Long-time member stepping down
Nov 24, 2018 20:59:07 GMT -5
Post by Ben (Rays GM) on Nov 24, 2018 20:59:07 GMT -5
I'll make a vacancy post for the team sometime soon, but I first wanted to make a separate post here acknowledging a long-time (founding) member of the league who is, sadly, stepping down.
Alex has been a member of Pro-GM from the beginning, and before that was a member of The Trading Game, a league I ran that was in some ways a Pro-GM predecessor (similar concept in that we'd all represent a real life big-league club and start with that team's roster, but the big difference was that every offseason we'd pick brand new teams and start fresh; it was a one-year league instead of a dynasty format). When I started Pro-GM, I knew right away that Alex was somebody who I wanted to invite to join. I'm very grateful that he accepted that invitation and that we were able to play fantasy baseball together for almost a decade.
As the GM of the Giants (his real-life favorite team) here in Pro-GM Alex has been without a doubt one of the most successful GMs in the league's history. True, the Giants have been undergoing a rebuild of late (during which they've certainly amassed some excellent talent for the future), but let's not forget how absolutely dominant the team was during the league's first five years. After a second place finish in our first year in 2011, they proceeded to make the playoffs four years in a row, winning the division three times, from 2012-2015. In 2015 the Giants finished the regular season with the only undefeated record in Pro-GM history, going 18-0-4. Alex's 33 game regular season undefeated streak spanning three seasons from 2014-2016 is also a league record. He lost the World Series to Brian that year in his only appearance, but 2015 was a season for the ages in San Francisco. It wasn't until 2016 that the Giants finally lost their 20th all-time game, and from 2011-2015 their 14 total losses were the fewest of any team in the league (against 84 wins).
Alex won his 100th game in 2018, finishing with an overall Pro-GM record of 100-60-13. Moreover, the recent rebuild has set the team up for future success - whoever inherits this team will have a lot of excellent talent to work with. Clearly Alex is a GM who knows how to recognize talent and how to lead a team to success...
...which brings me to the most exciting part of this announcement. I don't want to say too much here - I'll let Alex decide how much he wants to share - but hopefully I'm not overstepping by revealing a little bit about the reason for Alex's departure: it seems Alex's strength with statistics and ability to analyze players and identify talent has been recognized by the big leagues, and he will now be stepping into a more, um, official role. But unfortunately, it seems MLB jobs often include clauses that prevent employees from engaging in fantasy baseball activities, due to the potential for bias. Like I said, I'll leave it at that and let Alex share the details, if he wishes. While I'm sad we'll be losing Alex, I'm absolutely thrilled for him that he will get to do what so many of us can only dream of: taking his skills professional.
Please join me in wishing Alex the best in the next phase of his baseball journey. As far as I know this is the first time a Pro-GM member has stepped into an official role in Major League Baseball, and it's a pretty impressive feat. May his success here in Pro-GM translate to even greater triumphs in the real world of baseball!
Alex has been a member of Pro-GM from the beginning, and before that was a member of The Trading Game, a league I ran that was in some ways a Pro-GM predecessor (similar concept in that we'd all represent a real life big-league club and start with that team's roster, but the big difference was that every offseason we'd pick brand new teams and start fresh; it was a one-year league instead of a dynasty format). When I started Pro-GM, I knew right away that Alex was somebody who I wanted to invite to join. I'm very grateful that he accepted that invitation and that we were able to play fantasy baseball together for almost a decade.
As the GM of the Giants (his real-life favorite team) here in Pro-GM Alex has been without a doubt one of the most successful GMs in the league's history. True, the Giants have been undergoing a rebuild of late (during which they've certainly amassed some excellent talent for the future), but let's not forget how absolutely dominant the team was during the league's first five years. After a second place finish in our first year in 2011, they proceeded to make the playoffs four years in a row, winning the division three times, from 2012-2015. In 2015 the Giants finished the regular season with the only undefeated record in Pro-GM history, going 18-0-4. Alex's 33 game regular season undefeated streak spanning three seasons from 2014-2016 is also a league record. He lost the World Series to Brian that year in his only appearance, but 2015 was a season for the ages in San Francisco. It wasn't until 2016 that the Giants finally lost their 20th all-time game, and from 2011-2015 their 14 total losses were the fewest of any team in the league (against 84 wins).
Alex won his 100th game in 2018, finishing with an overall Pro-GM record of 100-60-13. Moreover, the recent rebuild has set the team up for future success - whoever inherits this team will have a lot of excellent talent to work with. Clearly Alex is a GM who knows how to recognize talent and how to lead a team to success...
...which brings me to the most exciting part of this announcement. I don't want to say too much here - I'll let Alex decide how much he wants to share - but hopefully I'm not overstepping by revealing a little bit about the reason for Alex's departure: it seems Alex's strength with statistics and ability to analyze players and identify talent has been recognized by the big leagues, and he will now be stepping into a more, um, official role. But unfortunately, it seems MLB jobs often include clauses that prevent employees from engaging in fantasy baseball activities, due to the potential for bias. Like I said, I'll leave it at that and let Alex share the details, if he wishes. While I'm sad we'll be losing Alex, I'm absolutely thrilled for him that he will get to do what so many of us can only dream of: taking his skills professional.
Please join me in wishing Alex the best in the next phase of his baseball journey. As far as I know this is the first time a Pro-GM member has stepped into an official role in Major League Baseball, and it's a pretty impressive feat. May his success here in Pro-GM translate to even greater triumphs in the real world of baseball!
