2000 Washington Preview: The Unilateral Offensive Continues

[salas]

Washington, D.C. (AP) - Last year's incarnation of the Washington Bobwhites ended the MBBA season at 79-83. This year's version should do better.

Say, 80-82.

An old sage or 15,447 once said that "pitching and defense win ballgames". The Bobbies, meanwhile, have enough offense stockpiled to obliterate a small country. Problem is, 3 out of every 5 days, that "small country" is gonna get their own nukes past your air defense system.

Confused by the analogies? So are we, so here's the cut-and-dried version...

With the acquisition of LF Pio Vallejo from Louisville and the signing of former Omaha slugger Mike Malkowski, the Bobwhites should feature an offensive attack second-to-few-at-worst in the MBBA. But the pitching...o, the pitching...

The Lineup:

1. SS Waichirou Moronobu (1999: .272-11-37, 81 games)

The "Yen Master" (dubbed as such after demanding that the amount of his recent arb offer reflect the value of 10 million yen....that's $4.424 mil for those keeping score at home) should post another .270-20-80 line if healthy the entire season, plus 15-20 swipes and solid D to boot.

Backup: Lamont Poper (1999: .194-2-14, 42 games)

This guy has Russell Branyan written all over him...and makes even worse contact. Should be a solid late-inning defensive stopgap on the right side of the infield as well as a great pinch-runner.

2. 2B Joe Sixpack (1999: .343-9-52)

Will he hit .340 again? Doubt it. Will he be a decent all-around starter at the second sack? You bet.

Backup: Verdo Incaviglia (1999: DNP)

We'll keep our fingers crossed that Sixpack plays 150 games and doesn't down too many game-eve sixpacks.

3. 3B George Goutones (1999: .296-37-112)

The smartest move the Bobbies' front office made this offseason? Locking up Goutones at a solid price for 3 more years. Great all-around hitter, major power threat. Having just one guy like this on a team is nice, but....well, see below...

Backup: Poper, we figure, but with Goutones playing 160, who needs one?

4. 1B Neil McKinney (1999: .304-48-122)

Best DH in the league. Three consecutive 45-HR seasons, including one with 60, three consecutive seasons batting above .304, a low VORP of 51.2, an OPS of....wait, what's that, you say? He plays first? There is no DH? Hmm, well, what's a few extra errors with a bat like that?

Bac..., oh, never mind. If McKinney misses any length of time this team is probably in trouble regardless.

5. CF (?) Pio Vallejo (1999: .251-31-122 w/Lou.)

So Vallejo is dealt to Washington and apparently will be asked to play out of position in center, versus his more comfortable stomping grounds in left. That could be an unnecessary distraction for a guy who already struggles to hit .250. Stay tuned...

Backup: Randall Prout (1999: .271-4-16, 28 games)

No better defensively, but another speed threat.

6. RF Mike Malkowski (1999: .286-7-35, 51 games w/ Val., Clg.)

No one is really sure what in the inner workings of the mysterious mind that is Lee Honigsfeld's led the Valencia GM to release this guy, but released he was, two days after winning a player of the week title and less than a year after an All-Star season. A high-quality pickup for the Bobbies given his pre-1999 history.

7. LF Terry Blass (1999: .304-11-47, 111 games)

Decent enough hitter, but it appears the club may have chosen the lesser of two evils: start Vallejo in CF and hope Blass can shag at least a couple flys out in left, or start Vallejo in left and potentially have a complete disaster in center. The OF situation will be interesting to watch in Washington over the first few weeks of the season. Don't count out the possibility that the Bobbies keep looking for a CF to add.

Backup: Vallejo would probably shift to left and Prout would take over in center in case of injury.

8. C Tyler Ryan (1999: .208-14-55, 109 games)

His average has fallen precipitously each of the last 2 seasons, and his power numbers aren't really close to their '97 levels. Still, with a bit of a rebound, Ryan's a good enough catcher to be of some value in the 8 slot.

Backup: Wilfredo Valudez (1999: .284-0-8, 48 games)

This guy should get some decent playing time in 2000, 'cause he can hit. Look for him to spell Ryan at least twice a week against righties.


The Pitching Staff:

While the loss of Nicolas Coll wasn't exactly a soul-crushing blow for this club, lacking another arm is definitely not just a minor issue for this club...

SP1: Ken Howell (1999: 16-8, 3.38)

Easily a top-20 starter last season, but...nearing age 39, will his relative lack of stamina start catching up to him? Probably not this year yet, but look out in the second year of that two-season extension he signed in September.

SP2: Jan Starr (1999: 7-11, 4.68 w/ Birm.)

Like Howell, someone got the idea that Starr could and should be a successful starter after years of closing games. Unlike Howell, the results aren't unanimously positive, after a fairly successful trial run in his last Valencia season turned into last season's less-than-stellar results. Although he's tended to get hit harder by lefties, last season was a complete surprise as righties pummeled him more. Who really knows what to expect as he joins a third team in 3 seasons?

SP3: Josh Kellogg (1999: 6-7, 3.75, 18 starts w/ Val.)

The Bobbies are hoping this guy stays healthy, because if Starr flames out and Kellogg's arm starts sounding like a bowl of Rice Krispies, they might as well let opponents start hitting off a tee. Still, when Kellogg is good, he reeeeal good.

SP4: Ed Widdicombe (1999: 5-9, 4.70 in 20 starts, 25 app.)

We're guessing at this assignment, given the shambles of a back end of the rotation, but ol' Ed did toss a shutout last season, so maybe that's enough to earn him a job this year?

SP5: William Upton (1999: 0-2, 7.04, 3 starts, 6 app.)

It's between him and Hugh Wiggins. Yeah. Not. Good. Maybe, if this were the GBC, a four-man rotation would be an option. If the top 3 starters were all horses, certainly. But they're not, and the MBBA ain't, and there you have it. (Still, Upton's AAA stats last year merit some cause for guarded optimism...)

Long Relief: Hugh Wiggins (1999: 7-11, 6.04)

Last year, Wiggins was a full-time starter for much of the year. This year may ultimately see more of the same. Washington almost certainly will be looking to add a major arm if possible during the season.

Middle Relief 1: Larry Marts (no MBBA experience)

Marts was a Rule 5'er and might have enough talent to stick the entire season. We're not so sure about tabbing him as the primary middle reliever, though.

MR2: Marcos Cajigas (1999: 7-1, 3.68, 89 app., 14 Hld)

Cajigas pitched lots of innings last season, and many of them ended well despite the slightly high 1.5 WHIP. If only he could revert back to his AAA form, this club would have a lot fewer innings to worry about.

MR3: Jose Garcia (1999: 4-2, 3.28, 47 app.)

Why is this guy stuck so far down on the depth chart? He was by far the most successful of the club's middle relief corps last season. Hmmmm....Rip Torn decides not to return and all hell breaks loose on the coaching staff. Assuming he gets bumped up to the top of the MR corps by Syd Barrett or whomever is managing the club these days (ok, so it's actually Joe Rudi, who should know better), the back end of the bullpen is clearly the strength of this staff.

Set-up: James Endres (1999: 5-3, 3.79, 78 app, 15 Hld)

If not for a few rough outings, this kid would have posted an ERA near 3; it was still a fine season nonetheless, and from a 22-year-old! Endres dominated the lower minors, then essentially skipped AAA. We're betting last season's solid overall performance will be bettered this season.

Closer: Brendan Meyer (8-5, 3.42, 34 SV)

Four straight 30+ save seasons for the reliable young vet, whose only glaring weakness is a tendency to throw a poor changeup that gets hammered. Meyer will have some bad outings, to be sure, and his opp. avg. of nearly .270 the last few seasons is cause for slight concern, but overall there's nothing to indicate he won't continue to close things out as usual.


Is a division crown a possibility for the Bobwhites this season? Sure, if everything clicks and nobody misses significant amounts of playing time. We all know how that usually goes, though. Best case non-utopian scenario: new additions Starr and Kellogg contribute significantly, someone steps up in the #4 or #5 starting slot to pitch halfway-decent innings, the bullpen gets reshuffled a bit and is strong, and the offense mashes as expected. That could add up to 85-87 wins, which could be enough to come close to first. Worst case: the rotation falls apart, the bullpen leaks runs, Goutones and/or McKinney miss significant time due to injuries, and it's revealed that Syd Barrett is indeed the manager of this club. If that happens, Louisville could be
"movin on up,
To the east side.
To a deluxe apartment in the sky.
Movin on up,
To the east side.
We finally got a piece of the pie.


Fish don't fry in the kitchen;
Beans don't burn on the grill.
Took a whole lotta tryin',
Just to get up that hill.
Now we're up in the big leagues,
Gettin' our turn at bat.
As long as we live, it's you and me baby,
There ain't nothin wrong with that.


Well we're movin on up,
To the east side.
To a deluxe apartment in the sky.
Movin on up,
To the east side.
We finally got a piece of the pie.

[jiminyhopkins]

Nice writeup! Though with a 1-8 showing the first sim, I can only hope we get to 80 wins.

[LambeauLeap]

Lee was forced to release Malkowski because he was over the cap.

You don't want to know where this guy came from or why he has that nickname. Think large fish and placing it on your genitalia. True story and Matt can elaborate.

[KCCardinalFan]

Lee was forced to release Malkowski because he was over the cap.

You don't want to know where this guy came from or why he has that nickname. Think large fish and placing it on your genitalia. True story and Matt can elaborate.

Yes Matt, please do.

[LambeauLeap]

A guy with a name VEry similar to the player here inserted his dingaling in to the mouth of a carp as a joke. He's not inbred, although one would wonder.

The context by which he did this? I forget, or there was none. His nickname? CarpF--er. Insert letters here.

He father was known for working at the canning factory and grabbing a can, passing gas in it, and smelling it.

[KCCardinalFan]

A guy with a name VEry similar to the player here inserted his dingaling in to the mouth of a carp as a joke. He's not inbred, although one would wonder.

The context by which he did this? I forget, or there was none. His nickname? CarpF--er. Insert letters here.

He father was known for working at the canning factory and grabbing a can, passing gas in it, and smelling it.

This is even better than I imagined, although my first question is: what was he canning?

[jumpmancol]

I want oh so many more details of this guy and his family...

[LambeauLeap]

LOL not goign to post real names thanks to google worm searches

Guy farts in a can and smells it. I belive the can was a reject (at least that's what I'm hoping). If not be careful eating green beans! (OK it wasn't canned beans and this was awhile ago, the story is around 20 years old).

The weenis in the carp mouth is around 20 years old as well. I didn't know carp-effer very well but remember him as a douchebag for sure. NEver met fart-can pop.