Draft Blog

Use this post to follow the 2009 draft. With the first selection, the Florida Penguins selected Conn Barbarian, son of the greatest homerun hitter in league history.

Toronto drafts next, followed by Cleveland, Orlando, St. Louis, and Texas. Soon, the entire draft order will be ready to post.

Note: All players will accept the standard rookie deal or standard major league contract. Except Takeo Miura, who will require a 3 year, 6 million dollar deal, after which he becomes an unrestricted free agent.

Tools:

Draft Order

Draft

Honda resigns in Chicago

The Chicago Winds resigned free agent Godzuki Honda to a 3 year, 24 million dollar contract. Honda had been the team's shortstop for the last few seasons, but with a decline in range he will move to second base for 2009. The team may look to sign a veteran shortstop, or promote prospect Max Rosas, a 2nd round pick last season.

Lou Zamuda, 41, has decided to play another season with the Utes, and signed a 1 year deal for 9 million. Bubba Lewis resigns with Miami for 8 million, the same amount he made last year.

Brad has chosen not to pursue a top free agent at first base, instead showing loyalty to Manfred Mueller. Mueller hit a disappointing .238 with 18 homers and 69 RBI last year, but excels defensively and has the most feared first base throwing arm of his generation. Mueller will get 44 million over the next 4 years.

Sources tell me the Florida Penguins are close to a deal to extend the contract of lefthanded starter George White, but remain far apart on his brother, center fielder Gerald White Jr., who is seeking to become one of the highest paid players in the game.

A New Barbarian Legacy?

Today, Kenny's team, the Florida Penguins made Conn Barbarian the #1 overall pick. Being Kenny, Kenny knew first hand that there was much debate within Kenny's beloved Penguins organization between GM Yoda and team President, Dan Patrick on who to select. In the end Patrick conceded to his wise GM who alledgedly spoke with Hall of Famer, Eddie to consult on the manchild. While the Penguins have a pitching rich tradition and Patrick really wanted to continue that with Tyler, Yoda felt Tyler was ordinary. "Strong in the force, he is not." Apparently the Eddie consultation went something like this:

"Barbarian?"
"Mmmmmm....him."

Eddie and Yoda are creatures of few words.

And Kenny? What does Kenny think? Kenny thinks, for all the power and for all the offensive skills the newest Penguin brings to the table, it is his baserunning that Kenny likes the most. It is clear, Conn will never be the fastest Penguin, but he has a good eye for getting on and stealing a base without getting caught. Conn reminds Kenny of a mix between his father and an old teammate of Kenny's...Jerry Tugwell.

Free Agent Rumors

Once again, the World Champion New York Cobra will be leading the way in spending. They might top a 200 million payroll next season if Brad decides he wants to grab a few more headline players. Surprisingly though, the Florida Penguins have saved diligently and could possibly have as much to spend this offseason as Brad, with both teams rumored to have 60 million available. Look for Gerald White Jr. and his brother George to sign longterm contracts.

Sam Robinson dropped to 24 homers this past season, breaking a string of 5 years in a row with 30 or more. He has announced a desire to play the outfield next season, which will allow him to concentrate more on his hitting. As a 30/30 player, Sam could be in line for a huge contract as he may be the best all around outfielder on the market.

Bay Area initially balked at paying a 9.5 million arbitration award to outfielder Jason Davenport, but when they saw how much money teams have this year, and how few players are there to spend it on, they quickly changed their minds. Texas is in a similar situation with lefthander Mike Cottrell. They will not allow him to leave as a free agent, but may attempt to sign him to a longterm deal.

Orlando's Dionysus Bernsen will play first base next year to make room for top prospect Terrence Hatcher. Bernsen has reportedly bulked up, and may become a power threat to go along with his walks.

Game Six

Back in New York, this game will match Miami's Dave Lefevre against New York's Suzuki MazdaHonda. In the first, Miami threatens with a Quilvio Gato leadoff double, and then a bunt single from Brian Kaat. MazdaHonda is up to the challenge, striking out Damon Nkik, walking Bubba Lewis to load the bases, and then getting Clyde Frogg to pop-up to 2nd, and then Vince Lewis hitting into the force play to end the inning.

Lefevre has a much easier time in the first, getting the 1-2-3 inning. In the bottom of the 3rd, New York strikes first, getting a Paul Hagan walk, a MazdaHonda sac-bunt, a Ricky Buckley ground out, and then a Keith Lee 2-out single to take a 1-0 lead. Both pitcher cruised through the next few innings. In the bottom of the 6th, Lefevre gets the 1-2-3 inning. He will be pinch-hit for in the 7th, and leaves with a nice effort of 6-3-1-1-3-2, but he stands to lose the game unless Miami can score some runs.

In the 7th, Eli Moreno leads off with a single and is pinch-run for with Junior Spidey. Concepcion strikes out, and then pinch-hitter Matt McCoy singles. Quilvio Gato then hits into the 4-6-3 double play to end the inning.

With MazdaHonda batting in the 7th, he leaves the game with a line of 7-6-0-0-3-7 and stands to win the game if New York holds the lead. With 1 out in the bottom of the 7th, Jerrod Smith takes a walk from Tim Sullivan. Dallas Knight Jr. pinch-runs and steals 2nd base. Miami relieves Sullivan for Jay Lansing. Tim Griffin then pinch-hits and is hit by the pitch. Griffin is injured and has to leave the game, being replaced at 3B with Lenny Backman.

Now, Miami cuts to the chase and goes to Bob Belardi in this critical situation. Leon Wolf then pinch-hits for MazdaHonda and draws the walk to load the bases. With 1-out and the bases loaded, Eddie tells Ricky Buckley to lay down the suicide squeeze. Buckley flails at the Belardi offering, and Dallas Knight Jr. is a dead-duck at home plate. After settling back in, Buckley singles to right, scoring Backman. Leon Wolf also tries to score, but is gunned at the plate by Vince Lewis.

To the 8th, and New York leads the game 2-0, and is 6 outs away from their 3rd World Championship. With 3 Miami left-handed batters due up for Miami, New York goes to Bill Wright. Brian Kaat flys out to left...5 outs to go. Then Damon Nkik and Vince Lewis hit back to back singles to bring the go-ahead run to the plate in the form of Clyde Frogg.

New York goes to the bullpen and everyone assumes it will be Jaret Benser, as he is the only one warming up in the bullpen. However, secretly warming up in the New York club house is Roger Chillingworth. He informs Eddie and Brad that he is available if needed, and wants to make one more appearance in front of the New York crowd.

Eddie is torn. On the one hand, Benser is rested and ready to go, and has closed out 2-inning saves before. On the other hand, he does not want to pitch Benser two innings and lose the game and not have him available for Game 7. In the end, he decides that he will go with Roger, and hold Benser back for the 9th.

Roger comes in, the New York crowd is thundering, and Clyde Frogg hits into a 4-6-3 double-play to end the inning. 1 pitch, 2 outs, not too bad for the ancient Roger Chillingworth.

In the bottom of the 8th, Manfred Mueller leads off with a walk against Belardi. Chad White follows with single. Keith Lee is then instructed to lay one down, and does so successfully. With 1 out and runners at 2nd and 3rd, Brett Solo is intentionally walked to load the bases, and setup the force at any base. Playing back for the DP, Justin Lewis grounds one to third. Clyde Frogg fields it, steps on third for the out, but Manfred Mueller is able to cross the plate with the 3rd run.

Miami then pulls Belardi for Roughton, to setup the lefty vs. lefty matchup against Dallas Knight Jr. Knight lines one to gap in left, but Damon Nkik is there to make a fine running catch. We go to the 9th, New York leads 3-0 and is 3 outs away from the title.

With Jaret Benser ready to go, Eddie decides to let Roger try to finish the game. Vince Lewis flys out to deep center, 1 out. Backup catcher Darren Jernigan grounds a slow roller down the first base line...and runs into his own batted ball! The ump is on the case, and calls Jernigan out.

Miami, down to their final out, sends SS Concepcion to the plate. Concepcion hits a hard grounder to third. Backman, who normally plays 2B, is able to get in front of the ball, but can't field it cleanly. He rushes his throw to first, and the throw is wild, leading to the one-base error. Miami then pinch-hits for Roughton with Ronald Young...heres the play:

"* R. Young facing R. Chillingworth, T 9th, 2 Outs, Runner on 1st, Behind 0-3
Concepcion takes a good lead ... he brings it home ... Young pops it up behind the plate
Lewis moves under it ... and he's got it ... and that's the final out of the game"

New York wins the game 3-0 and claims their 3rd World Championship, with 2 of the titles coming against this Miami team the last 3 years. Roger gets the final 5 outs to record the save, quite an interesting way to end your career, closing out the World Championship in front of your home crowd. Couple that with his Cy Young award season, and it might be the best farewell in the history of the game...or at least since Joe Thomas' walk-off grand slam in Game 7 2 years ago!

Game Five

Either way, this will be the last game played in Miami this season, and it will also be the last game that New York will have to use the DH rule. For this game, Eddie decides to use Dallas Knight Jr. to start the game in left-field, to provide better defense and speed for the whole game, rather than use Leon Wolf for his slightly better bat, but inferior legs. Its also a rematch of Game 1 starters, Stuart Coppolla and Bill Greene.

In the first inning, Miami takes the 1-0 lead as Quilvio Gato leads off with a double, and scores on a 2-out error by left-fielder Dallas Knight Jr. In the 2nd, New York gets 2 runs on a double from Chad White, Manfred Mueller hitting into an error by the shortstop, and then singles by Dallas Knight Jr. and Justin Lewis.

The score remains 2-1 until the bottom of the 5th. Ronald Young and Clyde Frogg lead off with singles, and score on a 2-run triple by Eli Moreno. Pinch-hitter Junior Spidey hits a sac-fly to give Miami a 4-2 lead. In the 6th, Miami scores another 3 runs on and RBI double from Clyde Frogg, a sac-fly from Eli Moreno, and then a double from Jim Concepcion.

Coppolla is chased after allowing all the runs, and finishes 5.2-7-7-6-2-4. Neither team scores again, as Bob Belardi closes out the 9th. Bill Greene goes 7.2-7-2-0-2-3 for the win.

Miami wins Game 5 7-2, and cuts the series lead to 3-2. Can they pull off the impossible? We'll travel to New York for Game 6 to find out.

Game Four

Facing elimination, Miami decides to pitch flamethrowing rookie Tim Sullivan (who can be wild at times) against future Hall of Famer Roger Chillingworth. The game will likely be Roger Chillingworth's last game as he has announced that he will retire at the end of the year.

In the first, New York takes a 2-0 lead on RBI singles by Keith Lee and Tim Griffin. In the 3rd, Miami gets 1 back on a solo homerun from SS Brandon Cohen. In the 4th, New York adds a run on a Leon Wolf RBI double. Paul Hagan follows up the double with a single, and Leon Wolf is sent home trying to extend the lead. Miami LF Damon Nkik has other ideas as he throws wolf out at the plate to end the inning, with New York leading 3-1.

In the bottom of the 4th, Miami ties the game with doubles from Matt McCoy, Clyde Frogg, and then an RBI single by Eli Moreno. In the 5th, the wheels come off on Tim Sullivan. Facing the top of the New York order, he walks Ricky Buckley and Jason Foster to start the inning. Keith Lee then hits an RBI single. After a Brett Solo ground out sending the runners to 2nd and 3rd, Chad White connects for a 2-run single. The call goes to the bullpen, and Andy Roughton gets them out of the jam. But the damage is done, New York leads 6-3 and have knocked out the Miami starter Tim Sullivan, who goes 4.1-7-6-4-4-5.

The next few innings are fairly quiet, but Miami adds a run in the 6th, on a Bubba Lewis solo homerun. After finishing the 6th, Roger Chillingworth tips his hat to the crowd, as he will be relieved from the game in the next inning. Chillingworth leaves with a 6-4 lead, is the pitcher of record, and goes 6-6-4-4-1-7. Not a great game, but he stands to be the winning pitcher in the World Series clincher to end his storied career.

Fritz Jones and Andy Roughton breeze through the 7th for each team. In the 8th, Chad White connects for a solo homerun off Jay Lansing to extend the lead to 7-4. In the bottom of the 8th, New York goes to the left-handed reliever Bill Wright as Miami will send 2 lefties to the plate. Brian Kaat leads off with a single, and then Damon Nkik connects for a homerun to make the game 7-6. New York then goes to Jaret Benser with 6 outs to go and a 1-run lead to protect. In hindsight, perhaps New York should have gone straight to their bullpen ace to start the inning, if they intend to pitch him 2 innings.

In the 9th, Bob Belardi comes in for Miami, and after an error on the shortstop, gets the next 2 hitters out. Keith Lee then works a walk, bringing up last years MVP Brett Solo. Solo is induced to pop-out to the catcher to end the inning.

Going to the bottom of the 9th, Jaret Benser will be facing the 8 & 9 hitters to start the inning. Eli Moreno leads off with a solo homerun, and the game is tied. The Miami crowd is going wild. SS Concepcion then beats out an infield single. With lefties due up again, and Benser not showing his dominant stuff, New York goes to the bullpen in favor of Rudiger Rocker.

Quilvio Gato sacrifices Concepcion to 2nd. Brian Katt then pops out to third. Damon Nkik, last innings hero, then produces a single to win the game, and extend Miami's season.

Miami wins the game 8-7. Clearly, part of New York's decision to pull Benser in the 9th was that if they were going to lose the game (and it didn't look good), they didn't want to tire out Benser and prevent him from pitching in game 5.

Game Three

The series shifts to Miami, where the DH rule will be in effect. New York sends out ace pitcher Pedro Lewis to face Miami's Damon Collins. With the DH rule, New York's decision to sign former batting champ Leon Wolf to a contract comes full circle. During the regular season, Wolf played part-time at LF/1B, but was primarily a pinch-hitter, due to his poor defensive skills. Since he hit so poorly on the year, his playing time suffered as a result.

Nonetheless, New York elects to play Wolf in the game. However, they shift Jason Foster to the DH spot, since he is terrible on defense too. Wolf will play LF, but this move will allow them to substitute for defense late in the game, and still keep Jason Foster's bat in the lineup. Foster will bat 2nd, Wolf will bat 8th.

To the action...in the 2nd inning, the bottom of New York's lineup comes through, with 2 runs, on doubles from Tim Griffin, Leon Wolf, and then a single by Justin Lewis. The score remains 2-0 into the 5th, as Pedro Lewis is also working on a no-hitter. That ends in the 5th, when fellow jawa Vince Lewis hits a double off Pedro. Unfortunately for Miami, the 2-out double is in vain as Lewis is stranded at 2nd base.

In the 7th, both teams get a run with Ricky Buckley getting the RBI single to plate Manfred Mueller, and then Matt McCoy connecting for a leadoff homer off Pedro in the bottom of the inning. In the 9th, Dallas Knight (substituting for Leon Wolf for defense) hits a double and later scores New York's 4th run on a Justin Lewis single.

In the bottom of the 9th, New York elects to stick with Pedro Lewis who strikes out McCoy, Bubba Lewis, and Clyde Frogg to end the game.

New York wins the game 4-1, and leads the series 3-0. Pedro goes 9-5-1-1-2-9 for the complete game win, while Damon Collins goes 7-8-3-2-1-3 and takes the loss.