Notable Departures:
3B Luis Mendoza (Retired)
C John Stanley (FA)
RF Eric Wagner (FA)
SP Billy Kelly (Traded)
Notable Acquisitions:
C Sloth Fratelli (FA)
LF Thurman Dostie (Waivers)
SS Larry Barkin (FA)
RP Adrian Fox (FA)
Ah remember before those jerks in Nashville decided to run the Heartland division every year, Omaha was the team to fear in the division. They finished back to back seasons with at least 100 wins in 2053 and 2054. What began afterwards was a slow decline, and since 2058 they haven't made the postseason, finishing the last two years with 72 and 73 wins respectively. It's been a tough task for GM Kevin Spencer, who's had to cut there payroll by almost $50,000,000 in two years to make profit, and had to say goodbye to franchise cornerstone Luis Mendoza. But now with some room, what will the new Cyclones look like for 2061?
Pitching:
Leading off the Cyclones rotation is John Parrish. He spent most of last season coming out of the cyclones bullpen after acquiring him from Bikini. He is perfectly ok as a starter, but no where near the quality you'd expect from an ace. Following him up is Felipe Mendez, a 34 yea old beginning the journeyman phase of his career. He spent all of last year in AAA with San Fernando and now he's a number two pitcher. Again he is perfectly suitable to be a starter, but like Parrish i expect he may struggle a bit at the 2 spot. No-hitter thrower Sam Landry (remember that?) takes the third spot, coming back for his seventh season in a cyclones uniform. He'll be looking to bounce back from his disappointing 2060 season where his ERA nearly reached 7. I expect him to do better as well. Oscar O'Halloran is next up. The 25-year-old comes back for his fifth season in a Cyclones uniform. Last season he looked good coming from their bullpen, reaching 2.3 WAR. Can he do that as a full-time starter? The caboose of the rotation goes to Mathis Gerard. In terms of WAR he was Omaha's best pitcher last season, hopefully he will still have enough gas in the tank to finish the two years left in his contract.
So the rotation looks.. pretty meh. How's the bullpen? Well anchoring will be longtime Omaha Closer Dave Ferrell. He'll be going for his eighth straight season with at least 30 saves. He's easily one of the most reliable closers in the entire BBA. Kutaiba Abdul-Nasser takes the setup spot. He had a nice 2060 season and should continue to do well here. Knuckleballer Enzo Bouton also returns. With his 10 rated Knuckleball and 10 stamina you'd think he'd be a perfect starter. Unfortunately his control is not big league level, but in the pen it will cause less damage. Ken Sproul, Kauna Fabiano and recently acquired Adrian Fox round out the rest of the bullpen. All are very solid relievers. This bullpen through a quick look looks really good which will hopefully help the less than ideal starting rotation.
Position Players:
Hey looks who's back starting at catcher, it's Sloth Fratelli! He's a solid defensive presence who has a bit of pop to his bat. Many were concerned of his production after suffering tons of injuries in 58 and 59 which caused Omaha to let him leave, but he bounced back in the 2060 season with 3.1 WAR with Rocky Mountain. Backing him up will be 24 year old Juan Suarez, built as a perfect backup.
At first base we have Stan Lodge, a young 22 year old acquired late last season from Twin Cities. He showed some promise with his ability to draw walks and steal bases, plus he isn't a complete pylon on defense which is always a bonus for one. If he can step up his first full season in Omaha, there's no doubt he could be a regular.
Over at second is another youngster in Fernando Tovar. If i'm being frankly honest his sub par defense should have him over at first with Lodge at second, because Tovar's defense does not look good at all. Maybe he'll develop it a bit more if he plays but his average looking bat doesn't make up for that lackluster defense. But hey maybe I'm missing something and he'll turn out to be a cornerstone there.
Shortstop, one of the toughest positions to fill in baseball. So for Omaha they decided to bring in Larry Barkin. Well at least he's off that albatross of a contract. He's perfectly fine defensively but probably won't be a long term solution, mostly a patch job until something better comes up for the team.
At third base we have Roberto Villanueva, a 33 year old career backup who at this point will finally get a chance to be a full time starter. I like him, he's got a great arm to get the ball over to first and he should be very productive offensively as well. Kind of surprising he's never had a chance to be a starter before this but if it pans out, it will be an awesome story.
Even though he's going to miss the first week of the season, 23 year old Jorge Delgado will continue to be their franchise cornerstone in left field. The 2059 Rookie of the year looks to have avoided the sophomore slump last season and will hopefully step up to be that All star I know he could be. Frankly every team would love to have a player like Delgado.
Another tough position to fill is centerfield, and Pat Loder will be the one to do that. He's fine, should be a solid bat with decent fielding, there's not a lot of options out there so Loder is a good one. Like his left field counterpart he is also 23 so there is some room to grow.
In right we have Stephen Futon, a dependable option. He's been a mainstay since 2055 and has always finished with at least 1 WAR but mostly 2. He's on his lat year of arbitration so expect him to play for that contract extension he could get at the end of the season, whether here or somewhere else.
DH hasn't really been set in stone yet but expect to see a committee of sorts involving Lloyd Fitzpatrick and Asadel Nasser. Both are reliable but I'm not sure which one will deserve it full-time. I know the GM may make a waiver claim or two to fill it.
So with all of this talent the Cyclones are spending just $68,000,000. Obviously with how tough the Heartland is I just don't see Omaha coming close to the playoffs. There are some young bright spots for sure, but with a lackluster starting rotation and a patch job at most positions, the Cyclones will look more like a tropical storm throughout the year and will not make the playoffs. But I don't think they'll hit 100 losses unless they lose those young bright spots to injuries. I say 68-94 is there record this year.
