After sending Arvay to the Ninjas, the Gashouse Gorillas will have six players on their roster heading into the draft. A normal roster has four to five players, and with the addition of a high draft pick, Gashouse may have to part ways with one or more of their teammates.
They have a few options to determine who stays and who will be likely heading to a new team. Gashouse could send some of their players in exchange for a few picks in next years draft, if they decide to rebuild, This move could help them in the long run, and add more championships in the future. It could also backfire, and they may become less competitive.
Another option is for Gashouse, and manager Jeremy Ratajczyk, to take part in a trade that sends multiple players for a position of need. This might be there best move, if they can find a willing trade partner.
The last option is if they do not find any suitors in the trade market. This is a last resort, and it would involve releasing some of their players into this years draft class. Whether or not they do any of this will be up to Mr. Ratajczyk. Only time will tell, but the clock is ticking.
Thursday, February 19, 2015
Thursday, February 12, 2015
The Possible Effect of the Arvay Trade
Over a few days trade discussions have heated up between the Nighttime Ninjas and the Gashouse Gorillas. The speculated trade is Ethan Arvay to the Ninjas, and Mike Dempsey to the Gorillas. It is a blockbuster trade that would send one of the best all around players in the game to the Ninjas. While on the other hand, the Gorillas would receive one of the only lefties in the GBL.
In a recent statement by the Ninjas manager, Mike Kubacki Jr., he stated, "(Arvay) is one of the top arms in the league. Easily 2rd or 3rd best. Any manager in the league would want him in their rotation." He would also be returning to the Ninjas for the second time.
Since joining the league, Arvay, has posted a career .405 batting average, a 25-2 win-loss record, and an ERA just a tad above 2. Batters can not seem to catch up to his high velocity, and opposing pitchers can not seem to get him out.
On the other hand, the Gorillas would be gaining Mike Dempsey. The most effective left-handed pitcher in the league. With a short supply of lefties in the league, this could be a game changer for the Gorillas.
The trade could be beneficial to both teams, but only time will tell.
In a recent statement by the Ninjas manager, Mike Kubacki Jr., he stated, "(Arvay) is one of the top arms in the league. Easily 2rd or 3rd best. Any manager in the league would want him in their rotation." He would also be returning to the Ninjas for the second time.
Since joining the league, Arvay, has posted a career .405 batting average, a 25-2 win-loss record, and an ERA just a tad above 2. Batters can not seem to catch up to his high velocity, and opposing pitchers can not seem to get him out.
On the other hand, the Gorillas would be gaining Mike Dempsey. The most effective left-handed pitcher in the league. With a short supply of lefties in the league, this could be a game changer for the Gorillas.
The trade could be beneficial to both teams, but only time will tell.
Friday, January 2, 2015
January 2015 Off-Season Blog
Happy New Year to one and to all of Wiffle Nation!!! I hope everyone had a great holiday season!! In case you haven't heard, the Griffleball League made quite the name for itself during the Christmas season. With the money that we raised during last year's Home Run Deby, we donated a $100 gift card from Dick's Sporting Goods to a local young boy who has been through two kidney transplants. His name is Blake Loudenber and he and his family were very thankful for our donation. If you search "A Miracle For Blake" on Facebook, you can view his official Facebook page where his aunt thanked the GBL with pictures and statuses.
In other news, we announced that Opening Day 2015 will be Sunday April 26. This year will mark the first time in the six-year history of the GBL that we will begin the regular season in April.
We also announced some scheduling and format changes that will take place in 2015.
Games will be played exclusively on Sundays this year. Each team will be scheduled with 10 Sunday doubleheaders to make up a 20-game regular season. There will be four bye weeks throughout the year for holidays and such.
The playoff format will also be different this year. In 2015, there will only be four playoff teams as opposed to the usual six. This means that the teams with the two worst records during the regular season will not qualify for the playoffs. That's right. The GBL postseason is no longer a right. It's a privelage. We are hoping that this new format will increase the intensity and importance of regular season games. This change will also minimize the length of the playoffs and prevent the 1st and 2nd place teams from getting rusty at the end of the year since they will no longer have bye weeks in the 1st round of the postseason.
#RATCHAT
I never said that I "will not" let Michael Sessions manage the GBL at the NWLA Tournament this year. I just don't want to make any official commitments yet. We are still six months away and want to continue considering all options. Who knows. Maybe Ozzie Guillen could express some interest between now and then. We wouldn't want to have to tell Ozzie that we already decided on a manager.
You can't really go wrong with either of these guys for National Player of the Year. They both have superstar wiffleball talent and they are both class acts. It's very tough to compare and contrast statistics between two different leagues. Just way too many factors at play. But I do like to see new faces in new places. Ryan won the award in 2012. He has also won many other wiffle awards throughout his career. He knows how good he is. Therefore, I am glad to see Regis win the award this year, and I don't think that Ryan was robbed.
Negative. Only time will tell exactly how much their off-season additions will pay off, but I like the way they are headed. The Sox roster had a lot of weaknesses in 2014 and General Manager Rick Hahn has done a great job of patching up those soft spots. Here's a fun fact: Only 17 players in all of MLB hit .300 or better in 2014. Three of them will make up the top third of the Sox lineup in 2015. Adam Eaton, Melky Cabrera, and Jose Abreu.
I have officially registered, and I am looking forward to making another trip to WSEM land this summer. Hopefully this year I wont have to face Whiteford Wicked Aces pitching. For as much as I enjoyed playing at Poolside Park last year, I didn't enjoy getting carved up all weekend.
I thought that Matt Kuna had a good chance to win some sort of Wiffy. He had arguably the best single season in GBL history in 2014. He dominated from both sides of the plate.
Matt was easily the best player in the GBL in 2014. He led the league in HR, RBI, ERA, wins, and strikeouts. He was also just one base hit away from leading the league in batting average and winning the hitting triple crown. It's been a very long time since the GBL saw a player have this good of a season. Matt's 2014 gives Kyle Lidster's 2010 a run for its money.
The GBL actually had it's all new black and gold flag at the NWLA Tournament last year. That's simply Chris Gallaway being Chris Gallaway. I decided to change our league colors going into last year because I felt like it would help give us more of an identity. Nothing against leagues with red and blue color schemes, but those colors just don't jump out in the wiffle world. They are just too "Major League Basebally". I decided on black and gold in reference to Griffth High School which is the high school that most of the GBL players attended.
Tough decision, but I gotta go with Carl Coffee. He and I share a special bond. We are both fans of the Detroit Lions. Perhaps Gallaway would do a better job at organizing a wiffleball-themed wedding though.
I like the idea of the mock tourney, but I don't like the fact that it is influenced by outsider voting. In my opinion, only NWLA website staff should be allowed to decide the winners of each mock game.
In other news, we announced that Opening Day 2015 will be Sunday April 26. This year will mark the first time in the six-year history of the GBL that we will begin the regular season in April.
We also announced some scheduling and format changes that will take place in 2015.
Games will be played exclusively on Sundays this year. Each team will be scheduled with 10 Sunday doubleheaders to make up a 20-game regular season. There will be four bye weeks throughout the year for holidays and such.
The playoff format will also be different this year. In 2015, there will only be four playoff teams as opposed to the usual six. This means that the teams with the two worst records during the regular season will not qualify for the playoffs. That's right. The GBL postseason is no longer a right. It's a privelage. We are hoping that this new format will increase the intensity and importance of regular season games. This change will also minimize the length of the playoffs and prevent the 1st and 2nd place teams from getting rusty at the end of the year since they will no longer have bye weeks in the 1st round of the postseason.
#RATCHAT
You can't really go wrong with either of these guys for National Player of the Year. They both have superstar wiffleball talent and they are both class acts. It's very tough to compare and contrast statistics between two different leagues. Just way too many factors at play. But I do like to see new faces in new places. Ryan won the award in 2012. He has also won many other wiffle awards throughout his career. He knows how good he is. Therefore, I am glad to see Regis win the award this year, and I don't think that Ryan was robbed.
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
October 2014 Off-Season Blog
Well it has been 39 days since the GasHouse Gorillas defeated the Anti-Heroes in Game 5 of the GBL World Series to put a close on the 2014 GBL season. To make the time pass faster, we have decided to add an offseason monthly blog.
Once a month from October-April, I (Commissioner Rat) will write up a blog to discuss any Griffle topics, as well as answer questions/concerns that you submitted for #RatChat.
Before I begin the #RatChat segment, I would like to fill some people in on what has been happening on the Griffle front over the past 39 days.
If you heard that current players have been inquiring about forming their own expansion teams next year, those rumors are TRUE. At the moment, we have interest from two players (I won't say who) about managing their own squads next season. I have always felt that the GBL is best suited for six teams. Any less is too little, and any more is too much. If I decide to grant both of the aforementioned players a team of their own next year, I would have to disband two teams. Don't expect an official announcement to come on this matter until next spring, however, as player availability for the 2015 season will be relatively unknown until much closer to the start of the season.
On the national scene, the GasHouse Gorillas are currently in the final four in the annual mock NWLA National Tournament. Be sure to cast your votes if you would like to see the GBL take home the 2014 mock crown!!!
#RATCHAT
This is interesting. Could the presence of a manager be the crucial element that the GBL has been missing every year at the NWLA Tournament? I'm not so sure that a person who sees our players in action once a year would have a firm grasp on how to manage us. But the Paw Chests do love Michael Sessions (who wouldn't?), so we will definitely look into the idea come next summer.
I have always wondered why WSEM is the only league that seems to talk about Kyle in their annual pre/post NWLA Tournament stories. In my opinion, there is no wiffleball pitcher at the tournament who is better than Kyle. Sure, there are pitchers who are equally as good, but there are none who are noticeably better. For those of you who just said in your head that "Bush, Harley, Bischoff, Farkas, etc. are better than Lidster", I have a stat for you - 61 batters faced, 4 walks. That was by far the best ratio at the tournament this year. Nevertheless, I think that Kyle enjoys flying under the radar. He has never been one to boast or brag about his game. I'm not sure how much longer he will fly under the radar after his performance this year, though.
I'm not sure that there is a correct answer here. The pitchers who have faced both Regis and I over the years at the NWLA Tournament would be better suited to answer this question. If you are wondering what I am thinking, then yes, I THINK that I am a better hitter than Regis. But I would expect Regis to think that he is a better hitter than me as well. To be the best, you have to sell it to yourself that you are the best.
Nothing against Gus, but I gotta go with Sam here. Sam stood at the top of the "NWLA People Power Rankings" that the GBL players discussed on the drive home from the tournament this year. I believe Sam was in everyone's top 3.
For those of you who don't know. I made a trip to Southeast Michigan this past June to compete in some WSEM regular season play. Upon abiding by the pitcher-friendly hitting rules of their league, I recorded two hits in four games. A video of one of the games can be seen here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPRVwyUNwmQ
The players we bring to the NWLA Tournament each year are definitely some of the biggest in the league. The GBL definitely has its share of smaller, skinnier players who don't come to Ohio for the tournament. We figure that a non-contact sport with a plastic bat and a plastic ball requires a lot of strength and physicality to be successful. In a benches clearing brawl, I would be the most afraid of HRL. There's definitely some grown man strength on that team that some of the younger leagues like mine wouldn't stand a chance against.
I think that this would not only be a great experience for us, but it would be a great way to help promote both leagues. I am disappointed that the GBL was unable to assemble a team for your fall tournament. We will make sure to make a trip to Oak Lawn next spring to play at Michalski Park, which appears to be one of the area's finest wiffle fields. I see a three-game Saturday exhibition series happening in April.
The wiffle world has been very quiet in terms of next year's NWLA Regional Play. I am sure that it is because next spring is just so far away at this point, and setting anything in stone this early is a bit much to ask for. I will make sure that I keep BWACS posted on any news breaks.
Once a month from October-April, I (Commissioner Rat) will write up a blog to discuss any Griffle topics, as well as answer questions/concerns that you submitted for #RatChat.
Before I begin the #RatChat segment, I would like to fill some people in on what has been happening on the Griffle front over the past 39 days.
If you heard that current players have been inquiring about forming their own expansion teams next year, those rumors are TRUE. At the moment, we have interest from two players (I won't say who) about managing their own squads next season. I have always felt that the GBL is best suited for six teams. Any less is too little, and any more is too much. If I decide to grant both of the aforementioned players a team of their own next year, I would have to disband two teams. Don't expect an official announcement to come on this matter until next spring, however, as player availability for the 2015 season will be relatively unknown until much closer to the start of the season.
On the national scene, the GasHouse Gorillas are currently in the final four in the annual mock NWLA National Tournament. Be sure to cast your votes if you would like to see the GBL take home the 2014 mock crown!!!
#RATCHAT
This is interesting. Could the presence of a manager be the crucial element that the GBL has been missing every year at the NWLA Tournament? I'm not so sure that a person who sees our players in action once a year would have a firm grasp on how to manage us. But the Paw Chests do love Michael Sessions (who wouldn't?), so we will definitely look into the idea come next summer.
I'm not sure that there is a correct answer here. The pitchers who have faced both Regis and I over the years at the NWLA Tournament would be better suited to answer this question. If you are wondering what I am thinking, then yes, I THINK that I am a better hitter than Regis. But I would expect Regis to think that he is a better hitter than me as well. To be the best, you have to sell it to yourself that you are the best.
Nothing against Gus, but I gotta go with Sam here. Sam stood at the top of the "NWLA People Power Rankings" that the GBL players discussed on the drive home from the tournament this year. I believe Sam was in everyone's top 3.
For those of you who don't know. I made a trip to Southeast Michigan this past June to compete in some WSEM regular season play. Upon abiding by the pitcher-friendly hitting rules of their league, I recorded two hits in four games. A video of one of the games can be seen here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPRVwyUNwmQ
The players we bring to the NWLA Tournament each year are definitely some of the biggest in the league. The GBL definitely has its share of smaller, skinnier players who don't come to Ohio for the tournament. We figure that a non-contact sport with a plastic bat and a plastic ball requires a lot of strength and physicality to be successful. In a benches clearing brawl, I would be the most afraid of HRL. There's definitely some grown man strength on that team that some of the younger leagues like mine wouldn't stand a chance against.
I think that this would not only be a great experience for us, but it would be a great way to help promote both leagues. I am disappointed that the GBL was unable to assemble a team for your fall tournament. We will make sure to make a trip to Oak Lawn next spring to play at Michalski Park, which appears to be one of the area's finest wiffle fields. I see a three-game Saturday exhibition series happening in April.
The wiffle world has been very quiet in terms of next year's NWLA Regional Play. I am sure that it is because next spring is just so far away at this point, and setting anything in stone this early is a bit much to ask for. I will make sure that I keep BWACS posted on any news breaks.
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