Team Tag: Las Vegas

I chose to tag Las Vegas because they are the team in the Thurmon Munson League that mirrored my own team's rise and fall over the last two seasons. (A team after my own heart, if you will, with very similar concerns and struggles.)

In 2012 the Jokers finished first in their division with a 94-68. They wrapped up this season at 76-83.

There was no clear reason that they shouldn't have been competitive this season as well, in fact making a big move in obtaining the services of Bob Rudyard in exchange for a couple of minor league prospects. If anything, most would have assumed that the addition of Rudyard would have made them the dominant favorite to represent the TML in the ABL World Series.

The opposite was, in fact, true. By the trade deadline, the Jokers had traded Rudyard back to Montreal and the RCL in return for an investment in the future.

With Las Vegas still in the top half of the TML in most batting categories, the true struggle of their team has been pitching. We'll look at individual pitchers in a moment, but their pitching has produced the third worst ERA in the TML. Starting pitching has been 9th (and that includes Gould and half a season from Rudyard) while the bullpen is ranked 11th.

While their pitching and bullpen may need some revamping, let's take a look at the Joker's lineup:

Troy Tracy

LF Troy Tracy is an elite leadoff hitter, reaching base at a .402 clip. He's got some pop as well, hitting 20 dingers this season, and his glove is an asset in left field. If there's one concern, it's that he's a 30-year-old free agent after this season and will probably be demanding an expensive contract. It will be interesting to see what direction they take with him.

Eric Bennett

Batting second is SS Eric Bennett, whose .314 AVG and .371 OBP to go along with his excellent glove may make him one of the more valuable shortstops in the league. He's had an improved season over last (.262/.305), and he's under team control just one more year. Bennet could help the Jokers climb back up to the top of their division next year if he produces like he did this season.

31-year-old Gordon Thorton was acquired from Montreal in the Rudyard trade, and it looked like the main reason for his inclusion in the trade was salary. However, just over half of his home runs this season were with Vegas (13). After the trade he posted a .989 OPS, finishing the season with an .870 OPS. If he continues to produce like that, that hefty contract won't be as much of a burden.

The clean-up hitter, DH Ray Stevens, has filled in the last half of the season for Vic Jennings, traded to Maple at the deadline. Stevens has done well, knocking in 15 HR and 55 RBIs, so he's helped the team from losing much at the plate. Jennings is 36 and his contract runs out, a common theme with many of the top of the LV order.

Phillip Smith

Stevens is followed by Phillip Smith, a top hitting catcher whose triple slash is .291/.361/.464. Smith held down the starting role the entire season this year, and at just 25 years old, it will be his for awhile.

Kevin Carey, hitting sixth and playing first base is unusual in that he doesn't hit for much power at that position, but his .382 OBP fits right in with the rest of this team. Carey's numbers are down this season, his slugging almost 100 points lower. It might be a sign of his age, 38. He's signed for another year.

José Ortíz

The bottom portion of the order has struggled, as one would expect.   Colin St. John's injury has left a hole in RF, but the Jokers have still been able to hit. 2B José Ortíz hasn't been an automatic out, but may be in the gold glove discussion. 3B Lou Gibson has been a passable hitter at the bottom of the lineup, but he has hurt the team on defense.

Unfortunately for Las Vegas, it wasn't the bats that defined their season.

Their starting rotation, at the beginning of the season, featured the nigh unbeatable one-two punch of Gould and Rudyard.

Bob Rudyard

Bob Rudyard, after signing his three-year $46 million deal, looked to be a staple of this rotation for years to come. Because of a spring training injury, he started just nine games and by then, it may have been too late. Even when he did arrive, he had no run support and while posting a 1.89 ERA, he won just 4 of 9 and lost 3.  Perhaps because he was one of their most appealing assets (and maybe the only one other than Gould who could help restock the farm system), he was sent to Montreal in one of the bigger deals of the year.

Maurice Gould

Of course, the ace of the rotation was and will, for some time, be Maurice Gould. Gould won the pitching triple crown handily, posting a 2.35 ERA, 24 wins and 316 Ks while pitching 249 innings. His dominance was such that he notched 68 more strikeouts than any other pitcher in either league and 113 more than anyone else in the TML.

The fun stops there, though, for the starting staff. In the TML, the pitching league of the ABL, two pitchers just won't cut it. Making up the rest of the starting staff were Ryan Owens (11 starts, 4.98 ERA), Tom Wagner (5.78 ERA in 26 starts), Bob Magee (5.36, 33 starts), Christian Clark (5.62 ERA, 32 starts), and Clay Morris (6.73 ERA in 13 starts). On the bright side, MacGee and Clark are both young and could be solid middle of the rotation starters in the near future.

And when the starts went bad, the bullpen struggled this season to help out. This was in no small part due to an injury to top reliever Rich Barrett, who had 77 Ks in 68 IP last season. Barrett had just 28 innings this season.

Beyond Barrett, just Nick Fox was effective, and he was also out for three months. Fox had nearly a 4:1 K:BB ratio and struck out 46 in 51 IP. He held opponents to a .226 average.

Ernie Kuhn was serviceable with a 3.86 ERA, but besides Fox and Kuhn, not much else worked.  Ray Brady, acquired in the Rudyard trade, didn't take well to TML hitting, earning a 6.16 ERA with Las Vegas. He wasn't the only one, as Marquéz, García, and Morris all had ERAs over six.  The bullpen is in dire need of help this offseason, even more than starting pitching (where a couple of young players that can help out there if they develop)

Looking to their future, the Jokers made trades that added to their farm system and will help them compete as older players leave or contracts. They might be able to find some bullpen help sooner rather than later in Messer and Hoskins. In the lineup, there might be a longer wait, but they've added two potential superstars in 3B Veton Zhugli (sounds like a vampire name...) and C Alfredo Villalobos. There's also a large stock of 2-3 star talent in the minors.

Going into next season, there are certainly concerns for the Jokers. There are aging players and expiring contracts and there are big holes in the both the pen and the starting rotation. It will be interesting to see where they go. Will they try make another run and acquire talented arms through trades and free agency or are they going to continue to try and move assets in order to look to the future?