Circuit Clouts: Recent Episodes
Timothy Smith
The lads are back for more prognostication! Which team is most likely to crack into the top 3 that has been locked up by LA-STL-CHI for three years? And who are the picks for Rookie of the Year, MVP, and World Series champion?
Peter, Sean, and the Commish take a gander at the nine clubs of the East Division. Which team is poised to make a dramatic comeback? Which was a one-hit wonder that may struggle to return to the playoffs?
Sean, Lance, and the Commish revisit the history of the Founder's Cup and discuss the format of this year's return of the midseason tournament. Froggy Hands lives!
Can Havana crack into the top three? Is St. Louis the most vulnerable to drop from the playoff zone or the best of the West? Join Sean, Charlie, Glen and the Commish to find out. Plus: Charlie leaves early to sell his TV.
UL Beat Reporter and Detroit Griffins GM Sean Holloway joins Charlie, Glen, and the Commish to review the prospects of the East Division's nine clubs. Can anyone break the reining triumvirate of P-Bears, Mons, and Bas?
Friends from the Upper Midwest—Eric, Mark, and Andy—discuss the Minnesota-Wisconsin rivalry, similar-yet-divergent career paths, and how Fernie Valenzuela nearly landed in D.C.
We welcome Lance Mueller and Charlie Qualls back to the show to discuss the biggest busts in UL history—from real-life legends grossly underperforming to players who produced nothing. See if you favorite busters make the list!
The lads discuss Lance Mueller's impact on each of their lives, sexual favors, and the merits of up-the-middle defense, in no particular order. Ridiculous.
Special guest Sean Holloway, Detroit Griffins GM and UL Beat Reporter, joins Peter, Glen, and the Commish as they run through 1991 East Division. Will the P-Bears repeat? Or is there a new power rising in the East?
Does Stuff matter more? Which players will fall in the shower? And which teams will compete for the final playoff spot behind L.A. and St. Louis? These questions and more are under consideration in Part 2 of the 1990 season preview!
Do the Polar Bears have any weaknesses? Will Saberhagen finally get 20 wins? What does Charlie think about the Tomlin trade? Join us as the fellas address these burning questions and many others in the 1990 UL East Division preview!
The lads discuss what it takes to develop players in the minors, which roster has the key ingredients for a bench-clearing brawl, and Rob Deer—all while making a series of prognostications on the 1989 UL season.
On the 20th anniversary of the UL's founding, the fellas discuss the outlook for its 38th season. Includes references to Jim "Dream" Weaver, Jack Kevorkian, and how regular season dominance can set you up for a postseason flop.
Pete, Glen, and special guest Charlie Qualls assess the outlook for all 16 teams and give their picks for league champion, rookie of the year, and the ever-popular worst cleanup hitter in the league.
The gents have a fireside chat with veteran GM Jeff Tonole of San Francisco and discuss his early baseball influences, trading style (or lack thereof), and the unexpected success of the 1985 Spiders.
Glen and the Commish sit down with special guest Doug Aiton, Seattle Rainiers GM, to discuss the upcoming 1986 season. Which team won the draft? Who are the rookie of the year favorites? What new teams will be in the mix come September? What is Doug's nighttime beverage of choice?
The Commish sits down with World Series GMs Peter Vays and Glen Reed to dissect the upcoming rookie class, and tackle such hard-hitting questions as: Is this the best rookie crop ever? Is defense passé? Are relievers becoming more important? Is Barry Larkin better than Luis Aguayo?
In a super-sized double-decker season preview edition, the guys count down the league's 16 teams. Will Detroit three-peat? Will Washington catch St. Louis in the Gulf Division? And will Montreal overtake the Sox in the Atlantic and book a playoff return three years after their World Series triumph? Prefer two parts: pause it halfway and finish it later!
The lads finish the countdown of the upper echelon, discuss the merits of guys named Dick, talk about the millions tied up in long-term deals, and make their picks for the first six-team playoff.
Glen, Lance, and the Commish look at the bottom half of the expanded field heading into the 1984 season. Which teams have moved up, which have regressed, and which are building toward a brighter future? Includes insights on current ratings, but also financial situation and farm systems of each team.
Toronto's Eric Clemons and Havana's Lance Mueller sit down with Glen Reed and the Commish to discuss their strategy through the expansion draft, free agency, and the loaded 1984 rookie draft, including that time when Dr. C left his patients in the waiting room so he could assess trade offers for Dwight Gooden.
Manhattan GM Eric Holthaus, LA GM Peter Vays join Glen and the Commish to share basic finance tips. Topics include the salary cap, maximizing revenue, player valuation, and contracts.
With six games left in the 1983 season, three founding GMs—Lance, Charlie, and Glen—talk about their photo finish in the quest for wildcard berths. And Lance makes us all a virtual snack.
Vays, Reed, and Smith debate who will land between the wide goalposts of Los Angeles and San Francisco. Topics include the end of an era in the Bay, Chicago's unColt-like pitching, the Maroon rebuild, Chet the Jet, and—last but not least—what Glen thinks of Atlanta.
L.A.'s Peter Vays joins the Commish and "ratings meister" Glen Reed to break down the 1983 East Division race. Learn which leadoff hitter is an automatic out, which pitcher simply doesn't win, and why Cleveland will finish 2nd—or 6th.
Voyageurs boss and architect Jo Lima discusses how his "average Joes" hoisted the UL crown in 1982. Along the way, he shares thoughts on wargaming, Scottish football, and Warren Cromartie—but not architecture.
Chicago Colts GM Lance Mueller joins his nemesis, ex-Brooklyn Superbas GM Glen Reed, to recount four long years of misery, misfortune, and S-turds. Along the way, the gents touch on dudes named Dick, silver linings, and share thoughts about dynasties, parity, and realignment.
For four years in the early '60s, the same two teams met in the UL World Series. Every year, Brooklyn beat Chicago four games to one. The era witnessed two of the most dominant teams in UL history—one was more dominant than the other. Mantle, Banks, Burdette, Adcock, Conley, Mossi, Hamner, and yes, the S-turd. This is their story, in what confused pundits are calling part one of a four-part trilogy.
Interview with the reigning East Division champion GM and Casey Award winner for fake baseball journalism, Sean Holloway. Learn how Holloway built a UL powerhouse, and how he comes up with all those articles and songs for Clouts.
Special guest Seattle GM Eric Clemons explains how to turn around a franchise in just 17 short seasons. Includes insights on the C-Rob trade, the rise of prospect John Shelby, and his secret approach to staying on top of all seven teams in his division.
The fab four continue their ramblings about the upcoming United League season, focusing on the top six teams. Who will be #1? And who is the worst cleanup hitter in the league?
The gents welcome special guest and World Series-winning GM Peter Vays into the studio to prognosticate about the '82 season. Part 1 takes a look at the bottom half of the league, including insights about Wade Boggs, Scott Sanderson, and Phil Collins.
The gents plus special guest & basement dweller Peter Vays "Escape" to the UL recording studios to discuss the upcoming 1980 season. They kick around their thoughts on the new unbalanced schedule and playoff system, talk about trades, draft picks, and off-season maneuvers that got their attention and touch on all 14 teams before finally revealing each of their predictions for the top two finishers in the East and West. Could there be some shockers in store for us??
The gents talk about Hall of Fame standards and benchmarks, and different approaches to assessing the Hall-worthiness of various candidates, then discuss the merits (and demerits) of a handful of current Beachville hopefuls.
The guys sit down with Peter Vays, longtime GM of the Los Angeles Outlaws, and get his take on what brought him to the UL, his trade philosophy, and thoughts on sustaining long-term success.
The lads make like Village People and "go west". Will Chicago repeat as division champs or will Los Angeles grab its third flag in five years? Who will lead the rest of the pack: SF, SEA, DEN? Have St. Louis and Atlanta done enough to emerge from the cellar? Plus, who won the draft?
The boys take a look at the East Division and give their prognostications. Who will win the battle for supremacy between Boston and Manhattan? Is Brooklyn really playoff caliber?
Plus, who won FA? A look at the offseason free agent signings.
Part 2 of 2 of our survey of the 25 and younger talent in the league. This time Charlie, Glen, and Lance put their extensive UL acumen to work looking at the youth of the top 7 teams (according to the BNN/OOTP Top Prospects rankings).
In part 1 of a two-part look at the U25 talent on all 14 teams, the guys take at look at the bottom half of the league—based on BNN Top Prospects rankings—including insights from Glen on appreciable draft pick value that is a callback to episode 10.
Glen, Lance, and Charlie take a look back at recent drafts to find some "clues" about how the 1979 draft might unfold. Plus thoughts, theories, and pontificating on this year's draft class and the boys give us their predictions on who the top 5 picks might be.
Lance, Glen, and the Commissioner look back at great moments from past UL World Series, offer their picks for best World Series ever, best World Series moments, and look ahead to the 1978 Fall Classic between Manhattan and Boston.
Lance, Glen, and Charlie recap the action-packed '78 campaign and offer some playoff pontifications.
The guys count down their picks for West Division and East Division finishers, including analysis of offseason moves.
The guys discuss the 1977 All-Star selections and review the first half of the season. Plus special guest Eric Holtlaus, GM of the red-hot Manhattan Gray Sox, discusses his trade strategy.
The guys talk about the origins of the United League and recap the 1951 Inaugural Draft, which cast the mold for several franchises. Who was the first pick? Who won the inaugural draft? And who was Walker Cooper anyway? Plus, news and notes, including a conversation about the big Big Daddy trade with a very special guest.
The gang looks at the wild and wooly West Division. Will the San Francisco Spiders defend their division crown? Will the West finally get a wildcard team in the playoffs? And who will win the highly coveted Willie Mays Award, and what is that anyway...?
The fellas make their predictions for the order of finish in an East Division that produced three playoff teams, including both World Series teams, last year. Plus, post-draft analysis: what were the biggest swoops in each round?
The gents discuss a deep metaphysical question: what is the purpose of a fake baseball team? Is it to win the most regular season games or to win the World Series? How does the pursuit of these two seemingly similar goals differ and what does UL history tell us about the pathways to success?
In a roughly-hewn test episode, the Commish, Lance, and Glen discuss the 1977 draft pool, including top 5 lists and sleeper picks!