2032 Hops Pre-season

Herein is the conceit:

Take a drawing of nine baseball players, done the other night. Look at the Bethesda (the Hops’ single A affiliate) roster, and choose nine guys, and name them via the pictures. I scanned the original, then worked up each image in Photoshop today. Then, each of them talk about the guys on the major league roster ahead of them, and what they think about their chances this year.

The original scan from my sketchbook:

Jesús Faundez, 1b: This Dominican scouting discovery has yet to rise above .200 in his three seasons in the Hops’ organization. Here is what he has to say:

“I think we have a lot of players on this organization. I am not sure I have had the chance to prove what I can do. I know that Taniguchi is the big leaguer in front of me, along with a couple of other guys. Taniguchi, he hits the ball hard, gets the extra base hit, and he is still pretty young, only 28. I hope to maybe get to the big club and challenge him.”

Zeke Barnes, RP: A third round pick from the 2029 draft, he had a brief taste of AA before settling in Bethesda.

“The bullpen is always an interesting spot, and I think there is always room for a lefty in the pen. I’m a specialist, and right now, there are no lefties on the big squad. Atif and Phillips are both starting, so I don’t know if that’s the best option. Alejo and Rang are my big competition in the next couple of years. I’m hoping I get noticed and go to the big club soon.”

Yuujin McCool, RP: 3^rd round in 2028, having limited success as a pro thus far.

“I think that what we do depends a lot on our work as a battery. My catcher and I have to be on the same page. On the big club, de Zeeuw and Watt, well I think they’re set for awhile. I really hope to be throwing to Watt some day, he is really, really good. I need to work on my control, so I’m throwing to Brad as much as I can, doing my side sessions and working out, getting ready for the season.”

Odell Gisler, 3b: Minor league free agent signee in ’28 from the South Carolina organization, who is starting to hit his stride with OBP and power.

“Bian is the reason I got sent down to A from Jacksonville. I just need to work hard and hope things develop. An-yi is a horse, and he’s definitely starting to show it up in the bigs. He was a number one draft pick for a reason, and at 22, man, hitting .260 his rookie year, he’s got it going. I may start taking some balls at 2b, ‘cause Hayakawa may not stick in the show. He’s still hitting around two bucks, and I might be able to show what I can do this year, and make the squad in the next year or so, or get noticed and go somewhere in need of utility and hard work.”

Tetsuo Ohayashi, CF: In the organization since ’24, but has yet to rise above Bethesda.

“Martin Arias, he can play, and then they signed Rizvi, and picked up Colwill in Rule 5. With Cassidy, and Donovan, and Butardo, the big club is pretty set with OF for some time. I’m not too sure if I’m getting the notice I need to get to that level. I try to flash leather, maybe back up OF, because Arias is the only CF showing much, maybe de Regt, but not much in CF depth.”

Bill Ottinger, 2b: Fifth round draft choice that floundered in AA, starts this year in Bethesda.

“Petit is signed for a long time, so all of us at 2b are trying to learn SS and 3b, or play some OF. That guy can freaking hit. If he’s around all season, the big club could make some noise, I think.”

George Bays, CF: Scouting discovery out of England, yet to rise above Bethesda for the organization.

“Well, outfield, it is like being a ranger. Scouting out the edges of what the game has to offer. I’m not so sure the big club has the kind of rangers they need. Cassidy is a bit long of tooth, and Jejo has yet to rise to the kind of super stardom we’ve all been told about. There is a reason they went out and got Rizvi and Colwill, you know.”

Bruce Berardi, SP: This 2^nd round pick is about to make his pro debut.

“I’ve got a shot at being in this rotation if I keep working with my coaches and catchers, just going out and grinding every day. I see a starting rotation that doesn’t have any real stars, and they’ve struggled for a lot of seasons getting that guy who they can trust in the rotation. I hope that is me down the road, a guy they can give the ball to every five days.”

Ramón Roniero, SS: Scouting discovery who has had some success, but regressed last season.

“Akiro Kato, he is getting a little older. JC Petit, he is a stud. I played with Rios back in ’30, and I could see he is a good one, and he is on the big team. I don’t know Rosa, but I need to trust in what I can do, and let the rest work itself out. If Rios, Kato or Rosa, they stumble, heck, I can maybe be ready to go.”

The San Diego Hops signed a few players to fill some obvious holes: Pedercini for the rotation, Rizvi for the outfield, Rosa for the infield. Most feel that it won’t be enough to put SD in the playoff hunt, but it will certainly be a better team than finished with 104 losses a season ago.

Hops post-season review 2031

Addy "Too Many Zooz" de Zeeuw

Hops Season in Review

2031

The second worst record in Hops’ history was not what the organization intended, nor predicted, for 2031. 104 losses was a reversion to the 2028 105 loss season, and was a stark reminder of just how low the San Diego franchise has been, and seems to be wallowing in the present.

Attendance was at an all-time low, not coming close to the three million mark for the first time in franchise history. This resulted in the biggest financial blow of all time, a loss of nearly fifty million dollars. What can be salvaged from this disastrous turn of events is detailed below.

Positives

Catcher Addy de Zeeuw avoided a sophomore slump, and at 26 is moving into the prime of what should be an excellent career. He hit a solid .261 with 23 doubles and 9 homeruns, power numbers that should improve more with maturity. Defensively, he was a very good catch and throw backstop, nailing 36% of basestealers. San Diego is often busy on the Rule 5 front, and “Too Many Zooz” is a prime example of why Hops’ scouts scour the other teams for likely candidates.

Jean-Claude Petit was everything San Diego wanted, appearing in 160 games, thus avoiding the injury jinx that has plagued his career. A slash line of .332/.375/.566, a league-leading 224 hits as well as topping the league in total bases, with 39 dingers, 113 runs and 108 rbis, will get him some MVP votes. He was the subject of trade feelers, but it is unlikely, given his team friendly contract into 2036, that SD will move this popular asset to the team.

Jejomar Butardo keeps landing on the DL, but in his 116 games, he had the best year of his career, slashing at .320/.384/.516, with 29 doubles and 25 home-runs. He has a feared arm in RF, evidenced by his seventeen assists. At 28, he enters the prime years of his tenure in San Diego, and may attract trade or extension considerations.

Salah bin Atif spent two months on the DL, missing most of May and June into July, but when he was healthy, he was the best pitcher on the Hops’ staff. He had a team high twelve wins against only six losses, and a solid, for SD, 4.40 ERA. Like the core group of San Diego’s future, he is only 27, entering his prime.

When Butardo was injured, youngster Jason Donovan stepped into the corner outfield and made only one error in over forty games. He hit a robust .326 with a bit of extra base pop. He topped 100 at bats for the first time in his young career.

Backup catcher and DH, Hae-nim Kim, made 400 plate appearances and hit with alacrity and some gap power. His slash line of .311/.345/.415 was more than adequate, and made a nice complement to de Zeeuw.

Tokuhei Taniguchi played every game for the third straight season, and continues to contribute great power numbers with 69 extra base hits, 33 doubles, just off the league lead, and 32 home runs. He is another prime-time age-wise player at 27. His average dipped, but only to .282, and his glove is very good, only nine errors in over 1500 chances.

Zong-yuan Sang was the anchor in an otherwise shaky bullpen, though his 3.84 ERA rose almost a point and a half since 2030. He was one of the team leaders with over fifty appearances for the second straight season. He still should have some arm left at 28.

Debuts by a number of Hop rookies included number one draft choices and scouting discoveries:

An-yi Bian made his major league entrance with a .265/.320/.412 slash and solid 3b when Abbott went down after 40 games. He did not appear overmatched in his 300 at bats despite being a mere 21 years old.

Martin Arias won’t turn 21 until 2032, but made his rookie splash with over 500 plate appearances. After a rough start, he had a torrid summer to finish with a respectable .257 average. He also stole 19 bases, and showed impressive range in center field. The young Cuban has a very bright future in San Diego.

21 year old Manny Rios was a wizard at SS for 70 games, but was overmatched at the plate in his debut. The young Costa Rican discovery will hopefully be able to hone his bat skills in the minors in ’32.

Motoki Hayakawa also made his rookie season memorable, appearing in 75 games, but hit only .185, though he did get his first five major league home runs.

John Watt, the number one pick for SD in last year’s draft, made his debut as a 21 year old, and hit a solid .286 with his first major league homer. He will still be a rookie officially in 2032, as he had only 68 plate appearances.

Yoshino Nakagawa, the ’28 first rounder, appeared in three games in his debut, and in ten innings did have a sub 2.00 ERA.

Pedro Alejo, yet another 21 year old, this time from the Rule 5 bin, went 6-6 in a swing role on the beleaguered Hops’ staff.

Negatives

Injuries to Tom Cassidy, Jejomar Butardo and Ken Abbott, devastated the offense, while an aging pitching staff coughed up runs at an alarming rate.

Age also was a detriment to the infield, as vets like Akira Kato, though adequate at .256/.309/.385, did not truly star. Donald Cameron at 40 may be done. Sean Witter and Andy Sabean were fairly innocuous, but had to start too many times once Goldi Lebel was traded.

The pitching was awful. Really awful.

Son Mai regressed as the closer, saving only 21 after leading the league in ’30 with 46. He lost 10, and his ERA bloated to 6.56.

Setting him up was a disaster shared by Adjir Kasakya, 35 games 6.61 ERA, Abdul-Fattah Arfan, a rookie, who allowed over 100 hits in 80 plus innings, Ernesto Lopez, 0-6, 6.95 ERA in 100 innings, Vicente Otero, 9.10 ERA, but somehow pitched in 24 games.

The starting rotation was no better, Juan Vasquez, league leader in walks allowed, and a 10-17 record, Dong-soo Bruce, went from 11-7 to 7-17 and a 6.16 ERA, Jim Phillips, 1-8 in 13 starts, Naomi Kobayashi, 4-11, 5.95 ERA in 22 starts, and spot starter, Alberto Rivera, 0-3 with an ERA at a lusty 7.68.

Future

The prospects that were close to the majors were forced to enter ahead of their time, but got valuable big league experience. Most prospects left are deep in the minors, and the minor leagues as a whole are ranked dead last, 24^th of 24 teams.

The five top prospects in the system are all either in Single A, or on the short season Sueño team. In fact, of the top twelve prospects, only one, Bill Ottinger, is a position player. At 19, he should be coming along about the time Petit’s contract is up.

In order to avoid another 100 loss season, a lot has to go right in ’32. If the rookies continue to trend upwards, and folks who take the hill in the rotation and bullpen recover from their disastrous year, there is hope.

Hops Post Season Review: 2030 Season (February 2017)

Salah "Skates" Bin Atif
Arguably the brightest spot of the Hops' recent season:

Here is the original sketch:

Salah bin Atif went a sterling 11-13 in 33 starts, encompassing 212.1 innings of work while striking out 10.4 every nine innings in his first full-time big league rotation role. He started 16 times in 2029, but was mostly coming out of the pen. His 4.15 ERA led the rotation. He had staunch competition from former Rule V pickup, Dong Soo Bruce, who went 11-7 with a 4.35 ERA, and Juan Vasquez, 15-12, but an ERA near 5. Closer Son Mai led the league in saves with 46, a twelve save improvement over '29.

So why did the Hops manage to win only 74 games in a season they hoped to manage at least .500?

Start with the pitching. Though improved, only Bruce and Vasquez finished over .500, and they were barely over the mark. Middle relief was inconsistent, ranking 19th in the league, as did the rotation.

Now, the offense:

Injuries to some of the players expected to carry the offensive load also played a part. Off-season signee, Jean Petit, missed thirty games and had trouble getting his bat going until the end of the season. His .276 mark was well below his career .329 record. San Diego is hoping for a big bounce back from its keystone player. Right-fielder Jejomar Butardo played a mere 119 games, and also suffered an offensive slump, with only 13 HRs, and an OPS in the .750 range. SS Akira Kato also missed significant time, playing 125 games, leaving the leadoff spot to secondary players at best for 25% of the season. Goldi Lebel came back to SD, but the Hops only got 120 games from him before he too succumbed to injury. Catcher, Addy de Zeeuw, picked up the pace in September, but until then hit below .200. Ken Abbott came back to the warm climes of San Diego after testing the free agent market, but at 36, may be creeping towards retirement. It is hoped that his contract season in '31 will be an attempt to rekindle his stardom of years past.

The brightest offensive star was the likable Tokuhei Taniguchi, who slugged his way to the 1b Silver Slugger award while copping a Gold Glove to show his all around ability. His 39 doubles led the league, and coupled with 36 homers, managed a .874 OPS while finishing one hit away from a .300 average. He is only 26, and like Bruce and "Too Many Zoos", a rule 5 pickup.

Tom Cassidy was consistently great, with a .304/.372/.513 slash line, while playing solid LF for 159 games. He is under contract for another two years, and is not showing any signs of falling off his skill set.

Future hopes:

The youngsters like Taniguchi, bin Atif, Bruce and Mai continue, perhaps joined by the likes of Jason Donovan who is still officially a rookie after his September callup showed he could hit big league pitching (.292/.333/.393). 

In AAA, 3b Motoki Hayakawa hit near .300 with some gap pop, and is the heir apparent to Abbott. An-yi Bian is also a 3b, so he may be aiming for DH in the bigs, but at only 20, has some time to spend in AAA still, though he hit very well for a 20 year old. Yoshino Nakagawa, 22, pitched over 100 innings between AA and AAA, and could be in the San Diego pitching scenario as early as next season. Other pitching prospects at the AAA level are fringy at best.

Jacksonville sports three of the brightest future stars for San Diego. The AA club features Martin Alias in CF, a 19 year old prospect who hits a ton, and continues to improve. Nick Henneberry has top of the rotation stuff, and the Havana castoff will likely be in the SD starting corps in '32. 2030 number one pick, John Watt, is the heir apparent at C, and may arrive as soon as '31.

Bethesda has a few prospects, like sleeper 6th round pick SP Ed Benner, Closer Hiroshi Nagasawa, and LF Foster Miller, also a 6th rounder.

Way down on the farm at Sueno's 22U club, watch reliever Jose Rodriguez and SP Jorge Esquibel.

Overall, the year was an improvement, just not as much as management predicted. Hopefully 2031 will see that prediction come to fruition.

Hops Mid-Season Review 2030 (January 2017)

San Diego Hops Mid-Season Review

First, an imagined excerpt from a start by recent call-up, Naomi Kobayashi, with a catcher, probably Tangles Calderon, behind the plate.

Which points out the problems San Diego has had over the course of the 2030 season. Haphazard pitching, injuries, and declining skills have led to a record ten games shy of .500.

POSITIVES

Can't argue with the season Taniguchi is having at 1b. Tokuhei is headed towards career highs in all batting stats, showing a .300 stroke with power (48 extra base hits, 24 HR) timing, 72 RBI, and better plate judgement, .350 OBP. He's only 26, and is proving the Rule 5 draft can be worthwhile, thank you, Seattle.

Tom Cassidy will near 1000 career games this season, mostly in a Hops uniform, after his signing up with SD after a sojourn into SoCal. He's tagging the pill for a .295/.369/.490 slash, and still covering some ground in LF, with only one error.

Hae-nim Kim, backup catcher, may move to the starting spot as he has shown tremendous hitting ability, and can handle pitchers. His .296 mark is 100 points better than the Rule 5 starter, Addy de Zeeuw.

Salah bin Atif has moved into the ace role of the rotation, sporting a 7-7 mark with a 3.15 ERA in his first full-time season as a starter. He's striking out ten per nine innings, and would have an even better mark if the bullpen hadn't blown a number of his starts.

Zong-Yuan Sang is 7-1 out of the bullpen with a sterling 2.35 ERA, showing his 2.59 mark from 2029 was no fluke.

Juan Vasquez is 10-7, but has a couple of bad starts that have inflated his ERA. He is on track for over 200 innings, and is only 27, like most of the pitching staff, still not reaching their peak.

EVEN

Akira Kato was injured, and now is back in the leadoff role. Hitting .270 is fine, but his OBP of .329 is a little less than hoped for. His glove has also been a little shaky, but still, about what was expected.

Donald Cameron has provided veteran presence, and a solid performance as an infield backup.

In brief play, Jason Donovan, has shown some batting skills while backing up all OF positions.

Goldi Lebel is winding down his career, and his average looks like, well, average. He is an upgrade over past CFers for San Diego.

Jejomar Butardo was also injured for quite awhile, but has started to show the kind of power hoped for from both sides of the plate. It is hard to remember he is only 27, as he already has over 900 hits in his career.

DISAPPOINTMENTS

This could be a very long list, but suffice it to say, the bullpen as a whole has suffered and dragged the team down.

Son Mai is third in the league in saves with 26, but has already blown six saves and his ERA sits on the far side of five.

Jean Petit was injured (another key to the Hops' record-the DL), but has yet to show the kind of plate technique hoped for. He languishes currently at .266, far below his .330 career mark.

Addy de Zeeuw is young, and a Rule 5 acquisition, but his .191 hitting may lose his job.

Ken Abbott was an All-Star last season, but has only 8 homers and a sub .250/.300 slash.

Of the other pitchers, starters Dobson, Bruce, Phillips and Dieguez have all struggled, but no more than the bullpen arms of Kasakya, Lopez and Mai.

OUTLOOK

It would be a miracle to reach .500 at this point, so winning more than 72, which would be .500 for the rest of the season, is a reasonable goal. Hopefully, the morass the team has fallen into will not lead to wholesale failure.

short hop
stretch
loose enough
spin adjustment
tricky
infield

scoop

Tokuhei Taniguchi, 1b San Diego Hops (Photoshop and Painter, Dec. 2017)-corrected version! The original is LH, so I did some fancy rotation work in Painter to get his big right hand without a glove…

Maybe because it’s age, what with Bill Atteberry turning 65 and me turning 63 this Thursday, Dec. 22, or maybe it was just a case of best player available for the holes in the lineup, but the Hops approach to this season looks a lot like a veteran’s paradise.

The Hops’ lineup for 2030 has undergone some dramatic changes since the offseason, without the benefit of any trading, which Hops’ management claims is due to unexplained phenomena. Speaking of phenomenal transactions, Jean-Claude Petit, Goldi Lebel, Ken Abbot, and Addy de Zeeuw all added via contraction draft, free agent signing or Rule 5 draft, so a mute trading season nonetheless led to four upgrades in the daily nine.

Heck, that might mean a record approaching .500? 2029, ten under .500, but a 14 win improvement. Upgrade four positions, significantly, and .500 is not an unseemly goal.

Starting Pitching

The crux of the problem, yet no attention in the off-season. Why the confidence? Juan Vásquez, the designated ace of the staff, is only 27, and seems to have corralled some of his significant talent. Salah bin Atif, the lefty, is 26, and improved by nearly two points in ERA while throwing 100 more innings than the season prior. At 6-6, and 4.24 ERA, “Skates” will be an interesting story to play out. Jim Phillips, another southpaw, was excellent in a September cameo, and looks to be a 30 game starter, and is a mere 25. Gonzalo Diéguez, is the grizzled vet at 29. Expect a solid, if uneventful, campaign. Vying for starter five are Naomi Kobayashi, and the grand old man, José “Smooth” Ramos.

Bullpen

Son Mai improved 16 saves in 2029, and has secured the closer role, with a team friendly contract.

Setting him up, lefty, Ajdir Kasakya, sporting a 1.64 ERA from the ’29 season, and righty Zong-yuan Sang, who lowered his ERA three points to 2.59 in ’29. Yo Watanabe seems poised to take a middle relief role, or sneak into the rotation, and like Phillips, a result of the ’28 blockbuster trade with Duke City. Kendrick Dobson, Abdul-Fattah Arfan, Dong-soo Bruce and Ernesto López are all in the mix.

C

Addy de Zeeuw, the switch-hitting, 25 year old, Rule 5 pick, has won the SD starting job. This will be 3^rd his major league season, having reached the bigs for two cups of coffee for two other clubs.

1b

Tokuhei Taniguchi took possession of 1b, and in his sophomore season, playing every game, and socking 34 HRs and 104 RBI, on top of a .300/.340/.505 slash at only 26.

2b

Jean-Claude Petit, first pick for Diablo in the compression draft, brings a superlative batsman and banner glove work, and is signed for six more years, when he’ll only be 32.

3b

Who would have thought the name of SD’s hot corner guard would be Ken Abbot? After a rancorous free agent breakup, the two sides seemed to have settled differences amiably, and Abbot , of the .300/double digit home run, capabilities, coupled with glove wizardry, and one senses something might be going on in San Diego.

SS

Akira Kato cracked 22 homeruns in only 135 games, and brings a good eye on both sides of the ball to ’30.

LF

After a year away from the SoCal confines, Tom Cassidy returned in glory, smashing 27 HRs while clubbing at a .288 clip. At 33, if things go south, he might be trade bait.

CF

Goldi Lebel was a star in SD for many years, and is somehow back and bringing one of the biggest upgrades to the Hops/ defense. Even at 33, he is producing, and will hit out of the 9 hole.

RF

Jejomar Butardo is hoping for a bounce-back 162, after hitting .246 in ’29. Afield, he is still a three-time gold glove winner, including the last two seasons.

DH

Clinton Miller, has seemed to find a home in SD after a nomadic career. Solid contribution, perhaps ready for an upgrade.

Bench

Hae-nim Kim was last season’s starter behind the plate, and he’s ready to step in if Addy falters. Motoki Hayakawa is odds on favorite to make the bigs as a utility player. Yoshi Nishimura is also in the infield mix. Ricardo Romo and Daniel Lopez return, and perhaps Jason Donovan makes the roster.

Futures

Martin Árias is ripping up the Winter League, and the scouting find is only 18. An-yi Bian, 20 year old, 2029 first round pick, had a very nice debut starting in AA with an .830 OPS. Another international signee to watch is Manuel Rios.

Pitching is a little thin, with Jacksonville’s Nakagawa closest to the bigs. Wilson and Rivera in AAA may have peaked. 16 year old Jose Rodriguez, signed on an international agreement, is 4-2 in the Winter League, with a 2.83 ERA in six starts and six relief appearances.

Hops could win 82. If they win 84, it would be the highest win total in ten years.