EARLY RETURNS...

This is just a test of the simulation, but some trends are interesting. Keep in mind that injuries and manager imput can affect these things drastically. For example, most of these simulations were run with some of Darwin's starters on the DL (and staying there). In principle, the Finches could do even better if some of their projected fossils managed to stay healthy.

Having said that, here's some observations. These aren't guarantees, but trends based upon the stats of the healthy players in the simulations from the TOTAL 40-man rosters...

Las Vegas has the league’s best overall power and barring injury will certainly lead their division, if not all of BARB, in home runs.

All the Eastern Division clubs average more than five runs per game, and in a 100-game span they are separated by less than ten percent. They will no doubt against produce the wild card, as the simulation suggests that they will all play .500 or better. In terms of overall offense, the Moabs may have the best blend of average, power and speed and are most likely to lead the East (and thus, all of BARB) in scoring. With their starting pitching depth, they will be the East’s most-improved club and (like every team in the East) a legitimate contender.

Yuma and Frostbite Falls are absolute murder on left-handed pitching, winning nearly 70 percent of the time, but the club with the best record against righties.....last year’s Eastern champ, Darwin. Finch foes would be wise to start southpaws against Darwin when they can.

Yuma has the league’s best starting pitching by far. They will have a sparkling ERA and use their bullpen less than any other BARB club by a wide margin.

Lexington will probably lead the league in strikeouts, but their propensity to challenge hitters in key situations will cause them to lead the league in home runs allowed, as well.

Worcester’s beefed-up setup corps is almost certainly the league’s best and if things break right they could have the loop's second-best pitching overall after Yuma, but as far as overall bullpen strength is concerned, Darwin is still right up there. The Finches will probably use their bullpen as much as any club (averaging two relievers per game), and effectively: the simulation shows that the same club will likely have the least number of blown saves.

In a weaker division, the S-Mart Boom Sticks will be the single most-improved club in BARB in 2008. They have the potential to lead that division in pitching, and their offense is in the middle of the pack. The Flamingoes, top-heavy with power (and with payroll), will not waltz to another division title..

New owners in Black Mesa and Casselton will have long seasons in their first year and are unlikely to score enough runs to reach the .500 mark despite having some quality arms.

Lexington and Pottsylvania are the most difficult to predict, given the high percentage of rookies likely to make an impact on their rosters, but they don’t fare well in the simulation with what they start with, either due to problems with depth (the Rebels) or too many players coming off of injury-plaged 2007 seasons (the Creepers). These clubs, in order to contend, need improvements from more than one source and so their future is cloudy.