It's all about the Benjamins

Some big money was shelled out today as the New York Bulldogs agreed to a 3-year $60 million deal with free agent pitcher Orlando Cedeno. The 31-year-old Cedeno was 14-6 last season with a 4.83 ERA and 170 strikeouts in 33 starts for Colorado. Cedeno has a 92-66 record and a 3.99 ERA for his career.

Also today, free agent closer Jumbo Santiago agreed to a 3-year $19.2 million deal with the defending world champion Arizona Thunder Chickens. The 37-year-old Santiago racked up 25 saves in 27 chances with the Philadelphia Athletics last season while posting a 3.55 ERA. His contract also includes a no-trade clause.

Romero heads south of the border; Winston to the valley

Headlining a pair of recent trades, pitcher Davey Romero was traded from Oklahoma City to Mexico City while Tacoma Tornadoes closer Charlie Winston was dealt to the Scranton Coal Miners.

Romero, who was 6-10 with a 4.53 ERA in 37 appearances for Huntington last season, heads to the Day Laborers in exchange for SS prospect Luis Castillo and pitching prospect Donald Shibata.

In a trade agreed to earlier today, Winston takes his 188 career saves to Scranton in exchange for CF J.D. Cromer and OF prospect Deivi Rodrigo. Winston notched 31 saves with a 2.58 ERA in 57 appearances with Colorado last season. Cromer hit .311 with 25 homeruns and 18 stolen bases in his only season with the Coal Miners.

Robinson heads for Big Apple

GM jway11 made a big splash in his triumphant return to the franchise formerly known as the Detroit Bulldogs when he landed Florida Breeze 1B Matty Robinson in a three player trade completed earlier today. The 25-year-old Robinson, who hit .309 with 47 homeruns and 112 RBI with a .424 OBP in 139 games last season, heads to New York in exchange for pitching prospect Larry Lawson and OF/1B Philip Ledesma.

The 23-year-old Lawson, one of the prized pitching prospects in Camp and third overall pick of the season 3 draft, was 14-3 with a 2.80 ERA in 21 starts for AAA Cleveland last season. Ledesma hit .279 with 30 homeruns and 107 RBI in 154 games for Cleveland at the ML level last season.

Matty Robinson New York Bulldogs Age: 25 B/T: R/R Born: Pico Rivera, CA Position(s): 1B/DH View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Toronto, San Fran pull off season 8's first blockbuster

The Toronto Greased-Up Deaf Guys and the San Francisco Slumpbusters have agreed to a 5-player blockbuster trade that will send 2B Jim Hardy, and pitchers Galahad Beverlin and Sven Simmons from Toronto to San Fran in exchange for 2B Domingo Aguilar and OF Brian Bong. The Greased-Up Deaf Guys will also send $5 million in cash to the Slumpbusters in the deal.

The move adds pitching depth to the Slumpbusters while Toronto receives a 2-time All-Star in Aguilar in return. Aguilar's defense is also a big upgrade from Hardy's. The big catch for San Fran is Sven Simmons here, who went 19-7 last season with a 3.58 ERA in 34 starts for Toronto.

A season for the record books

Season 7 saw some major single season records fall by the way side, most of them broken by Arizona's Felipe Abreu and Tampa Bay's Karl Piersoll. Here now is a list of the notable single season records that were broken in season 7:

HITTING
Batting average: .415 - Felipe Abreu, ARI
Old record: .403 - Felipe Abreu, ARI, season 5
On-base percentage: .553 – Felipe Abreu, ARI
Old record: .546 – Felipe Abreu, ARI, season 5
Strikeouts (least): 8 – Felipe Abreu, ARI
Old record: 16 – Felipe Abreu, ARI, season 6

PITCHING
Batting average allowed: .198 – Karl Piersoll, TB
Old record: .210 - Jason Clark, TOR, season 6
ERA: .2.46 – Karl Piersoll, TB
Tied with: Jerome Green, STL, season 3
OBP allowed: .247 – Karl Piersoll, TB
Old record: .271 – Earl Gabriel, ARI, season 5
SLG allowed: .308 – Karl Piersoll, TB
Old record: .310 – Jerome Green, STL, season 3
K/9: 8.87 – Karl Piersoll, TB
Old record: 8.62 – Matt Adams, SD, season 3
Strikeouts: 292 – Karl Piersoll, TB
Old record: 235 – Earl Gabriel, ARI, season 6
WHIP: 0.93 – Karl Piersoll, TB
Old record: 1.06 – Earl Gabriel, ARI, season 5
Winning percentage: .935 – Earl Gabriel, ARI
Old record: .912 – Earl Gabriel, ARI, season 4

On the Brink of Season 8

8 new owners and 1 returning owner usher in season 8 in Camp. The first question in any preseason discussion is "Can Arizona Three-Peat"TM? The key players are a year older, and that puts most of them on the downslope to 40. We'll see if colson decides to go for number 3 or start selling off vets for younger talent. Regardless, it should be another entertaining and surprising season in Camp. All the vets say a big "Welcome!" to the new owners, and we hope you will stick in this for the long haul.

Gabriel throws Game 7 shutout to make 'Zona repeat champions

Arizona's NL Cy Young Award winner Earl Gabriel threw a complete game shutout in Game 7 of the World Series against the Austin Chin Music to give the Thunder Chickens their second straight World Series title.

Gabriel surrendered just four hits while striking out six and walking just one in the biggest game of the season. He needed just 98 pitches to go the distance. Gabriel finishes the season 7 postseason with a 4-1 record and a 2.94 ERA.

Offensively for Arizona, a 2-run homerun from CF Dee James in the bottom of the fourth inning provided all of the offense that was needed.

Chin Music starter Chuck Griffin suffered the Game 7 loss for Austin.

The Game 7 victory completes the comeback for Arizona, which began the series in a 2-0 hole after consecutive home losses to Austin. The win also marks the first time in the entire series in which the home team won the game. The championship is the third overall title for Arizona in seven seasons.

Earl Gabriel Arizona Thunder Chickens Age: 36 B/T: L/L Born: Torrington, WY Position(s): P (SP1) View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Parent narrowly edges Abreu for MVP

Tampa Bay Boozers 1B Otis Parent earned his third straight NL MVP Award by ever so slightly beating out Arizona Thunder Chickens catcher Felipe Abreu. Parent won the award with 11 first place votes while Abreu received 10 first place votes. Parent hit .327 this season with 63 homeruns and 164 RBIs for the Boozers.

The NL Cy Young voting was not as close as Arizona's 36-year-old Earl Gabriel took home his fifth straight Cy Young award by receiving 16 of the possible 32 votes. The Boozer's Karl Piersoll was the runner-up with 9 votes. Gabriel was 29-2 this season with a 2.59 ERA with a 1.00 WHIP and 200 strikeouts in 264 IP. The NL Rookie of the Year Award went to Chicago Cubs' Wilson Sanders who received 12 first place votes.

In the American League, San Francisco Slumpbusters' Raymond Farley ran away with the MVP Award, receiving 18 of the 32 votes. Philadelphia's Carlos Sanchez received 5 votes as the runner-up. Farley hit .328 this year with 61 homeruns and 165 RBIs to go with a .415 OBP.

San Francisco also took home the AL Cy Young Award with pitcher Skeeter Duncan receiving 12 votes for his first Cy Young Award. Austin's Rafael Osuna was the runner-up with 9 first place votes. Duncan was 20-5 this season with a 3.09 ERA and 1.15 WHIP to go with his 148 strikeouts in 224.1 IP. The AL Rookie of the Year went to the Sand Flies' Will Kennedy who received 20 first place votes to win the award over runner-up Bernie Green who received 5 votes.

Otis Parent Tampa Bay Boozers Age: 26 B/T: L/L Born: Hammond, IN Position(s): 1B View Hardball Dynasty Profile

'Zona takes Game 3; Austin leads WS 2-1

The Arizona Thunder Chickens got themselves back into the World Series with a 6-4 win in Game 3 to make the series 2-1 in favor of Austin. Flash Hammond got the start for 'Zona and went 5.2 innings while striking out five and giving up two earned runs. Despite giving up 2 earned runs in 0.1 innings of work, Jimmy Donovan got the win for the Thunder Chickens, his first this postseason, while Chris Adams earned the save.

John Bruske, Tom Allen and Al Padilla all homered for Arizona in the victory. CF Dee James was the only Thunder Chicken to collect more than one hit as he went 2-4 with a double and two RBIs.

Despite out hitting the Thunder Chickens, the Chin Music couldn't put together enough runs for the win. Homer Simmons, Willie Cambridge and Chili Mota each collected two hits apiece while Blaine Serrano homered, but it wasn't enouhg to make up for pitcher Darwin Daniels' three earned runs in 0.1 innings of work. Damon Daneker suffered the loss for Austin.

Dee James Arizona Thunder Chickens Age: 27 B/T: S/R Born: Grundy Center, IA Position(s): CF View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Chili Mota leads Austin to Game 2 win

Chili Mota went 4-4 with two homeruns and four RBIs to lead the Austin Chin Music to a Game 2 win over the Arizona Thunder Chickens 5-1. Chin Music ace Rafael Osuna went six innings, giving up just one earned and striking out four, to pick up the victory.

Mota added a double and a single to his two homeruns, falling just a triple short of hitting for the cycle. Austin only had six hits total for the game with CF John Wolf, who homered, and 1B Homer Simmons picking up the other two.

Starter Orlando Blanco was tabbed with the loss for Arizona, giving up three earned runs and walking seven in six innings of work. The Chin Music lead the series 2-0.

Chili Mota Austin Chin Music Age: 33 B/T: S/R Born: River Rouge, MI Position(s): 2B/CIF/OF/DH View Hardball Dynasty Profile

WS Player-by-Player matchups

Arizona and Austin. Each the #1 seed in their league. How do they match up?

Catcher
AZ Felipe Abreu .415/.553/.486 9 HRs/79 RBI
AU Corey Speaker .334/.400/.488 17/88
Abreu has the clear offensive advantage here.

1B
AZ Kordell Peterson .354/.475/.651 28/109
AU Homer Simmons .356/.419/.557 22/105
Taking into account Peterson's dreadful defense, I'll call this one a wash.

2B
AZ John Bruske .306/.405/.616 36/173
AU Chili Mota .296/.357/.446 18/89
Clearly in favor of Arizona.

3B
AZ Jamie Hillenbrand .348/.443/.565 26/129
AU Dusty Mann .353/.394/.635 34/112
In his heyday, Hillenbrand would have taken this one. Not now. Advantage Austin.

SS
AZ Jamie Enders .341/.398/.527 21/125
AU Blaine Serrano .267/.331/.461 24/80
Despite his total lack of range on D, Enders wins this one.

LF
AZ Danny Spence .327/.417/.455 12/69
AU Willie Chavez .328/.390/.674 57/174
Chavez wins this one going away.

CF
AZ Dee James .352/.408/.588 28/136
AU John Wolf .301/.411/.470 16/65
Fairly close, but advantage James.

RF
AZ Glenn Phelps .314/.419/.601 44/154
AU Willie Cambridge .328/.384/.620 39/127
I'll call it a wash

DH
AZ Tom Allen .342/.410/.643 29/95
AU Fritz Gaillard .286/.364/.519 31/109
Once again, advantage Arizona.

In sum, Arizona wins the offensive matchups 5-2-2.

SP
AZ Earl Gabriel 29-2 /2.59/1.00
AZ Flash Hammond 21-6/3.64/1.20
AZ Orlando Blanco 20-9/4.23/1.34
AZ Jimmy Donovan 23-4/3.87/1.34

AU Rafael Osuna 18-5/3.27/1.17
AU Rico Cruz 17-6/4.37/1.31
AU Chuck Griffin 17-7/4.57/1.38
AU Bret Ross 12-8/4.79/1.45

Even throwing out the won/loss records, Arizona has an advantage in starters. The bullpen, however, is a different story. Austin's bully sported a 3.68 ERA on the year, while Arizona's posted a 4.59 ERA.

Overall, however, Arizona comes in with the better team all-around. Upsets are always possible, though, in HBD.

World Series Matchup

The top-seeded Arizona Thunder Chickens closed out the NLCS with a decisive victory, winning the series 4-1 over Tampa Bay. The Peckers will face the AL's #1 seed, the Austin Chin Music, who defeated the Louisville Flame Throwers 4 games to 2. Arizona will be looking to become the league's first back-to-back champion, having won its second title in season 6. Regardless, Camp will have a repeat champion, as Austin won the World Series in season 2.

LCS Update

3 games into the LCS series and each one is a battle.

ALCS
Louisville took game 1 5-3, scoring 3 in the 7th off Cy Young front-runner Rafael Osuna "O-later" and one each in the 8th and 9th off the usually reliable Austin bullpen. Rick "What the" Faulk got the win for the Flamers, and was helped by three bombs, one each from Curt "Fort" Thurman, Matthew "Saint" Lewis, and Ken "His'n" Hurst (his 6th of the post-season).

In game 2, Austin evened the series with a 4-0 victory, as starter Rico Cruz "Control" tossed a 3-hit shutout, needing only 89 pitches. Willie "Nilly" Chavez led the offensive charge for the Chin Music, knocking a 2-run dinger.

Game 3 at Louisville was a thriller, won by the Chin Music 8-6, on a 2-run jack by Homer "Sexual" Simmons in the top of the 11th. Austin got 2 in the 8th (on another Chavez blast) and 1 in the 9th to knot it up at 6 for extras. Former Austinite Howard "G-Spot" Ott took the loss for the Flamers, who are now down 2-1 in the series.

Game 4 will have Rick "What-the" Faulk on the hill for Louisville and Bret "Rhinocer" Ross taking the hill for Austin.

NLCS
The much-anticipated matchup between the juggernauts Arizona Thunder Chickens and Tampa Bay Boozers has not disappointed thus far. The Peckers won game 1 in a 4-3 thriller. Jamie "Rear" Enders' 3 RBI helped Earl "Methuselah" Gabriel earn the victory. The Booze-hounds late-inning comeback came up just short as Ajax "Window Cleaner" Blair grounded out with 2 on in the 9th to end the game. Karl "Nipples" Piersoll took the loss.

In game 2, Tampa evened the series with a convincing 7-1 victory, led by Cy Young candidate Matt "Grizzly" Adams' strong 8-inning, 4-hit effort. Long reliever Jimmy "Mellow Yellow" Donovan took the L.

The series shifted to sunny Tampa for game 3. The home grounds were no help to the Drunks, however, as the Chicks won 7-4, to take a 2-1 series lead. Flash "Yo Pecker" Hammond got the W while Nipples Piersoll, back on short rest, took the L to go 0-2 in the series. The Tampa local media are wondering where Abdul "Jihad" Wallace was in game 3.

Game 4 in Tampa tonight. Be there!

Drunks vs. Chicks

Well, it's here: the NLCS dream matchup of the owners of the two best regular-season records, the Arizona Thunder Chickens (122-40 in the regular season) and the Tampa Bay Boozers (115-47 in the regular season). Will the Boozers knock the Peckers limp? Will the Chicks leave the Boozers passed out in an alley? We'll see, and it'll be legendary.

Oh, and by the way, the other series has the Austin Chin Music and the Louisville Flame Throwers.

Chickens Cooped Up in Game 5?

The #1 seed Arizona Thunder Chickens surprisingly find themselves in a win-or-go-home game in the Division Series against the upstart New Orleans Levee Builders. As suspected, the downfall thus far for the Peckers has been the bullpen, which has opened the floodgates (levees) to the tune of a 13.00 ERA through the first four contests. In the decisive game 5 this morning, it is anticipated that the LBs will weigh in with Gerald "Fluky" Suzuki while the Chickadees will go with Flash "Flood" Hammond. Have at it, boys.

Louisville, Austin and Tampa Bay make quick work of DCS

The Austin Chin Music, Louisvlle Flame Throwers and Tampa Bay Boozers finished off their respective DCS series in decisive fashion earlier tonight. All three teams won their respective series 3-1. The Chin Music will square off with the Flame Throwers in the ALCS while the Boozers await the winner of the Arizona-New Orleans series which is currently tied at two games apiece.

The Boozers took it to Toronto in their series, winning Game 4 by a 7-1 score thanks to some big game pitching by Matt Adams. Adams pitched seven strong innings, giving up just one earned while striking out six to pick up the series clinching win. The Boozers were led on offense by catcher Chris Wood and Harry Moya who both homered in victory. Toronto reliever Richard McEnroe was shelled in 2/3 innings of work, giving up four earned.

Louisville clinched their series with a 8-7 win over San Francisco in Game 4 of their series when 3B Adrian Hughes sent the eventual game winning homerun over the left centerfield wall to lead off the bottom of the eight inning. Hughes collected three hits total for the game while Flame Throwers DH Eddie Taguchi drove home three runs.

The Chin Music blasted their way to the ALCS by putting up 15 runs in Game 4 of their series against the Philadelphia Athletics. The onslaught was led by MVP candidate Willie Chavez who was 4-6 with 2 HR and 3 RBI and 3B Dusty Mann who was 2-2 with 2 HR, 4 RBI and 4 walks. Catcher Corey Speaker also drove in five runs.

Philly comes back from 0-2 hole to advance

Not even five games were enough for these two teams as the dramatic series finale went extras. The Philadelphia Athletics completed their comeback from a 0-2 deficit in their Play-In Series with a 5-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds in 11 innings thanks to Pat Richard’s bases loaded two run single in the top of the 11th off Reds pitcher Calvin Barker. Sven Locko picked up the series clinching win with an inning and a third of relief work for the A’s. Philadelphia will move on to play top-seeded Austin in their Division Championship Series.

Pat Richard Philadelphia Athletics Age: 27 B/T: R/R Born: Niles, MI Position(s): 3B/RF/DH View Hardball Dynasty Profile

Louisville, New Orleans and Toronto advance

After losing Game 1, the Louisville Flame Throwers rallied to win three straight and their Play-In series against the Rochester Royals. It was the Flame Throwers' offense that exploded, scoring a combined 24 runs in the final two games of the series to help Louisville advance. Catcher Ken Hurst was 2-4 with 2 homeruns and 4 RBIs in the series finale. Louisville will meet the San Francisco Slumpbusters in the Division Championship Series.

The Levee Builders clinched their series over Augusta with a 5-0 win thanks to stellar pitching from Ross Kerr, who threw 6 innings, gave up just 2 hits and struck out 8, and Enrique Gomez, who worked the game's final three innings while giving up just one hit in getting the save. New Orleans will face top seeded Arizona in their Division Championship Series.

Toronto needed extra innings in Game 4 to knock off NL North rival Milwaukee in their Play-In Series. In the top of the 10th inning, backup 1B Ruben Guerrero, who had entered the game in the 8th as a pinch runner for Jim Drese, hit a solo homerun off of David Rosa to seal the win for the Greased-Up Deaf Guys. Toronto will meet the Tampa Bay Boozers in their Division Championship Series.

Winchester leads Cincy to 2-0 lead

Cincinnati Reds 3B Marc Winchester belted three homeruns in Game 2 of the Play-In round against Philadelphia to lead the Reds to a 12-4 stomping and a 2-0 series lead over the Athletics. Two of Winchester's bombs came off Philadelphia starter Rolando Fuentes who was shelled, allowing nine earned runs in 5.1 innings of work.

In other playoff action, Don Bale was shaky in his first career playoff start, giving up five runs in eight innings of work against Milwaukee. But Bale and Toronto would pick up the 11-5 win thanks in part to 5 RBIs from SS Kelvin Daniels. Toronto now holds a 2-0 series lead over the Bondsmen.

The Augusta Pounders and Louisville Flame Throwers each won Game 2 to even their respective series at 1-1 a piece.

Marc Winchester Cincinnati Reds Age: 32 B/T: S/R Born: Zumbrota, MN Position(s): 3B/1B/COF View Hardball Dynasty Profile