3rd NABCL Franchise Prestige Rankings

Hello Fellow NABCLers!

Here are the 3rd NABCL Franchise Prestige Rankings updating through season 16.

The process is relatively simple. I go through and compile team records, owner history, playoff history, and team names for every single franchise in the league since season 1 and put them in a spread sheet. I then calculate a franchise’s overall prestige based on a formula that I created.

The original overall formula was an additive index based on the franchise’s win %, WS Championships, Pennants, LCS appearances, Division Titles, Playoff Appearances, the number of winning seasons, and average place in the division standings. Franchises were penalized for high owner turnover, last place finishes in the division, and the worst record in the league. I have now updated the formula to give a bonus to franchises with players inducted into the Hall of Fame wearing their cap.

Below are two tables. The first provides the updated rankings and scores. Please note that the first table below only shows some of the data used to generate the overall ranking. I did not include all of the data for space reasons and only included some of the more pertinent categories. The second table tracks the ranking changes for each franchise based on the last set of rankings. Now you can track the progression of your franchise in the prestige rankings.

I will be happy to share the full data with anyone who requests it. TC if you are interested.

Enjoy!

-Hutch

********************************************

Table 1

NABCL Franchise Prestige Rankings
Rank	Team	Wins	%	Playoffs	Division	Pennant	WS	HoF	Overall
1	Fargo Roughriders	1460	0.563	11	10	5	3	2	180.69
2	Sacramento Terrible Two's	1530	0.590	13	13	2	1	1	154.13
3	Chicago Beast	1479	0.571	14	12	2	1	0	150.63
4	San Antonio Turtles	1443	0.557	13	7	5	0	0	133.25
5	Jacksonville Jackals	1442	0.556	11	9	3	2	0	125.56
6	Arizona Arithmetics	1379	0.532	10	7	2	2	0	113.00
7	Seattle Emeralds	1393	0.537	9	8	2	2	0	100.94
8	Norfolk Knights	1292	0.498	7	6	2	2	0	68.50
9	Richmond Poor Men	1315	0.507	6	2	1	1	0	66.44
10	El Paso Ultraviolence	1391	0.537	7	3	1	1	0	65.19
11	Philadelphia Dead Milkmen	1357	0.524	6	4	1	0	0	53.25
12	Scranton Scewballs	1274	0.492	5	3	1	1	0	46.00
13	Boston Colonials	1296	0.500	7	5	0	0	0	45.25
14	Memphis Maniax	1272	0.491	6	5	1	0	0	36.44
15	Tacoma Millers	1317	0.508	8	2	0	0	0	30.06
16	Trenton Thrashers	1332	0.514	6	4	0	0	0	28.63
17	Charlotte Queen's Men	1281	0.494	4	2	0	0	0	19.94
18	Washington D.C. Federals	1269	0.490	8	3	0	0	0	16.88
19	Baltimore Rabid Squirrels	1222	0.471	5	4	1	0	0	13.50
20	Kansas City Kings	1206	0.465	7	4	1	0	0	10.44
21	Cheyenne Mustangs	1278	0.493	4	0	1	0	0	7.06
22	Pawtucket Patriots	1176	0.454	5	4	0	0	0	-0.13
23	Louisville Legionnaires	1248	0.481	5	4	0	0	0	-1.06
24	Helena Misfits	1248	0.481	3	2	0	0	0	-1.19
25	San Francisco Swift	1204	0.465	3	1	0	0	0	-4.38
26	New Orleans Crawdads	1239	0.478	0	0	0	0	0	-5.38
27	Pittsburgh Prairie Chickens	1202	0.464	1	0	0	0	0	-10.88
28	Ottawa Loonies	1175	0.453	1	1	1	0	0	-11.25
29	New Britain Block Heads	1240	0.478	2	0	0	0	0	-14.00
30	Salem Raptors	1212	0.468	2	1	0	0	0	-18.75
31	Iowa City Shuckers	1168	0.451	3	2	0	0	0	-21.69
32	Las Vegas Gamblers	1131	0.436	0	0	0	0	0	-22.06

**Win % - franchise's all-time winning percentage; Playoffs - # of playoff appearances; Division - # of division titles; Pennants - # of League Championships; WS - # of World Series Titles; HoF - # of Hall of Famers

Table 2

Team	Change
Louisville Legionnaires	+6
Sacramento Terrible Two's	+1
San Antonio Turtles	+1
Seattle Emeralds	+1
Norfolk Knights	+1
Richmond Poor Men	+1
El Paso Ultraviolence	+1
Boston Colonials	+1
Trenton Thrashers	+1
Charlotte Queen's Men	+1
Kansas City Kings	+1
San Francisco Swift	+1
Iowa City Shuckers	+1
Fargo Roughriders	0
Arizona Arithmetics	0
Scranton Scewballs	0
Tacoma Millers	0
Baltimore Rabid Squirrels	0
Pawtucket Patriots	0
Salem Raptors	0
Chicago Beast	-1
Jacksonville Jackals	-1
Memphis Maniax	-1
Cheyenne Mustangs	-1
Helena Misfits	-1
New Orleans Crawdads	-1
Ottawa Loonies	-1
New Britain Block Heads	-1
Las Vegas Gamblers	-1
Washington D.C. Federals	-2
Pittsburgh Prairie Chickens	-3
Philadelphia Dead Milkmen	-4

That's right, Louisville is moving up, you've been warned!

ALCS Preview

The NABCL playoffs always feature some surprises, some disappointments, and some amazing performers - the Season 16 playoffs have been no different so far.

The ALCS matchup is a good one...that I am involved in, so here is a breakdown.


AMERICAN LEAGUE MATCHUP

Seattle Emeralds (AL) caseroc View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Boston Colonials (AL) randallball View Hardball Dynasty Profile

The ALCS features the overall top seeded Seattle Emeralds (109-53) - piloted by caseroc, in his 2nd NABCL season - and the #3 seed in the AL, the Boston Colonials (97-65), led by yours truly - The Commish, Rick Randall, aka "randallball" - here from inception.

HISTORY

SEATTLE: Having won the division 7 straight times and 8 times overall (all in the last 9 seasons), this LCS appearance marks the 3rd in franchise history for Seattle (2nd consecutive). In season 13, former owner zackaryl lead the franchise to its only LCS victory (and on to its only WS title, as the Anaheim Natural Disasters). This season's league-best 109 wins marks the 6th time in franchise history that they have eclipsed the 100 win plateau.

BOSTON: The return to franchise prominence by the Colonials reached a new high point this season as they won their 2nd straight AL East title (5th overall), and managed to win their 2nd and 3rd playoff series in franchise history (with the first coming last season) to make it to their first ALCS tilt. The 97 wins this season is a 34 game increase from just 2 short seasons ago and marks the 3rd highest win total overall.

PLAYOFFS

SEATTLE: As the #1 seed in the AL, the Emeralds enjoyed a first round bye before drawing the always challenging Fargo Roughriders in the Division Championship Series. The series featured 1 dominant pitching performance and 1 strong offensive showing from each side in the first 4 games, which the two teams split. The deciding 5th game was a one-sided affair with Seattle using the home field advantage, a great pitching performance by Jesus Marrero, and a balanced offensive attack led by Harry Pelaez's 4 hits and 4 RBI as they cruised to a 10-1 victory and a series win.

The top playoff performers so far have been Pelaez (4 HR and 8 RBI), Lyle Hatcher (2 HR) and the always dangerous D'Angelo Ramirez (.879 OPS) on the offensive side, and Marrero (2.13 ERA in 2 starts) has led the pitching staff. Ramirez has also contributed 2 "+ plays" from his spot in CF.

BOSTON: The Colonials have been riding a red hot, powerful offense that has put up a mind blowing 27 HR and 48 XBH in its 9 playoff games. The best-of-five set in the Division Play-In Series versus Division mate Baltimore went the distance despite Boston outscoring the Squirrels by 15 runs (38-23). In the DCS against defending champs El Paso, the tone was set early as Boston clubbed 9 HR in pitcher friendly Citibank Ballpark and won the opener 19-4 on its way to a 3-1 series victory.

Top playoff performers for Boston have been...everyone with a bat. Seriously, 8 regulars have playoff OPSs of better than 1.000, and 9 Colonials have clubbed a HR, with 6 hitting 3 or more. RF Curt Sherman leads the way with 15 hits, 11 runs scored, a .469 AVG and a 1.416 OPS, and Jorge Sanchez has left the yard 6 times while driving in 12. On the hill, 20-game winner Vic Pena has gone 3-0 in his 3 starts while sporting a nifty 2.57 ERA.

STRENGTHS

SEATTLE: Pitching is first and foremost as Marrero, Wiki Gandarilla and Henry Sorrento all won 18 games and Felipe Redondo added 17, and Gandarilla (2.57) and Marrero (2.74) had the top two ERAs in the American League. 107 quality starts, all told, and a standout bullpen to boot.

That said, the Emeralds offense is nothing to sneeze at. D'Angelo Ramirez is the catalyst for the offense, and he put up 42 HR, 102 BB, 28 SB and a 1.012 OPS this season out of the leadoff spot. Seattle also had three 100+ RBI guys in their lineup: Harry Pelaez (117), Emil Springer (105) and 44 HR man Warren Collins (135).

BOSTON: Pena is a true #1, and the rotation works out nicely so that he could conceivably see 3 starts if the series should go the distance. The offense is really clicking right now, and if they can even come close to maintaining their torrid pace of 5+ XBH and 3 HR/game, you have to like Boston's chances. Houston Gentry and Carlos Rios are top tier defenders at SS and CF, respectfully, and their contributions in the field may be a big key to this series.

A surprising stat is that only 3 teams had 3 SP in the top 16 in ERA in the AL this season: Seattle, obviously, El Paso, and Boston, surprisingly. Mo Carr (3.20, 9th) and Robb Howington (3.98, 16th) will have the 2nd and 3rd spots in the rotation, respectively, and they have to maintain their success against this tough Seattle lineup to give Boston a chance in the games that Pena doesn't start.

WEAKNESSES

SEATTLE: Seattle's offense did fare better vs RHP than versus LHP this season, and they are likely to see a lot of lefty Vic Pena. The long man out of the pen - Jude Lindsey - is phenomenal (14 wins and 12 saves, 2.95 ERA, 1.06 WHIP in 164 2/3 IP), but the back end of the bullpen is human. Closer Frank Maddox converted on 36 of 40 save opps, but he also allowed 7 HR and posted a 4.97 ERA. Daryl Jefferies and Rex Trombley also posted high HR totals and have unimpressive K/9 numbers. If Boston can get into the pen, it could lead to blowouts.

Jude Lindsey Seattle Emeralds Age: 30 B/T: R/R Born: Claremont, NH Position(s): P (SuA) View Hardball Dynasty Profile

BOSTON: Can the bullpen hold up? That really is the biggest question mark for the Colonials in this series. The bullpen held on in the regular season, allowing only 26.1% of inherited runners to score. Boston will lean heavily on Jim Sheets, Dennis Wanatabe and closer Max Ibanez in pressure situations late, and on Al Dougherty early if any of their starters get into trouble. Ibanez is always a heart attack type closer, but he has converted on 80.4% (135-168) of his save opps since coming to Boston.

The Boston hitters can certainly rake, but they aren't always the most patient group - and Seattle pitching staff is filled with great control pitchers. If Boston gets behind and gets anxious, Seattle's aces may have a field day nibbling and getting bites on balls out of the zone.

Max Ibanez Boston Colonials Age: 32 B/T: L/L Born: Ingenio Quisqueya, DO Position(s): P (ClA) View Hardball Dynasty Profile

SERIES OUTLOOK

What happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object? This series should tell us, as Boston's powerful offense - which hit .288 in the regular season, good for 2nd best in the NABCL - tries to force its way through Seattle's stingy pitching staff - which led the league with a 3.58 ERA and allowed a league low 8.30 hits/game.

Boston's 3-6 hitters (Guillermo Ortiz, Sanchez, Bum Stocker and Sherman) are no doubt a powerful group, but the key for offensive success for the Colonials may lie with leadoff hitter Joshua Whitaker. Whitaker had a fantastic regular season (.334/.384/.553, 28 HR, 31 SB, 116 runs scored and a league best 204 hits) and the more he gets on base, the more chances the middle of the order has to hit two- or three-run HR instead of solo shots. Boston will not be able to out pitch Seattle in this series, so hanging some crooked numbers on the scoreboard is a necessity if they want to have a chance to win.

Joshua Whitaker Boston Colonials Age: 32 B/T: R/R Born: Waukesha, WI Position(s): LF/DH View Hardball Dynasty Profile

For Seattle, the key is going to be their offense - namely Warren Collins and Emil Springer. Collins and Springer hit behind Pelaez, and figure to see a lot of RBI opportunities with Ramirez, Hatcher and Pelaez on base. Their RH power has to show up for Seattle to get leads for their dominant pitching staff.

Warren Collins Seattle Emeralds Age: 32 B/T: R/R Born: Valentine, NE Position(s): 3B/1B/2B/OF/DH View Hardball Dynasty Profile

PREDICTION

I fully expect this to be an epic battle that goes the distance, with Seattle holding off the underdog Boston team for a 4-3 weries win.

2nd NABCL Franchise Prestige Rankings

Hello Fellow NABCLers!

It has taken a little longer than I had planned but I have finally re-calculated the NABCL Franchise Prestige Rankings updating through season 15.

The process is relatively simple. I go through and compile team records, owner history, playoff history, and team names for every single franchise in the league since season 1 and put them in a spread sheet. I then calculate a franchise’s overall prestige based on a formula that I created.

The original overall formula was an additive index based on the franchise’s win %, WS Championships, Pennants, LCS appearances, Division Titles, Playoff Appearances, the number of winning seasons, and average place in the division standings. Franchises were penalized for high owner turnover, last place finishes in the division, and the worst record in the league. I have now updated the formula to give a bonus to franchises with players inducted into the Hall of Fame wearing their cap.

As always I am open to suggestions. Suggestions that raise my franchise ranking will be given the highest preference :)

Below are two tables. The first provides the updated rankings and scores. Please note that the first table below only shows some of the data used to generate the overall ranking. I did not include all of the data for space reasons and only included some of the more pertinent categories. The second table tracks the ranking changes for each franchise based on the first set of rankings. Now you can track the progression of your franchise in the prestige rankings.

I will be happy to share the full data with anyone who requests it. TC if you are interested.

Enjoy!

-Hutch

********************************************

Table 1

Rank	Team	Win %	Playoffs	Division	Pennant	WS	HoF	Overall
1	Fargo Roughriders	0.564	10	9	5	3	2	174.6
2	Chicago Beast	0.572	13	11	2	1	0	139.6
3	Sacramento Terrible Two's	0.598	12	12	1	1	1	138.6
4	Jacksonville Jackals	0.565	11	9	3	2	0	131.7
5	San Antonio Turtles	0.555	12	7	5	0	0	130.8
6	Arizona Arithmetics	0.537	10	7	2	2	0	119.1
7	Philadelphia Dead Milkmen	0.534	6	4	1	0	0	68.4
8	Seattle Emeralds	0.528	8	7	1	1	0	67.6
9	Norfolk Knights	0.498	7	6	2	2	0	67.5
10	Richmond Poor Men	0.504	5	2	1	1	0	63.9
11	El Paso Ultraviolence	0.532	6	2	1	1	0	58.6
12	Scranton Screwballs	0.489	5	3	1	1	0	45.5
13	Memphis Maniax	0.492	6	5	1	0	0	44.5
14	Boston Colonials	0.493	6	4	0	0	0	34.9
15	Tacoma Millers	0.511	8	2	0	0	0	33.5
16	Washington D.C. Federals	0.495	8	3	0	0	0	26.0
17	Trenton Thrashers	0.513	5	4	0	0	0	25.9
18	Charlotte Queen's Men	0.495	4	2	0	0	0	21.5
19	Baltimore Rabid Squirrels	0.467	4	4	1	0	0	11.5
20	Cheyenne Mustangs	0.496	4	0	1	0	0	10.9
21	Kansas City Kings	0.455	6	3	1	0	0	2.8
22	Pawtucket Patriots	0.451	5	4	0	0	0	0.4
23	Helena Misfits	0.480	3	2	0	0	0	-0.5
24	Pittsburgh Prairie Chickens	0.468	1	0	0	0	0	-4.3
25	New Orleans Crawdads	0.478	0	0	0	0	0	-4.4
26	San Francisco Swift	0.463	3	1	0	0	0	-4.4
27	Ottawa Loonies	0.456	1	1	1	0	0	-7.8
28	New Britain Block Heads	0.483	2	0	0	0	0	-10.5
29	Louisville Legionnaires	0.471	4	3	0	0	0	-10.9
30	Salem Raptors	0.468	2	1	0	0	0	-17.3
31	Las Vegas Gamblers	0.434	0	0	0	0	0	-19.6
32	Iowa City Shuckers	0.451	3	2	0	0	0	-21.2

**Win % - franchise's all-time winning percentage; Playoffs - # of playoff appearances; Division - # of division titles; Pennants - # of League Championships; WS - # of World Series Titles; HoF - # of Hall of Famers

Table 2

Team	Rank	Previous	Change
Kansas City Kings	21	30	+9
Seattle Emeralds	8	16	+8
Baltimore Rabid Squirrels	19	26	+7
Pawtucket Patriots	22	27	+5
El Paso Ultraviolence	11	15	+4
Chicago Beast	2	5	+3
Richmond Poor Men	10	12	+2
Louisville Legionnaires	29	31	+2
Philadelphia Dead Milkmen	7	8	+1
San Antonio Turtles	5	6	+1
Sacramento Terrible Two's	3	4	+1
Fargo Roughriders	1	1	0
Boston Colonials	14	14	0
Iowa City Shuckers	32	32	0
Pittsburgh Prairie Chickens	24	24	0
Trenton Thrashers	17	17	0
Charlotte Queen's Men	18	18	0
San Francisco Swift	26	25	-1
Salem Raptors	30	29	-1
Cheyenne Mustangs	20	19	-1
Helena Misfits	23	21	-2
Jacksonsville Jackals	4	2	-2
Scranton Scewballs	12	10	-2
Norfolk Knights	9	7	-2
Memphis Maniax	13	11	-2
Washington D.C. Federals	16	13	-3
Arizona Arithmetics	6	3	-3
Las Vegas Gamblers	31	28	-3
Ottawa Loonies	27	23	-4
New Orleans Crawdads	25	20	-5
New Britain Block Heads	28	22	-6
Tacoma Millers	15	9	-6