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Wish List: Las Vegas Doggs
The City of Sin hopes to return to championship form in '06
By Conor Intabedd / The Weekly Reno Rag
Though the 2005 campaign wasn't as successful as their 2004 championship season, the Doggs feel they ended the season the best they could last year. That's why they're planning on changing a couple things on their roster for the start of the 2006 season. "We did the best we could have with the team we had. Next year, the team will be a little different and hopefully the outcome of the season will as well, on a more positive note for both that is," stated GM Howe Dogg at a local Wendy's.
The Doggs ended the 2004 season with an EHCC record 140 wins that dwindled to a measly 129 wins and a 4th place finish in the Eastern Division. That won't help if the league ever decides to pick playoff contenders by division rankings, which could be a strong possibility with the 2006 or 2007 season.
The Doggs wasted no time this off-season in their attempt to overhaul their roster for 2006. They were holding onto 3 power hitting first basemen (Pujols, Helton, Giambi) so they decided to trade away for youth. Giambi, along with outfielder Hideki Matsui and a draft pick traveled to Golden, CO to join the Gryphons. Prized outfielder Jeff Francouer was shipped over to a very welcoming Vegas team. With a big question mark over the heads of relievers Brandon Looper and Eric Gagne, the Doggs have also added reliever Derrick Turnbow who hopes to repeat his performance he had with the Rockets last year. Don't expect them to stop there.
Some big names that have been heard to be on the block are 2005 Cy Young award winner Bartolo Colon, Todd Helton, Greg Maddux, Mariano Rivera, Brandon Inge, Brandon Looper, and Shea Hillenbrand. There are a few others that it has been rumored that the Doggs would talk about but they aren't shopping them (Ramirez, Taveras, Dunn). When asked about Carlos Beltran by another fantasy official, who was on the block for most of the 2005 season, Doggs' GM answered with, "not this year".
As always, Doggs say they won't talk about trading away Miguel Tejada, Mark Prior, or Albert Pujols. "We just got the guy. We aren't gunna let him go," Howe Dogg said in regards to Pujols.
If you want a player from Las Vegas you may not even have to give up a player of your own if you don't want to. They're looking to acquire at least one other, if not more, minor league draft pick. They'd also be interested in listening to offers that included already drafted minor league players. But if you need to trade players for players try offering SP or a decent bat of pretty much any position. They're looking for decent backups at most positions, especially 2B, 3B, OF, and C.
Like most teams The Doggs are looking to compete while getting younger. With the strength of some teams in the league (RAK + WEY) we won't mind giving up a player that in the middle of his prime for a player that going to hit their prime in say 2 years but we aren't going to have a fire sale by any means. We're still one of the top teams in the league, and there's no reason to take that away," manager Roger Lodge stated in a recent press conference. He continued with, "I don't feel there will be any huge trades at the winter meeting, but I do feel the start of some big stuff will come out of them."
Doggs Wish-List: Vladimir Guerrero, Ben Sheets, Jorge Cantu, Roy Halladay, and Rich Harden.
Expect the Doggs to make at least one other big move, even if it helps the other team more than themselves. They should finish where they've been finishing the last 4 years, near the top. Watch them to fight for a bye, but no higher than 2nd in the regular season.
Conor Intabedd writes an opinion column for The Weekly Reno Rag. He dated Roy Oswalt's sister for a while, but later broke it off when she beat him in an arm-wrestling match.
