Owner Interview: erffdogg

1. How did you get into whatifsports?

found it thru mlb.com and started playing SLB. as soon as HBD came out though i was hooked and i rarely play SLB anymore. i still have a team or 2 going every now and then but nothing like HBD.

2. What is your favorite thing about HBD?

all of it. being able to build a team the way you want and then watching it (hopefully) dominate. i get as much pleasure from watching my prospects develop as i do in winning in the bigs and if it takes 3 or 4 seasons to build a winner that's all part of the fun. a close 2nd would be the comraderie you develop with certain owners and competing against them season in and season out.

3. Least favorite thing about HBD?

coach hiring. nuff said.

4. How did you find out about Major Leagues?

i was the Reds owner for a couple seasons earlier but left for reasons i can't remember now. i've always liked the mlb themed worlds and when letch dropped his teams i figured it would be a good opportunity to get back in. first and foremost i am a Reds fan but i've been know to root for the mariners from time to time as they are the closest AL tam to where i live. so i thought it would be a good fit.

5. Who is erffdogg?

hmmmm.... erff is a 30 something year old scotch irish auto mechanic who is hopelessly addicted to baseball, beer and babes. i live in montana so in the summer i play amateur baseball, i fish, i camp, i golf and i drink. in the winter i just drink. if you met me you'd think i was a redneck. i have a kick ass mullet and i sometimes wear a kilt.

6. What are your favorite sports and/or sports teams?

baseball. the Reds. i'm originally from Cincy and grew up watching the reds of the 80's and 90's. i watch football but don't really have a team. the Bengals suck ass. my girlfriend is a Bears fan so i do have a team to root against at least. i like hockey but not professional hockey. i catch an amateur hockey game every now and then up here.

7. All-time favorite sports moment?

although it was just before i was born i'd have to say the 75 and 76 world series's. who doesn't like beating the red sox and yankees? in my lifetime, and i know this isn't baseball related, but i think when Dale Earnhardt won the Daytona 500. i was and still am a huge Earnhart fan. i've kinda strayed away from Nascar since he died. it's just not the same anymore.

8. What other baseball games have you previously played? (tabletop, fantasy, video, computer, i.e. anything from Strat-O-Matic to Baseball Mogul to RBI Baseball and everything in between)

not much really. i played RBI. i still play games on Playstation. i currently have the newest Show game. I still play actual baseball in a wood bat league so all fantasy and video game baseball is of secondary importance to me there. yes even HBD. i spend way less time on my teams in the summer when i'm playing ball.

9. What player, in your minor league system, has the most potential to be a star and why?

if i had to pick one i'd say Erik Thompson in AA. he's no all-star but he'll be a decent defender and an average bat. i have a few guys that have some good tools in the minors but no real stars. i do have some good young guys just starting out in the bigs though.

10. Who is your Franchise Player and/or team MVP?

don't know yet. Mike Dejean will be an excellent #1 and hopefully this year. i fear he may have been rushed but hopefully it won't hurt him too much. just traded for Harry Alonso, Taylor Mullin and Cesar Castillo on the offensive side and i could see any of them being an mvp type as far as the team goes. Alonso especially. we'll see.

11. What are your team's prospects in the short, medium and long-term?

i'm looking to win now which is why i made the trades i did. letch did a good job of building the pitching staff on this team but the offense was lacking. i'm a big offense guy so i went and got some big bats and we'll see if they can overcome Safeco. most my guys are younger so if it works i should be good for awhile. if not it'll be a rebuild as the minors are thin.

12. Who is your biggest Major Leagues rival?

looking at the names in here i don't really have a rival. i've played against several of the owners here and against some like chase39 in the same division for seasons in other worlds. i'd like to meet my old Reds team in the WS if were ever possible. i'd like to beat my old team.

13. What do you look for in a Hitter?

good splits mostly but i love guys with big power and good eye. i'm not too attached to contact and wtf is bunt? of course there are guys you look for different thing is like a leadoff hitter but i've many succesful teams without a leadoff type. big bats from top to bottom.

14. What do you look for in a Pitcher?

splits #1. then gb/fb though i've never been in a pitchers park this extreme so i don't know if i'll put as much importance on it here. control and pitches would be next. i don't mind a guy with average control if his pitches and splits are good. i rarely pay attention to velocity.

15. What is the best move you’ve ever made in Major Leagues?

hopefully the Alonso, Mullin trade but it is yet to be determined.

16. What is the worst move you’ve ever made in Major Leagues?

i'd say trading one too many pitchers away this early. i'm ok now but an injury will hurt.

17. What is your most memorable HBD moment, any world?

finally winning a WS in MLB world. i had already won 4 but that one was the sweetest. i'd had a dominant team for several years and always made the playoffs but then i turned into Bobby Cox (or MikeT) and couldn't win. finally did after 9 seasons though.

18. What is your team’s #1 strength?

before i made the trades i did it was the pitching staff. i still have 2 very good frontline guys and a decent backend of the rotation but a kinda shaky bullpen. i have yet to see how a potent offense does in a pitchers park like this but in any other stadium i'd put my offense up against anybody's i'm hoping it works. we'll see.

19. What is your team’s #1 weakness?

probably Safeco. it's a new experience for me. that and not much depth.

20. In what ways, if any, do you think Major Leagues could improve?

ask me again later. i haven't noticed anything i dislike yet and as of now i wouldn't change anything.

Trade Spotlight (Update on Sydney White)

Hardball Dynasty's

Sidney White

Following up on the prior Trade Spotlight, Sidney White has a new home in Seattle, and it is suiting him just fine. 25 games into S6, White is hitting .315/.371/.562 while playing 3B for the Mariners. To land White, the Mariners gave up Cristobal Vizcaino, Jolbert Acevedo, and Antonio Maeda.

White, along with the recently acquired Taylor Mullin and Harry Alonso, has the potential to help Seattle field a top offensive team, even while playing home games in the pitcher's haven of Safeco Field. Only time will tell whether that is enough to help the Mariners rebound from a disappointing S5 and revert back to the S4 form that netted them a 101-61 record.

Season 6 Power Rankings: Through 25 Games

After taking a brief poll amongst Major League Owners, the following Power Rankings have been published for your enjoyment only. It is a representation of how the owners around the league feel the teams should be ranked. Hopefully, the next round will get a little more input!



1. St. Louis Cardinals
2. Minnesota Twins
3. Washington D.C. Nationals
4. Philidelphia Phillies
5. Kansas City Royals
6. San Diego Padres
7. Arizoa Diamondbacks
8. Chicago Cubs
9. Oakland Athletics
10. San Francisco Giants/Houston Astros (Tie)

Amongst the surprises here are that the Atlanta Braves were only mentioned by a single voter, despite being a perennial contender in the NL. The KC Royals have certainly made some huge strides an a relatively weak division with their incredible offense. The Giants slip in, all that talent should start paying off. I cant say I disagree St. Louis at #1. The combination of youth and talent there is amazing. Current WS Champs, the Twins, seem to be slipping in a lot of owners opinions. Washington was consistently ranked between 2-4 by almost all the voters. Oakland and Arizona come up fairly even across all the voters and should make for a great divisional chase down the stretch.

The 2-Hole:First Look At Oakland Part 2

The 2-Hole

Welcome to the second installment in our "lineup" of blog material out of Oakland. This time, we'll glance over the 11-man pitching staff in Oakland for Season 6. Having only 11 pitchers means that outside the 5-man rotation, and the long/swing man, there are only 5 arms available out of the pen in the late innings. Further complicating this matter is the fact that there is only one left-handed pitcher on the enitre staff, and he's in the rotation. This will require some heavy workloads and very good bullpen management by the coaching staff consisting of Bench Coach Jorge Estrada, Bullpen Coach Sterling Staley, and former Detroit Pitching Coach Louie Porter. Estrada and Staley were both previously with the Athletics orginization. Estrada was the team's Bullpen coach last season, and Staley served as the AAA Pitching coach in Oakland since the start of Season 3. Having these cats on board helped to form the plan to go with the 11-man staff. Let's take a look:

Starting Rotation

1. Fernando Rosado (15-9, 3.33 ERA over 208.0 IP)
2. Steve Kennedy (15-5, 3.74 ERA over 192.2 IP)
3. Spike Shannon (13-4, 3.67 ERA over 154.1 IP)
4. Matt Scalici (13-9, 4.08 ERA over 165.1 IP)
5. Rico Rijo (11-4, 4.04 ERA over 120.1 IP)

Bullpen

Long/Swing: Herbert Piper (Career 49-28, 3.50 ERA in 655.0 IP as SP in MiLB)
Setup B: Virgil Picasso (3.23 ERA, 0.99 WHIP in 61.1 IP)
Setup B: Danny Leach (3.78 ERA, 1.17 WHIP in 33.1 IP)
Setup B: Doug Bay (5.34 ERA, 1.55 WHIP in 60.2 IP)
Setup A: Fonzie Wayne (1.56 ERA, 1.15 WHIP in 17.1 IP as Sept. Callup)
Setup A: Lance Woolf (3.36 ERA, 1.39 WHIP in 142.0 IP!)

A lot has changed since the days of running a more specialized bullpen Oakland. A few seaons back, it was all about slotting guys into specific roles. There was a lot of success found using the LHS/RHS roles under the old coaching staff. However, with the acquisition of Woolf and the drafting of Wayne, Oakland was given a unique opportuniy to really shorten the bullpen down. These two workhorses can easily provide shutdown innings totaling between 250-300 innings between just the two of them. They key wil be them remaining healthy, and Wayne to show he is indeed ready for the big leagues. His "struggles" in the minors have long been attributed to his not feeling challenged at any level, as he was generally considered ready when he was drafted in Season 3.

As far as the middle innings go, Picasso has certainly proven he's capable of being a quality reliever. Posting excellent numbers and keeping a great deal of inherited runners from scoring, he has consistantly proved his worth as one of the most underrated of the Athletics. Bay and Leach are also no stranger to shutting down opposing hitters, although Bay certainly seemed to have lost his touch last season. Hopefully, taking the ball a little less often will help him regain his form. Herbert Piper has the ability to come in any inning, any time. He can start, bridge the gap to Woolf and Wayne, or fill in if/when the injury bug strikes. He definitely showed us the ability to get Major League hitters out last season in his first taste of the bigs (1.01 WHIP, 5.84 K/9, 1.46 BB/9).

Lastly, the rotation. Unfortunately, Oakland still lacks that elite-level Ace to propel them from perpetual playoff failure to World Champs. However, the rotation is still a top quality rotation, featuring very talented starters, top to bottom, all of which kept their ERA's around or below the 4.00 mark. Rosado leads this young and talented rotation as the pitcher who seems to be able to domiate the most often, although Kennedy is not far behind. These two form a solid 1-2 punch at the top, and can work a solid 200 innings each to head the rotation with certainty. Beyond that are three pitchers all still under 200 innings pitched in the bigs. Shannon, Scalici and Rijo have some of the most electric stuff you'll ever see at the bottom of a rotation. Scalici especially seems to have at least 3-4 plus pitches that he can throw in any count to get batters swinging away, or simply beating the ball into the ground for a ground-out. Rijo's control is amongst the best you will ever see, especially for a kid that inexperienced at the big-league level. Rico came up last year to fill a spot in the rotation due to injury and has never looked back. Spike Shannon (the lone Lefty) was that injured pitcher, and he was able to get back on solid ground after a shaky return from his DL stint for Elbow Inflammation. If any of these three falter, Piper will be around to step in, as will Brooks Everhart down in AAA.

It'll be intersting to see how the 11-Man-Plan holds up, and if Oakland can have another very fortunate year injury-wise. The talent is there for this team to dominate, but the consistency in the rotation is certainly the weak point that will need to be adressed at some point. Although there are some very talented arms in the system, there is no "Ace" ready to dominate in the bigs yet this season, so Oakland may have to continue to discuss trades with other teams if they wish to add that elite Ace. Great ptiching simply isn't enough. You need the best. Keeping opposing teams to 4 runs or less will certainly help this team win a lot of games, as the offense figures to score a ton. However, they need to find a way to cut that number in half if they want to ever see that WS trophy.

On Deck: The 3-Slot! A look at the Prospects in Oakland's system.

Leading Off: First Look At Your Season 6 Oakland Athletics

Leading Off

Welcome to the first of 9 installments focusing solely on the Oakland Athletics. Today, in the leadoff spot, is your Oakland Athletics Season Six Preview. We will cover how this team looks at the beginning of the season and what to expect from the Athletics in their quest to finally take home the Major Leagues World Series Title.

First, we'll take a brief look at the projected lineups for the Season 6 Oakland Athletics, which will be doing something a little different this season, as far as platooning some key players goes.
Roosevelt Thomas asked if he could be the everyday lead-off hitter, and has been granted his wish by Oakland management, who is very excited to see what he can bring as the full time table-setter with his combination of power and speed. Mo Springer brings his 51 homers in 432 AB's down to the 8-hole where he says he feels no pressure and can just drive the ball as he pleases and also utilize his incredible speed when he's not smacking the ball silly. Hey, whatever works for you Mo! Kent Lewis is expected to take on his share of playing time, as are rookies Ronald Traynor and Bud Hogan. Being able to shift former AL MVP Turk Weaver between 1st and 2nd helps get these guys into the lineup, as well as Charley Jameson's willingness to take a seat vs. lefties. Weaver will also be allowed to reclaim his 3rd spot in the order, where he too claims to preform much better.

The defense is all around above average, never lacking in range at any position. However, the glovework of Weaver at 2nd, Springer in CF & Piper Ross occasionally at SS could use a little improvement. Former SS Jeff Zambrano has transitioned into a very good, if not great, 3rd baseman defensively and provides a ton of value all around. C Hersh Hargrave has been aging extremely well for a catcher, able to play in over 135 games in four straight seasons and handles himself very well behind the plate. Last season was quite possibly his best offensively, but it's been told that the way he handles his staff is an overlooked and vastly underrated part of his game. Hopefully, the teams excellent range can help it to overcome it's faults with the glove.

Overall, the starting 9 are extremely solid vs. both lefties and righties. Take a look:

Lineup Vs. LHP
1. LF Roosevelt Thomas (.298/.377/.550 in 342 AB's)
2. 3B Jeff Zambrano (.323/.380/.571 in 396 AB's)
3. 1B Turk Weaver (.293/.373/.500 in 594 AB's)
4. RF Terry Heffner (.295/.367/.580 in 553 AB's)
5. DH Ronald Traynor (.326/.436/.675 in 1661 Career MiLB AB's)
6. C Hersh Hargrave (.331/.430/.488 in 523 AB's)
7. 2B Kent Lewis (.331/.408/.481 in 2271 Career MiLB AB's)
8. CF Mo Springer (.329/.374/.745 in 432 AB's)
9. SS Piper Ross (.279/.335/.503 in 569 AB's)

Bench Vs. LHP
C - Bart Morgan
1B - Bud Hogan
DH - Charley Jameson
1B/LF/RF - Peter Small
Utility - Timothy Jones

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Lineup Vs. RHP
1. LF Roosevelt Thomas (.298/.377/.550 in 342 AB's)
2. RF Terry Heffner (.295/.367/.580 in 553 AB's)
3. 2B Turk Weaver (.293/.373/.500 in 594 AB's)
4. 1B Bud Hogan (.325/.412/.627 in 2324 Career MiLB AB's)
5. DH Charley Jameson (.286/.375/.497 in 517 AB's)
6. C Hersh Hargrave (.331/.430/.488 in 523 AB's)
7. 3B Jeff Zambrano (.323/.380/.571 in 396 AB's)
8. CF Mo Springer (.329/.374/.745 in 432 AB's)
9. SS Piper Ross (.279/.335/.503 in 569 AB's)

Bench Vs. RHP
C - Bart Morgan
DH - Ronald Traynor
2B - Kent Lewis
1B/LF/RF - Peter Small
Utility - Timothy Jones


Noticeably different this season is the fact that there are 14 position players on the 25-man roster. The Athletics approach this year seem to be slanted toward an even more powerful offense, better balanced by the capabilities of the bench players.

Amongst those regularily on the bench will be backup catcher Bart Morgan, who's defense has kept him at the ML level backing up Hargrave for a couple of seasons now. It helps that he carries a bit of pop in his bat to go with those solid defensive skills. Timothy Jones will be around to handle the more demanding defensive substitutions that may need to be made. Not only can he cover any position on the diamond except catcher, he is lightning fast on the basepaths and comes in very handily as a pinch-runner. Peter Small is a cat that can handle 1B and the Corner OF positions nicely, while carrying a decent amount of pop in his bat and fairly quick speed as well. ALmsot equally effective against righties and lefties, he's handy for using against those managers who like to micromanage their bullpen.

When a LHP starts the game, Oakland will have two huge power bats than can come off the bench to hit later in the game if the opposing manager is forced to go to his pen. Bud Hogan & Charley Jameson are two of the most intimidating bats a manager can have at hand late in the game. As for when a RHP starts, Oakland will have the same luxury with Ronald Traynor available to pinch-hit late and the added versatility of IF/OF Kent Lewis to fill in capably anywhere on the diamond, and hit very well against lefty relievers. These added dimensions to the bench are expected to help boost an offense that will need to score plenty of runs after another failed attempt by Oakland ownership to bring in an elite Ace stater.

On Deck: #2 Hole - A look at the 11-man Pitching Staff in Oakland this season.