Saturday, November 14, 2015

Season 28 Wrap Up - Texas is Your Champion!

Texas
Texas Giddy Ups (AL)
rawdk27
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Texas Survives Several Elimination Games to Win the Title!

Texas has taken the World Series title in Season 28 in a hard fought series with an up-an-coming Seattle squad.  After a first round sweep of Chicago, it was a constant uphill battle for Texas, falling down 3-0 vs. rival Atlanta in the ALCS, and 3-1 vs. Seattle in the World Series.  When facing elimination, Texas went 7-0 this postseason, reminiscent of the 2004 Boston Red Sox.  The Texas pitching staff hit some rough spots during the playoffs, posting a 4.85 team ERA, but they managed to step it up when it counted.  Their top-rated offense wasn't quite as impressive as in the regular season, but managed to belt 25 homers in 17 games, and were also efficient on the basepaths stealing 16 bases in 20 attempts.  This is rawdk's 4th Cobbfather title, however it's his first since Season 8!

It was also a fantastic postseason run for NL Champ Seattle, winning their first two series in 4 games, and then taking a six game battle against strong favorite Buffalo in the NLCS.  They pushed Texas to their limit in the World Series taking them to 7 games, but it seemed it was just Texas' postseason for big series comebacks.  Nonetheless, a well-earned congrats goes to curtiswt on a great postseason run, it seems they have a solid core of players that should be strong for the next several seasons to come.

Thanks to everyone for making it a great Season 28, see you back for Season 29 after a hopefully quick rollover!

Friday, November 13, 2015

Season 28 Award Winners

With the World Series under way, that means the Award Winners were announced for Season 28.  Let's see who took home the hardware!

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
American League - Vladimir Troncoso, Texas - .314 AVG 34 HR 141 RBI 12 SB
The offensive leader of the AL World Series representative, Texas, takes home the MVP by a fairly substantial margin.  Troncoso, who started for the AL All-Star team in RF, had a tremendous season at the plate as a key part of Cobbfather's top offense.  This is the 29 year-old's first MVP win.  He's flourished in his four seasons in Texas, having at least 34 HR and 130 RBI each of those seasons.

National League - Dorian Whitaker, Seattle - .280 AVG 51 HR 125 RBI 25 SB
The NL MVP is also from a World Series representative, as Whitaker crushed an NL leading 51 homers in a tough park for hitters and also swiped 25 bags.  Whitaker didn't make the All-Star team but came on to win Player of the Week twice towards the end of the season.  The 25 year-old looks like he will be the leader of the Seattle offense for seasons to come.  It was Whitaker's first MVP win.

CY YOUNG AWARD
American League - Francisco Aramboles, Atlanta - 22-6 2.13 ERA 253 K
This was pretty much a no-brainer, as Aramboles led the AL in pretty much every pitching category.  Fired up by a preseason article rating him the #7 pitcher in Cobbfather, he used that motivation to put together a season for the ages.  This is his 3rd Cy Young win, and now holds the top 5 single season strikeout marks in Cobbfather history.  He is a sure-fire Hall of Famer, the question now is can he go down as the greatest pitcher ever in Cobbfather.

National League - Don Monahan, Las Vegas - 17-7 2.31 ERA 175 K
In an extremely close race, it was Monahan who came out with the NL Cy Young Award, a win that gives him his 4th Cy Young, a feat only accomplished by 3 other pitchers in Cobbfather history.  Monahan had a solid season leading the NL in WHIP, tying for the lead in Complete Games and making his 7th All-Star team.  Even though he is 35, he has aged well and looks in good shape to shoot for #5 next season.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
American League - Co-Winners
Yeico Miranda, Durham - 2.59 ERA 29 SV
Ned Morris, New York - 7-3 2.12 ERA 101 K 5 SV
No one AL rookie stood out to the voters this season, resulting in an extremely tight race that saw two relievers end up as co-winners, one vote ahead of 3rd place.  Miranda had an outstanding season as Durham's closer, and should be one of the top relievers in the world for seasons to come.  Morris served in a setup role, putting up outstanding numbers.  Neither player's performance was a fluke, both should be tremendous relievers for seasons to come.

National League - Edinson Hernandez, Santa Fe - .305 AVG 37 HR 139 RBI 44 SB
The NL Rookie of the Year picture was much clearer, as Santa Fe's Hernandez won in a landslide.  Hernandez was an All-Star starter in his rookie campaign, a feat that is quite difficult to accomplish.  He took advantage of Santa Fe's hitter friendly park to put up great numbers and used his elite speed to wipe 44 bases.  He played in all 162 games, and actually finished 2nd in the MVP voting.  It appears this certainly won't be the last time we see Hernandez as an MVP finalist.

FIREMAN OF THE YEAR
American League - Antonio Ishida, Chicago - 2.37 ERA, 49 SV - 2nd win
National League - Chris Rivera, Dover - 2.93 ERA, 40 SV - 1st win

SILVER SLUGGER AWARDS
American League
Player Franchise
DH Albert Cruz Cincinnati 7th
C Santiago Arroyo St. Louis 2nd
1B Aurelio Lima Texas 1st
2B Vic Crowe Colorado Springs 3rd
3B Marcell Johnson Texas 1st
SS James Dillard Charlotte 7th
LF Shea Callaway Cheyenne 1st
CF Gary Harvey Colorado Springs 4th
RF Vin Gandarillas Chicago 3rd
National League
Player Franchise
P Vinny Parker Las Vegas 1st
C Benny Franco Hartford 3rd
1B Dorian Whitaker Seattle 1st
2B Crash Cepeda Florida 1st
3B Vic Castro Vancouver 2nd
SS Walter Bird Seattle 1st
LF Jim Hume Florida 2nd
CF Tony Mercado Las Vegas 2nd
RF Wiki Unamuno Santa Fe 2nd

GOLD GLOVE AWARDS
American League
Player Franchise
P Louis Markakis Charlotte 1st
C Jim Woods Cheyenne 2nd
1B Edgardo Rosa Durham 1st
2B Dizzy Hawkins Atlanta 1st
3B Alving Palmeiro Colorado Springs 3rd
SS Harry De La Rosa Colorado Springs 1st
LF Vinny Dickinson Atlanta 1st
CF Wilfredo Rincon Chicago 1st
RF Rubby Javier Boston 1st
National League
Player Franchise
P Geronimo Lopez Vancouver 1st
C Garry Dunston Houston 1st
1B Felipe Bennett Hartford 1st
2B Keith Smith Tacoma 1st
3B Joe Foster Las Vegas 5th
SS Wilfredo Javier Las Vegas 4th
LF Jim Hume Florida 1st
CF Ching-Lung Suzuki Nashville 2nd
RF Albert Pineda Florida 1st

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Season 28 League Leaders

With the playoffs in full swing, let's take a look back at the Season 28 League Leaders from the Regular Season!

OFFENSE
In the American League, Marcell Johnson of Texas won the batting title (.335) and also led the league in runs (133).  Teammate Aurelio Lima led the league in Slugging (.602) and OPS (1.004).

On the NL side, the leaderboard is dominated by Wiki Unamuno of Santa Fe (leader in Batting Average, Hits and Runs) and Willie Cerda of Buffalo (OBP, Slugging and OPS leader).

Here are the complete Offensive League Leaders!

American League
Batting Average Marcell Johnson Texas .325
Home Runs Thurman Hall Charleston 55
RBI Albert Cruz Cincinnati 144
Stolen Bases Shea Callaway Cheyenne 79
Hits Claude Hughes New York 197
Runs Marcell Johnson Texas 133
OBP Vic Crowe Colorado Springs .406
SLG Aurelio Lima Texas .602
OPS Aurelio Lima Texas 1.004
National League
Batting Average Wiki Unamuno Santa Fe .336
Home Runs Dorian Whitaker Seattle 51
RBI Edinson Hernandez Santa Fe 139
Stolen Bases Felipe Barrett Hartford 55
Hits Wiki Unamuno Santa Fe 205
Runs Wiki Unamuno Santa Fe 140
OBP Willie Cerda Buffalo .425
SLG Willie Cerda Buffalo .671
OPS Willie Cerda Buffalo 1.096

PITCHING
In the American League, it was a disappointing season for Atlanta's Francisco Aramboles, as he did not lead the AL in Saves.  Other than that, he held at least a share of the lead for every other major category (ERA, Wins, Strikeouts, WHIP, IP, QS, Shutout leader, CG co-leader).  His 253 strikeouts were 5th most all-time, and he now owns the top 5 single season strikeout marks.  His 30 quality starts tie him for 2nd all-time, becoming only the 5th player to reach 30 quality starts in a season all-time.  I think we have a favorite for the Cy Young here!

In the National League, there wasn't a single dominant pitcher like in the AL, but a few great seasons were had nonetheless. Chick Munson of Nashville led the league in ERA and strikeouts. Don Monahan of Las Vegas makes the leaders list once again, leading the NL in WHIP and was a co-leader in Complete Games.  Seattle's Albert Tapies also was a co-leader in Complete Games and led the NL in shutouts.

Here are the complete Pitching League Leaders!

American League
ERA Francisco Aramboles Atlanta 2.13
Wins Francisco Aramboles Atlanta 22
Strikeouts Francisco Aramboles Atlanta 253
Saves Antonio Ishida Chicago 47
WHIP Francisco Aramboles Atlanta 0.96
Innings Pitched Francisco Aramboles Atlanta 270.2
Quality Starts Francisco Aramboles Atlanta 30
Complete Games Francisco Aramboles Atlanta 7
Randall Washington  Texas 7
Steve Buckner Charlotte 7
Shutouts Francisco Aramboles Atlanta 3




National League
ERA Chick Munson Nashville 2.29
Wins Red Collins Florida 21
Strikeouts Chick Munson Nashville 224
Saves Rodrigo Ontiveros Las Vegas 44
WHIP Don Monahan Las Vegas 0.94
Innings Pitched Paulie Flynn Seattle 234.2
Quality Starts Douglas Banks Buffalo 27
Complete Games Albert Tapies Seattle 4
Carl Young Philadelphia 4
Don Monahan Las Vegas 4
Shutouts Albert Tapies Seattle 3

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Season 28 Final Power Rankings

The regular season has concluded in Cobbfather Season 28, so let's take a look at how all the teams finished in the Power Rankings.  Holding steady at #1 is Texas, sporting an incredible 117-45 record, including an unbelievable 34-6 in their last 40.   Atlanta still holds down the #2 spot with a fine season of their own, winning 112 games, while fellow 100 game winners Florida and Colorado Springs come in at 3 and 4 respectively, with Chicago rounding out the top 5.  Let's take a look at the biggest climbers and biggest falls since the last rankings!

Biggest Climbers: #7 Seattle (+10), #13 Philadelphia (+6), #10 St. Louis (+5)

Biggest Falls: #21 Hartford (-10), #23 Detroit (-8), #17 Santa Fe (-8), #4 Buffalo (-4)

Congrats to all the playoff teams, and good luck in what should be a great postseason battle.  Here are the complete final rankings!





Pitching
Offense
LAST 40

Team W L PREV Rank Chg Rank Chg W L
1 Texas 117 45 1 4 2 1 0 34 6
2 Atlanta  112 50 2 2 2 3 1 28 12
3 Florida 105 57 5 1 0 12 13 27 13
4 Colorado Springs 102 60 3 15 -2 2 0 24 16
5 Chicago 97 65 6 14 3 4 -1 24 16
6 Salem 92 70 10 16 2 8 2 26 14
7 Seattle  85 77 17 9 2 15 -2 23 17
8 Buffalo  94 68 4 5 -2 18 -4 20 20
9 New York 92 70 7 10 -2 11 -3 20 20
10 St. Louis 88 74 15 8 2 23 1 21 19
11 Charlotte  87 75 8 17 -1 10 -1 20 20
12 Las Vegas 86 76 13 6 -1 27 1 21 19
13 Philadelphia 82 80 19 11 3 20 1 24 16
14 Vancouver 82 80 18 12 -5 17 4 23 17
15 Dover 87 75 12 17 -6 14 4 21 19
16 Los Angeles 80 82 16 3 -1 30 1 21 19
17 Santa Fe 81 81 9 21 0 7 0 18 22
18 Houston 75 87 22 20 2 22 -3 24 16
19 Boston  74 88 20 24 2 9 2 20 20
20 Tacoma 77 85 23 7 1 29 0 20 20
21 Hartford 79 83 11 27 -2 5 -1 13 27
22 Salt Lake City 75 87 21 25 -1 13 1 19 21
23 Detroit 72 90 14 13 2 24 -12 14 26
24 Syracuse  69 93 24 26 4 16 0 18 22
25 Cincinnati 64 98 25 32 0 6 0 17 23
26 Cheyenne 70 92 26 22 -2 26 1 15 25
27 Nashville 66 96 28 23 0 28 -2 15 25
28 Charleston 63 99 32 31 0 18 3 19 21
29 Durham  66 96 27 30 -2 21 -2 14 26
30 Monterrey 56 106 29 29 0 25 -8 13 27
31 San Francisco 59 103 30 19 0 32 0 12 28
32 Iowa City 58 104 31 28 -1 31 -1 12 28