NL powerhouses scouting report

[ofan1987]

Another year, another season in the MPL where 3 teams will likely dominate the NL. Other teams are starting to make moves for their future, with Florida having an especially promising future at the pitcher position, but for this year it will be much of the same.

Milwaukee has amassed 326 wins in 3 seasons but hasn’t seen a playoff appearance due to the success of Montreal and New York. Milwaukee made the big move of the offseason in grabbing Lefty Gomez from Texas. Will it be enough? Here’s a brief look at all 3 teams strengths and weaknesses:

Milwaukee:

Strength: heart of the lineup

Milwaukee probably has the best offense of the bunch, with Roy Skowron, Harvey Hillman and Dan Lavalliere having 4 league homerun titles and 2 MVP awards between them

Weakness: starting pitching

Two of their starters are in decline, and the rest of the rotation has combined for just one all star appearance. They need Jim Monohan to continue his success despite a lack of command of the strike zone and they need Lefty Gomez to take another step forward after 19 wins in Texas last season

Montreal

Strength: strong healthy offense

Montreal has some great hitters and one of the great things about them is that they play every day. Terry Eisenreich, Cousin Wayne and Max Palmiero play every day and put up tremendous hit and RBI totals.

Weakness: backend of the rotation

We have to get a little nit-picky to find a weakness in Montreal, but Chito Curley and Ed Lynch are merely decent pitchers.

New York:

Strength: rotation depth

New York has the deepest rotation in baseball, with 6-7 guys who could legitimately start on a competitive team. Brian Hiser just won the CY Young award and after a small decline he is the 4th starter in opening day. 5th starter Jeff Stovall has made the all star game he last 2 years.

Weakness: health

37 year old Doug Michilak and rookie Jose Soto are the only regulars in the lineup with a health rating better than D. The wheels could fall off quickly in New York if some of their important pieces lose extended time.

3 great teams. One will fall short. How will this year play out? And can the NL finally win a title? Time will telk

[Corked]

Excellent work ofan -- but one correction, Chito Curley and Ed Lynch make up the best comedic duo in the major leagues.

[dabigtrain]

So, just a few games ago, Milwaukee was 32-7 and New York had stumbled to a 19-20 start. But rumors of the Ninja Turtles' demise were premature - after a nice little 10-2 run, including a sweep of the Crullers in simulated-Milwaukee, it's a race again:

Team W L Pct.
Milwaukee Crullers 40 11 .784
Montreal Maroons 34 17 .667
NY Ninja Turtles 29 22 .569

Damnit!

[ofan1987]

Milwaukee’s spot in the playoffs looks pretty safe right now, as they’ve had a sizable lead all season, but Montreal and New York are in a dog fight. Since their 19-20 start, New York is 41-10. The difference? A healthy Lenny Fox