Let’s take a look.
The Overall Picture
The table below shows what everyone has known: for a couple years, the UMEBA prospect pool has been pretty huge. That jump of 55 prospects from 2043 to 2044 is large enough, after all, but made even more so by the fact that the league contracted at that point. So adding another 210 to the mix … well …
Year | 80 | 75 | 70 | 65 | 60 | 55 | 50 | 45 | 40 | Tot |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2042 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 22 | 33 | 97 |
2043 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 11 | 17 | 29 | 60 | 88 | 219 |
2044 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 20 | 47 | 80 | 115 | 274 |
2045 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 15 | 34 | 100 | 137 | 182 | 484 |
So the hard fact of the matter right now is that the UMEBA is probably a hard place for a kid baseball player to get a job unless he can convince some scout someplace to rate him at 45 or above.
Regardless, here’s the breakout by division and team.
Overall
A look at the scatter plot says you’ve got five teams kind of all the same, then Jerusalem (#3 overall) and Bucharest (#1) flying high, and Beirut in play on average, but down at the top end. With a smaller population, I’d guess this isn’t unusual
A Look Through the Divisions
Bancroft – While it’s probably arguable that Jerusalem’s system is better, Bucharest stands at the top of the Bancroft division. A big part of the gap between the teams, however, is likely Jim Cox’s big dollop of cash he threw at undrafted free agents. Eighty of the team’s 108 prospects are rated 40 and 45. Looking at prospects rated in the upper ranges, things get quite a bit more tight, with the Impalers still likely holding an edge due to their two 80s.
Mumbai takes second on the basis of their slight edge on the others in the 45-50 range, but you could probably squint a little and say all three are in roughly similar shapes.
Burt As noted earlier, this system gives Jerusalem the call when it comes to top end. Of their 65 prospects, 23 are rated 50 or better. Of interest is that, despite its low rating at the top end, Beirut may well have a nearly equal collection of farm hands when it comes down to it. Their 23 players rated 50 or 55 is tied with Bucharest for league best. And, given the prospect bloat the league has seen, even the bottom end of the table in Baghdad and Tripoli seem to be stocked with a plethora of guys.
Add it up, and it could mean some interesting seasons to come.