Wrigley Field, Chicago - It finally happend, a World Series was won in Chicago... Unfortanetly for the home team it was not the Cubs.   The Kansas City Royals beat the Cubs in 6 games in tough series.   The series was tied 2-2 after 4 games but the final 2 games were blowouts respectively.   We want to thank everyone for being patient as our playoffs were a little longer than normal, but we didn't feel right not letting the champ defend his crown.

The draft is scheduled jsut after Saturday 9 pm EST.   You will have until then to resign your players.   Please be aware this is your final chance to sign your players until they hit the open market.   

Free agency will happen directly after the draft, and we will have one new rule for FA: For 75 and above OVR players you can only go 1 yr above what they are requesting when offering deals.   We will be monitoring this and any player signed to a longer deal will be released.   We will have a list and will check after FA.   

FA Schedule

Round 1 until Sunday 4 pm EST

Round 2 until Sunday 6 pm EST

Round 3 until Sunday 6:20 EST

Round 4 until Sunday 6:40 EST

Round 5 until Sunday 7 EST

Season 3 Starts Sunday 7 EST

We are hoping to start the regular season by Sunday, we will keep you updated on advance times soon.

The A.L. All Stars were announced yesterday, you can find them right here.   Below are the N.L.  All Stars for Season 2:

Starters:

C; Posey, SF

1B: Rizzo, CHC

2B: Moncado, CHC

SS: Reyes, CHC

3B: Seager, PHI

OF: Stanton, MIA

OF: Morse, PHI

OF: Trout, COL

DH: Davis, SF

SP:Bumgarner, SF

Reserves:
Young Jr. ATL

O'Brien, MIA

Gallo, MIA

Ozuna, MIA

DeGrom, NYM

Jackson, PHI

Johnson, PHI

Billingsley, PHI

Sale, WAS

Lester, CHC

Arrietta, CHC

Simon, CHC

Cruz, MIL

Leake, CIN

Alvarez, PIT

Heyward, STL

Trahan, ARZ

Goldschmidt, ARZ

Longoria, ARZ

 Blair, ARZ

Corbin, ARZ

Blackmon, COL

Lincecum, COL

Gray, COL

Kemp, LA

Grandal, LA

Kershaw, LA

Grienke, LA

Cashner, SD

Crawford, SF

Smarjda, SF

Bailey, SF

The A.L. All Stars for season 2 have been announced. Below are the A.L. Stars:

Starters:

C: Mesoraco, MIN

1B: Cabrera, DET

2B: Dozier, MIN

SS: Tulowitzki, LAA

3B: Harrison, DET

OF: Gordon, KC

OF: Martin, TEX

OF:Dickerson, LAA

DH: Trumbo, TB

SP: Hernandez,SEA

Reserves:

Wieters, BAL

Ellsbury, BOS

Headley, NYY

Moore, TB

Harper, TOR

Brown, CHW

McAllister, CLE

Gose, DET

Tanaka, DET

Cueto, DET

Nolasco, DET

Russell, KC

Hosmer, KC

Iwakuma, KC

Archer, KC

Ventura, KC

Perez, KC

Castillo, MIN

Calhoun, MIN

Tehera, MIN

Ramirez, MIN

Altuve, HOU

Encarnacion, LAA

Hamilton, LAA

Butler, OAK

Edwards, OAK

Parker, OAK

Seager, SEA

Braun, SEA

Gordon, TEX

We are introducing a new aspect of our USDA MLB league and it comes with the help of MLB The Show.   Every week MLB the Show releases a new Challenge where it's batter vs hitter.   These challenges are great to improve your hitting/pitching without playing an actual game.   Every week we will start a forum on this site and will have a USDA leaderboard to see who wins the week.  Some weeks will have gifts/prizes.  We will try and be creative with our gifts/prizes every week.  If you have any ideas for some reasonable gifts please let us know.   

In order to access this challenge just go to mini games and select challenge of the week.  Also, MLB has prizes for winning the challenge throughout the whole game.  You can see your score here too http://theshownation.com/challenges/9

It will be up to the users to post their score.  Also, its recommended to take a pic or screen shot of the high score for proof you actually did that.  Feel free to discuss the challenges in the groupme chat.  

Please post scores/pics in the forum here.

Let us know if you have any questions.

1) Kansas City Royals: The defending champ just got better with the addition of Jose Reyes. The Royals offense will be a powerhouse once again. Look for this team to stay around the top seeds throughout the year.

2) San Francisco Giants: The Giants are the defending NL champs and are looking for revenge. They were on fire throughout the playoffs but ran into the Royals in the World Series. The SP has lost some depth but gained another ace in Smarjda.

3) Minnesota Twins: The Twins have a bunch of young players who are starting to mature into real life players. The roster isn't the best but the future is looking good and Houss will always hit HR's.

4) Chicago Cubs: The Cubs ran into the hot Giants in the playoffs and have faced several career ending injuries. They had to retool their roster a little but they will still rely on the prospects to develop.

5) Detroit Tigers: The Tigers have retooled their roster with the addition of Tanaka and Carpenter. They decided to part ways with last yr's Cy Young winner to save money. We will see if they will regret that decision this year.

6) New York Yankees: The Yankees will always be a threat in the league with a solid owner in Cho. Hopefully he can get in enough games to compete in October. This team is a team no one wants to face.

7) Colorado Rockies: The Rockies GM hasn't been able to get out of the 1st rd the past couple seasons. Some say it's starting to affect him in a negative way. Mike Trout has been placed on the trading block. Sources are saying he is looking to field more of a team than rely on one player.

8) Arizona Diamondbacks: The Diamonbacks were the most active team this past season. They were one of the teams that has improved the most since the beginning of the franchise. The Diamonbacks rely heavily on Goldschmidt, can he keep the team on his back?

9) Philadelphia Phillies: The Philllies were another active team but has been hit big by the career ending injury when star Carlos Gonzalez retired unexpectedly. The Phillies had to retool their roster and missed out on a lot of free agents.

10) Boston Red Sox: The Red Sox round out the top 10 and decided to welcome back Jonathan Papelbon in one of the most expensive deals in the history of USDA. The Red Sox have a nice lineup that is filled with both veterans and prospects. The Red Sox struggle to put together hits and rely on winning low scoring 1 run games.

11) Oakland Athletics: The Oakland A's are a team not many people are talking about but will surprise you on the field. They don't have many star players but put out a decent lineup 1-9. Look for the A's to make the playoff push as long as their connection allows him to.

12) Los Angeles Angels: The Angels are another surprising team who have made a big improvements since the start of the franchise. The Angels have put together the league's best lineup when they traded away Mike Trout. Now it's time for the Angels to start over and look towards a real playoff push.

13) Cincinnati Reds: The Reds were a team that made a late playoff charge under new ownership mid-season. The Reds lost one of their best pitchers in Homer Bailey this offseason. They hope Matt Garza can replace him and hit the fountain of youth. Look for the reds to be near the top of the standings throughout the season.

14) Pittsburgh Pirates: The Pirates were a surprising when all was said and done. We aren't sure how the Pirates got to 30+ games last season but they managed to do it. The Pirates traded for David Price this offseason and are looking to him for a Cy Young candidate.

15) Toronto Blue Jays: The Toronto Blue Jays had a busy offseason when they acquired the best SP on the market in Homer Bailey. They also made some changes in the offseason when they traded star SS Jose Reyes to the Kansas City Royals Bailey has already gotten rocked in this BlueJay debut. Has the money already changed his motivation in the game?

16) San Diego Padres: The San Diego Padres are a team that was the least active team last year. They have already made some moves that has Owner Fla excited. We are hoping these moves increase his interest in the league as he was always a tough out.

17) Los Angeles Dodgers: The Los Angeles Dodgers are a team that is loaded with star power but can’t seem to hit for power. They really struggled last year and are hoping the addition of Matt Kemp energizes the offense. The Dodgers have a nice pitching staff headlined by star SP Clayton Kershaw. If they can get some better run support they should be able to compete for a playoff spot.

18) Baltimore Orioles: The Baltimore Orioles are a newer team in which many people may not know enough about. The new Orioles owner became very active and we looking forward to seeing what he does with a full season. The Orioles lineup is solid and if they struggle will have some decent trade partners down the line.

19) Cleveland Indians: The city of Cleveland is hoping these are the Indians of Major League as they struggled last year. With a couple better bounces this team could fight for a playoff spot. The lineup is solid 1-9 with no real stars but a lot of high contact guys. Indians star SP Kluber is capable if shutting down any lineup.

20) Tampa Bay Rays: The Rays are also a newer owner but had some success late last season. This ranking is more of a "don't know much about him" ranking thank anything. It's probably a little lower than he would expect but also provides fuel to prove us wrong. Look for the Rays to try and improve their lineup throughout the season.

21) Milwaukee Brewers: The Milwaukee Brewers are a team that really struggled to find their identity last season. They traded away a lot of the best players and I'm not sure they made the right decisions. This team needs to get better patience at the plate. It will be interesting to see if this team can improve or revert to swinging at everything. The Brewers will be a team to keep an eye on.

22) New York Mets: The Mets are also a team that is probably surprised to find themselves this low. After doing this list I might tend to agree with him. Anyway the Mets real problem is trying to find runs to support their excellent arms. They haven't been busy in the trade markets and need to find a way to get better bats without losing their young pitching. It will decision time for this franchise when to make the move for a big bat or two.

23) St. Louis Cardinals: The Cardinals are the team every MLB teams want to be like, however in USDA that isn't the case. The Cardinals struggled in every aspect of the game last season. The Cardinals roster has some very good pieces who are now a year older. If the Cardinals can take every at bat like it's the bottom of the 9th they may have a chance this year. If not, look for the fans to turn their back on this once proud franchise.

24) Texas Rangers: The Texas Rangers are a team that is a sleeper this season. Not many people are talking about them but they can make some noise with that offense. Yu Darvish is a top of the line starter but problem is he is all they have. I wouldn't be surprised if the Rangers are battling for a playoff spot come next month.

25) Miami Marlins: The Miami Marlins are another team who have improved tremendously throughout the season. They have made several nice moves last season which should set up nicely this season. I am not sure how the Marlins will view their roster. The addition of Joey Gallo was a huge addition and we are looking forward to seeing his power numbers throughout the season.

26) Seattle Mariners: The Seattle Mariners have quietly made some nice moves. A lineup of Cano, Abreu, Seager, Braun is as tough of a 2-5 batters in the league. They improved a lot last year but we aren't sold if it was because of a weird camera angle. MLB took away the camera angle and the skeptics are out on the Mariners hitting.

27) Washington Nationals: The Nationals are loaded top to bottom. They have the league top pitching staff hands down. The problem is the offense has struggled to hit consistently enough to score without a HR. Sale, Strasburg, Scherzer are arguable the top 3 pitchers in the game and they are all on the Nationals roster.

28) Chicago White Sox: The White Sox had made questionable moves last season and made another one this year when they traded away Jeff Smarjda. The Sox are a new owner who struggled last year to get in the win column. The Sox GM certainly isn't helping their cause. The Sox lineup is bad, the Sox rotation is bad. It's time for the Sox to answer the critics and shut everyone up.

29) Atlanta Braves: The Atlanta Braves are a team who struggled all year and haven’t made enough moves to improve. They will continue to struggle and we are hoping they had some practice in the offseason. The team doesn't have any stars and lacks much motivation to get better. Maybe this lower ranking will provide bulletin material.

30) Houston Astros: The Houston Astros are a team who really struggled last year. This was a case of the record not telling the full story as we felt the skill was better than the record. The problem is you can't ignore the struggles and the record. We are thinking the Astros will make some big improvements this season.

We are in luck and the league advanced to the offseason.   However, the timer did get stuck for a little bit so it puts a wrench in our 8:00 draft plans.   The draft will be pushed back to Thursday morning 3:30 EST.   You are free the participate although the majority of the league will be sleeping.   Below is the off-season schedule we will follow in order to start the season at Friday 8pm EST:

Draft: Thursday 3:30 am EST

FA1: After draft to Thursday 9 EST pm

FA2: Thursday 9 EST - Friday 8 am EST

FA3: Friday 8 am EST - Friday Noon

FA4: Friday Noon to Friday 4 pm EST

FA5: Friday 4 pm EST - Friday 8 pm EST

We noticed the marjority of the free agents signed after the 1st advance so we wanted to make sure everyone got a chance to place some offers.  Please remember that you have until Thursday 3:30 am to resign your players.    

In a rematch of the 2014 World Series it was payback for the Royals as they swept the Giants in 4 games.  The Royals offense proved to be too much for the tired Giants starters as they constantly put pressure on the defense throughout the series.   The Royals ran thru the Phillies, Tigers and Giants.   It was an epic post season run and the Royals are now a team on the rise with thoughts of a dynasty in the making.   

This is AD's 1st MLB ring and he is now the sole owner of both Madden and MLB championships.   He is becoming quite the gamer and is to be feared in each game.  

League Note: We are currently trying to advance into the offseason phase.   Our 1st try will be to try and get everyone under 90 players.   We can do that on our own with switching teams and making the drop.  We will drop your lowest OVR player with C or D potential.   After we get everyone under 90 we will try to advance.  If that doesn't work we will try to schedule the draft this afternoon and sim it.   If that doesn't work we have a backup plan.   

We appreciate your patience during this time and hope to get to season 2 ASAP.   

-USDA

2015 USDA A.L. All Stars

Yesterday we announced the N.L. All Stars, today we announce the A.L. All Stars.   Just a reminder that we will be doing a HR derby Saturday night.   Not sure what time yet, more info to come on that.   Also, season 1 will be ending this Wednesday May 13^th 8 pm EST.   Here are the A.L. All Stars:

Starters:

C: McCann, NYY

1B:Hosmer, KC

2B: Dozier, MIN

SS: Tolowitzki, LAA

3B: Harrison, DET

OF: Jones, BAL

OF:Hamilton, LAA

OF:Harper, TOR

DH: Cabrera, DET

SP: Price, DET

Reserves:

Napoli, BOS

Headley, NYY

Pineda, NYY

Cole, NYY

Moore, TB

Odorozzi, TB

Hutchinson, TOR

Desmond, CHW

Santana, CLE

Simon, DET

Moustakis, KC

Cain, KC

Archer, KC

Gordon, KC

Mesoraco, MIN

Minor, MIN

Ramirez, MIN

Morneau, HOU

Dickerson, LAA

Shoemaker, LAA

Vogt, OAK

Gentry, SEA

Moreland, TEX
 

2015 USDA N.L. All Stars

We are just about to wrap up our opening season in a week.     It’s about time to announce the USDA all stars.  Just a reminder that the season will advance to the playoffs May 13^th at 8pm EST.   It is important to keep playing in order to secure your spot for next season and also to progress your prospects.  The only way they will continue to grow is to play games.   Below are the 2015 USDA National League All-Stars:

Starters:

C: Posey, SF

1B: Rizzo, CHC

2B: Walker, PIT

SS: Aybar, COL

3B: Bryant CHC

OF: Pence, SF

OF: Hamilton, CIN

OF: Gonzalez, PHI

DH: Goldschmidt, ARZ

SP: Tanaka, PIT

Reserves:

Wood, ATL

Saltamalchia, MIA

Montero, NYM

Nolasco, PHI

Strasburg, WAS

Lester, CHC

Arrietta, CHC

Rondon, CHC

Owens, CIN

Lind, MIL

Marte, PIT

Peralta, STL

Wainwright, STL

Obrien, ARZ

Collimeter, ARZ

Lyles, COL

Lee, COL

Gray, COL

Jansen, LAD

Upton, SD

Cashner, SD

Cain, SF

Lincecum, SF

Wanted to give a heads up for all league dates for our innagural season.   We have had some turnover but it is all in order  to make sure USDA provides the best MLB lg out there.   There are not many leagues that have matched our activity and it shows from our games played.    Here are some dates to keep in mind for this season.

• Trade deadline - Sunday night, May 3rd  Midnight EST (all trades need to be accepted in game by that date, we will not be taking any verbal deals.   You can use the website to accept or send.
• HR Derby - Saturday night time TBD May 9th
• Playoffs - will start Friday May 13th 8pm EST.   We will be going by total wins, any team that tie will go by H2H record.   If that is still tied we will be going by least amount of games played(took lesser tries to get the same ammount of wins.)
• Hopefully start season 2 by May 20th.   We will provide all details for offseason.   Be on the lookout for offseason tutorial.

Also,   the best way to progress your players is to continue playing even if you think you are out of the playoffs.   The players get better each game so, the more you play the better they will become.   Also, don't forget to do some scouting as we may actually do a live draft rather than simming.

Thanks again for making USDA what it is. 

The Chicago Bears opened the season at home vs. the Cincinnatti Bengals.   The Bengals tough defense would be a tough test to see if last years' offensive success was a fluke.   Matt Forte simply dominated the Bengals with big plays throughout the game.    He ended up scoring all 3 TD's including a long 74 YD screen pass.    Matt Forte credited his offensive line with creating big holes "All my sucess starts with the front 5 as they gave me chances to hit the home run every play."   

The new and improved Bears defense also proved they are capable of winning a game by themselves as they created 4 interceptions on Bengals QB Andy Dalton.    The Bears run defense also held the Bengals HB's to a total of 9 yards.   It was a much improved defensive effort.   1st rd rookie pick Bradley Roby was credited with 6 tackles and 1 INT in his professional debut.   

Bears QB Jay Cutler was not able to finish the game but he should be available for the week 2 game vs. the Minnesota Vikings.  

The Washington Redskins just handed quarterback Robert Griffin III an essential ingredient in his bid to become the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year in 2014.

Free-Agent Tracker

Follow all the developments on the NFL's open market with our up-to-the-minute tracking of 2014's free agents. More...

After hosting DeSean Jackson for two days, the Redskinssigned the free-agent wide receiver to a four-year, 32 million deal, NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reports, via sources involved in the negotiations. The contract is essentially for three years; it automatically voids if Jackson is still on the roster in 2016. The team officially announced the signingWednesday.

Jackson will make $16 million over the next two seasons, and that money is fully guaranteed. The Redskins will get to choose in 2016 whether they want to keep him around for another year at $8 million. While it's a pay cut from what Jackson was making in Philadelphia, it's not a huge one. Jackson is getting paid just below top No. 1 receiver money, which is appropriate for his talent.

Teams often pay a premium for the opportunity to keep a player in the building -- and away from other teams in pursuit. In this case, it was the 49ers making a late push, per Rapoport.

The Raiders and Bills had been in the hunt since Jackson's release Friday, though neither was willing to enter a bidding war once Daniel Snyder's deep pockets got involved.

DeSean Jackson through the years Take a look at the best shots of DeSean Jackson.

Entering free agency, the Philadelphia Eaglesappeared to have a stranglehold on the NFC East.Chip Kelly's aerial attack just lost its No. 1 wide receiver to a divisional rival with a suddenly stacked offense.

In dangerous deep-threat Jackson, NFL receptions leader Pierre Garcon, newly signed slot receiverAndre Roberts and a highly athletic mismatch inJordan Reed at tight end, Griffin's weapons are now on par with any NFC quarterback's.

All four players can get deep and make tacklers miss after the catch, two qualities that will be highlighted by Griffin's ability to extend plays and find receivers down the field.

Throw in a backfield bulldozer of Alfred Morris' caliber, and the Redskins have the potential to leap from 23rd in scoring offense all the way to the top five.

If Jay Gruden's club can hit on a couple of impact defensive players early in the 2014 NFL Draft, they will be nipping at the Eagles' heels in a stronger NFC East.

Absolutely, Jared Allen said.

And he’s absolutely right.

“Absolutely, I think the Bears are closer to winning a Super Bowl than people think,’’ Allen said, and yeah, it’s true because of Allen.

Because free-agent defensive ends Lamarr Houston and Willie Young won’t have to be Allen.

Because Shea McClellin won’t have to be whatever that was.

Because the Bears have a big-boy pass rusher.

When the Bears introduced Allen at Halas Hall on Monday, the Bears introduced an actual pass rush.

No, wait, they introduced the most important part of a big-boy defense.

Allen is a pure pass rusher. A Hall of Fame pass rusher. He has recorded double-digits sacks in each of the last seven years and nearly set the single-season mark. He makes everything better because he makes everybody else better.

The defensive linemen the Bears signed before Allen? The ones who had fewer sacks than the inert Julius Peppers and the disastrous McClellin?

Allen makes them better by allowing the coaches to put them in a position to succeed.

Houston and Young aren’t Allen. But they would’ve been asked to be that kind of guy. It would have been a different kind of awful for a Bears defense that defined awful last season.

Allen changes that. Allen makes the Bears defense look smart and good the way it did when Peppers actually wanted to play every game.

Hearing the excitement in Allen’s voice as he talked about the Bears' defense made me want the season to start. Now. Let’s go.

Allen talked up every good player -- stay seated, Chris Conte -- and recounted how vexed he felt as a Viking.

Charles Tillman is just going to punch balls loose, Allen said. Tim Jennings is just going to pick off passes. That’s the way it was and that’s the way it will continue to be, judging by Allen’s energized speech pattern that rivals his motor.

Houston and Young drew a scouting report from Allen. Houston is unfairly unknown because he played in Oakland and the Raiders stink, while Young is a long guy with a lot of upside.

Tell you what, Phil Emery ought to let Allen be his speechwriter at these things. Allen made the predictable positive comments sound sincere.

Jay Ratliff came in for special treatment. Allen raved about playing on a line with a defensive tackle as accomplished as Ratliff, even if he accomplished little as a Bear.

Another thing: Allen didn’t just pump up his new teammates, but the pass rusher with double-digit sacks the last seven seasons made it clear he knows how the scheme has to work.

“I come from a long line of people thinking you have to earn the right to rush the passer,’’ Allen said, and again, he was so infectiously positive that I forgot momentarily that the Bears' run defense was historically bad.

Allen was so effusive about playing for the Bears that one of the first things he raved about was the offense.

“I’ve played against this offense enough to know it’s potent and deadly,’’ Allen said.

The Bears still need help on the defense. Linebackers. Safeties. Cornerbacks. But Allen will deodorize a lot of it.

In fact, he might even make defensive coordinator Mel Tucker look like he can coach, even as Allen turns 32 on Thursday, prompting questions about the number of snaps he can take.

“You know how you bring the number of snaps down?’’ Allen asked. “Get off the field.’’

What a good idea for last season. Make sure you tell that to Tucker. His unit struggled with that concept. If that happens again -- wait, no, it can’t happen again.

Emery took a series of expensive steps to ensure that it won’t happen again. He started up front and kept pounding on the defensive line that every opponent pounded on last year.

Allen was the final piece and the biggest name. That’s how it works with stars, right?

And now everybody should be slotted properly on the defensive line. The Pro Bowl defensive end made it so and made Super Bowl thoughts legitimate.

Which is why the Bears’ next big announcement ought to be they’re selling concert T-shirts for the “Mel Tucker’s Out of Excuses Tour.’’