2045 Record 101-61 .623
2045 Results - Won Brewster Cup - BBA Champions
GM - Chris Robillard - @crobillard
Key Additions
- Drafted RF Juan Solís in the 2045 Rule 5 Draft (Round 1, Pick 31, 31st overall Pick), from the Phoenix Talons.
- Signed SS Pepe Espinosa to a 1-year contract extension worth a total of $7,680,000.
- RP - Zhi-xin Chien (FA) - lost to UMEBA
- Signed international amateur C Su-wu Gou aka DOOM out of Taiwan to a minor league contract. - He's already at a 10 rating for sac bunts!
- Signed international amateur C Mulk Melen out of Turkey to a minor league contract. Kids only rated a 5 for sac bunts, SMH.
- Signed international amateur CF Mamdouh bin Diya al Din out of Lebanon to a minor league contract. Perhaps the longest NOB of jersey the BBA has ever seen!
- Signed international amateur SP Mümtaz Atil out of Turkey to a minor league contract. Letters saved on this NOB plate will go towards teammates bin Diya al Din for sure.
Add to that they now have L'Arch for a full season, and will be getting back SP Jose Martinez and RP Fekadu Bbosa. Both lost last year with arm injuries'. Although only Bbosa was really lost for any significant time last year going down in July. Is only going to help. The one big difference between this teams runs in 2044 & 2045 was injuries. In 2044, this team was ravaged by injuries, loosing multiple key players for the season, and yet they still managed to win 87 games. In 2045 they were for the most part healthier and it showed winning 101 games.
They are currently siting #2 in the BBA against the salary cap at 108.7m. That might explain their lack of involvement in the FA market this season early on. Perhaps letting to market come to them to pick up some cheaper pieces. We still have some time left.
Looking ahead to 2047, they do have some finical decisions to start to deal with. With key contributors due for player options in 2047
- 30yo 3B Steve Collins III (14.4m) & a TO for 15.38m in 2048.
- 33yo SP Jose Martinez (12.5m) & a TO for 15.5m in 2048.
Winning the Championship should only help the turnstiles (and revenue) in Edmonton. They were #2, only behind Calgary in the Johnson last season with 3.62m Edmontonians passing through the turnstiles. This team did also not have a single 2045 award winner on the club, and did I forget to mention they still won 101 games, (and the championship).
With that all being said, if it ain't broke don't fix it. Looking at the projected 2046 lineup, it should be very similar to last years with no major offseason acquisitions, just maybe some new backup / role players in 2046. I am curious to see how GM Robollard fits in Rule 5 pickup Solis. He's only got experience at RF but my guess will most likely fill a roll as platoon player with L'Arch or PH vs LHP off the bench, or a DH when facing LHP. Between him and L'Arch you have a platoon spot split of vs RHP - 12/11/11 & vs LHP 10/10/10. YIKES!
The starting rotation / staff will be the same last season for the most part, but just with the additions of Martinez and Bbosa back, allowing GM Robillard to shuffle some pieces around again. They used a total of 19 pitchers during the 2045 season, with 6 players accounting for 125+ innings with (Swallows & Klomp at 200+). Out of the bullpen he had workhorse Huerta eating up 147 innings in relief.
I'll say it again, as long as this team can avoid a 2044-ish style injury bug, this team has a 100% of making the playoffs again in 2046. If not a division crown a wild card in the Johnson. I think San Antonio will bounce back chipping away at some of the other teams win totals, making this race even tighter.
2046 Prediction
94-68 .580 and another Frontier Division Pennant for the Jackrabbits.
We all know that once you get to the playoffs everyone is 0-0, but repeating in the Brewster is just so damn hard. I'm predicting they get knocked out in the Cartwright Cup Series 4 games to 3.
Just remember kids when you are right 52% of the time you're wrong 48% of the time...