Vol. V, Issue #1 - January 2017

** Interview with Kevin Thomas **

(We start the new year off by talking with a 4-time Champion of the Chicago Area Adult
Baseball League, a face-to-face league that has been around for 42 years and counting!)

(Notes from the Wolfman:  As we start our 5th season sharing this newsletter, (which we hope our members are enjoying tremendously), for this basic standard section of each issue where we speak to members from different leagues; we shall continue to talk to some more Face-to-Face leagues. But in particular, for this interview, we will speak to a league in Chicago. Chicago of course is the city I was born and the city who now hosts the current MLB champion. I have to admit I am a little bit biased here, as my Strat playing days also started in Chicago where I played in my first face-to-face leagues and then branched out to doing conventions and tournaments.  So I am very honored to be able to present Kevin representing another long standing strat baseball league here to our members.  Go Cubs - #FlyTheW.)
 

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Wolfman: I would like to welcome to our newsletter Kevin Thomas, a long-standing member of The Chicago Area Adult Baseball League (CAABL), a face-to-face baseball league in the Chicago area naturally. This league has been around for 42 years, and apparently Kevin and I have had our paths cross before, both of us being from Chicago.

Kevin, thanks for spending time with us here at the Ultimate Strat Baseball Newsletter.

Kevin:  It is my pleasure!  Thanks for inviting me to introduce CAABL to a wider audience.

Wolfman:  Kevin, I normally ask some personal questions first to give our members a chance to meet you and know a little bit about your background before we talk about Strat and your baseball league.

So is the Chicago area where you grew up and if not how did you land there?

Kevin:  Yes, I'm a lifelong Chicagoan and midwesterner, having also spent time in Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN and Champaign/Urbana, IL.

Wolfman: When you were younger - did you actually play baseball and if so what was your best position?

Kevin:  My little league "career" began at Horner Park on Chicago's northwest side when I was eight years old.  I wasn't the biggest or the best, but I played regularly enough to learn that I enjoyed playing the infield (that's where the action is in little league!), but I was best at going and getting 'em in left field!

Kevin was privileged to have been at Progressive Field in Cleveland for Games 6 and 7 of the World Series as the Chicago Cubs wrapped up their Come-From-Behind WS Title, their first championship in 108 years!

Wolfman:  Which MLB team did you root for when you were younger and are you still a fan of that team? Kevin:  Being a north sider in Chicago my choice of team was pre-ordained, it seemed.  I was born a Cubs fan and have remained one ever since, albeit it to varying degrees throughout the  years.  And I don't "hate" any of the other teams.  I was never one of those Cubs OR White Sox people.  I never understand the vitriol and hatred that seems to define some diehard fans of the two teams.  They've never even been in the same league!  It's not like they fought for the same pennant year after year like the Giants and the Dodgers did when they were both in New York!

Wolfman:  Also I understand you attended some games or events linked to the recent Cubs Championship.  Can you share about this and what it was like living in Chicago this year as the Cubs played for their 1st championship in 108 years?

Kevin:  I was excited as anybody to watch the Cubs first build their team over the course of a number of years (thanks Theo Epstein!) and watch that team grow into the powerhouse they became this year.  Although many prognosticators practically handed the Cubs the World Series before the season even started, we all know that its a tough grind and anything came happen, either over the course of the long regular season or in any of the short-series
playoffs. 

Yes, the Cubs were the best team in baseball this year, but I think we are all skeptics at heart, despite being die-hard fans who bleed Cubbie blue.  And we were never sure of how it would end, even after eight innings of game seven!!  It seemed that every emotion a Cubs' fan could experience came to fruition in the short span of a few hours that night.

Wolfman:  How did you hear about SOM Baseball? When did you first begin to play the game?

Kevin:  My Dad actually got me started with baseball board games when I was quite young.  My first experience was with Cadaco-Ellis' All-Star Baseball.  The names on those spinners were ingrained into my baseball knowledge starting from about five years of age.  Then I got to high school and a freshman classmate introduced me to a game called Strat-O-Matic Baseball.  He showed it to me and, within about five minutes, I was hooked!  I didn't know there was anything like this on the market for baseball simulation games.  My Dad and I played and announced our games of All-Star Baseball as if it was the be all, end all of baseball board games!  Start-O-Matic changed my life in ways too numerous to elaborate on!

Wolfman:  What is your history participating in leagues (face-to-face or computer based)? Have you ever played in any tournaments?

Kevin:  As that friendship with my new found high school classmate grew, we played the game more and more and eventually we got more kids interested in, or curious about, playing the game.  Once that interest grew to 10-, 12-, 14 players we figured it might be time to start a league.  We felt the best way to do it would be to start a "club" in the high school and post flyers around soliciting for even more members and a required teacher/moderator to oversee the new organization.  And finding a moderator ended up being the easiest part.  A teacher in the school, one that I'd already had in a class, was a devotee of the game and was thrilled by the chance to play it again.  So, in the spring of 1974, the Table Games Club (TGC) was chartered at Gordon Tech High School in Chicago.  We ordered the 1973 season card set, held our first draft and have never looked back.

Wolfman:  How did The CAABL come into existence? Why is the word "Adult" listed in your name, do you have an age limit for membership perhaps?

Kevin:  Interesting that you'd ask that question, particularly at this time in our history.  Once that freshman class graduated four years later and started to go their separate ways, to college, etc., there was a faction of the TGC club members that wanted to keep playing with as many of the then-current league members as they could reasonably keep.  The teacher / moderator, as well as some other  teachers that came on board and a few of the students that remained in the Chicago area after graduation decided to keep the league going.  But they needed a new name for their now unaffiliated collection of devoted Strat-O-Matic Baseball players. 

Thus, they came up with the Chicago Area Adult Baseball League because all the members
were at by then at least 18 years of age and, due to the geographic diversity of the members spread around the city and its suburbs, having a car was entered into the newly written league constitution as being a requirement for league membership.  And since unrestricted driving occurs at the age of 18 in Illinois, it was determined that 18 would be the minimum age for someone to be considered for league membership.

Action Photo from last year during League Play, here we are watching the semi-finalist in
the 2016 CAABL Playoffs to determine who would play in their World Series.

 
Wolfman:  As a face-to-face league, how many times do you meet and how many games do you play per season?

Kevin:  Over the years we have adapted to many situations, including rule changes, member preferences, etc.  But we've always tried to stay as true and close to real baseball as we possibly could.  As time constraints ebbed and flowed through the years, we've held seasons with anywhere from 108 to 135 games.  Our current 10-team membership plays a 135 game season over 27 weeks, getting together to play a five game series each time.

Wolfman:  What is the name of the team you manage?

Kevin:  The Greyhounds

Wolfman:  Can you describe the structure of your league and how the playoffs work?

Kevin:   A few years ago we switched from two five-team divisions to one 10-team league.  The top six teams qualify for the CAABL playoffs with the top two teams earning a first round bye.  Seed 3 then plays seed 6, and seed 4 plays seed 5 in best-of-five series' to set up the semi-final playoff round against the two top-seeded teams.  And of course, this semifinal round and the subsequent CAABL World Series are both best-of-seven.

Wolfman:  How do you create your teams - discuss the rules of your league and how you build your teams (players you keep from year to year and if your draft and allow trades)?

Kevin:  Our league uses a permanent full-keeper structure.  These teams' franchises, first established in the late '70's, are still the ones on record today.  Our rosters can hold up to 45 players, with 25 active players from week to week during our regular season.  Each year, prior to our draft, we must declare who we are going to "waive" from our rosters, giving us the room to draft new players to get back up to that 45 man roster limit.  And you are finished
drafting when you reach the limit and no longer want to release any other players.  This flexibility has allowed us to build and watch our teams grow and mature - and (hopefully) improve - as an organization would by stocking their minor league system.

Trading is a mainstay of our league and most all members engage and participate in trading to varying degrees.  Our league board members, three of which are voted for each season, have the power to cancel any trades that are deemed grossly unfair or severely anti-competitive so as to restrict two managers from getting together to create one "super-team," for example.

Wolfman:  When you play your games -- do you use the computer or just use dice and cards with scoresheets?

Kevin:  We are a pure dice and cards league.  We use scoresheets of our own design and we keep our team stats manually utilizing Excel spreadsheets to keep track.

Wolfman:  We can understand why 42 years ago you started a face-to-face league but with all the new updates with the computer game why have you decided to keep your league
face-to-face?

Kevin:  We have always enjoyed the tactile feel of the dice, cards and charts.  And its not important to us to try and get through the games as quickly as possible.  We have become a group of good friends who like to get together and spend time in friendly competition.  We only wish that we could play the dice and cards version and still have the computer somehow capture and keep the stats for us moving forward.  That would be a dream!!

Wolfman:  Have you ever tried to contact other face to face league in the Chicago area to have league champions play each other?

Kevin:  That just occurred this year for the first time.  Another league contacted us to see if we'd be interested in playing a "Super Series" between our two leagues' champions.  No decision has been made yet.  Negotiations are ongoing!

Wolfman:  What duties does the commissioner of The CAABL have? How much time does it take, what are his duties? Do you have other officers in your league?

Kevin:  The commissioner of our league is primarily tasked with keeping the season moving along at a timely pace, and having league members adhere to established in-season deadlines such as roster cuts and stat reporting.  The commissioner and two other elected league
board members also have the final word on any disputes or protests that may come about during the course of any season.

Wolfman:  Kevin have you ever been close to winning the champion of the The CAABL - when did this happen and what type of team did you have? What type of team do you generally like
to create? How did your team do last season?

Kevin:  The Greyhounds are a four-time CAABL World Series Champion!  And strange as it might sound, my titles occur like clockwork every four years - '02, '06, '10 and '14.  So I'm not "due" again until the 2018 season!  I have won my championships anywhere from the sixth
seed, just sneaking into the playoffs, to the top seed having the regular season's best record.  It seems that each manager has a differing philosophy and managing style that seems to suit them best.  I always try to keep a balance of the "big three" - pitching, hitting and defense - on my roster from year to year. 

And it is imperative that two of those three (at least!) are strong if you want to contend for a title in our league!  Since I'm still currently "between" titles, I'm working to strengthen my team
though trading and the draft.  The Greyhounds finished a not unexpected 7th this past season, having lost the one-game playoff after being tied with the 6th place finisher for the final playoff spot.

Wolfman:  How is the relationship of your members amongst each other? Do you ever do public activities together like go to the Cubs or White Sox games?

Kevin:  For the most part we have forged a group of good friends.  Although it is never possible to have 10 people always be 100% on the same page concerning every issue, we always seem to be able to rectify any differences with a minimum of consternation.  Our varying work/life schedules usually keep us from being able to all get together for an outing or some other type of extra-league activities but there have been times when a number of us have gotten together to attend a Cubs, Sox or even a Brewers game.  And occasionally we plan an out-of-town weekend that includes the playing of some series' between the teams present.

Wolfman:  Is there any teams (via their manager) that has dominated your league?

Kevin:  Over the 42 years that the core group has been together, the league membership once was diminished to almost half.  So we merged with another league in the same predicament and have had this current league structure for over 20 years.  In our history, none of our managers has won more than eight titles.  The Zephys hold that distinction.  The Jetstream, are the current World Series champion, just collected their fifth overall title and stand second in total titles captured.

Wolfman:  Is there any person who is an original member of your league after 42 years that is still in the league?

Kevin:  Through late in this past regular season fully half of our league members were there at the beginning at Gordon Tech.  Sadly, we lost one of our original members in October.  The teacher / mentor that helped us get it all started back in 1974, Bob Derendal, manager of the Buzzards, passed away.  But Paul Zydlo, Tim Courtney, Mike Norek and myself were all there at TGC/CAABL's inception.  And although I took a hiatus from the league to attend college and
start a family, I still consider myself a long-standing charter member.

Wolfman:  When you have had a successful playoff bound team what were the keys to your
success with this team (or teams)? Are there special strategies you use to build your team? And what are your key strategies for winning with your team that you use when playing your games?

Kevin:  My most successful playoff runs have centered around a solid pitching rotation, excellent bullpen - including an untouchable stopper/closer (see: Mariano Rivera) - and solid defense with a great throwing arm behind the plate (Yadier Molina).  Of course you can't win a game without getting offense, and sometimes clutch hitting is enough to pull you through.  My favorite might be the '06 playoffs when Mike Sweeney ('05 card) hit a 1-4 solid walkout HR to propel me to another title.  Of course the Sweeney's, Trumbo's and Nelson Cruz's of the world should always have a capable defensive replacement ready to be inserted in the late innings!

Wolfman:  We always ask those we interview if they have any tips or advice for our members that could help them with success with their own game playing?

Kevin:  My first tip or piece of advice may not focus on achieving success, but it is a mantra I live by to this day:  You gotta be having fun playing the game!  As soon as you stop having fun, or feel as if you're playing the game out of a sense of obligation, its time to hang 'em up and find another passion.  Success will come if you exert the time and effort required to build, manage and maintain your team.  If you don't do your research and spend time outside of simply showing up at the draft and then arriving just in time to play your weekly series you are destined to be a second tier club in any league (all luck aside!).

Wolfman:  Have you ever tried to play in the on-line baseball leagues that Strat-o-matic offers, or in other leagues (face-to-face or via the internet)?

Kevin:  Despite the heavy marketing and excitement that the company tries to build around their online product, I have no interest.  I did, however, play for a number of years in a computer based league where the members still get together face-to-face, but the games
are played on the computer.  Although I enjoyed my time in that league, it was not as fun as the "manual" game that we play in CAABL.

Wolfman:  What do you like about The CAABL? What is the key for the longevity of your league?

Kevin:  Passion for the game is probably the biggest key to our longevity.  To a man, we all love playing Strat-O-Matic Baseball!  The league has helped me create and continue friendships and relationships that I may not have otherwise ever had.  CAABL will endure as long as that passion remains and as long as good health among our membership group continues to manifest itself year after year.  RIP Bob Derendal.

Wolfman:  Have you had any special experiences (certain games that stand out in your mind that you played or series you played) being a manager in your league that were amazing or very unusual games, or something you are proud of. Maybe some key trade you made ...

Kevin:  The Mike Sweeney blast in the playoffs was definitely a highlight.  Getting my first no hitter (Kevin Millwood) stands out.  But, oddly enough, my most amazing experiences always seemed to find me on the wrong side of the win/loss ledger! 

Most notable was a World Series appearance where I took a game seven, five run lead with Chris Carpenter on the hill during his Cy Young season, a fresh Mariano Rivera in the bullpen ready to close and a fatigued reliever on the mound for my opponent into the late innings.  Carpenter was unable to hold the lead and we went to extra innings where Rivera surrendered one in the top of the 11th.  The bottom of the 11th was the last chance for the Greyhounds to "pull a rabbit out of the hat."  Against another fatigued reliever (due to league playoff usage restrictions), my 8 and 9 hitters reached base to open the frame.  Lead-off man Brian Roberts sacrificed the runners to 2nd and 3rd with one out for my 2-3-4 hitters.  But Keiko Calero, with his last gasp, survived by retiring those Greyhounds and securing a hard-fought World Series title for Jim Powers and the Senators.

Wolfman:  Why do you personally like playing SOM - did you try other baseball games like SOM?

Kevin:  LOVE OF THE GAME!!  Simple as that!  I looked at APBA years ago.  And none of today's computer offrerings inspire me to want to make a commitment.

Wolfman:  Finally is there anything else you would like to share with our members that I didn't ask you before that you think is important to let them know about about The CAABL?

Kevin:  Thank you for offering me this forum.  I would like to take the opportunity to announce that we have a league opening for the upcoming 2017 season (2016 card set).  The unfortunate passing of our league patriarch has left us with an available team - one that should be a strong contender this coming season.  The Buzzards  feature Clayton Kershaw, Jose Fernandez (his final card - RIP),  D.J. LeMahieu, Daniel Murphy, Francisco Lindor and Yoenis Cespedes among others. 

Wolfman:  So thanks Kevin for spending time with us. Good Luck  in the next season of The CAABL with another exciting season of play!

And if a member of the newsletter wanted to contact you or had some questions for you, is this possible and if so what is the best way to do it?

Kevin:  If you are in the Chicago area and are looking for a solidly grounded cards and dice league to be a member of, please feel free to contact us through the SOM League Registry or reach out to me directly at ktsrangers@yahoo.com.

Wolfman:  Can you share your league website with us?

Kevin:  CAABL has never seen the need to establish a website presence since we are all located within about 25 miles of each other in Chicago and its west, northwest and northern suburbs.

Wolfman:  Ok Kevin, all the best!  And ... here's one more round of cheers for Chicago as I can't help myself, but Go Cubs Go in 2017!!

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Contained inside this exciting issue of Ultimate Strat Baseball Newsletter:
(to view the various interviews, articles, columns and special sections click on the links {underlined}
and this will take you to the appropriate webpage)

♦  RETURN TO NEWSLETTER MAIN PAGE

♦  ARTICLE with MATT EDDY, Writer Baseball America, Matt who is a manager of his own team in a Strat-o-matic League, besides being a key writer at Baseball America who has his pulse on all the good young prospects and players in the minors, shares with us his top recommendation of Key Prospects to give attention to who receive a computer image card in the 2017 SOM Card Set as well as describes their skills and give them a ranking.  Matt is a periodic contributing writer for our newsletter.

♦  ARTICLE with WOLFMAN SHAPIRO - How to Setup Your Draft League Team, the Second Part of this article, Wolfman, continues his article from our last issue to share with us the meat and potatoes of his strategies how to build his 2017 Skokie Wolfmen in the CBA, a computer league as he prepared for this Keeper League's draft.  By using his team as an example, you may receive from this article so suggestions and strategies to use for your own team.

♦  SOM Baseball and MLB World News - January 2017, This is our periodic column where we share any exciting news and updates linked to either the SOM World or MLB. In this issue, we first discuss the wide range of new and amazing products (the Ratings Guide, the new mobile Apps, the new seasons with printed cards and computer rosters, the 2017 edition of the computer game and more) that Strat-o-matic will begin releasing on January 31st.  Also we give a report on the new champion of the Strat Tournament Player's Club WORLDS tournament and discuss the enhanced new features of Version 1.1 of the 2017 USBN Esseential Draft Guide.

♦  INTERVIEW with J.G. Preston, Baseball Writers Extraordinaire, J.G. was one of our first guest to interview in the life of our newsletter in January 2013.  He used to work at the game company when he was younger and for the Wolfman, he is the person who gave him this name back in the 1970's.  J.G. has become a prolific baseball writer for SABR as well as on his own blog site sharing histories of players and insights about MLB. We ask J.G. what he is up to these days as we believe our members might wish to read his writings.  But at heart, he is still a SOM Baseball gamer ...

♦  SOM BASEBALL LEAGUE REPORT with WOLFMAN SHAPIRO -- the editor of "The Ultimate Strat Newsletter" and 2012 CBA Champion, turns his attention to talk to members of various face-to-face
Strat-o-matic Baseball Leagues that he has discovered through the league registry service offered on the Strat-o-matric website. Each commission speaks about the history of their league and their experiences. To read these interviews, click on the links below:

INTERVIEW with KEVIN THOMAS, Commissioner of CAABL (Face-to-Face)
INTERVIEW with RYAN MORRIS, Commissioner of Dave Cash League (Face-to-Face)
 

♦  ARTICLE with CHUCK TINKLER, Chuck is one of our most popular contributors and is back with a new article for his column, "The Chuck Stop", as he continues his article he calls "Old Guys Rule" with Part II. This article deals with the value of a 1st round draft and more - Chuck always entertains our readers with his insightful and colorful stories and experiences - check his new article out now!

♦  INTERVIEW with EARL REED, Earl is the head of his own Youtube Strat Baseball Channel called Tenacious Strat, of which a few of his videos have appeared on the USBN Youtube channel. We interview Earl to find out more about his video channel and how he became interested in Strat Baseball.

♦  RECOMMEND ON-LINE SOM RESOURCES -- On-line Strat-o-matic and Baseball related websites that offer amazing information, special tools and products to improve your game play that we strongly recommend. In most cases, we have had personal contact with these sources who agree with the principle to work together and help promote each other.

♦  BOOKS TO DIE FOR and Become a BASEBALL GURU -- This page is specifically about special books we are finding that either will expand your insights about the game of Baseball, help you in the creation of your current league teams or with your replays and learn more about the Strat-o-matic Baseball Game and Game Company's history.  We have a special arrangement with Acta Sports, who is a publisher of a number of great baseball books (including Bill James Handbooks) to offer for our members a 10% discount. We will continue to add more books to this page in the future as we uncover other gems our members should know about.