San Juan Coqui - Frogger Blogger

[JDC]

Help Is On The Way

June 11, 2035: San Juan, Puerto Rico – Last week saw the start of a new era. New General Manager, J.D. Caldwell took over the Coqui organization and quickly went to work. Just days on the job, Caldwell oversaw his first PEBA Amateur Draft. However, more immediate attention was needed on the big club in San Juan.

Going into the week, the Coqui were in a tailspin losing 12 of their last 15 ballgames. Starting outfielders Wally Glasser (shoulder) and Kelvin McDonald (wrist) were on the injured list while starting shortstop Roberto Salazar has battled nagging injuries all season and would miss the series at San Antonio. This left infielders Hae-young Pak and Oscar Wetherby fighting through exhaustion but playing nonetheless.

Caldwell got busy and brought up veteran infielder Freddy Brooks and outfielders Hyung-ki Ka and Martin Butterworth, with his swing as sweet as maple syrup. No word if Mrs. Butterworth made the trip with Martin. Caldwell also brought up starting pitcher Marcel Osterhout from the Santo Domingo Tourists, replacing Tetsuzav Shimada.

In San Antonio, the Coqui bit the bullet, giving several starters much-needed rest, and lost the first two games 1-0 and 7-5. San Juan bounced back with a 1-0 combined shut out from starter Antonio Avila and closer Jose Gomez.

The Coqui came home to drop their series opener with Scottish 4-2 on a rare blown save by Jesus Luna. San Juan then took the next two games 6-1 and 3-0 giving the Coqui three wins in four games and some momentum to leap forward in the coming months in the fight for a playoff spot in the Trans Atlantic.

[JDC]

New GM Makes an Early Splash

June 11, 2035: San Juan, Puerto Rico – It didn't take long for the new Coqui General Manager, J.D. Caldwell, to make a big splash in the trade pond. Caldwell traded San Juan's top prospect, right-handed pitcher James McCoy, to the Arlington Bureaucrats for starting pitcher Santiago Garcia, minor league centerfielder Jose Reyes, and a sixth-round pick in the 2036 draft.

McCoy has spent the season with the Kingston Suns in the NAFTA A. The 6'1", 170-pound, 20-year old is 2-5 with a 2.67 ERA in 10 starts with the Suns. McCoy was selected with the 31st pick in 2033 by the Coqui and shot up the prospect rankings quickly after going 5-0 with a 0.90 ERA in 25 relief appearances for the Homer Wallbangers in Short-A ball last summer.

The big-name coming in return to San Juan is Garcia. The 34-year old right-hander will slot in near the top of the rotation for the Coqui and was an all-star in 2033. Garcia went 6-6 with a 2.45 ERA in 13 starts for the Bureaucrats in 2035. Garcia is expected to provide leadership in San Juan as the Coqui make a push for the playoffs. The Coqui placed right-hander Antonio Avila on irrevocable waivers for the purpose of designating for assignment. Avila is 3-4 with a 3.37 ERA in ten starts with the Coqui.

Returning to his homeland, Reyes is excited to have the chance to play in San Juan. The 2032 36th overall pick by Arlington is a two-time Glove Wizard award winner already. Reyes packs some power to go along with his defense and blazing speed. The 24-year old will likely get a tryout with the big club until veteran outfielder Kelvin McDonald is expected to return from a wrist injury next week. Rightfielder Matt Butterworth will be sent down to make room for Reyes. Mr. Butterworth went 1 for 6 in his short stint with the big club.

"These two additions will fit right in for us. We will emphasize pitching and defense here," explained Caldwell.

[JDC]

Coqui Make a Move at Manager, Morales Gone - Gomez Signs Extension

June 12, 2035: San Juan, Puerto Rico – Coqui manager, Pablo Morales, was shown the door today as new general manager, J.D. Caldwell makes his presence known. Morales had only won seven of the last 27 games to seal his fate. He finished with a 114-112 record with the Coqui and a 391-401 career mark. Caldwell hired a manager with no PEBA experience to take over the reins. John Collins will start immediately for San Juan.

Morales was not pleased with his ousting. "It's common knowledge that the Coqui are missing a few key components," he said. "I got the best out of the talent I was given. Maybe the wrong person was fired?"

It has been no secret that Morales was not meddling owner Myron Beardsall's favorite person. This appears that Caldwell was following through on his new boss's orders in making the change.

In other Coqui news, closer Jose Gomez signed a two-year extension. The fans in Puerto Rico were ecstatic about the signing of the 33-year old. The six-time All-Star and the 2032 IL Shutdown Reliever is in his twelfth season in San Jose and has a career ERA of 2.09 with 258 saves (0.81 and 12 saves so far this season). He will make $12 million each of the next two seasons.

"I am stoked about getting this done," said Caldwell. "Signing Gomez was a priority of mine when I came in here."

[JDC]

Rocky Start for New Coqui Manager

July 2, 2035: San Juan, Puerto Rico - John Collins was been named the new Coqui manager on June 12, replacing Pablo Morales. However, the Coqui didn't get a bump that teams often see when they have a mid-season leadership change.

Scheduling had a lot to do with the poor start. The Coqui were on the road at Florida, Arlington, and Charleston before returning home against the Farstriders when Collins took over. That left Collins with a 2-9 start. San Juan turned it around by sweeping San Antonio at home before returning to Arlington to pick up one win in the three-game series there. Collins is now 6-11 with the Coqui.

Starting outfielders Kevin McDonald and Wally Glasser have returned from the injured list. That's giving San Juan a reason for optimism going forward as does the promotion of 32-year-old rookie outfielder Carlos Perez. Perez has started his PEBA career batting .368 with two home runs in his first 12 games. "To state the obvious," said Collins. "It's nice to finally have a solid outfield."

This is Collins' first managerial gig in professional baseball. However, Collins has a good reputation after nine years of managing high school ball in Canada. The Coqui signed him to a five-year contract at $765,000 per year.

Collins spent 14 years playing in the PEBA for the Kalamazoo Badgers, where he hit 217 home runs in his last seven seasons while batting .274 before retiring at the age of 37. The beastly left-handed first baseman was featured in the bestseller, See the PEBA on $25 a Day, by Ron Collins.

[JDC]

PRTC Stadium: Need for Speed

July 23, 2035: San Juan, Puerto Rico - It's been 14 seasons since the Coqui moved from Rio Grande to San Juan, making the PRTC Stadium their home. During that time, it has been no surprise the home team has been built on speed in the cavernous environs.

This season is no different. San Juan leads the PEBA in triples (30) and is third in steals with 198. These kinds of numbers should continue as the new manager, John Collins is a known small-ball manager. The stadium fits this philosophy like a glove.

PRTC's huge dimensions include 438 feet to dead center with 424 and 416 feet to left-center and right-center respectively. The attached exhibit below shows the dimensions of relic ballparks in that other league that folded, with the outfield dimensions of PRTC outlined in pink.

Screenshot 2022-04-12 191120.png

In other news, word on the street is there may be some shuffling to the lineup as the Coqui try to find a winning combination while repairing the finances.

"We're going to get Jose Lopes some more starts at second base while moving Hae-young Pak over from second to first," said Collins. "As you know, we are built on speed and defense."

Part-time starter at first, Francis May will now almost exclusively come off the bench. The 23-year-old Lopes is batting .152 with four homers and ten steals in 38 starts for San Juan. Pak has one start at first, 31 innings, with a career 9.27 range, 1.6 z rating, and 1.016 efficiency at that position.

[Borealis]

The attached exhibit below shows the dimensions of ballparks in that other league with the outfield dimensions of PRTC outlined in pink.

That other League? PEBA's been the only game in town - States-side, for 29 years! Happily winning global baseball hearts since 2007...

[JDC]

The attached exhibit below shows the dimensions of ballparks in that other league with the outfield dimensions of PRTC outlined in pink.

That other League? PEBA's been the only game in town - States-side, for 29 years! Happily winning global baseball hearts since 2007...

That league in my imagination.

[JDC]

Approaching Trade Deadline, Jesus Luna, and Mike Hale

July 30, 2035: San Juan, Puerto Rico - The Coqui go 4-3 this week at home against Amsterdam (3-1) and at Gloucester (1-2).

Poor Mike Hale. After missing the start of the season due to a concussion, the 39-year-old played only three games for the Coqui before tearing his ACL running the bases against the Lions on July 24. Hale was injured avoiding the tag of catcher Iwao Yamamoto at the plate. His leg got caught underneath him on the attempted tag when Wally Glasser's line drive scored him from second base in the 8-4 loss. He had to be assisted to the Coqui dugout.

Hale went 2-3 that day and was looking to contribute down the stretch. Unfortunately, this could be career-ending for Hale who was signed to a one-year, $2.5 million deal back in January.

The Coqui signed reliever Jesus "Moonball" Luna to a two-year extension worth $1.6 million per year on July 27. The 27-year-old lefty is in his fourth year in the PEBA, all in San Juan. Luna is 4-1 with a 2.58 ERA and has one save thus far in 2035. Luna was converted from a starter mid-season of 2033. The Dominican played just over a season as a starter for his hometown AAA Santo Domingo Tourists before being promoted to San Juan.

With the trade deadline fast approaching, the Coqui are struggling to find any interest in their veteran players that they want to move. The Coqui did make a minor deal. San Juan swapped short-season A third basemen with Shin Seiki. Yosuke Kojima will return to his home country of Japan, as does Puerto Rican Pedro Cordero to the Coqui.

[JDC]

Caribbean Cup, Oscar Wetherby, Dan Collins

July 30, 2035: San Juan, Puerto Rico - The Coqui go 3-3 this week at Havana (1-2) and home against Scottish (2-1). San Juan lingers in fifth place (51-59).

The Leones took two games in the latest segment of the Caribbean Cup. The Coqui still lead the season series over rival Havana for the Cup, 7 games to 5. Havana pitching held San Juan to three hits in the opener, led by seven innings by starter Joe Arnold (11-4), winning 7-0. Rookie Marcel Osterhout (0-6) took the loss.

SS Roberto "Dracula" Salazar led the Coqui to a win in game two. Salazar went 3-5 with an RBI in the 8-5 win. Starter Santiago Garcia (3-3) got the win while RP Juan Lopez dropped to 4-4 with the blown save in the seventh inning.

Havana bounced back with a 4-2 win in the third game. Jorge Pagan (9-7) took the loss despite only giving up one earned run in eight innings. C Valentin Medrano had two costly errors in the contest. Starter Volmer Busher (13-2) got the win going 6.2 innings. Ricardo Perez got his 35th save, Allen Cook with his fourth hold.

All-Star 3B Oscar Wetherby went 7-10 with three HRs at home, as the Coqui took 2 of 3 from the Claymores. After sitting out the third game against Havana, Wetherby came back hot. He is now batting .240 with 11 home runs.

The Coqui waived veteran catcher Dan Collins for the purpose of designating him for assignment. The 33-year-old was acquired via a trade with Fargo in 2031 and was on the championship team for San Juan. He was also an IL all-star last season.

The move has further strained the relationship with step-father and current Coqui manager John Collins. "Him (John) coming here, I thought would be a great opportunity for us to patch things up," said Dan. "But the past keeps coming up to haunt us."

No comment was offered by the Coqui regarding the waiver. Rookie catcher Leonardo Ortega was brought up from AAA to fill the roster spot. The 25-year-old was batting .242 with two home runs at Santo Domingo. Ortega, a second-round pick of the Coqui in 2031, handles pitchers well and shows some power to the gap at the plate.

[JDC]

Blogger Returns, Caribbean Cup, Antonio Figueroa

September 24, 2035: San Juan, Puerto Rico - After a weeklong trip to the Emerald Triangle, your blogger returns after a long recovery time. Since our last blog, the Coqui have played decently but not enough to threaten for a wildcard birth. San Juan put together an 18-12 record in the month of August but 11-10 so far in September. The Frogs just could not put together enough of a streak to overcome the May - July swoon that saw them go 30-47. At 77-79, San Juan is 6.5 games behind the final wildcard spot with six games remaining, including the final three at home against the London Underground who hold that spot.

The highlight of the Coqui season is the results of the Caribbean Cup versus rival Havana Leones. San Juan took the last six of the season series against Havana to record a 13-5 season record against the Leones, much to the Puerto Rico fans' delight.

With fan interest waning in mid-August, J.D. Caldwell went out and claimed San Juan native OF Antonio Figueroa on waivers from the Reno Zephyrs. With the arrival of Figueroa, fan interest jumped 7.6% and has maintained through the season. Unfortunately, the 32-year-old has not produced on the field to match what he brought off of the field. Figueroa has only hit .187 with two homers. He does have 11 stolen bases in 13 attempts to fit in well with the Coqui's leap-frogging style. Insiders claim it is unlikely the Coqui will re-sign Figueroa in the off-season.

[JDC]

Minor League Players of the Year, Player Extensions, Player Releases

October 15, 2035: San Juan, Puerto Rico - Minor league players of the year were named last week for the Coqui. The Minor League Hitter of the Year was 3B Florian 'Speed Merchant' Antuofermo and the Minor League Pitcher of the Year: SP Dean Makepeace. Both played the majority of their seasons in AAA Santo Domingo Tourists.

22-year-old Antuofermo started his season with the big club in San Juan. When the new GM J.D. Caldwell took over in May, he was sent down to the Tourists where he hit .345 with 3 HRs and 34 SBs in 75 games. This was the first season he played above the A level. He'll be competing for a starting spot in San Juan come spring. Antuofermo signed a one-year extension worth $750,000 on October 12th.

Makepeace spent his entire season in AAA for the second year in a row. The 25-year-old went 13-13 in his 36 starts with a 3.70 ERA.

Along with Antuofermo, San Juan got busy and signed five other players to contract extensions, including 2035 IL All-Stars Wally Glasser, Oscar Wetherby, and Jorge Pagan:
- CF Wally Glasser (1 year for $13 million)
- 2B/3B Oscar Wetherby (2 years, $10 million AAV)
- SP/DH Jorge Pagan (4 years, $9.41 million AAV)
- SP Eli McKnight (1 year, $1.54 million)
- 1B Tracy Young (2 years, $2.5 million AAV)

Additionally on October 12th, the Coqui released 2B Hae-young Pak, RP Keith Dupree, SP Ray Medrano, SP Tetsuzan Shimada. When asked about the releases, GM J.D. Caldwell said, "If they don't want to be here, we don't want them!"