill out the rotation. Both are journeyman starters that will need the guys with the bats to help them out.

Bullpen: The great Jason Egan will be back to add to his all time leading 616 saves. He is simply the best the MBBA has ever seen and at 38 yrs old he is still at the top of his game. The problem is going to be getting to Egan. Joey Stevens and Clarence Werner will be setting up games. Stevens is solid, but Werner shouldn't be setting up for a team this good. VM Smith was a key free agent signing and he should provide good middle inning relief. Sam Lee will be the 2nd guy out of the pen, Arturo Luna will eat innings and Robert McCabe will get out lefties. Jeffrey Martin, one of the best bullpen guys on the team, will miss most of the season with an injury. After Egan this bullpen is only average

Pitching Summary: The Mounties have great starting pitching and a great closer. The problem is that they have no depth, some weakness in the bullpen and too many older guys. If they stay healthy and cruise the waiver wires for relievers, they should be okay. A couple of injuries however could really ruin their playoff hopes.

Prediction: A great offense, a HOFer leading the rotation and another one closing out games. That is the recipe for a playoff team. However, too many old guys almost guarantees injuries and this team doesn't have much depth on the pitching side and not many guys in the minor leagues to help out. The good news is their only competition in the JL Pacific is California and they should beat up on Hawaii more this season. So I think there is a good chance they make it to the postseason again. The key here will be injuries. On a side not I think this team did the best they could with their salary situation, I don't think most GMs would have been able to drop that much salary and still put this kind of talent on the field.

[bschr682]

Health will most certainly be the key. Some waiver wire additions and maybe a small trade or two should be all I need to make it to the postseason barring any major surprise issues. And as it has been proven many times both in this league and in real life, all you need to do is be good enough to make the dance. After that its a crap shoot anyway.

And Hathaway is totally available after my most recent waiver wire add.