The sorry state of Chuckanut Bay

After making it to the LCS last year, the Chuckanut Bay Tubas saw most of their players depart in free agency and are in rebuilding mode. This year has been rough, as the current record is 21-56. The team is scoring 4.2 runs per game, but giving up a whopping 7.3 runs per game. Obviously this season is a lost cause, but what holds for next year and the future?

2009-2010 pitchers under contract: Dellin Betances (amateur), Billy Buckner, Kelvin Jimenez, Josh Kinney, Mark Lowe, Brandon Lyon, Franklin Morales, Juan Morillo, Felipe Paulino, Mark Prior, Max Scherzer, Levale Speigner, Brian Stokes.

This is looking pretty brutal. The only full cards are Lowe, Lyon, Scherzer and Stokes in relief. Chuckanut Bay will need to find a complete rotation through the draft and free agency.

2009-2010 batters under contract: Billy Butler, Miguel Cabrera, Hank Conger (amateur), Johnny Damon, Johnny Estrada, Andy Gonzalez, Adam LaRoche, Jed Lowrie, Julio Lugo, Brandon Moss, Steven Pearce, Tony Pena Jr., Wily Mo Pena, Felix Pie, Justin Ruggiano, Seth Smith, Taylor Teagarden, Preston Wilson.

Catcher, second base and outfield are severely lacking in at-bats. The bloated contract of Julio Lugo is stuck on the books through the 2010-2011 season. Basically the team has no good bats for 2009-2010 other than Miggy Cabrera, Damon and Adam LaRoche.

Obviously 2009-2010 is going to be another lost season. There are simply too many holes to be plugged up, so it will be another year of drafting young talent and plugging holes with temporary solutions via SFA. Management is looking to trade Johnny Damon for a prospect or two and would be open to moving Miguel Cabrera for a big haul if someone is interested.

What does the future look like for the Tubas? A lot of it depends on how some of the younger players pan out. On the pitching side there are still some good prospects in Betances, Buckner, Morales, Paulino and Scherzer. On the hitting side there is Butler, Cabrera, Conger, Lowrie and Teagarden. If Brandon Moss, Wily Mo Pena, Felix Pie and/or Seth Smith pan out, the offense suddenly looks a lot better. The Tubas will continue to amass young talent and hope that perhaps the team can start competing in 2010-2011, but 2011-2012 is probably a more realistic option.