Rakeville Times: Reed's return means change

Rusty Greer meets with Skip Toomy, a 8-year-old who recently signed with Rakeville. Many expect that Greer will be able to mold him into an ace.



By Aviator McShadeless, Rakeville Times
It was an odd occurrence, Jack Reed arriving at Reed Field, the Rakeville stadium named after the president of baseball operations. He had never been to the fully completed stadium, spending its inaugural season overseas on a scouting mission.

“It is impressive to see,” said Reed, looking out the large, clear front office windows. “This is a field for champions.”

Sadly, the Rockets were anything but champions last season. The 2005 Eastern Division Champions ended the 2006 season in fourth place, losing in the playoffs to the eventual league champs Las Vegas. It was hard season for Reed to watch.

“When I left at the end of last season, I felt we had a team that would perform at the highest level for years to come,” he said. “There was so much youth, so much promise. The success was there too.”

What Reed was hesitant to talk about, was Rakeville’s disastrous exit from the playoffs in 2005, or the foolish hiring of Theo Epstein. He wanted to keep the visit positive. Still, there is a lot of talk around Rakeville about the past season, and who is to blame for the team’s poor performance.

“We’ll look at last season very carefully. If Mr. Claffey (team owner) believes a change should be made, then we will make it.”

There is no doubt the organization will have a new look entering the Winter Meetings, whether Reed retakes his old job or steps back and plays to sole role of team president.

“Whatever is decided on, rest assured that the Rockets will be ready to play next season.”


Who is in the hot seat?
Though it may be fueled only by rumors, changes to the Rakeville front office tops the WRAK list of subjects. Val Tusey breaks down folks who may be moving.

Rich Garces
Hired with partner Tom Brunansky, Garces took the lead as the team’s GM late in the offseason. With the return of Reed, el Guapo’s position with the team is in question. Despite drafting five starting pitchers, the Rockets staff experienced its worst pitching season in its history.

In his general manager debut, Garces tried to solidify an offense hurt by the loss of David Wright, working deals to acquire Micheal Young and Andruw Jones, trading away Chris Capuano and Chad Billingsley. In the draft, Guapo took Bruce Chen with the team’s first round pick, a disaster for the team.

Pros: Since taking over as General Manager, Garces made deals with four different teams, proving he still has relationships throughout the league He solidified the putrid Rakeville bullpen for the playoffs, tying Bridgewater and beating the highly touted Las Vegas staff in the postseason.

Cons: Limited experience and inability to identify and fix problems early in the season clearly hurt.

Troy O’Leary
The Rockets skipper followed up a magical 2005 with a miserable 2006, as the team battled inconsistency all season. O’Leary was often criticized for sticking with pitchers like Bruce Chen and Rodrigo Lopez far too long, mismanaging matchups and waiting nearly a month before inserting the NL leading batting champ Nomar Garciaparra in the starting lineup.

O’Leary is a favorite among the players, but never met eye to eye with Garces, and the animosity during the season may have contributed to the lack of player movement.

Pros: Has a track record of success with young players, with many playing above their perceived potential.

Cons: Team inconsistency could be attributed to O’Leary’s love of shoes.

Justin Fuller
The team’s pitching coach has somehow avoided the spotlight all season, with the media looking for excuses for the Golden Arms poor performance. Reed, however, may go right to the source.

Many credit Fuller for the development of Bronson Arroyo and David Bush, two drafted pitchers that excelled this season, and Chris Capuano and Chris Young last season. Still, the Rockets had too many flawed players on the mound who didn’t benefit from Fuller’s guiding hand.

Pros: The collapse of the bullpen had more to do with age than ability.

Cons: With four young pitchers slated for Rakeville’s opening day roster (Nolasco, Saunders, Petit, Pelfrey) Fuller’s knack for turning around struggling journeymen may not be as useful.

Rusty Greer
While no one thinks the team’s Minor League Director is in Reed’s crosshairs, he could be considered a candidate for team manager if O’Leary is fired.

Greer has been the catalyst behind Rakeville’s stellar minor league program, which has developed players like David Wright, Felix Hernandez and recently called-up Delmon Young. He has shown an eye for talent, and maxing players potential.

Pros: A long, productive career as a player and scout gives him many tools.

Cons: Has never expressed desire to manage.

Other Front Office Staff
Tom Brunasky – Assisant GM
Toby Hall – Hitting Coach
Jose Canseco – Public Relations
Lance Armstrong – Physical Fitness Coach

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And The Winner Is...

Aramis Ramirez signs autographs a week after winning his second EHCC Championship. He was a big reason the Dogg's won the Championship plaque in 2006, but will he ever see it?





By: Conor Intabedd; Reno Weekly Rag

The plaque will be back in Vegas once more.

The Las Vegas Doggs have not pulled off the unexpected. They simply lived up to expectations. They were one of the heavy favorites to take the 2006 EHCC crown entering the season and they delivered. After all the trades in the off-season, controversy early in the year, and close battles in the playoffs, the Doggs made it all worthwhile and will be receiving their coveted EHCC Championship Plaque on January 7th, 2007 at the annual EHCC Winter Meeting.

Or will they?

It has been reported that after being knocked out of the 2006 championship playoffs, the owner of the Weymouth Shaddupu has announced that he will not be giving up the plaque in January. Rather, he plans to take the plaque with him as he scouts new talent in Europe. Mr. Bruce was quoted in a conversation with Doggs' owner Adam Howe as saying, "I may even take it to Kosovo with me and take pics of me everywhere and send that to you! There's nothing you can do about that!"

"If we have to travel halfway across the world to get that plaque, we'll be very upset, but we'll do it. It's that important to everyone here. It's a symbol of our hard work this season. The players. The coaches. The management. Everyone wants to see that plaque in Vegas again. It would be an outrage if the team didn't get it at the [Winter] meeting," Doggs' spokesperson Kent Brockman reported at a recent press conference at the Stardust Hotel and Casino.

The Doggs were the first team to hold the plaque as it was created after the 2004 season. Since the Weymouth Shaddupu won the previous three EHCC championships, they feel they are entitled to some extra time with the award. "I think i should be able to keep the plaque to make up for all the time I didn't have it," said owner Nick Bruce, "That sounds only fair."

"It's not our fault the league didn't create the plaque after the seasons they won the title. They shouldn't punish us for some thing we couldn't control," owner Adam Howe responded when he heard of Bruce's comments.

Even the players are upset at the news. EHCC Finals MVP Francisco Rodriguez was quoted as saying, "they better damn well give us that plaque! I did carry my team's bullpen for nothing dammit!"

Aramis Ramirez, who led the Las Vegas offense during the final round and was thought by some general managers to "not be the answer to winning a championship," was the most upset of all the Doggs' players. His comments could not be printed.

This is the Doggs' 2nd EHCC Championship in the league's six years in existence. They beat the Golden Gryphons seven to three.

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