Friday, December 1, 2017

Season 26 Wrap Up - Durham Wins it All!

Durham
Durham Screwballs (NL)
oakman310
View Hardball Dynasty Profile
Durham is your Season 26 Champion!

It was another eventful postseason in Kenny Powers that ended with Durham at the top of the heap, defeating Nashville in the World Series 4 games to 2.  Durham had an impressive run to end the regular season that shot them up to #2 in the Final Regular Season rankings.  That momentum carried on into the postseason as they took out Rochester in 4 games in the Divisional round and a tough Chicago team in the NLCS in just 5 games. Julio Park once again led the offense for Durham, posting a 1.025 postseason OPS, while a solid bullpen made up for the fact that their top Starting Pitcher had a less than stellar playoff run.

Nashville deserves a lot of credit as well for a solid postseason run, making it to the World Series as the 6 seed in the AL.  After two tough match-ups against New Britain and Helena, it was the battle of the underdogs in the ALCS as they faced Chicago, who knocked off defending champ and regular season powerhouse Little Rock, in which they prevailed in a back-and-forth 6-game series.  They pushed Durham hard in the World Series, but came up just short.  Still, hats off to them for a very nice playoff run.

This is Durham's and oakman310's first Kenny Powers title and for oakman310's 5th championship overall.  Congrats!

That's it for Season 26, hope to see you back for Season 27 soon!

Season 26 Awards Recap

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
American League - Jimmie Alou, New Britain - .290 AVG 44 HR 115 RBI 29 SB
The 22 year-old rookie right fielder came out of the gates swinging in his rookie campaign (Alou had not played a Major League game prior to this season), winning the AL MVP, garnering half of the votes in play.  The future is obviously bright for Alou, as very few players win the MVP their rookie season.  Alou was also an All-Star starter, won a Silver Slugger and led the AL in Slugging and OPS. It pretty much doesn't get any better than that.

National League - Jordan Lee, Las Vegas - .309 AVG 41 HR 117 RBI
It was an incredibly tight race for NL MVP, but in the end, the 31 year-old Las Vegas 1st Baseman took home the win.  It's an incredible comeback story, as Lee played sparingly last season, even spending some time in the minors.  It seems he finally found his way in Las Vegas, putting up career best numbers, and taking home a Silver Slugger award as well.  Very nice breakthrough for Lee in Season 26 indeed.

CY YOUNG AWARD
American League - Guy Maybin, Helena - 20-3 1.90 ERA 161 K
The 27 year-old hard-throwing righty out of Helena was a runaway winner of the AL Cy Young, and looking as his numbers it's easy to see why.  Maybin led the AL in ERA and tied for the lead in Quality Starts.  He also made his 1st All-Star appearance in Season 26 and posted a career high 20 wins.  This is another nice breakthrough story, although taking a glance at his ratings, it's not really all that unexpected.  

National League - Tim Blair, Syracuse - 15-4 2.03 ERA 227 K
The votes for NL Cy Young were split among several candidates, allowing Blair to take the honors for the 3rd consecutive season and for the 4th time overall with just 10 votes.  Blair didn't post the impressive Win total he has the past two seasons, but did take home his 3rd straight ERA title and made his 7th All-Star appearance.  Blair is the 3rd ever pitcher in Kenny Powers history to win 4 Cy Young Awards, and the 2nd to win it in 3 consecutive seasons.  Blair, already cemented as an all-time Kenny Powers great, could reach legendary status if he is able to win yet again next season.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
American League - Jimmie Alou, New Britain - .290 AVG 44 HR 115 RBI 29 SB
Alou also won the AL Rookie of the Year, by one vote, over a candidate that was also nominated for MVP, who received 14 less votes than Alou in that race.  Bizarre voting patterns for sure!

National League - Nicholas Rothschild, Rochester - .300 AVG 18 HR 62 RBI
The 21 year-old catcher was named NL Rookie of the Year by a landslide vote.  Rothschild also won a Silver Slugger award this season.  He has impressive durability (started all 162 games behind the plate), is fairly solid defensively, and is an OBP machine at the plate, with an elite batting eye and great contact and splits.  He has some pop, but won't hit a ton of home runs.  That aside, he should be one of the best catchers in Kenny Powers for many seasons to come.

FIREMAN OF THE YEAR
American League - Butch Gray, New York - 2.29 ERA, 40 SV - 2nd Win
National League - Livan Marin, Rochester - 5.04 ERA, 40 SV - 1st Win

SILVER SLUGGER AWARDS
American League
DH Nick Spence Helena 2nd
C Javier Martis Boise 1st
1B Jimmie Alou New Britain 1st
2B Nerio Skinner Louisville 1st
3B Albie Latos Nashville 2nd
SS Sean Lewis Helena 4th
LF Albert Mendoza Chicago 2nd
CF Addison Cortes Monterrey 1st
RF Ernest Hancock Little Rock 4th

National League
P Hector Montero Atlanta 1st
C Nicholas Rothschild Rochester 1st
1B Jordan Lee Las Vegas 1st
2B Abraham O'Neill Las Vegas 1st
3B Gary Castillo Rochester 1st
SS Edgardo Serra Chicago 1st
LF Patrick Grieve Syracuse 2nd
CF Ken Ingram Chicago 6th
RF Christopher Hamilton Rochester 2nd

GOLD GLOVE AWARDS
American League
P Crash Prades Chicago 1st
C Darrin Lawson Seattle 1st
1B Felipe Fuentes Boise 1st
2B Weldon Kendrick Little Rock 1st
3B Willy Trammell Louisville 1st
SS Ross Moran New Britain 1st
LF David Molina Nashville 1st
CF Pablo Arredondo New Britain 1st
RF Brett Puckett Nashville 1st

National League
P Oswaldo Campos Burlington 1st
C Yoslan Moreno Salt Lake City 1st
1B B.C. Philips Salt Lake City 1st
2B Fausto Espinosa Atlanta 1st
3B Pep Saito Salt Lake City 2nd
SS Johnny Osborne Atlanta 1st
LF Brendan O'Neil Chicago 3rd
CF Ken Ingram Chicago 5th
RF Darryl Matthews New York 2nd

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Season 26 Minimum Win Requirement Update

Our minimum win rule in Kenny Powers is 55 wins in one season (50 if you are a first season owner) and 185 wins over 3 seasons. You get 2 "strikes" against the policy, and on the third strike, you're out. If you don't earn any strikes over 3 consecutive seasons, all previous strikes are wiped out.

Two strikes were earned this season, for each owner it is their first.  jnosek and hrrng_dnn each failed to meet the 55 win floor. ozzzball19's win total this season does not count against the 185 wins over 3 seasons requirement, as he took over the team mid-season.

For next season, owners needing to win more than 55 games in Season 26 to avoid a strike are jnosek (62 wins needed) and hrrng_dnn (85 wins needed).

Here's the complete summary through Season 26.

Wins
American League
3-Season
Needed in 
Team
Owner
S24
S25
S26
 Win Total
S27 for 185
Little Rock Little Necrophiliac Nine
ab90
112
127
120
359
Seattle SuperSonics
alogman1
86
76
65
227
Norfolk Tides
bjc30
78
71
Helena Bighorns
bluebaran
108
88
101
297
Boise Taters
bubbleboy
95
95
96
286
Louisville Thunder Frogs
crickett13
79
Washington D.C. Senators
douglasdao
56
Ottawa Code Blue
fireattack
86
80
76
242
Nashville Neutron Dance
Ghostrunner
86
101
92
279
Charlotte StarLords
goodtymes31
96
91
83
270
New York Yankees
grissom97
83
84
86
253
Detroit City Baseball Club
jdavidson1
54
Oakland Invaders
jnosek
68
74
49
191
62
New Britain Frothing Walruses
merott
59
88
99
246
Chicago Cubs
osbornlefty
88
Monterrey Charros
sethstorer
65
74
78
217
Wins
National League
3-Season
Needed in 
Team
Owner
S24
S25
S26
 Win Total
S27 for 185
Buffalo Tiny Chickens
AceCards 
73
83
80
236
New Orleans Babycakes
AmCan 
91
Burlington Giant Pumpkins
breezee 
69
70
72
211
Honolulu Tiki Gods
dodgersrays 
88
92
88
268
Syracuse Blizzard
groth911 
89
93
92
274
Salt Lake City Stormin' Mormons
habslmets
102
72
Pittsburgh Diamondbacks
hrrng_dnn
66
59
41
166
85
Omaha Cornhuskers
jfuchs31
52
Rochester Garbage Plates
jimt14120
82
86
94
262
Durham Screwballs
oakman310 
104
104
106
314
Santa Fe Salad Forks
ozzzball19
62
Las Vegas Crap Shoot
pbsilver11
88
73
86
247
Chicago White Sox
slashtc
91
102
105
298
Atlanta Black Crackers
tenaciousdx 
68
New York Empire
tmfran 
64
83
88
235
Richmond Manamfasha
TXLnghrn
94
91
102
287

Strikes in S26Strike
jnosekFailure to win 55 games in S261st
hrrng_dnnFailure to win 55 games in S261st

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Season 26 League Leaders

All-Time Top 5 Performances in Season 26
Runs - Theo Reese, Little Rock - 144 - 4th All-Time

Multiple Category Leaders
Oswaldo Campos, Burlington (NL) - 4 - Strikeouts, IP, CG, Shutouts
Jimmie Alou, New Britain (AL) - 2 - SLG, OPS
Elmer Miller, Honolulu (NL) - 2 - HR, RBI
Edinson Pescado, Burlington (NL) - 2 - SB, OBP
Julio Park, Durham (NL) - 2 - SLG, OPS
Nicholas Gil, Chicago (AL) - 2 - Strikeouts, CG
Guy Maybin, Helena (AL) - 2 - ERA, QS
David Alcantara, Chicago (AL) - 2 - WHIP, QS
Tim Blair, Syracuse (NL) - 2 - ERA, QS
Pedro Tovar, New York (NL) - 2 - CG, Shutouts

LEAGUE LEADERS
Offense
American League
Batting Average Ozzie Martin Chicago .323
Home Runs Nick Spence Helena 48
RBI Angel Perez Little Rock 141
Stolen Bases Ketel Hubbard Seattle 73
Hits Sean Lewis Helena 200
Runs Theo Reese Little Rock 144
OBP Yunesky Morlan New Britan .395
SLG Jimmie Alou New Britan .630
OPS Jimmie Alou New Britan 1.007
National League
Batting Average Patrick Grieve Syracuse .323
Home Runs Elmer Miller Honolulu 51
RBI Elmer Miller Honolulu 131
Stolen Bases Edinson Pescado Burlington 74
Hits Alfredo Ortiz Chicago 200
Runs Christopher Hamilton Rochester 128
OBP Edinson Pescado Burlington .414
SLG Julio Park Durham .603
OPS Julio Park Durham .989
Pitching
American League
ERA Guy Maybin Helena 1.90
Wins Dean Clarkson Little Rock 22
Strikeouts Nicholas Gil Chicago 212
Saves Howie Lockwood Nashville 42
WHIP David Alcantara Chicago 1.02
Innings Pitched Clyde Sandberg Detroit 259.0
Quality Starts Guy Maybin Helena 25
David Alcantara Chicago 25
Peter Chang New Britain 25
Complete Games Nicholas Gil Chicago 6
Shutouts Alvin Gonzales Seattle 3
National League
ERA Tim Blair  Syracuse 2.03
Wins Chipper Savage Honolulu 23
Strikeouts Oswaldo Campos Burlington 242
Saves Livan Marin Rochester 40
WHIP Boomer Lange Chicago 0.96
Innings Pitched Oswaldo Campos Burlington 257.2
Quality Starts Tim Blair Syracuse 30
Complete Games Oswaldo Campos Burlington 5
Pedro Tovar New York 5
Shutouts Floyd Glenn Durham 2
Oswaldo Campos Burlington 2
Pedro Tovar New York 2

Monday, November 20, 2017

Season 26 Final Power Rankings

Pitching Offense LAST PER
Team  W L PREV Rank Chg Rank Chg W L
1 Little Rock 120 42 1 5 3 1 0 32 7
2 Durham 106 56 4 2 7 4 0 31 8
3 Helena 101 61 2 7 3 2 1 26 14
4 Chicago (NL) 105 57 3 8 -6 5 3 30 10
5 Richmond 102 60 10 3 0 14 2 27 12
6 Syracuse 92 70 7 3 2 12 0 23 17
7 New Britain  99 63 5 9 -3 13 1 24 16
8 Boise 96 66 8 12 4 9 -4 23 17
9 Honolulu 88 74 14 1 6 20 -2 21 18
10 Rochester 94 68 9 19 -2 7 -1 21 18
11 Chicago (AL) 88 74 6 15 -2 3 -1 17 22
12 Las Vegas 86 76 15 5 -1 18 -2 22 18
13 Nashville  92 70 12 22 -2 6 1 20 19
14 New York (NL) 88 74 13 10 -9 19 1 18 21
15 New Orlears 91 71 11 16 -2 14 -3 15 25
16 New York (AL) 86 76 19 13 5 24 -1 23 17
17 Charlotte 83 79 16 25 -3 8 0 20 19
18 Louisville 79 83 21 24 3 11 2 24 16
19 Monterrey 78 84 22 23 3 16 2 24 16
20 Buffalo  80 82 17 18 -3 17 -2 17 23
21 Ottawa 76 86 18 14 -3 22 -1 17 22
22 Atlanta 68 94 24 17 4 21 3 21 18
23 Burlington 72 90 27 21 -2 27 1 20 19
24 Salt Lake City 72 90 20 20 3 23 -1 14 26
25 Seattle 65 97 25 11 1 32 0 17 22
26 Norfolk 71 91 26 26 -2 24 5 17 23
27 Santa Fe 62 100 23 31 -1 10 0 12 28
28 Washington 56 106 28 28 0 26 -1 13 26
29 Omaha 52 110 29 27 -2 30 0 11 28
30 Detroit 54 108 30 29 0 28 -1 9 31
31 Oakland 49 113 31 30 1 29 -3 10 29
32 Pittsburgh 41 121 32 32 0 31 0 13 27

Biggest Climbers: #5 Richmond (+5), #9 Honolulu (+5), #23 Burlington (+4)

Biggest Falls: #11 Chicago (AL) (-5), #15 New Orleans (-4), #24 Salt Lake City (-4), #27 Santa Fe (-4)

Friday, November 3, 2017

Season 26 Power Rankings #3

It's time again for another edition of the power rankings.  Let's jump right into it!  No change at the top spot, as Little Rock has continued their excellent play since the last rankings.  Helena is up 3 spots to #2, as their pitching has stepped it up a notch since the last rankings.  The NL Chicago squad has improved all-around this last rankings period and is up 6 spots to #3.  Durham drops 1 spot to 4, while a surging New Britain squad jumps 9 spots to finish out the top 5.  Now for the biggest climbers and biggest falls since the last rankings!

Biggest Climbers: #5 New Britain (+9), #9 Rochester (+8), #3 Chicago (NL) (+6), #20 Salt Lake City (+5)

Biggest Falls: #10 Richmond (-8), #11 New Orleans (-7), #13 New York (NL) (-7), #14 Honolulu (-6), #12 Nashville (-5)

Here are the complete rankings, good luck to all during the stretch run!

Pitching Offense LAST PER
Team  W L PREV Rank Chg Rank Chg W L
1 Little Rock 88 35 1 8 -6 1 2 29 12
2 Helena 75 47 5 10 5 3 -1 28 12
3 Chicago (NL) 75 47 9 2 3 8 7 27 13
4 Durham 75 48 3 9 -3 4 0 24 17
5 New Britain  75 47 14 6 6 14 6 28 12
6 Chicago (AL) 71 52 10 13 0 2 -1 26 15
7 Syracuse 69 53 11 5 5 12 0 28 12
8 Boise 73 49 12 16 2 5 0 26 14
9 Rochester 73 50 17 17 3 6 0 31 10
10 Richmond 75 48 2 3 0 16 -7 21 20
11 New Orlears 76 46 4 14 -5 11 -3 26 14
12 Nashville  72 51 7 20 1 7 0 23 18
13 New York (NL) 70 53 6 1 0 20 1 22 19
14 Honolulu 67 56 8 7 -4 18 -2 21 20
15 Las Vegas 64 58 13 4 3 16 -3 19 21
16 Charlotte 63 60 19 22 0 8 6 23 18
17 Buffalo  63 59 15 15 -1 15 -5 18 22
18 Ottawa 59 64 18 11 0 21 1 21 20
19 New York (AL) 63 59 16 18 -2 23 -6 15 25
20 Salt Lake City 58 64 25 23 3 22 1 19 21
21 Louisville 55 67 23 27 0 13 5 19 21
22 Monterrey 54 68 20 26 -2 18 1 19 21
23 Santa Fe 50 72 21 30 0 10 0 14 26
24 Atlanta 47 76 27 21 1 24 0 16 25
25 Seattle 48 75 26 12 -4 32 0 17 24
26 Norfolk 54 68 22 24 -7 29 1 15 25
27 Burlington 52 71 24 19 0 28 -3 14 27
28 Washington 43 80 28 28 -1 25 1 11 30
29 Omaha 41 82 31 25 0 30 1 14 27
30 Detroit 45 77 29 29 0 27 0 12 28
31 Oakland 39 84 30 31 0 26 2 12 29
32 Pittsburgh 28 94 32 32 0 31 -2 10 30