Tuesday, July 12, 2011

All-Hunter Catchers

Through the almost 20 seasons of Hunter there have been six catchers who have rose above the field for contention as the best C in the history of Hunter. I am going to break them down into Tiers, the Catcher for the All-Hunter team will be decided by votes. I am going to ask each owner send me the top 3 on their ballot, consider the below as merely a guide.

Tier 3:
T. Molina:
6675AB 408 HR 1284 RBI .307 AVG .917 OPS
1080 GP @ C
C ERA: 4.75 Past Balls: 122
Pitching Calling Max: 46
661SB Against CS %: 24.7%
Awards: 5-Time Allstars, 3 C Silver Sluggers & 3 World Series
Rings


Looking at his hitting numbers alone can be a bit misleading; if you didn’t drill deeper you’d be crazy not to put him in Tier 1. The reason Molina ends up in Tier 3 is the fact he only played 1080 of his 1779 games at the position of C . The remainder due to his sub-par catching abilities were played at 1b, LF & DH (close to half his stats were racked up at a position other than C). His max pitch calling of 46 is also the lowest of anyone to make the list. While those are negatives, he is the only player on the list with 3 World Series Rings. He spent the majority of his career in New York with stints in Arizona (now Helena) prior & Philly post. It was Philly where he picked up his 3rd ring. He’s now playing out the string at AAA for Little Rock hoping for one last shot at the show and potentially a 4th ring.

B. Nixon:
5317AB 177 HR 786 RBI .294 AVG .819 OPS
1401 GP @ C
C ERA: 5.46 Past Balls: 106
960SB Against CS %: 26.9%
Pitching Calling Max: 63
Awards: 5-Time Allstars & 3 C Silver Sluggers


Compared to the others ahead of him on the list his defense is lacking with the worst C Era & his hitting numbers pale in comparison to the remaining options. The inclusion on the list is a tip of a cap to one of the top catchers in the first decade of Hunter. Had Nixon been younger when the world was born he might have been able to stack up better historically, he played almost his entire career with Rochester (now Scranton). An old Mase favorite he’d be happy to see him included on the list. Nixon played his last ML game in S11 & was retired by S13.

Tier 2:
Tanner Sager:

6004AB 217 HR 846 RBI .306 AVG .844 OPS
1449GP @ C
C ERA: 4.48 Past Balls: 127
907SB Against CS %: 19.2%
Pitching Calling Max: 64
Awards: 10-Time Allstars, 6 C Silver Sluggers & 1 World Series Ring

It may seem odd to find a player with Tanner Sager’s hardware in tier two, however compared to the three remaining choices I believe he’s in the right spot. I think everyone can agree that the All-Star selection process does need some work. Sager spent 11 seasons in Washington where he won his only ring before moving to Florida for S19 & is still in the majors with SLC in S20. His pitch calling is decent but his CS% is the lowest of anyone on this list. He had a plus bat for a catcher but the remaining guys had ++ bats and in two cases + defense as well.

Tier 1:
Alex Campos:

5836AB 304 HR 1000 RBI .312 AVG .897 OPS
1799GP @ C
C ERA: 4.53 Past Balls: 69
858SB Against CS %: 26.8%
Pitching Calling Max: 84
Awards: 1 Gold-Glove & 1 Silver Slugger

The first think you’ll notice about Campos is a startling lack of hardware. However he is the only C on the list to have won a gold glove. The biggest knock on Campos is his durability which limits him to about 400AB a year and keeps him out of the running on year to year awards. Having said that of the six finalists he owns the best pitch calling, tied for the best CS% & given up the fewest past balls by a considerable margin. He’s clearly the best defender on the list and on top of the defensive accolades he’s also hit 300+ HR and has 1000RBI, so he’s not just on the list for his glove. Full disclosure he’s the only player on the list that’s played for the Sluggers. His career in the ML started with Louisville before heading to Texas (now Monterray) and then returning to Louisville.

A. Butler:
5055AB 289 HR 994 RBI .330 AVG .971 OPS
1287GP @ C
C ERA: 4.24 Past Balls: 125
807SB Against CS %: 23.4%
Pitching Calling Max: 63
Awards: 7-Time AllStar, 7-Time Silver Slugger & 1 World Series

Bulter was a glaring omission caught by his former owner Smhish when I posted the initial list. He is the youngest member of the list at 35 with several years left in his career to pad his stats. Of the players on the list he has the most Silver Sluggers, best avg., best C Era & .971 OPS. He spent his entire career with SLC winning a World Series before moving to Columbus for this season. I have him 2nd on my ballot based on his slightly lower PC and the fact, I think his %’s are inflated since he hasn’t had to play through the tail end of his career like the other two tier 1 guys, Campos is 39 & the next player is retired.

S.Moraga:
5729AB 403 HR 1090 RBI .300 AVG .913 OPS
1719GP @ C
C ERA: 4.58 Past Balls: 127
769SB Against CS %: 25.1%
Pitching Calling Max: 79
Awards: 6-Time AllStar & 3-Time Silver Slugger


It was a tough call between the three tier-1 guys but I personally am giving Moraga my first place ballot based on the following rationale. He is arguably the best hitter on the list (T. Molina’s non-C stats excluded). Bulter will catch him in RBI, but not in HR and I think their %s will be a lot closer once Bulter plays through the tail end of his career. Even if you give Bulter the slight edge in hitting Moraga was a much better defender, behind Campos he was probably the best on the list. Morgana was the best of both worlds behind the plate that’s why I have him nipped Bulter & Campos at the finish line.

Monday, July 4, 2011

ALL-DECADE TEAMS

A reposting of the All-Decade Teams in Hunter (Updated to include current team names). Names listed will be current then the old name in brackets.


AL All-Decade Team
Starting Pitching: (Naming three starting pitchers)

Felipe Bournigal- Night Demons (8-time All-Star & 6 Cy Youngs)

This was a pretty obvious decision to name the starter as Bournigal has clearly been the most dominant pitcher over the first 10 seasons of Hunter and will be a sure fire Hall of Famer. If this list gets re-done after 20 seasons I would find it hard to believe that another pitcher would take the starting spot. At age 37 his career is drawing to a close however, I still expect another 3 solids seasons from this Superstar.

Elvis Ogea- Blue Claws/Generals (6-time All-Star & 2 Cy Youngs)

Had Bournigal never existed Ogea’s Cy young title would most likely be 5 or higher. However, Bournigal did exist which relegates Ogea to 2nd banana status. However, being the 2nd best pitcher over a decade is nothing to sneeze at. The one place that Ogea leads Bournigal is the fact he was the “ace” of three championship teams and Bournigal only took home two titles

Pete Daly- Night Demons (5-time All-Star & 1 Gold Glove)

If you think Ogea had it bad being ranked 2nd behind Bournigal, just think about Daly having never been the top starting pitcher on his own team. When you look at their stats and longevity Ogea, Daly and Bournigal are in a class of their own. Filling out the remainder of the SP spots proved to be the most difficult part in this exercise.

RP (Naming two: Closer and Set-up)

Closer- Terrence Floyd- Neophytes/Black Sox (8-time All-Star & 3 Fireman of the Year)

Hunter’s career leader in saves was an obvious choice for the closer role. His 8 all-star appearances ties Bournigal as the most for an AL pitcher. His three fireman awards are also an AL-Record. For the decade Floyd was the best of the four AL dominant closers.

Setup- Jared Page - Night Demons (6-time All-star & 3 Fireman of the year)

Surprise, surprise another SF pitcher. For Hunter’s first decade it’s clear to see how SF lead the AL in wins. Pitching, pitching and more pitching. Page falls just behind Floyd and is a worth set-up man. His three fireman awards tie Floyd’s record. The one place Page does best Floyd is he’s the Hunter world leader in SV%.

Catcher - Bruce Nixon- Stranglers/scorpions/The Whale (6-time All-star & 3 Silver Slugger)

As a catcher the 6 time all-star and three Silver sluggers are AL bests at age 37 Nixon is still in the league but the end of his career isn’t far off. The last couple years have caused his career batting average to drop just below .300 however his OPS still sits above .800 which is an impressive feat. The one sad note for Nixon is he has never made the playoffs.

1b- Lou Stevenson-Fire/Bald Beaver (2-time All-Star, 3 Silver Slugger & 4 MVP)

Despite only 6 seasons in the AL Stevenson was an obvious choice for the 1b spot. In his first 5 seasons he racked up 4 AL MVP’s before adding a 5th MVP via the NL to his resume. His 5 total MVP’s is a Hunter record shared with Magglio Javier. Javier and Stevenson have combined for 9 of the 10 AL MVP’s. Despite three seasons of under-use in the NL before returning to the AL this season Stevenson still boosts career numbers of 1007 R, 450 HR & 1234 RBI

2b- Mendy Clemens- Cheese Grits (3-time All-Star & 5 Silver Sluggers)

Mendy moved to the NL during Atlanta’s season six fire sale. However despite this fact Clemens was a slam-dunk for the AL’s staring lineup. He won the 2b silver slugger for every full season he played in the AL. His five silver sluggers are a record shared with Magglio Javier and Dan Miller. Clemens continued his fine play in the NL and was a member of last year’s world series winners (New York).

SS- Dan Miller - Blue Claws/Generals (3-time All-Star & 5 Silver Sluggers)

As mentioned above Miller is one of three, 5-time AL Silver slugger winners and did so in only 6 full AL seasons. During that time he also managed to pick up three championship rings. Miller’s range in his prime was slightly below average however, his bat more than made up for it and it certainly didn’t hurt the Generals in the playoffs.

3b - Rodrigo Brito- Neophytes/Black Sox (4-time All-Star, 4 Silver Sluggers & 2 Gold Gloves)

Brito is the first player on the list to not only have silver slugger but gold gloves. This in itself is an impressive achievement. In addition to this Brito had authored 10 consecutive 30 HR seasons and has failed to reach 100 RBI only one-time. Thus making him a model of consistency. His four AL silver sluggers fall one short of the record and having moved to the NL (Pittsburgh) it looks like his final total will be one short.

Lf- Magglio Javier – Sluggers (9-time All-Star, 5 Silver Sluggers, 5 MVPs & Rookie of the Year)

If there were an MVP for the first decade of Hunter Magglio Javier would probably be the winner. His 9 all-star appearances, 5 silver sluggers and 5 MVPs are all AL records. In addition to that his career numbers and consistency is staggering. Magglio has never scored less than 114 runs, hit less than 44 HR or drove in less than 135 RBI. All of these numbers were posted this season (10) and he still walked away with the MVP. He missed being the first member of the 500 HR club by one game and sits 5 RBI’s short of being the first 1500 RBI player. Additionally, he’s lead Louisville to 10 playoff appearances, 9 division titles, 5 ALCS appearance and 2 World Series appearances. The only flaw in his resume is a lack of a ring; however as I write this Sluggers lead the World Series 1-0.

Cf- Pablo Chavez - Blue Claws/Generals (3-time All-Star)

The toughest position to pick a start as no player really separated themselves from the rest. This pick makes Chavez the youngest member of the team at 27 and still has a few more CF seasons left in him before moving to a corner OF spot to improve his resume. This pick ultimately came down to three options. However, Chavez’s combination of power and defense is what landed him on this list.

Rf- Mark Gabriel - Patriots/Explorers 4-time All-Star, 2 Silver Slugger and 1 Gold Glove)

Gaberial won the three horse race for this spot and joins Brito as the only other Gold Glove winner on the list. Gabrial strong career numbers are a result of a long and extremely consistent career.

DH- Glenn McCarty - Chupacabras/Beefeaters (7-time All-Star, 4 Silver Sluggers)

McCarty was an easy pick for this spot as his seven AL all-star appearances only trails Javier and his 4 silver sluggers sit one back of the AL record. In addition to this McCarty is the career leader in OBP with a ridiculous .420 plus he is top five in terms of career batting average.


Reserves:

SP: Derek O'Keefe- Night Demons/Bad Boys/Yorkies (2-time All-Star & 1 Cy Young)
SP: Steve Sheldon- Patriots/Explorers (3-time All-Star)
SP: J.T. Cook- Blue Claws/Generals (2-time All-Star)
SP: Bob Creek - Sluggers (2-time All-Star & 1 Gold Glove)
SP: Dave Caufield- Sluggers (3-time All-Star)
RP: Clark Connelly- Stranglers/scorpions (4-time All-Star, 2 Fireman of the year)
RP: B.C. Tracy- Hashies/thunderstrikers (3-time All-Star, 1 Fireman of the year)

C: Tanner Sager- Blue Claws/Generals (2-time All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger)
1b: Sherm Norton- Yorkies/Choking Dogs (4-time All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger)
2b: Desi Nixon-Quakers/Mud Hens (2-time All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger)
3b: Walter Hansen-Cheese Grits (1-time All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger)
SS: Eduardo Gonzalez- Offspring/Velvet Vultures (4-time All-Star & 4 Silver Slugger)
LF: Braden Cox- Patriots/Explorer (5-time All-Star, 3 Silver Slugger & 1 MVP)
CF: Mendy Montana- Night Demons (3 Silver Slugger)
RF: Bruce Kaufman-Chupacabras/Beefeaters (2-time All-Star & 1 Silver Slugger) DH: Julian Pisciotta- Rattlers/Yorkies (1 Silver Slugger)


Snubs:
SP- Mark Meng- Islanders/Aces (2-time All-Star) hurt by limited time in AL
SP- Mike Eckstein- Sluggers (2-time All-Star)
RP: Willie Gutierrez-Blue Claws/Generals (4-time All-Star)
RP: Louis Fisher- ChupacabrasBeefeaters (3-time All-Star)
C: Trenidad Molina- Hashies/thunderstrikers (3-time All-Star & 1 Silver Slugger)
1b: Darryl Biddle- Blue Claws/Generals (3-time All-Star & 1 Gold Glove)
1b: Mark Kim- Night Demons (2-time All-Star & 1 MVP)
1b: Juan Zorrilla- Night Demons (2-time All-Star)
2b: Bruce Grey- Sluggers (3-time All-Star & 1 Silver Slugger)
2b: J.R. Alston- Islanders/Aces (4-time All-Star & 1 Silver Slugger)
SS: Emmanuel Javier- Sluggers (3-time All-Star)
SS: Bud Thomas- Fire(2-time All-Star & 2 Gold Glove)
3b: Russell Henson- Sluggers (2-time All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger)
LF: James Hayashi- Carpetbaggers/Bad Boys (1-time All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger)
CF: Evan Levrault- Patriots/Explorers (1-time All-Star & 3 Gold Gloves)
CF: Pinky Duffy-Fire (2-time All-Star & 1 Glove)
RF: Marquis Fischbach-Islanders/Aces (4-time All-Star & 1 Glove)
RF: Tom Leonard-Stranglers/scorpions- (1-time All-Star & 1 Silver Slugger)
RF: Trevor Rooney- Sluggers (1 All-Star, 2 Silver Slugger & 1 Gold Glove)

NL All-Decade Team

Starting Lineup

SP- Kevin Coleman-Blasters/Mets (3-time All-Star, 3 Cy Young & 1 Silver Slugger)
SP- Shawn Owen- Fugitives/Studdabubbas (5-time All-Star, 2 Cy Young & 2 Silver Slugger)
SP- Mark Meng- Fugitives/Clydesdales (3-time All-Star)
CL- Miguel Bennett-FatNasty (4-time All-Star & 3 Fireman of the Year)
SetA- Eddie Perez- Hartworms (4-time All-Star & 1 Fireman of the Year)

C- Sammy Moraga-FatNasty (5-time All-Star & 3 Silver Slugger)
1b – Rich Peters- Baydogs (All-Star, Silver Slugger & Gold Glove + All-Star and
Silver Slugger @ RF+ Will be 3rd player to 500 HR)
2b- Lonny Iglesias- Blasters/Mule Deer (3 All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger + Silver Slugger & Gold Glove @ LF + First player to 500 HR)
SS- Erubiel Johnson- Blasters (4-time All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger)
3b- Angel Bolivar- TCB (4-time All-Star, 3 Silver Slugger, 2 Gold Glove & 1 MVP + 2-time All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger @ SS)
LF- Albert Henley- Loose Sluts/Blasters/Mormons/FatNasty (5-time Allstar, 4 Silver Slugger & 2 MVP + Silver Slugger & 1 Gold Glove @ 2b)
CF- Garrett Biggio-TCB (6-time All-Star, 8 Silver Slugger, 1 Gold Glove & 1 MVP)
RF- Frank Zhang-Blasters (4-time All-Star, 3 Silver Slugger, 2 MVP & ROY)

Bench

SP- Ivan Miller- Clydesdales (3-time All-Star, 2 Silver Slugger & Cy Young)
SP- Charles Lawton -Clydesdales/Shockers ( 3-time All-Star)
SP-Andruw Allen-FatNasty/Blasters/ Studdabubbas (4-time All-Star)
SP- Lew Drabek- Shockers/Mormons (3-time All-Star)
Long - Jumbo Urbina- Blasters (4-time All-Star & Cy Young)
RP- Hipolito Guillen- MooseDawg (3-time All-Star & Fire Man of the Year)
RP- Ross Kingston- Nickels (4-time All-Star)



C- Roy Christenson-Loose Sluts/Tomato Can/Gamblers (3-time All-Star & 3 Silver Slugger)
1b- Brace Starr-Blasters (3-time All-Star & 1 Silver Slugger)
2b- Frank Perez-Torpedoes/Scrotums/Mets (1-time All-Star & 2 Silver Sluggers)
SS- Steve Parker- Brain Sandwiches/Clydesdales (2-time All-Star, 2 Silver Slugger & Gold Glove)
3b- J.P. Mercedes-Blasters (3-time All-Star, Silver Slugger & Gold Glove)
LF- James Hayashi- Shockers/Blasters (2-time All-Star, 2 Silver Slugger & MVP + Silver Slugger & All-Star @ 1b)
CF- Andrew Wright- Blasters/Clydesdales (3-time All-Star, 2 Silver Slugger, Gold Glove & MVP)
RF- Erubiel Molina- Clydesdales/Caesars (6-time All-Star, 3 Silver Slugger & Gold Glove)


Snubs

SP- Benito Bonilla-Metropolitans (3-time All-Star & 1 Cy Young)
RP- Ahmad Beltre- Waves/Shockers (3-time All-Star)
SP- Vic Guardado- FatNasty/Shockers/Blasters (2-time All-Star & 1 Cy Young)
RP- Vance Davidson –Blasters (2-time All-Star)

C- Taylor Griffiths- Clydesdales (2-time All-Star & Silver Slugger)
C- Buddy Valentine- Blasters (All-Star & 2 Gold Gloves)
1b- Ned Aldridge- Mormons (2-time All-Star, Silver Slugger & Gold Glove)
2b- Kelvin Croushore- Blasters (All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger)
SS- Eduardo Gonzalez- Blasters (2 All-Star & 2 Silver Slugger + All-Star @ 2nd)
3b- Josh Kroon- Hashies (2 All-Star & 3 Silver Slugger)
Lf- Buddy Krivda- Wranglers/Flyers 2 All-Star, Silver Slugger & Gold Glove)
Cf- Jason Hutton- Blasters/Mets (3-time All-Star)RF- Trevor Thomas- Flyers (2-time All-Star, 2 Silver Slugger & Gold Glove)