For the second year in a row I tried to put together a full 25-man roster, and while I made the cut this team has some pretty big holes. Generally it's old, which is surprising, and there's going to be some pretty bad defense in places, but if any of the three outfielders get hurt there's nobody to be a fourth outfielder. Luckily, none of the guys on this team have to play a single game.
Without further ado, your batting order:
|
Name |
Pos |
AVG |
OBP |
SLG |
HR |
RBI |
'09 Team |
With Twins |
|
Jason Bartlett |
SS |
.320 |
.389 |
.490 |
14 |
66 |
'04 - '07 |
|
|
Luis Castillo |
2B |
.302 |
.387 |
.346 |
1 |
40 |
'06 - '07 |
|
|
Garrett Jones |
RF |
.293 |
.372 |
.567 |
21 |
44 |
2007 |
|
|
Torii Hunter |
CF |
.299 |
.366 |
.508 |
22 |
90 |
'97 - '07 |
|
|
Casey Blake |
3B |
.280 |
.363 |
.468 |
18 |
79 |
'00 - '02 |
|
|
Randy Ruiz |
1B |
.313 |
.385 |
.635 |
10 |
17 |
2008 |
|
|
David Ortiz |
DH |
.238 |
.332 |
.462 |
28 |
99 |
'97 - '02 |
|
|
A.J. Pierzynski |
C |
.300 |
.331 |
.425 |
13 |
49 |
'98 - '03 |
|
|
Craig Monroe |
LF |
.215 |
.287 |
.354 |
3 |
16 |
Pirates |
2008 |
All in all that's not a bad offensive lineup. According to Baseball Musing's Lineup Analysis tool, this offense would blow last year's out of the water: 5.741 runs per game, or about 930 runs over the course of a full season. Even with Jones and Monroe being stone defenders in the outfield corners, those runs are going to make up the difference.
The tool also insists that all of the best lineups would have Monroe hitting 8th and Castillo 9th, while a vast majority of the best lineups still have Bartlett leading off, but they also have Ruiz batting cleanup with his massive OBP and SLG in limited time.
Your bench? Outfielder-less. Henry Blanco of the Pirates is your catcher, followed by a trio of infielders: Cristian Guzman (Nationals), Adam Everett (Tigers) and Juan Castro (Dodgers).
Next up? Your starting rotation:
|
Name |
W-L |
ERA |
IP |
K |
BB |
'09 Team |
With Twins |
|
Johan Santana |
13-9 |
3.13 |
166.2 |
146 |
46 |
Mets |
'00 - '07 |
|
Matt Garza |
8-12 |
3.95 |
203.0 |
189 |
79 |
Rays |
'06 - '07 |
|
Kyle Lohse |
6-10 |
4.74 |
117.2 |
77 |
36 |
'01 - '06 |
|
|
Livan Hernandez |
9-12 |
5.44 |
183.2 |
102 |
67 |
Mets/Nationals |
2008 |
|
Sidney Ponson |
1-7 |
7.36 |
58.2 |
32 |
25 |
2007 |
I want you to know that I seriously considered going with a three-man rotation, a three-man bench, and then having a nine-man bullpen, but the reality is that even the bullpen pickings get a little thin once you get six or seven deep. As far as other starters I could have considered, there aren't many guys out there right now. Carlos Silva? Absolutely not.
Last season saw Santana, Lohse and Garza as the top three in the rotation as well. Moving onto the bullpen, last year I had Balfour closing, but this season I'd probably tab Hawkins.
|
Name |
W-L |
ERA |
IP |
K |
BB |
'09 Team |
With Twins |
|
LaTroy Hawkins |
1-4 |
2.13 |
63.1 |
45 |
16 |
'95 - '03 |
|
|
Craig Breslow |
7-5 |
2.60 |
55.1 |
44 |
18 |
'08 - '09 |
|
|
J.C. Romero |
0-0 |
2.70 |
16.2 |
12 |
13 |
'99 - '05 |
|
|
Joe Beimel |
1-6 |
3.58 |
55.1 |
35 |
19 |
Nationals/Rockies |
2004 |
|
Grant Balfour |
5-4 |
4.81 |
67.1 |
69 |
33 |
Rays |
'01 - '04 |
|
Eddie Guardado |
1-2 |
4.46 |
38.1 |
20 |
15 |
'93 - '03, '08 |
Even in limited time, Romero is still managing to escape at least the appearance of damage in spite of some unnerving peripherals. Like the bench and the back of the rotation, this one of this team's weaker spots.
If injuries weren't a factor, how would this team fare over a season? Would an offense like this be able to keep this team afloat with the help of a strong 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation? Or would those unproven bats pair up with some older arms to bring the team's fortunes crashing to earth?
Guys who have made the team each of the three years: Pierzynski, Blake, Ortiz, Beimel, Romero and Hawkins.