Seoul Fighters
B.J. Chang    5 years  372-438, 2 Divisions

Personnel History

This team was in the basement of the IIBL just about forever. The team, in its various incarnations, did not see as many as 70 wins from 1994 -2003, and has finished last in its division for 4 of the last 5 years. BJ Chang took over and after two more 100+ loss seasons made the playoffs in 2004 through 2006, reaching the World Series two years.

There have been some good pitchers passing through here. Roger Clemens was here 2 1/2 seasons into 1997, then a terrible trade turned him into Ramon Martinez and a 1st round pick (more on picks later). Pedro Martinez (with a first round pick) was sent away on a Rick Ankiel flyer, after costing the Drivers dearly to get him. David Wells spent three years here, and then was left unsigned. Same with Tim Wakefield. Offensively, there hasn't been much since Cal Ripken (1994-98), and the draft has to share in some of that blame. Recently though, picks of Jose Reyes, Jake Peavy, Aubrey Huff, and Victor Martinez showed promise, then they were turned into the present team of Hafner, Miguel Cabrera, and Rich Harden.

However, the pitching started to struggle, and Seoul sacrificed their offense to build perhaps the league's best staff. It wasn't cheap. Sizemore went for Kazmir, and Miguel Cabrera went for Roy Halladay. Chipper going for Freddy Garcia wasn't as successful. Depending on what kind of offense the Fighters can rustle up, this could be a good team either short or long term.

2006

Once again, under .500 at the All-Star break, the Fighters got hot in the second half and got all the way to the World Series. Seoul went 48-25 over the last 2 1/2 months and passed Kissimmee and Bocomo handily for the playoff spot. Superb seasons by Travis Hafner, Jorge Posada, and Miguel Cabrera made Chipper Jones and Grady Sizemore expendable, especially as Seoul needed to fix the pitching staff. The Fighters got Freddy Garcia for Jones, who won 13 games taking a solid turn in the rotation. For Sizemore, Scott Kazmir came over, and he contributed 6 wins in a half season. In the playoffs, Seoul held a 8-1 lead in the 8th inning in a clinching game 6 when the bullpen imploded allowing the Sandlappers 9 runs by the top of the 11th. But Melky Cabrera hit a clutch 3RHR to win it for Seoul. Behind 3 games to 2 in the Conference Finals, Seoul swamped Scottsdale pitching to reach the Series and the Washington Grays. The Grays had swept their first two series, and won the first 2 Series games to run it to 10 straight. The Fighters squeaked back with 2 one run victories, and had Danny Haren no-hitting the Grays in game 5. However, Beltran hit a 2RHR in the 9th, and a Seoul comeback in game six fell one run short.

2005

The Fighters underperformed much of the year, and it was a late run that got them into the playoffs. The team was 35-38 just before the All-Star break when they went on a 13-3 run. That brought them into contention, but another lax period meant they were four games out of a playoff spot in early August. An 8-2 run ensued, putting them in the driver's seat for the last playoff spot, as contenders Jamaica and Cincinnati faded away. Rookie of the Year Jonny Gomes had a splendid 2/3 season at .340/.411/.665, while Travis Hafner and Miguel Cabrera were the mainstays of the offense. Chipper Jones and Grady Sizemore also turned in solid seasons for an offense which score nearly 900 runs. The pitching, though, was more pedestrian. Roy Oswalt had a good second half to emerge as the leader in wins with 15, but Brett Tomko and Jamie Moyer were littering the back end of the rotation. The Fighters offense carried them through the playoffs into the World Series, where Hafner and Jones combined for 10 homers. But the pitching couldn't stop the Longfellows, and Seoul succumbed in 6 games.

2004

It was the first .500 record in the franchise's history - - and just barely - - but it resulted in a division title. And it was surprisingly easy. Seoul was only as much as 10 games over .500 for about two weeks in total, but the combined number of days the entire division was over .500 was about five weeks. Rosehaven made a run at Seoul in June but fell back, but was 6 out in late September. A three game sweep at Rosehaven would have made things interesting, but Seoul won the middle game in 14 innings on a bases loaded HBP. A five game lead with six to play was too much, and Seoul went to the playoffs. Despite facing Kiev's Randy Johnson and Johan Santana, the Fighters took the series home with a 3-2 lead, but fell flat in the final two games. The offense was always strong, scoring over 900 runs, but the staff ERA was 5.21. Matt Wise, a middle reliever, posted an 11-1, 2.07 mark. Rich Harden won 14 games, but that was just about it. Offensively, the seasons turned in by Travis Hafner and Miguel Cabrera were top notch.

2003

Even by this franchise's awful history, the 53 win season has to be viewed as a disappointment. A rebuilding project that had started in 2002 with a flurry of activity, petered out into a record worse than the previous year. Somehow, Chipper Jones wound up here, and posted the first .400 OB% for a regular in franchise history. The other regulars, Casey, Beltre, and Burrell, all have better years ahead. The pitching was bad, though Jon Garland managed an 11-7 record. The rest of the staff was a disappointing 25-59.

2002

Seoul was never a factor, as it was a rebuilding year from Day 1. That said, it was puzzling why they never turned Jeremy Giambi (1.104 O+S, 30 HRs, +400 plate appearances) into a future consideration. Aubrey Huff, Troy Percival, and Octavio Dotel were all moved on, some more profitably than others. What was left behind was predictably a mess. Michael Young and Brent Abernathy were the keystone combo, and that was a highlight. Joe Kennedy and Steve Trachsel anchored the rotation and performed passably. Aside from the fact that the Fighters started off 13-12, they weren’t really a factor, and sank quickly in the first half of the season.