Apologies for the long wait between updates! Been a bit busy. Let’s just get into it—
First, in addition to Andy HHS and RJ Jackson (who both made their debuts for the Mariners in 2014), I missed a few other big league debuts. I apologize for that. They were:
- Dalton Mack (6 games and 7.2 innings for the Cubs with an 8.22 ERA)
- David Horwich (1 game, 3.2 scoreless innings for Kansas City)
- Hal Ensrud (2 games and 2.2 scoreless frames as a Brewer)
- Duke Sims (0.1 inning and 2 earned runs as a Phillie)
New Major League debuts:
- Whitey Chevrolet
- Nick Pain
- Brandon Robitaille
- Ryan Hennesy
Traded:
- Dan Smith (from the White Sox to the Marlins)
- Charles Simone (from the Indians to the Rockies)
Retirements:
- Bryan O’Connor: That’s right, our very own Bryan decided to hang them up before the 2015 season started. As we’re still really early in this thing, I replaced him with a pitcher named Brian O’Connor (aren’t I clever?). Hysterically, this O’Connor opted not to sign when drafted by the Mets. This guy is never going to get his career off the ground. I’ll allow retired players to re-enter for one more season. Then, if you retire, you’re out of luck!
| Name | Previous | Position | Drafted | Ranking | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bryan O’Connor | 2015, 2014, 2013 | P | 23rd, BAL | — | As mentioned above, Bryan retired after a solid season. He started and closed in A ball with a 3.37 ERA (123 innings) before closing in AA (7 saves and a 5.40 ERA in 10 games). |
| Brian O’Connor | the new Bryan O’Connor | P | 2015: 5th, NYM (Did Not Sign) | ||
| Dalton Mack | 2015, 2014, 2013 | P | 2nd, CHN | #23 | Carlos Danger dropped from the #3 prospect to the #23 before the season, but he had a great year with the Cubs. In 29 games (2 starts), he threw 46.2 innings, fanned 45, walked 19, allowed three homers, and had a 1.54 ERA. |
| Yank Mosc | 2015, 2014, 2013 | P | 39th, TOR | NR | No longer ranked as a prospect, Mosc had a solid year, mostly in A ball. There, he won the championship and his 2.20 ERA and 15 saves in 27 games were certainly a factor. |
| David Horwich | 2015, 2014, 2013 | P | 8th, KCR | #13 | Horwich, still ranked #13, made the Royals out of camp. He pitched in 30 games (56 innings) and fanned 57 while walking 25. He had a 4.34 ERA (an ERA+ of 100). |
| Rich Warren (RichW) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | P | 10th, PIT (2013: 3rd, COL) | NR | Warren, who started his career slowly because of re-entering the draft, wasn’t ranked before the season but was an All Star in A ball. He went 13–7 in 28 starts a 3.53 ERA. He pitched well in 11 postseason innings (2 starts, 1.64 ERA). |
| Hal Ensrud (Hartvig) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | P | 16th, MIL | #11 | Hartvig (ranked #11) made the Brewers to start the year and pitched a lot. In 62 games (73 IP), he fanned 92 (vs. 42 walks) and posted a 3.58 ERA (109 ERA+). |
| Whitey Chevrolet (BryanM) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | P | 20th, DET | #19 | Whitey, ranked #19, made the Tigers but didn’t pitch a ton. He appeared in 16 games (7 starts) and had 36 Ks and 36 walks in 54 innings. He only allowed two homers and his 4.33 ERA was league average. His Tigers won the World Series, though he didn’t pitch in the postseason. |
| Steve O (CursedClevelander) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | RP | 25th, SFG | NR | No longer ranked, Steve O spent the year basically on the disabled list. He pitched 1.2 scorless innings before tearing his meniscus. Here’s hoping he makes a full recovery. |
| Duke Sims (Jim Bouldin) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | CL | 44th, PHI | NR | Surprisingly not ranked, Duke split the year between the Phillies and AA Reading. He was an All Star again in AA, though his 4.25 ERA and 18 saves weren’t all that impressive. He had an 11.88 ERA in 8.1 innings for the Phillies. |
| Adam Darowski | 2015, 2014, 2013 | C | 18th, LAD | #24 | My development seems to be taking forever, but I suppose I’m on the younger side. I was in rookie ball and hit .269/.340/.462 and won a Gold Glove award. I then had an .865 OPS in a half dozen games in A ball. |
| Vincent D’Angelo | 2015, 2014, 2013 | C | 17th, CHA | #82 | Dropped to #82 and had a tough year at the plate. In A ball, he hit .204/.313/.366 with 15 homers in 109 games. He did throw out a third of the runners who tried to steal against him, though. |
| Luis Gomez | 2015, 2014, 2013 | C | Unsigned | NR | Everybody’s favorite underdog played at all three levels and excelled, winning Player of the Week three times. At A ball, he hit .272/.359/.527 in 44 games. Then at AA he hit .302/.383/.566 in 72 games. Finally, he played 6 games in AAA and slugged .640. Overall, he hit 31 home runs and even threw out 38% of base stealers. In the PCL playoffs, he had a 1.277 OPS in five games (and added three homer homers). Like whoa. |
| Nick Pain | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 1B | 13th, PIT | #49 | For whatever reason, Nick only made one plate appearance all season. He didn’t play in the minors—his one plate appearance was for Oakland. He doubled and scored. So, he now owns a 692 OPS+! |
| Mark Jay (MJ) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 1B | 13th, COL (2013: 22nd, TBA) | #43 | MJ made up for his missed season (for not signing) by hitting 31 homers and 38 doubles en route to a .536 SLG in A ball. He went up to AA for six games and added another homer and an .815 OPS. He was a Player of the Week and an All Star. |
| Brandon Robitaille (989baseball) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 2B | 28th, CIN | #48 | The punk didn’t get suspended this year, but he did make his big league debut and win the Rookie of the Month and the NL’s Batter of the Month for September. After a .799 OPS in AA, he got the called up by the Reds and hit .268/.340/.479 with 17 homers. He was also versatile on defense, starting 81 games at second, 9 in left, and 5 each in RF and at 3B. He appeared in 15 postseason games and hit .228/.267/.368. |
| Frank Tichell (wx) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 2B | 49th, STL | #61 | Frank stayed in A ball and won a Batter of the Month and Player of the Week. He played in 89 games, hitting .254/.362/.467 with 17 homers. Despite his lack of advancement, he moved up from #69 to the #61 prospect. |
| Andrew Tarwerdi (ATarwerdi96) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 2B | 137th, CHA | NR | Tarwerdi also stayed in A ball and won three Player of the Week honors. He hit .282/.344/.473 and clubbed 24 homers while stealing 13 bases. Apparently, he mostly DHed despite going errorless in 26 games at 2B. |
| Darien Sumner | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 2B | 29th, NYY | #68 | The #68 prospect was a Florida State League (A) All Star, hitting .286/.381/.447 at the level with 14 homers. Earned a promotion to AA where he hit .350/.500/.650 in six games. Played in the AA playoffs and hit .282/.310/.487 with a pair of homers and 10 RBI in 10 games. |
| Andy HHS | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 3B | 11th, SEA | NR | Andy was the Mariners starting 3B this year (though he spent some time at 1B). He hit 23 homers but only walked 23 times, going .261/.294/.447. He was just under league average (99 OPS+) and was worth 1.6 WAR. The Mariners made the postseason again, but Andy hit .108/.132/.189 this time. While he was the first to make an impact, he may not get much better. His actual ratings match his potential ones already. |
| Dan Smith | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 3B | #15, CHA (2013: 26th, OAK) | NR | Dan played at three levels this year—the three lowest. He had a .745 OPS in rookie ball, a .769 in short A, and .718 in A ball. In July, he was traded to the White Sox. |
| Bill Brockman | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 3B | 4th, COL (2013: 6th, BOS) | #37 | Brockman spent the year in A ball and was a below average hitter. He batted just .217/.309/.386, but he did provide excellent (+9) defense at third. He was named the #37 prospect in the game, but needs to pick it up. He suffered a season-ending injury in August. |
| Jon Harris (cubbies) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | 3B | 9th, PHI (2013: 15th, ARI) | #3 | cubbies was the #3 prospect in the game, but stayed in Rookie ball. He hit .221/.348/.324 and won a Gold Glove. He wasn’t waived at al this season (after being waived three times last year). Was rather impressive at third, making one error and +5.6 on defense. |
| Jeff Stearns (lazyrasmus) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | SS | 12th, SDP | #2 | lazyrasmus played mostly at Short A (62 games) and hit .204/.284/.299. He had a 7-game callup to A ball, but and OPSed .740 with a couple homers (compared to four homers at Short A). Surprising that he was the #2 prospect in the game, no? Well, he won a Gold Glove again and was +8.2 at short. |
| RJ Jackson | 2015, 2014, 2013 | SS | 41st, SEA | NR | RJ may have made his major league debut in 2014, but he didn’t get back to the show in 2015 (though he did play at AAA, which is still something). He started in A and hit just .218/.304/.345. At AA, he hit .233/.295/.398 in 27 games. In 20 games at AAA, he hit about the same. Hit .300 in the postseason with a couple homers, but he obviously wants to get back to the bigs. |
| Charles Simone | 2015, the new Dan McCloskey | LF | 18th, CLE | #56 | The former Dan McCloskey stared in rookie ball and hit .259/.353/.434 before moving up to Short A for eight games. He struggled there, hitting .115. He’s ranked now (#56) and was involved in a trade to the Rockies after winning a minor league championship. That’s right! He’s now my teammate! |
| Dan McCloskey | 2014, 2013 | LF | 32nd, CHN | — | Still off playing football. |
| Ryan Hennesy (whipstache) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | CF | 14th, PHI | #22 | whipstache played with the Cubs all year, but played sparingly. He appeared in 53 games—23 at 2nd, 3 at 1B, 3 in LF, 2 at SS, 2 in RF, one at CF. He hit .250/.260/.375 and was worth -0.3 WAR. |
| Chris Castonguay (Chris C) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | CF | 9th, TOR | #6 | Chris is still the #6 prospect—but still in the low level minors. At rookie ball, he had a 1.099 OPS in 23 games, but saw that drop to .640 at Short A (38 games). He appeared in six games at A ball with a .599 OPS. He was a plus defender and made just one error. |
| CJ Miller (GrandyMan) | 2015, 2014, 2013 | CF | 19th, STL | — | Grandyman is no longer ranked and spent the full year at A ball. In 133 games, he hit 24 homers and had a slash line of .225/.298/.427. He dazzled in center (+7.6 runs and one error) and right (+2.3 runs in only 28 games). |
| Jeff Hill | 2015, 2014, 2013 | RF | 10th, NYM | #8 | The #8 prospect, Hill won a Gold Glove thanks to his +12.2 runs in left. He played mostly in A ball, hitting .227/.350/.400 (behind last year’s A ball totals). He looked better in 22 games at AA, batting .267/.374/.440. He drew 78 walks in 112 games. |
| Andrew Nadig | 2015, 2014, 2013 | RF | 21st, LAA | #52 | Nadig, the #52 prospect, appeared in 111 A ball games and hit .214/.324/.329. He moved up to AA for 24 games and hit .269/.299/.419. He was weak in the field, costing his team 6.5 runs. |
The WAR leaderboard so far…
| Name | WAR |
|---|---|
| Brandon Robitaille (989baseball) | 1.8 |
| Hal Ensrud (Hartvig) | 1.7 |
| Andy HHS | 1.6 |
| Dalton Mack | 1.0 |
| Whitey Chevrolet (BryanM) | 0.5 |
| Nick Pain | 0.0 |
| David Horwich | 0.0 |
| RJ Jackson | -0.1 |
| Ryan Hennesy (whipstache) | -0.3 |
| Duke Sims (Jim Bouldin) | -0.5 |
Complete coverage:
