Season 23 Wrap Up - Dover completes the three-peat

Dover Diamond Dogs (NL) wylie715 View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Dover takes it all once again in Season 23!

Dover is your Season 23 Cobbfather champion, becoming the first team in World history to win three consecutive titles.  Three other teams had won back-to-back titles, but none could complete the three-peat until now.  It wasn't an easy road for Dover to the World Series, as they fell behind Pittsburgh 2-1 in the Divsional Series and were down 2-0 to Florida in the NLCS.   Once they got to the main event, they breezed through, sweeping Charlotte 4-0 to take the crown.  Charlotte was coming off an incredibly tough battle with #1 Atlanta in the ALCS, squeezing out a close 4-3 win.  They just did not have much left after that, but it was a great season for them nonetheless, as the franchise was making its first postseason appearance since Season 14. 

An interesting element to the Dover story is, of course, that they switched owners in the offseason when jiml60 retired.  wylie715 stepped in, and kept the success going, despite losing a key free agent or two in the offseason.  This happened to be wylie's first HBD title, so a hearty congrats to him indeed. 

Thanks to all for making Season 23 a great one, don't forget to renew your teams, and we'll be back soon for Season 24 after a hopefully quick rollover!

Season 23 Award Winners

With the World Series going on, it also means Awards time, so let's look at who took home the hardware in Season 23!

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
American League - Albert Cruz, Pawtucket - .322 AVG 51 HR 139 RBI
Cruz won the AL MVP in a blowout, with a tremendous season that saw him league the lead in Slugging and OPS, while finishing top 3 in the triple crown categories.  This is his 2nd consecutive MVP award, a very impressive feat for the 23 year old.  No player in Cobbfather history has won 3 MVP awards, much less three in a row, so it looks like Cruz could be the first on both counts. 

National League - Willie Cerda, Little Rock - .323 AVG 61 HR 138 RBI
Cerda won his first MVP with a dominant season where he led the NL in Home Runs, Runs, Slugging and OPS.  Cerda keeps the streak alive, becoming the 17th different NL MVP in the past 17 seasons.  Given what an incredible bat Cerda has, and the fact that he is only 25 years old, that streak could be ending very soon.    

CY YOUNG AWARD
American League - Ron Gross, Pawtucket - 18-3 2.68 ERA 171 K
Gross took the Cy Young award in a year there wasn't a dominant AL pitcher, but several very good ones, making  Pawtucket the home of both the MVP and Cy Young winner.  Gross's 18-3 record and very good ERA is what likely stood out to voters.   This was his first Cy Young win. 

National League - Don Monahan, Dover - 20-2 2.07 ERA 241 K
Unlike the AL, the NL did have a dominant pitcher, making the Cy Young voting a no-brainer.  On top of winning the pitching triple crown, Monahan also led the league in Innings Pitched and Quality Starts.  Monahan has compiled a ridiculous 93-13 record in 4 and a half seasons with Dover.  This is his 2nd Cy Young win, also taking the award in Season 20.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
American League - Gregory Evans, Trenton - 13-9 2.50 ERA 134 K
Evans impressed with a stellar rookie campaign for Trenton to take home the AL Rookie of the Year award.  Evans looks legit, and should be a future contender for the Cy Young award.  He won't strike out a ton of guys, but has a very crafty arsenal that should make him elite for seasons to come. 

National League - Lefty Leverton, Buffalo - 17-7 3.02 ERA 171 K
Leverton was a workhorse for Buffalo, posting great stats in route to capturing the NL Rookie of the Year title.  Leverton should be able to throw a ton of quality innings for many seasons to come.  He might not quite be elite, but he will be a solid workhorse and a valuable asset to any rotation.

FIREMAN OF THE YEAR
American League - Gus Masaoka, Atlanta - 3.20 ERA 48 SV, 1st win
National League - Will Ogden, Dover - 3.10 ERA 45 SV, 1st win

Silver Slugger Awards
American League

DH	Crash Meacham	Atlanta	2nd
C	Michael Minor	Pawtucket	1st
1B	Albert Cruz	Pawtucket	2nd
2B	Philip Vasquez	San Francisco	1st
3B	Brooks Gose	Trenton	2nd
SS	James Dillard	Charlotte	2nd
LF	Neifi Gandarillas	Louisville	1st
CF	Joshua Hendrick	San Juan	1st
RF	Vladimir Troncoso	San Juan	1st

National League

P	Daniel Haselman	Little Rock	1st
C	Santiago Arroyo	Buffalo	1st
1B	Greg Riley	Texas	2nd
2B	Steve Hansell	Florida	1st
3B	Dustan Jackson	Houston	4th
SS	Gail Roberts	Texas	1st
LF	Willie Cerda	Little Rock	1st
CF	Gary Harvey	Florida	1st
RF	Carlos Trevino	Little Rock	2nd

Gold Glove Awards
American League

P	Kyle Gibson	Pawtucket	1st
C	Bob Tucker	New York	2nd
1B	Jose Tavarez	Albuquerque	1st
2B	Joe Foster	San Juan	3rd
3B	Benjamin Delcarmen	Rochester	5th
SS	Hector Charles	Rochester	1st
LF	Tomas Sanches	Colorado Springs	1st
CF	Ariel Espinoza	Charlotte	2nd
RF	Wilfredo Chavez	Trenton	2nd

National League 

P	Bryant Landrum	Florida	1st
C	Napoleon Mullin	Florida	1st
1B	Javier Perez	Buffalo	1st
2B	Ching-Lung Suzuki	Austin	1st
3B	Felipe Olivares	Salt Lake City	2nd
SS	Esteban James	Pittsburgh	10th
LF	Harry Amarista	Austin	1st
CF	Eli Espinosa	Texas	2nd
RF	Ryan Martin	Seattle	1st

Season 23 League Leaders

With the regular season complete for Season 23, let's take a look at those who achieved league leader status this season!

OFFENSE
American League
In the AL, three players led multiple categories. Eugene Brantley of Tampa Bay took home the batting title (.325) and led the league in hits (195).  Boston's Kendry Lunar took home the Home Run (54) and RBI (139) titles. Albert Cruz of Pawtucket finished tops in Slugging (.655) and OPS (1.072).  He also had near misses finishing 3rd in batting average and 2nd in Home Runs and RBI, making him a leading contender for MVP.  Here are your AL Offensive League Leaders!

Batting Average	Eugene Brantley	Tampa Bay	.325
Home Runs	Kendry Lunar	Boston	54
RBI	Kendry Lunar	Boston	144
Stolen Bases	Jose Tavarez	Albuquerque	85
Hits	Eugene Brantley	Tampa Bay	195
Runs	Vern Connelly	Louisville	147
OBP	Joey Ryan	Louisville	.419
SLG	Albert Cruz	Pawtucket	.655
OPS	Albert Cruz	Pawtucket	1.072

National League
Two players dominated the NL offensive categories this season.  Greg Riley of Texas led the NL in Batting Average (.345), RBI (144) and Hits (217).  He just missed the triple crown coming in 2nd in Home Runs with 57.  The player who finished first in Home Runs (62) was Willie Cerda of Little Rock who also led the NL in Runs (123), Slugging (.709) and OPS (1.106).  His OPS mark was the 5th highest in Cobbfather history.  Needless to say, it's probably between these two guys for MVP.  Here are the rest of the NL Offensive Leaders

Batting Average	Greg Riley	Texas	.345
Home Runs	Willie Cerda	Little Rock	62
RBI	Greg Riley	Texas	144
Stolen Bases	Yoshinori Ni	Texas	65
Hits	Greg Riley	Texas	217
Runs	Willie Cerda	Little Rock	123
OBP	Javier Perez	Buffalo	.416
SLG	Willie Cerda	Little Rock	.709
OPS	Willie Cerda	Little Rock	1.106

PITCHING
American League
The only multiple category leader in AL pitching was Charlotte's Terry Cameron who led the AL in Innings Pitched (239), Quality Starts (26) and Complete Games (5). Francisco Aramboles of Atlanta gets a mention for tying the 3rd highest strikeout total in Cobbfather history with 246.  Here are the rest of the pitching leaders in the AL.

ERA	Dioner Ontiveros	Charlotte	2.30
Wins	Alex Satou	Pawtucket	18
	Ron Gross	Pawtucket	18
	Thomas Hutchinson	Atlanta	18
Strikeouts	Francisco Aramboles	Atlanta	246
Saves	Gus Masaoka	Atlanta	48
WHIP	Gregory Evans	Trenton	1.02
Innings Pitched	Terry Cameron	Charlotte	239.0
Quality Starts	Terry Cameron	Charlotte	26
Complete Games	Terry Cameron	Charlotte	5
Shutouts	4 Tied		2

National League
For Season 23, this section belongs to Don Monahan of Dover.  He won the pitching triple crown in the NL by leading the league in ERA (2.07), Wins (20), and Strikeouts (241).  He also led the NL in Innings Pitched (247.1) and set a new all-time Cobbfather record for Quality Starts with 31.  I think this guy may deserve some consideration for the Cy Young Award.  Here is the full list of NL Pitching leaders.

ERA	Don Monahan	Dover	2.07
Wins	Don Monahan	Dover	20
Strikeouts	Don Monahan	Dover	241
Saves	Will Ogden	Dover	45
WHIP	Felipe Chantres	Florida	1.00
Innings Pitched	Don Monahan	Dover	247.1
Quality Starts	Don Monahan	Dover	31
Complete Games	4 Tied		5
Shutouts	Matt Stokes	Ottawa	3

Congratulations to all that made the League Leaders list this season!