The Frobel Division
Its this writer’s opinion that the Frobel Division will be the most exciting Division in Belted Deep Baseball. Three teams will be vying for the top spot, all featuring great pitching and good hitting. Picking a top team in this division is tough but the way this writer sees it, its stacked up as this.
- Sao Paulo
- Yorkshire
- Nassau
- New Westminster
The truth of the matter is, it is difficult to deny the defending champs the respect they deserve. The difference between Sao Paulo and the rest of the division is slim, but the combination of their defense and bullpen are enough to give them the top nod heading into draft day.
Sao Paulo
(Typical Sao Paulo fans celebrating their third BDB title)
Strengths: Pujols and Longoria lead this offense with Morneau, Swisher, Martinez and Drew backing them up. Any team with Pujols in the number three spot is going to be top notch. Their starting staff is four heavy featuring Weaver, Lee, Verlander and Braden … Garza is a solid #5 guy. The pen just might be the best the leagues has ever seen with Marmol, Kup, Wagner, Thornton and Burnett. This saves Rae leaving the other teams to fight over the pieces of relievers while they are able to concentrate on strengthening their weak spot.
Weaknesses: The Outfield is the only blight on this team, which they may be able to patch up with some platoon scenarios. Smith and Beltran leave big holes in the lineup. Hill remains a horrible option at second base.
Overall: This team will take a team of strong hitting and strong pitching to overcome. If Rae is able to draft or trade his way into another strong bat, the rest of the division is going to be hard pressed to play catch up.
Yorkshire
I am sure that most readers had to rub their eyes when they read that the Yorkshire Moor Hens were featured as contenders for their first time in eleven (patient) years. The Moor Hens feature the best offense in the division as well as arguably the best starting staff in the league.
Strengths: Jiminez, Johnson, Latos, Pettitte and Matusz form the baseball version of the fab five. What is even scarier is that four of these guys are all under the age of 26. Also sitting back waiting for tone of these guys to falter is Hunter and Volquez. Things are looking good in Yorkshire. Their offense is led by AL MVP Hamilton who is supported by Gonzalez, McCann, Rasmus, Prado and Youkilis. The only that is going to slow these guys down is injuries.
Weaknesses: This team’s biggest weakness is defense. Overall the team defense is not very good. With the bat the only hole in this lineup is rookie SS Andrus. The bullpen is largely here with only two or three arms to add.
Overall: This team has the potential to walk away with the pennant. Look for owner Mosher to bring in another bat in the draft and add some arms in the pen to make this team a sure lock in 2010.
Nassau
This team might be ranked higher, but the bets are on that the ownership is going to grow tired in the hot Bahama sun and will have a few mental lapses with all of the Blue Jay talent available in the draft. Watch for some exciting draft decisions by this management team.
Strengths: Halladay, Hudson and Cain form a formidable trio. Three game series featuring Sao Paulo, Yorkshire and Nassau are going to be low scoring events. Marcum and Kuroda will bring up the rear in this rotation. The offense features three All Stars in Crawford, Fielder and Beltre and a solid supporting cast featuring Ortiz, Suzuki and Rios. Michael Young may provide some trade bait for the Sharks as they are probably one main bat away from catching Sao Paulo.
Weaknesses: Not too many weaknesses in this lineup. Posada will need a strong compliment as he is not the defensive player that he used to be (if he ever was) … The pen could also use an arm or two to keep up with Sao Paulo.
Overall: This is a strong team, and would be the favorite in every other division, however with the defending champs remaining strong and the Yorkshire youth movement finally coming around, the Sharks could find themselves out of the playoffs despite having one of the best teams in memory.
New Westminster
The Plaidsox are clearly a team in transition. Four bats and one arm do not make for a contender. This team will definitely be an afterthought the first time through their own division. Look for a Youth movement to begin as Ryan Sambrook may take a page or two out of his brother’s book to contend within the next couple of years. (If the elder Sambrook ever competes)
Strengths: Mauer, Wright and Upton make for a good young trio, the challenge will be surrounding them with established enough talent to use them in their prime. The veteran Vernon Wells provides a strong bat and great trade bait for this team. Look for this tem to not look the same in the future. In the rotation there really isn’t much to talk about except for Santana who is a #3 or #4 starter disguised as a #1.
Weaknesses: This team is a complete rebuilding project as there is not one part of this team that doesn’t need work. On offense the team will need a second baseman, a first baseman and an outfielder who are better than average. The starting staff is a mess and could use another three starters. The pen is not as strong as they used to be as Papelbon seems to have lost his magic touch.
Overall: It’s going to be a long summer for this team. Not enough youth to make things exciting and not enough talent to make the team interesting to watch on a daily basis. Look for some changes and some shrewd drafting of high ceiling players in order to make this team a contender in the near future.