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LAST YEARS RECORD:108-54
LAST YEARS PREVIEW: I keep waiting for Marks Kickapoos to rebuild, But that wasn't last year for sure. San Francisco won 101 games and took the division crown for the 18th consecutive season. Aaarrgh! They were powered by their great pitching ( 3.50 team ERA-3rd)and good defense (82 errors, .982 FPct-7th). The only glint of decline was the hitting (.269 team BA-18th). In the playoffs, Marks team had a first round bye, cruised by the Utes in the DCS. Then lost game 7 in the NLCS to the eventual World Champs.Sure Mark has lost some talent to free agency but he went out and filled the roster spots with good solid players. Right now Marks Kickapoos are the team to beat in the N L West. I think he's shooting for 19-20 consecutive division wins. PREDICTION:93-69
OUT: Joaquin Morlan , Joseph Hyun , Nolan Glauber , Jeffrey Blackley , Neifi Ordaz , Placido Telemaco , Davey Wise , Robb Holder , Damaso Gonzalez , Derrek O'Brien , Edinson Trinidad , R.J. Lima
IN: Felipe Ramirez , Ed Quantrill , Dan Long , Domingo Santana , Charlie Forster , Slick Henry , Mariano Lee
PREVIEW: 19 and counting.....Could Mark win his 20th N L West division pennant? Marks Kickapoos won 108 games last season so this team is still rolling. They went into the playoffs as the #1 seed in the N L and lost in the NLCS to the World Series Champion Burlington Coat Factories. Last season the Kickapoos boasted the #1 pitching staff (2.74 ERA- 1st) and the #2 defense (66 errors, .989 FPct). Add a good hitting team (.274 BA-10th) and you can see why they were the best in the NL during the regular season. In the off-season Mark re-signed Rodney White , Miguel Piedra and Felipe Pujols and let Morlan, Hyun, Glauber, Blackley, Ordaz, Telemaco and Wise go to free agency. He traded away Holder, Gonzalez, O'Brien, Trinidad and Lima to complete the house cleaning. Mark now finds himself in unfamilar territory.....He needs to fill half his roster. He claimed Ramirez and Quantrill off the wire and picked up Long, Santana, Forster and Henry in the R-5. Finally he traded for Lee to finish out this years roster. This is the End!!.....of a great run for the Kickapoos. They are now in re-build mode and there will be no 20th consecutive division win. Kickapoos will go thru the motions and get a high draft pick next year while picking up some tasty IFA's . PREDICTION:65-95
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LAST YEARS RECORD:84-78
LAST YEARS PREVIEW: Yep, The Utes are for real folks. Hoopcoach's guys won 21 more games than last season and made the post-season for only the second time, Ever. They did it with pitching (3.97 team ERA-6th) . But the hitting (.261 team BA-23rd) and defense (111 errors, .982 FPct-24th) could use some work.In the playoffs Salt Lake City took out a good Madison team in the first round. But were swept by the experiencd Kickapoos in the DCS.This is the same team with a better catcher and more experience. The youngsters really played well last year and if anyone has a chance to beat Mark for the division crown. It's Hoopcoach and his Utes. This team should make the post season .PREDICTION:91-71
OUT: Livan Mercado , Jack Stewart , Jae Kojima . Jumbo Xaio , Benj Collins
IN: Harry Megias , Joseph Hyun , Diego Sanches , Ignacio Flores , Naoki Kim
PREVIEW: The Utes are young and talented and they won 84 games. They did make the playoffs as the #5 seed and beat the under .500 Tampa Bay Stars in the first round but lost to their division nemesis Kickapoos in the DCS. Hoopcoach's team had excellent pitching (4.06 ERA-4th) and good fielding (89 errors, .985 FPct-9th) last year. If Salt Lake City can improve a average offense (.271 BA-19th) then this team will have a breakout year. In the off-season Hoopcoach let Mercado, Stewart, Kojima, Xaio go to free agency and released Collins. He signed free agents Megias , Hyun and promoted Sanches and Flores. He picked up Kim in the R-5 to complete the roster. The Utes are young with a 3.0 average ML years and 7.7 average pro years. They will have ups and downs but they have the talent to win this division. And with San Fransisco out of the way they are the favorites to win it. PREDICTION:94-68
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LAST YEARS RECORD:73-89
LAST YEARS PREVIEW: Last year the bandits won 4 more games than the year before. So this team is heading in the right direction. They added Carlos Alomar from the IFA market and drafted well with the addition of Tori Miller and Ross Steele . Last year the Pitching was good (4.35 team ERA-13th) with average defense (99 errors, .984 FPct) and below average offense (.265 team BA-20th).By signing several good free agents, the Bandits are making their move. This division just got a little tougher and we may have 4 teams above 500. PREDICTION:83-79
OUT: David Pineda , Carlos Alvarez , Al Vincente , Ernie Cannon , Shin-Soo Wan , Randy Palmer
IN: Don Hyzdu , Chris Scott , Albert Bernadina , Octavio Iglesias
PREVIEW: The Bandits win totals are stuck in the mid-70's. I predicted they would finish above .500 last year but that didn't happen. I still believe this team is on a upswing and the addition of Wascar Almonte in last years draft should pay dividends in the near future. And last years average offense (.270 BA-21st) can use him, but Ressda's team will have to look somewhere else to shore up a average defense (97 errors, .984 FPct-14th) . Pitching (4.35 ERA-8th) was the star last year and it is a great foundation to build on. In the off-season Ressda re-signed Jacob Kwon , Darrell Fryman and let Pineda, Alvarez and Vincente test the free agent market. He released Cannon, Wan and Palmer outright. Ressda signed free agent Hyzdu and promoted Scott, Bernadina and Iglesias to fill his roster. The signing of Hydzu along with the promotions will help the offense . If the defense can hold and the pitching can repeat last years great run.....well....the Bandits may make a run for a wildcard. I think they have a shot with San Francisco in a re-build. PREDICTION: 86-76
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LAST YEARS RECORD:67-95
LAST YEARS PREVIEW: I'm shuttered in my survival bunker, waiting for the unruly Totem fans to disperse. I promised a 90 win season last year and we finished below .500. My problem is obvious ..Lack of timely hitting (.262 team BA-21st). I brought in some bats but none have panned out. Last year the Totems had average defense (90 errors, .985 FPct-16th) with good pitching (4.31 team ERA-11th). Shhhh, *whisper* The barbarians are at the gates*.I have a just a couple more years with my core group of players under contract. I hope they start to play well. 500 just isn't gonna get it and the natives are restless. It may be time to reinforce the gates or dig an escape tunnel. PREDICTION:81-81
OUT: Willie Martinez , Albert Torres , Julio Fernandez , Jeff Burnett
IN: Neifi Ordaz , Ignacio Sosa , Mike Karnuth , Vicente Fuentes
PREVIEW: My team sucked so bad that the Vancouver city fathers handed me my hat and showed me the door. Thats fine with me the wet cold climate of the north pacific coast was bad for my lungs . If it wasn't for my Blantons *ahem* Cough Medicine I might be six feet under. So I moved my team to the sunny dry climate of Arizona and It brought forward my sunny side. The dark and gloomy Mad has gone away but still lurks in the recesses of my fractured brain. This is why I named my team the Schizoids ,and knowing you are crazy is the first step to sanity. Last year my team had good pitching (4.42 ERA-11th) and average defense (100 errors, .984 FPct-17th). My woeful offensive (.254 BA-29th) was really bad last year ...Egadds! In the off-season I re-signed Raul Castillo and Sam Gray and let Martinez, Torres, Fernandez and Burnett go to free agency. I signed free agents Ordaz, Sosa and Karnuth and promoted Fuentes. I found myself with several Type-A and B players wanting new contracts. So I let them go and signed several free agent bats to go with my hitter friendly park. My pitching took a hit but we will see if my new and improved offense can out-score my opponents. Oh, I also picked up 4- top 40 picks in this years draft to go with my # 6 pick. I have flexability if my team falters and I have a firesale. PREDICTION:82-80
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