The Year: 2040
W/L Record: 111-51
Run Differential: 878 RS vs. 656 RA +222 Runs
Awards: AL Win Leader: Luis Valarcel (20), AL Save Leader: Trevor Banks (48)
All Stars: 1B Will Lussier, SP Luis Valarcel
League Leading Stat Categories: 16 Extra Inning Wins, 57 Home Wins
Lineup/Bench Rotation/Bullpen
CF Paul Turkenitz Ricky Metheny
RF Tom Kalmbach Luis Valarcel
LF Joe Rousseau Lloyd Pengelly
3B Robi Izquirdo Scott Jones
DH Sean Cargill Gary Gaskins
1B Will Lussier CL Trevor Banks
C Chad Woods SU Shawn Fiske
2B Chad Noah SR Henery Swift
SS Dylan Puzio SR Frankie Mena
MR Carl Carter
LR Dylan Mills
IF Kazunori Kondo
OF Antonio Madayag
OF Brent Stawell
IF Sean Gilchrist
IF Kelly Guillot
The Key Players: This Baltimore team was strongest on the offensive side of the ball. One interesting thing about this team is that despite their presence on this list, it isn't a lineup that features a single HOF player. In fact, there was no one in this lineup that even got serious consideration. It'll also be a group that, as I list out the statistics, isn't going to wow you either. The truth is that this group was maybe the most effective on this list at squeezing every last drop of ability out of themselves. It was that success, and ultimately their success ending the Toronto dominance of the AL East and hoisting the World Series trophy, that puts them on this list.
So as I talk here about the lineup, it should be noted that this team mixed and matched a lot with a lot of platoons. To leadoff the talk about this offense, let's start with the leadoff guy: Paul Turkenitz. Turk was an outstanding leadoff hitter and center fielder who just wasn't quite able to keep it going long enough to enter elite status. Injuries also became a frequent issue for him and that was true in 2040 as well. In just 470 at bats, Turkenitz managed a .330/.403/.433 slash line with an .836 OPS and excellent defense. He had 7 home runs, 39 RBI, 93 runs scored, 29 stolen bases, and 4 triples. He was the lineup catalyst and a damn good one.
The next guy in the lineup was the very solid Tom Kalmbach, a RF with good pop and capable defense. He hit .290 with 24 homeruns, 80 runs, and 94 RBI with a .358 OBP. His partner in the other corner was Joe Rousseau, a big time talent with elite vitals that came over to the Orioles during the amateur draft from Cleveland. As a rookie that year Rousseau hit .243 with 26 home runs, 88 runs scored, and 91 RBI. It was a very solid rookie season and gave the hope of a lot of future promise for him, but ultimately his career ended up being a bit of a disappointment. He hit 374 homeruns in his career and was a 4 time all-star but never ascended to the level of dominance that was expected of him when this deal came to pass.
Speaking of guys that never quite put it all together - Robi Izquirdo. A guy at one point I thought might be the heir apparent to Sean Vogel. He was a switch hitting third baseman with tremendous defense and a ton of power, but ultimately injuries and other concerns kept him from reaching his ceiling. In 2040, Izquirdo broke his elbow in April and missed three months of the season because of it, but managed to flash his talent with a .356 batting average, 13 homeruns, 39 runs, and 39 RBI in just 200 at bats. Behind him was the lone offensive all-star for Batlimore - Will Lussier. Lussier played first, hit .296, clubbed 22 home runs, scored 71 runs, and drove in 77. He also lost two months of his season to injury.
Rounding out the lineup was Sean Cargil at DH who hit .302 with 12 home runs, 38 runs, and 48 RBI. Catcher Chad Woods hit .262, with 19 home runs, 45 runs, and 54 RBI. Youngster and offseason acquisition Chad Noah manned second base and put up a .248 batting average with 15 home runs, 67 runs, and 58 RBI in his second season. Defensive specialist Dylan Puzio played short and hit like you'd expect a defensive specialist to hit. (.651 OPS) Key guys on the bench included Kelly Guillot (3B who hit .266 with 23 HRs and 62 RBI) who filled in for Izquirdo, Brent Stawell who hit .230 with 31 homeruns and 80 RBI, and Sean Gilchrist who hit .256 with 12 homeruns and 42 RBI.
On the pitching side the team was solid, but not particularly great. The rotation was fronted by Ricky Metheny who might have had his career year in 2040. Metheny pitched half of 2040 in Boston before coming over to their division rival. (Being dealt for largely a pile of future non-factors for the Red Sox) Metheny turned it on for Baltimore, going 7-2 with a 3.14 ERA, but it was in line with his overall stats on the season. He pitched 240 innings with 192 strikeouts, a 15-11 record, and a 3.16 ERA.
Supporting Metheny at the top of the rotation was second year player Luis Valarcel who represented the Orioles in the all-star game. Valarcel went 20-8 on the year with a 3.14 ERA in 241 innings with 151 strikeouts. He was absolutely fantastic on the year, though he did have some struggles in the playoffs, but without him in the rotation prior to Metheny's arrival and it's very unlikely that we see this team on the list.
The rest of the rotation was composed of a combination of five arms. Lloyd Pengelly (4.28 ERA in 208 innings and a 12-8 record), Scott Jones (Only 50 innings, but 6-0 with a 3.38 ERA), Gary Gaskins (146 innings with a 11-3 record and a 3.77 ERA), rookie Dylan Mills (128 innings with a 4.50 ERA and a 8-7 record), and Marc Donahue (3.23 ERA in 106 innings and an 8-3 record).
If it escaped you in those stats, let me point it out - the starters threw a LOT of innings. There was a reason for that - the bullpen was bad. Most of them at least. The closer - Trevor Banks - was very good. In 65 innings he had a 2.19 ERA, 56 strikeouts, a 7-1 record, and 48 saves in 53 chances. He was flat out dominant and one could argue if he hadn't been as good as he was there is a strong chance the team doesn't win the division.
After him it gets ugly. Shawn Fike pitched 93 innings and managed to go 802 with a 3.36 ERA. That's pretty good, but Joe Wisner pitched 93 innings and had a 10-10 record with a 5.15 ERA. Carl Carter had a 4.64 ERA in 66 innings. Swift Henery pitched 58 innings with a 3.88 ERA and a 3-2 ERA.
Interview with the Owner: gmoney's thoughts
What Sets Them Apart: The Toronto Blue Jays had won the AL East in 20 out of the previous 21 seasons and 14 consecutive. The Orioles the year prior had managed to win just 82 games. They faced a ton of injuries. And yet, at the end of 2040, this team managed to hoist the trophy and win it all. They toppled the dynasty, won their first 7 playoff games to sweep through the AL, and squeezed out a Game 7 victory against a tough St. Louis team. Let's face it, they're on this list because of the sheer odds of this team ever accomplishing what they did. They were aggressive in complementing their roster and overcame all sorts of obstacles to bring home the first FCM title for Baltimore.
Coming Next: 13th Best Team in FCM History: P-Mac Attack
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