Great Feats (1E)

Apr-17: Howard Johnson (WPM) hits 3 HR and records 13 Total Bases

Apr-18: Cannonball Titcomb (P10) records an 86 Game Score and strikes out 12

Apr-18: Frank Robinson (NSD) drives in 6

Apr-19: Pete Browning (OFB) drives in 6

Apr-19: Tim Keefe (NSD) strikes out 12 in 7 innings

Apr-19: Kakadu scores 16 in a 16-10 victory over Downsouth

Also, Big Dan Brouthers is currently riding a 15 game hit streak for BDL.

All Time Great Team Competition - Seasons 2 and 3

I am too excited to stop simming, but, alas I must and we'll end with seasons 2 and 3 for now.

In season 2 the ATB IX Manetheren Red Eagles (Lou P) went 96-59 (155 game schedule) but were bounced from the playoffs in the first round. This opened the door for the La Chapelle Aux Saints Neanderthals of ATB XI (Justin P) to take home the title.

In season 3 the ATB XII DC Chips (Steve C) won 97 games but lost in the LCS to the ATB XII Lusitania Death Speakers (Mike). Interestingly, those Death Speakers had to get past the DC Chips of ATB X to be crowned season 3 champs.

The Top 10 Teams at the moment:

1) ATB XII Lusitania Death Speakers (Mike S)

2) ATB IX Manetheren Red Eagles (Lou P)

3) ATB VII Franlin Lakes Pill Poppers (Justin p)

4) ATB X DC Chips (Steve)

5) ATB XII Sonoran Black Diamonds (Justin P)

6) ATB XII DC Chips (Steve)

7) ATB IX CosaNostra Deliverators (Mike S)

8) ATB XII Dumai's Wells Oathbinders (Lou P)

9) ATB XI La Chap au Sts Neanderthals (Justin P)

10) ATB VII Discordia Low Men (Lou P)

In 3 seasons, 17 of the 32 teams have made the playoffs. Pretty cool, very balanced.

All Time Great Team Competition Begins

32 Teams have begun the 50-sim competition to be named the best team in ATB history. Season 1 is in the books, with the 88 win Lusitania Death Speakers of ATB XII (Mike S) taking home the world championship. With 91 regular season wins however, the DC Chips of ATB X (Steve C) start off #1 in the standings.

The standard set of league reports can be found here. And the overall standings here. Both are linked on the right as well.

A word about the standings. The winner of the competition will be decided by the team with the most regular season wins. However, bonus wins are added for a) making the playoffs, and b) winning the world series. Each playoff bound team receives 2 extra wins per appearance, and the world series winner gets an additional 2 wins.

I am still open to suggestion on this, but make it quick. I don't went to get more than a handful of sims in without finalizing the criteria for victory.

Power Alley - Week 1

Below are the Week 1 Power Alley standings. As you may recall, Power Alley rankings are a projection of the total wins for each team based upon current W-L record plus future expectations as derived by a Pythagorean Winning Percentage.

Taking Gold Country as an example:

• 11-3 current record equates to a .786 winning percentage
• 63 RF and 48 RA equates to a .633 pythagorean winning percentage
• These two are averaged, giving a 60/40 weight to the pythagorean percentage.
• The result is .694. This is 112 wins.
  

The Good, the Great, and the Ugly - Week 1

Players of the Week - Sim 1

Frank Robinson of the Newark Slam Dumps is the ATB Batter of the Week for Sim 1. Robinson was unstoppable, batting .339 with a .790 Slugging percentage thanks to a league leading 9 HR. He also scored 13 and drove in a league leading 24.





The young 24-year old reliever Joe Neale of the DC Chips narrowly edges Garland Braxton for our Week 1 Pitcher of the Week. Neale went 3-0 with a 0.89 ERA in 20.1 innings pitched. He struck out 21 versus just 6 walks earning him a 0.97 RCERA, best in the league.

Sim 1E Complete!

And this completes the action for the week. Lineups due 8PM Sunday and we'll start it up again.

League Reports

Great Feats (1A - 1D)

The Great Feats of the season are all compiled here.

Here are the box scores for the recent ones:

Apr-05: Greg Maddux (WPM) records an 85 GS

Apr-06: Rich Harden (Planet 10) strikes out 13

Apr-07: Hughie Jennings(HS) gets 5 hits

Apr-07: Dick Allen (OFB) drives in 6

Apr-09: Mechanics defeat Fishbiscuits in 19 innings

Apr-11: Larry Walker (P10) gets 5 hits

Apr-13: Candy Nelson (BDL) steals 4 bases

Apr-13: Lady Baldwin (BDL) records a 93 GS and strikes out 16

Apr-14: Sam Thompson (WPM) gets 5 hits

Apr-14: Ben Sanders (BDL) records a 95 GS and strikes out 12

Apr-15: Slam Dumps rout the Machine 17-9.

Apr-16: Tris Speaker (JMF) gets 5 hits

Apr-16: Brady Anderson (OFB) drives in 7

Sim 1D Complete!

League Reports

The New (and Improved) ATB Value Report

Last year I introduced the ATB Value report, a metric that combined offense, defense, and park factor to try and determine the best players of ATB.

I've improved the metric in two key areas for ATB XIII:

• Defensive error rate is now incorporated
• Defensive range rate is now completely position dependent. Last year I cheated a bit and compared all infielders to each other, instead of 1st basemen, second basemen, etc.

With only a few dozen at bats the metric itself doesn't tell the full story quite yet, but it's best to get ourselves grounded. The new data can be found here and linked on the blog and home page.

One of the great things about the defensive portion of the metric is we can now definitively (or as close to definitive as I will ever get) state who the best defenders in the game are. With the defensive studies posted yesterday, it becomes quite clear if a Vg/75 is better than an Ex/100.

Here are the top 10 defenders at each position:

Catcher

Ex/29 - Rodriguez,Ivan (JMF)

Ex/47 - Cochrane,Mickey (NSD)

Ex/52 - Bench,Johnny (DC)

Ex/56 - LaValliere,Mike (GCG)

Ex/57 - Kling,Johnny (WPM)

Ex/59 - Hartnett,Gabby (DB)

Ex/79 - Campanella,Roy (KD)

Vg/41 - Lollar,Sherm (TG)

Vg/50 - Hoiles,Chris (KD)

Vg/50 - Howard,Elston (RKA)

First Base

Ex/50 - Hernandez,Keith (JMF)

Ex/53 - Grace,Mark (BBB)

Ex/64 - Helton,Todd (DC)

Ex/67 - Leonard,Buck (WPM)

Ex/110 - Terry,Bill (RKA)

Vg/47 - Lee,Derrek (LM)

Vg/47 - Mattingly,Don (TG)

Vg/52 - Pujols,Albert (LM)

Vg/64 - Foxx,Jimmie (DB)

Vg/78 - Cash,Norm (JMF)

Second Base

Ex/59 - Collins,Eddie (GCG)

Ex/60 - Fox,Nellie (JMF)

Vg/28 - Sandberg,Ryne (DB)

Vg/31 - Robinson,Jackie (DC)

Vg/33 - Whitaker,Lou (TG)

Ex/97 - McPhee,Bid (RKA)

Ex/112 - Gordon,Joe (BDL)

Vg/43 - Alomar,Roberto (HH)

Vg/49 - Zobrist,Ben (BDL)

Vg/58 - Gehringer,Charlie (HS)

Third Base

Ex/38 - Ventura,Robin (DC)

Ex/41 - Gaetti,Gary (KD)

Ex/44 - Bell,Buddy (WPM)

Ex/47 - Rolen,Scott (P10)

Ex/54 - Robinson,Brooks (DB)

Ex/61 - Sutton,Ezra (GCG)

Ex/77 - Collins,Jimmy (RKA)

Ex/83 - Santo,Ron (JMF)

Ex/86 - Dandridge,Ray (NSD)

Vg/46 - Beltre,Adrian (HH)

Shortstop

Ex/40 - Smith,Ozzie (HH)

Ex/42 - Tinker,Joe (JMF)

Ex/63 - Long,Herman (DB)

Ex/66 - Boudreau,Lou (KD)

Ex/74 - Lloyd,Pop (GCG)

Ex/74 - Wagner,Honus (RKA)

Ex/79 - Jennings,Hughie (HS)

Ex/82 - Bancroft,Dave (GCG)

Ex/85 - Dahlen,Bill (P10)

Vg/45 - Ripken,Cal (LM)

Left Field

Ex/20 - Gonzalez,Luis (JMF)

Vg/33 - Simmons,Al (HH)

Vg/34 - Crawford,Carl (WPM)

Vg/37 - Medwick,Joe (JMF)

Vg/37 - Delahanty,Ed (NO)

Vg/38 - Foster,George (HH)

Vg/52 - Kelley,Joe (GCG)

Vg/58 - Magee,Sherry (NSD)

Ex/70 - Clarke,Fred (GCG)

Vg/87 - Yastrzemski,Carl (P10)

Right Field

Ex/33 - Walker,Larry (P10)

Ex/62 - Kaline,Al (GCG)

Ex/81 - Shaffer,Orator (BBB)

Vg/46 - Evans,Dwight (WPM)

Vg/47 - Suzuki,Ichiro (DB)

Vg/53 - Robinson,Frank (NSD)

Vg/61 - Waner,Paul (GCG)

Ex/91 - Jackson,Joe (HH)

Vg/65 - Holmes,Tommy (LM)

Ex/125 - Clemente,Roberto (JMF)

Center Field

Ex/50 - Waner,Lloyd (P10)

Ex/55 - Charleston,Oscar (HH)

Ex/73 - Duffy,Hugh (NO)

Ex/74 - Speaker,Tris (JMF)

Ex/76 - Hill,Pete (LM)

Vg/53 - Griffin,Mike (HS)

Vg/68 - Edmonds,Jim (RKA)

Vg/70 - Lynn,Fred (BBB)

Vg/71 - Doby,Larry (DC)

Vg/71 - Thomas,Roy (NSD)

A (way too early) Look On the New Guys

Three days in the real life calendar equates 9 days in ATB time. And while it is too early to draw any conclusions about the talents of the new players, each of us still want to see our "New Guys" doing well.

Looking at the batters drafted in Rounds 1-10:

Rd1-Ross Barnes (LM)::: .333 / .385 / .500

Rd3-Mike Schmidt (BBB): .100 / .182 / .250

Rd6-Cal McVey (HS)::::: .235 / .316 / .294

Rd7-George Hall (HS)::: .407 / .500 / .630

Rd7-Cap Anson (NO):::: only 3 AB (!), he's a backup

For the hitters, Barnes and Hall have gotten off to great starts with OPS scores among the league leaders at each position. On the other hand, Mike Schmidt and Cal McVey are not looking nearly as good as owners hoped. Schmidt in particular must be a concern to Justin, he's on pace to strike out almost 180 times.

The pitchers:

Rd6-Roger Clemens (TG)::: 3.60 ERA, 2.20 WHIP, 5.0 IP

Rd7-Denny Driscoll (BBB): 2.25 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 4.0 IP

Rd9-Jim Devlin (HS):::::: 1 IP (mop up)

Rd9-Candy Cummings (BBB): 4.76 ERA, 1.73 WHIP, 5.2 IP

Rd10-Tom Henke (ICB)::::: 0.00 ERA, 0.67 WHIP, 3.0 IP

Rd10-Rich Gossage (HS)::: 1.35 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 6.2 IP

Rd13-Hong-Chih Kuo (BBB): 5.40 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 3.1 IP

With pitchers most starters have just 1 or perhaps 2 starts under their belts and it is fairly absurd to draw any conclusions. But the story looks good for Denny Driscoll, Tom Henke, and Goose Gossage have good WHIP and ERA combinations.

Candy Cummings is in trouble, and we'll lump Jim Devlin into that list too. He was benched based upon pre-season results. The rest are on the fence with conflicting results in WHIP and ERA.

The full results for each team are available here. I'll update this regularly as the season progresses.

Sim 1C Complete!

League Reports

Ballparks of ATB XIII

On the whole, each division ended up with natural balance of parks this year. This is especially true in the National Division where the teams will average a park factor of (lefty/righty)

1B - 101/103

2B - 103/103

3B - 106/100

HR - 97/99

However, the division arrives at this average in the extreme. Helena Handbasket chose 1905 Exposition park and it's 20 park factor for home runs, while PlaneT 10 calls 1914 Sportsman's park home with it's 160 factor for HR's. The rest of the teams feature more common factors across the board.

Over in the Federal Division, the only extreme park may be the Hathsin Survivors in 1972 Busch Stadium. Look for high batting averages with the 125/115 factor for singles. Overall, here are the averages:

1B - 105/104

2B - 104/110

3B - 114/104

HR - 100/100

Lastly the American Division, which indeed has some quirkiness too it. Four parks suppress home runs, often extremely; another is the most prolific homer hitting park of all time.

The DC Chips will play their home games in the 1976 Astrodome (80 HR factor). This seems significant until looked at in the light of 1970 Three Rivers Stadium for John McDonald (54 HR Factor) and 1926 Forbes Field for Rusty Kuntz (52 HR factor). These in turn look extreme until one notices 1922 Griffith Stadium, home of the Gold Country Gossamers and a 22 HR park factor.

Offsetting these stadiums is the 300 (!) HR factor of the 1915 Baker Bowl. And lest you think one owner decided to have a standard stadium, the Downsouth Brews chose a park with an historically low singles rate, 1956 Yankee Stadium (84/87).

On the whole, the averages are fairly reasonable:

1B - 101/99

2B - 106/107

3B - 136/139

HR - 107/97

Someone is going to hit a lot triples though.

Full data, along with images of each stadium, are available here (or linked on the right).

Sim 1B Complete!

League Reports

Defense Matters (Part II)

I am not going to rehash all of our old arguments about defense, but another owner did point out that the old defensive study that shows how teams are impacted by range rating was no longer on the site. Here is a reprint of the original graphic.

Recently, I have stumbled across a similar study that details the impact of error rates. It is included below as well.

For those unfamiliar, the blue line represents the number of runs the average team yielded in each study. (Please note the studies were conducted by different people and you can see the ‘average” offense is different between each).

As you move up and down the defensive abilities spectrum, the expected runs prevented changes with the defense. For instance, a team with a Pr rated first basemen gives up 17 more runs a season than a team with an average ranged first basemen (838 vs 855).

This new graphic below attempts to put both studies into perspective by changing runs scored to % above or below the average offense. It normalizes them:



Hopefully, it is obvious that teams focusing on great defense have a significant advantage in preventing runs. This isn’t an exact prediction, but if you had a team of Vg/75 defenders at every position, you could save your team about 65 runs per season (assuming the ATB XII average of 767 runs scored as the baseline).

Using some Bill James Pythagorean math, that changes an 81-81 team to a 88-74 squad. Drafting a team with good offense and defense, well, that is how one makes the playoffs.

Mini Sim Rule Reminder

Lineup Changes are processed weekly (due 8 PM Sunday). However, owners are allowed as a courtesy to make changes between mini sims when a player gets injured.

If these mini sim changes are submitted by noon eastern each day they will be processed. After noon eastern, you run the risk of having me miss it. If they are submitted late and I do have time to make the changes I still will.

League Reports

Sim 1A Complete!

Remember, the league reports are linked in several places, most useful is right on the bottom of this post (or daily email). Great Achievements updates as well.

Some good opening day quotes below :)

“You look forward to it [Opening Day] like a birthday party when you’re a kid. You think something wonderful is going to happen.” – Joe DiMaggio

“I love Opening Day. I think we all do, whether it’s the players, coaches or front office. It’s just a special day in our American culture. It’s weaved into the fabric of what we are, and I think it’s a great day.” – Padres manager Bud Black

“A home opener is always exciting, no matter whether it’s at home or on the road.” – Yogi Berra

“People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.” – Rogers Hornsby

“There is no sports event like Opening Day of baseball, the sense of beating back the forces of darkness and the National Football League.” – George Vecsey

“It’s like Christmas except it’s warmer.” – Pete Rose

“An Opener is not like any other game. There’s that little extra excitement, a faster beating of the heart. … You know that when you win the first one, you can’t lose ‘em all.” - Early Wynn

League Reports

Fun With Team Names

My best guess as to where each owner got their name from.

National Division
Planet 10
Willets Point "Mechanics"
Londonderry Machine
Texas Gringos
Newark Slam Dumps
Helena Handbasket

Federal Division
Island Creek Bivalves
Kakadu Didgeridoos
Bridgewater Brazen Beanballers
Hathsin Survivors
Big Dan and the Lady's
Nottingham Outlaws

American Division
Downsouth Brews
Otherton Fish Biscuits
John McDonald Fanclub
DC Chips
Gold Country Gossamers
Rusty Kuntz Traveling All Stars

Opening Day Matchups Part II

Earlier, we reviewed four opening day starting pitcher match-ups. Today, we'll complete the three of the remaining five. Alas, the last two series openers feature owners holding their lineups close the vest, missing the "print" deadline for a writeup.

Gold Country Gossamers vs Newark Slam Dumps

Pedro Martinez (18-6, 1.74) vs Randy Johnson (16-14, 2.60)

Gold Country travels to Newark on opening night, pitting two of the greats of the 1990s and 2000's against each other. Martinez is the recognized #1 pitcher in ATB history, amassing a 123-50 record since ATB VI. This version of Johnson, 2004, has been used just three times in the past, but always with great results. In over 730 innings of work, Johnson has averaged a 2.81 ERA and 1.12 WHIP.

John McDonald Fanclub vs Londonderry Machine

Cy Blanton (18-13, 2.58) vs Babe Adams (17-10, 1.98 ERA)

Typically solid, Blanton has averaged a 3.68 ERA and 1.32 WHIP over the past 7 seasons. His less than stellar 82-65 Win-Loss record is more of a reflection of the teams his been on than his status as team ace. Facing Blanton, is Babe Adams who until this draft has arguably the most underrated pitcher in the game. Adams owns a 99-72 record along with 3.58 ERA and 1.20 WHIP.

DC Chips vs Texas Gringos

George Bradley (25-15, 2.71) vs Christy Mathewson (37-11, 1.43)

A relative unknown, Bradley gets the opening day nod for the DC Chips. He's appeared in just one previous season, but pitched brilliantly to the tune of 15-6 record and a 2.35 ERA. Opposing him is the oft confusing Christy Mathewson. How could this man not be the "Pedro" of the deadball era? In 4 previous seasons he has been great (3.21 ERA, 1.19 WHIP); in 3 others he's been an early round bust (5.12 ERA, 1.60 WHIP).

Nottingham Outlaws vs Bridgewater Brazen Beanballers

Jim Palmer (21-10, 2.07) vs Addie Joss (24-11, 1.16)

This version of Jim Palmer (1972) has no official ATB record, with his playing time coming prior to ATB VI, before statistical records were logged for posterity. Addie Joss however, is no stranger to opening day. Considered a #1 starter for time out of mind, Joss has totaled over 1400 career ATB innings and averages a 1.27 WHIP and 3.86 ERA.

Player Corrections

Several corrections have been identified by owners. The first one is extremely widespread but relatively minor. Over 1/2 the pitchers in the database have minor intentional walk errors. 99% of these are minor and will not impact game play - one to five intentional walks in either direction.

Frankly, I have no explanation as to why this occurred though. I can't wrap my arms around the fact that 80 pitchers in ATB XIII have no stat errors other than this quirky IBB issue. A few possibilities come to mind:

• I typed them in all wrong. I have a difficult time believing this. Not because of the volume of errors, but the fact they were only on IBBs makes this implausible.
• There was a migration error when upgrading the software to DMB 10. Also unlikely since I have heard no complaints on the forums.
• Baseball reference changed their IBB stats in the past few years and I never noticed.

I am not going to list all 85 pitcher updates. But there were a few fairly significant ones I should mention:

1972 Jim Brewer: was 3, now 11

2002 Chris Hammond, was 3, now 9

1995 Hideo Nomo, was 9, now 2

1971 Vida Blue, was 10, now 3

A few other errors have been spotted as well:

1888 Buck Ewing loses a triple, now at 15

1890 Joe Neales loses 73 BPF, now at 276

1946 Aaron Robinson now has 330 AB's, losing 51

1971 Wilbur Wood loses 9 BPF, now at 1316

1983 Kent Tekulve loses 100 BPF, now at 398

2000 Mike Myers loses 117 BPF, now at 177

2007 Andy Petttitte loses 71 BPF, now at 916

Real Life Pitching- Team Totals

Team Pitching Totals for Select Stats
ERA
1.28 Outlaws
1.83 Gringos
1.85 Beanballers
1.90 Fanclub
1.94 Lady's
1.96 Handbasket
1.96 Fish Biscuits
1.97 Machine
2.02 Survivors
2.04 Brews
2.07 All Stars
2.10 Didgeridoos
2.13 Bivalves
2.14 Sean
2.17 Mechanics
2.20 Gossamers
2.23 Planet 10
2.25 Chips

WHIP
0.92 Outlaws
0.93 Lady's
0.94 Fanclub
0.95 Sean
0.95 Gossamers
0.96 Gringos
0.96 Beanballers
0.96 Machine
0.96 Survivors
0.97 Handbasket
1.00 Fish Biscuits
1.00 All Stars
1.00 Didgeridoos
1.00 Planet 10
1.00 Chips
1.01 Mechanics
1.05 Brews
1.05 Bivalves


K/BB
5.14 Gossamers
3.84 Lady's
3.80 Handbasket
3.72 Chips
3.63 Fanclub
3.63 Sean
3.52 Gringos
3.52 Planet 10
3.16 Fish Biscuits
3.15 Survivors
3.11 Mechanics
3.10 Machine
3.06 All Stars
3.01 Outlaws
2.98 Beanballers
2.90 Didgeridoos
2.62 Bivalves
2.56 Brews

HR/9
0.11 Beanballers
0.19 Outlaws
0.24 Fish Biscuits
0.25 Fanclub
0.30 All Stars
0.30 Didgeridoos
0.31 Chips
0.34 Mechanics
0.34 Machine
0.35 Bivalves
0.36 Lady's
0.37 Gossamers
0.40 Survivors
0.44 Gringos
0.45 Brews
0.47 Handbasket
0.47 Sean
0.58 Planet 10

Innings Pitched
3309 Fish Biscuits
3111 Didgeridoos
3069 Chips
2976 Fanclub
2858 Survivors
2843 Gringos
2806 Brews
2658 Handbasket
2646 Mechanics
2305 Beanballers
2300 All Stars
2245 Planet 10
2233 Sean
2157 Lady's
2144 Machine
2124 Outlaws
1998 Bivalves
1755 Gossamers

Real Life Batting - Team Totals

Just for fun, obviously the real life era's and park factors played a huge role in this

Batting Average
0.374 Outlaws
0.347 Bivales
0.347 Machine
0.347 Survivors
0.346 Didgeridoos
0.344 All Stars
0.344 Handbasket
0.344 Sean
0.343 Gossamers
0.338 Planet 10
0.336 Gringos
0.334 Chips
0.332 Mechanics
0.327 Lady/s
0.327 Fanclub
0.326 Beanballers
0.325 Brews
0.321 Fish Biscuits

On Base Percentage
0.430 Outlaws
0.430 Bivalbes
0.430 Sean
0.430 Gossamers
0.429 Machine
0.429 Survivors
0.425 Gringos
0.423 Chips
0.422 Didgeridoos
0.421 Fish Biscuits
0.416 Beanballers
0.414 Lady/s
0.413 Planet 10
0.410 Handbasket
0.409 All Stars
0.406 Fanclub
0.403 Brews
0.399 Mechanics

Slugging
0.654 Fish Biscuits
0.647 Didgeridoos
0.633 Bivalbes
0.627 Chips
0.626 Handbasket
0.623 Gringos
0.621 Brews
0.598 Planet 10
0.597 Machine
0.597 Fanclub
0.590 Mechanics
0.585 Outlaws
0.581 All Stars
0.573 Sean
0.572 Beanballers
0.571 Lady/s
0.549 Survivors
0.519 Gossamers

OPS
1.076 Fish Biscuits
1.069 Didgeridoos
1.063 Bivalbes
1.050 Chip
1.048 Gringos
1.036 Handbasket
1.026 Machine
1.024 Brews
1.015 Outlaws
1.011 Planet 10
1.004 Fanclub
1.002 Sean
0.990 All Stars
0.989 Mechanics
0.988 Beanballers
0.985 Lady/s
0.979 Survivors
0.949 Gossamers

Home Runs
505 Brews
491 Fish Biscuits
478 Didgeridoos
473 Gringos
464 Chips
404 Fanclub
399 Mechanics
394 Handbasket
386 Bivalbes
383 Planet 10
355 Machine
341 Lady/s
299 Beanballers
283 All Stars
278 Sean
268 Outlaws
194 Gossamers
192 Survivors

Doubles
645 Outlaws
644 Chips
601 Didgeridoos
578 Gringos
571 Machine
566 Gossamers
554 Handbasket
547 Sean
537 Bivalbes
536 Planet 10
520 Mechanics
512 Fanclub
504 Lady/s
501 All Stars
486 Brews
461 Beanballers
435 Fish Biscuits
408 Survivors

Triples
171 Bivalbes
170 Outlaws
168 All Stars
161 Gossamers
149 Sean
142 Chips
141 Planet 10
140 Fanclub
138 Didgeridoos
138 Machine
137 Survivors
131 Handbasket
129 Mechanic
125 Lady/s
122 Gringos
112 Beanballers
88 Brews
73 Fish Biscuits

Stolen Bases
450 Machine
429 Gossamers
400 Lady/s
389 Survivors
380 Outlaws
367 All Stars
365 Handbasket
326 Planet 10
323 Mechanics
291 Bivalbes
289 Beanballers
286 Chips
222 Gringos
216 Fanclub
199 Sean
198 Fish Biscuits
191 Didgeridoos
181 Brews

Stolen Base %
78% Mechanics
75% Machine
75% Chips
74% Handbasket
74% Gringos
73% Gossamers
73% Brews
72% Lady/s
71% All Stars
70% Survivors
70% Bivalbes
69% Beanballers
68% Sean
68% Fish Biscuits
67% Didgeridoos
66% Planet 10
65% Outlaws
65% Fanclub

5 Exhibitions

Thanks to those who chose to submit your lineups early. The reward is the this file. A zipped extract of the "League Reports" file you have grown accustomed to over the years. I also saved the stats across the 5 exhibitions.

To best use the file, extract the zip file into a single folder, locate the root file name "atb5sim" and open it. It has links to the standings, team pages, and stats.

Let me know if you have trouble accessing. The team records:

4-1: All Stars (Shotgun)

3-2: Beanballers (Justin P)

3-2: Survivors (Lou)

3-2: Chips (Steve)

3-2: Gossamers (Justin B)

3-2: Brews (Allen)

3-3: Machine (Brad)

2-3: Mechanics (Matt, Paresh)

2-3: Lady's (Mike)

2-3: Bivalves (Jeff)

2-3: Fanclub (Jason)

2-3: Fishbiscuits (Brian)

1-4: Planet 10 (Ivar)

Many of the new guys had great starts!

Opening Day Matchups Part 1

As the pre-season came to a close, managers around the league have been pressed by the media to name their opening day starters. Here are some of the known day 1 match-ups.

Big Dan and the Lady's vs Hathsin Survivors
Lady Baldwin (11-9, 1.86) vs Walter Johnson (36-7, 1.14)

In the marquis matchup of opening day, the Lady's travel to Hathsin to square off against the Survivors. In the previous two seasons Baldwin has been at the top of his game with a 29-12 record and a 3.43 ERA. He strikes out over 11 batters per nine innings and has become the 2nd starting pitcher taken in ATB drafts.

Johnson, more of a real life great than an ATB great, is till a Top-5 starter. In the past 7 ATB seasons he has averaged a 1.17 WHIP and 3.68 ERA. His win loss record is 93-80.

Otherton Fish Biscuits vs Willets Point Mechanics
Dizzy Dean (30-7, 2.66) vs Greg Maddux (19-2, 1.63)

The Fish Biscuits open on the road with Dizzy Dean on the mound. The Dean of this particular year (1934) has not fared well in the past going 12-24 with a 5.20 ERA in two previous ATB seasons. Countering him is arguably the second best pitcher in the game, Greg Maddux. Maddux has been awesome, owning a career 109-51 record, with a 1.12 WHIP and 2.89 ERA.

Downsouth Brews vs Planet 10
Robin Roberts (28-7, 2.59) vs Kevin Brown (17-11, 1.89)
Finally, Allen and Ivar announced their rotations, with the latter choosing to go with their 27th round pick Robin Roberts. The right hander has had mixed results in previous ATB seasons, the best of which was an ATB XI campaign the resulted in a 3.47 ERA in 103.2 innings. A year later Roberts struggled (5.38 eRA, 1.72 WHIP) and split the difference in ATB XII.

Planet 10 opens at home with Kevin Brown. Brown has appeared in all 7 of the last ATB seasons and has pitched very well in 5 of them, owning a 3.70 ERA in 908 innings. He's struggled in the other two going 11-19 with a 5.60 ERA and 1.64 WHIP.

Several other teams have announced their starting lineups and rotations, but their opponents have yet to do so.

Final Pre-Season Standings

National

15 - 6: Joe

14 - 7: Sean (Jay)

12 - 9: Brad

9 - 12: Ivar

8 - 13: Kevin

8 - 13: Matt

Federal

14 - 7: Lou

13 - 8: Mike

12 - 9: Jeff

12 - 9: TJ

9 - 12: Justin P

5 - 16: Lee

American

12 - 7: Justin B

12 - 9: Shotgun

11 - 10: Steve

10 - 11: Jason

5 - 14: Brian

6 - 15: Allen

Final Pre-Season Standings

National

15 - 6: Joe

14 - 7: Sean (Jay)

12 - 9: Brad

9 - 12: Ivar

8 - 13: Kevin

8 - 13: Matt

Federal

14 - 7: Lou

13 - 8: Mike

12 - 9: Jeff

12 - 9: TJ

9 - 12: Justin P

5 - 16: Lee

American

12 - 7: Justin B

12 - 9: Shotgun

11 - 10: Steve

10 - 11: Jason

5 - 14: Brian

6 - 15: Allen

Draft Complete

Well virtually. As of 9:40 PM we have 3 skips to fill, but after 537 picks I won't split hairs. The new rules allowed us to select 75 new players for ATB XIII. For those even just remotely following the draft, the following will come as no surprise:

#of New Players by "era"

28 - 1800s

4 -- 1900-1919

7 -- 1920-1939

8 -- 1940-1959

1 -- 1960-1979

13 - 1980-1999

14 - 2000-2011

The 1800s saw twice as many players as any other 20 year period. The recent past also faired very well, a typical display for ATB owners who likely just know more recent players than those prior to the 1970s.

Pre-Season Standings

End of Day Wednesday

National

12 - 6: Joe

12 - 6: Sean (Jay)

11 - 7: Brad

8 - 10: Kevin

8 - 10: Ivar

7 - 11: Matt

Federal

12 - 6: Mike

11 - 7: Lou

11 - 7: Jeff

11 - 7: TJ

8 - 10: Justin P

4 - 14: Lee

American

9 - 7: Justin B

10 - 8: Steve

10 - 8: Shotgun

7 - 11: Jason

5 - 11: Brian

4 - 14: Allen

Pre-Season Standings

End of Day Tuesday April 12

National

12 - 3: Joe

10 - 5: Sean (Jay)

8 - 7: Kevin

8 - 7: Brad

6 - 9: Ivar

6 - 9: Matt

Federal

10 - 5: Lou

10 - 5: Mike

9 - 6: Jeff

9 - 6: TJ

6 - 9: Justin P

3 - 12: Lee

American

7 - 6: Justin B

8 - 7: Steve

8 - 7: Shotgun

5 - 10: Jason

4 - 9: Brian

4 - 11: Allen

The Age Factor

Purely for amusement, below is a chart indicating the average Playing Age and the Current Age (how old a player would be if they were alive today) by team.

• Jeff and Mike have the oldest playing age, with their squads averaging over 29 years.
• Kevin has the youngest playing age, only slightly surpassing 25 years.

• In terms of current age, Lou slightly edges Lee with 121 years of experience.
• The youngest average current age belongs to Matt's team, clocking in at 70 years.

(click to enlarge)

Pre-Season Standings

End of Day Monday April 11

National

10 - 2: Joe

7 - 5: Kevin

7 - 5: Sean (Jay)

5 - 7: Ivar

5 - 7: Brad

4 - 8: Matt

Federal

9 - 3: Jeff

8 - 4: Lou

8 - 4: Mike

7 - 5: TJ

5 - 7: Justin P

2 - 10: Lee

American

6 - 4: Justin B

6 - 6: Steve

6 - 6: Shotgun

5 - 7: Jason

3 - 7: Brian

3 - 9: Allen

Exhibition Standings (end of day Sunday, April 10)

National

7 - 2: Joe

5 - 4: Kevin

4 - 5: Sean (Jay)

4 - 5: Ivar

4 - 5: Brad

4 - 5: Matt

Federal

6 - 3: Jeff

5 - 4: TJ

5 - 4: Lou

5 - 4: Mike

4 - 5: Justin P

2 - 7: Lee

American

6 - 3: Steve

5 - 4: Jason

4 - 3: Justin B

3 - 4: Brian

3 - 6: Shotgun

3 - 6: Allen

Pre-Season Standings (end of Sat April 9)

National

5 - 1: Joe

4 - 2: Sean (Jay)

3 - 3: Ivar

3 - 3: Brad

3 - 3: Matt

2 - 4: Kevin

Federal

4 - 2: Jeff

4 - 2: TJ

4 - 2: Lou

3 - 3: Mike

2 - 4: Justin P

1 - 5: Lee

American

4 - 2: Jason

3 - 3: Steve

2 - 2: Justin B

2 - 4: Shotgun

1 - 3: Brian

2 - 4: Allen

Pre-Season Standings

Great Week everyone. Thank you for keeping on top of the picks and working around the (thankfully!) minor issues we encountered with the draft board.

Hopefully you have seen the pre-season box scores posted here. Hopefully, over the next week I will be able to run 20-30 exhibitions per team.

FYI - I am not recording the stats, just the team records.

Current pre-season standings

National

3 - 0: Sean (Jay)

3 - 0: Joe

2 - 1: Ivar

2 - 1: Brad

1 - 2: Matt

1 - 2: Kevin

Federal

3 - 0: Jeff

2 - 1: TJ

2 - 1: Lou

1 - 2: Mike

1 - 2: Lee

0 - 3: Justin P

American

2 - 1: Jason

0 - 1: Brian

1 - 2: Steve

0 - 1: Justin B

1 - 2: Shotgun

0 - 3: Allen

Barnstorming Day 2

Here are random 15 games.

In case you were wondering how this worked:

• 5 Teams
• Computer Draft
• Computer Lineup
• 1 game against each team

This will be the last of general barnstorm. Looks like starting tomorrow we can begin to play a handful of exhibition games with our current squads.

Barnstorming Day 1

With 120 or so selections in the books, it's time for some barnstorming fun. This year, Babe Ruth, Mariano Rivera, Josh Gibson, and Walter Johnson organized a barnstorming show across the midwest. Quick summaries below and box scores zipped here.

Game 1: Ruthians 3, Big Trains 2

- Eddie Mathews wins it in the 11th on solo shot.

- Whitey Ford and Pedro Martinez had good starts

- Jason Giambi also went yard

Game 1a: Gibsons 7, Riveras 6

- Albert Pujols homered and Fred Carroll drove in 2

- Walter Johnson and Christy Mathewson pitched poorly

Game 2: Ruthians 10, Big Trains 5

- Mickey Mantle goes 4-5

- Eddie COllins drives in 3

- Both Randy Johnson and Al Orth couldn't make it out of the 2nd

Game 2a: Riveras 15, Gibsons 10

- Tip O'Neill hits 2 HR and drives in 5

- Hugh Duffy goes 4-5 with a HR and 4 RBI

- Addie Joss and Dizzy Dean struggle

Game 3: Gibson 2, Ruthians 1

- Bill Bernhard and Tex Hughson put on a show

Game 3a: Big Trains 9, Riveras 6

- Reggie Jackson collects 3 hits and 3 RBI

- Barry Bonds knocks 2 out of the park

- Monty Startton and Cy Blanton struggle

Game 4: Gibsons 5, Ruthians 4

- Eddie Mathews homers and drives in 2

- Tip O'Neill homers and drives in 2

- Pete Conway holds his own while Bob Gibson dominates

Game 4a: Riveras 11, Big Trains 5

- King Kelly goes 3-3 with 3 RBI

- Rogers Hornsby goes deep and collects 2 h its

- Charlie Buffington holds his own while Sandy Koufax struggles

Day 1 Complete

Day 1 is in the books. Thanks everyone for keeping the draft moving along very well and giving me an opportunity to try out the new draft board.

• The team pages have been updated with your selections.
• If you have Tommie Agee -don't, worry. It is just a placeholder until you replace your "Skip". Please make your selections as soon as possible.
• A reminder. Park selection is based upon the order listed in the Google Docs tool (reverse draft order). You aren't 'stealing' a park from someone if your 1st choice is already taken and you have a better position. Please do not hesitate to bump anyone - they stole from you first!

See ya bright an early tomorrow!

The Greatest ATB Team of All Time

One of my favorite aspects of ATB is the long term rivalries that develop between owners. Aside from the fact everyone simply wants to win, the unpredictability of the playoffs only enhances the contention between franchises.

For instance, last season, the Lusitania Death Speakers had the most wins in the game and had perhaps the greatest end of season 20-resim of all time. Yet for Mike S, his 4-3 League Championship Series loss to the 86 win San Diego Puff was a blow. Had we won the World Series, in his mind at least, his Death Speakers would have been the best ATB team of all time.

This lead me to research some of my past teams, and I uncovered the Manetheren Red Eagles in this post a few days ago.

Since then, I have also uncovered a team so good it almost had to be a typo. The ATB X DC Chips had a +325 Run Differential and 113 wins.

Or how about the ATB VII Franklin Lakes Pillpoppers - 108 wins, a +239 RD, and the best team ERA in ATB History? Or the ATB XI Windy City Potato Pocketers - 111 Wins, +230 RD, and the best WHIP of all time.

This seems like a question begging to be answered. To do so, I'll run a side project during the season and perhaps into the off-season, time permitting. I have scoured the annals to find the best 28 teams we have full records of (ATB VI through current) and I'll pit them against each other in a battle of 20 resims.

The catch, to draw out the excitement, is that I won't run all 20 sims at once, rather post the results in a leisurely fashion over the next couple of months. When all 20 sims are done, the best team will be crowned using a formula that takes into account Total Wins, Division Titles, and Playoff records.

The teams were selected using the following methodology

• All 18 division winners since ATB VI are automatically eligible.
• From here, I took teams with 95+ wins, or
• 150+ Run Differentials, or
• 1000 Runs Scored, or
• Top 3 Team ERA's, or
• Top 20 Pythagorean Records.

Here are my current thoughts on the competing teams:

89 Smitko's (ATB VI) - Mike S

Bellevue Freakin' Franchise (ATB XI) - Brad P

DC Chips (ATB X & XII) - Steve C

Discordia Low Men (ATB VI) - Lou P

Dumai's Wells Oathbinders (ATB XII) - Lou P

Dyersville Black Sox (ATB IX) - Mike T

Franklin Lake Pillpoppers (ATB VI, VII, & VIII) - Justin P

Harlem Rangers (ATB X) - Jeff B

Helena Handbasket (ATB XII) - Joe T

Hudson County Holy Rollers (ATB VIII) - Mike S

John McDonald Fanclub (ATB X, XI, XII) - Jason B

La Chap au Sts Neanderthals (ATB XI) - Justin P

Lima de Equipo (ATB X) - Brad P

Lusitania Death Speakers (ATB XII) - Mike S

Manetheren Red Eagles (ATB IX) - Lou P

North Dakota No Scorers (ATB VI) - Sean S

Pangea Tyrannosaurus Rex's (ATB X) - Justin P

Pittsburgh Pulverizers (ATB VII) - Sean S

Planet 10 (ATB XI) - Ivar A

Sonoran Black Diamonds (ATB XII) - Justin P

St. Louis Slammers (ATB VIII) - Jason S

Van Nest Phighting Philbens (ATB VIII) - Jeff B

White Meadow Lk Black Stones (ATB XI) - Mike S

Windy City Potato Pocketers (ATB XI) - Lou P

Winterfell Direwolves (ATB X) - Lou P

If you have a particularly fond memory of one of your old squads and want them to be a part of the action, drop me a line. Unless they are awful, I am sure we can find room for them!

Breaking News: Handbasket & Fishbiscuits Trade

In our first trade of ATB XIII, the Otherton Fishbiscuits trade up a few rounds, swapping their 12th and 13th round picks for the 8th and 24th picks of Helena Handbasket's.

Draft Tool Works on Smartphones

FYI - you can access the draft tool directly from your smartphones. It brings up a custom form that allows you to filter by players.

It's extremely cumbersome but useful in a pinch.

Thanks Brian for pointing it out.

Trade Offer Tab

Brian B had a great suggestion - the message board used to allow owners a place to pimp their trade offers.

It's not quite as good but I added a tab in the Google Docs Draft Tool to allow owners to post their offers.

Owner Swap II

Welcome Kevin C who will be taking the reigns from Leanne for the upcoming season. Kevin is no stranger to ATB - he's entering his 6th campaign.

Hope to see you again Leanne!

T-Minus 0 Business Days till the Draft

Reminder - Draft starts Monday morning (April 4th), 9 AM sharp! This will be accomplished via the google docs draft tool, now with a nice chat feature so we can beat up on each others picks too.

Here's round one times:

9:00 AM-Brian

9:10 AM -Justin B

9:20 AM -Jeff

9:30 AM -Sean

9:40 AM -Lou

9:50 AM -TJ

10:00 AM-Lee

10:10 AM-Mike

10:20 AM-Leanne

10:30 AM-Shotgun

10:40 AM-Allen

10:50 AM-Justin P

11:00 AM-Matt

11:10 AM-Joe

11:20 AM-Jason

11:30 AM-Steve

11:40 AM-Brad

11:50 AM-Ivar