A Quick Stroll Around the League

I decided to try something new, and stroll through the rosters of each team and pick out one* player that stood out in my mind. Whether good or bad, these players simply caught my attention for one reason or another.

Downsouth Brews (52-97)
Ichiro Suzuki is quietly having a great season. He's batting .340 with a .371 OBP and has 39 stolen bases against just 15 caught steals.

Texas Gringos (56-93)
The Gringos are not a good team and Tom Seaver isn't a good starter, but the righty is 12-12 where all other starters have combined to go 19-49.

Nottingham Outlaws (57-92)
Is Hugh Duffy underrated? I think so. Ex defense in center field while batting .331 / .374 / .481.

Bridgewater Brazen Beanballers (62-87)
King Kelly is having a bad year. With a .350 on base and .349 slugging he is well below his 100 sim average of .399 / .380.

Planet 10 (72-77)
For those that didn't trust the 100 resims look no further than Canonball Titcomb. He's a true ace: 17-6, 2.75 ERA, 178 K in 173 IP

Otherton Fish Biscuits (73-76)
Willie McCovey is a streaky player that can make or break a draft. While Otherton is a long shot for the playoffs at this point, it's no fault of McCovey's: .352 OBP, .527 SLG with 41 HR, 93 R, and 100 RBI.

Island Creek Bivalves (75-74)
If Island Creek misses the playoffs, the brunt of the blame will fall on Joe Morgan's shoulders. He is having a terrible season, batting .212 / .304 / .305. In his worst season in the 100 resims he had a .302 OBP and .308 SLG. This is a 1 in a 100 type bad season.

Londonderry Machine (76-73)
Two actually deserve mention here. If Londonderry misses the playoffs blame Babe Adams: 8-10 with 4.84 ERA. If they make, Ross Barns scores the coup: .367 / .435 / .498.

John McDonald Fanclub (77-73)
A lot of owners are extending their relievers and Dan Quisenberry is another successful example: 7-1, 3.14 ERA, 150 IP.

Kakadu Didgeridoos (76-72)
Reliever Dick Hall is 14-1 2.98 ERA.

Hathsin Survivors (77-72)
George Hall will be a DH for the rest of his ATB career, but you can't tell me it hasn't been fun to watch the Av/342 left fielder play out of position in right field. He rakes though: .344 / .382 / .539 with 27 3B, 13 HR, and 116 RBI. Maybe he's our version of Manny being Manny.

Rusty Kuntz Traveling All Stars (78-71)
This has to be the best all around infield in the game. Honus Wagner, Fred Dunlap, Al Rosen, and Bill Terry have combined to hit .332 / .381 / .455 with 95 doubles, 39 triples, 41 homers, 367 runs, 360 RBI, and 60 stolen bases.

DC Chips (78-70)
The best 1-2 bullpen combination is undoubtedly Mariano Rivera and Joe Neale. Their combined stats: 23-7, 2.20 ERA, 341 IP, 252 H, 251 K, 74 BB.

Newark Slam Dumps (82-67)
Wade Boggs is having a career type season. His best 100 sim line was .329 / .407 / .361. His ATB XIII line of .316 / .395 / .362 is right up there.

Willets Point "Mechanics" (84-65)
I really want to talk about Maddux some more, ya know, how his 22-3 record has single handily allowed a team with a -22 Run Differential to go 20 games above .500. Or perhaps point out the rest of the starting rotation is 26-33 and Maddux may be the first ever MVP and Cy Young winner in ATB history. But I won't, otherwise i couldn't mention how great Joaqin Benoit has been: 71 IP, 34 Sv, 1.39 ERA, 67 K, 16 BB

Helena Handbasket (86-63)
What strikes me most about this team is how many above average players they really have. Adrian Beltre is the type of guy I mean. He's quietly hitting .306 with 34 HR and 90 RBI. He just gets the job done, as do so many of his teammates.

Big Dan and the Lady's (87-61)
Maybe the team should be renamed Big Dan and he Sanders. Lady is 13-10 with a 3.47 ERA. Ben Sanders is 16-9 with a 2.91.

Gold Country Gossamers (92-57)
What strikes me most about the Gossamers is their sheer depth. In week 11 ace Pedro Martinez went down with a minor injury and missed a start. What do they do? Change to a 4-man and start Jesse Tannehill on short rest. The lefty faces off against division rival DC and tosses 8 innings of 1-run ball. Interesting to note, the only team in the league with a winning record against Gold Country are the Chips, who've won 11 of 18.

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