June 1, 1934
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Season 7 of Uplantic Baseball starts 1/22/25!
The first baseball season under the new UUBO merger is right around the corner! Spring Training wrapped up yesterday in Amblint for the Uplantic Association, and in Langhorn for the National Professional League. This is the first time that the UA and NPL have held Spring Training simultaneously, with Opening Day landing this Monday, June 4 for both leagues.
This has been by far the busiest offseason in Uplantic baseball history. The UUBO observes a 6-year service requirement for free agency. With the past season being the sixth season of the UA, a flood of players became illegible for unrestricted free agency this winter. This, coupled with four teams moving up from the NPL, as well as the new yearly UA division realignment policy, has predictions varying wildly for the outcome of the 1934 season. The one thing that most baseball experts agree upon is that this will likely be the most closely contested season in Windsor Cup history.
(Jump to Final Spring Standings)
My personal predictions:
- A Division: Delle Stars
- B Division: Wight Spiders
- C Division: Platte Bears
- D Division: Northsouth Guardians
- Wildcards: Railey Rivals, Deerborn White Sox
- Windsor Cup: Wight Spiders over Platte Bears, 4 games to 2.
- Relegation: Carver Canaries
- Promotion: Lia Puedris Kings
Transaction News
With such an unprecedented busy offseason, it might become tedious to cover every transaction, so we will take a look at the biggest gains for each UA team entering the 1934 Regular Season.
The Wight Spiders are considered by most to have won the offseason, with huge additions to their lineup for their first season as a UA team. Their biggest acquisition was perennial All-Star LF Andy Bernard, a free agent from Platte. They also picked up 3-time All-Star Kevin “Lefty” Leroux, fresh off helping the Dell Stars to a 3-peat championship. Power hitting outfielder Carlos Kayra came over in a trade from Salvation, and SS Jose Meza was acquired in a trade coming off of one of his best seasons in Lia Kompos. Despite coming up from the NPL, the Spiders are considered a contender this year after picking up a whopping 13.4 WAR this offseason.
The Plains City Reapers also came up from the NPL as part of the UUBO merger, and made a splash this offseason. The Reapers picked up a net 6.9 WAR, which they’ll need to compete in a tough A Division. Their biggest pickups were free agent LH CL David Rogers (5-time All-Star, 3-time Reliever of the Year), formerly with the Stars; and OF Andy Thompson from the Guardians. Thompson is one of the league’s top talents, but has often dealt with pesky recurring injuries throughout his career.
The Taawa Chargers are historically the UA’s worst team, but they may be able to avoid relegation at the end of this season thanks to some key pickups over the winter. They picked up a great free agent hitter in 5-time All-Star 1B Jose Lia Tinta. Lia Tinta is a considerable upgrade from 1B Joe Katakien, who the Chargers lost to free agency. They added another big-time hitter in free agent 2B Luke Lia Puedris (3-time All-Star), one of many free agents to leave the Stars after their third straight Windsor Cup. The Chargers also gained RH SP Mark Lia Yorino via free agency after his best season in 5 years.
The Tiny Sea Metros made some substantial moves to shore up their roster for their first season in the UA. Their biggest pickup was 4-time All-Star LH SP Jeff Walker, from the crosstown rival Brothers. His last season with Salvation was a bit off his career pace, but still quite productive. They also added free agent RH CL Len Odden (4-time All-Star) to their bullpen, along with free agent RHP Jeremy Wheeler (1932 All-Star) from the Stars. Power-hitting veteran OF Francisco Kosgei came over as a free agent as well.
The Cherricaw Herders hope to compete in C Division this year. While they lost some key players, most especially RF Holth Lass and 3B Hubert Riko, they made up for the losses with some crucial additions. The biggest pickups for Cherricaw were power-hitting 1B Rygh Ogg (5-time AllStar free agent from Deerborn) and RF Pedro Kopano (6-time Distinguished Defender, 2-time All-Star free agent from Railey). The new-look Herders made the most offseason moves of any UA team.
The Platte Bears have found themselves near the top of the league, but just missed Windsor Cup berths the last few seasons since their championship in 1930. They lost most of their biggest names during the offseason, but the front office performed well enough to pick up 1.7 net WAR going into 1934. The new-look Bears were the UA’s best team during Spring Training after adding SPs RH Alfonso Lopetokaz (trade with Prissley), 2-time All-Star RH Ron Rivera (trade with Delle), and 1933 All-Star SP Jose Verdier (trade with Redwood). Their biggest acquisition was undoubtedly 4-time All-Star 1B Gavin Jones (free agent from Northsouth). The Bears also signed 2-time All-Star 2B Carlos Katamori (free agent from Roland).
The Prissley Trail Blazers will be in a competitive B Division this year. To help their chances, they’ve added 2-time All-Star, offensive powerhouse RF Bob Hove from Delle. They have also signed 2-time All-Star 1B Joe Katakien from Taawa.
The Lia Kompos Miners lost stars SS Jose Meza, 1B Jaime Karrika, RF Ron Morley, and CF Steve Kiteoko as part of a big rebuild this winter. To make up for it, they added some big performers. They signed free agent OF Jorge Akil, a power-hitting 39-year old veteran and baseball legend, 5-time All-Star 1B Roman Zuniga, and 3-time All-Star, veteran base-stealing star Ed DeMent.
The Railey Rivals are looking like possible contenders this season thanks to some excellent reserve player development. Their offseason was fairly quiet, as it appears the Rivals are opting for in-house development over acquiring big names from outside. They lost star RF Pedro Kopano to free agency. Their biggest pickup was 1928 All-Star, 37-year old veteran RHP Stan Hill.
The Redwood Owls made a few big free agent signings over the winter, but overall it looks like they won’t be moving up much in the baseball world anytime soon. They traded away 1B Jack Garrett and SP Jose Verdier and lost several players to free agency. Their signings included 1929 All-Star RH SP Mike Gurr, 1930 MVP, HR record holder, and 5-time All-Star 3B Juan Tokorres, and 1931 All-Star RH SP Will Shufflebottom, who started his career in Redwood before spending three season in Platte.
The Roland Stags are hoping to move towards regaining their early UA success. However, they’ve lost several players this winter, including 1B Jose Lia Tinta, 1B Ramon Zuniga, 2B Carlos Katamori, RP Stan Hill, and 3B Miguel Naggenda. They made a couple big pickups. Hard-hitting 3B Patrick Tokorres returns to Roland, where he started his career. The Stags also acquired 1930 All-Star OF Carlos Teakowa via free agency from the Delle Stars.
The Carver Canaries may struggle in their first season in the UA. They’ve lost most of the players that led them to back-to-back NPL championships in 1930 and 1931. They will be led by veteran 1B Bob Jones and veteran 1B Barney Lowery.
The Salvation Brothers are hosting the All-Star Game this summer, but their rebuilding status will likely keep the team from much success in 1934. They’ve lost many of their biggest star players, including LH SP Jeff Walker, RF Carlos Kayra, and 3B Cliff Moyer. Their biggest signing was free agent veteran RHP Francisco Lia Taawa, who won Pitcher of the Year in the NPL last season.
The Northsouth Guardians have sniffed success, but fallen short, with just one playoff appearance in their history. They have entered full-on rebuilding mode. The Guardians lost key stars to free agency, including 1B Gavin Jones, LF Andy Thompson, and CL Len Odden.
The Deerborn White Sox have gone to five straight Windsor Cup Finals. If their spring performance is any indication, their time in the spotlight may be drawing to a close. They acquired 1930 All-Star 3B Cliff Moyer via a trade with Salvation. Their losses were many, however, including 2B Luke Lia Puedris, RF Bob Hove, 1B Rygh Ogg, LF Ivan Tuwaa, and SP Isaac Lee. The White Sox should still have a strong starting rotation, but they may be lacking on offense.
The Delle Stars have been on top of the baseball world, having won an unprecedented three straight Windsor Cup Championships in the last three seasons. They are still considered to be a contender this season by most, which speaks to great front office management and player development. However, they lost more overall WAR than any team this offseason, with many free agent players looking to cash in on the clout of having played in Delle. They picked up 2B Tony Sellimi in a big trade for SP Ron Rivera. The list of lost players lost by the Stars is long, though. Among others, they will have to go without CL David Rogers, SP Kevin Leroux, 1B Curt Lawson, and RP Fernando Varkas.
UA Injuries:
- White Sox RP Jacob Hudson will miss the 1934 season with a torn rotator cuff.
- Miners CL Mark Sapfoot will be day-to-day for the next 3 weeks with a strained tricep.
- Bears ace SP Adam Evans will miss the 1934 season with a torn shoulder labrum.
- Owls SS Fouad Lefevre may miss opening day with a deep knee bruise.
Final UA Spring Standings:
Final NPL Spring Standings:
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