Offseason Post 1: Player Outlook

Here's a quick look at a few players and an outlook on them for the upcoming year:
NOTE: Not all players included, only ones with significant info to report.

Chris Gaj (SS)
Gaj is coming off a somewhat disappointing 2008 campaign where he hit only one homer and struggled to keep his average around .400. He had a few moments of brilliance, but he was very unreliable all year at the plate. Look for a rebound year from Gaj this year. Expect to see his average climb to well over .500 and he should get the power back in his swing as well. One bright spot for Gaj was his 11 stolen bases. Expect that trend to continue.

Peter Steding (OF)
Steding, one of the most overrated players on the team, struggled in '08, managing hardly any power in his swing, and making poor decisions in the outfield. Don't expect a whole lot from Steding in '09. There isn't a whole lot of power here or speed. His coaches may rave about him, but don't let that fool you. After all, the coaches have led the team to a combined 6-18 record over the last 2 seasons. Steding isn't terrible, but he's not all that great either.

Nathan Southwick (OF)
Southwick remains one of the harder players to gauge. He's only an average fielder with below average power at the plate. To make matters worse, he bunts way too often which hurts his batting stats overall. He has his moments, but they are too infrequent to be reliable. Expect average stats from him this year, but nothing more.

Rich Oberst (2B/OF)
Oberst has had back to back disappointing seasons, recording fewer than 10 RBIs in both with only one extra base hit over that span. His above average speed makes him a base stealing threat, which he proved by finishing 2nd on the team in steals, but his infrequent ability to get on base lowered his steal opportunities. This year however, a breakout seems likely. An adjusted swing has shown some real power in practice plus the long awaited addition of cleats should give him an instant boost. Look for Oberst to earn a starting spot back this year. Another problem Oberts has faced is that he has batted low in the lineup, which reduced RBI opportunities as well as the number of at-bats he got. In the one game he batted higher up in the lineup last year (he batted leadoff) he went 2 for 3, doubled and singled, and drove in three runs. Coincidence? Doubtful. Keep an eye on Oberst. This could be breakout year.

Greg Stultz (P/2B)
Stultz pitched effectively on a consistant basis last year, but only for 2 or 3 innings at a time. Anything longer was met with gruesome results. Perhaps the team should adopt a policy that revolves around using 2 to 3 pitchers every game for 2 or 3 innings max. You do that, Stultz may turn into an ace. As for his bat, it showed signs of power, but only rarely. Consistancy is the key, and right now he isn't.

Max Moody (3B/C)
Moody showed a momentary flash of brilliance in the playoffs in '08 but overall, he strkes out too much and plays far too inconsistantly. There is promise here with practice. Moody has a big upside. But will next year be the year he taps into it? Wait and see.

Enoch Bastian (OF)
Oh boy. Where to start. His fielding leaves much to be desired, and his bat has less power than a shack in the country. Enoch does have a lot of speed for base stealing but doesn't get on enough to be much of a threat. It could be a long year for Bastian, but you never know. Miracles can happen.



Coming soon: preseason predicitons, roster predictions/suggestions, outlook for next year and beyond.

2009: A New Beginning

Well its the offseason and I figured starting a blog about the team for this next year would be cool since I have a feeling this upcoming year will be a big one. This'll be the place for results, stats, and news from the team, along with thoughts and comments from me and my teammates. Well, all I can say is: PLAY BALL!