2007 ELIGIBLE MANAGERS
ELIGIBLE CANDIDATES – Through Six Years of MWBL Service
Mike Roberts – Severn Express
Sergio Ivone – Detroit Crime
Rick “Coop” Cooper – Clovis Wheat Kings
George Skiles – Los Angeles Riots
Phil Seaton – Midland Mud Hens
Wally Walczak- Buffalo Braves
Scott Farquharson – Yonge Street Stalkers
Lee Welch – Mohawk Valley Rangers
Jason Kerns – Camarillo Quest
Michel Fault Le Roy – New River Road Runners
“Sweet” Lou Solomon – Canton Indians
Brian Scantland – Kentucky Head Hunters
Jeff James – Northridge Quakes
Dan LaPointe – Oregon Neon Knights
Casey Hoch – Fremont Cannons
Dave Myers – Tijuana Bottle Rockets
Mike Roberts – Severn Express (806 – 812 – 498%)
Mike Roberts has been a manager in the Mid-West Baseball League since the league was formed in 1997. In his 1st three seasons, he accumulated a combined record of 163-321. During his inaugural seasons, Mike was more concerned about building for the future by acquiring prospects and draft picks. Over the last three seasons (2000-2002), the Express reaped the benefits of their Manager/GMs hard work as they tallied a combined record of 325-161. During this timeframe he has guided them to two AL West titles in 2000 and 2001, where his teams posted identical 118-44 records in each season. He also led them to the playoffs in 2002 where they lost in the 1st round. Additionally, he has guided the Express to A.L. League Championships in 2000 and 2001, and the Mid-West Baseball League World Series Championship in 2000. Among his other achievements, he was manager of the 2000 All Star team and a coach of the 2002 All Star team.
Since joining the Mid-West Baseball League, Mike feels that he has been a very active manager, making multiple trades every year and submitting game results to the commissioners office in a timely manner each week. As a member of the Mid-West Baseball League, Mike feels very privileged to be led by a very determined commissioner who is dedicated to running the best league possible. Although I probably have not been involved in the league as much as I would like (primarily due to the fact that my wife, 2 kids, work, and 4 other leagues take up a little of my time <VBG>), I consider myself very lucky to be in this league with a great bunch of guys/competitors.
Sergio Ivone – Detroit Crime (744 – 712 – 511%)
Sergio joined the league as Hamtramck in 1998 with LA, Midland and Connecticut. The franchise moved to Detroit in 1999. Overall the Detroit franchise has posted a winning percentage of .509 in eight seasons with the Mid-West Baseball League. Sergio won the A.L. East and Manager of the year in 1999. The franchise lost in the first round playoffs against a tough Columbus squad three games to two. Detroit also won the wildcard in 2000 then beat Division winner Chicago three games to one, last season the Crime hit the century mark in wins for the first time in franchise history, and won the tough American League Central. Overall Detroit is 14-16 in the post-season with a .450 winning percentage. Sergio is active in the league, and very PROUD to say that he has answered promptly every trade proposal / inquiry that has been sent to him, and that he has never left anybody hanging.
Rick Cooper – Clovis Wheat Kings (708 – 748 – 486%)
Rick “Coop” Cooper joined the Mid-West Baseball League as GM of the Clovis Wheat Kings just before the start of the second season. The Wheat Kings finished with 3rd place finishes in 98, 99, & 00, but have been on the upswing since that time, with three 2nd place finishes in 01, 02, and 05 as well as a 1st place finish in 2003 in the National League Central. Rick has been an All-Star coach once (2002), and was the 2002 National League West’s Wild Card Winner. With a 565-567 cumulative record Rick and the Wheat Kings are looking forward to finally getting their collective head above water in the MWBL this year. While trading has become more difficult with the passing years Rick is looking forward to finding that one deal that will put the Wheat Kings over the top.
George Skiles – Los Angeles Riots (85366 – 605 – 585%)
George Skiles joined the Mid-West Baseball League in the Fall of 1998 by founding the Los Angeles Riots. In his 9 years in the Mid-West Baseball League, the Riots won the NL West division 5 times (in 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2005), and made the playoffs in 6 of their 9 seasons. During his tenure as manager of the Riots, George was named manager of the year 3 times (in 1999, 2003, and 2004), and has accumulated the fourth best winning percentage (.585%) over the MWBL’s 10-year history with a record of 853-605. George has been a very active Mid-West Baseball League member, particularly by being very active on the trade front in his efforts to continually put together a contending team each season.
Phil Seaton – Midland Mud Hens (671 – 786 – 461%)
Phil Seaton joined the Mid-West Baseball League in the dispersal draft prior to the 1998 season at the request of long lost friend and APBA buddy “Sweet” Lou Solomon. Lou introduced Phil to APBA approximately 20 years previously in a face to face carryover league that ran for about 4 years. Phil’s Midland Mud Hens have struggled through the the first 8 years never finishing above .500 and never better than third place, but not for lack of trying. Midland finally broke through in the 2006 season finishing second to Kentucky and earning their first playoff spot. The core of the team is fairly young and Midland should be competing for a playoff spot over the next few years. Midland has been active in trades every year trying to improve and has participated in nearly all league events. The weeks preceding Draft Day are special to Phil as he enjoys researching prospects looking for that hidden gem and being able to make that pick at just the right time. In truth, the season seems anti-climatic after all the effort put into draft day and the dreaming of the perfect season.
Wally Walczak – Buffalo Braves (797 – 821 – 493%)
This is Wally’s 7th season in the Mid-West Baseball League, he’s an original member and has been a very active part of the Mid-West Baseball League Community. He says he has enjoyed them all. Even 2001 where the Braves went (38 – 124 .235%).
Wally turned his 2001 around season around in two seasons going from worst to currently first. Wally is always ready to make a deal with anyone who wants to talk. He also has participated in all live drafts since the 1997 season. Wally was an All-Star coach in 1997, and his teams overall record after six solid seasons in the Mid-West Baseball League sit at a respectable (455 – 515 – .469%).
In closing, Wally said “The Hall of Fame would be great honor because in my opinion, this is the best league out there with a great bunch of managers who should all be in the Hall of Fame”.
Scott Farquharson – Yonge Street Stalkers (601 – 693 – 464%)
Scott Farquharson is honored to have met the criteria for HOF eligibility. Scott’s efforts are now focused on helping to keep the MWBL the top notch league that it is, and to keep trying to build his powerful Yonge Street squad. Scott is very happy with the current combination of youngsters and veterans and truly thinks 2007 is the year that the Stalkers fortunes take a new direction. Scott is trying to improve the Stalkers winning percentage in a very tough division, and saw 06 as his first chance to make a march towards the postseason, and allow himself to be legitimately thought of for HOF consideration. The Yonge Street Stalkers made the post-season for the first time in franchise history in 2006. The year was a tremendous success according to GM/Owner Scott Farquharson: “We had what was easily our best team, we just ran into the Chris/Tempe buzzsaw in the series”. The next step in Yonge Streets organizational plan is to return to the post-season; while at the same time, working to bring their career record closer to the magic .500 mark. Scotts hope remains that after 2 or 3 more successful years, he can be thought of as a legimate candidate for the MWBL Hall of Fame.
Lee Welch – Mohawk Valley Rangers (695 – 925 – 429%)
With a 422% winning percentage, Lee is not sure why he should be considered Hall of Fame material. Lee believes the criteria should be a little stricter. With that said, Lee has enjoyed playing in this league. It would be hard to find a better league. It covers so much, from researching younger players, to draft day, to ballparks with weather and a web site that is unmatched. Put it all together and Lee believes we have a league that is unprecedented. Amidst of all this The Mohawk Valley Rangers are in a major rebuilding campaign and hope to get back to 500 baseball before too long. Maybe another division championship. The youth movement is there, through the draft and trades the Rangers have assembled a nucleus of young players that include, Melvin Mora, Eric Byrnes, Francisco Rodriguez, Runelvys Hernandez and Jose Reyes. With a little luck, who knows? Lee Says “Anyway, thanks to everyone for helping make this league so great”.
Jason Kerns – Camarillo Quest (746 – 871 – 461%)
Jason Kerns is an original member of the MWBL. His franchise had winning records in each of the first four seasons, winning as many as 103 games in 1998, however once the careers of Henry Rodriguez, Dean Palmer, and Mark Whiten fizzled out, so did his franchise. He has spent the last several years in rebuild mode, acquiring many youngsters in the draft and through trade. After losing over 100 games for three years, he rebounded in 2005 with a 80-82 record and then went on to win his division in 2006 with a 94-68 record. “This is a very challenging league and one that has taught me a lot about the minor leagues,” says Jason Kerns. “When I first came into the league I drafted more power than speed, however many of my original Quest members have since retired. I made the shift to speed and defense about 6 years ago and the improvements are being noted in my win loss record.”
Jason has contributed to the MWBL in the form or rules and regulations. Jason was the originator of the minimum usage rules for the regular and post-season. In addition, Jason lobbied for and help pass the roster expansion, the elimination of the ball park effects, the draft going for 10 to 12 rounds, and the addition of two minor league players to each team.
Michael Faunt Le Roy – New River Road Runners (719 – 901 – 444%)
Michael have been apart of The Mid-West Baseball League since its inception in 1997. The Roadrunners jumped out to a quick start winning 97 games in 1997, and finished second to the Tempe Tempers in the N.L. central. The Road Runners won the wild card in ’97 and won the first round in the playoffs against those Tempers. The Roadrunners then fell on some bad years. They then put themselves in the 2001 re-modification draft. And with good drafting they turned the team around. They won ’87 games in 2002, 92 games in 2003 and 95 in 2005. Finishing 2nd in the N.L. central all three years, and winning the wild card in 2005. Michael was an all star coach in ’97 and ’04. The roadrunners have had six gold glove winners (Vizcaino in ’97, Ventura in ’01, Frye in ’01, Castillo in ’03, LoDuca in ’04 and Anderson in “04). And one Cy Young Award (Schilling in ’03). So with good pitching the roadrunners look to continue to have good years.
Sweet” Lou Solomon – Canton Indians (823 – 795 – 509%)
“Sweet” Los is not sure why he should be considered for the Hall of Fame. He hasn’t done that much in the seven years He’s been here. Winning his division (ALE) hasn’t been very difficult, sometimes by default. Lou thinks he plays the baseball game the same way he did when he rolled dice back in Ann Arbor. Lou knows APBA better than the top 100 prospects, if you know what I mean. The different situations during the game will dictate Lou strategies, not the flow of the game. He will take a pitcher out of a game that he’s starting if he’s fitting the criteria, not whether or not he’s tossing a shutout. Lou hits and runs if he has the right situation, damn the score. Lou is not sure if He deserves to be awarded anything. He feels like reading cards and making trades for the short term last season made a repeat impossible for his Canton Indians. Lou didn’t even draft rookies the second year of Mid-West Baseball League! Lou is most proud of always having a team that will play well at home. He might go through a rebuild and blow it up to make it better, but he will always cause trouble for the visitors at the Tropicana. Lou is grateful for the manager of the year awards, but consider it all just a bit of hype. He just plays the game differently, hopefully for the better. Lou says “I will try to add drafting and trading to that category”.
Brian Scant-land – Kentucky Head Hunters (728 – 406 – 642%)
Brian joined MWBL after meeting Stray Corrado at the Arizona Fall League in November of 1999. Despite never having played BBW, in seven MWBL seasons Brian has posted 6 Division flags and a World Series championship (2002). In the Head Hunters first four seasons, Kentucky averaged 112 wins a season. In fact, Kentucky’s combined games behind the division leader in six seasons are only TWO GAMES. Greatness is defined in MWBL by the Tempe Tempers, and Kentucky is the last non-Tempe team to win the World Series. Also, the only season Tempe didn’t win their division was Kentucky’s only season in the National League Central (2000). Kentucky is 2nd in MWBL history in Winning Percentage; trailing the Tempers (695% to 642%)
Brian has tallied three Manager of the Year Awards, and his players have earned 3 MVPs and 2 Rolaids Relief Awards (Derek Lowe could have been Cy Young in 2000 with 21 wins and 30 saves). Two hallmarks of the Kentucky team are aggressive trading and auspicious late round draft picks. The Head Hunters are active in the league in regards to trade talk and offer to help the commissioner as much as possible (including drafting the original Hall of Fame section of the constitution).
Kentucky is very proud and humbled to own a franchise in such a distinguished league as the MWBL; and strives constantly to be worthy of such. While the 2004 and 2005 seasons have been rebuilding, Kentucky is positioned very well for another 5+ year run. By trading Kentucky cornerstone players like Derek Jeter and Barry Bonds, the Head Hunters led the 2005 Futures rankings which enabled Kentucky to put up 107 wins in 2006 (marking five 100+ win seasons).
Jeff James – Northridge Quakes (550 – 583 – 485%)
While in his own mind not worthy of the Hall of Fame, here are the contributions of Jeff James to the Midwest Baseball League. The first and most controversial contribution would be acting on the suggestion of Jason Kerns to bring together a group of west coast players known as the West Coast Connection to the MWBL. Whether good or bad Jeff James was responsible in connecting Tempe, New River, and the defunct Fargo/Santa Fe with the MWBL. Jeff also helped with the recruitment of Los Angeles to the league. As an owner the results have been average. The overall record is 550-583, with two division titles in ’98 and ’01. The ’98 season was impressive with a record of 122-40, garnering coach of the year honors, and a trip to the NLCS losing to who else but Tempe. The franchise has seen one rookie of the year in Lance Berkman ’01 and one gold glove in Dan Wilson ’98. Jeff James left the MWBL to start a family and also became the first owner to leave and come back to the MWBL, and somehow returning to the same franchise! The Quakes continue on their rebuilding plan and the light at the end of the tunnel is near!
Dan LaPointe – Oregon Neon Knights (494 – 640 – .436%)
No Write up by this owner for the SECOND year in a row – The Mid-West Baseball League Hall of Fame is disappointed with these actions.
Casey Hoch – Fremont Cannons (434 – 538 – .447%)
Casey has been in the league since 2000, managing the lame-duck franchise of East Erie Lake during the end of that season. He achieved full franchise status in the off-season and moved the franchise to Fremont. The early years were marked by trades of veterans to pick up prospects and draft picks; in fact, Fremont has the MWBL record for most first round picks with 5 in 2001 (Though only Roy Oswalt remains on the team). Recently, the Cannons have been finding some on-field success, winning the division in 2004 with a .525 winning percentage and finishing second in the division in 2005 and 2006. Casey’s overall winning percentage is .447, but their greatest success has come against their greatest rival, having a .568 career winning percentage against Oregon and losing the season series only once. Other franchise highlights include winning the AL Gold Glove for pitchers four years in a row (2001-2004) and having back-to-back Rookies of the Year (Jay Payton-2001, Roy Oswalt 2002). In addition to running the Fremont franchise, Casey also assists the league by helping to assemble the season disk on draft day and by organizing the ballots and determining eligibility for the Post-Season Awards and Hall of Fame.
Dave Myers – Tijuana Bottle Rockets (460 – 513 – .473%)
Dave took over the Philadelphia franchise shortly after draft day 2001 and suffered through a 50-112 inaugural campaign. He would turn things around quickly though finishing with winning records in 3 of the next 5 years including a 100 win season in 2005 and 2 playoff appearances. Not an easy task in the very competitive AL Central. Dave is also very proud of the work he’s done “off the field” for the Commissioner Office. This includes two enormous projects that have made MWBL all for the better. Dave currently updates these projects yearly. The first one being the Team Trade Histories which allows owners to quickly go back an review all trades made specifically by there team over there franchises history. The second is the Team Draft Histories which allows owners to review all the draft picks they’ve made in over the course of there franchises history in one easy to read spot.
Dave doesn’t know if this qualifies him for induction into the Mid-West Baseball Hall Of Fame but is honored to be in the conversation, and glad to be a part of such a great league, with great owners.