oriole^
10-10-2004, 10:54 PM
Once more, it's time for my O's dynasty in a "brave new world". The league has been radically reconfigured to suit my needs; some teams have moved, switched leagues, or the like. No "unbalanced scheduling", no interleague play. After starting with the idea of contracting two teams to make the numbers work out, I instead end up adding two, while crunching the league back into four divisions of eight teams each to get rid of the abominable wild card. Yes, purists will certainly howl at my treatment of the league, but hey, this is my thing, and besides, I don't recognize the current league as it stands, anyway, as compared to the way it was when I grew up...why not go the rest of the way and make it a wide-open league, with several second-tier and small-market teams out to compete as well? (Incidentally, I've even made logos for all the teams, in 100 x 100 pixel form, suitable for posting to LiveJournal or other forums. I'll post them in this thread sometime later.)
Starting from the standard 2004 universe, I set out to guide my beloved Birds through the new frontier of an eight-team AL East. Jerry Hairston, bless 'im, was lost in the expansion draft, now plying his trade in the grateful town of New Orleans...not that it's too much of a problem as Brian Roberts and - yep - Mini-Me are on hand. I get the starting nod - age before beauty, after all - while Roberts gets bench duty.
The dreadful pitching is bolstered only somewhat by the addition of free agent Frank Johns. A 37-year-old "rookie", Johns will try somehow to anchor the mess that is our rotation. A few trades provide for some cosmetic surgery: Jose Leon to the Roosters for Glenn Gulliver (an extra ten points if you know where that's from), and Omar Daal, whom I despise, to the White Sox for Sandy Alomar, Jr. Gulliver almost has the starting job at the hot corner until I decide to take the plunge and convert Mora to 3B, as in real life.
Ladies and gents, your 2004 Orioles:
1 Steve Kramer 2B Sidney Ponson
2 Luis Matos CF Rodrigo Lopez
3 Miguel Tejada SS Frank Johns
4 Javy Lopez C Kurt Ainsworth
5 Rafael Palmeiro 1B Eric DuBose
6 Jay Gibbons RF
7 B.J. Surhoff DH B.J. Ryan
8 Larry Bigbie LF Jorge Julio
9 Melvin Mora 3B Mike DeJean
Hector Carrasco
Rick Bauer
Sean Douglass
Bench: Brian Roberts, Marty Cordova, Glenn Gulliver, David Segui, Sandy Alomar Jr.
====
April 2004: 15-15, 4th Place in AL East, 5.5 behind the Red Sox
No good clue how this team will do after an impossibly up-and-down April which saw us shutout twice in four days (by the Saints and Seals, both on the road) and administer some spankings in return (12-10 on the Tigers, 11-3 on the Pilots, 11-4 on the Firebirds, and 12-8 and 16-4 on the Seals). Palmiero and Gibbons both have 10 HR for the month, Javy Lopez is hitting .352, and Bigbie was injured for much of the month, which prompted a lineup shuffle featuring Cordova, Mora, and Gulliver.
The pitching is more suspect. Ponson, Lopez, and surprisingly Johns have held their own, but Ainsworth, as in real life, has blown up badly and played his way out of the rotation. Sean Douglass really isn't ready, and DuBose is just barely, but there's no help in the minors at this point...the O's are out fishing for a trade in a big way, and have some possible takers with either the Pirates or Senators. Stay tuned...
Starting from the standard 2004 universe, I set out to guide my beloved Birds through the new frontier of an eight-team AL East. Jerry Hairston, bless 'im, was lost in the expansion draft, now plying his trade in the grateful town of New Orleans...not that it's too much of a problem as Brian Roberts and - yep - Mini-Me are on hand. I get the starting nod - age before beauty, after all - while Roberts gets bench duty.
The dreadful pitching is bolstered only somewhat by the addition of free agent Frank Johns. A 37-year-old "rookie", Johns will try somehow to anchor the mess that is our rotation. A few trades provide for some cosmetic surgery: Jose Leon to the Roosters for Glenn Gulliver (an extra ten points if you know where that's from), and Omar Daal, whom I despise, to the White Sox for Sandy Alomar, Jr. Gulliver almost has the starting job at the hot corner until I decide to take the plunge and convert Mora to 3B, as in real life.
Ladies and gents, your 2004 Orioles:
1 Steve Kramer 2B Sidney Ponson
2 Luis Matos CF Rodrigo Lopez
3 Miguel Tejada SS Frank Johns
4 Javy Lopez C Kurt Ainsworth
5 Rafael Palmeiro 1B Eric DuBose
6 Jay Gibbons RF
7 B.J. Surhoff DH B.J. Ryan
8 Larry Bigbie LF Jorge Julio
9 Melvin Mora 3B Mike DeJean
Hector Carrasco
Rick Bauer
Sean Douglass
Bench: Brian Roberts, Marty Cordova, Glenn Gulliver, David Segui, Sandy Alomar Jr.
====
April 2004: 15-15, 4th Place in AL East, 5.5 behind the Red Sox
No good clue how this team will do after an impossibly up-and-down April which saw us shutout twice in four days (by the Saints and Seals, both on the road) and administer some spankings in return (12-10 on the Tigers, 11-3 on the Pilots, 11-4 on the Firebirds, and 12-8 and 16-4 on the Seals). Palmiero and Gibbons both have 10 HR for the month, Javy Lopez is hitting .352, and Bigbie was injured for much of the month, which prompted a lineup shuffle featuring Cordova, Mora, and Gulliver.
The pitching is more suspect. Ponson, Lopez, and surprisingly Johns have held their own, but Ainsworth, as in real life, has blown up badly and played his way out of the rotation. Sean Douglass really isn't ready, and DuBose is just barely, but there's no help in the minors at this point...the O's are out fishing for a trade in a big way, and have some possible takers with either the Pirates or Senators. Stay tuned...