Some Thoughts on the Sand Cats

(This post contains a bit of meta-commentary that refers to different game modes and specific in game statistics)

I...kind of love this team.

It's definitely the weakest team I've written up.  A bad rotation that will give up a lot of early runs with a lineup charitably described as "small ball oriented" that will struggle to catch up, even with good relief options they won't be able to score enough runs to make saves or late holds particularly meaningful.  The infield severely lacks bench depth and the outfield may be a strength but it still requires some mixing and matching to figure out center and left.  The rotation is pretty much garbage, and the bullpen is going to face a ton of pressure to be perfect.

All that said, like a kitten hanging off the windowsill this group is calling to me, demanding to be saved from their own mishaps.  While this is likely to be an insanely weak team in multiplayer I think they have serious hope as a franchise, which seems to be what they were designed for.  There are building blocks, there are hard choices to make early, and most importantly, with the dearth of star talent there is very likely to be significant cap room for development or positional upgrades.

Let's start by talking about those initial choices.

Pitching

With that bullpen it's a safe bet to say that nearly 40 million in cap space is taken up by that group, a significant amount for players that will only impact the game for a few innings every other game or so (likely less for Vainer).  While it's a major strength of this team the amount of cap being taken by this group is impacting the rest of the team.  The first thing I'm doing is choosing one of those A reliever to replace with a C+ or B- long reliever to take a little pressure off the back end of the rotation and reduce the cap hit.

Unfortunately I think Ice Vainer's got to go.  She's an outstanding closer but if you can't strengthen the lineup and starters closer is going to be a pretty pointless position on a team that almost never gets itself into save situations.  She's also the oldest member of the pen and the second oldest player on the team at 34 years old and really deserves to be with a group that can make practical use of those skills.

I do think I want to hang onto Jemma Yago unless there's a good cheap reliever available.  She has years to develop and could end up as a good middle inning option if her velocity and accuracy improves. 

For the Rotation I want to hold onto Kerwin Arches for now to maintain some stability, but the focus will be on building Trey Mondo into a reliable third starter.  I think a choice needs to be made between Kandi Sweet and Takabasei going forward.  Sweet has no stand-out stats and probably has a lower ceiling than Trey Mondo but is always going to have a low cap profile and can fill in until you find a better option (and the money to sign them).  Takabasei is going to be a disaster with only 9 control but if you can build that stat, she has pretty good stuff and is 4 years younger than Sweet.  At first I was pretty low on Takabasei but she could be a great rotation building block in a few years of focused development.

I wish you could convert Mondo to long relief because he is going to take a while to build into a real starter, but at 19 he's the youngest player we've seen yet and with that expansive pitch selection could have a really high ceiling.  I do want to hold on to him just to see what he turns into but I don't expect him to contribute as a starting pitcher for 3 or 4 seasons.

If converting pitchers between seasons is an option then do it, Mondo has a skillset that would be outstanding over 4 or 5 inning stretches but may not yet translate into a full quality start.

Lineup/Positional Depth

This team desperately needs an upgraded bench and could probably use a new backup at catcher, with the control issues of the starters (only 2 are rated above 60) Stracey's 42 defense rating isn't going to cut it.

First step is going to be to find a utility infielder.  This doesn't necessarily mean somebody with the utility trait as long as overall defense is 60 or better, and it doesn't even mean someone with IF as secondary position.  You at least need someone who plays SS/1B so Jess Fowl doesn't have to back up Hercules Bentley while also starting at third.

It also may not be a terrible idea to look at upgrading DH if you can find a bat with good power and contact for cheap.  I know that sounds like an unrealistic expectation but we have seen C+ overall players with outstanding offensive ratings and dreck for their other stats.  If you replace Tigg Tantrum with an offense oriented player you may actually be able to save against the cap.

Speaking of, the bench players I'm releasing to make room for this are Tigg Tantrum and Winston Draper.  Tantrum is a no brainer, pulling in B- money with D+ stats.  Bad offense, bad glove skills, and even his speed is not particularly impressive among this group.  I strongly disagree with his overall rating and think he's one of the weak links in a pretty weak roster.

Draper is a lot tougher.  He's significantly better than Tantrum with a quick glove and good power at the plate and the only holes in his game are low average and a weak arm.  All that said I think he's playing at 2 positions that already have plenty of depth and this team's need for a SS trumps its need for a bat that is pretty much redundant.   His poor arm rating also mean he's going to get beat on a lot of throws to first and will be vulnerable against the bunt. 

Use Tantrum's spot to find an 1B/OF backup and Draper's spot for a SS/2B backup.  Offensively they would hopefully also bring some power off the bench as you have plenty of high contact/high speed options on this team. 

You should also start searching for a viable backup catcher, Wickers just isn't going to cut it with those offensive numbers and terrible defense.  Focus on defense, then arm without regard to other stats and try to keep the overall contract at or below 4.5 million.

The other thing I want to start thinking of is whether I want to keep Fowl and Kawaguchi or find a real starter at third.  For now I'm putting Jess Fowl over there but if the opportunity comes up for a similar player with third base as their primary position then I think it'd be worthwhile to make the trade.  I think I would hold on to Kawaguchi in that situation, Fowl is a better player but is going to be making a lot of money to keep a bench warm and there are better, cheaper DH options on this team.

Core 4 prospects to focus development on

Super Sampson:  With a high contact and acceptable (40+) power rating, this guy could be a first ballot hall of famer.  Only 22 years old and already insanely fast with outstanding defensive attributes, I want him contributing offensively ASAP.  Unfortunately his offensive stats are 24 power/57 contact which is anemic at best and he's likely years away from his ceiling.

Kara Kawaguchi:  An outstanding defensive third baseperson with great speed, Kara's 42 power/44 contact are the only thing holding her back from starting.  Focus on improving her power over 60 and she'll be a good offensive contributor hitting 5 or 6.  She's only 22 years old as well and could be hitting in the heart of the lineup when she reaches her prime.  Unfortunately limited on the bench but still worth keeping around as a project player with tremendous upside.

Trey Mondo:  A year ago Trey was in high school, now he's starting.  He's not a good starter, but still.  Mondo has a 5 pitch arsenal that is currently pretty ineffective but gives him a huge potential upside.  This rotation is definitely weak and needs some stability brought in but I still think he's worth keeping around to build that junk stat.  Plus with 11 years to improve it could be fascinating to see just how far he comes.

Beebee Takabasei:  25 years old, Takabasei is the oldest member of this group by a solid chunk and at first I thought getting rid of her and keeping Kandi Sweet was a no brainer.  With only 9 accuracy she is going to be a league leader in walks and wild pitches, but there's a certain draw to that wildness too.  There's a Ricky Vaugn-ness about her that's tough to ignore here.

Focus all her development into accuracy and just let velocity and junk grow on their own, she's going to be a very good starter once accuracy gets into the 40's and 50's.  Probably not ace material but she could take over for Kerwin Arches and be a major piece of a champion club in 4 or 5 seasons.