An Outsiders Inside View of Hunter

Dateline: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

As we begin the ninth season of Hunter world it seems appropriate to gather our thoughts and reflect on its storied history and perhaps discuss why this world establishes the HBD ideal of establishing true dynasties. Because this league has so many successful franchises, owners of "ordinary" teams have had a difficult time achieving long term success in this league. I am reminded of the movie "The Sandlot" where a group of baseball loving kids are menaced by the dog on the other side of the fence. If you are a member of Hunter, the attack dog on the other side of the fence is real. And if you are going to succeed  you will have to tame the savage beast.

Hunter was founded 8 seasons ago. By my count, twelve of the original founders are still with us. Four owners joined after the first season; so sixteen owners have been in this league at least seven seasons. Imagine that. A small group of owners have enjoyed remarkable success through these eight seasons dominating both their divisions and the playoffs yearly. For example, the AL East and NL North have both been dominated by a single team winning all 8 seasons. Washington DC has never lost a division championship and neither has Augusta. The AL North, AL South, AL West, and NL West have been won by a single franchise seven of the eight years : Pawtucket, Louisville, San Francisco, and Colorado all have seven division titles. New York has six division tiles in the NL East. Only the NL South has not been clearly dominated by a single team as all four franchises have at least one division title;  however San Juan does have four. Think of it, eight divisions for eight years means that sixty four separate titles have been won, but by only sixteen different franchises. That's dynasty building!!

The playoffs show a similar pattern. Four franchises have never missed the playoffs (Washington DC, Louisville, Augusta, San Francisco) and three teams have made the playoffs seven years (Burlington, Pawtucket, Colorado). When you stop and realize that only twelve teams enter the playoffs yearly, most of the years had those seven teams playing. Only five other teams (on average) could earn one of the remaining playoff spots. And indeed, six franchises have never been in the playoffs. (Rochester among them.) The World Series has also been dominated by these teams with Washington DC winning three, Colorado and San Francisco winning two apiece and last year Scottsdale won "The Ring". 

Which brings us to the final point of this musing. Our wall of dynasties can be cracked. Scottsdale proved last year that new blood can climb the fence and tame the mongrel.  In only his second playoff appearance, Oli35 came away a winner. And a chink in some of these franchises armor has got to start showing sometime soon. I mean, how long can Elvis Ogea, Felipe Bournigal, and Juan Gonzalez continue to play, although their pictures never seem to age? 

But in the meantime Hunter World can bask in its knowledge that it is truly one of the premiere leagues in HBD. Some owners might find the challenge of Hunter too difficult. Those owners don't stay long. Good. This is a league for hardcore HBD lovers who wish to test their skills in developing true dynasties. The bar has been set high for all who dare to enter. 

Moving Pitchers: S9 Relocation Report

We had five openings in Hunter this season. Four were in the American League and two of those were in the AL South. But really, can you blame anyone for not wanting to play in the division responsible for our last 3 World Series Championships? This year, our new owners bring a lot of experience to Hunter (which is good because losing to newbies is getting pretty old) and will likely have their new teams competitive before we know it. I'm telling you, these guys are serious--3 of the 5 new owners have over $100M budgeted to player salaries.

I welcome you all and wish you the very worst of luck with your new teams.

St. Louis Mashers (bobgilbert) Formerly Tampa Bay Nice Rays (andreb)
As strange as it may seem, bobgilbert's name appears to Gary. Who puts "bob" in their user name when their name actually isn't Bob? Just the awesome ones, if you ask me! Anyway, this franchise hasn't had a winning season since they left Mexico City in season 4 and they had their worst record last season losing 100 games in Tampa Bay. St. Louis has the oldest ML team in the NL but seems to have the salary cap situation under control. The Mashers also have one of the better AAA teams in Hunter. St. Louis gets the 3rd draft pick but this newbie still has his work cut out for him.

Hartford The Whale (rebenjamin) Formerly Toledo Mud Hens (the_e_man)
A man called E had this franchise for four years. In season 6 his Mud Hens won a wildcard spot and in season 7 they lost 101 games. With four seasons of experience under his belt in other worlds, rabenjamin77 takes over this up and down team. The Whale inherits one of the better hitting teams in the AL last season and the pitching staff was middle-of-the-pack. They also appear to be pretty healthy as far as age and player salary goes. A couple good moves and this team could have an up season.

Huntington HEAD HUNTERS (vikingdal) Fromerly Wichita Bad Boys (ewchippe)
I'm sure I'm not the only one who thought vikingdal's caps-lock button was stuck but alas, he has gone all uppercase with all four of his other teams, too. And it works for him. Viking comes to Hunter with 2 World Series titles (with the MAD DAWGS in Ripkin) under his belt. He now has the task of reforming these former Bad Boys, who ewchippe has managed since season 1 (although he skipped season 4...I don't remember that), and could never quite get them over the hump. It appears that Huntington wants a winner now as vikingdal has raised player salary budget from $72M last season to $105 and has already hit free-agency hard. With Viking at the helm, I'm guessing this ship will be righted soon.

Anaheim Angels (michaelkoss) Formerly Arizona Rattlers (matrat101)
Last season's owner, Matrat101, was one of our newbies last year who didn't stick, but before him, this was the Arizona Thinderstrikers team that was pretty good in seasons 4-6 but have fallen-off since. Historically, this franchise has always been one of the top two teams as far as player salary goes without much to show for it. This season appears to be no different as michaelkoss has $106M designated to players salaries which is second to only Charlotte's $135M (which is a Hunter record, by the way). But it appears that Micheal plans to shave down some salary by placing Derek O'Keefe on the trading block. This looks like a rebuilding time because moving O'Keefe is going to be rough on a pitching staff who was already one of the worst in the AL.

Boise Posse (dennisdee) Formerly Vancouver Velvet Vultures (eclipse33)
Dennisdee brings a ridiculous 39 season of experience and 2 NL Championships to HUnter to take over for our lovely, lone female owner (as far as I know), eclipse33. OK, I've never met her but it's much more fun to imagine how lovely she was, right? But in her 6 seasons in Hunter, her Velvet Vultures never had a winning record. They did steal a lot of bases last year, though (317 to be exact) and always played great defense. They just couldn't hit. Boise has also hit free agency pretty hard and will try to stay afloat in that very tough AL South.

The Elite Eight

I can remember the first days of HBD like it was yesterday and we’re ready to start season 9, did that go by fast or is it just me? After 8 seasons I would like to point out some divisional stats, some pretty interesting stuff -

Augusta Caesars franchise won NL North all 8 seasons (2 owners)
New York Metropolitans franchise won the NL East 6 times and finished 2nd twice (once by 1 game)(1 owner)
San Juan TCB franchise won the NL South 4 times and finished 2nd in the other 4 seasons (1 owner)
Colorado Blasters franchise won the NL West 7 times and finished 2nd once (1 owner)
Pawtucket Patriots franchise won the AL North 7 times and finished 2nd once (2 owners)
Washington D.C. Generals franchise won the AL East all 8 seasons(1 owner)
Louisville Sluggers franchise won the AL South 7 times and finished 2nd once (1 owner)
San Francisco Night Demons franchise won the AL West 7 times and finished 2nd once (1 owner)

Hunters' Elite Eight (Aug, NY, SJ, Col, Paw, Was, Lou, SF). In 8 seasons these 8 teams have accumulated 54-1st place division finishes, 10-2nd place division finishes and 0-3rd place finishes.

The Super 3 - Washington D.C Generals 3 time WS Champ, Colorado Blasters 2 time WS Champ and San Francisco Night Demons 2 time WS Champ share 7 of 8 Hunter Championships.

These 3 franchises deserve to be placed on a scale of their own so next time you see one of these on your schedule make sure you have your best team ready. Scottsdale Aces came out of nowhere last season to take the WS Championship but will need to prove this season that they're here to stay, if the Aces repete as WS Champions we'll make this the Super 4.

Owner Profile: oli35

In season two, Oli moved the struggling Seattle Superstars (remember them? Me neither) to Scottsdale, Arizona and started rebuilding. The first five years were not great for the Aces at the ML level never breaking .500 but, in the meantime, there was lots of training and good drafting going on. Last year they finally broke through and made the playoffs for the first time. Except for the big free-agent signing of Mark Meng, the Aces are pretty much a home grown team. On of my favorite stats is that Oli has only made 4 trades. And I don't mean 4 trades this season...4 trades EVER! It's nice to see that there is more than one way to build a great team.

And let us not forget that he did this playing in the same division as the defending World Series Champs, San Francisco Night Demons. San Fran still won the division but Scottsdale knocked them out of the playoffs, as a 5 seed, 3 games to none. And for those of us keeping score, that's the American League 6 World Series' and the National League (well, Leppy) 2.

I hope you enjoy Oli's answers. I know I did. I've learned some pretty cool things about some of you (For example, did you know we have a female owner in Hunter?) but Oli probably takes the cake. And, no, he's not the girl. See for yourself.

Is oli35 your real name?
oli35 is Bill Olson.

What are your vitals?
I am a 58 year old mechanical contractor living about 100 miles north of NYC. I am married with 1 grown son. I spent my college years as a door gunner in a helicopter patrolling I Corps in Vietnam.

What are your favorite real-life sports teams or players?
I root for the Mets, Boston College football, Skidmore College hockey and although I used to be an enthusiastic fan of the game I have lost almost all interest in basketball. I have had only 1 sports idol in my life and that was Mickey Mantle. To this day I am not sure why.

Why Hunter?
I have stayed in Hunter becauase I can be stubborn to a fault. I took over a pathetic team early on. I decided I would try to build a contender from the draft without the benefit of high priced free agents. It has been an arduous process. I finally reached .500 ( and my first playoff spot) in season 7 only to lose in the 1st round. This season I thought we would be pretty good as we had our highest payroll ( just over $60M). But we started out very slow with a 23 - 29 record after 52 games. Then we got hot and have gone 70 - 40 the rest of the way.
I have permission from ownership to raise the payroll to $70M next season if I so chose.

Is there a team in Hunter you especially love to beat (or hate to lose to)?
I have had my butt kicked so many times there is nobody in Hunter who I do not enjoy getting the best of.

What's the deal with your team nickname, Aces?
The team nickname is in honor of one of my favorite sports venues in the world. The PGA tour holds a tourney in Scottsdale, Arizona and on the 16th hole the is a par 3 in an amphitheater which holds about 30,000 rowdy spectators. They boo poor shots but when there is an ace, it is the loudest outdoor reaction in sports.

When you aren't WISing, what do you do?
I was very involved in youth hockey in the 90's serving as president of the Long Island Gulls for several years. It was an incredibly rewarding experience as dozens of my players have gone on the play college hockey, many are playing professionally with one in particular, Rob Scuderi, trying to get his name on the Stanley Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was also tremendously time consuming and when I stepped down it left an incredible void in my life. WIS came along at that time and has helped to fill it.

I am an avid reader having turned my formal dining room into a library holding almost 3,000 books at present most of which I have read at least once, many I have read multiple times.

AL & NL Awards Preview (MVP & Cy Young)

This year I am reviewing the five finalists for the big awards and recommending a winner. I will also name the two to three biggest snubs for each award (deserving players who were not finalists)


AL MVP Finalist (League Rank in brackets if within top 25):

1: Magglio Javier (Lou): 143 GP, 122 R (T-1), 48 HR (5th), 137RBI (1st), .340 AVG (4th), 1.063 OPS (1st)

My man-love for Magglio is well documented but once again is well founded. M. Javier is the only player in the league within the top 5 in the five major hitting categories. Additionally, Magglio bests the other four finalists in R, HR, RBI, SLG%, OPS.

2: Braden Cox (Min): 135GP, 118 R (5th), 43 HR (6th), 113 RBI (10th), .300AVG (19th), 1.000 OPS (2nd)

Cox’s MVP candidacy was hurt by a trip to the DL. Mind you despite the DL stint he only played in 8 less game than Magglio. Cox had solid numbers across the board plus 40+ SB. Making him the AL’s only 40-40. He would have received strong consideration for the MVP if Magglio didn’t better him in EVERY other hitting category (R, HR, RBI, AVG, OPS, SLG%, OPS)

3. Bruce Grey (Lou): 131 GP, 122 R (T-1), 26 HR (N/A), 87 RBI (N/A), .344 AVG, (3rd) .952 OPS (7th)

I don’t really think that Grey deserves to be a MVP finalist but WIS’s obsession with batting average over power ranks him in the top 5. Things working against Grey, low power numbers (HR, RBI) and the fact he wasn’t the most valuable player on his team. Things working for Grey only middle infielder on the list and did finish in the top 10 for R, AVG and OPS.

4. J. Zorilla 117 GP, 80 R (N/A), 18 HR (N/A), 89 RBI (N/A), .350 AVG, (1st) .952 OPS (4th)

Zorilla is an interesting candidate who had he played 130-140 games might have been battling Cox for number 2 on the list. Things working against Zorilla: low totals (R, HR, RBI) and low games played. Things working for Zorilla: Best hitter on AL’s best team and good percentages (AVG, OB%, OPS) plus a really cool last name. While Zorilla will miss out on the MVP he will most likely take home the ROY

5. Jerome Skrmetta (Chi): 162 GP, 96 R (19th), 25 HR (N/A), 109 RBI (12th), .345AVG (2nd ), .946 OPS (8th)

J. Skrmetta falls one spot behind Zorilla based on their teams’ respective places in the standings. Had Chicago’s and SF records been closer Skrmetta would have moved up 1-2 spots on the list. Skrmetta just missed out on making the top 25 in all five categories by 3 HR. A special note Skrmetta was the only candidate to play in every one of his teams’s games which is quite a feat.


Snubs: Julian Pisciotta (Ari): A victim of WIS’s love for batting average. His 54 HR and 129 RBI’s weren’t enough to overcome his .275 average (really not bad) to make the candidate list. Had he been a finalist I would have ranked him 3rd behind Cox and Javier.

D. Nelson (Tol) Just missed the cut due to his low batting average (.268). Would have been a solid 4th or 5th candidate for the award especially since Toledo hung around the playoff picture right till the end.

Nick Perkins (Van): Once again was a causality of the power vs. average divide that WIS and myself do not agree on. Based upon 49HR 127 RBI, Perkins would have been a solid finalist.


AL Cy Young.

1.Pete Daly (SF): 247 IP, 22W-1L, 222 K’s, 2.37 ERA

A early Bournigal injury opened the door for Daly and despite Feliepe’s best efforts I’d have to give the edge to Daly for his ridiculous W-L record and his league leading 11 CG. Mind you a 2.37 ERA and 222K’s don’t hurt.


2. Felipe Bournigal (SF): 225 IP, 21W-6L, 223 K’s 1.88 ERA

Once Bournigal retires Hunter’s Cy Young could be renamed the Felipe Bourigal but this season his teammate Daly edges him out……. barely. With that said Felipe does lead his teammate and the AL in both ERA and K’s. The additional 22 IP gives Daly the slight edge


3. Elvis Ogea (Wash): 255 IP, 21W-9L, 180 K’s, 2.82 ERA

Ogea rounds out the Big Three in the AL. Ogea along with Daly and Bournigal have been the class of the AL for many years. If Daly and Bournigal were to disappear Elvis would probably have 5 Cy Youngs on his mantle. Unfortunately, for Ogea they do exist and despite his fantastic numbers he will probably finish 3rd this season. Kudos to Ogea for leading the AL in IP.

4.Derek O’Keefe (Ari) 196 IP, 17W-5L, 178 K’s 2.77 ERA

O’Keefe was a big FA signing for the Arizona franchise and he has lived up to his contract during his first season in the AL. O’Keefe put together a great season but is bested by the 3 men in front of him.

5. Aaron Estes (Lou): 209 IP, 18W-4L, 143 K’s 3.27 ERA

Estes and O’Keefe will be tied together over the length of their contracts. A Ari-Lou trade prior to FA sent Estes to Louisville and opened up enough cap room to allow Arizona to sign O’Keefe. One of those rare deals where both teams love the outcome. Estes’ low K rate and slightly worse ERA keeps him from leapfrogging O’Keefe

Honourable Mention:

Mike Eckstein (Paw): Eckstein is 3rd in the AL in ERA but due to reduced stamina this veteran has only pitched 161 innings this season. Which is what keeps him out of the top 5. However, Eck is also tied to Estes and O’Keefe. Louisville allowed Eck to leave as a FA after trading for Estes to fill his rotation spot. Which makes that trade a win-win-win.

A. Feliz (Tol): Put together a good season overall but numbers fell slightly below all the players listed in the top 5.


NL MVP (League Rank in Brackets if top 25):

1. : Garret Biggio (San Jaun) 154GP, 153 R (2nd), 42 HR (13th), 165 RBI (1st), .325 AVG (9th), 1.002 OPS (9st)

Of the finalists two teammates are vying for the top spot. Based on my preference of power to average Biggio edges out his teammate Bolivar for the top spot but only by the slightest of margins. Biggio lead the NL in RBI’s and finished in the top 15 for all five categories. While Biggio is the best of the finalist he would have been pushed by the biggest snub of the year (will comment on more later).

2. A. Bolivar (San Jaun): 157 GP: 160 R (1st), 20 HR (N/A), 92 RBI (N/A), .387 AVG (1st), 1.019 (4th)

The reigning MVP had a better season total’s wise but was just nipped by his teammate. Last year Boliver batting .400 which caught the voters’ attention this season I think his teammates power numbers overcome Bolivar’s world leading average. With that said Bolivar’s numbers do carry some extra weight as they were generated from the SS position.

3. E. Molina (Aug): 162 GP: 141 R (3rd), 29 HR (N/A), 113 RBI (23rd), .301 AVG (24th), 0.906 (22nd)

Molina’s numbers are very similar to Bolivar with Molina’s power numbers fairing out slightly better while losing average by a large margin to Bolivar. The reason why Molina grabs the 3rd spot is on top of finishing in the top 25 in 4/5 categories he also added 92 SB to the cause. Making him the most well rounded MVP candidate.

4. N. Aldrige (SLC): 162 GP: 113 R (17th), 37 HR (23rd), 120 RBI (15th), .305 AVG (T-20), 1.008 (5th)

Alrdige’s first season in SLC was a definite success. Alridge gave steady production across all 5 categories. However, unlike the candidates ahead of him Ned lacks the a “trademark” stat.


5. J. P. Mercedes (AUG): 162 GP: 109R (T-20), 30 HR (N/A), 126 RBI (12th), .320 (11th), .911 OPS (11th)

Much like Alridge, Mercedes put up solid numbers across the board. He just missed going 5 for 5 in the major categories. For this reason Alridge nips him for the 4th spot.


Snubs:
Frank Zhang (Col): The snub or all snubs. Zhang wasn’t a borderline finalist. He was a bonefide MVP contender had he made the top 5 list he would have had a strong chance of walking away with the trophy. His limited GP (123) seem to be the only fault on this stat line. However with a line of 130 R 65 HR 131 RBI .345 AVG the low number of games shouldn’t have mattered.

Singling out a 2nd snub in the NL is extremely difficult given the NL’s offensive tendencies. However the following players swatted 50 HR while batting .300 which would have made them all good candidates: Jason Hutton (Col), E. Johnson (Col), T. McRae (SFE)



NL Cy Young

1. K. Coleman (TUC) 217 IP, 16W-7L, 182 K’s, 3.09 ERA

The team changed but the fantastic numbers didn’t. Coleman was the only finalist to finish in the top 10 for ERA, K’s and W’s. Which is enough to get this owner’s vote. In addition his 217 IP were also the most for any pitcher on this list.

2. J. Urbina (Col) 207 IP, 18W-5L, 145 K, 3.91 ERA

Urbina like Coleman was a finalist last season. Urbina trials Coleman in ERA, K’s and IP, while Urbina did generate a great ERA for Coors it should be pointed out that Coleman’s homepark is almost as hitter friendly as Coors.

3. M. Daniels (SJ) 152 IP, 23W-4L, 117 K, 4.2 ERA

Daniels put together an absurd record for a reliever however his higher ERA and 25% less innings have him fall behind Coleman and Urbina. However, as the NL’s only 20 game winner he is definitely a worthy finalist.



4. M. Bennet (Cha) 73 IP, 3W-8L, 54 SVs, 56 K’s, 3.54 ERA

Bennet is going to win the fireman of the year award and is a deserving winner. However, despite his 54 SV’s I am biased against relievers in the Cy Young race. I am consistant though. I ranked my own D. Cota last out of the finalists last season when he made the AL Cy Young list.

5. V. Davidson (Col) 129 IP, 11W-9L, 26 SV, 122K’s, 4.72 ERA

It seems as though WIS tried to make up for snubbing the Col hitters by adding Davidson to the finalist list. While Davidson had a good year none of his numbers scream CY Young. There were several more deserving starters. In the end Colorado suffered the biggest award snub and most generous nomination. However, I’m guessing Leppy would gladly trade Davidson’s finalist status to get Zhang on the MVP list.

Honorabe Mention:

V. Guardado (Cha): Guardado lead the NL in ERA and finished in the top 10 for IP, W and K’s. Yet somehow could not make the list. After Zhang’s omission this is the most curious one. Had he made the finalist he would have edged Urbina for the 2nd spot while pushing Coleman for the award.

P. Ontiveros (Aug): Finished 2nd in NL ERA and like Guarado put up strong cross category stats. Would have pushed Bennett and Daniels for the 3rd or 4th spot.