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Spencer 555
06-03-2017, 11:30 AM
Hey guys, feel free to post in this thread, but I'm just going to be posting my thoughts here as to what MLB teams might look like in 2020. Don't know why I decided to do this, but it will be a fun excersize for me to see how many players I can get right and on each team. I'll be trying to post a new team every day. Only going to be posting the starters, the closer, the sps and I'll highlight some potential sleepers that I've left out on each team. Cheers.

Hugh
06-03-2017, 11:38 AM
Then Hulky can create a projected budget and payroll for each team. Exciting stuff.

Spencer 555
06-03-2017, 12:43 PM
At C: Rising prospect Danny Jansen takes over from Russel Martin as the jays look to get younger at the position. He struggles in his full time role hitting every day, but plays more then adequate defense behind the plate. Player Salary: 500k pre arb

At 1b: Future hall of famer, Vlad Guerrero Jr is one of the most complete hitters in the game at the tender age of 21. Player Salary: 500k pre arb

At 2b: Devon Travis, in his prime at this point and one of the jays many leaders in the clubhouse. Hitting 20 homers a year with passable defense he makes an all star team some time between now and then. Player Salary: 8-13million arb3 or bridge contract.

At 3b: The Jays declining superstar, Josh Donaldson is signed long term. Still one of the better players in the league, but not a perennial mvp candidate, he plays a third of his year at DH. Player Salary: 30-35 million

At SS: Troy Tulowitzki is a shell of the player he once was. Struggling to stay on the field, the jays try to squeeze every last bit out of troy in the final year of his massive contract. He plays some time at 1b and dh but amazingly still plays a passable ss. He Derek Jeters himself to a replacement level season despite only playing in 90 games. Player Salary: 14 million, last year of contract.

In LF: An aging superman gets bumped from his perch in CF and moves to left. By now, his defensive skill will be declining, but he will have become a more complete hitter and still be extremely useful defensively in left. He bats 290 and mashes 20 bombs for the first time in his career. Pillar btw lol. Player Salary: 8-13 mill arb3 or bridge.

In CF: Jays highly touted prospect Anthony Alford finally gets his chance to play full time for the jays after crushing AAA. Still just 25 years old, Alford enjoys a bit of a breakout season with the jays, but struggles to hit at a replacement level. Player Salary: 500k pre arb

In RF: 23 year old Converted SS Bo Bichette is a burgeoning young force and steals the rf job from Dalton Pompey who becomes a very decent switch hitting bench bat for the jays with good speed and the ability to play all over the OF. Bichette wins the rookie of the year 1 year after Vlad Jr won it. Player Salary: 500k pre arb

At DH: The Jays cleanup hitter Rowdy Tellez hits 260 in his second year with the club and plays some of his time at 1b. Hits 25 bombs and gets 100 rbi for the first time in his career. Player Salary: 500k pre arb

SP1: Stroman is firmly entrenched as the #1 starter on the team at this point. Not quite an ace, but very solid and very durable, stroman is a reliable #1 for the jays. Player Salary: 13-18 mill arb3/bridge

SP2: Aaron Sanchez. The often injured Sanchez never fully develops into an elite pitcher, but at this point in his career is looking for a big contract and has the second best year of his career (behind 2016, which proves to be the best we ever see from sanchez). Player Salary: 10-15 mill Arb3 or bridge

SP3: Joe Biagini. Solid and durable, the jays' long man of the present solidifies his role in the starting rotation in 2018 and never looks back. 8-13 mill arb3 or bridge.

SP4: Drew Pomeranz. The big lefty signs with the jays in 2019. Still in the prime of his career, Pom enjoys another solid year as the jays #4 starter despite still being injury prone. Player Salary: 15-20 mill free agent

SP5: Marco Estrada. After resigning with the jays on a 3 year deal in 2018, Marco remains a solid option and flashes his former dominance fairly often, but at this point, his fastball is maxing out at 87 and he's more homer prone then ever. He manages to give the jays 180 innings and a 500 record while he's on the mound. Player Salary: 18-23 mill free agent.

The Jays closer: Roberto Osuna remains a dominant arm out of the bullpen and is on pace to beat Mariano Rivera's all time save record. 8-13 mill arb3 or bridge.

Mentionables: TJ Zeuch and Sean-Reid Foley remain in the jays system, despite struggling in the high minors and are the jays depth starting pitchers. That being said, unheralded pitching prospect Ryan Borucki is the first man up to replace any of the jays SPs. Former first round pick Max Pentecost remains in the system and potentially breaks onto the scene in 2019 over Jansen as the jays catcher. His development is very stunted as a 24 year old in single a right now, but I believe his bat could potentially play anywhere. We'll see where he ends up. Semi touted prospect Richard Urena proves to be a very serviceable infield utility bat for the jays and is able to play SS, 2b, 3b and the corner of spots.

Outlook: the jays are in playoff contention STILL despite not reaching the playoffs since the 2017 season (yes they make it this year). No very interesting trades have occurred for the team despite some bullpen additions here and there and the jays rely on player development more then they have in years passed under new president Mark Shappiro. Having a middle of the pack rotation and a mix of vets and very promising young position player talent, the jays come up short to the Yankees and Red Sox super teams in the division and despite probably being the 4th best team in the entire AL, they miss the playoffs again.

Estimated Team Salary total: 175-180 million.

Spencer 555
06-03-2017, 01:00 PM
Then Hulky can create a projected budget and payroll for each team. Exciting stuff.

Lol I was thinking of doing that myself, but it would be too hard to estimate. I can say for sure that the jays payroll with what I've posted here would be in and around 175mill per year.

Hulky
06-03-2017, 02:55 PM
The White Sox are a cool one to look at

C: Zack Collins (25)
1B: Jose Abreu (33)
2B: Yoan Moncada (25)
SS: Tim Anderson (26)
3B: Todd Frazier (34)
LF: Yasiel Puig (29, Snipe in 2020 FA or some kind of Jose Quintada deal)
CF: Luis Robert (22)
RF: Avisail Garcia (28)

SP: Carlos Rodon (27)
SP: Michael Kopech (24)
SP: Lucas Giolito (25)
SP: Reynaldo Lopez (26)
SP: Spencer Adams (24)
Long Reliever/Set Up: Carson Fulmer (26)
CP: Zach Burdi (25)
____________
Zach Collins will have developed a relationship with Kopech, Giolito, Lopez and Adams in the minor leagues which the familiarity with each other makes it click as they enter the majors together. Abreu provides leadership to his Cuban teammates Moncada, Robert and Puig. Garcia, Frazier and Anderson continue to hold their ground from today's roster.

The pitching has a lot of high velocity guys and a lot of youth.

Spencer 555
06-03-2017, 07:18 PM
Ya white Sox looks fun. I think my favourite system is the reds though. Don't know why, just like them.

Spencer 555
06-04-2017, 09:33 AM
C: Sandy Leon. Somewhat underrated Sandy Leon continues to grind for the starting catcher job with other Red Sox prospects, but manages to earn the starting job for good in 2018. Player Salary: 5-10 mill arb3 or bridge

1b: Josh Ockimey/Sam Travis Platoon. After surpassing Sam Travis on the minors depth chart, Ockimey replaces Hanley in 2019 in an impressive rookie season on the strong side of this platoon. On days where Pedroia plays 2b, Ockimey will DH. Player Salary: 500k pre arb

2b: Captain Pedroia is in the twilight of his career, but still a very useful player. His fundamentals and conditioning allow him to play until he is 40 and he makes a very strong hall of fame case. Plays about a third of his games at DH and is replaced in the lineup on those days by unheralded prospect Tzu-Wei Lin who is the new super utility player on the team (brock Holt esque). Player Salary: 13 mill, second last year of contract.

Ss: Xander Bogaerts. Still one of the best SS in the game and entering his prime, Xander will be only 27 in 2020. Signed long term to a big contract too. Player Salary: 18-23 mill, free agent

3b: Rafael Devers. Super prospect Devers graduates from the minors in 2018 after crushing Aaa. Although a bit early in his development still, the 21 year old bursts onto the scene and wins the rookie of the year. By 2020 he is a regular all star contender. Player Salary: 500k pre arb

OF: Benintendi, Bradley JR, Betts. The best outfield in the game is fairly untouchable. Player Salary: 3-5 mill arb1 for Benintendi, 8-13 mill arb3 or bridge for Bradley jr, 13-18 mill arb3 or bridge for Betts.

DH: Fluid position for Pedroia and co. The red Sox very surprisingly will not overspend on a big bat to play the dh/1b position in 2020 giving some of there young guys the opportunity while resting Pedroia as much as possible. Josh Ockimey, Sam Travis, Pedroia will see the lions share of at bats here. Player Salary: 500k pre arb

SP1: Chris Sale. He's not goin anywhere and Dombrowski will make sure of that by signing him to a monstrous deal. The red Sox position players are still cheap enough at this point in the team development, but the red Sox climb into the luxury tax in 2019 with this signing. They are all in for the 2019/2020 seasons and Chris sale remains a top 5 pitcher in the league. Player salary: 30-35 mill

SP2: Eduardo Rodriguez. After struggling a bit in his first few seasons, Erod puts it all together in 2018. On most teams, he would be the SP1, but with Sale in tow, the red Sox have one of the best 1-2 punches in the league. Player Salary: 10-15 mill arb3 or bridge

SP3: David Price. Not nearly as good as he once was, Price is clearly on the decline at this point. But with the money he's owed, the red Sox are willing to give him every opportunity to figure things out. Price remains a very serviceable pitcher, but never bounces back to being an elite one. Player Salary: 32mill

SP4: Jake Odorizzi. With a little extra spending money to spare in 2020, the red Sox take a swing on Odorizzi who is at this point still coming into his own. Among the best 4th options in the league, odorizzi has a career year in Boston 2020. Player Salary: 15-18 mill free agent

SP5: another fluid position because of the red Sox luxury tax crunch. They decide to let Jason Groome take the job even though he proves in his time at aaa in 2019 he is not quite ready. Groome ends up failing and returning to aaa 10 starts in, making way for depth pitcher Tyson Ross who proves to be an excellent reclamation project after struggling to get back from injury plagued seasons since 2016. Player Salary: 500k-3mill (incentivised minor league contract)

Closer: impressed with Kimbrel's killer instinct and leadership, the red Sox offer kimbrel a 5 year contract in 2019 and he doesn't disappoint. Still a dominant closer in 2020, kimbrel records 50 saves en route to winning reliever of the year. Player Salary: 15-18 mill

Mentionables: as highlighted a bit earlier, I've got unheralded ss prospect Tzu-Wei Lin as the heir apparent to Pedroia. In 2018, Lin will be a very valuable utility infielder and by 2022 he will be the starting 2b. Jason Groome, the red Sox best pitching prospect will eventually be at least an SP3 in the big leagues, but will struggle with command issues until he is in his later 20s. 3b prospect Micheal Chavis will also be in the mix at DH for the team in 2020, but I see him being traded before then for bullpen help.

Outlook: Perrenial championship contenders with Dave Dombrowski at the helm, the red Sox farm system has taken a pretty big hit already. I don't see this trend stopping. Dombrowski will continue to use red Sox prospects as currency to win now and the red Sox will be contenders with this awesome core of young players as long as sale and price can pitch into there 30s. I see the Red Sox being the best or second best team in the AL depending on how bonkers the Yankees go in free agency.

Estimated total team salary: 220 mill

Maverik
06-04-2017, 09:44 AM
weak

I don't even know what your budget is or how much money everybody will make in 3 years

how do you not know this stuff?

Spencer 555
06-04-2017, 10:11 AM
Alrighty. I'll do a rough estimation for each player.

Maverik
06-04-2017, 10:18 AM
I want marital status, number of kids, model of car, facial hair length, etc

all the important details

the stuff Hulky knows

;)

Spencer 555
06-04-2017, 10:27 AM
Hahaha well I'll have to get hulky in on that stuff because I can only do numbers :p

Spencer 555
06-04-2017, 10:28 AM
And for the record, I figured you weren't being serious about the salaries and stuff, but it was something I thought about going into this project so I figured I'll just throw in my rough guesses.

Spencer 555
06-04-2017, 10:47 AM
At C: Gary Sanchez might be a bit overrated offensively, but dude can hit for a catcher and he's underrated defensively. Might be the best catcher in the AL at this point. Player Salary: 10-15mill arb2 or bridge.

1b: Greg Bird. Very talented young hitter, I see bird as an above average player in 2020. Think Brandon Belt. He may need a platoon partner here to hit lefties, but those are easy to find. Player salary: 8-13 Mill arb2 or bridge

2b: Starlin Castro. At this point he should be on the downturn in his career, but to me, Castro is a guy who can still refine his approach and is still improving offensively. Initially a ss, Castro is a good 2b defensively. Amazing he will be 30 in 2020. Player Salary: 16mill team option

Ss: Gleyber Torres. Perhaps the cubs biggest mistake in the process of winning a championship was trading future all star Gleyber Torres. I think Torres makes his full season debut as the Yankees future ss in 2020 after impressing with a cup of coffee in 2019. Player Salary: 500k pre arb.

3b: Manny Machado. I really think it's inevitable that the Yankees get Machado. Baltimore is a trash organization run by an idiot and I've never thought Machado ever cared much for the team. Arod's protege moves to the Yankees and reaches another level as the star of the show. Manny wins the AL mvp in 2020 over trout for some reason (Trout should win it every year lol). Player Salary: 30-35 mill per year.

DH: see sp1.... probably Ellsbury a bit too.

LF: Ellsbury unfortunately still remains on the team. He sucks up 22mill per year as a bench bat while he watches Clint Frazier spend the majority of his time starting in left over him. Frazier struggles to hit at the big league level, but plays a very good left defensively and teases with his potential at times. Player Salary: 22mill (Ellsbury contract)

CF: Aaron Hicks. The amazing 2017 breakout for hicks ends up being completely legit and the Yankees lock him up long term on a cheap contract at the end of the year. Hicks remains underrated in 2020, but is still an elite CF with a good bat. Player Salary 14 mill.

RF: Aaron Judge. 2017 becomes a bit of a fluke season and he has a sophomore slump season in 2018... But in 2019 he cuts his k% from 31 down to 25 and has a monster season hitting 50 bombs. I expect much of the same in 2020. Player Salary: 13-18 mill arb2 or bridge contract.

SP1: Shohei Otani bursts onto the MLB scene in a big way in 2019. The Japanese Babe Ruth cements himself as a top of the rotation player, while also crushing 20 bombs as the Yankees DH on day he isn't pitching. Player Salary: 25-30 mill free agent.

SP2: Micheal Pineda. Signed long term on a reasonable contract, pineda is a decent #2 option for the Yankees despite still being volatile and inconsistent. Player Salary: 18-23 mill free agent

SP3: Luis Severino. Much like Pineda, Severino remains tantalizingly talented, but a mix of pitching at Yankee stadium and in the AL east beast causes him to be fairly inconsistent regardless. Player Salary: 10-15mill arb2 or bridge

SP4: Jordan Montgomery remains in the rotation despite not being too hyped as a prospect. His deceptive delivery, and command of various junky pitches makes him a solid pitcher in the bigs and he develops a plus changeup that keeps him there. In 2020 Jordan will be a sub 4era pitcher. Player Salary: 23mill (tanaka is "injured")

SP5: Justus Sheffield. After a cup of coffee in 2018, sheff will go on to win the 2019 sp5 spot ahead of some bigger prospect names in the Yankees system. He will breakout in 2020 and pass Montgomery despite Montgomery having a very solid season as well. Player salary: 500k pre arb

Closer: Chapman remains, holding down the fort in the 9th. The bullpen isn't quite as strong as it once was with the departure of Betances, but the Yankees have a glut of potential replacement arms in the minors. Player Salary: 18 mill free agent

Mentionables: Yankees unfortunately have to cut ties with betances when he becomes a free agent in the off-season before 2020, but the Yankees remain one of the most elite bullpens in the league with help from existing talent on the roster and a glut of young fireballers in the minors. I see James Kaprielian being an elite setup man. OFer Dustin Fowler will be in the mix for the left field job along with Frazier, and will see a lot of time at each OF spot pending injuries in 2020. Blake Rutherford will still be in the minors at this point and might force his way into the plans with some good seasons, but he should be given all the time in the world to develop. Prospect Jorge Mateo will be used as an infield utility player and pinch runner.

Outlook: The Yankees are all in here and setup to win in 2020 and beyond. They make the playoffs in 2017, but take a step back for 2018 and 2019 with the departure of some valued veteran talent (sabathia, headley, gregorious, gardiner). So 2020 is the year they really turn things around again for real and are title contenders. No very interesting trades happen with the Yankees in the next couple years, but in 2021 when the tanaka and Ellsbury contracts come off the books, the Yankees will have enough money to hold on to every player from the championship contending 2020 team. Yankees win in 2020.

Estimated player payroll: 260mill

Greendaybum5
06-05-2017, 09:11 AM
Torres will be called up to the big leagues at some point this year. You think it's not until 2020 that he's the full time starter?

Spencer 555
06-05-2017, 10:16 AM
I doubt that Philly.

Nightmarez
03-19-2018, 10:39 PM
I think Torres is up this year

Gryph
03-19-2018, 10:52 PM
Considering Walker / Drury moves I doubt it. They dumped Andujar to AAA this year already, wouldn't be surprised if he goes down as well.

Spencer 555
03-19-2018, 11:18 PM
I think Torres is up this year

I don't know about the bat for this year. He's a bit overrated imo. I think he gets the September callup treatment this year. The Yankees can afford to give him seasoning.

Spencer 555
03-19-2018, 11:21 PM
I don't know about the bat for this year. He's a bit overrated imo. I think he gets the September callup treatment this year. The Yankees can afford to give him seasoning.

I'm definitely going to have to redo this whole thread lol.

Nightmarez
03-19-2018, 11:22 PM
Considering Walker / Drury moves I doubt it. They dumped Andujar to AAA this year already, wouldn't be surprised if he goes down as well.

I'm not talking about in April, but I think we see Torres as a big league regular before September 2019.

Spencer 555
03-19-2018, 11:31 PM
It's hard to see it unless he really crushes aaa

Spencer 555
03-19-2018, 11:34 PM
It's hard to see it unless he really crushes aaa

I misread ur 2019 comment, I think ur probably right about that. I was a little too conservative projecting 2020.

But I think I was on the right track that the Yankees will be conservative with torres. He's a prospect I think who you don't want becoming polished in the bigs like Swanson. The Yankees wanna win now. He will absolutely have to force his way on the team.

Nightmarez
03-20-2018, 01:38 AM
I initially thought that Mike Trout expired in 2019 which is why I wanted to do the Phillies for 2020, but I decided to do them anyway with a set-up into 2021.

2020 Philadelphia Phillies

Position Players

C: Jorge Alfaro (pre-arb; 500K).

1B: Rhys Hoskins (pre-arb; 800K? maybe 1st year arb roughly 3.9 mil). Rhys stumbles out the gate in 2018, but finds himself as a more consistent slugger in 2019 and establishes himself as a .265/35-40 type slugger by the end of 2020. Carlos Santana (20.8 Mil) served as a solid piece for two years, and still serves a role in 2020, but far more talented and athletic players in the Phillies OF start to push Santana out of the line-up altogether. Plus, with his expiring money and the team set on Free Agency, Santana is a piece being phased out while Rhys takes over at First Base in 2020. I do believe Santana gets some situational play however. The strength of this line-up is, primarily, right handed so having Santana batting Switch will help offset the lack of left handed power in the line-up.

2B: Scott Kingery (pre-arb; 500K). Kingery establishes himself as a decent hitter in limited action in 2018 before becoming either the team's full time 2B or a rotational Zobrist type player in 2019. For simplicity I have him as the full time 2B. A .270+ hitter who can threaten 20/20 in the middle infield.

SS: JP Crawford (pre-arb; 500K). As a prospect, Crawford has experienced a bit of a fall from grace. The bat may just not be that good, but for my future Phillies, JP Crawford is the projected 7-8 hitter who has an excellent glove at Shortstop. Projecting a .240 BA with little power but a good walk rate that also helps make the batting stats stomach-able, alongside again that great glove.

3B: So I don't like Maikel Franco, and aside from Kingery whom I already have at 2B there's no obvious in house option here. I thought about going with a potential Free Agent, like having them get someone like Moose or Donaldson next year, but I went with a bit more of a creative take. Entering his first year of arbitration, the always poor A's and the always dealing Billy Beane send Matt Chapman to the Phillies in exchange for prospects and cash. Chapman is a decent hitter who doesn't hit for a great average, but he provides power and he shores up a plus-infield defense with JP Crawford. Chapman will earn 2.7 million in his first year of arb.

OF: Mickey Moniak (pre-arb), Odubel Herrera (7 Mill), Aaron Altherr (2nd year arb, 3.7 mil), Nick Williams (pre-arb), Dylan Cozens (pre-arb), Adam Haseley (pre-arb) --
So I decided to tackle the OF as a whole, and listed a few names, highlighting the ones I thought most likely to be on the roster. Mickey Moniak doesn't crack the opening day roster in 2020, but he's my most likely player out of all the listed names to finish 2020 on the Phillies 25/40 Man Roster. Odubel Herrera is my second most likely, because of the obvious long term commitment they've made to him. I'm not completely sold on Odubel's talents as a hitter though. But he's a solid player with solid defensive skills who's under contract for at least this year and 2021, with options for 2022 and 2023. Altherr's a guy I like and think it'll be easy for the Phillies to keep him around at least until he hits Free Agency at worst as a role player. Haseley is another player who perhaps doesn't make the Phillies opening Day roster in 2020, but drafted as a seemingly high-floor College Bat at #8 Overall in the 2017 draft, Haseley should be a solid and MLB-ready hitter by 2020. The primary alignment will be based around platooning, with Altherr getting a bit phased out v. RHP but getting all the PT v. LHP. Altherr still gets some PT over Moniak and Haseley because of being the relative veteran and them being young players. Also keep in mind the idea is we're adding Mike Trout to the equation next year.

Alternates are Nick Williams, who is solid, but I don't like the plate discipline and think if the Phillies were to trade any of the above pieces, Williams would be the most likely. I like Dylan Cozens and think he could be a situational 1B/OF who plays primarily against just RHP. Not the greatest player, but every player pre-arb is practically free for 3 years, so I could see the Phillies bringing up Cozens any time in the next couple years as a cheap power LH player to start v. RHP.

Starting Rotation:

SP1: Jake Arrieta (20 Mil) -- Arrieta may have not gotten quite the lettuce he was expecting, Arrieta is still a borderline SP1 who has been both healthy and maintained a solid level of success, albeit much less success than his peak. He keeps himself healthy and will still be an asset as an Opening Day starter in 2020. One important note, the Phillies front-loaded Arrieta to go after other players. 30/25/20 the first three years of this deal. That's worth noting for an actual non-hypothetical projection of the team. Another fact worth noting about the deal, there are points where both Jake and Philly can exit. In this scenario, they both feel the contract is mutually beneficial (which I actually think is somewhat reasonable, but he is a Boras client), and Jake lives out all 5 years of the Philly contract.

SP2: Aaron Nola -- A pitcher I absolutely love, Nola has had some health issues. These health issues allow the Phillies to take a chance at getting a talented potential SP1 at a bargain, signing him prior to the 2019 season to a 5 year, 43.5 Mill contract with escalators. This is a somewhat similar timeline to the Kluber extension, which was 5/38.5, but with Nola's first year being his first Arbitration year (real money) and Kluber's being his last pre-Arb year, which adjusted his payout from 500K to 1Mil for that season-- but a reasonable extension for both team and player, as Nola gets guaranteed money and the team gets a good player at a bargain. The second year of the contract pays out 7.5 Mill.

SP3: Jimmy Nelson (3rd year arb, 8.8 Mill) -- Another surprise on this list, after missing most of the 2018 season with a shoulder injury, Nelson bounces back to have a good but not great contract year in 2019, with an 8 K/9 and a 3.55 ERA in a tough ball park and division. With one year left of team control, Milwaukee decides that Nelson's question marks and potential price in 2021 make him a tradable piece, and Philly swoops in with an offer of a couple of prospects. Unable to come to a long term agreement, Nelson enters free agency seeking upwards of 100 Million. However, he struggles to find a market for a 9 digit contract and, with the acquisition of Mike Trout in hand, re-signs with the Phillies for a discounted 5 years 80 million covering his age 31 through 35 seasons.

SP4: Sixto Sanchez (pre-arb) -- A 19 YO hot shot in the Phillies organization, Sixto has the name and the big league fastball to believe that he can reach the bigs as a potential impact pitcher in 2020.

SP5: Jerad Eickhoff (2nd year arb, 5.5 Mil) -- Eickhoff may be nothing special to write home about, but a solid pitcher with a solid curveball, Eickhoff will be 29 years old at this time in 2020, and he'll still have two years of team control left. A solid SP5.

Closer: Hector Neris is the potentially obvious answer here, but since the relief pitchers change the most in baseball, I"m going to go with a current starter in the Phillies organization that is struggling and that I think could make an excellent super-reliever, and that's Vincent Velasquez. He may be entering arbitration by this point, but woudnt' be more than 1-2 million.

Payroll:
Santana 20.8 Mill
Arrieta 20.0 Mill
Nelson 8.8 Mill
Nola 7.5 Mill
Herrera 7 Mill
Eickhoff 5.5 Mill
Hoskins 3.9 Mill*
Altherr 3.7 Mill
Chapman 2.7 Mill
Velasquez 1.3 Mill

Base Payroll: 80.2 Million, which is still pretty low for a potential big market team.

Potential year end line-up combinations

v. RHP:
1. Moniak
2. Haseley
3. Hoskins
4. Santana
5. Chapman
6. Kingery
7. Crawford
8. Alfaro

v. LHP
1. Moniak
2. Kingery
3. Hoskins
4. Chapman
5. Haseley
6. Altherr
7. Crawford
8. Alfaro

*I'm not sure on the Service time for Hoskins and how that'll work. To be conservative I took 2020 as his first arbitration year and not his last pre-arb year.

This moves us into...

Phase 2: Mike Trout, 2021, and a WS Ring

Trout, after spending nearly a decade playing on the West Coast and for a team that couldn't quite put together a playoff run (though I love what Eppler's doing right now), Trout moves back to the east coast, signing a 10 Year, 375 Million dollar contract to join the Phillies. While the price is steep, the player is elite, and the books are made well enough that it shoudln't be a problem at all to add it to the mix, especially with Santana coming off the books.

Obviously this displaces a lot of talent in the outfield, with Moniak and Haseley the former first round picks getting the majority of the work in Center and Right while Trout moves over to Left for the Phillies. Odubel, still making 10 Million, is the primary fourth-OF. Altherr is moved.

In the infield, Chapman and Hoskins get an arbitration raise, and Crawford and Kingery (as well as Alfaro) enter arbitration, making the infield increase quite steep. Still, the payroll last year was very low, and Philly can afford high payrolls on a competitive team with Mike Trout.

The Rotation sticks together. Arrieta is a year older but still solid, and with a solid post season career, Nola and Nelson as the main rotational strength behind him, and Vincent Velasquez as an ultra reliever/closer, the Phillies pull out the 2021 WS championship.

2021 Payroll
Trout 37.5 Mill
Arrieta 20.0 Mill
Nelson 13.5 Mill
Herrera 10 Mill
Nola 9.5 Mill
Eickhoff 7.3 Mill
Hoskins 6.6 Mill*
Chapman 4.1 Mill
Velasquez 3.4 Mill
Kingery 3.1 Mill
Crawford 1.9 Mill
Alfaro 1.7 Mill

Base Payroll: 118.6 Mill. A steep single year increase, but an Owner approved one bringing in a super star in Mike Trout. This team has the rotational depth, top end reliever, hitting, and defense to win a World Series.

Base Line-Up:
1. Moniak
2. Haseley / Kingery (Hase v. R, King v. L)
3. Trout
4. Hoskins
5. Haseley / Kingery (Inverse)
6. Chapman
7. Alfaro
8/9. Crawford

I think the Phillies are one of the more fun teams to do.

Nightmarez
03-20-2018, 01:45 AM
A hypothetical but not too crazy way the Phillies could put it over the top? If Arenado reaches Free Agency in 2020, I do believe the Phillies are a big enough market and a willing enough spender to add another massive contract to the payroll I designed, so putting an elite player like that on this roster would really seal the deal. But overall I think this team would have enough gusto to do it. The top of the line-up, top of the rotation, and top reliever are all theoretically scary.

Spencer 555
03-20-2018, 06:35 AM
Ya I could see a scenario like that happening, by 2020 the usual suspects will be pretty capped. Philly will have an opportunity for sure.

Sanosuke
03-20-2018, 11:40 AM
The only thing wrong with your 2021 coverage is trout goes to the braves and joins rising superstar Ronald Acuña and beloved Freddie Freeman to form the most terrifying 234/345 in baseball and the braves actually win the WS with only hitting, a complete opposite of what the 90s braves we're famous for.

Sanosuke
03-20-2018, 11:41 AM
Also, marez and specer, look into Out Of the Park Baseball on steam. You'll jizz yourselves and thank me later.

Nightmarez
03-20-2018, 12:03 PM
Also, marez and specer, look into Out Of the Park Baseball on steam. You'll jizz yourselves and thank me later.


I play OOTP a lot.

I just don't see Trout going anywhere but LA or the Northeast.

Sanosuke
03-20-2018, 03:20 PM
I'm going to be playing ootp 18 in Afghanistan to kill time. Started out as the Rome Braves manager. Gonna try to work my way up. It's so in depth I get lost at times.

Trout won't go to Atlanta, but that'd be nice if he did.

Spencer 555
03-20-2018, 03:32 PM
Ya I've been told it's aweosme. Can I get it on my phone?

Spencer 555
03-20-2018, 03:35 PM
Acuna is a fucking monster prospect though, I'd be satisfied with what the braves are doing as a fan. You also have my beloved Alex anthopolous as your president.

Sanosuke
03-20-2018, 04:38 PM
I'm completely OK with him coming up in April. He'll make up for the missed two weeks with numbers anyways.

You can't get OOTP 18 on your phone but any laptop can run it.

Sanosuke
03-20-2018, 04:39 PM
I was excited for Swanson because I went to highschool with him but I haven't been this excited for a prospect ever like Acuña.

Nightmarez
03-20-2018, 10:10 PM
Ya I've been told it's aweosme. Can I get it on my phone?

YOU of all people HAVE to have OOTP. You just have to download Steam to any computer/desktop/laptop you have and then just download the game. It's only like 15 bucks or something, especially if you get OOTP 18 right after OOTP 19 comes out this next week. I play OOTP 18 all the time, it's what makes that two year projection a bit easier for me at least in terms of funds outlook. I"ve never played a more in depth and realistic baseball simulator. It's amazing. I've drained HOURS of my life in fictitious teams. I have made Ernesto Rodas into the greatest player of all time before (born 2022).

Spencer 555
03-20-2018, 11:50 PM
Hahaha that's awesome. I'll have to check it out. Btw I sent u an email, don't leave me hangin bru

Nightmarez
03-22-2018, 11:57 PM
I'm going to be playing ootp 18 in Afghanistan to kill time. Started out as the Rome Braves manager. Gonna try to work my way up. It's so in depth I get lost at times.

Trout won't go to Atlanta, but that'd be nice if he did.


Ya I've been told it's aweosme. Can I get it on my phone?


Hahaha that's awesome. I'll have to check it out. Btw I sent u an email, don't leave me hangin bru

Yeah I saw it I'll hit you back.

OOTP is a great tool even just to learn about prospects. A guy like Acuna can corner a lot of OOTP teams.

But for example for OOTP, on my current game I started as the manager of the SD Padres but I did a full re-draft so I picked my team from scratch. I've been the manager for 6+ years. Won a couple of championships, but my current (and god-level) roster is (thru 23 games in 2023):

C: Bobby Myers Age 25, 2nd year player, first time starting Catcher. Has a highly projectable power tool. Hot start in 2023, .261/.358/.565, 6 HRs in 20 GS.

1B: Seth Beer Age 26, 3 yrs, 165 days service time, real life he's an Outfielder for Clemson in College Baseball and a high level draft prospect. In my game he's coming off back to back years of .283/.372 with 35 HRs and .299/.389 with 39 HRs. He's a .300/40 god according to our scouting reports. In that 3 year career he's a .268 Hitter, 99 HRs, 53 SBs, in just over 500 games.

2B: Gleyber Torres Age 26, 5 yrs, 57 days service time, contract year. Negotiating a contract worth about 18 mil per for 8 years. Career .286 hitter. Last two years he's hit over 25 HRs. Last four years his WARs are 5.1, 4.6, 6.4, 4.4. Scouting grade is 70 on defensive. 3x All-Star, 3x Platinum Stick. Surprisingly 0 GG.

3B: Fernando Tatis Jr. Age 24, 2 yrs 106 days service time, pre-arb, real life prospect of Padres. Developing into a .300/30 hitter who has gold glove defense at 3B. First year as a full time starter technically but he's started 140 games each of the last two seasons between 3B/2B/1B/SS.

SS: Ryan Mountcastle, Age 26, 4 yrs+ service time, 4 Year Contract. Traded from prior to this offseason. Unlike Torres+Tatis Jr. who are gold glovers, Mountcastle is a below average glove at SS. He's Johnny Peralta on defense. But he hit .277/25 last year and our scout thinks he's got a lot more to offer. Plus we have him locked for four years and have a home grown player by the name of Nova who's an excellent glove at SS and is content at playing the bench.

LF: Andrew Benintendi, closing in on Age 29, just entered his first contract. 6/133 Million with it fully guaranteed on my side and Benny can leave after year 4 or 5. 162 Game average is 690 PAs, .306 BA, 25 HRs, 15 SBs.

CF: Jacob Pearson, Age 24, 0+ Yrs Service time. Not rookie eligible. Blue-chip prospect with a BRIGHT future. In his first 105 Starts and 468 PAs he has hit .307 with 29 HRs and 23 SBs. Moves to LF often with a rotational OFer Adrian Hernandez, who is an excellent defender in Center.

RF: Kyle Tucker, Age 26, contract year. Concerned about the long term for one of my better players. He's been designated as Fragile by the game and he's been hurt a bit the last few years. I keep four rotational OFers and Seth Beer is actually an OFer too, so Kyle Tucker is probably goign to get extended and just get extra days off and time at first base. He's been my lead off hitter for years. 162 Game AV is 700 PAs, 29 HRs and 31 SBs.

In terms of my SPs, I rotate my SPs a lot more than my hitters obviously. But I've got a stacked team.

Spencer 555
03-23-2018, 10:26 AM
Ya never heard of beer, Myers or Pearson. I'll definitely get into it one day haha.

Nightmarez
03-23-2018, 12:58 PM
Ya never heard of beer, Myers or Pearson. I'll definitely get into it one day haha.

Myers and Pearson I don't believe actually exist. Keep in mind I am considerably into the future. Like I said my greatest all-time player threatened 800 HRs but played primarily between the 2030s and 2050s. I believe he was born in 2019.

Beer though could be a first round pick this year. Very legitimate and a guy to keep an eye on in the future. He's a college bat that could sprint through the Minors and have an ETA closer to 2020 if he develops fast between his combination of experience and the fact that he's huge.

That's the coolest thing for actual baseball to me about OOTP. OOTP incorporates not just all MLB and MiLB players, but also somehow is allowed to put on international and pre-Draft US players, and while it's obviously not the perfect realistic simulation, you get to see a lot of players develop over the course of a game and then see them as actual young kids. For example, Kumar Rocker is another First Round draft talent this year. High School pitcher. In a long time sim I had with teh Astros, Rocker was drafted by the Rangers and was their Opening Day starter and was a dominate ace for about a decade straight and was elected to the HOF. Not something that correlates to actual success, but at the very least I've been around the name enough to memorize it.

It has created an interesting bias for me though to where players who consistently work out in my OOTP sims make me believe they'll work out in real life. Willie Calhoun specificlaly is a bat the game loves. I have had monstrous years with Willie Calhoun, he's just a shit-ass defender in the game. He doesn't even develop into a good first baseman.

Spencer 555
03-23-2018, 05:37 PM
Have you ever tried a SIM League??

Sanosuke
03-23-2018, 05:57 PM
Ootp predicted Cubs Astros.

Spencer 555
03-23-2018, 11:07 PM
I did too.

Sanosuke
03-24-2018, 03:03 AM
bought OOTP 19. Playing as GM/Manager for ATL Braves. Ozzie Albies goes 4-4 opening day and Acuna hits a HR and 3 RBIs. McCarthy gives up 2 ER and Ks 9 for a Braves win of 6-3.

Sanosuke
03-24-2018, 03:05 AM
I have Acuna batting in the six hole though. I feel like he'd do fine there tbh.

Sanosuke
03-24-2018, 03:34 AM
oh man what a game 2

So Sean Newcomb pitches 5 innings giving up 8 hits, walks 5, Ks 5 and gives up 5 ERs. I'm down 5-3 in the 6th and down 6-4 in the 7th. In the ninth inning down 7-4, inciarte leads off, i have him steal 2nd, markakis flies out sending inciarte to 3rd, freeman grounds out. 2 outs, Albies is up, launches his 2nd HR of the game to put us at 7-6. Flowers on the next at bat homers as well to send us into extra innings. we both score 1 run a piece in the 11th and flowers walks us off with a HR in the 12th. Damn near went through my whole bullpen. I hope the braves are actually this good IRL.

Nightmarez
03-24-2018, 08:28 AM
I'll have to get the new game oson. I think my first play thru I'm going to try and take over the Reds. I think there's a lot of interesting things going on in that organization as one that's not exactly right ont he precipice, but could be an OOTP team I take to the next level. Plus Cincy is my closest ballpark. Going to try and see the Reds this weekend.

Spencer 555
03-24-2018, 09:26 AM
I said that last year about the reds. They have a fun system with a lot of interesting guys. Now they have Hunter Greene too.

Spencer 555
03-24-2018, 09:27 AM
Votto is probably going to be gone before anything big happens though unfortunately. Hopefully he can hold off time for another 3-4 years

Nightmarez
03-24-2018, 12:03 PM
Votto is probably going to be gone before anything big happens though unfortunately. Hopefully he can hold off time for another 3-4 years

Probably, and like you said he's going to have to hold off. Votto still has 6/150 left on his contract though. With an additional team option with 7 mil buyout.

Spencer 555
03-24-2018, 12:25 PM
He's probably the most interesting guy in the league right now. He's got a profile that you could see working into his forties. But there is real evidence of deteriating skill atm. I think he may follow a similar trajectory to Bautista. He may last a year or 2 more, so that puts him on pace to completely fall off a cliff in 3-4 years.

Nightmarez
03-24-2018, 02:28 PM
He's probably the most interesting guy in the league right now. He's got a profile that you could see working into his forties. But there is real evidence of deteriating skill atm. I think he may follow a similar trajectory to Bautista. He may last a year or 2 more, so that puts him on pace to completely fall off a cliff in 3-4 years.


Why do you think there's evidence of deteriorating skill?

Spencer 555
03-24-2018, 04:41 PM
Couple fangraphs articles I've read now. Here's an excerpt

You want to talk “harvesting,” this is your guy. He has totally sold out his liner and grounder authority, focusing on more of an uppercut swing to hit the baseball for distance. Very few hitters hit the ball harder as the launch angle increases; however, Votto’s average fly-ball velocity (92.3 mph) exceeds his average liner velocity (90.1 mph), which exceeds his average grounder velocity (79.4 mph). The vast majority of hitters hit their liners hardest of all. Most of the players with such a profile are nearing the end of their productive phase.

Votto’s average overall velocity of 87.3 mph isn’t eye-catching at all; from 2008 to -13, his overall average was over a full STD above league average, but by last season it had settled into the average range. His liner rate has plunged this year. He has simply been no longer content to be the perfect hitter and instead focus on dropping more homers over the short pull-side porch. Hank Aaron, 1971, all over again.

Nightmarez
03-25-2018, 10:08 AM
Couple fangraphs articles I've read now. Here's an excerpt

You want to talk “harvesting,” this is your guy. He has totally sold out his liner and grounder authority, focusing on more of an uppercut swing to hit the baseball for distance. Very few hitters hit the ball harder as the launch angle increases; however, Votto’s average fly-ball velocity (92.3 mph) exceeds his average liner velocity (90.1 mph), which exceeds his average grounder velocity (79.4 mph). The vast majority of hitters hit their liners hardest of all. Most of the players with such a profile are nearing the end of their productive phase.

Votto’s average overall velocity of 87.3 mph isn’t eye-catching at all; from 2008 to -13, his overall average was over a full STD above league average, but by last season it had settled into the average range. His liner rate has plunged this year. He has simply been no longer content to be the perfect hitter and instead focus on dropping more homers over the short pull-side porch. Hank Aaron, 1971, all over again.

He also cut his K% to 11%.

Spencer 555
03-25-2018, 11:47 AM
Ya that was a dramatic shift. But to me it signals a significant shift in approach, likely due to the fact that Votto is proactively trying to stay ahead of the age curve.

I'll be watching his situation carefully. Could just be drastically changing his approach because of the fly ball revolution lol.

Sanosuke
03-25-2018, 09:35 PM
Albies is so good.

Nightmarez
03-27-2018, 04:56 PM
Albies is so good.


Did you have any problems running OOTP 19? I haven't been able to get it to boot up yet.

Sanosuke
04-02-2018, 01:17 PM
nope! OOTP 19 has been running great for me