Themed Task May 25th 2020- May 31st 2020

Themed Task

Hey SBLers,

For this week’s themed task is all about interacting with your fellow site members. I have a feeling this is not going to make me popular with the anti taggers.

Your mission should you choose to accept it is to tag either a teammate or a rival and talk about how you think they will be doing come the end of the season. It is the perfect time to form alliances and new bond with our teams and fire up some rivalries. Writers your minimum is 200 words and 5 min for pod casters as per usual.

Graphics people you can make a slam or hype graphic for player or team, you must also tag the player or GM you are doing it for.

How to tag on this forum
@username
You can look the username up in the form directory and copy/paste with an @ symbol in from of it.

#ForumTag #TagYou’reIt

The Vegas Centurions have some fantastic players who all look like they'll have a strong future this season.

Wally Coleman, Rocky Mitchell, Ajax Mohran, Captain Snowball, Pingu Flipperson, maybe even more all will likely make strong cases for Gold Glove this season. Coleman at catcher has super invested in defense, as has Ajax Mohran at shortstop. The other have as well at various positions.  Mitchell is the tallest of the 1st basemen, which immediately gives him an edge there. He's also not prone to too many mistakes. Snowball has looked good prepping for defending in RF, and Flipperson is a versatile 2B. There are a few holes but the Centurions should have a pretty strong defensive wall.

The Centurions also have some high potential pitching, with the likes of Cid Ramirez, Domingo Rodriguez, and Nate Nitro. They should all have strong seasons, and the defensive ability of the Centurions fielders should really help these guys make cases for a potential pitcher of the year win. It should be a very strong rotation that should keep the Centurions in a lot of low scoring, close games. They'll need it.

Vegas's defense is unquestioned but the offense may be harder to come by. It will be an interesting challenge to see what that combo brings for results for the Centurions.

The SBL has attracted many players across the world into one humble league. So far, there have been seven players from New York who have signed up, three of which hail from Brooklyn. Eliminating the one filler player, we have two Brooklyn boys to look out for in the SBLM this season: Magnus Coretti and Domingo Rodriguez. Clearly only one of them can become Brooklyn's finest, so it's a shame that Rodriguez will be forgotten in the annals of history. It's a shame that such potential goes to waste so early in a career, but it happens. Sure, Rodriguez might have a little more movement on his pitches, and maybe a bit more control on where they end up, and just generally a bit more balanced of an approach in general, but dude can't even hit 92 on the radar gun. Come back when you can reach mid-90s consistently and then we'll talk. Honestly, I'm shocked the league even allows you to play for Las Vegas at the age of 14. That's just a disaster and a lawsuit waiting to happen. Hopefully most of your starts come on Sundays, because that's the only way you're going to get fans to say your name.

@acydburn

One of my best friend sin sim leagues, Sharkstrong has taught me many things here. He's been a kind mentor to me ever since I met him in the EFL, and considering I'm going to be joining him in Chicago, it's about damn time I repay him with some respect. I don't know anything about baseball, however, as a defensive baseman, Shark has one of the most important roles in Chicago. I'm quite certain he's a defensive shortstop, but once again, I don't know about any stats for this sport. However, I do know that many people expect him to have a big year, already at 170 TPE, there are some big expectations out there for him. He's a veteran LR leader and is going to always bring his teammates up. It's going to be interesting how he leads Chicago this year, they aren't the best team, but their culture shows they are in it for the long run, and Shark is just the leader they need to run this show. Chicago is one of the better teams in the league, and which Shark at the helm, their team is bound to make some huge leaps during the year, if he declares for the first-ever SBL Draft, he will be an incredible pick for whatever team he goes to!


I Don't know How to tag people on here, so, @troutstrong I guess.

Las Vegas Centurions may have put together one of the best pitching rotation in all of SBL. Cid Ramirez, Domingo Rodriguez, Beatrix Ajax and Nate Nitro. Those foursome of pitchers are going to make it incredibly tough for opposing batters to get much going, let alone a rally. You have three control freaks and one power pitcher. Two lefties and two righties. It isn't like these Centurions are favoring toward one pitching model/philosophy or the other, but they are incredibly balanced and well-rounded as a whole.

Beatrix Ajax looks to be the ironman as he has the highest stamina amongst the foursome and his circle change will leave batters wondering why they whiffed on such an easy, hittable pitch. Rodriguez, Ramirez and Nitro are fairly well-rounded pitchers with various talents to their advantages. Ramirez has a little more zip to his fastball compared to the others. Rodriguez relies more on his fastball and the ability to move/control his pitches while Nitro has a good variant of cutter and change-up to supplement his fastball.

These foursome are still very raw in terms of their talents, but the potential is immense and they have a very good upside and a chance to really distinct themselves and their Las Vegas teammates from the rest of the SBLM pack.

@7thInningStretch @acydburn @I hit balls gooder

@Zekethatbeast

This kid is one of my favorite people I've ever had the pleasure of meeting in the sim league scene. Everywhere I've seen him, he's had success, and as a pitcher here for the Chicago Storm, I expect nothing less than greatness again.

Zeke has already been tearing through point tasks and is updating at a pretty crazy pace. Throughout the course of a season, we will all kind of..."pitch" in and help him learn more about the great game of baseball, help him learn the sim engine, and truly grow into his own level of greatness that I expect to see, and that he expects from himself.

By seasons end, Zeke will be one of the better pitchers in the league, and will be a known force in the community here. I don't know his desires to coach or GM here, with his attention elsewhere, but I would expect him to become a Max earner with job pay in no time and be up towards the top of the TPE charts.

While he didn't get voted as a team captain, and he may not become the AGM, anyone who knows Zeke will tell you his standards are high, and he usually achieves them. He will be a great member for the Storm this year, and prove to be invaluable.

I have a bit of history with @Snussu (and hopefully that tag works) outside of the SBL. Coming here from the VHL, I knew he existed over there, and never really talked to him until I ended up trading for him because tank-team me was trying to be nice to another team and give them the room they needed to sign someone else. Well, long story short, he turned out to be a great guy and one of my favorite people to talk to in the team locker room. Eventually, I ended up here wanting to try out a baseball league (and being confused by my brief look at PBE), and I was happy to see that he's running a team over here. It took a bit of convincing and deliberation (as I know many other people who made me offers as well), but eventually I signed with him and I'm officially a Mohawk.

Anyway, Snu is a great guy and I think he's shaping up to be a good GM as well. He's managed to put together one of the league's better hitting lineups in Sherbrooke, and while our pitching staff isn't quite the likes of Vegas or Pittsburgh (trust me, I'm working on that), we'll get there eventually with another signing or two and with steady improvement from the team as a whole. The Discord is active, the team is good, I'm getting a ton of playing time--what more could I ask for?

Coming over here, I'm in all of the partner leagues of VHL, EFL, and SBA. There are a lot of familiar faces, but one guy I'd like to tag is @gustavmattias . One thing I know for sure, is that Gus makes great players and is always super active in the community. So, when I needed to choose a team to sign with, not only did Sherbrooke look good on paper, but Gus is a big name to have on your team.

Gustav's player Pedro Velasquez is the big pitcher that is going to start for the Sherbrooke Mohawks, and he will be a good pitcher to play under moving forward. I know for sure that he is making who is soon to be one of the better pitchers in the SBL, so playing under his wing here in Sherbrooke will be a fun experience. Gustav has a history of good players that I have seen so I am excited. Pedro Velasquez and Jermaine Cole have similar starting builds and archetypes, so it will definitely be interesting to see what happens in this first season with Sherbrooke. I think our combo of us and the other pitchers is going to be dominant in the future.

Not only that, but Sherbrooke has put together a great lineup of hitters to compliment us pitchers, so we will be good in a lot of areas of baseball.

@7thinningstretch @troutstrong @2ndbasebabe @spartan @snowball
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JL7ZqxA_xJkAm8NGl3GWb6Lb4lunzqjA/view?usp=sharing

@GustavMattias Everyone in the VHL knows about our friendly rivalries and banter. I believe this will continue onto the Baseball field! I am hoping Velasquez and McGrath can both play in the same match one day and it becomes a great pitching battle because I know that who ever loses is going to get an earful from the other. Velasquez is a power pitcher that is focusing on a speedy fastball where McGrath is going to bring his skills and show how accuracy and deception can outdo pace no matter the situation. He will show Velasquez how throwing breaking balls that hit the corners perfectly is much nicer than just "Yeeting" the ball.

My only wish is that Velasquez will one day be decent enough that he can be competition to the great McGrath!

There were a lot of recruitment efforts done by Gustav to get me to join his team and as much as that sounds fun doesn't some more banter just sound the best! I know that my player will do so much better than his even though my knowledge of baseball is very limited. So let these games begin and bring on the first Las Vegas vs Sherbrooke battle!

I'm excited to see how @McWolf and I will do platooning as leadoff hitters for Sherbrooke this season. We've worked well together before, but not as teammates, so I'm excited to see how this works out. It's going to take a lot of hard work, communication and teamwork to make this happen, but if there's anybody that can make it work with he, it's him. As we tackle this engine, our success will largely depend on each other. One of us will find something that works, passing it on to the other. Maybe one of us will struggle, keeping the other from repeating the mistake. It's not about stats, it's about winning. We've got a good group of players here in Sherbrooke. Our locker room is absolutely buzzing, everybody is pumped to be here, and we haven't even played a game yet. This isn't a group of individuals, this is a team, one that is ready to face anything together. McWolf and I are a great example of the comraderie on the roster, yet we aren't the only one. It doesn't matter where we're batting, what our stats are, we just want to win. That's what you want to see from your team captain, and that's the kind of energy and leadership that will take this Sherbrooke Mohawks team far.

Berocka wrote:@GustavMattias Everyone in the VHL knows about our friendly rivalries and banter.

Shut up racist

I'm interested to see how our outfield with me, @spartan and @uphillmoss do in the outfield for Pittsburgh this season. We've got the pieces to be a really formidable outfield offensively and defensively, and I think that how good we are as a unit could play a large role in how successful Pittsburgh is this season. I believe that the plan is for us to start the season in the 1-3 spots in the lineup, so we’ll have a lot of responsibility as the batters who will see the most at-bats per game. If we are going to be the top team in the league, which I think we can be, a big reason for that could be the success of our outfielders both at the plate and in the field. I also think that me and @uphillmoss are going to do a good job of pushing each other this season because I do know that he wants to be a center fielder at the next level, so I will be pushed by him in order to protect my spot as the centerfielder of the team and as the leadoff hitter. It’s the sort of competition that should make both of us better.

@Big Mac

Offensive superstars: come at me.

I’m calling out every non-pitcher I drafted to my fantasy team, from the guy squatting behind the plate in Ryoma Fukushima @Snussu all the way out to deep center field, Sora Mekajiki @McWolf. I’m not concerned about minimum batting stats pitchers – not when there are ‘elite’ batters to strike out. Go ahead – take your doubles, triples, and home runs against the other pitchers in the league. You’ll put up great stats, and I don’t doubt you’ll all be in contention for Silver Sluggers at the end of the season (as a matter of fact, I predicted each of you for those too). But if you’re facing the Centurions and I’m on the mound? You’d better make sure you’re doing your pre-game rituals and praying to the higher powers the night before. I’m not pulling any punches.

@aCrypticPancake @AW13 @StackTheRacks12 @lovesmuffins @Psanchez55 @Spartan

On the other hand, I want to rally our pitching staff on the Centurions. With a few early draft selections (including our first two) dedicated to pitchers, we were immediately labeled as a team with “too many pitchers” and had the expectations raised through the ceiling, past the sky, and cleanly into orbit around this wonderful blue-green Earth. We may be the position group with the most pressure on us but remember all of you were selected by the Centurions for a reason, be it early, late, or post-draft free agency. It’s our job to live up to the image demanded by our team’s namesake and expectations from the draft. @I Hit Balls Gooder, @acydburn, @Cornholio, and @Berocka: this is our time.

I like @jhatty8 and @zekethatbeast25, I really do, but that doesn’t mean that their players don’t suck.

Let’s start off with Wally Coleman. What for a name is Wally? You know who I think of when I hear the name Wally? That green haired kid from Pokemon who you need to catch a Pokemon for, and then repeatedly stomp into the ground every time he thinks he can challenge you to a battle. Looking at Wallys attributes, it is really nothing to cry home about. Guess how much TPE he has invested into batting? None… NONE! He will genuinely end the season with one hit at this rate.

Second off is Ezekiel Bridges. I guess he tried imitating Michael Jordan with the whole basketball to baseball switch. The only difference is, MJ was good at basketball and ok at baseball. Bridges on the other hand, was bad at basketball, and he will be even worse at baseball! His pitches are so slow, a little league player could hit them. Put him on the diamond in front of me and you better believe I am hitting that ball straight out of the park.

You two better be ready for when you match up against the Mohawks and I pray for you that you bring your A-Game that day.

@Snussu
Where will you be by the end of the season? I can answer this question. You will be leading the Sherbrooke Mohawks to the championship, both you as a GM and you as a player. You as a catcher will be working with me and the other pitchers to strikeout all of our opposition. Additionally, I expect you to be the leader for a silver slugger and perhaps also a golden glove. You as a GM will be a DC master and will be strategizing us to victory every game. However, no matter the outcome of the season, I expect you to be a great GM and a great teammate. I'm happy to be on a team with you.
@Lefty and @prezzys
I'm on your teams in the SBA and thus, I must talk about how you guys will fare against my outstanding pitching. While I expect you guys to do absolutely spectacular against other pitchers, I don't think you'll have nearly as much success against me. I expect to limit you guys to very few hits throughout the season. Additionally, I'm sorry to say this, but I don't think either of you will be winning a championship. This is due to the absolutely undeniable and sheer incredibleness of my team, the Sherbrooke Mohawks. Despite me dominating you guys, I do wish you guys the best and that you guys have a fantastic season.
Word Count 232

@lefty and @jorgthegoat03

We’re teammates in the SBA and I’d say that I’ve gotten to know you guys pretty well. Honestly, I think that you both will end up having some pretty nice rookie seasons in the SBLM. You both have the determination and talent to be some of the best players in the league and I think that everyone else will see that sooner rather than later. Although I do expect you to do well, I’m not sure if I can say the same for when we go head to head. Lefty, you’re a slugger just like myself and I’m fully expecting for us to be competing when it comes to being the best HR hitters in the league. I know that you’re gonna do your thing just like me so that’ll be something to keep an eye on for sure.

Jorg, like I said, you’ll probably end up being one of the most dominant pitchers in the league. All I know is, don’t make any mistakes when you see me at the plate. Leave it anywhere within my zone and I’ll put money on it that it’ll be out of the park within seconds. Good luck to the both of you except for when the Chicago Storm are in town.