Maple Update - 2024

Maple had a very poor June going 10-16 after a solid start at 34-21.  We are still in 1st place in the Bill Martin division in the TML at 44-37 clinching on by 2 games over Jersey.  Our struggles surprisingly are at home with a 20-21 record versus 24-16 on the road.  Despite changes in the bullpen we also continue to struggle in close games or extra inning affairs (9-14).  On a bright note we certainly love the southpaws going 17-12 versus them through end of June.

Maple is in the top 4 in the TML in all Team Batting categories except HR and Slugging Pct (8th and 5th).  One area #GOLDI is happy about is On-Base Pct where they team is 2nd at .353.  We contribute this to putting the ball in play more often this year as we are #1 in Ks at 433.  Our top 3 hitters are George Soucy, Bartolo Valentin & Sal Ostendorff.

Maple started off really hot pitching in the TML but, of late have had a rough ride.  We are giving up far too many HRs (8th) and bases on balls (9th) than we did earlier in the year.  We are happy that we are 3rd in Opponents AVG .266 and hits allowed 748.  Those HRs with men on base are real killers though.  Our top 3 pitchers are Landy Lu, Zeus Hallman & Kent Tukulve Jr.

The Allstar game is right around the corner and we would expect a few Maple Marauders to make the TML team this year.  The ballots are going to be posted after the SIM tonight.  Maple has a series vs Mile High at home and on the road in Quebec City to hopefully get back on track in July prior to the Allstar game.

The farm system features our top prospect SP Dylan Butlin, 17 G, 7-5, 4.42 ERA, 93.2 IP pitching for AAA Astoria.  We recently acquired SP Juan Ayala in International Free Agency at 4.775M and he quickly was listed in our top spec listing by OSA scouting.  He ranks in our Top 8.  Another interesting player that has big on a hot streak this season is Wayne Soileau 2B.  Wayne doesn't appear to be rating high by our scouts account but, the hits keeping coming in for him.  He is reached AAA Astoria this year and is batting;  .307/.376/.484, 153 AB, 5 HR.

We have some talent in the minors so don't be surprised if Maple makes a move or two to help improve their team for a run at a championship this season.

Maple released news today regarding their 26 man active roster.  Just 1 day away from the opening pitch of our 13^th season in the ABL – 2024!  The Rotation this season will be slightly changed with Allstar Jake Nelson moving on to Duke City.  New arrivals Khurshid Durrani and George Bedford(acquired in the Gould trade to MTL) get their shot.  The pen also sees some changes as Tekulve Jr. takes over at CL for Jones who has lost some zip on the fastball.  New additions are Maulik Shaw and Glenn Ritter(acquired in the Nelson trade to DUK).  Brian Daniels also gets a chance at LR.  The rotation once settled will be Ramos, Ito, Ramirez, Bedford & Durrani.

The lineup in Maple this year will look a bit different.  We are expecting to bounce back from a disappointing display in 2023.  New additions George Soucy DH & Ricardo Corte C (both acquired in the Nelson trade to DUK) look to had some much needed punch.  Talley former Gold Glover at 2B moves over to 1B.  O’Doherty takes claim at 2B based on his defensive abilities.  Valentin once penciled in this year as the teams DH will go back to CF with the arrival of Soucy.  There were strong rumors that Felipe Navarro would get his shot this year at CF but, he was demoted to AAA after the team gambled on SF Veteran Dorsey for the 4^th OF spot on the team.  We like the way Dorsey finds a way to get on base.  McMahon 3B looks to be reaching his prime (acquired from DUK).  He will probably move to 3^rd in the lineup with Soucy batting cleanup.  Expect Corte to move to 6^th in the lineup behind Ostendorff then Orton 7^th and Rivera/O’Doherty 8/9^th.  We are hoping to get on base a bit more, run a bit faster and more often and play better defense this year.

Our major budding star is SP Butlin (Nimrod).  He is going to be a good one.  I’d don’t want to rush him this year but, if we are not in the race by trade deadline I’d expec to move Ramirez SP and Ramos SP to a contender and he might get the call up.  SP Lu (Pumpman) also looks solid too.  2B Soileau is highly rated too but, GM #GOLDI has his doubts.  Butlin is the prize of our minor league system.

International Complex features one really interesting player in 3B Rivero.  He could be a good one in the ABL for a few years!  Hutcheon, Iijima and Missel are all risks.

Maple Organization update

Maple enters the All-Star break in 3^rd place in the Billy Martin division race, 8 games back of San Francisco.  Georgia will be hosting this seasons All-Star game.

Maple has been inconsistent since the Flipper trade with South Carolina.  We haven’t been able to string along consecutive winning sims in a long time.  44-43 record considering the trade of Maurice Gould, SP to Montreal might be well expected though.

Our best performer has been Jake Nelson SP, who was acquired from Eureka a few seasons ago in the deal that brought All-Star 1B to the Hornets in Braden Murphy.  Jake is 11-4, 2.63 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and an ERA+ of 191.  Without him, the season for the Marauders would all over by now.  Bartolo Valentin, CF is also having a decent year but, recently hit the DL with a sprained wrist.  Valentin is hitting .261, .365, .475, .840, 1.2 WAR.  34 of his 84 hits have been for extra bases.  His defense has been suffering with a -1.1 ZR rating so far this year despite only having 1 error.

Joining Valentin on the DL is Pete Moore OF so, the Marauders will showcase two new players vs. San Francisco in a critical 3 game series at home versus the division leaders.  Entering the active roster is Sal Ostendorff, RF and Felipe Navarro, CF.  Sal was acquired from PAX earlier this season in a trade that sent a couple of talented SPs their way.  Felipe was a R2 pick in the 2021 draft out of Kansas.  He had been listed as high as the #88 prospect in the ABL.  There are serious concerns if Felipe can handle ABL pitching but, there is no doubt about his stellar defense roaming the CF greenery.  We expect Ostendorff on the other hand to fit right in the lineup and contribute both offensively and defensively.

Down on the farm, the minor league system is doing fairly well.  AAA Astoria is in 3^rd place 3 games back, Sandy Springs AA is the division leader with a 55-34, .618 record and finally A Kingwood is in 3^rd place 5 games back and in striking range for another division title.  Kingwood has won 3 out of the last 4 Single A titles and has been division champs 3 out of the last 4 years.

Prospect watch includes; Maulik Shaw our show stopper at CL in Kingwood (A), George Bedford SP in (AAA) acquired in the Gould trade from Monreal, Dylan Butlin SP (A) an International Scout find out of England who had spent some time in the International Complex before being called up, Felipe Navarro CF who was just called up to the big club in Maple and lastly a SP named Landy Lu in A ball Kingwood, a Round 5 pick in the 2021 draft.  #18, #29, #57, #70 & #83 rests Maple as the 9^th best overall organization with top 100 prospects.

If Maple is going to catch SF (We simply ignore Jersey), the bats will have to wake up.  We are towards the bottom of the league in almost every category in hitting.  Then we will need our stellar pitching to hold up and be consistent.  We are near the top in almost every pitching category so far this season.  Defensively we are #2 overall in the TML and that should help in some close games down the stretch.  2 of our better hitters are out of our lineup heading towards the trade deadline this Tuesday so, there could a good chance we see a deal or two from #GOLDI as we finish the Tuesday sim.

Maple acquired Flipper! & sits in 2nd place behind SF

Maple enters the Amateur Draft in 2022, 4 games behind San Francisco in the Billy Martin Division in the Thurman Munson League.  Maple has been playing better ball of late after going .500 in April they improved to 16-11 in May.  Most fans expected a very tight Billy Martin Divisional race again this year especially when last year champions dealt Maurice Gould SP to Montreal.  Well, Maple as usual is never finished with the “merry-go-round” of transactions as they worked with division rivals South Carolina to land “Flipper” John Martin SP.  The Scouts didn’t like the trade from the Maple perspective as the price was extremely high, however;  we decided to take a chance here on Flipper based on his age.

Maple is 9-10^th in most batting team categories in the TML while 1-4^th in most team pitching categories in the TML and 1^st in team defense in the TML.  The batting has been getting better as the season wears on and so has the pitching and defense.  We hope to continue this momentum and trend into June.

Some bright spots for Maple early in the season have been 1) Ronnie Talley – GG winner from last year is hitting .330, 2) George Evans finally getting a chance to play full-time has 11 HRs and is tied for the team lead with Bartolo Valentin.  Valentin also leads the team in swipes with 14.  Pitching wise, Jake Nelson has been fabulous so far; 2.17 ERA, 7 Wins and 84Ks in 78.2 IP which are all #1 for the team.

Only one costly injury so far and that was to Arama Huanu OF, who at the time was hitting .321 with 37 RBI.

Down on the farm, Maple continues to field very competitive teams in AAA, AA and A ball.  Astoria (AAA) is 2^nd, 1.5 games back at 31-25, Sandy Springs (AA) is 1^st, 39-16 record and Kingwood (A) is 2.5 games back in 2^nd with a 31-25 record.

Top Prospects have been ever changing since the moves in the off-season.  However; we have some fantastic prospects up and coming to the ABL led by:  CF Felipe Navarro .287/.387/.500 in AA, 1B Adam Hounsell .232/.295/.311 in A, C Sean Clare, .226/.312/.401 in A and SP George Bedford, 11G, 1S, 37.1 IP in AAA to just name a few.  Also watch out for Mark Blackburn 1B, Maulik Shaw MR, Dylan Butlin SP and Wayne Soileau 2B

Attendance is down -13.6% so far this season and is typical of the cold early weather near Toronto.  We expect to close the gap as the summer approaches.

In the International Complex look out for one of our best finds ever in 3B Anastasio Rivero.  He is up to 2.5* potential and climbing.  This 16 year old from Venezuela should be a keeper for years to come.

Why did Maple Management look to improve at 3B?

Rosters have expanded in the ABL in season #10 - 2021.  Maple is in a great position to win the Billy Martin division in the TML.  Jersey and South Carolina are giving us a run but, a double digit lead this late in the season places the Marauders in an unique position they have never been in before.  This division usually comes down to the wire but, this year Maple has to decide to continue to plug away with the regulars are look to rest some players for the post season.  We are not counting a playoff spot until we pop the champagne but, with a magic # down to 16 we are close.  We have a tough game remaining tonight versus South Carolina who is 1 of only 2 teams we have a losing record with this year (Eureka is the other team).  Then we fly north to Jersey to face a strong team coached by a GM that actually spoke today or yesterday - I can't remember.  Then we continue to fly north home to face a team that we aspire to be after this season is over and that is an ABL Championship club.  Kansas City is still fighting for their playoff lives with a slim lead in the Wild Card race in the TML.  Maple would love to play spoiler here for sure.

So rosters expand and this is an exciting time of year.  So many players in the organization so many choices.  Some are personal & some are made with smarts.  Our first move prior to the SIM tonight is having Bill "The SINGER" Nelson, OF on a REHAB stint to Astoria, NY.  Bill is a critical player to our offense and we don't want to take any chances prior to the playoffs.  My second move was a sentimental one in calling up Don Strickland, 1B from Astoria AAA to the big club for his last hoorah! in the ABL.  Those original ABL GMs will remember his early days on Maple where he started his career as a R18 pick in the inaugural draft #423 overall.  Don had a dream first season, winning a gold glove, player of the week twice and rookie of the month.  Nobody expected him to hit .332 bavg with 20 homers that season!  Don will have some value on the team during the stretch run as his defense is still very solid and he will give some late inning rest to Blake Reynolds.  Our other moves included;  Archie Sardeson INF, Brian Daniels MR, Jake Robinson SP and Martin Jenkins OF being called to Maple for the stretch run.  This will be the last stunt with Maple for Archie as he will become a Free Agent in the offseason.  Daniels and Robinson are getting close looks for next years team.  Martin Jenkins was a highly touted player in our organization acquired from New York.  His OF defense will be a welcomed addition late in games.

So back to the title of this PR - why did Maple look at 3B before the trade deadline?

The answer is clearly below:

By Position (regular season games only)

Split G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS C 136 531 64 150 27 1 19 84 34 104 0 0 .282 .324 .444 .769 1B 136 533 80 140 22 1 29 80 46 120 2 0 .263 .327 .471 .798 2B 136 551 76 154 50 3 11 61 39 113 18 8 .279 .324 .441 .765 3B 136 494 60 109 18 6 7 41 34 86 9 5 .221 .276 .324 .599 SS 136 494 49 106 27 4 3 52 34 128 23 10 .215 .264 .304 .568 LF 136 527 85 160 34 4 24 83 44 92 10 4 .304 .364 .520 .884 CF 136 506 90 145 28 6 30 87 65 116 28 14 .287 .378 .543 .922 RF 136 519 80 154 22 10 9 71 54 38 16 12 .297 .369 .430 .798 DH 136 542 86 158 36 5 24 85 49 85 15 2 .292 .349 .509 .858

Good luck to everyone in the stretch run!

Maple in July finished at 14-10 and has started August in a disappointing 2-5 record.  Maple continues to lead the TML Billy Martin Division by 8 games over Jersey and the pesky Bombers of Sout Carolina by 10.  San Francisco is looking towards the 2022 season.

We haven't done well since being swept by Portland in a 4 game series, said #GOLDI.  Playing .500 ball the rest of the way may still get us in the playoffs though.  Like many other teams in the ABL, we have suffered through our share of injuries and when that begins to hit the consistency of the team is thrown off a bit.  Namely the hitting has been off of late and when our big guys get back we will be fine.  Pitching has no doubt been a blessing for us this year.  Gould, Nelson, Ramos and the sparkling pen have been simply awesome.

Some interesting statistics about Maple so far this year:

We have an upcoming series vs. South Carolina and what I have learned about our batters versus them this year is not so impressive.  We are hitting .215 against them the 2nd worst of any ABL team (SoCAL #1 @.194).  An important 4 game set tonight to see if Maple will hold server, take a bigger lead or will another team such as South Carolina bring some pressure to the race.

Maple is 61-5 after leading through 8 innings this year.  Maple is 3-31 after trailing through 8 innings.  Maple is 53-11 when we score at least 5 runs in a game.

Maple is a remarkable 19-0 versus the following ABL teams:  Cabo San Lucas 7-0, Brooklyn 3-0, Carolina 3-0, Seattle 3-0 and Duke City 3-0.

Prospects Watch:

CF Felipe Navarro has taken off since being picked in R2 #44 overall in the past years Amateur draft.  He started off in Single A and after batting .377 with a 1.100 OPS he was promoted quickly to Double A where he has settled in at .270 and .808 OPS.  Our scouts didn't see a lot of raw talent there but, we saw a hard working player that tries hard at everything he does in life.  He plays an excellent CF and can handle 1B too.  He also has top notch speed.

Maple Marauders Update

Big Club UPDATE:

Maple jumped out in front in the Billy Martin Division in the TML very early on and appear destined to win another division title.  We have a 7.5 game lead over Jersey and despite a recent tail spin the pitching should no doubt carry this club into the playoffs.  South Carolina and San Francisco are both double digits behind as we near the Allstar game.  Maple has had some lineup inconsistencies, however; we are getting healthier despite Bill Nelson OF going on the 60 day DL this past SIM.  What has been a great surprise has been our over matching pitching in both the starters and bullpen.  We are 1st in the TML in ERA, Starters ERA, Bullpen ERA, RA, HA, Opp AVG and Ks.  The bats though are pretty much in the middle of the pack if not lower in major hitting categories.

We are doing well equally vs. southpaws and RHP.  We are doing great in 1 run games 18-14 with our only poor record coming in Extra Inning games at 3-6.  Our Winning Pct though has been dropping each month from .750, .643 to .571.  In July we are sitting 2-1, .667 but it is still early.  We suffered a huge sweep vs. Portland that has sent the team in a bit of a tail spin at 3-7 in our last 10.

Our best bat has been Arama "Valley" Huanu OF, .332 AVG, 16 HR, 61 RBI, 9 SB.  Our best arm has been Maurice "Doughboy" Gould SP, 11-4, 2.34 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 8.46 K/9.  John Jones from the University of South Carolina (Gary thanks) - has been dominant in the CL role, 4-2, 2.09 ERA, 21 SV, 0.98 WHIP and 15.28 K/9.  The staff features 2 other star SPs in Jose "Smooth" Ramos and Jake "The Snake" Nelson each with ERA well below 4.00.

Amateur Draft Summary:

Round 1 #15 overall

Srinivasan Shubhashish, SP

He is currently starting in A Ball for Kingwood but, will most definitely anchor a bullpen in the near future for Maple.  He is elite in all categories including 2 elite pitches.

Round 2 #44 overall

Felipe Navarro, CF

He is currently playing in A Ball for Kingwood.  Not sure he will ever make it to the ABL level unless he improves his contact.  His defense at a hard to play position in the ABL may see him as a 4th OF type.

Round 3 #73 overall

Greg Green, RF

He is currently playing in A Ball for Kingwood.  We like his batting abilities and especially his power to all fields.  He needs to work on his defense otherwise he may end up as a DH only in the ABL.

Round 4 #99 overall

Wayne Soileau, 2B

He is currently playing in A Ball for Kingwood.  Very similar to Greg Green we love his bat and also his speed.  He will need to work on his defense if he wants stick with a middle infield position at 2B in the ABL.  If not, he might be a DH type player.

Farm System:

Astoria AAA is in 2nd place 3.5 games back while Sandy Springs AA and Kingwood A are both in 1st place in their respective divisions.  The Maple farm system has been one of the best in terms of results the past several years and this year we look to be in position once again to possibly send all three minor league affiliates to the playoffs.

The OSA ranks the players within our organization in dead last #24 overall.

Key players include:

Dustin "Bird" McMahon, 3B (#49 ranked) - acquired from Duke City recently, this hot corner man has been promoted to Maple and is seeing full time play.  A .521 OPS is not a great start by any means but, we are going to give him more than a fare shake at keeping this job.  To make room for him on the roster, Garrett Bennett was demoted to AAA.

Loeck "No Name" Jurgens, SP (#87 ranked) - discovered in the Netherlands and promoted to A ball from the International Complex this SP has been effective with very average statistics.  4-3, 4.32 ERA in 17 GS, WHIP 1.65.  We love his change up and control and based on that we feel he will be at the ABL level within the next 3 years.