Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Season 13 Wrap Up

Arizona
Arizona Sweatbacks (AL)
mrhands17
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Arizona is your Season 13 Champion!

The top two teams in the final power rankings, Oklahoma City and Arizona, clashed in the Season 13 World Series, and the matchup lived up to the hype.  In the end, it was Arizona edging out defending champion Oklahoma City 4 games to 2 to take the World Series crown.  Arizona's bats got it done in the post season crushing 38 home runs in 15 games with dependable slugger Al Soto leading the attack with 7 postseason round trippers. Carlos Rondon was the bright spot for an otherwise shaky Arizona pitching staff, going 4-0 with a 2.25 ERA in 5 starts.  Rondon stepped up in lieu of surprisingly poor pitching throughout the playoffs from 4-time Cy Young Award winner Clyde Hurst, who got rocked almost every postseason outing and did not register a postseason win.

It's another disappointing end to an odd numbered season for Oklahoma City, who came in to the World Series undefeated in the playoffs.  They could not overcome the red hot Arizona bats to go back-to-back for the first time.   Heading into Season 14, they look incredibly solid again, and having won the last three even-numbered season championships, they could very well do it again in Season 14.

Well, that concludes Season 13, thanks all for another great season.  Hopefully we'll have a quick rollover and be on to Season 14 soon.  Tell all your other worlds, friends, family, etc that now is the time to join Kenny Powers!   See you next season!

Friday, December 27, 2013

Season 13 Award Winners

While the battle for the Season 13 World Series Trophy is going on, the award winners for Season 13 were crowned.  Let's see who took home the hardware!

Most Valuable Player
American League - Alan McDill, Dover - .323 AVG 51 HR 129 RBI
McDill's dominant season where he led the league in AVG, SLG, OBP and OPS, with home run and RBI totals amongst the best was enough to earn him this season's AL MVP honors.  This was his first MVP win.  The 30 year old also took home a Silver Slugger Award this season.  McDill had an offensive season to remember, one of the best in recent Kenny Powers history. 

National LeagueBob Cambridge, Louisville - .334 AVG 31 HR 119 RBI
Cambridge was the NL batting champ and hits leader on top of winning Season 13's NL MVP award.  It was the first MVP award for the 32 year old Cambridge, who won MVP despite not making the All Star team or winning a Silver Slugger.  His offensive numbers were extremely impressive, however, and the honor is well deserved. 

Cy Young Award
American League - Ted Wagner, Toronto - 15-6 2.88 ERA 124 K
Wagner, the AL ERA leader and Complete Games leader took home the Cy Young award in the AL with a stellar season for Toronto.  This is Wagner's 2nd Cy Young award, as he also took home the AL Cy Young in Season 9.  Wagner's peripherals were so outstanding, that he was able to take the Cy Young in a season in which he won only 15 games.  That says a lot.  Wagner also made the All Star team this season

National League - Jimmie Soto, Buffalo - 21-7 2.33 ERA 232 K
Soto was clearly the most dominant pitcher in Kenny Powers Season 13 with an impressive strikeout total, the most quality starts, and 21 wins.  He now has three straight 20 win seasons, although this is his first Cy Young win. At only age 27, it may not be his last, however.  Soto also made the All Star team this season, his 3rd career appearance in the mid-season classic.   

Rookie of the Year
American LeagueNicholas Miller, New Britain - 13-7 3.28 ERA 186 K
The 22 year old Miller has the potential to be a stellar pitcher for seasons to come.  His first season in the majors was an absolute success, taking home the AL Rookie of the Year award.  It's hard to pinpoint any weaknesses in Miller's makeup.  He should be a tremendous arm for seasons to come, and we may even see him in the Cy Young Award section in the near future. 

National LeagueDon Kojima, Oklahoma City - 15-3 3.13 ERA 124 K
For the third time in four seasons, the NL Rookie of the Year comes out of Oklahoma City.  This year's winner, the 22 year old Kojima, is a crafty lefty who gets a lot of ground balls, has a great arsenal of pitches and decent control and splits.  His win total was boosted by playing for the best team in the world this season, which helps.  We can't see Kojima as a future Cy Young winner, but he will continue to be a solid middle of the rotation guy for seasons to come. 

Fireman of the Year
American LeagueZachrey Coleman, Toronto - 3.17 ERA 40 SV - 1st Win
National LeagueJamie Mancuso, Memphis - 2.35 ERA, 46 SV - 3rd Win

Silver Slugger Awards

American League

DH Achilles Sadler Detroit 1st
C Benji Estrada Arizona 1st
1B Alan McDill Dover 3rd
2B Sherman Perez Pawtucket 3rd
3B Jimmy Fox Texas 2nd
SS David Frias Dover 1st
LF Butch Borland Dover 2nd
CF Pascual Nunez Chicago 1st
RF Anthony Xavier Seattle 6th




National League

P Karim Duran St. Louis 1st
C Russell Berry Tampa Bay 1st
1B Richie Lombard Cincinnati 1st
2B Joaquin Valverde Oklahoma City 6th
3B Jose Alonso Oklahoma City 5th
SS Frank Davis Cincinnati 1st
LF Bob Cambridge Louisville 5th
CF Cesar Perez Kansas City 2nd
RF J.C. Ganzel Honolulu 1st

Gold Glove Awards

American League

P Hank Sellers Nashville 1st
C Heinie Pecina New York 2nd
1B Trent Glynn Toronto 1st
2B Edgar Olivares Toronto 1st
3B Jose Toregas New Britain 1st
SS Emil Servet Oakland 1st
LF Weldon Rando Toronto 1st
CF Pepe Mendoza Little Rock 4th
RF Tony Escobar Nashville 1st




National League

P Yuniesky Gutierrez Portland 1st
C Chance Harmon Chicago 1st
1B Mike Oquist Memphis 2nd
2B Jim Tanner Cincinnati 2nd
3B Tony Bonifacio St. Louis 2nd
SS Bryant Swift St. Louis 5th
LF Alex Gonzalez St. Louis 1st
CF P.T. Henriquez Honolulu 4th
RF Nate O'Brien Burlington 1st

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Season 13 League Leaders

It's time to look back at Season 13 and recognize this year's league leaders!  Let's get right into it.

Offense

In the American League, Alan McDill led the league in Batting Average (.323), OBP (.412),  SLG (.644), and OPS (1.056).  A very impressive year for him indeed.  Weldon Rando was also feature multiple times, leading the league in Runs (131) and Stolen Bases (105).  His 105 SB was the 2nd most in Kenny Powers history for a single season, and Rando now owns all 5 of the top 5 individual seasons in Stolen Bases!

In the National League,  Russell Berry led the league in OBP (.417), SLG (.571) and OBP (.989).  Louisville's Bob Cambridge took home the batting title (.334) and had the most hits (217).  His 217 hits are tied for 3rd best ever in a single season in Kenny Powers history.

Here are the complete Offensive League Leaders!

American League




Batting Average Alan McDill Dover .323
Home Runs Achilles Sadler Detroit 54
RBI Chipper Nippert Arizona 128
Stolen Bases Weldon Rando Toronto 105
Hits Clay Neal Nashville 202
Runs Weldon Rando Toronto 131
OBP Alan McDill Dover .412
SLG Alan McDill Dover .644
OPS Alan McDill Dover 1.056

National League











Batting Average Bob Cambridge Louisville .334
Home Runs J.C. Ganzel Honolulu 48
RBI Antonio Liang Louisville 131
Stolen Bases Luis Estalella Indianapolis 51
Hits Bob Cambridge Louisville 217
Runs Joaquin Valverde Oklahoma City 111
OBP Russell Berry Tampa Bay .417
SLG Russell Berry Tampa Bay .571
OPS Russell Berry Tampa Bay .989

Pitching

On the pitching side in the American League, Ted Wagner of Toronto led the league in ERA (2.88) and Complete Games (7), while Benito Lucano of Texas led the league in Wins (17) and Quality Starts (25).

In the National League, Jimmie Soto of Buffalo tied for the league lead in Wins (21), and had the most Strikeouts (231) and Quality Starts (29).   His 29 Quality Starts tied for 5th most in Kenny Powers history.

Ralph Moseley and Jeff Jennings each tossed 3 shutouts this season which ties for 5th best in any single season in World history.

Here are the complete pitching leaders!

American League



ERA Ted Wagner  Toronto 2.88
Wins Benito Lucano Texas 17
Strikeouts Stewart Mouton New Britain 220
Saves Zachrey Coleman Toronto 40
WHIP Will Scott Charleston 1.07
Innings Pitched Clyde Hurst Arizona 247.0
Quality Starts Benito Lucano Texas 25
Complete Games Ted Wagner Toronto 7
Shutouts Ralph Moseley Detroit 3

National League






ERA Alberto Campos Vancouver 2.10
Wins Jimmie Soto  Buffalo 21

Dwight Flynn Buffalo 21
Strikeouts Jimmie Soto  Buffalo 232
Saves Markus Nelson Rochester 47
WHIP Tuck Huff Burlington 1.01
Innings Pitched Jim Forbes Burlington 252.0
Quality Starts Jimmie Soto Buffalo 29
Complete Games Spud Wheeler Indianapolis 7
Shutouts Jeff Jennings St.Louis 3

Monday, December 16, 2013

Season 13 Final Power Rankings

Another regular season is in the books, and it's time for the final edition of the power rankings.  Good to see that there weren't any truly atrocious teams this season.  Even the teams on the bottom showed some positive signs this season.  In the end, it was Oklahoma City taking the top spot followed by Arizona and Honolulu, all with identical 28-12 finishes.  It's set up to be a very interesting a competitive playoff picture, good luck to the playoff teams, and see you next season everyone else!   Here are the complete final rankings:


Team  W L PREV    Comments
1 Oklahoma City 111 51 1 Another great regular season, not much else to say
2 Arizona 102 60 3 Very nice stretch run, definitely hot going into playoffs
3 Honolulu 101 61 4 Pitching stepped it up down the stretch, looking good
4 Buffalo  97 65 2 Pitching got it done all season, and bats weren't bad at all
5 New Britain  92 70 6 #2 AL seed, pitching not quite elite, but could make a run
6 Toronto 92 70 11 Nice season here for this well balanced team
7 Seattle 90 72 15 Very good down the stretch, as pitching came into its own
8 Pawtucket  87 75 7 Monster offense, but pitching could be issue in playoffs
9 Dover  86 76 12 Nice turnaround here, offense was amongst the best
10 Rochester 87 75 13 Mediocre down the stretch, but a solid staff for sure
11 Memphis  87 75 14 One of the worst offenses, but then 19 runs in game 1, wow!
12 Nashville  82 80 18 Team is built around offense, which is solid, nice finish
13 Cincinnati 87 75 5 Really fell off down the stretch, but still won division
14 Little Rock  81 81 10 A lot of bad luck this season, as the numbers were there
15 Kansas City 80 82 19 Great finish shows a lot of promise for next season.
16 Charleston 82 80 8 Stumbled a bit down the stretch, but a nice season overall
17 Texas  87 75 9 Horrible the last quarter, but up 2-1 in the first round
18 Tampa Bay 82 80 16 Getting there, probably just a player or two away 
19 St. Louis 75 87 21 Nice stretch run, so there is something to build on here
20 Louisville 78 84 20 Rough season for them, but capable of bouncing back
21 Vancouver 78 84 17 A few more bats could turn them into a contender
22 Burlington 67 95 24 Played over .500 the last 40, certainly a good sign
23 Detroit 73 89 22 Not bad down the stretch, this team is still building
24 Jacksonville 66 96 25 .500 the last 40, good job with not much to work with
25 Chicago (AL) 73 89 26 Offense did well this season, and decent the last 40
26 Chicago (NL) 73 89 28 Showed some signs of life down the stretch, which is good
27 New York  73 89 23 Rebuild coming along, did improve a lot this season
28 Philadelphia 68 94 27 Very good pitching here, could use a few more bats
29 Anaheim 66 96 32 Played better down the stretch, digging out of last spot
30 Portland  63 99 29 Another rebuild coming along, their numbers were decent
31 Oakland 65 97 31 Offense not bad, but pitching could use some work
32 Indianapolis 61 101 30 Very rough stretch run, but not a horrible team at all

Monday, December 2, 2013

Season 13 Power Rankings # 3

We're headed down the home stretch, but before we get there, let's take a look at the rankings.  Oklahoma City holds on to the top spot with continued great play.  Buffalo surges to # 2 with a great run.   There are many other solid contenders which should make the stretch run quite interesting.  Good luck, and here are the complete power rankings!


Team  W L PREV   Comments
1 Oklahoma City 83 39 1 Great team all around, is the clear #1 so far
2 Buffalo  74 48 5 Best team in the last 40 games, rolling right now
3 Arizona 74 48 3 Holding steady, showing they are a quality team
4 Honolulu 73 49 8 Looking good as they've improved all around
5 Cincinnati 70 52 12 Coming on strong with solid pitching
6 New Britain  70 52 15 Big jump here with strong all around play
7 Pawtucket  66 56 11 Offense is rolling and their pitching is getting better
8 Charleston 64 58 22 On fire since the last rankings, playing very well
9 Texas  71 51 7 Still playing well, and pitching has done better
10 Little Rock  64 58 14 Pitching has been shaky, but offense is solid
11 Toronto 70 52 2 Rough going since last rankings, all around drop
12 Dover  63 59 16 Offense is one of the best, solid play as of late
13 Rochester 67 55 4 Offense fell off a bit, but pitching still solid
14 Memphis  67 55 9 Mediocre since the last rankings, but nice pitching
15 Seattle 66 56 10 Slumping as of late, offense dropped a bit
16 Tampa Bay 64 58 6 All around drop since last rankings
17 Vancouver 60 62 17 Not bad, if the bats wake up, look out
18 Nashville  61 61 13 Bats cooled off, and pitching isn't great
19 Kansas City 56 66 18 Getting better, pitching is picking it up
20 Louisville 58 64 19 Not getting much pitching, but the bats are good
21 St. Louis 54 68 23 Pitching staff has been solid as of late
22 Detroit 53 69 26 Hanging in there, about average across the board
23 New York  56 66 24 Pretty good pitching, but offense hasn't been there
24 Burlington 46 76 32 Solid pitching, and offense picked it up some
25 Jacksonville 46 76 28 Progress is being made in this rebuild
26 Chicago (AL) 55 67 20 Rough since last rankings, but offense is good
27 Philadelphia 52 70 21 Pitching is competitive, but need more offense
28 Chicago (NL) 54 68 25 Pitching has been roughed up so far
29 Portland  48 74 29 Improving some, as the rebuild continues
30 Indianapolis 49 73 30 The offense has not been there this season
31 Oakland 50 72 27 Pitching has been rough, but offense is decent
32 Anaheim 48 74 31 Seemingly in rebuild mode, but hanging in there

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Season 13 Power Rankings # 2

We're half way into Season 13, which means another edition of the power rankings is here!   Oklahoma City continues to roll as the top team, putting up outstanding numbers overall.  A few other teams have emerged as potential contenders as well, there are several solid teams this season.  Here's a look at the complete power rankings!


Team  W L PREV   Comments
1 Oklahoma City 58 24 1 Putting up amazing numbers across the board
2 Toronto 52 30 7 On a roll, playing extremely well right now
3 Arizona 51 31 2 Still playing well, and a very well-balanced squad
4 Rochester 48 34 11 Nice improvement overall since last rankings
5 Buffalo  45 37 3 Playing well, since to a fantastic pitching staff
6 Tampa Bay 45 37 4 Still getting it done, their division is very tough
7 Texas  49 33 8 Numbers a down a bit, but still the top offense
8 Honolulu 49 33 10 Getting the wins, despite pretty average numbers
9 Memphis  47 35 15 Nice surge since the last rankings, great pitching
10 Seattle 48 34 5 Just average in the last 40, numbers are down
11 Pawtucket  42 40 17 Bounced back after a slow start, we expected this
12 Cincinnati 44 38 12 Not getting a ton of offense, but pitching improved
13 Nashville  44 38 13 Offense is lights out, and pitching improved some
14 Little Rock  41 41 14 Made it back to .500, and improving numbers wise
15 New Britain  45 37 16 Pitching hasn't been great, but getting wins
16 Dover  40 42 31 One of the best over last 40, new ownership helped
17 Vancouver 40 42 23 Solid pitching has kept their record near .500
18 Kansas City 37 45 18 Holding steady here, can they turn it up a notch?
19 Louisville 41 41 20 Brutal division, and pitching has been a tad suspect
20 Chicago (AL) 40 42 9 Fell off a bit since last rankings, but have a chance
21 Philadelphia 37 45 26 Playing better as of late, pitching has been solid
22 Charleston 37 45 6 Tough stretch the last 40, but capable of bouncing back
23 St. Louis 36 46 21 Pretty consistent team, numbers show potential 
24 New York  38 44 25 Offense has struggled, but pitching is holding its own
25 Chicago (NL) 37 45 22 Pitching has been hit pretty hard as of late
26 Detroit 34 48 24 Struggling a bit this season, but numbers aren't bad
27 Oakland 35 47 27 Pitching has been getting lit up compared to first 40
28 Jacksonville 29 53 29 Still underperforming their numbers a bit, has potential
29 Portland  32 50 19 Rough patch since the last rankings, but offense is good
30 Indianapolis 32 50 30 Not getting much offense this season
31 Anaheim 32 50 32 Pitching is struggling, but the bats are improving
32 Burlington 27 55 28 Really struggling as of late, but pitching shows potential

Friday, November 1, 2013

Season 13 Power Rankings # 1

We're a quarter of the way into Season 13 already, and it's time for the first power rankings of the season.  These rankings were a bit more difficult, due to owner neglect in Dover skewing some of the stats.  Luckily we got a quality replacement for that owner, and it shouldn't be an issue going forward.  What wasn't difficult was identifying the top team, Oklahoma City remains #1 with the top record thanks to lights out pitching and steady offense.  Arizona and Buffalo round out the top 3, with Tampa Bay and Seattle right behind them.  Here are the complete rankings!


Team  W L PREV   Comments
1 Oklahoma City 30 11 1 Looking very strong, living up to preseason hype
2 Arizona 26 15 6 Well balanced team that is playing well so far
3 Buffalo  22 19 4 Putting up their usual strong numbers, pitching is great
4 Tampa Bay 23 18 7 Solid pitching and the offense is producing some
5 Seattle 27 14 18 Offense is surprising, even minus the games vs. Dover
6 Charleston 23 18 19 Pitching is very good so far, nice start to the season
7 Toronto 25 16 20 Looking good so far, we'll see if the pitching holds up
8 Texas  27 14 14 Great start, but not sure about the pitching staff here
9 Chicago (AL) 22 19 9 Holding steady, pitching is rough, but bats are good
10 Honolulu 24 17 10 Nice start, but need more offense to hang with NL's best
11 Rochester 22 19 12 Pitching has been outstanding, offense holding its own
12 Cincinnati 22 19 8 Pitching not great so far, so they fall some
13 Nashville  22 19 13 Dover effected stats, but keep spot for winning record
14 Little Rock  19 22 2 Rough start, bad luck plus pitching not as good as usual
15 Memphis  20 21 5 Usual story, pitching is great, but offense is lacking
16 New Britain  22 19 26 Surging up the rankings, but pitching hasn't been great
17 Pawtucket  17 24 3 A bit of a surprise here, pitching took a hit early on 
18 Kansas City 18 23 11 Not  bad so far numbers wise, have a chance
19 Portland  18 23 21 Good numbers, but it hasn't resulted in a lot of wins yet
20 Louisville 21 20 28 Nice record so far, but pitching prevents higher jump
21 St. Louis 18 23 15 Hanging in there, capable of getting back over .500
22 Chicago (NL) 21 20 27 Good start, but numbers don't back it up, so we'll see
23 Vancouver 19 22 17 Offense seems to be an issue for this team
24 Detroit 17 24 25 Not a bad start numbers wise, but not getting wins
25 New York  20 21 32 Jury is still out, but pretty solid so far
26 Philadelphia 17 24 22 Need more offense to take the next step
27 Oakland 18 23 24 Looking just ok so far, mediocre across the board
28 Burlington 17 24 31 Outstanding pitching, bad offensive numbers so far
29 Jacksonville 13 28 23 Frustrating start, may be a little bit of bad luck.
30 Indianapolis 16 25 30 Offense has not produced at all so far
31 Dover  13 28 16 New owner will help improve, offense is actually solid
32 Anaheim 17 24 29 Not getting it done so far, may be a season or two away

Friday, October 11, 2013

Season 13 Preseason Power Rankings

Spring Training is under way for Season 13, free agency is over and the regular season is right around the corner.  That means it's a good time to release the preseason power rankings.  These are always tough to do, since so much has changed from the previous season, but it's worth a shot.   The preseason # 1 is the defending champion Oklahoma City.   Although some might question that choice, since they seem to only win titles in even numbered seasons, the roster is strong again, and there's no reason to deny them the top ranking.  There will be some strong challengers this year.  Coming in at #2 is Little Rock, the only other team than OKC to hold the #1 spot over the past season.  Offensive juggernaut Pawtucket is #3, while Buffalo and Memphis round out the top 5.  Here's the complete preseason rankings!!



Season 12

Team  W L   Comments
1 Oklahoma City 103 59 Champs have won 3 titles, but never back-to-back
2 Little Rock  102 60 Very strong roster, should be great again.
3 Pawtucket  103 59 Great offense, the pitching is above average too
4 Buffalo  100 62 Solid across the board, always seem to be in the mix
5 Memphis  97 65 One of the best pitching staffs, not sure about the bats
6 Arizona 99 63 Great roster, how will new ownership guide them? 
7 Tampa Bay 76 86 Improved in the offseason, but in tough division
8 Cincinnati 79 83 Good team got better through offseason free agency
9 Chicago (AL) 89 73 This franchise is on the uptick, added a few FA's
10 Honolulu 84 78 Added a couple of pieces and were solid last season
11 Kansas City 83 79 Good roster here, we'll see what the new owner can do
12 Rochester 86 76 Very nice pitching, but do they have enough offense?
13 Nashville  91 71 Didn't do a lot in the offseason, but still pretty good
14 Texas  67 95 Very busy in free agency, we'll see if it leads to wins
15 St. Louis 92 70 Lost some talent in FA, but they could be all right still
16 Dover  89 73 Some players left in FA, and they declared a rebuild
17 Vancouver 85 77 We'll see how they do in a more hitter friendly park
18 Seattle 83 79 Offense needs to improve, and Seattle is tough for that
19 Charleston 81 81 Good pitching here, bats are key factor here too
20 Toronto 81 81 Pretty average overall, could be about the same 
21 Portland  58 104 Great 2nd half last season and very active in FA
22 Philadelphia 73 89 Great pitching last season, but offense is a ? 
23 Jacksonville 74 88 Not sure they have the pitching to contend just yet
24 Oakland 69 93 Did sign a few FA's so should be better
25 Detroit 67 95 Seems to be still in rebuilding mode
26 New Britain  69 93 Another team that is looking toward the future
27 Chicago (NL) 64 98 May still be a few seasons away from contending
28 Louisville 79 83 Took some hits in free agency, and division is brutal
29 Anaheim 72 90 Hard to predict what they will do after leaving Colorado
30 Indianapolis 79 83 Lost a couple FA's, so they may be impacted
31 Burlington 59 103 Seem to be in rebuild mode, so may be a down year
32 New York  59 103 Quiet in FA, so looks like another rebuild season