Welcome to THE FLY-BY-NIGHT BASEBALL ASSOCIATION web site!

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CHECK OUT OUR LEAGUE LOGO

Thanks to Vic Handel we have a new league Logo! Check it out above. The logo features dice that show 2 and 6 which is tribute to the first ever game in the FBN which was played on 2/26/74. The gold borders signify our 50th golden anniversary. Of course we have the "Established 1974" featured along with bats, balls, and gloves to show that we feature all aspects of baseball. Good job Vic!

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WEEKLY VIDEO

Our weekly feature, Baseball Videos! These are from YouTube or other sources and may have advertisements in them but they are usually worth it. Each week or so we will feature a different video. YouTube or other similar websites are the host for these video's and I assume the videos are not copyright protected if they are on the YouTube website. If a video is taken down it is done by YouTube. Enjoy!!

 

2-2-25 Everyone looks on in awe when a massive home run is really scorced. We also love when a home run is hit in a really big spot, the hitter coming through when it really counts. This weeks video features the biggest home runs of the 2024 season. Some nice light viewing as you prepare for the draft. I hope you enjoy "These balls were ANNIHILATED! The BIGGEST HOME RUNS of the 2024 season!".

 

Click here to play this weeks video clip...

If you would like to replay an old video check out the Video Archive on the left side of the website.

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LEAGUE NOTES:

FBN DRAFT

The 2025 draft is set for Sunday February 23 at 10 AM eastern. Back by popular demand is the draft day count down clock. Here's how much time you have to do all your analysis and planning.

 

Draft Order

Attached is a file with the final draft order for the 2025 FBN draft. It shows the original owner of the pick and the current owner of each pick. There will be 234 guys drafted this year. That puts us at pick 18 of the 10th round. Once a team has finished his draft the remaining spots have been moved up to fill up the blanks. I will be posting a fill in the blanks type of form with the draft order in the next few days.

Click here for the 2025 final draft order in pdf format... updated as of 1/31/2025.

Click here for the 2025 final draft order in Microsoft Excel format... updated as of 1/31/2025.

Click here for the fill in the blanks 2025 draft form in pdf format... original as of 2/1/2025.

Click here for the fill in the blanks 2025 draft form in Microsoft Excel format... original as of 2/1/2025.

Draft Available List -1/31/25

Attached is final (hopefully) draft available list for the 2025 FBN Draft. The list is the offical list based on the FBN protected rosters and the SOM card ratings. There are 421 players on the list. Since Strat will be issuing 72 more cards than the last few years the available player list is longer than usual. I have presented the list as a PDF file and also as an excel spreadsheet. The list is also at the end of the rosters as free agent players and uses the same numbers. The list also have the Lammana draft ratings so we use it to determine picks for guys who use Lammanas for emergency draft instructiona. Good luck with your draft prep.

Click here for the 2025 Official Draft Available List in pdf format as of 1/31/2025...

Click here for the 2025 Official Draft Available List in Microsoft Excel format as of 1/31/2025...

 

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TEAM NOTES:

DEVIL DOODLES - 9-27

Connecticut completed its 38th season in the FBN with a 106-56 record - tied for the 2nd most wins in franchise history behind the 116 wins in 1995. The Blue Devils also won 106 games in 1992 and 1993. This will be the teams' 20th playoff appearance and 33rd season with a winning record. After taking over 1st place in the NL from the Klubbers at the beginning of May, Connecticut held the top position for the remainder of the season.

Freddie Freeman was clearly the team MVP batting .335 with 110 runs, 62 Doubles, 31 HR's and 130 RBI while making just 3 errors in the field. Also had a 1.001 OPS. His biggest competition for League MVP would be Ronald Acuna of the Jarheads.

Other Notable offensive performances:
-Thairo Estrada batted .330 with 30 doubles, 18 HR's, 76 runs and 14 Stolen bases
-Bobby Witt Jr led the team with 37 HR's along with 116 RBI, 104 Runs and 30 SB's
-Corey Seager was solid at .287 with 29 doubles, 31 HR's and 101 RBI
-Brandon Drury in just 290 AB's hit 22 HR's with 66 RBI
-Gary Sanchez hit 16 HR's with 34 RBI in just 171 AB's

The pitching staff was excellent all season long finishing with a Team ERA of 3.56 which was the lowest since 1993.

Top Pitching performances:
- Evan Phillips established himself as the Closer with 41 saves in 60 games 2.15 ERA
- Jon Gray led the team with 15 wins but was somewhat fortunate with a 4.29 ERA
- Clayton Kershaw performed as expected going 12-6 3.33 ERA
- Merrill Kelly got the least run support as he had a 3.49 ERA but only a 14-12 record
- Aaron Civale (11-5 3.57) and Zach Eflin (13-10 3.82) rounded out the rotation

The Blue Devils will now rest up and get ready to face the winner of the NL Wild Card Series between Zanti and Norwich. The Blue Devils went 6-6 vs Zanti and 8-4 vs Norwich during the regular season. However, Connecticut didn't have Gerrit Cole when facing those teams so we'll see if Cole can make a difference. Cole went 3-1 2.34 in his 5 starts in the last block.

GOOD LUCK TO ALL PLAYOFF TEAMS - HAVE FUN!

 

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DEVIL DOODLES - 9-14

Connecticut broke the 100 win mark in a recent series vs. the Powderkegs moving their record to 101-49 with 12 games left to play. This is the first time the Blue Devils have won 100 games since winning 102 in 2004. Overall, this is the franchises' 7th time with over 100 wins. The team won't catch the highest win total of 116 in franchise history back in 1995 but should become the 2nd winningest team in their history needing to surpass 106 wins for 2nd place.

Some potential team records that could be broken:
Saves - team record: 55 - currently have 52
Shutouts - team record: 17 - currently have 16
Hits allowed - team record: 1,215 - currently at 1,145 with 12 games left
Least Errors made - team record: 55 - currently at 52

One potential individual record that could be broken:
Saves - Darren Holmes 43 in 1994 - currently Evan Phillips with 39

For the playoffs, the Blue Devils acquired Gerrit Cole to be their ace. So far, Cole has made 2 starts winning both allowing 2 runs in 14 innings with 12 K's. The playoff rotation behind Cole will be a difficult decision as 4 starters have ERA's under 3.72 and another starter Jon Gray 4.07 leads the team with 15 wins. There will certainly be a couple disappointed pitchers come the playoffs.

 

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US JARHEAD SCUTTLEBUTT - 9-9

BROKEN RECORD
Ronald Acuna has set a new Jarhead record for hits in a season. His 4 hit game vs The Blue Devils pushed him to 229 hits, surpassing Travis Fryman's 2001 mark of 228. Acuna's BA is .365 with 8 games remaining as he chases Fryman's USJ BA record of .361.

AGAIN I ASK, HOW DID HE DO IT?
MLB 2-4, 5.82 Card.
Strat = LH 41 OB - RH 34 OB

Ryan Feltner, recently re-signed as a temp player, was put right into the starting rotation by Manager Jeff Kent. His first start was on the road at Burlington. Unbelievably, Feltner fired a CG 1 hit Shutout. He walked 4 and struck out 10 batters. The only hit was a clean single by Polanco in the 3rd inning. Feltner faced a tough jam in the 7th. A walk, error and walk loaded the bases with 0 outs. But he bore down and fanned Castellanos. Then got Marsh on a soft liner and then fanned PHer Velasquez to get out of trouble. Feltner finished strong striking out 5 of the last 7 batters. Feltner joins Jordan Lyles 5-17, 6.56 and Patrick Corbin 3-16, 5.85 as the only Jarheads with CG Shutouts in 2024. Amazing!

SHRAPNEL:
Jeff McNeil had 7 straight hits in a recent series vs the Chiefs. He singled in his last AB in game 1, went 4-4 in game 2, and began game 3 with a HR and a single before striking out to end the streak. In game 4 McNeil struck again with a HR. His next plate appearance he was drilled in the ribs and had to leave the game.

 

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Older team articles can be found in the Team Article Archive on the left side menu.

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2024 INSIDE THE FLY BY NIGHT
Written by Ed Griffin
March 2024

Here are my 2024 projections

Done in record time this year! I'm not retired yet but my new job does not require much effort so I've been working on my projections. Looks like lots of teams on the playoff bubble so good luck refuting my predictions. I'm looking forward to another fun season!

 

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Projected Finish
1) Connecticut
2) Burlington
3) Taxachusetts
4) Hazardville
5) US Jarheads
6) Norwich
7) Zante
8) Allyn Street
9) Wall Street
10) FoggyMountain
11) Illinois
12) Klee's

It looks to be another very competitive season in the NL during 2024.

I do think that CT and BB are the two best teams. But after that it gets very challenging to determine who is likely to make the playoffs. The Blue Devils have an excellent rotation and one of the best closers in Phillips. Freeman and Seager lead a very solid offense. Just a solid team top to bottom. The Bucs are right there. Not the big names, but a very good lineup. Also, they probably have the league's best rotation. Good pen as well. Should be a real battle for the NL regular season crown. I'm going with Taxachusetts, Hazardville and US next. I put Norwich and Zante on the bubble. I see Allyn Street, Wall Street, FoggyMountain, Illinois and Klee's on the outside looking in. In this season of challenging pitching, I figure the Chiefs and Jarheads will slug their way into the playoffs. The Kegs are also a bit light on the pitching, but a fairly well balanced team. Wall Street is interesting as they have one of the NL's better starting rotations. However, a 3e25 at SS and crappy offense are not good things. Big question ... will the Klubbers get out of the basement?

....click here to see projected team details for the National League

 

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Projected Finish
1) Blue Grass
2) Bissel Cove
3) California
4) Yorktown
5) Lake Wobegon
6) Urpaign
7) Hotlanta
8) Louisville
9) Grayson
10) Belmont Street
11) Arsenal
12) Atlanta

The AL looks a little easier to vet out than the NL.

Appears that Blue Grass, Bissel Cove, California and Yorktown are solid playoff teams. The Blues are heavily in and have a solid all around team. The Blue Fish are loaded for the future and will still win 100 games this year ... same as it ever was. The Dreamers do not look like they are all in, but still a solid team, while the Admirals have been arming up. The ultimate outcome will likely depend on what moves the contenders make in-season. I think the 5th spot will be between the Whippets and the Dragons. Both flawed but decent teams. Hotlanta and Louisville are both just mediocre teams that would need some serious upgrades to make a playoff push. It appears that Grayson, Belmont Street, Arsenal and Atlanta will be 1-4 in the draft next season ... which will inflate the rest of the AL team records. I think the clear favorite to be #1 in the draft will be Atlanta ... that would be four times in six seasons! Yikes ... hopefully the suffering pays off soon.

....click here to see projected team details for the American League

 

Good luck to everyone.

Ed

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