To quote villageidiom from last year's January 17 dugout, "The double-play combo is Don Zimmer and Denny Doyle. No, nothing could ever go wrong with that."

C: Darrell Porter
1B: Brad Fullmer
2B: Denny Doyle
3B: Tyler Houston
SS/Manager: Don Zimmer
LF: Chili Davis
CF: Harry Bay
RF: Hank Leiber

SP: Lum Harris
SP: Rob Bell
SP: Jocko Thompson
SP: Mark Littell
SP: Blake Beavan
RP: Jeff Tabaka

Fun name/Son of game show host Peter Marshall: Pete LaCock
Minor league knuckleballer: Eri Yoshida

And nothing could go wrong with a team that has Rob Bell as its #2 starter. How's this team doing in the Birthday League?

Newly-acquired White Sox outfielder Davy Jones, quoted in the January 17, 1913 edition of the Pittsburgh Gazette Times

His good times started and ended without dollar one to spend. But how much, baby, did he really need?

He was forever calling us down with the vilest of language.”

Rapscallions! Ne'er do wells! Guttersnipes!

My good Anne heard this man and came down with a case of the vapors!

Newly-acquired White Sox outfielder Davy Jones

He was apparently not a well liked player; Mariners feared going to Davy Jones' locker.

Monkee gone to heaven.

And nothing could go wrong with a team that has Rob Bell as its #2 starter. How's this team doing in the Birthday League?

Inexplicably well. Brad Fullmer's hitting .346 with power, Chili Davis is an MVP candidate, Bell's 8-6, 3.50, T.R. Bryden has been rock solid out of the bullpen, Emmanuel Burriss is hitting .330, Tyler Houston's hitting .320 with power.

They're all playing completely out of their minds.

Birthday League Update:

January 5           61  40  .604 ----  
January 23          58  41  .586  2.0  
January 28          56  41  .577  3.0        
January 14          58  43  .574  3.0  
January 17          55  44  .556  5.0

News and notes:
* Johnny Mize (January 7) leads the league in SLG (.576), OBP (.433), RC/27 (9.6). He's third in AVG (.344), fifth in hits (117), and fourth in HR (20).
* Jason Giambi (January 8) still leads in HR with 24, though Stretch McCovey (January 10) is hot on his heels with 23 dingers. McCovey leads the league with 74 walks.
* Ralph Terry (January 9) is charging towards the league lead in wins. Terry now has 14 victories, one back of leader Jeff Suppan, who's stalled on 15.
* Speedster watch: Max Carey (January 11) has 88 steals in 103 games. Otis Nixon (January 9) has 87 steals in 101 games.
* League ERA leaders: Chuck Dobson (January 10) 2.14, Bill Doak (January 28) 2.23, Mike Caldwell (January 22) 2.24.
* Hot over the past ten days: Chris Hammond (January 21) 2 GS, 17 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 2 wins. Magglio Ordonez (January 28) 20-for-43, 4 HR, 10 RBI. Wally Judnich (January 24) 13-for-28, 5 HR, 13 RBI.
* Ice cold over the past ten days: Sam Mele (January 21) 3-for-28, 0 BB. Ken Cloude (January 9) 3 GS, 15 IP, 25 H, 18 ER, 8 BB, 1-2 W-L record.
* Speaking of Cloude, his season stats: 5-14, 7.12, 139 IP, 115 R, 185 H. He's stormed into the lead in the race for Least Valuable Player.
* Ralph Terry has started 36 games and thrown 218.1 IP and it's mid-July. That's what happens when the other starting pitchers on your team are Cloude, Harley Payne, and Dave Keefe.
* January 10 and January 15 have both lost six games in a row.

Stats, standings, leaders, and box scores here.

Copying it over from the end of the Spiezio thread where it probably got unnoticed ... in part cuz I'm just tickled with myself and in part because I demand (demand I tell ya!) a spot in the birthday league for this team ... maybe link them up with the Feb 29ers.

It's the all-Buffy team:

C: Richard (Rick) Wilkins (the Mayor)
1B: Hal Chase (no Cordelias in baseball, only a vague Willow)
2B: Spike Owen
SS: Oz(zie) Smith
3B: Xander Bogaerts
LF: Cory Snyder
CF: Angel Pagan
RF: Brian Giles (not cheating, Giles was his last name)
P: Wes(ley) Ferrell
PH: Champ Summers

Translator: Eliza Dushku (what, you DON'T want her on the team?)

Apologies to Wes Covington but we needed a pitcher.

Walt, you missed a guy.