S25 AL West All-Stars by 40_dog

C  -  Pablo Marquez  (OAK)
DH - Junior Yamakazi   (SD)
1B - Adam Smith   (TAC)
2B - Jamie Byrne  (OAK)
3B - Tony Bennett  (OAK)
SS - Garland Clifton   (SD)
LF - Pedro Bonilla  (OAK)
CF - Burt McCartin  (SD)
RF - John Ueno  (OAK)

SP - Kevin Sobolewski   (SD)
SP - Paul Merrick  (OAK)
SP - Bryan Christiansen  (SD)
SP - Hamish Radlosky   (SD)
SP - Edgardo Cruz   (SEA)
SP - Ignacio Flores   (SEA)
SP - Johnny Robinson   (OAK)
RP - Douglas Dobbs   (SD)
RP - Heath Camilli  (TAC)
RP - Bill Heving   (SD)

MVP -  Junior Yamakazi   (SD) -  .281 BA - 38 HR 112. RBI  .915 ops

Cy Young -  Kevin Sobolewski   (SD) - 17-9 1.11 whip 2.72 era in 225 innings

ROY -    Phil Oliver   (SD) - 6-3 1.23 whip 3.23 era in 81.1 innings out of a lights out Beards of Zeus bullpen!!

S25 AL East All-Stars by phlsfan

C-  Miguel Gutierrez  -  New York Mets
1B- Nick Jacquez  - Trenton Thunder
2B- Jonathon Hamelin  - Trenton Thunder
3B- Ariel Rosa  - Trenton Thunder
SS- Carlos Rodriguez  - Baltimore Orioles
LF- Philip Robbins  - New York Mets
CF- John Suzuki  - Trenton Thunder
RF- Javier Samuel  - Baltimore Orioles
_____
SP- Placido Balentien  -  Trenton Thunder
SP- Victor Moya  - Trenton Thunder
SP-  Karl Hurst  - Trenton Thunder
SP-  Pat Combs  - Trenton Thunder
SP-  Royce Holt  - New York Mets
SP-  Matt Livingstone  - Norfolk Turkeys
RP-  Guillermo Manzanillo  - New York Mets
RP-  Neftali Guardado  -  New York Mets
RP-  Hector Marson  - Baltimore Orioles
RP-  Charles Chen  -  Trenton Thunder
____
MVP-  Nick Jacquez  -  Trenton Thunder
Cy Young- Placido Balentien  - Trenton Thunder
ROY-  Miguel Gutierrez -  New York Mets

S25 NL West All-Stars by bigparb13

C -  Pedro Juarez - Salt Lake City
1B-  Marc Clarke  - Colorado
2B-  Christy Rivers  - Helena
3B-  Kevin Lowery  - Salt Lake City
SS-  Ajax Maybin    - Salt Lake City
LF-  Cristobal Chavez  - Helena
CF-  Felipe Mercado   - Colorado
RF-  Louie Santiago   - Salt Lake City
Utility -  Gerald Hull  -  Helena
Utility -  Dock Sanders  - Colorado 

SP -  Rafael Beltre  -  Colorado
SP -  Alex Torres  -  Salt Lake City
SP -  Darrell Bigbie  -  Helena
SP -  Gio Hernandez  -  Colorado
SP -  Babe Colin  -  Helena 
SP -  Valerio Santiago  -  Helena 
RP - Stump Matheson  -  Helena
RP - Lorenzo Alomar   -  Colorado
RP - Lyle Erickson  -  Colorado
RP - Del Castillo   -  Kansas City

MVP - Marc Clarke  - Colorado

Cy Young -   (tie) Rafael Beltre  -  Colorado
                            Alex Torres  -  Salt Lake City

ROY -  CF Zachrey Anderson - Helena       
   
                

Top 5 All-time ARod Dynasties by habslmets

Well here's the non-consequential rankings you've been waiting all week for. The top 5 owners in the history of AROD. We've got a current owner somewhere in these rankings, and one who left us just this season. Fasten your seat belts, grab your favorite alcoholic beverage and get ready, because here it comes.

5. St. Louis Redbirds/Los Angeles Stars – ronzabill (11-24)

Free agency has been a popular way to build a team in AROD. It's generally a quick patch job that allows teams to win championships. Ronzabill dominated AROD for 14 seasons, and took home two world series titles thanks largely to home grown talent. Future HOF catcher Chuck Merrick, 6 time All Star SP Alex Torres and 6 time All Star RF Louie Santiago were a constant threat every single season ronzabill managed each spending more than 10 years with the club. The trio brought home ronzabill 2 world series titles in seasons 14 and 17, one of 6 coaches with multiple titles. The Redbirds brought home 7 AL West titles and 10 playoff births for the privileged residents of St. Louis. Ronzabill kept his teams in the hunt every year till his departure, and the discussion of greatest general managers can't occur without mention of his Redbird teams.

4. Houston/Texas/Nashville/Montgomery/Little Rock/Charlotte/Memphis Minute Men -safetyman (6-present)

Safetyman has yet to truly call one city home, but that doesn't mean he hasn't made his mark in AROD. In 20 seasons in the league, safetyman has qualified for the playoffs 15 times. After taking home the AL South title in his first 6 seasons, safety hit paydirt in his 7th season (12) winning the World  Series as the 6 seed over the Milwaukee Boomers in 6 games, one of two seasons he would reach the finals. Hall of Fame CF/2B Emmanuel Aquino played 7 and a half seasons for the franchise, winning a Silver Slugger and making the all star team each season. Hall of Fame CF Tony Martin just missed out on a ring, leaving in season 11. The Minute Men have the 5th most franchise wins of all time; and are only one of four current teams with at least 1,800 wins (Wichita, Scranton and New Orleans). No one knows when and where the Minute Men will pop up next, but I have a feeling safetyman isn't done winning anytime soon.

3. Fargo Flockers – dblaine (1-17)

Picking between Syracuse and Fargo for the number 2 spot was tough, but in the end Syracuse got the slight edge. That is not a slight against the Flockers, who under dblaine made the playoffs each of the first 16 seasons in AROD. The Flockers won at least 100 games in 9 different seasons, which was good enough for the 6th most wins of all time. The Flockers had a crazy .627 winning percentage, and was the only franchise in league history with a career winning percentage above .600 for teams with at least 10 years in the league. However, for all of his success, dblaine didn't win a World Series till his second to last year, season 16. Hall of Famer Sal McDougal was a big reason for Fargo's success, playing for 16 seasons with the franchise, during which he won 265 games, played in 7 All Star games and won a Cy Young.

2. Syracuse Pyschos – gydk (1-22)

One of the founding owners of AROD, gydk spent an incredible 22 seasons making life miserable for rival AL East owners. Gydk won an astonishing 12 divisional titles, including every season from 5-12. Syracuse is one of two franchises to top 2,000 wins, along with the Wichita Rocks; the only team to play in all 25 seasons of AROD. All of gydk's hard work paid off in seasons 9 and 11, when he took home world series titles. Syracuse was led by one of the greatest players to grace the league in Roy Bell, who earned 5 of his 8 all star appearances with the franchise. Bell also hit 80 home runs for the franchise in season 10. Hall of Fame pitcher Jack Redmond also made his career home in Syracuse, winning over 200 games for the franchise. The Pyschos 4 world series appearances are  second all time in league history. Gydk set the standard for dominance achieved in his legendary career.

1. New York Mets/Philadelphia Thunder Gods – BIGTHUNDER (1-7)

Honestly, is it possible to argue against BIGTHUNDER being the greatest team in AROD history? The Vince Lombardi of HBD, BIGTHUNDER took home 5 of the first 7 World Series titles in the league, and played in a sixth. Hall of Fame pitcher Marvin Punto won 2 Cy Young awards for the Mets, and won at least 24 games in three different seasons. With Punto leading the way, the Mets/Thunder Gods led the league with the lowest ERA from seasons 1-7. Players like Malcolm Tracy, Junior Matos, Carlos Carrasco and Tim Washington were always a threat to hit 50 home runs in a season. BIGTHUNDER won the NL East every single season he was in the league. Many owners will wonder how the history of our league would have looked had BIGTHUNDER not left after a short 7 seasons, but no one will ever be able to argue the impact he had on AROD.

Top 10 Dynasties through 25 Seasons of ARod (#6-10) by habslmets

Top 10 Hardball Dynasties through 25 Seasons of AROD.

In honor of 25 glorious seasons of AROD, I have spent the last week researching some of the top teams/owners in the history of the league. I've compiled all time records, and used win-loss records, winning percentage, playoff appearances, Hall of Famers, World Series, a trusty magic 8 ball and many other subjects of criteria while trying to create my rankings. In unrelated news I'm single. That being said, there were some notable omissions from this list. My apologies go out to the current owners gjd13, barjaz, dengodd2, bigparb13, langer1979 and rcf106, all of whose franchise deserve a lot of recognition. However there can only be 10 teams that make this list, so let's get this started so everyone can begin sending me their hate mail. Keep in mind that owners only gained credit for their work with one franchise. The top 5 will be released shortly.

Note: Bold lettering indicates the city where the franchise spent the majority of its history. Parenthesis is seasons played in AROD.

10. Jackson Colonials/Houston Oilers/Santa Fe Demons – ml4ku (10-23)

Ml4ku has only been gone from AROD for two seasons, and he definitely won't be forgotten any time soon. The barjaz/safetyman/ml4ku rivalry in the AL South was one of the best in the league for 14 seasons. The crowning moment of his dynasty came in season 20 in the form of a World Series ring, courtesy of a 112-50 regular season record, followed by an 11-2 in the postseason. The iconic player of the franchise over this stretch was legendary Reese Hemphill, who amazingly signed  20 million dollar contracts on back to back contracts. Hemphill, who got his big league start with ml4ku, is the franchise career leader in starts, wins, strikeouts and ERA. The man calling pitches during that stretch was Wes Dickenson, who made 8 All-Star games and won 4 Silver Slugger awards. In 14 seasons in AROD, ml4ku won 2 American League pennants and 4 division titles.

9. Monterrey Cervecos/Atlanta Brewers – milwaukee_al (7-11)

Milwaukee_al coached the least amount of seasons out of all the coaches who appear in the top 10 rankings, but his short reign was hard to beat. He qualified for the playoffs all 5 of his seasons with Monterrey, winning 100 games 3 times, two pennants and two world series rings in seasons 8 and 10. Keep in mind he did this all in the always strong NL South. The Cervecos were led by hall of fame pitcher Dan Stuart in his prime, who racked up his 2 world series rings and first of three Cy Young awards in his time in Monterrey. Possible future Hall of Famer Bronson Jiang gave the Cervecos one of the most devastating 1-2 punches in the league. That's all impressive, but milwaukee_al's most impressive stat: a career .642 winning percentage. His clubs just reeked of excellence during their far too brief history.

8. Colorado Ballvalanche/Boise Tatermashers/Tucson Toros Diablos – sarmos78 (6-13)

His run was short, but sarmos78 kept the AL West in his back-pocket for the majority of his career. The Colorado Ballvalance won at least 100 games in sarmos78's first 6 seasons, winning the division title every year during that span. His crowning moment came in season 7, winning the World Series with 118 wins in the regular season, winning 11 out of 12 playoff games and sweeping the legendary BIGTHUNDER in his last season in the league. If not for milwaukee_al and the Cervecos, the Ballvalance could have repeated in season 8. Sarmos was led by two of the all time AROD greats; Albie Villano, who won 3 Cy Young awards with the franchise, and Omar Castillo, who brought home two MVPs while calling Colorado home.


6a. Tampa Bay Don Ceasars – cebola (13-present)
6b. Iowa City Rounders – Ahsowhat (13-present)

I mean can you really pick one of these franchise from the other? Over the last 12 seasons, these teams have been almost identical stat wise, whether it be wins (1155 for Iowa City, 1128 for Tampa Bay), playoff appearances (7 each), and World Series wins (2 each). Ahsowhat and cebola have won the last 4 world series between the two of them, and look to be in good contention in season 25. Both coaches get the work done behind a stud pitching staff. It is crazy that Elrod Coke, Gio Hernandez, and Bruce Mullins were all homegrown players with Iowa City, and are responsible for their successes over the years. John Ueno also cut his teeth originally with the Rounders. Tampa Bay has had their own success with growing players. Right now their may be no better center fielder in the game than Hi Shouse, who has 5 All Stars, 3 Silver Sluggers and 2 Gold Gloves in his 6 years in the majors. Shouse along with Derrick Grissom has led the Don Ceasars in the field. The other owners of AROD have to look up at Tampa Bay and Iowa City if they want to be on this list in 10 seasons.

S25 Draft - Top 10 Review by habslmets

1. Norfolk Turkeys – Sammy Medrano, 2B/CF, Central Michigan

Norfolk got the draft going by taking Sammy Medrano  with the number one pick. Medrano has very solid defensive skills, and should play gold glove defense at either well valued 2B or CF. With power and contact splits both 75 or higher, his bat should come into great use as well. Medrano is the kind of player you can build your line up around with him hitting at multiple positions in the order.

2. Seattle Water Wolves – Robb Lockwood, SP, Georgia Tech

Seattle made Robb Lockwood the first pitcher off the board, and with good reason. The 86/89 lefty-righty splits made many owners take notice. His control is also excellent, but there are a few reasons to be concerned. A durability of only 11 could be a concern as the season wears on, but his health of 98 definitely should take a load of off reigny's mind.

3. Kansas City Renegades – Pablo Figureoa, SP, College of Lake County

The Renegades plucked another top pitcher with their selection of Figueroa at 3. Figureoa has the kind of stamina that will make him a great innings eater. Combine that with his perfect health and it won't be surprising to see him frequently top 200 innings pitched. He is equally solid against both left and right handed batter, and has very nice control. There are few weaknesses in Figueroa's game.

4. Santa Fe Sluggers – Ray Griffith, 1B, Larnerd High School (KS)

Griffith was easily one of the few truly solid first basemen in the draft, but he may have been a slight reach at number 4. His lefty-righty splits were among the best in the draft, and his power and contact will make him a terror in the middle of an order. His health was my main reason for falling a little in my draft board, but if first base is your main priority, then Griffith was the way to go.

5. Chicago Blagos – Bartolo Gonzalez, SP, Hartshorne High School (OK)

Gonzalez rounded out the elite tier of starting pitchers in this years draft thanks to his 91 stamina, 83 control and scorching 98 velocity.. Gonzalez also posed on of the toughest arms against lefties at 83, but his 55 split against righties may have scared off a few teams. Teams should be afraid of Gonzalez, who will make a great top end starter in the future.

6. New Britain River Rats – Bo McMillan, CF, Little Falls High School (MN)

The 6th pick in the draft started a small run of position players, and the River Rats made McMillan the first outfielder off the board. McMillan has great hitting ability with contact at 75 and a power rating of 84. His lefty-righty splits are a little low, and he has below average ability at center field defensively. However it wouldn't surprise me to see McMillan tearing it up at 2B in the future.

7. Louisville Lumber – Alvin Miceli, SS, Salt Lake West Theron High School (UT)

The Lumber took Miceli with the 7th pick, but at the time of this writing he is the only one of the top 10 unsigned. If he does sign, he will be a very talented shortstop both offensive and defensively. His skill in the field is very good, and his 88 power makes Miceli a rare power shortstop. However his health is a little low for comfort, although that may not matter if Miceli decides not to sign.

8. Baltimore Orioles – Vic Montero, SS, Northwest College

Baltimore landed themselves another stud shortstop with Montero, who by my counts was the best defensive player available in the draft. His high health and durability ratings means he could a gold glover for years to come, and his very solid 76 power and 53 contact ratings will make him a solid member of any batting order. The Orioles might have had the steal of the draft with Montero.

9. Wichita Rocks – Alex Harris, SP, Iowa Western CC

Alex Harris ended the run of position players, and for good reason. Harris is very solid in almost every major pitching category, with his 82/77 splits and 91 velocity really standing out. A perfect health rating of 100 was another major bonus for the leagues oldest franchise, and could find himself in the ace role in the years to come.

10. Rochester Rakers – Ricky Gold, RP, North Texas University

The Rakers rounded out the top ten by landing themselves the best relief pitcher in the draft. Ricky Gold was a steal at number 10, and will make a top bullpen arm. Gold's lefty-righty splits of 86 and 83 are spectacular, and his 83 control and 89 velocity make him solid all around. Granted his stamina is low, but with a health rating of 90 the Rakers may have found their closer of the future. 

S25 Power 10

1)  San Diego Beards of Zeus -  40_dog and his Black Panther magic is doing even better than winning 60%  of the time 100% of the time...they rolling at a clip of 76%.   SD has been on a slow up swing winning 62, 75, 83 over the last 3 seasons.   Can young gun Horacio DeLeon get 40 back to the playoffs for the first time since S18?

2)  Augusta Polar Bears -  Balls are flying out of Noes Field at an alarming rate.......the blog wonders if the commish took a page from The Lorrax and bottled some of the fresh Rocky Mountain air and is piping it into Noes.......could happen......

3)  Tampa Bay Don Caesers -  2x ARod World Series champ cebola continues to get it done with solid hitting to go with great pitching and fielding.    You better have a lead late against TB as stud closer Alfonso Villafuerte is virtually unhittable!!!

4)  Philadelphia Colonials -  All those years in the basement collecting talent is paying off in a big way for brutus08, but the "cou de ta" was landing superstar SP Gary Pressley last year in a trade........speaking of that, who traded him to brutus?  I gotta go back and look so we can kick their ass!!!  :)

5)  Helena Peacemakers - Another team loaded with superstar young talent.........here's to wishing we had to the MWR in place 10 season's ago, maybe bigp wouldn't be in for such a dog fight this year.   Keep an eye on slugger Hersh Glynn as that crazy breakout MVP season could happen at any moment.

6)  Tacoma XMEN -  Just when it looked like mrx39 was going to give up on his rebuild, he gives it one last change and what do you know............loads of young talent here but is there enough pitching to keep this going?

7)  Colorado Shock -  The Shock are doing what The Shock do......struggle against the truly elite and handle everyone else.   Could this be the year that bigparb13's $110 million investment finally pays off - Gio Hernandez?

8)  Hartford Dirt Dobbers -  The entire town of Hartford held its collective breath when superstar Art Krause was injured ..... luckily for the Dobbers it was just a calf strain and with Krause set to make his return tomorrow, rdwaltz71 has done a great job keeping the Dobbers in 1st place in the NL North division.

9)  San Juan Rum Runners -  new owner BroncoRon has a solid veteran squad sitting in first place but in recent days he's indicated a desire to re-build.  There's been no significant moves to-date but the blog wonders when we might see that first domino fall......

10)  Tie -Trenton Thunder &  Iowa City Rounders -  really?  really?  two of the best teams in ARod both sitting under .500 33 games in a more that a bit shocking?   Is it rebuild time for Iowa?