Berkeley Yellow Jackets

Team: Berkeley Yellow Jackets [ID #77]

Location: Berkeley, CA (West)

Owner: None

Ballpark: Berkeley Memorial Stadium

Rank: #192 - Rating: 123.82

Fan Mood: 131.71

Prestige: 30

Color: Red & Gold

Team Notes:

• Aug 19 2047: Horacio De La Torre was released.
• Aug 19 2047: Hal Merola was released.
• Jul 21 2047: Fidel Perea was signed as a free agent.
• May 29 2047: Darren Lackey was signed as a free agent.
• May 21 2047: Team relinquished by Bezerkley.
• Jan 15 2047: Mateo Chavez was selected to the national team of Colombia.
• Jan 15 2047: Ramón Corral was selected to the national team of Argentina.
• Aug 31 2046: Gaspar Tirado was signed as a free agent.
• Aug 29 2046: Art Dotson was claimed off of waivers.
• Aug 21 2046: Richard Morgan was claimed off of waivers.

League Record:

Wins: 69 Losses: 48 Pct: .590 Last10: 6-4 Streak: W1

Ave: 5.4 - 4.3 RS: 632 RA: 500 DIFF: +132

Cup:

Group 100 [8 | Still Alive]

Press Releases:

Jul 23 2046: Berkeley All-Star Week - by Bezerkley on July 31st, 2020

At the halfway point of the 2046 season, the Berkeley Yellow Jackets sit atop the VI.26 West standings at 50-30 (now 52-33 as of this writing) with a 1 game lead over the Del Mar Dodgers and a 4 game lead over the Renton Rockets.

At the halfway point also marks the All-Star game, which the Yellow Jackets had four representatives in: third baseman Horacio De La Torre, second baseman Mateo Chavez, catcher Ramon Corral, and pitcher Rogelio Acuña, with the three hitters earning starters nods. It makes sense, given that the offense has been one of the best in the league. However, the pitching has been stellar too, forming a nice balance for the team.

"Ramon and Horacio have done a great job leading the offense, with Mateo leading the support group. Everyone has contributed to the team's success though," commented manager Jeremy Hallman. "And I am very happy that Rogelio got some recognition for his solid year, yet I feel Ramon Gonzalez and Antonio Cruz were snubbed. Alas, there were only so many spots and the other players were well deserving. I am very glad that we have had a successful year and we look to continue it moving forward."

Congrats to the well-deserved All-Star nods, the team, and let's see if they can keep it up for promotion!

May 21 2046: 2046 Early Season Report - by Bezerkley on July 15th, 2020

Overview
Over the past few weeks, ownership has taken stock of every aspect of the franchise - the major league roster, the farm system, growth and development, fan mood, and much more. The team used the second half of Spring Training, the Cup tournament, and the first few loops of the LL-VI.26 season to develop their plan and start to enact it for sustained success. “First and foremost, this team is a good team,” said new owner Bezerkley.

GM Kevin Neal added, “That’s been shown in our winning record to start the VI.26 season. Benito Olivares did a fine job in his six-plus years here, but what we envision this team being has caused us to shift our priorities. So we’d like to welcome Jeremy Hallman as our manager, as we like his ability to develop hitters and pitchers.”

Although they have gotten off to a good start in VI.26, they have not lost sight of the bigger picture. “Yes, we’re playing well in league,” said Hallman. “But it’s a very long season. And we had a losing record in Cup. It shows us we have a long ways to go to getting to where we want to be eventually.”

That long term vision is clear to everyone in the organization. Neal stated that, “We’re going to prioritize the development of young players who we feel can be truly helpful in the future. That doesn’t necessarily mean playing only young players in the majors. We don’t want to rush them. We’ll add anyone who can help and we will leave no stone unturned.”

Hitters
The Yellow Jackets are led by 5-time All-Star and 3-time All-League infielder Horacio De La Torre, who while he may be a grizzled 34-years old and certainly on the decline, can still be a force in the middle of the lineup. The team is also relying on several players currently in their primes like catcher Ramon Corral, Mateo Chavez at the keystone (2B), and Gold Glove shortstop Vance Wharton.

Additions like 31-year old Sebastian Salvador from LL-III’s Haverhill Halflings, Emilio Sanchez, Klaus Koch (since released), and 23-year old switch hitter Ted Gillant show the spectrum of hitter the team has experimented with. “All of the guys we added have been passed over or overlooked before, but we think they can develop and thrive here,” commented “Hawkeye” Hallman in his first press conference.

“Our goal is to lengthen the strength of our lineup. That’s how we want to win,” said hitting coach Rob Orville. But as for what's in store for the long term future, ownership feels there are only a few players who might fit their long term vision as core players and adding to that is a huge goal for the front office.

Pitchers 
On the pitching side, the club is led by four solid starting pitchers, including budding ace Marco Menendez and 2045 LL-V.13 Rookie Pitcher Of The Year Ramon Gonzalez. Starters Antonio Cruz and Rogelio Acuna have started to right the ship after shaky starts. “Our pitchers have been okay. We really need to shore up the walks. We’re allowing too many baserunners and those are leading to big innings for our opponents. But they're improving,” said pitching coach Don Miller.

The bullpen has been remade as well, with some new faces like Tom Gaffney and Ron Hardy and some pitchers in new roles like flamethrower Adrian “Bazooka” Bagwell. The team tried Cesar Garcia back in the closer role, but his early performance has been atrocious, prompting the club to go back to veteran and 2044 All-Star Hal Merola, who has been reliable.

Prospects
The team will continue to add to their farm system throughout the season and hope to truly bolster it aplenty. A few prospects have since been added that have bolstered the middle of the system. Director of Player Development and Scouting Andrew Loe added, “These guys were passed over by other teams. They’ve got some holes to patch up. But they’ve hardly been developed properly. We will do that. They may not pan out. But I bet some do. And that is our process at work.”

Mar 16 2046: New Owner Looks to Rejuvenate Home Town Team - by Bezerkley on June 26th, 2020

New owner Bezerkley decided that March 15, 2046 (June 26, 2020 in the real world) was the day. The day that he would take over his hometown Berkeley baseball franchise and attempt to get them out of the rut and onto a path of success. In 2044, Berkeley was able to promote out of VI.26 for the first time since 2030, only to find themselves right back in the league in 2046, following a bad 2045. With new leadership, changes are a-coming.

"This is the team of where I grew up. I could not be happier to be here and hopefully be here for a long time. Our goal is to get this team to reach new heights," said the new owner in his opening press conference, in which the new team name was also unveiled. The team will be rebranded as the Berkeley Yellow Jackets, matching the local high school and the owner's alma mater. "I want this team to represent the city of Berkeley. That's why we are changing our name to the Yellow Jackets, to match the school that is at the center of the city. I want to build this team up the right way. It's going to take some time, but I am here for the long haul."

The team is looking forward to their debut season in Broken Bat. Let's play ball!