2035 Idaho Preview and Season Thread

[LT]

After a tough 2034 we move towards the 2035 season. As always, hope springs eternal in Idaho.

Some new faces and some old ones in some new places for 2035.

Hitting

Leading off is 23 year old, 3 time all star, 2 time gold glover, SS Lucio Souza.
Batting second, coming off a season ending injury is Jesus Hernandez. The 29 year old is 31 stolen bases shy of 400 for his career.
In the 3 spot is 22 year old 1B, Damian Lipton. Lipton was the rookie of the month in August and September on 2034 and showed real promise.
Batting clean up, when he returns from injury is long time star Loren Dobson.
Hitting 5th and playing left field, Ollie Little. Little lead the league with 44 doubles and added 21 Homeruns in 2034.
Batting 6th is 3B Dan Strickland. Strickland batted .343 in 2034 and sported a 5.2 WAR.
In the 7 spot is Ian Woods. Woods will DH. He can play 3B as well.
Hitting 8th is rookie catcher, former 2nd round pick Maurice Wintle. After smacking 30 HR in AAA he is finally ready to be the every day catcher.
In the 9 spot is future lead off man, CF Ty Wilkerson. Mike Roy was traded to make room for this 21 year old CF.

Bench
Long time LF David Pegas is going to back up in LF and CF as his career is starting to wind down.
Backup catcher is a battle between young Antonio Jimenez and Archie Copeman.
Albert Amaya, a brilliant fielder and Doug Beynon figure to round out the bench, sharing time while Dobson recovers.

Pitching
The starting rotation is going to look similar to the end of last season.

Jim Fish, Dan Collinsowrth and Bob Parker make up a strong front 3. They will be folowed by young Ruben Martinez and a battle between Cisco DeJesus and Rick McAfee is on going for the #5 role.

In the bullpen, Tabito Tamura, coming off a 37 save season is the closer once again.Recently acquired Jose Manuel will set up along with long time Steelhead Cesar Hernandez. The other battles are for middle and long relief roles, but no major changes from last year are expected.

The Outlook

While the spring predictions are not favorable, Idaho has a very young offense capable of surprise, combined with a veteran starting pitching rotation (top 3).Similar to last year, Dobson is hurt in spring training, hopefully the 2035 offense won't struggle as much without him in the lineup.

[LT]

Games Played
Lucio Souza 500 (currently at 438)

Runs
Loren Dobson 900 (currently at 873)

Hits
Lucio Souza 500 (currently at 457)
Dan Strickland 500 (currently at 317)
Ollie Little 500 (currently at 313)

Doubles
Ollie Little 100 (currently at 71)

Home Runs
Loren Dobson 300 (currently at 297)

Stolen Bases
Loren Dobson 400 (currently at 374)
David Pegas 400 (currently at 371)
Jesus Hernandez 400 (currently at 369)

[b[Wins[/b]
Jim Fish 150 (currently at 140)

Games
Cesar Hernandez 600 (currently at 597)

Games Started
Jim Fish 400 (currently at 370)

Innings Pitched
Jim Fish 2500 (currently at 2366.2)

Strikeouts
Jim Fish 2000 (currently at 1893)

[LT]

A 4-4 start following the trade of Bob Parker to Maryland, and without the teams all time best hitter Loren Dobson is very promising way to begin the season.

Seven quality starts in the first 8 games, lead by 2-0 Dan Collinsworth, is the biggest reason for the Idaho 4-4 start as the bats have been quiet.

Jesus Hernandez, coming off a season long hip injury has been slow out of the gate hitting a shade over .250 and only with 1 stolen base. New comers 'Would you like to buy a letter W', Wintle and Wilkerson are hovering around .200 thus far.

Loren Dobson returns for the 9th game of the 2035 season, hoping to provide a spark for the offense.

In other news, long time LF David Pegas is off to a solid start and may push for increased playing time.

[LT]

Games Played
Lucio Souza 500 (currently at 438)
Update 8/1: Currently at 539

Runs
Loren Dobson 900 (currently at 873)
Update 8/1: Currently at 922

Hits
Lucio Souza 500 (currently at 457)
Update 8/1: Currently at 565

Dan Strickland 500 (currently at 317)
Update 9/21: Currently at 471

Ollie Little 500 (currently at 313)
Update 9/21: Currently at 464

Doubles
Ollie Little 100 (currently at 71)
Update 9/21: Currently at 103

Home Runs
Loren Dobson 300 (currently at 297)
Update 8/1: Currently at 310

Stolen Bases
Loren Dobson 400 (currently at 374)
Update 9/21: Currently at 403

David Pegas 400 (currently at 371)
Update 8/1: Currently at 373

Jesus Hernandez 400 (currently at 369)
Update 8/1: Currently at 376

Wins
Jim Fish 150 (currently at 140)
Update 9/21: Currently at 149

Games
Cesar Hernandez 600 (currently at 597)
Update 8/1: Currently at 630

Games Started
Jim Fish 400 (currently at 370)
Update 9/21: Currently at 400

Innings Pitched
Jim Fish 2500 (currently at 2366.2)
Update 9/21: Currently at 2547.2

Strikeouts
Jim Fish 2000 (currently at 1893)
Update 9/21: Currently at 2019

[LT]

47-57. A long season in Idaho.

- Jesus Hernandez suffered 2 injuries and can no longer be counted on for extended playing time, and at age 30 one has to wonder how much longer he can play.
- Long time franchise superstar Loren Dobson has endured the worst year of his career and has seen his avg, obp, slg at all time lows. He still has a shot at a 20-20 season, but the club will need to figure out if he is the long term answer at 2B. At age 31, his chances at the HOF are dwindling if he cannot string together 2-3 more good seasons. At 1800 hits, 300+ HR, 1100 RBI, and 389 SB he is on his way, but a steep decline may put the kibosh on those hopes.

Very few players have maintained their high level from previous years and we will see if they can recover.

A couple of deals were made, Eric Price, Dan Collinsworth, and Tabito Tamura were moved for pitching prospects as Idaho loads up for the next few seasons.