Over the Mound

It came down to the last sim, hell it even made it to the last series and to even take it one step further after Tri-City swept the Gothams and Hillsborough took three of four from Lowell, they would split the first two games of their series(including a 13 inning win in game 1 for Hillsborough after a 9th inning come back) leaving it all on the line for game #162.  It was simple, either Hillsborough wins to force a playoff game or they go home.  As it turns out, they went home.  And for some reason, which is beyond me, the douche who manages my team decided to sit Sin-young Pak.  I guess he was tired and since it was the last game, he could not play one more game.  Not that it really mattered, we lost 8-3 anyway.   But putting all that aside, it was the most fun I’ve ever had in a pennant race and I really would like to congratulate Brian who has done  a tremendous job turning the disaster that was known as Tri-City into a winner in a pretty short amount of time.   I think he’s built himself a pretty good team and think this is definitely not the last we’ll see of Tri-City, lets hope its not the last we’ll see of Hillsborough either.

As it turns out, the Duffy division was not quite as exciting.  Besides going 1 and 3 their first four games of the series, Bryan was up 2 games to go with three to go.  That is where their excitement ended tho, they went on to win the next three and never gave Ruston or Portland a second look.  Congrats to Bryan for returning to the glory land.  Another job well done by Chris Johnson.  Will we see a repeat in the World Series or can Tri-City and/or Bryan upset the favorites?

I know it was mentioned on the boards, but I would really like to take this time out to recognize Injury_Log for what he’s done in Guelph.  In his short time at the helm of that organization, he turned a team that lost 100 games two years ago and won 88 this year.  That’s a job well done if you ask me.  Would be interesting to pick Manager of the Year in both leagues, wouldn’t it?

Any thoughts or comments on your seasons?  How did your team do compared to how you expected them to do?  How about your players, anyone with a break out year or a disappointing year?  Share your stories, it would be great to read over the holiday weekend!

Just a note, the post season starts tomorrow and will conclude on Monday morning.

OK, I’ve updated the off season schedule and we now have off on Saturday and Sunday.  That may change, if the two teams who are in the World Series are around, and would like me to sim over the weekend I can sim it sooner.  I will release a final OOTP 9 file with the WS Results when it is over.  If the World Series is over sooner, I will release an OOTP:X file sooner, but we will not have the first maintenance sim any sooner then listed on the schedule.

The schedule is pretty much set now, we have alot of maintenance time to make sure everyone gets the hang of the game.  We will not be rushing things as I stated and I will be here to support everyone as I we go along.   I will continue to update the schedule and post here when we know the exact dates Arby has to be done and such, so make sure to check back often.

Any questions?

And so with only one sim to go, only a mear 1/2 a game seperates Hillsborough from Tri-City in the Heinhsohn Division.  Hillsborough faltered against the Gothams again, the Gothams are now 9-6 against Hillsborough this year, going 1-2 against them this season.  But would bounce back and sweep Detroit three games, which they knew any other option may leave them out in the cold.  Tri-City came out and took two of three from Detroit, but so the walls come tumbling down as they were swept by the team with the worst record in the league, the Providence Reds.  It was everything Hillsborough needed to keep their dreams alive. With a stop in for four games in Lowell for Hillsborough and three games at New York for Tri-City, it will all come down to three games in Tri-City that will eventually determine which one of these teams will fulfill their dream of making it to the post season for the very first time.

I was going to do a write up on the Duffy Division, but the HTML is processing and I can’t get to it yet.  I will try and come back and edit it in, but I’m going out in a bit and to the Yankee game tonight, so I’m not sure I will have the time. But I will definitely try!

I have posted a temporary off season schedule.  I have three, 1 week maintenance scheduled.  Gonna go a bit slower this time around with the conversion and all.  Just want to make sure everyone is on the same page and has a clue as to what is going on. I may have to alter the schedule slightly, to base it around arbitration.  I believe you can make your arbitration offers right after the WS is over in OOTP:X, but I’m not sure if I have to stop it then?  Nutlaw???

Either way, we won’t rush this off season and we’ll make sure everyone has adaquate time to do what needs to get done.  Any last minute OOTP:X questions, now would be the time to speak.

The sim is done and posted!  Two races still going very strong… Here is a quick rundown on the Heinhsohn and Duffy divisions:

The Heinhsohn Division: Tri-City put an end to their recent woes by going 5 & 2 by sweeping Boston and splitting a four game set with Woodstock.  Hillsborough’s momentum hit a lull after going 3-4 by losing two of three to Pittsburgh and splitting a four game set with Asheville.  Lowell dropped to eight and a half out after going 3 & 5 against Brooklyn & Schenectady, all but eliminating them from the race, unless of course we see a gigantic collapse of the 2007 & 2008 New York Mets. And even if that happens, Lowell would have to surpass two teams, not just one.  Hillsborough only trails by two games in the loss column.  Tri-City has twelve games remaining this season, all three game sets and three out of the four against teams under .500 starting with Detroit and Providence next sim and New York & Hillsborough the following sim.  Hillsborough has thirteen games left, including two three game series against teams below .500 next sim including New York & Detroit.  However, the last they will face Lowell for a four game set and cap it off with a three game set at Tri-City.  Who would of ever imagined back in April that  a three game series between Hillsborough & Tri-City could mean the entire season for these two teams.  To top it off, this battle has a very significant meaning for both teams as one of them will taste post season baseball for the first time and the other will be home once again in October.

The Duffy Division:  The once mighty Bryan Bombers are once again ready for a run in the Duffy Division after a run by the Portland Beavers.  Bryan currently holds a 2 1/2 game lead over the Ruston Rabbits and 5 1/2 over the Beavers who are not quite ready to call it a season just yet.  Bryan has 13 games left, including a three game set in Ruston this up and coming sim.  Their three remainding series are against teams who are all under .500.  Ruston has their work cut out for them as they look to close the gap this up and coming sim as they have a three game set with Portland before Bryan makes their trip in for the above mention series.  The following sim Ruston will face Toronto and Helena, both of whom are under .500 teams. Portland, who has an outside shot at the division will start their final two weeks as they host Ruston for three but then they also face three teams below .500 in three game sets including Helena, Evansville and the Mexicans.

At this time I would like to congratulate both Schenectady and Omaha who have won their divisions. This is the 5th consecutive season Schenectady has won their division, while Omaha has now done it for the past two seasons and third time overall.  Pretty nice for Omaha considering they have only been in the league for eight seasons and there are teams who have been around since the begining that have yet to make the post season.

I would also like to point out the Raht Division. Although Schenectady has won their division by a very comfortable margin, the other teams should not go unmentioned.  Pittsburgh, Woodstock, Asheville and Boston look to all finish above the .500 mark.  Makes one wonder, how long will Schenectady be able to hold their dominance on the rest of the division?

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please let me know.  Good feedback and enjoyment only can lead to making me do it again, lol.

OK, its time for the league to put it to a vote.   Of course, you can continue to trade for the up and coming draft, but we will not allow pick trading beyond that, if this rule is passed.   So either please vote for Full Compensation or do not vote(OK, just kidding on the last part.)

Two tight races and two divisions wrapped up with just a little more than half a month to go.

Wow, things are really getting interesting in the Heinhsohn Division.   Tri-City has now dropped 5 in a row closing the gap between them and Hillsborough to only 2 games!!! Not to mention, Lowell has taken every advantage of this by bringing themselves to within 5 1/2 games.  Hillsborough had a huge opportunity here, but only managed to go 3-4 this sim, as they faced Lowell(2-1) but lost 3 of 4 to Schenectady.  What a race, three teams, and only one will be rewarded by making it to the post season.  Does it get any better then this?

Sim is done and well, well, well, the race is back on in the Heinhsohn Division after the Hillsborough Highlanders did everything they had to by sweeping Tri-City and leaving them in the dumpster back in the “Valley”.  They now only sport a 3 game lead in the division and the month of September is looking fun again.

Sim is done and posted! Remember, another one will follow tomorrow