2013 Post-Season

[Ghosts]

Let me kick it off with this interesting statistic: Bakersfield went 9-3 vs. Crystal Lake this year, with 2 of those loses coming at the hands of the now injured all-world SP "Krunchy" Tekada.

I was as mystified by this stat as anybody, until I looked over the Sandgnats' pitching staff: an awful lot of righties, which the Bears absolutely feast on.

A sidenote, check Pat Lilly's stats against lefties this year -- shocking:

AVG: .223
SLG: .324
OPS: .644

With a stat like that, I can't imagine him getting anywhere near $20m long-term.

[DanD]

The Bureaucrats have an even 6-6 record against Charleston this season, so I'm predicting an entertaining series. Arlington will most likely face their former ace Víctor Matos in game one and in three starts against the 'Crats this season, he has a 1-0 record. His 11/4 K/BB ratio in those games is good, but he's also given up 14 hits in 12.2 innings. So if Rob Raines and Co. can squeak a few hits through, they might be able to lose with dignity

[John]

Charleston-Arlington got the premiere prime time 7:05 p.m. ET scheduling slot for the Division Series, and for good reason. It's a match-up of a 107-win team vs. a 110-win team. The two went 6-6 against each other during the season. Rob Raines is the league's most dominant hitter. In just his third season, Jean-Pierre LaPierre won the IL batting title. It's a contest between the IL's #2-rated and #3-rated lineup and rotation. Charleston won it all in 2010 and has been a threat to repeat ever since. As a newcomer to the playoff scene last year, Arlington surprised everyone by knocking off then-defending Planetary Extreme Champions Florida to advance to the IL Alliance Tournament. Of all the series on tap, this is the one I'm going to be following most closely.

[Lions]

A sidenote, check Pat Lilly's stats against lefties this year -- shocking:

AVG: .223
SLG: .324
OPS: .644

With a stat like that, I can't imagine him getting anywhere near $20m long-term.

Ah, the posturing to convince us not to sign Lilly begins!

I would think the most likely stat to prevent Lilly getting $20m long term is the number 35. It's his age next season. Of course, that doesn't preclude a high value short term contract. It'll be interesting to see who gives him the extra year that convinces him to sign, or if he'll sign quickly and someone gets him on a nice deal.

[James Bowman]

The Bureaucrats have an even 6-6 record against Charleston this season, so I'm predicting an entertaining series. Arlington will most likely face their former ace Víctor Matos in game one and in three starts against the 'Crats this season, he has a 1-0 record. His 11/4 K/BB ratio in those games is good, but he's also given up 14 hits in 12.2 innings. So if Rob Raines and Co. can squeak a few hits through, they might be able to lose with dignity

Good luck Dan, should be a great series.

Congratulations to all the other playoff teams, and let's hope for some really exciting replays!

A special salute to Mike of NJ for his first playoff birth. I think when Mike took the team over if you had asked around when the mighty Hitmen would reach the playoffs again, 2013 would of been a pretty rare answer. The team had endured some really bad luck to some key players with substantial contracts and was deep in a financial hole, yet here they are.

Great job Mike, and congrats!

[James Bowman]

A sidenote, check Pat Lilly's stats against lefties this year -- shocking:

AVG: .223
SLG: .324
OPS: .644

With a stat like that, I can't imagine him getting anywhere near $20m long-term.

Ah, the posturing to convince us not to sign Lilly begins!

Heh, I was thinking the same thing.

I was eager at the beginning of the season to see what the Bears would do with Lilly, but I'll say I'm going to be taking a much closer look now should he reach free agency.

[Ghosts]

Ah, the posturing to convince us not to sign Lilly begins!

You guys over (or under?) estimate me. The chances of us resigning him are pretty much actually at zero.

But still, when it comes to AVG, SLG, OBP, OPS, RC/27, ISO, ... etc. etc. ... all of it has been on a downward arc the last 3 years ... and 2013 pretty much saw career lows across the board. I think he's got another strong season left, but after that it's really, really a crapshoot.

[Hitmen]

A special salute to Mike of NJ for his first playoff birth. I think when Mike took the team over if you had asked around when the mighty Hitmen would reach the playoffs again, 2013 would of been a pretty rare answer. The team had endured some really bad luck to some key players with substantial contracts and was deep in a financial hole, yet here they are.

Great job Mike, and congrats!

Thanks Jon I definitely would not have said 2013. I've always thought I would get my first chance in 2014 and even then it would need luck as I expected my team to be very young. 2015 probably would have been the more realistic option. But this year things just seemed to fall in place and I am very excited to be heading to the playoffs.

As far as playing against FLA, they look to me to be the much better team. Although the season series has been in their favor at 5-7 for me it hasn't been that uneven. They took advantage of our slumping month and swept us in our most recent match up but prior to that we did win the two previous series against them. I think at the least that we can stretch the series to the limit possibly 5 games, but I think in the end that FLA will prevail because their pitching staff is just much stronger even with the loss of Crayon.

[Borealis]

Ah, the posturing to convince us not to sign Lilly begins!

You guys over (or under?) estimate me. The chances of us resigning him are pretty much actually at zero.

But still, when it comes to AVG, SLG, OBP, OPS, RC/27, ISO, ... etc. etc. ... all of it has been on a downward arc the last 3 years ... and 2013 pretty much saw career lows across the board. I think he's got another strong season left, but after that it's really, really a crapshoot.

The other issue with Lily is who else is on the market, like the guy who put up these numbers:

G AB H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K AVG OBP SLG SB
160 642 193 26 2 23 102 73 122 .301 .373 .455 5

The only guy (I think) who wasn't hurt this yer for Aurora. Yet all career lows, except K, which were career highs. What would this guy go for, whose 'number' is 30.

His name? El Chupacabra. He'll be asking for Lily money coming of his worst year, but maybe he was being pissy about not getting extended. And, by the way, his numbers v. Tempe this year suck. If we had playoff rosters, he might be sitting this series out!

[klewis]

I share John's sentiments. This is my favorite series to watch. The former Matos facing off Raines and Arlington should be fun.

Good luck to everyone in the playoffs! I would have to assume the most nervous team right now is Aurora. They have the best record and most pressure. They also face two future hall of famers in Hancock and Conan. With those pitchers, Tempe has a shot at winning any series.

Charleston-Arlington got the premiere prime time 7:05 p.m. ET scheduling slot for the Division Series, and for good reason. It's a match-up of a 107-win team vs. a 110-win team. The two went 6-6 against each other during the season. Rob Raines is the league's most dominant hitter. In just his third season, Jean-Pierre LaPierre won the IL batting title. It's a contest between the IL's #2-rated and #3-rated lineup and rotation. Charleston won it all in 2010 and has been a threat to repeat ever since. As a newcomer to the playoff scene last year, Arlington surprised everyone by knocking off then-defending Planetary Extreme Champions Florida to advance to the IL Alliance Tournament. Of all the series on tap, this is the one I'm going to be following most closely.

[Reg]

Cooper Scott is pulling for underrated underdog NJ!!

[Arroyos]

A special salute to Mike of NJ for his first playoff birth.

Thanks Jon I definitely would not have said 2013. …

As far as playing against FLA, they look to me to be the much better team. …

I think at the least that we can stretch the series to the limit possibly 5 games, but I think in the end that FLA will prevail because their pitching staff is just much stronger even with the loss of Crayon.

Yuma too is pulling for them there underdogs, the Hitmen!

[Borealis]

Quick thoughts about our series with Tempe…

Tempe hit .249 with a .310 OBP and .372 SLG, scoring 67 runs and hitting 14 HR in 18 games v. Aurora pitching

Tempe pitchers gave up an ERA of 5.13 and 95 runs. Amazingly they held Aurora to 8 HR, but the Borealis hit .306 with a .372 OBP and a .410 SLG

Aurora pitchers struck out more Knights than Knights K’d Borealis. Not by much, but then again, take this stat into consideration:

Markus Hancock faced Aurora two times all season. That’s TWO. Bradley saw Tempe 5 times (and likely 6 save an injury), Kojima had 5 starts v. Tempe, as did Tillman, for a combined 12-3 record. Funny how schedules work out…

Kojima was a perfect 5-0 and in his 5 starts gave up 0, 1, 2, 3 and 5 runs (not in that order). Tillman gave up 1, 2, 3, 4, and 8 in his only loss (he was 4-1 v. Tempe). Obviously the loss of Bradley will hurt, but not to badly, as his 3-2 record may indicate. Reyes and Chavez each had one start, and both pitched mediocrely against Tempe, but Chavez’ lone start was in April and frankly, is there a hotter pitcher in PEBA right now than Frankie Chavez: 8-0, 0.74 ERA, OAVG .181 in his last 10 starts – 8/1 through season’s end? Conan was 1-1 in 6 starts v. Aurora with a 4.37 ERA in 22.7 IP and an OAVG of .305.

Jack Cobb’s cousin Jeff was 0-2 and a 5.84 ERA and Barney Sharp was 1-4 with a 6.19 ERA against Aurora, although Sharp was at the hard-luck end of a Kojima 1-0 win.

Offensively, it wasn't Pexego (.162 with 30 K), Berry (.235) or Quinones (.267, and only 2 XBH) who led the way. The Royal Raker trio of candidates, Edwards (.391, 20 RBI), Knight (.333) and Pierce (.327) as well as Ice Cold (.356) were the stalwarts that led Aurora's 13-5 series win v. the Knights

I’d say that whatever happens in games 1 & 2 at Aurora will likely determine the series. Kojima/Tillman v. Hancock/McCullough, in whatever combination, will be closer matches than they may appear. Keep an eye on Kojima in the first inning, that’s been his weak spot. If Aurora wins games 1 & 2 will Fireworks and Conan come back on short rest? This may be a bullpen series and expect some extra inning games – something Aurora has not been very good at this year.

More to come as it evolves. Should be a very scary few days to come...

[Jim]

Congratulations to all the playoff teams!

[Arroyos]

What To Do During the Playoffs:

A List of Ideas for non-playoff bound teams

There is a lull in PEBA activity now that the season is finished and most of us are not preparing for the playoffs. I'm wondering how others fill their need for baseball. So I invite you to add to this list:

1. I spend some time playing non-OOTP games, like APBA or a baseball game I invented 30 years ago. In fact, yesterday I had my first no-hitter in APBA after 39 years of playing (off and on). Quite amazing and delightful. Paul Foytack spun the masterpiece of mystery against the Cleveland Indians in a replay of the 1958 season I'm amusing myself with.

2. I also spend time reading baseball novels. The latest gem I've found is Jane Leavy's novel Squeeze Play, about the adventures of a female sportswriter in the locker room of the 1989 Washington Senators. The fact that there was no major league Washington baseball club in 1989 should reveal just how much Jane Leavy's imagination resembles our own PEBAcessed brains. Jane is the author of highly regarded biographies of Sandy Koufax and Mickey Mantle. I was so impressed with her writing in the Mantle book that I searched out her novel. It is raunchy, revealing and irreverent. A delicious read. About time we had a great baseball novel by a woman.

And you, gentlemen of the losing clubs? How do you get your baseball fix during the Playoffs?