Houston Hitmen

Houston Hitmen

Who's going to stop me

The Hitmen saw there second trip to the World Series last season but with a very different result then there first trip. The Hitmen have to be the favorite in the American League to once again go to the World Series and maybe get some revenge against the Stars. Without further ado, let’s introduce you to your Season 9 Houston Hitmen:

Offense

1. CF Edgar Tejada (26 years old) - Tejada played in his first All-Star game last season and he really seemed to get better as the season went along. I wouldn't be surprised to see the Hitmen really let this speedster run all over the place this season. Tejada last season hit .339/.378/.387.

2. 2B Sean Foster (28 years old) - The man from Malad City Sean Foster is probably the most underrated player on the Hitmen's roster. Any team in the league would love to have a number two hitter that has an average around .300, 20 homeruns and over 100 runs scored year after year but on the Hitmen it's the soft spot in the lineup. Foster numbers from last season where .287/.350/.455.

3. DH Weldon Erving (35 years old)/ Tomas Roque (29 years old) - Erving will mostly be in the lineup against right-handers. Erving doesn't have the biggest power on the team but he just seems bring the runners in. Erving last season hit .337/.406/.545. Roque will mostly be in the lineup against left-handers and the main backup catcher. Roque struggled so much last season that he lost his starting spot and now will ride the pine on most days, not really what the team thought would happen when they signed him to a long term extension last season. Last year Roque went .255/.333/.454.

4. LF Geraldo Rodriguez (29 years old) - Rodriguez last season won his most MVP award. With 61 homeruns, 157 RBI's and 200 hits there wasn't really a big question that he really deserved the award. Rodriguez hit .321/.407/.685.

5. 3B Alex Lee (30 years old) - If it wasn't for his own teammate Lee would have won the MVP last season. Lee hit the most homeruns in the American League with 70 homeruns while adding in 166 RBI. Last year Lee hit .296/.368/.708.

6. RF Art Roskos (28 years old) - It's simple amazing that Roskos last season was able to get over 100 RBI's with Rodriguez and Lee who combined for 223 RBI's in front of him. Roskos hit .290/.363/.606.

7. 1B Todd Kirk (26 years old) - Kirk is another future MVP that is in this lineup. Kirk last really lived up to nickname of Captain Kirk last season hitting over 50 homeruns for the third straight year. Kirk hit .287/.350/.606.

8. C Carlos James (26 years old)- James played in only 21 games last season but with his defensive ability he will be given the shot at the starting catching position for that reason only. James could be the one wink link in the lineup but he could surprise some people with some big hits this season.

9. SS Rocky Meadows (26 years old) - It's really scary that this lineup will feature a number nine hitter who hits over 30 homeruns and will be around 80 RBI's. Meadows is still growing into his position and you should see his hitting improve even more this season. Meadows last season hit .263/.342/.527.

Players coming off the bench will be defensive sub, pinch hitter Todd Howry (30 years old) who is still looking for his first major league homerun after four major league seasons and super sub Pablo Manuel (26 years old) who hit 10 homeruns in is 150 at bats last season.

Pitching

SP1- Cliff Sheets (30 years old) - The all time leader in victories in the league is going for this fifth straight season with more then 20 victories. It would surprise no one in the league if Sheets gets 20 or more victories this season but look for him to really try to improve his numbers as he gave up a career high in homeruns.

SP2- Garland Haney (27 years old) - I believe that Haney took a really big step heading into prime years on a roll. Haney got his second straight year with 20 victories but dropped his ERA by 50 points and that had to be why the Hitmen offered hima 5 year contract extension at the beginning of the season.

SP3- Alberto Sanchez (25 years old) - Sanchez became the third Hitmen pitcher last season with 20 victories and also seemed to be the workhorse of the staff with 245 innings pitched. You can probably expect Sanchez to come close to 20 victories once again this year.

SP4- Mac Nakamura (27 years old) - Nakamura is the type of pitcher that really has to rely on his bullpen if he's going to pile alot of victories every year as Nakamura very rarely goes beyound the sixth inning. Those first six innings though there are very few pitchers that are better then Nakamura.

SP5- Andrew Peterson (23 years old) - Peterson made 11 starts last with mixed results. He had 52 strikeouts in his 53 innings pitched but his 1.76 WHIP had to be a concern for the team. With this offensive though he could probably have an ERA around 6 and still probably get 10 wins.

Closer- Lonnie Rizzo (29 years old) - Rizzo seems like he can be one of the greatest closers in the game but somehow gets around 6 blow saves every season. Can Rizzo final live up as one of the great closers in the game this season or will he find away to once again be in the middle of the pack?