Fun with Side Projects

Hairston: One-Man Wrecking Machine.

Some of the action that transpired through my APBA projects this past weekend...

APBA 2K9 Project

For my blog followers, as you all know, my APBA 2K9 Project is the best cards of the players from each franchise between the 2009 & 2011 MLB Seasons; I thought about calling it the APBA 2K9-11 Project, but I didn't want people to read into 9-11 too much.

Scott Hairston has been gaining more & more playing time for the San Diego Padres, with players like Chris Denorfia & Will Venable struggling. The Pods also made him their new lead-off man entering their series with the tough Philadelphia Phillies, since their original lead-off man Everth Cabrera has struggled in that role.



That decision proved to be an excellent move, he went 2-for-4 in the 2nd game with a double; It was during the 3rd game that Hairston has officially made him a everyday starter...

Top of the 3rd, he added to the Padres lead with a RBI double... then in the 5th, he smacked a two-run homer off of Phillies starter J.A. Happ. During the top of the 7th, he led off the inning with a triple off of Chan Ho Park -- which led to a 3-run inning, giving the Padres a 7-3 lead at Citizens Bank Ballpark. It would be during the 8th inning that Scott Hairston would make a little history, smacking a single off of reliever Clay Condrey....

Scott Hairston hit for the CYCLE!

I have done this maybe 4-5 times tops, the last one came from Josh Gibson (for the 1935 Pittsburgh Crawfords) against the 1942 St. Louis Cardinals in my Crazy 48's Project. I have had more no-hitters in my APBA life than cycles, I have rolled close to 20 now, but of course, I do nothing but tons of solitaire projects... so of course, eventually a no-no will pop up; I have never thrown a no-no against an actual human opponent in the dice world, one on one... but back in high school one of my buddies did do it (against me) with Jim Abbott in our inaugural 1991 Season APBA league of 10 teams.

APBA Royalty: Cone put together back-to-back historic performances, back in the day.

In my brother Jared's APBA league, I did something amazing with David Cone, I pitched a no-hitter with Cone as a Royal... his next start, he went to extras & threw for 25 K's! We did a lot of unrealistic things in that league, like starting J-4 Francisco Cabrera, which he hit 27 HR's in 35 games, while my Braves started off 31-4 & Greg Maddux won every start through that point, with a ERA barely over 1.00... LOL! I definitely play with a more realistic approach to the projects now.

Anyways, back to the 2K9 Project....

I also played a double-header between the New York Yankees & Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays were in first entering this thing, but the Yankees would go ahead in both games during the 9th innings, as the Jays' pen keeps imploding -- this time (both games) with Jason Frasor (A-XYZ), giving up 6 earned runs (3 HRs) in 2 innings of work! The last one, being a three-run blast by Alex Rodriguez. These Yankees are loaded with power, for example Hideki Matsui (.879 OPS in 2009) has been hitting 7th in this lineup; The team currently has 15 home runs in 7 games, with 5 players with 2+ HRs each (A-Rod leads way with 3 HR) -- Nick Swisher bats 9th & has 2 HR & 8 RBI, while he is currently batting .364 (8-for-22)!

2K9 Beasts: The New York Yankees will be tough to beat, all year!

Back to the Padres-Phillies series -- Adrian Gonzalez (SD) hit his 4th & 5th HR, while he has 11 RBI for the season... Pedro Feliz (Phillies) went 5-for-7, 2 HR, 2B, SF & 7 RBI in his last 2 games, while filling in for injured Placido Polanco.

Crazy 48's Project - "Battle by the Bay"

The 1993 San Francisco Giants (11-17) & the 2002 Oakland Athletics (9-19) are at the bottom of the Jeter (Stripes IV) Division in the Stripes League; San Francisco all year long has been a streaky bunch plagued with injuries to players & currently hold a 7-game losing streak, while Oakland just has a hard time scoring runs.

The Crazy 48's League has 48 teams playing a 48-game season, with 4 divisions in each league, while the top seeded 8 teams (all division winners automatically clinch playoffs) in each league, go on to the playoffs. The remainder of the schedule will be down to division match-ups, so some of these division bottom-dwellers can start making up some ground now, with little room for mistakes.

Zito was in command for awhile until the wheels came off.

A day after I rolled a cycle with Hairston in the other project, Barry Zito for the "Moneyball" Athletics was pitching a no-no through 7 innings, although he did allow 4 walks in those inning, while Oakland had a 2-0 lead off of a two-run 2nd Inning double by Terrance Long. The wheels ended up coming off in the 8th inning as the Giants' #8 hitter Darren Lewis led the inning off with a double, followed by an RBI double by weak-hitting 2B (filling in for injured Robby Thompson); Royce Clayton, the 3rd hitter of the inning, smacked a RBI single to right, to tie the game, as Willie McGee collected a single. 4 consecutive hits off of Zito, after none allowed the 1st 7 innings, and he has yet to collect an out. The Giants would add a sac fly by Matt Williams, to give the Giants a 3-2 lead.... Todd Benzinger would hit a 9th Inning insurance HR during the top of the 9th, to help the Giants to an eventual victory.

For Benzinger (filling in for an injured Will Clark), it was actually his 1st HR in the season (29th game of season), which is pretty late considered the pop he has on his 1993 APBA card.

Injuries was the early focus in this series, as the series started off with Will Clark & Robby Thompson on the disabled list for the first two games in Oakland... while the Oakland Athletics were without Eric Chavez for the first 2 games as well.

With their Game 1 victory, the Giants snapped a 7-game losing streak, that seems to be the theme with this Giants team, untimely injuries & quite streaky. They started the season 3-0, then lost 6 straight, then won 6 straight & now they just got over a 7-game skid; These Giants have the potential to be one of the toughest teams, and then other days they just don't show up.

San Francisco would win Game 2, led again by the worst two bats in their lineup in Darren Lewis (2-for-4, 2 runs & SB) & Mike Benjamin (2-for-4, two-run double), as the Giants win 5-3.

Beck, one of the more solid closers in his day.

The series shifted across the bay to Candlestick Park, as Eric Chavez hits a home run in his very first at-bat from injury, for his 5th HR of the season, he is tied with Miguel Tejada for the team lead in RBI with 19 RBI. That would be all the highlights for Oakland though, as they lose 2-1, as the Giants once again score their runs late (7th & 8th innings) to steal another away from Oakland.

Oakland would be shutout in the last game, as Jim Deshaies pitched 7.1 innings of shutout ball, the Giants fared no better (with only 3 hits), as the Giants win 1-0; Rod Beck entered the series with only 4 saves for the season & would double his amount to 8, as he was called upon the entire series sweep of their bay rivals. Bill Swift logged the series opener victory in his start, and during his one inning of relief in Game 3, he logged another victory; Swift is 6-1 with a 2.74 ERA for the season.

The 2002 Athletics now have the worst record among all 48 teams of the Crazy 48's, with a 9-23 (.281 pct) record; The 1962 Los Angeles Dodgers (8-20/.286 pct) have a slightly better record. The Giants, meanwhile, are now 15-17 with some slight postseason hope, but are still a few games from the edge of the playoff bubble that is being controlled by teams that are consistently better, such as the 1953 New York Yankees (17-11) -- who still need to play their current series against the 1971 Oakland Athletics.

Game #100 (APBA 2K9 Project)

Nelson Cruz (center) has 5 HR for the Rangers in 8 games.

The APBA 2K9 Project has just finished its 100th game of the season (April 12th), with the Pittsburgh Pirates' 4-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. The APBA 2K9 Project is the best cards from the 2009, 2010 & 2011 APBA Baseball Seasons, with the player representing the team he spent the most time with during that period.

We had a good jump start on the season prior to the Chicagoland Summer Tournament, but then slowed down with other projects, while the holidays took over. Now we have picked things up by playing a few games tonight.

This is how both league's standings appear...

The Oakland Athletics ended the Los Angeles Angels' 5-0 start, and now have a 5-game winning streak of their own;The Milwaukee Brewers have won 5 straight as well (N.L.'s longest streak) while the Arizona Diamondbacks have been a huge surprise in the N.L. West.

The N.L. East looks to be a dog fight & is currently close from top-to-bottom, while the Houston Astros are still looking for their 1st victory of the season at 0-7.

***  Still to Come.... Greater Michigan APBA Baseball weekend posts!  ***

Odd Birds

As word is breaking out about 40+ participants already signed up for next year's 4th Annual Greater Michigan APBA Baseball Tournament (GMABT IV), people are picking the teams they feel have the best shots at next year's title.

2018's GMABT theme will be 'Only 1973-Present American League Teams (DH Era)'

I was late a few times on my selection, I turned in my slip for the 1987 Detroit Tigers at the event, to find out, I just missed out on them by a half-hour. I got home, and the very next morning I saw that the 2001 Seattle Mariners were still open (or I thought) -- the list just wasn't updated yet, my friend Darren Schulz beat me to the punch.

The Picking Process

Tough Choice: Hosmer & KC out.

It's strange where choices lead to, I just bought both the 1993 & 1997 APBA Baseball Season sets recently off of GMABT III Finalist & APBA HOF'er Greg Wells for a total of twenty bucks. While I was digging through Baseball Reference for my A.L. choice, I looked over numerous teams, I glanced over the 1979 Milwaukee Brewers and the 1981 Detroit Tigers (which I acquired the 1981 APBA Baseball set off of my good friend Kenneth Heard)... The Tigers offense lacked punch, while the Brew Crew had plenty of punch, but a B-C-C rotation would be tournament suicide.

I looked over other teams, and I never really even got to 2000 & beyond on Baseball Ref, I think I knew I wanted something prior to 2001, except I did look awfully long at the 2015 Kansas City Royals, but I remember numerous people that have played that team have had some bad luck. 

While looking over the Royals, my newly acquired 1997 set was in front of me, and I quickly noticed the Baltimore envelope in front of me, went through the packet and noticed plenty of 22-7 & 44-7's at the top part of the order, decided to go back to Baseball Ref and see if the stats were great, and the top 6 of the lineup is exactly how I remembered it, this could be a fun & gritty team.

The Roster

A deep veteran-laced ball club that is strong in fundamentals, led by Cal Ripken (left).

All B rotation with 2 Z's, led by Mike Mussina's B-XZ, plus 3 'A' relievers in Armando Benitez, Jesse Orosco & Randy Myers, plus a B reliever in Arthur Rhodes.

The lineup will likely go as follows / Fielding 41 when Mussina pitches:

1. Brady Anderson (CF) - .288 AVG, 18 HR, 73 RBI & 18 SB (.863 OPS)
2. Robby Alomar (2B) - .333 AVG, 14 HR, 60 RBI & 9 SB (.890 OPS)
3. Harold Baines (DH) - .301 AVG, 16 HR, 67 RBI (.832 OPS)
4. Rafael Palmeiro (1B) - .254 AVG, 38 HR, 110 RBI (.815 OPS)
5. B.J. Surhoff (LF) - .284 AVG, 18 HR, 88 RBI (.803 OPS)
6. Cal Ripken (3B) - .270 AVG, 17 HR, 84 RBI (.733 OPS)
7. Chris Hoiles (C) - .259 AVG, 12 HR, 49 RBI (.794 OPS)
8. Jeffrey Hammonds (RF) - .264 AVG, 21 HR, 55 RBI & 15 SB (.809 OPS)
9. Mike Bordick (SS) - .236 AVG, 7 HR & 46 RBI (.601 OPS)

47 combined All-Star appearances for the above, and that's not counting the fact that Chris Hoiles never played in an All-Star Game, while Mike Bordick & Jeffrey Hammonds has. It is pretty astonishing that Hoiles never got such an honor, while his career produced 23.4 WAR & .833 OPS!

Geronimo Berroa will be an interesting bench option, he will not split time at DH with Baines, but if I do get in desperate need for some offense, I would sacrifice defense by taking Bordick out of the lineup, move Surhoff from left to third, Ripken from third to short & place Berroa in left. 

The lineup is fielding, a fielding 2 when Key & Erickson pitch regardless -- by taking Bordick out of the lineup, the team is still a fielding 2. I may just play Bordick, when Mike Mussina pitches.

Geronimo Berroa's 1998 Leaf Baseball Card.

Lineup with Geronimo Berroa (minus Bordick):

1. Brady Anderson (CF) - .288 AVG, 18 HR, 73 RBI & 18 SB (.863 OPS)
2. Robby Alomar (2B) - .333 AVG, 14 HR, 60 RBI & 9 SB (.890 OPS)
3. Harold Baines (DH) - .301 AVG, 16 HR, 67 RBI (.832 OPS)
4. Rafael Palmeiro (1B) - .254 AVG, 38 HR, 110 RBI (.815 OPS)
5. B.J. Surhoff (3B) - .284 AVG, 18 HR, 88 RBI (.803 OPS)
6. Geronimo Berroa (LF) - .283 AVG, 26 HR, 90 RBI (.836 OPS)
7. Cal Ripken (SS) - .270 AVG, 17 HR, 84 RBI (.733 OPS)
8. Jeffrey Hammonds (RF) - .264 AVG, 21 HR, 55 RBI & 15 SB (.809 OPS)
9. Chris Hoiles (C) - .259 AVG, 12 HR, 49 RBI (.794 OPS)

The remarkable thing with this lineup (above), is that there are only two players (Ripken & Hoiles) who are below an .800 OPS... this lineup has the strength to rake, as long as I am rolling hot.

The Bench

1. Eric Davis (OF) - .304 AVG, 8 HR, 25 RBI & 6 SB (.883 OPS) in 158 at-bats.
2. Jerome Walton (OF) - .294 AVG, 3 HR & 9 RBI (.775 OPS) in 68 at-bats.
3. Aaron Ledesma (IF) - .352 AVG, 2 HR & 11 RBI (.937 OPS) in 88 at-bats.

Aaron Ledesma's card is very interesting with 22-7, 44-7 & 55-7, plus a 42-9, 35-9 & 62-14, providing 3 trips to second columns, with 8 1's. Eric Davis & Jerome Walton are single-column cards that provide good pop (Davis: 11-5, 33-5, 66-1 & 22-6).

The rotation will feature: 

1. Mike Mussina (B-XZ): 15-8, 3.20 ERA, 218 K / 54 BB & 1.117 WHIP (224.2 IP)
2. Scott Erickson (B-Z): 16-7, 3.69 ERA, 131 K / 61 BB & 1.259 WHIP (221.2 IP)
3. Jimmy Key (B-Y): 16-10, 3.43 ERA, 141 K / 82 BB & 1.375 WHIP (212.1 IP)

Erickson, Mussina & Key stretching out their legs & preparing for 2018.

It appears that Manager Davey Johnson went 4 strong with Mussina, Erickson, Key & Scott Kamienicki for most part -- The 5th slot of the rotation was numerous APBA tourney rejects; Unfortunately Kamienicki does not make the cut as a flat Grade C Starter, I have no real reason to have him on the roster, it would be something else if he was a lefty, I could use him in that role (but not necessary). With Ledesma's hot J-4 card, I will also leave vet infielder Jeff Reboulet off the roster -- Reboulet by far is the better fielder, but is a liability at the plate with his .636 OPS.

The Bullpen

• Arthur Rhodes (B*-XYZ): 10-3, 3.02 ERA, 1 SV, 102 K / 26 BB & 1.059 WHIP (95.1 IP)
• Armando Benitez (A*-XYW): 4-5, 2.45 ERA, 9 SV, 106 K / 43 BB & 1.255 WHIP (73.1 IP)
• Jesse Orosco (A*-XW): 6-3, 2.32 ERA, 46 K / 30 BB & 1.172 WHIP (50.1 IP)
• Randy Myers (A&C*-X): 2-3, 1.51 ERA, 45 SV, 56 K / 22 BB & 1.156 WHIP (59.2 IP)

My strategy with the bullpen will come down to what part of the lineup that I am facing in late-game situations, if its the weaker part of the lineups, I will have the W's (Orosco & Benitez), while I will have Rhodes battle more with the tougher outs. The goal is no easy base-runners, simple outs.

The Challenge

When I look more & more at this team, and while I have been putting this blog piece together even, I feel very comfortable about my 2018 GMABT IV pick. I know my pick of the 1997 Baltimore Orioles wasn't ideal, nor were they a personal favorite. Sure... I didn't go for safer choices, I feel picking teams like this, really makes you a better APBA manager & gives a manager a bigger challenge.

There are some participants that pick strictly 'safe' choices every single tournament & then they play 'APBA-Ball' by placing lineups that were completely not used by those actually teams, placing all their OBP & OPS at the very top of the lineup.... to me, that's just completely unrealistic, while at the same time, how can that even be satisfying?

I think this team could be very similar to my choice of the 1993 Atlanta Braves, I have pretty set lineups, rotations & solid pens. 

1997 Orioles are looking forward to celebrating in March 2018.

I found out after my first few tournaments with the 1912 New York Giants & 1917 Chicago White Sox, that juggling lineups while in the middle of tournament action does not lead to any consistency, I feel when I have played with consistent lineups in the past, I have had far better luck.

The main goal is to always have fun at these tournaments, but I would be lying (and others would be lying) if I was to say that winning it all, is not on my agenda.

Forever Linked: GMABT II Champion

Hall Chat Between Brothers

So during one of my previous blog posts, I mentioned that my little bro Chris messaged me about the Hall of Fame Inductions & as always, this time of year, we went over some interesting cases for the Hall or 'close-enough, but no cigar' choices.

Through the years, it's become an interesting ballot for me. There was a time that I argued in support for those like Jack Morris until I was red in the face, as the years passed on, my case for Morris has somewhat diminished... then there are other cases that I used to scoff at, such as the case for Dave Parker, which gains more & more steam for me, while I also have found the stats to back such a case.

In this post, we will go over our email discussion and where I sit with the following players, I will also go over my case for others & what my current ballot looks like. The on-the-fence guys that I want to go over are some of the following players: Parker, Vada Pinson, Tony Oliva, Bill Madlock & others....

First off, let's start with Dave Parker...

• .290 Career Batting Average
• 2-Time N.L. Batting Champion.
• 1978 N.L. MVP Season: Batting Title (.334), while leading league in Slugging & OPS.
• Career OBP (.339) not superb, but better than Andre Dawson's (Hall of Famer) .323 OBP, while Dawson was a career .279 hitter; Parker's career .810 OPS also edges Dawson's .806
• 7-Time All-Star with 3 Gold Gloves.
• 2,774 career hits

Andre Dawson & Gary Carter's HOF Inductions opened many doors to many debates, that said, I do believe they deserve to be in the Hall of Fame... I just think it has created more murky Hall discussions, and makes more cases for players like Vada Pinson, for example. Speaking of Pinson, I believe what hurts him compared to the likes of Parker & Dawson is the lack of HR & power, his career OPS+ stands at 111+, compared to Dawson's 119+ & Parker's 121+. 

Dawson opening doors.

Of course, not everybody has power that is in the Hall of Fame, like Luis Aparicio and Ozzie Smith -- then again, most of those powerless, lack of offense guys were usually slick-fielding shortstops and not from a position like the outfield that usually packs power. It seems unfair that players like Omar Vizquel tend to gain more traction in this disputes (over players like Pinson) for not fielding at a tougher position.

I think the major thing that is hurting Bill Madlock, another Pirate that tends to be brought up in Hall of Fame debates, is the fact that he only averaged 120 games per season. Obviously, if he was to play at least another 20 games per season, he would have seen a hike in his 2,008 career hits -- if he was closer to the 3,000 hits side of the spectrum, he would get more leeway in the argument. Other than those negatives, his positives speak loudly in his career Batting Average (.305), On-Base Percentage (.365) & OPS (.830); His OPS & OPS+ (123+) was actually better than Dave Parker (.810 / 121+)... who would have ever thought such a thing?! Madlock was a gifted hitter that won 4 batting titles, the most times for a non-Hall of Fame Inductee.

Madlock's 3 All-Star Appearances does not seem like a lot, but he did win an All-Star MVP Game Honors once. People also need to keep in mind, that he was often overshadowed by talented teammates & the N.L. just featured many talented All-Stars, it's tough to make the All-Star Game on the N.L. side, when you have to compete against a player named Mike Schmidt every single season.

Tony Oliva honored with statue outside Target Field.

Then there is Tony Oliva, his name is praised by many that watched him play in his day, many speak volumes of Oliva. What jumps out quickly is his career 131 OPS+, which is 10 more than Parker's 121+ and 12 more than Andre Dawson! The knocker is the fact that he was off-the-charts stellar for only a seven-year arc from 1964-1971. Then again, his drop-off in 1972 & the remainder of his career was due to obvious knee & shoulder injuries that plagued him. Another amazing fact about Oliva is the simple fact that he produced these amazing stats during the "second deadball era".

Oliva was an 8-time A.L. All-Star, with 3 career Batting Titles (1964-65, 1971) and may have won 3 straight batting titles if it were not for a 3-for-30 slump in the middle of September in 1966; Oliva also won the 1964 A.L. Rookie of the Year Award & a Gold Glove in his tremendous career.

I was glad to see that Tim Raines finally got the recognition that he has long deserved, by being inducted in the 2017 Hall of Fame class, along with Ivan 'Pudge' Rodriguez & Jeff Bagwell. Raines has long been overlooked, and I question sometimes if the sports writers hold grudges against players who have played with numerous teams. The sports writer seems to be infatuated with players that have played their careers mostly for one team. 

Another player who played for numerous teams, that belongs in the Hall of Fame, is Fred McGriff. McGriff played for 7 MLB teams during his career, while his longest stint was actually with the Atlanta Braves (4 1/2 years), not the Toronto Blue Jays (4 years). Most folks including myself, a fan of the 1990's Atlanta Braves & a former owner of a McGriff Braves' T-Shirt, think of him as a Blue Jay though.

Serious Crime: Why McGriff belongs...

• Just shy of 2,500 career hits (2,490)
• Just shy of the magical lock-in Hall number of 500 homers (493).
• Career .284 hitter 
• 5-Time All-Star (All-Star Game MVP)
• 3-Time Silver Slugger
• 1,550 Career RBI
• .377 career On-Base Percentage (above all players mentioned above, including Oliva).
• .886 Career OPS
• 134 OPS+

As a full-time player, McGriff dipped below an .800 OPS only once! His incredible consistency seemed to play against him, which is simply odd in my opinion, I am not sure if it's because he was not an obnoxious, arrogant slugger like Barry Bonds, the whole not-staying-in-one-place thing, or the fact he had no flash to his game... but he did everything that was asked of him as a big leaguer, and it's a complete crime against Baseball that McGriff is not in the Hall of Fame.

Other players that need to be simply in....

• Alan Trammell & Lou Whitaker (MLB's greatest & longest DP combination from the Detroit Tigers).
• Edgar Martinez - He should be in before David Ortiz (due to Ortiz's HGH connections); Had 5 Seasons over 1.000 OPS, while his career OPS is .933, while his OPS+ was 141!
• Larry Walker - Coors seems to be playing against him.
• Albert Belle - It was a short career (but so was Ralph Kiner's), but it is a no-brainer that his bad relationship with the press has come back to bite him.

Coming up in a future article, we got more 80's stars in Don Mattingly, Dale Murphy & Keith Hernandez and where I think they stack up -- plus why are the 1980's stars often overlooked?

Early Tight Races (83' NXPL Update)

Youngblood playing many roles with Tigers.

The 1983 NXPL Season has been rolling for about a month now, and the pennant races in both leagues (especially the American League) are really close, with no clear favorites.

My Detroit Tigers entered this season, as the defending American League Champions, after losing the 1982 NXPL World Series in seven hard-fought games to the St. Louis Cardinals. It's a computer league in which consists of 15 other owners like myself, in which we make the moves necessary to improve our teams from year-to-year; We get to be the Owners, General Managers & Managers, all rolled into one.

Last season, it didn't take me long to feel a nice flow with my lineup & team -- and for the last two seasons, my two starts to the seasons, consisted of 7-3 & 8-2 starts... this year, however, I came out of the gate at 5-5, while I have had trouble trying to get Ben Oglivie & Jason Thompson going at the plate.

The team as a whole, has been playing better of late, with the team going 11-9 since, while only trailing the first-place Baltimore Orioles & Chicago White Sox, by a single game at 16-14. My Tigers have actually played much better on the road (7-3) compared to my managing at home (9-11), hopefully we can get that straightened out.

We still have a stellar pitching staff, with Tom Seaver rebounding in 1983 for us (joining the staff) with Mario Soto, Dan Petry, Joaquin Andujar & Walt Terrell. Here is how they stack up...

• Dan Petry, who won 20 games for us last season, is off to a superb start at 3-1, 1.60 ERA, 19 K's (through 6 GS, 1 CG & 45 innings). 
• Joaquin Andujar, who has the weakest APBA grade of the bunch, has certainly not been showing that much, while he also has a 3-1, with a 2.18 ERA & 23 K's in 41.1 innings. 
• Tom Seaver: The Hall-of-Famer is 3-1, 2.78 ERA, 26 K's in 35.2 innings. 
• Mario Soto: 2-3, 2.98 ERA -- leads the team with 40 K's & a .898 WHIP! He has had bad luck so far, one game for example, he cruised through 6 scoreless innings & then gave up 4+ runs, or the Tigers lineup is just not doing enough to get him that victory.
• Walt Terrell: 2-2, 2.97 ERA, with 15 K's in 30.1 innings.

Other than Soto, the entire rotation has already pitched a complete game, including one by spot-starter/reliever Dave Rozema; Plus 3 shutouts!

Starters ranked by WHIP (Walks + Hits / Innings Pitched):

• Soto -    .898
• Andujar -    1.040
• Terrell -    1.220
• Petry -    1.222
• Seaver -    1.262

For the hitting, Ben Oglivie had a multi-homer game, while producing 3 homers last series, to finally lift his batting average over .200 (.222) -- he does rank among the team's RBI leaders (12).

• Lance Parrish was last season's MVP, it will definitely be difficult for him to repeat 1982, which was his best MLB season, but 83' was a down-year for him; His 83' NXPL Season has so far been a productive one, while leading the team with 5 HR & 14 RBI (tied)... while batting .246, although his .275 On-Base Percentage definitely could use a lift.

• Bill Madlock leads the team with a .329 batting average, .420 OBP & .855 OPS! He has produced 2 HR & 11 RBI, while scoring 11 runs as well. 

• For Alan Trammell & Lou Whitaker, 1983 is the year that they broke through offensively & would continue to improve at the plate for years to come; These two batted near the bottom of my lineup last season -- this year, they bat near the top. Trammell ranks 2nd in Batting Average (.315) while leading the team with 7 doubles -- he has yet to hit a home run & only has 5 RBI though. Whitaker is 3rd in batting (.309) with 1 HR, 14 RBI (tied for team lead) while also leading the team with 14 runs.

• Entering the 1982 NXPL Draft, I selected George Wright, who had a decent 1982, but a pretty good 1983 Season (.276 BA, 18 HR, 80 RBI & 8 steals; .746 OPS) -- plus he brings solid defense for an outfielder. Wright went above & beyond in 82' for me, and has been a blessing for my 83' team as well (.283, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 11 runs, 4 doubles & 2 triples). For people not in-the-know, Wright, played the majority of his short MLB career (1982-1986) with the Texas Rangers.

• Joel Youngblood has been an excellent jack-of-all-trades, coming off the bench, or platooning in left or at third -- he's done his job well! Youngblood is currently batting .258 with 3 homers, 8 RBI & 8 runs, with a .814 OPS in 66 at-bats.

While those players have done well, I need Oglivie (like mentioned above) to step up along with Jason Thompson, Kirk Gibson & Mookie Wilson.

There is still plenty of season, so while we are starting to show some encouraging signs for what's to come this season, I hope & expect to see more positive outcomes.