Year III Season Preview: Cleveland Spiders

On July 28, 2026

In 2002 Season Previews, Team News

State of the Franchise

The Spiders are the best team in the league that nobody’s quite sure how to describe. 2 straight playoff trips, 2 Octobers that ended a round or 2 early — 86 wins and a quick exit in 2000, then 89-73 and a genuine run in 2001, a Wild Card series won over the increasingly hated Black Yankees before the Sea Lions swept them out of the AL Championship. No fatal flaw, no dominant edge. What Cleveland owns instead is optionality: a dozen paths to a win, room to absorb a bet that breaks wrong, and a roster deep enough that no single injury sinks the year (a thesis proven by the absence of controversial star Tris Speaker for all but 40 games of 2000).

The problem is that the same depth cuts the other way. Almost nobody on this roster is fully reliable, fully trusted. So, Do we believe in this guy? is a question Cleveland re-asks on every regular, every March. There is a cliché nature to some of it as well: like so many others, the Spiders are starved for pitching — either an ace to depend on or enough depth to not care. But Cleveland keeps making deals where they move around offensive players, not really addressing the clear bar between them and the elite teams.

Still, a perennial playoff team is nothing to sneeze at, and the talent is here to put it all together. Even if nobody is quite sure exactly how.

2001 Revisited

We spent last spring worried about one position: who plays third base? It was a question of pure scarcity — nobody had stepped up. It was answered very loudly by Evan Longoria: 36 homers, 96 RBI, a Silver Slugger, an AL All-Star nod, and superlative glovework to boot.

Our other big fear was Ron Blomberg collapsing. He most certainly did not collapse, but the cracks deepened. Overall, you cannot complain about his season — 276/348/640 with 54 homers and 143 RBI. But his platoon splits are getting more troubling. Against RHP he was fantastic as ever (321/403/771); against LHP he hit 206/251/432, essentially the same as 2000, but his walks plummeted and his strikeouts took off. Around him the up-years arrived in force: Tris Speaker recovered from injury to slash 312/397/631, Lance Berkman launched 57 homers with a 1.002 OPS in his first full season with the Spiders, Larry Doby hit 41 while seizing claim to the fulltime job in right, and Ed Bailey posted a .920 OPS at C, at 36 to boot.

Still, it ended up par for the course: the arms were fine, but no more than that, and the team couldn’t cross the final hurdle. It’s not a bad place to be — most teams would be envious of the Spiders’ track record. But it’s also not a championship.

Key Changes

In: Aroldis Chapman (NYY)
Out: Joe Sewell (NYY); Joe Smith (FA)

Opening Day Rookies: Jim H Manning; Chaz Roe

Best Case for 2002

Someone anchors the staff, with the most likely candidate being Bob Feller, who went 13-3 with a 4.30 ERA in 17 starts as a 21-year-old. And some still think Cy Young will be more than an innings eater. If 1 of those happens, Cleveland will do well, and if by some miracle both happen, perhaps that will get them over the hill.

The key players bounce back (Louis Santop‘s bat returns to his glove, Chuck Knoblauch looks like himself again), and the strong 2001 performances hold — Speaker, Berkman, Longoria, Doby, Arky Vaughan, Bailey. Finally, the Spiders shelled out some value for newly acquired Aroldis Chapman to solidify the bullpen. He has to deliver.

All of that comes together, and there could be celebrations by the lake come Fall.

Worst Case for 2002

It all breaks the other way, everything altogether all at once. Knoblauch’s 2001 wasn’t a dip but the start of a decline; Santop’s bat stays gone; Willie McCovey‘s 34-year-old legs give out, making his compelling late-career debut merely a mirage; Bailey acts his age; Blomberg collapses against more than just LHP; Berkman slides; and Speaker either gets hurt or just pisses everybody off too much. Feller’s elbow breaks, the rotation is again good-not-great, and in a division stacked with the Black Yankees, Tigers, Orioles, and a suddenly-well-armed Memphis, the Spiders plummet in the standings.

Key Questions

Does Feller become the ace — and if he doesn’t, will Cleveland finally buy one? Watching Memphis wheel and deal for not 1 but 2 front line starters has to sting a bit, and raise the question of whether Cleveland’s unwillingness to do the same is warranted conviction about their internal talent or front-office timidity when it comes to betting on pitching.
Bounce or decline — which is which? Cleveland’s core competency is reading talent on a roster where almost every regular swings 2-plus WAR a year in one direction or the other. It’s a tricky see-saw, and making the wrong call has repercussions. That’s part of what makes Knoblauch (a real sub-replacement collapse in 2001, discipline intact but the power gone) and Santop (a Gold Glove-caliber 21-year-old whose bat cratered) so important: if they fail, not only are there no clear replacements, but it means the org may be fundamentally misguided in how it judges the swings.
What does this lineup do against left-handed pitching? Cleveland bats left-handed almost top to bottom — Speaker, Blomberg, Doby, Bates, and McCovey all swing from the left side, into a park built for left-handed power — which is a wonderful thing to be against right-handers and a real potential weakness against lefties. John Ellis, Longoria, and Knoblauch are the right-handed bats of consequence, with Ken Keltner behind them (Berkman and Sammy Strang switch-hit, so they step out of the tilt entirely). It’s an accident of construction more than a plan, and it hasn’t bit the team so far, but it is something to watch.

Roster Evaluation

Tier = the player’s 2001 positional grade (S best → F worst; color coded S A B C D F). Bold names carry a substantive WBL track; italic names are pure projection — a hope, not a grade — with no qualifying track to anchor them.

Pos	Players
C	Bailey A · Santop F · Ellis F
1B	Berkman A · Blomberg A · McCovey
2B	Knoblauch D · Strang
SS	Vaughan A · Manning
3B	Longoria A · Strang
LF	Bates C
CF	Speaker S · Doby B
RF	Doby B · Berkman A
DH	McCovey · Blomberg A
SP	Steen C · Young D · Feller D · Malone · Harder
RP	Adams C (CL) · Reed C · Chapman F · Gearrin C · Roe

Speaker, the best player in the org at 24, is also its most difficult presence — the kind of star a proud city hasn’t decided how to love, a target of adoration while the club wins, but if the losses start to pile up, how long will his attitude towards his teammates be tolerated? At the other end of the scale sits McCovey — the 34-year-old who turned up and mashed a 1.107 OPS, a lovable late-bloomer a fanbase can wrap its arms around unreservedly.

Talent Ratings

	WBL	Minors
Raw Power	CF Tris Speaker	3B Bob Elliott
Batting Eye	2B Sammy Strang	3B Bob Elliott
Contact	CF Tris Speaker	2B Steve Sax; CF Kenny Lofton
Running Speed	SS Jim H Manning	LF Pat Friel
Base Stealing	2B Sammy Strang; LF Johnny Bates	SS Bill Dahlen; CF Kenny Lofton
IF Defense	3B Evan Longoria	2B Sean Rodriguez
OF Defense	CF Tris Speaker	RF Alexis Rios
Stuff	RP Aroldis Chapman	SP Balor Moore
Control	SP Chuck Porter	RP Edward Mujica
Velocity	RP Chaz Roe	RP Sergio Romo; RP Andrew Bailey

Best In The Minors

Rank	Age	Pos	Name
1 (63)	24	RF	Craig Wilson
2 (75)	23	CF	Luis Olmo
3 (96)	23	CF	Randy Winn

Others: IF Todd Helton, IF Johnny Hodapp, IF Aubrey Huff, P José Lima, P Balor Moore.

Three ranked prospects, all outfielders, none inside the top 60 — a system a year ago we called one of the worst in the league is, well, still pretty barren. Longoria, Berkman, Vaughan, and Bailey all arrived by spending prospects, and the thin system is what’s left over.

Last year’s top names have turned over completely — Joe Sewell, No. 4 a year ago, was shipped to New York this spring for Chapman. There is some hope in Helton, Hodapp, and Huff, but the position concentration is an issue. Balor Moore is the one arm worth watching — 101 innings of 3.56 ball with 86 strikeouts at Penn Yan, then a 12-inning cameo at Rochester he came through unscored upon.

Kenny Lofton, the org’s Minor League Player of the Year, is a WBL talent stuck at Triple-A.

Superlatives

	Most	Least
Age	Ed Bailey, 36	Abraham Almonte, 17
Height	Ron Reed, 6’6″	Ned Cuthbert, 5’6″
OPS	Tris Speaker, 1.028	Matt Carpenter, .458 (A)
HR	Lance Berkman, 57	Steve Sax, 1 (AA)
SB	Kenny Lofton, 85 (AAA)	–
WAR (bat)	Tris Speaker, 6.7	Louis Santop, −1.5
W	Cy Young, 15	–
SV	Terry Adams, 23	–
ERA	Balor Moore, 3.18 (A)	Yordano Ventura, 5.98
WAR (pit)	Bill Steen, 4.9	Howard Ehmke, −0.0 (A)

Stats across all levels, 2001 season. 200 PA / 75 IP minimum. Non-WBL levels tagged in parentheses.

Year III Season Preview: Brooklyn Royal Giants

By mknn

On July 27, 2026

In 2002 Season Previews, Team News

State of the Franchise

Brooklyn won the whole thing, in a year where nobody saw them coming. But they’re Brooklyn — nobody ever does. The Royal Giants were a surprise division winner and a bigger surprise in October, running through the bracket and then handling the heavily favored San Francisco Sea Lions in the Whirled Series. From a .500 team in 2000 to a 99-63 champion.

And then … they spent the winter trading 2 of the key pieces of the championship run.

Brooklyn is New York’s third team, forever looked down on by the Yankees and the Gothams, and its edge seems to be first, to feel no sentiment, and, second, to care for the clubhouse. A ring didn’t change that. Within months of the parade the champions dealt Don Drysdale and John Briggs, the former for pouting when he was passed over to start the opening game of the Whirled Series and the latter because the Royal Giants believe they could get more value in return.

Brooklyn is convinced their offense will survive the passing of the home-run-friendly era, with Ron Cey at third, Jackie Robinson and Roy White as the heart and soul of the club, Mike Piazza behind the plate, and Smokey Joe Williams and Orel Hershiser at the front of the rotation.

The job now isn’t to defend a title. It’s to turn a surprise into a dynasty.

2001 Revisited

Our preview a year ago called this roster very middle of the road, penciled in a modest playoff hunt, and hung the whole thing on 2 names: Drysdale, the supposed lone dependable starter, and Briggs, the outfielder we swore would keep setting the world on fire.

Not wrong. Also not the story.

Cey slugged 47 homers with a 291/381/656 line and took the club MVP. Piazza finally arrived, mashing 48. Dan Brouthers settled first base with a .950 OPS. And the arms the org supposedly couldn’t trust carried it: Hershiser went 19-5, a converted Fernando Valenzuela 14-5, and Eric Gagné slammed the door 39 times. Williams was the best of them and had the least to show for it — a 7-WAR performance stuck with a 12-13 record.

Then the champions got to work dismantling the edges of their own title team. Drysdale — who threw a public fit about ceding the top of the rotation spot to Hershiser — went to Memphis with Red Ruffing (signed as a FA the previous week) in a package essentially for Mookie Betts, giving Brooklyn the marquee OF they had always lacked. Briggs, exactly the doubted-kid-makes-good story this fanbase adores, followed him to Memphis a few weeks later, bringing back a first-round pick and a pair of prospects.

Key Changes

In: Mookie Betts (MEM); Billy Bryan (MEM); Joe Smith (FA)
Out: John Briggs (MEM); Don Drysdale (MEM)

Opening Day Rookies: Ralph Branca; Nap Rucker; Joe Smith

Best Case for 2002

The core doesn’t regress and the luck evens out. Cey, Piazza, Robinson, and Brouthers are all in their primes. Williams gets the record his WAR deserves, Hershiser is Hershiser, and Gagné closes. Behind the top 2, one of the other arms holds up well enough to carry them into October again. And, if someone does go down, the best farm system in baseball — it isn’t close — starts feeding the big club: for example, Ed Delahanty or Al Simmons arriving to turn the outfield into an embarrassment of riches. All of that, and Brooklyn goes back-to-back, and the surprise becomes a dynasty.

Worst Case for 2002

The pitching falls short. Behind Williams and Hershiser, Valenzuela regresses, Dick Redding fails to develop, and the rest turn out to be merely average at best. The bullpen — excellent in 2001 — collapses, leaving no reliable bridge to Gagné. Pedro Guerrero keeps flailing, and the lineup that looked fearsome in a juiced year looks ordinary in a normal one. All of that, and the champion drifts back toward the .500 club it was in 2000, relegated to be a curious footnote of WBL history.

Oh yeah, and Drysdale wins the Brock Rutherford Award in the AL.

Key Questions

Can the rotation hold? Yeah, Brooklyn had excess pitching. But trading Drysdale is a massive bet on … well, who exactly? Valenzuela? Redding? Ralph Branca? Nap Rucker? You can’t say you would prefer any of them over Drysdale without giggling. The answer may be young lefty Sandy Koufax, but he’s likely a bullpen arm this season as he works on building up the endurance to handle a starter’s load.
Can a champion still be the underdog? What happens when Brooklyn wins, again? It sort of breaks reality, yes?
How much of Duke Snider is real? Center field is now his with Briggs’ departure. Snider led the club with 51 homers — and was worth 0.2 WAR doing it, a .259 average and a .295 on-base underneath the power. Brooklyn traded the productive outfielder in Briggs and kept the other one in center, betting his ceiling was higher. It’s not clear.
Where does the Whirled Series MVP play? Lost in Piazza’s October is the man who won the round that mattered most: Ray Dandridge, a 22-year-old infielder who caught fire in the Series and has no position to call his own. Cey owns third, Robinson owns second, and Vern Stephens sparkled since being brought in at SS. Dandridge takes his reps everywhere, but at some point will force some hard questions.

Roster Evaluation

Pos	Players
C	Piazza A · Bryan
1B	Brouthers B
2B	Robinson A
SS	Stephens D
3B	Cey S
LF	White C
CF	Snider C
RF	Betts C
DH	Becker C · Guerrero F
SP	Williams A · Hershiser B · Valenzuela A · Redding · Leonard · Dreifort
RP	Gagné S (CL) · Forster A · Koufax C · Knauss D · Hildenberger B (IL)

A core of genuine stars — Cey, Piazza, Robinson, Williams, Valenzuela — deep enough to win a title and young enough to win several.

The bullpen is where the grid hides something. Gagné is an S-tier closer and Terry Forster an A-tier setup man, but the bridge to them leans hard left, and Trevor Hildenberger — the one right-handed answer with a real track — opens the year on the IL. Until he’s back, it’s all lefties all the time for Brooklyn.

Talent Ratings

	WBL	Minors
Raw Power	C Mike Piazza	1B Justin Smoak; 1B Jim Gentile
Batting Eye	3B Ron Cey	1B Justin Smoak
Contact	1B Dan Brouthers	RF Matty Alou
Running Speed	RF Mookie Betts	SS Sonny Jackson
Base Stealing	RF Beals Becker; 1B Dan Brouthers	2B Davey Lopes; RF Chicken Wolf
IF Defense	2B Jackie Robinson	SS Tim Foli
OF Defense	RF Mookie Betts	RF Chicken Wolf
Stuff	RP Eric Gagné	SP Jim Bunning; SP Allen Russell
Control	SP Smokey Joe Williams	SP Jordan Zimmermann
Velocity	RP Eric Gagné	RP Steve Chitren

Best In The Minors

Rank	Age	Pos	Name
1 (1)	21	2B	Ed Delahanty
2 (13)	25	RF	Chicken Wolf
3 (17)	23	SP	Walker Buehler
4 (24)	22	SP	Jim Kaat
5 (25)	21	CF	Al Simmons
6 (34)	22	SP	Eustace Newton
7 (47)	23	RF	Don Mueller
8 (56)	25	SP	Dustin McGowan
9 (79)	26	RF	George Selkirk

Others: OF Brett Butler, OF Jay Johnstone, P Victor González, P Odalis Pérez.

The best farm system in baseball, and it isn’t close — 9 ranked names headed by Ed Delahanty, the No. 1 prospect in the sport, a 21-year-old second baseman with the small problem that Robinson already owns the position. He is taking reps in left field.

A year ago this list graduated Smokey Joe Williams and Valenzuela straight into a championship rotation, and produced Briggs at #5. What remains is an arms-and-outfielders wave — Al Simmons, Jim Kaat, Walker Buehler — pressing up from below.

Superlatives

	Most	Least
Age	Burleigh Grimes, 36	Odalis Pérez, 20
Height	Luke Farrell, 6’6″	Candy Jim Taylor, 5’5″
OPS	Jim Gentile, 1.053 (AAA)	Rollie Hemsley, 0.550 (A)
HR	Duke Snider, 51	Rollie Hemsley, 1 (A)
SB	Jackie Robinson, 53	–
WAR (bat)	Ron Cey, 5.0	Pedro Guerrero, -1.1
W	Orel Hershiser, 19	–
SV	Eric Gagné, 39	–
ERA	Art H Johnson, 3.20 (AA)	Jordan Zimmermann, 5.80 (AAA)
WAR (pit)	Smokey Joe Williams, 7.1	Dazzy Vance, -0.1 (A)

Stats across all levels, 2001 season. 200 PA / 75 IP minimum. Non-WBL levels tagged in parentheses.

Year III Season Preview: Birmingham Black Barons

By mknn

On July 26, 2026

In 2002 Season Previews, Team News

State of the Franchise

The Black Barons say they want to pick a direction and hold it. The transaction log says otherwise. Two games out in July and they buy; one bad month and they tear it down. So far, that’s only produced a mushy pile of dissatisfaction, and the fans are beginning to grumble.

2001 was worse than 2000: 5th in the Marvin Miller Division and seemingly exiled to the borders of the standings. Hence the line the front office has now drawn: Birmingham, they say, is aiming for a championship between 2003 and 2005.

Though, you know, if they’re 4 games out in August …

The pressing problem is simple: nobody here gets outs. Birmingham took a wild card in 2000 on the strength of its arms. Last year Greg Maddux and Alejandro Peña gave up 109 home runs between them. One-effing-hundred-and-nine. The lineup put 5 men over 40 homers and the team finished last.

2001 Revisited

A year ago the read on Birmingham was blunt: they were strong on the mound, couldn’t score, and held a roster that didn’t look like a strong playoff contender. So they fixed the offense — emphatically. They shipped their own ace, Andy Pettitte, to New York for Albert Belle (a deal Birmingham still tells itself it won, never mind that Pettitte became a Bronx ace), imported Paul Konerko and Ryan Braun (for the NL All-Star arm of Jim Whitney), then Bobby Grich, and turned the box score into a fireworks show. Hank Aaron hit 51 home runs, Belle 46, Eddie Mathews 46, Jim Pagliaroni 45, Curtis Granderson 41.

And they finished dead last, 75-87, 10 out. The power was a mirage in an exploding offensive year: Belle’s 46 came with negative WAR, Aaron’s 51 with 16 walks all season, Mathews’ 46 on a .224 average, Granderson’s 41 on .206. Nobody got on base, and solo home runs are … nice?

Underneath it, the pitching everyone had worried about collapsed — Peña’s ace season evaporated, Maddux gave up 59 home runs all by himself, and the bullpen was a struggle all season (excepting the pleasant surprise of closer Harley Young). The club’s own review said it plainest: they scored way too few runs, despite hitting the ball out of the park with shocking regularity.

Key Changes

In: Bill Byrd (BAL); Asdrúbal Cabrera (BAL)
Out: Curt Flood (BAL)

Opening Day Rookies: Asdrúbal Cabrera; Melky Cabrera; Tommy Davis; Slim Embrey; Ron Fairly; Dick Groat; Al Javery; Kerry Ligtenberg; Rube Melton; Joe Torre

Best Case for 2002

They hold still. Maddux fronts a rotation for a full year, Bill Byrd takes the ball every 5th day behind him, Lefty Gomez does the same behind Byrd, and the staff ERA comes down without anyone new arriving. Asdrúbal Cabrera‘s glove holds at short, stilling a long-standing revolving door. Granderson’s platoon with Melky Cabrera covers center well enough, and the young starters — Rube Melton, Al Javery, John Malarkey — get their turns. That isn’t a juggernaut: the goal is a year that ends with more pitching than it started with, and clarity about how the offense adapts to a less HR-rich environment.

Worst Case for 2002

The same movie runs again. One Cabrera can’t play short, the other Cabrera flops in CF, and the drop in homers across the league leaves the Black Barons a team that doesn’t get on base and doesn’t do anything else, either. Then, one hot week in August makes the team sniff the playoffs, and another knee-jerk deal is done that changes the overall direction again.

Or, simply, Maddux implodes.

Key Questions

Will Birmingham keep an arm? Pettitte is the loud example, but Whitney is really no different. All-Star arms, traded for perceived value, but leaving a vacuum behind that is always filled with slightly lesser arms (no knock on Lefty Gomez and John Malarkey, but nobody would say they prefer them to Pettitte and Whitney).
Is the power real? Aaron, Konerko, Belle, Braun, Pagliaroni: 5 right-handed bats of consequence. But the league has changed, and Rickwood Field is projected to dampen right-handed power. This is really 2 questions: does the power maintain and, if so, do they keep it or move it on?
Who plays shortstop? The softest spot on the roster, with no clean internal answer (not new — last year’s semi-platoon of Herman Long and Troy Tulowitzki wasn’t very good in the end). Can Cabrera seize the position? If not, is Dick Groat the answer? Or do Long or Tulo force their way back into the conversation — a likely sign of failure if it happens.

Roster Evaluation

Pos	Players
C	Pagliaroni A · Torre
1B	Konerko B · Fairly
2B	Grich B · A. Cabrera
SS	A. Cabrera · Long D · Groat
3B	Mathews B
LF	Braun B · Davis
CF	Granderson D · M. Cabrera
RF	Aaron B
DH	Belle C
SP	Maddux D · Byrd · Gomez D · Melton · Malarkey · Javery
RP	Young B (CL) · Otsuka B · Ligtenberg · Peña D · Embrey · Chen

Look at all that gold … the lineup could be quite good.

For all the ruthlessness in the market, Birmingham is stubbornly loyal inside its own clubhouse — veterans get ridden a beat past their expiration, and Bruce Chen, the 37-year-old lefty being handed soft, low-leverage innings rather than a cold release, is the gentlest version of it.

The 9th inning is its own question. Juan Rincón saved 26 games in 2000, then came apart in 2001 — an 8.47 ERA across 34 innings — and the job now belongs to Young, who answered with a 2.29 ERA and 15 saves on results rather than stuff. 2003 shouldn’t bank on him until the command proves it holds.

Talent Ratings

	WBL	Minors
Raw Power	3B Eddie Mathews	1B Nate Colbert
Batting Eye	2B Bobby Grich	2B Cupid Childs
Contact	LF Tommy Davis	2B Cupid Childs
Running Speed	SS Herman Long	3B Ricardo Hernández
Base Stealing	SS Herman Long	C Art Nichols; 2B Cupid Childs
IF Defense	SS Herman Long	3B Mike Benjamin; 2B Jess Barbour
OF Defense	RF Hank Aaron	CF Lenny Dykstra
Stuff	RP Kerry Ligtenberg	RP Jason Grilli
Control	SP Al Javery	RP Carlos Diaz
Velocity	RP Akinori Otsuka	RP Steve Cishek

Best In The Minors

Rank	Age	Pos	Name
1 (22)	22	CF	Lenny Dykstra
2 (28)	21	LF	Gary Matthews
3 (68)	21	2B	Jess Barbour
4 (97)	21	SP	Bill James

Others: IF Cupid Childs, IF Nate Colbert, IF Ozzie Albies, IF Richie Sexson, OF Ron Gant.

Graduated to the active roster since the ranked list: Joe Torre (14), Kerry Ligtenberg (58).

A year ago this list was headed by Whitney, the arm flipped to Miami for Braun, and Torre, who has since graduated into the backup-catcher job. The new man at the top, Lenny Dykstra, is himself a trade acquisition — part of the Konerko haul from Chicago. What’s left is thin but useful: Dykstra and Gary Matthews in the outfield, Jess Barbour‘s utility glove, and Bill James, clinging to the back of the top hundred. Note what isn’t there. James is the only arm in the system worth ranking (maybe Cozy Dolan, but …), and the 5 unranked names behind him — Cupid Childs, Nate Colbert, Ozzie Albies, Richie Sexson, Ron Gant — are 5 more bats.

Superlatives

	Most	Least
Age	Bruce Chen, 37	Frank Gilhooley, 18
Height	Richie Sexson, 6’8″	Kid Baldwin, 5’6″
OPS	Paul Konerko, .964	George McBride, .585 (AA)
HR	Nate Colbert, 57 (AAA)	Brock Davis, 1 (A)
SB	Cupid Childs, 37	–
WAR (bat)	Gary Matthews, 5.1 (A)	Pie Traynor, −1.0 (AAA)
W	John Malarkey, 11	–
SV	Harley Young, 17	–
ERA	Bill James, 3.69 (A)	Mike Leake, 6.77 (AAA)
WAR (pit)	Rube Melton, 3.3 (AAA)	Bill James, −0.9 (A)

Stats across all levels, 2001 season. 200 PA / 75 IP minimum. Non-WBL levels tagged in parentheses.

Year III Season Preview: Baltimore Black Sox

By mknn

On July 25, 2026

In 2002 Season Previews, Team News

{ The first of 20 team previews as we head into the new season! }

State of the Franchise

Two springs ago, very few saw Baltimore as a contender — and the Black Sox answered by running up the best record in the inaugural year of the WBL and winning the Whirled Series over Detroit in 7 games. Then came last year: 77-85, 4th in the Bill James Division, 13 games out and never really in contention. Through both the coronation and the collapse the org’s self-image hasn’t flinched — Baltimore believes they are merely unlucky. The assumption is that 2000 was real and 2001 was, well, not.

There’s a case, and it revolves around names you’ll be seeing for a decade: Frank Robinson is 22. Cal Ripken Jr is 23, Manny Machado 24, Bryce Harper 21. All but Ripken were part of the championship run.

2001 Revisited

We spent last spring at maximum confidence. “The best team in the league adds the best free agent,” we wrote of the Gavy Cravath signing — the biggest free-agent deal in WBL history — and declared that anything short of a second straight title would be a disappointment. To our modest credit, we named part of the way it could go wrong: the pitching reverts to mediocre, and Cravath and Dan McGann show their age.

The pitching, it reverted.

The arms were miserable — mostly because they were hurt. Ned Garvin, a Brock Rutherford Award contender before he went down, lost 10 months. Sean Marshall, unhittable in 2000, was out for close to a year. Justin Hampson came out of nowhere to make the AL All-Star team out of the bullpen and then went down for most of the second half. What was left included a game, but only slightly better than mediocre Dennis Martínez, and a revolving door for Jim Palmer, Mike Mussina, the since-departed Bill Byrd, and the since-acquired Gene Conley among others.

The offense did well enough: Robinson turned in another excellent season (308/394/674, a team-best 48 homers and 114 RBI). Cravath’s bat justified the checkbook — 44 homers, 111 RBI, Ripken emerged as a genuine middle-of-the-order masher at shortstop: 32 homers, a Silver Slugger, runner-up for Rookie of the Year, and Harper — the youngest of the bunch — chipped in with a quiet (!) 41-homer season. And the gloves showed up — Gold Gloves for Paul Blair in center and Miller Huggins at second (Huggins is especially impressive, as he wasn’t anointed the full time 2B until well into the season).

Bottom line: the bats and the leather were championship-grade; the pitching was a rumor.

Key Changes

In: Curt Flood (BBB)
Out: Bill Byrd (BBB); Asdrúbal Cabrera (BBB)

Opening Day Rookies: Curt Flood; Justin Hampson; Jeff Montgomery; Eddie Murray; Cliff Pennington; Emil Yde

Best Case for 2002

Health, mostly. Garvin comes back as the arm he was, one of Palmer or Martínez finally pitches to the level the advanced numbers indicate possible, and for once Baltimore fields something resembling a front of a rotation instead of a rehab ward. The young bats each take the half-step their ages promise; the Gold-Gloves up the middle keep turning balls in play into outs; and a club that was never really a 77-win team — just a team with a 77-win record — climbs back into the division race.

Worst Case for 2002

The curse holds.

The arms keep breaking, nobody announces themselves as an ace, either through performance or organizational choice, and both Cravath at 37 and McGann at 38 start acting their age. This last is a little less of a cliff — there is some talent behind them, but it has to step up (looking at you, Eddie Murray). 77 wins becomes 74, in the flattest, least-tradeable way possible.

Key Questions

Is there a No. 1 starter — and would they trust one if there were? Baltimore has ace-grade arms — Garvin, especially, but the org can’t bring itself to commit: Palmer’s plain ERAs get him doubted every year even as the context says he’s a real front-of-rotation starter, and the winter’s reclamation flier, Warren Spahn (acquired under the assumption the proverbial change of scenery will unlock his talent, despite him being thoroughly disastrous in every opportunity over 2 years) opens the year at Triple-A. Mussina? Also AAA. You can’t run a rotation on flavor-of-the-month forever.
Who covers the middle infield? Behind Ripken and Huggins there is Cliff Pennington and a prayer with Bobby Wallace being sent to Detroit at last season’s deadline. Baltimore has lost its 2 leading MI reserves — Asdrúbal Cabrera to Birmingham in trade and Brian Roberts to Miami via waivers. Ripken and Machado can cover each other, but it gets thin quick.
Does the aging value convert? Cravath and McGann are challenging: the worst case is they don’t perform and, therefore, cannot be traded for value at the All-Star break. Cravath’s contract may prohibit that, regardless, but in the best of all worlds, Baltimore is able to move them on midseason, escaping both their cost and their age.
What is center field, exactly? This is actually a mirror of the ace question. To analysts the answer is obvious: it’s Paul Blair, a two-time Gold Glover whose bat, while poor, isn’t horrific. But the Black Sox remain restless, with Earl Averill stashed at AAA and Curt Flood brought over from Birmingham.

Roster Evaluation

Pos	Players
C	Blefary B · Haller
1B	McGann C · Murray
2B	Huggins B
SS	Ripken Jr A · Pennington
3B	Machado C
LF	Robinson S
CF	Blair D · Flood
RF	Harper B · Singleton D
DH	Cravath B
SP	Martínez D · Palmer D · Garvin · Cuellar · Tudor
RP	Groom C (CL) · Olson D · Hampson · Montgomery · Marshall

A genuine S/A middle of the order in Robinson, Ripken, and Harper, a Gold-Glove spine down the center of the field, and some great supporting pieces. But the mound is clearly in need of significant improvement (health, of course, will help).

Behind the plate, Curt Blefary is under more pressure than it may appear — his glove is fading fast, but he stays behind the plate for his bat and through his reputation. Rumors are surfacing of him being spotted far too often in bars near the stadium after games — great for interacting with the fans, perhaps not so much for on-field performance.

Talent Ratings

	WBL	Minors
Raw Power	RF Gavy Cravath	RF Ron Northey
Batting Eye	LF Bryce Harper	3B Frank Ward
Contact	CF Curt Flood	CF Gene Clines
Running Speed	SP Ned Garvin	3B Frank Ward; RF Billy Lush
Base Stealing	SP Ned Garvin	LF Hub Collins; RF Jack McGeachey
IF Defense	SS Cal Ripken Jr	SS Mark Belanger
OF Defense	CF Paul Blair	RF Bill Jacobson
Stuff	RP Jeff Montgomery; RP Gregg Olson	RP Steve Kline
Control	RP Buddy Groom	SP Johnny Sain
Velocity	RP Gregg Olson	RP Rafael Betancourt; RP Frank Francisco

Best In The Minors

Rank	Age	Pos	Name
1 (18)	23	RF	Ron Northey
2 (35)	23	LF	Hub Collins

Others: IF Bruce Bochte, P Steve Avery, IF Gunnar Henderson, IF Willie Montañez, IF Jose Altuve, P Bill Drake.

Graduated to the active roster since the ranked list: Eddie Murray (72), Emil Yde (78), Curt Flood (100).

A very different list than a year ago — because the system did its job. Cal Ripken Jr was the org’s No. 3 prospect a year ago, and Murray, Yde, and Flood all broke camp with the big club. Last year’s No. 1, second baseman Chino Smith, was inexplicably released, ending up with Chicago. What’s left is frankly underwhelming: Ron Northey (AAA), a corner bat, and Hub Collins (AAA) brought over from Detroit. Ninth-best system in the league at last count, mostly for the unranked talent, led by Henderson, Altuve, and Drake.

Superlatives

	Most	Least
Age	Dan McGann, 38	Frank Ward, 17
Height	Gene Conley, 6’8″	Bobby Mathews, 5’5″
OPS	Frank Robinson, 1.068	George Gibson, 0.541 (A)
HR	Frank Robinson, 48	Frank Ward, 0 (AA)
SB	Frank Ward, 50 (AA)	–
WAR (bat)	Frank Robinson, 4.3	Bill Jacobson, -1.2
W	Gio González, 13 (AAA)	–
SV	Frank Francisco, 22 (AA)	–
ERA	Joe Cascarella, 3.52 (AA)	Gene Conley, 7.42
WAR (pit)	Mark Baldwin, 4.7 (AAA)	Johnny Sain, -0.2

Stats across all levels, 2001 season. 200 PA / 75 IP minimum. Non-WBL levels tagged in parentheses.

TWIWBL 97.2: The Spring Training Trades

By mknn

On July 18, 2026

In TWIWBL

With just over a week left in Spring Training, we get to see how panicked some teams are, and how much they want to shake things up before opening day.

Unsurprisingly, we start with the Black Yankees and their perennial win-now mentality.

#The Black Yankees Add MI

NYY sends RP Aroldis Chapman, IF Mark Grudzielanek, 2nd Round Pick to CLE for IF Joe Sewell, IF Bill Phillips.

This is more fallout from the Grant Johnson trade in some ways: Sewell will have every shot at displacing Derek Jeter at SS for New York, and the team looks set to juggle their middle infield between those two, Robby Thompson, and Rogers Hornsby.

For Cleveland, they took a blocked talent–Sewell was never displacing Arky Vaughan–and converted it into a great bullpen arm and a valuable pick.

#The Red Sox Have a Rotation

Unsatisfied with just adding Don Drysdale and Red Ruffing, Memphis went shopping on the West coast.

MEM sends IF Dobie Moore, OF Dwight Evans, P Mike Witt to LAA for P Tom Seaver, IF Xander Bogaerts, IF Andrelton Simmons, C Mark Salas.

Clearly, the spine of the deal is Seaver for Moore, but this one has a lot of repercussions: Memphis continues to weed out some of its OF talent, and takes a gamble on Seaver continuing to develop at the WBL level. SS for Memphis is now a scramble between the two new bodies, Adam Everett, and Bud Harrelson; while for Los Angeles, this settles at least half of their middle infield question, and opens the door for some more arms to prove themselves in the rotation as they look to the future.

#CAG Settles at SS. Maybe.

CAG sends U Trea Turner & IF Yoán Moncada to HOU for IF Travis Jackson.

Jackson is clearly ready for WBL time–here he may actually get it; in return HOU gets a prospect in search of a position and one of the ST surprises in Moncada.

#Monarchs Make Moves

KAN sends OF Dale Murphy & IF Carlos Baerga to NYG for OF Benny Kauff.

A classic now v later move. Murphy is desperately in need of a change of scenery, and Baerga remains 4-5 years away, while Kauff should help deepen a lineup in need of power.

But Kansas City wasn’t done.

KAN sends P José Rijo, P Jeff Pfeffer & 1st Round Pick to LAA for 3B Doug Rader.

The Albert Pujols at 3B experiment looks to be officially over, with Los Angeles clearly reacting to the loss of Seaver. Expect David Wright and/or Pedro Álvarez to inherit the hot corner for the Angels.

And this led to another move for Los Angeles.

LAA sends P Brett Anderson & 3rd Round Pick to HOD for IF Richie Hebner, OF Cy Williams & 2nd Round Pick

Los Angeles has now gotten rid of their 2 best pitchers from last season: this is either great faith in their stockpiled arms or pure madness.

#Easy as A-B-C

IND sends P Tom Glavine, P George Medich, P Jack Billingham & IF Robin Ventura to POR for IF Buddy Bell.

Indianapolis gets an all star and former gold glove winner to take over at the hot corner, while Portland lands a lot of future potential, headlined by the 19 year old Glavine.

This deal set the stage for the next one.

IND sends IF Ed Charles & P Dan Plesac to NYY for P Jeff D. Robinson & P Jack Armstrong.

The Black Yankees get a decent bench piece for the price of a Rule V selection–which seems fair to all. The other two arms are essentially fliers–Armstrong back to his seed franchise, Plesac as a veteran LHP hedge.

#Memphis Not Done Yet

MEM sends IF Candy Jim Taylor, P Nathan Eovaldi & 1st Round Pick to BRK for OF John Briggs & 3rd Round Pick.

This one has some heads shaking. Memphis and Brooklyn team up again, with the Red Sox landing what they hope is the CF of the future, and Brooklyn adding some minor league talent and a coveted #1 pick.

Briggs has been doubted every step of his career–this is just another chance for him to prove the haters wrong. For Brooklyn, it clears CF for Duke Snider, and also means their OF glut can now route into the DH for the year.

#BB to BBB

BAL sends IF Asdrúbal Cabrera, P Bill Byrd, IF Roy Smalley Jr. & 3rd Round Pick to BBB for P Steve Avery, P Gio González, P Warren Spahn, OF Curt Flood & 1st Round Pick.

An interesting deal.

In 7 years, Baltimore may see this as a massive win–if Avery develops, if González becomes a rotation starter, if the 1st Round Pick pans out and, perhaps most of all, if a change of scenery reboots Spahn’s career.

That’s a lot of if’s. In the meantime, Birmingham gets a potential answer to their SS woes and a front of rotation arm that excels in limiting homeruns, the Black Barons’ current Achilles’ heel.

TWIWBL 97.1: Early Spring Training

By mknn

On July 17, 2026

In TWIWBL, Uncategorized

We’ll have a team by team season preview as Spring Training runs down, but here are some newsworthy tidbits from the early days.

#Homestead Grays

The Grays have lost their staff ace–or what has passed for a staff ace–as Francisco Liriano suffered a torn labrum, and will miss 5-6 months, putting him on the shelf for effectively the whole season.

#Memphis Red Sox

The Red Sox execute the very first waiver claim in WBL history (this is part of what Claude’s involvement enables), grabbing veteran P Paul Derringer from Indianapolis.

TWIWBL 96.1 – January’s Activity

By mknn

On July 16, 2026

In TWIWBL

31 December through mid January

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

#Chicago American Giants

Looking to bolster their competition at SS, Chicago signed Jay Bell to a one year deal.

More importantly, in late February, the American Giants got some good news on Frank Thomas, with the medical staff now saying he could be looking at a May return.

#Kansas City Monarchs

Signed Jeff Reardon to help in their bullpen.

Draft pick Chris Carpenter refused to sign with the Monarchs, so back into the draft pool he goes, and Kansas City will get a compensation pick.

#New York Black Yankees

Giancarlo Stanton refused to sign, so the Yankees will get a compensation pick. More importantly, this potentially scuttles a deal with the Gothams to obtain Gaylord Perry. We’ll see what the two sides can work out.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Added FA IF Lonny Frey to the MI mix–at $550k for 1 year, this is a low-risk move to try to find some stability at 2B.

Trades

These are all fallout from the Rookie Draft that were contingent on draft picks signing. The blockbuster here is how NYY’s win-now posture led to what could be a major reshaping of their roster.

The Big One

NYG sends P Gaylord Perry, IF Robbie Thompson to NYY for P Dave Righetti, IF Grant Johnson, 1st Round Pick, and 3rd Round Pick.

It’s a lot to give up. But the Black Yankees get a solid #3 starter, clear room for Hardy Richardson to play, and, as they are wont to do, further mortgage their future.

A Three Way

This was really just to resolve some errors in the draft itself. All low level noise.

KAN sends P Tex Pruitt, P Fred Holdsworth to DET for P Jakie May.
DET sends P Tex Pruitt, P Fred Holdsworth to MEM for C Billy Sullivan, P John Healy.

Gant Comes Home

BBB sends OF Yoenis Céspedes, P Ed Hanyzewski to HOD for SS Ron Gant.

Interesting deal. Gant, of course, doesn’t stay at SS, and Céspedes may impact HOD immediately.

More Noise

MCG sends P Jing Johnson to SFS for 2B Joe Dunand, P Kevin Kobel.

Housekeeping.

TWIWBL 95.4: The Rule V Draft

By mknn

On June 13, 2026

In TWIWBL

There was some very interesting talent available through the Rule V Draft, and some teams decided to use it quite aggressively. Remember, these players need to stay on their new team’s WBL roster all year, or they revert to their original team.

It should be interesting …

Note that gaps in the picks indicate teams skipped their turn.

Pick	Team	Claims	From	Notes
1	POR	CF Paul Hines	BAL	OF depth. Unlikely to stick.
2	MEM	RP Ed Seward	MCG	Sure, could make it. Good MiL stats.
3	CAG	1B Mickey Vernon	POR	The search for a replacement for the injured Frank Thomas continues.
4	LAA	2B Billy Herman	HOD	A dark horse to be the steal of the draft. Should claim starting role in ST.
5	BBB	SS Dick Groat	HOM	Smart pick for a team starved for MI talent.
6	NYG	SS Billy Nash	DET	Nash did fine for DET, but was blocked there. Could have a legit shot to stick with the Gothams.
7	OTT	P Nip Winters	HOM	This one could hurt–both teams are desperate for SP.
8	HOM	RP Logan Hensley	DET	Shrug.
11	KAN	P Earl Hamilton	HOM	Combine this with Winters, and the Grays could rue this day.
12	MCG	P Sam McDowell	CLE	A smart pick, McDowell could easily last the season in Miami
16	PHI	3B Buddy Myer	IND	Decent utility IF, could work.
18	NYY	P Jeff Robinson	IND	Unlikely to survive in NY.
21	POR	SS Leo Cardenas	BBB	Given how weak POR’s MI is, this could work.
23	CAG	1B Tino Martinez	OTT	More 1B hedging–clearly CAG thinks it is cheaper to throw a lot of options out in ST than acquire after opening day.
26	NYG	OF Tip O’Neill	HOD	Nice pick, should be able to hang around given the weakness of the Gothams’ OF.

TWIWBL 95.3: The Rookie Draft

By mknn

On June 12, 2026

In TWIWBL

One of my favorite things each year. The WBL Rookie Draft is always a bit “juiced,” with both some high end talent and some historical “decent” players, but there is plenty of dross here as well in the later rounds.

We’ll cover the first 3 rounds pick-by-pick here, then rounds 4-10 team by team.

A reminder: each team can make 2 picks outside of players historically associated with their seed franchises; the rest (until the tail end of the draft) must come from players that spent a significant period of their career with them.

OOTP does its usual fun on whether these picks actually sign, so news on that will hit future TWIWBL’s.

We are moving towards the 2002 season, for reference. Debut is, of course, an estimate.

#Round 1

Note that Round 1 contained 2 compensation picks for picks from last year’s draft that refused to sign.

Pick	Team	Player & Age	Pos	Debut	Note
1.1	MCG	Pedro Martínez (19)	P	2004	Currently a reliever, his live arm warrants a move to the rotation at some point.
1.2	MEM	Jim Rice (18)	OF	2005	Joins a system stocked with young OF, so some trades loom at some point. But, saves an exception pick, which has some value.
1.3	CAG	Zack Greinke (20)	P	2004	Perhaps solves a need for arms; refused to sign last year.
1.4	LAA	Rod Carew (19)	2B	2005	Incredibly weak IF system gets a significant boost. At some point, 1B gets crowded, but that’s a problem many years down the road.
1.5	SFS	John Smoltz (19)	P	2005	The rich get richer.
1.6	NYG	Amos Rusie (18)	P	2002	The best pitcher who looks WBL ready right now. Also a franchise pick.
1.7	OTT	Jim McCormick (21)	P	2003	A gamble, but OTT is desperate for SP.
1.8	HOM	David Cone (19)	P	2004	Another franchise that needs rotation help.
1.9	BAL	Jose Altuve (17)	2B	2006	One for the future, but potentially solves the position.
1.10	HOD	Juan Soto (18)	OF	2004	Honestly surprised he fell this far, Soto will cause some issues on the roster, but they’ll be well worth solving.
1.11	KCM	Chris Carpenter (19)	P	2005	More pitching needed, as always.
1.12	MCG	Jack Glasscock (20)	SS	2004	An interesting pick. First potential flop of the draft, but his arrival should coincide well with MCG’s needs as Robin Yount moves out of the middle infield.
1.13	NYY	Giancarlo Stanton (18)	OF	2005	Not likely to stay with NYY due to a draft-day deal with NYG for Gaylord Perry. That’s dependent on Stanton signing, though.
1.14	HOD	Bingo DeMoss (21)	2B	2004	A worthy successor to Ryne Sandberg.
1.15	IND	Dave Winfield (21)	OF	2003	A bit of a steal for the ABC’s.
1.16	HOD	George Zettlein (27)	P	2002	Having used their exceptions, the HOD’s choices were quite limited. Here, they opted for some immediate help, hopefully.
1.17	HOU	Ed Morris (20)	P	2003	Houston will soon have an embarrassment of rotation riches–which should serve them quite well.
1.18	PHI	Darryl Strawberry (18)	OF	2003	Another pick that will lead to a crowded roster, but Strawberry’s peak is too attractive to ignore.
1.19	CLE	Todd Helton (22)	1B	2003	A long-term solution to an aging position for the Spiders.
1.20	POR	Jack Fournier (16)	1B	2006	A big bat, but a long ways away.
1.21	BRK	Brett Butler (22)	OF	2004	A safe pick, and perhaps overvalued here.
1.22	SFS	Dick McBride (24)	P	2003	More help on the mound for the Sea Lions.

#Round 2

Pick	Team	Player & Age	Pos	Debut	Note
2.1	OTT	Robbie Ray (20)	P	2004	The peak is attractive.
2.2	BBB	Yoenis Céspedes (27)	OF	2002	Some immediate help for a somewhat crowded OF.
2.3	CAG	José Quintana (20)	P	2005	More long term rotation help.
2.4	LAA	Charlie Leibrandt (21)	2B	2005	More pitching depth. Spot a pattern?
2.5	HOD	Pat Luby (20)	P	2004	With their exceptions used up, the pool thins out quickly.
2.6	LAA	Garry Templeton (19)	SS	2005	Templeton didn’t sign with HOU last year, he find himself in an organization more desperate for MI help this year.
2.7	OTT	Billy Jurges (21)	SS	2003	Maybe a hedge against Álex Rodríguez’ eventual shift to 3B?
2.8	CAG	Josh Hader (19)	P	2005	Eventual closer possibility for a team that should need it.
2.9	KCM	Bill Sherdel (20)	P	2005	A surprise pick. We’ll see.
2.10	BBB	Ron Gant (18)	SS	2007	BBB traded up to get Gant who, while a few years away, does project as a decent corner OF.
2.11	KCM	Allen Sothoron (20)	P	2005	More pitching, constrained by franchise history.
2.12	POR	Josh Johnson (18)	P	2006	Development needed, but decent upside.
2.13	IND	Johnny Allen (24)	P	2002	A potential steal, as Allen could help this season.
2.14	BAL	Jouett Meekin (22)	P	2003	Another intriguing selection–immediate help, if not a lot of extended value.
2.15	HOU	Paul Splittorf (22)	P	2004	Decent mid-rotation talent.
2.16	POR	Bob Groom (23)	P	2003	More medium talent with potential near-term impact.
2.17	CLE	Tommy Corcoran (17)	SS	2006	A pick for the future, but not a bad bet.
2.18	HOU	Tommy Harper (20)	OF	2005	HOU has an affection for these multi-position, roster extended options.
2.19	BRK	Zane Smith (21)	P	2005	Brooklyn believes deeply in stockpiling arms and letting them develop, Smith fits that profile.
2.20	SFS	Jimmie Lyons (20)	OF	2003	No room for him in SFS, but his talent is undeniable.

We’re quickly moving to less immediately impactful names, so we’ll do the rest of the draft as team summaries.

Team	Rounds 1-2	Rounds 3-12	Grade	Grade/ Notes
BAL	Jose Altuve (2B), Jouett Meekin (P)	Billy Lush (OF), Terry Crowley (1B), Herm Starrette (P), Levin Jones (OF), Eddy Rodríguez (P), Gosuke Katoh (1B), Earl Cook (P), Jerry Hinsley (P), Candy Sierra (P)	C	Altuve is great, but very young. Not a lot from the rest, although Crowley has some pop in his bat.
BBB	Yoenis Céspedes (OF)	Steve Cishek (P), Ricardo Hernández (3B), Ed Hanyzewski (P), Grant Dayton (P), Lefty Wallace (P), Harry Hulihan (P), Zach Vincej (SS), Jake Smith (P), Dale Roberts (P), Kid Baldwin (C), Brandon Larson (3B)	C	Hernández has some potential, but this is not a great draft, even if Céspedes comes good somewhat immediately.
BRK	Brett Butler (OF), Zane Smith (P)	Jerry Garvin (P), Lew McCarty (C), Mickey Hughes (P), Davis Daniel (P), Joe Evers (1B), Marvell Wynne (OF), Ed Albosta (P), Shaun Anderson (P)	B	A good job. Butler will have a WBL career, and both Smith and Garvin have live arms. Wynne may be a steal as well.
CAG	Zack Greinke (P), José Quintana (P), Josh Hader (P)	Bob Priddy (P), Dominic Fletcher (OF), Mike Caruso (SS), Harry Clark (3B), Ross Gload (OF), Mem Lovett (1B), Rómulo Sánchez (P), Al Kellett (P), Hugh Canavan (P), Vaughn Eshelman (P)	A-	The first 3 picks are all excellent additions to a system starved for pitching. Not a lot else, although Caruso and Gload may have some potential.
CLE	Todd Helton (1B), Tommy Corcoran (SS)	Julián Tavárez (P), Emil Levsen (P), Abraham Almonte (2B), Chauncey Fisher (P), Jerry Fahr (P), Cotton Knaupp (SS), Dalton Jones (2B), Juan Castillo (2B), Rabbit Benton (2B)	B+	Helton solves a long-term issue, the rest seems fine, with Tavárez being a decent pickup.
DET		Riley Greene (OF), Kid Madden (P), Jakie May (P), Howie Krist (P), Nate Cornejo (P), Bill Barrett (C), Jess Pike (P), Ambrose McGann (2B), Bud Smith (P), Otto Jacobs (C), Jeter Downs (2B)	C	No picks in the first 2 rounds hurts a lot, but Greene could be a steal for the Wolverines.
HOD	Juan Soto (OF), Bingo DeMoss (2B), George Zettlein (P), Pat Luby (P), Ron Gant (SS)	Terry Larkin (P), Vern Olsen (P), Billy Holland (SS/P), Elmer Yoter (3B), Steven Hill (C), Harry East (3B), Lev Shreve (P), Phonney Martin (OF)	A	Could be transformational. Soto is a generational talent, DeMoss a clear succession plan for Ryne Sandberg, and even Holland has some intriguing potential as a 2-way player.
HOM	David Cone (P)	Cliff Chambers (P), Bob Walk (P), Jimmy Ripple (OF), Red Witt (P), Jeff Wallace (P), Harry Jordan (P), Bill Hallman (OF), Larry Ciaffone (OF), Jaycob Brugman (OF), Jeff Doyle (2B)	B	Cone is a great pick, but there’s not a lot else here.
HOU	Ed Morris (P), Paul Splittorff (P), Tommy Harper (2B)	Lou Piniella (OF), Ken Suarez (C), Jim Wohlford (SS), José Cisnero (P), Mike Hedlund (P), Clint Hurdle (C), Danny Bautista (OF), Rance Pless (1B), Bob Friedrichs (P), Ricky Gutiérrez (SS), Mauro Zárate (P), Rod Gilbreath (3B), Gene Moriarity (OF)	B+	Could be higher, depending on how Morris develops. Lots of potentially useful marginal pieces in later rounds–Piniella, Hurdle, Gutiérrez.
IND	Dave Winfield (OF), Johnny Allen (P)	Gary Redus (OF), Tex McDonald (SS), Dusty Miller (OF), Billy McCool (P), Chub Sullivan (1B), Tom Wiedenbauer (OF), Jackson Tetreault (P), Logan Allen (P), Mike Champion (2B)	A	Winfield being available was shocking. Allen and Redus being added makes the draft a surprising success.
KCM	Chris Carpenter (P), Bill Sherdel (P), Allen Sothoron (P)	Casey Kotchman (1B), Tex Pruiett (P), Fred Holdsworth (P), Gerónimo Peña (2B), Otto Schomberg (1B), Wish Egan (P), Pete Naton (C), Tom Donohue (C), Harley Dillinger (P)	C	Weird. Lots of franchise picks, but not a ton of actual value behind Carpenter.
LAA	Rod Carew (2B), Charlie Leibrandt (P), Garry Templeton (SS)	Steve Henderson (OF), Jack DiLauro (P), Mike Trost (C), Dennis Ribant (P), Lou Pote (P), Zach Lutz (3B), Dave Pierson (C), Doc Land (OF), Rubén Quevedo (P), Francisco Peña (c)	B+	Sure. Carew fills an obvious need, as does Templeton.
MEM	Jim Rice (OF)	Sam Jethroe (OF), Joe Hornung (OF), John Healy (P), Hal Rhyne (SS), Joe Ellick (3B), Joe Cicero (OF), Jerry Mallett (OF), Iván Cruz (1B), Sam Childs (1B), Tony Balsamo (P), Harry Smith (2B)	B–	Another young OF? Really, Memphis? And after that, adding Jethroe to Rice? There better be some trades a-coming.
MCG	Pedro Martínez (P), Jack Glasscock (SS)	Jesús Lazardo (P), Bobby Vaughn (2B), Erasmo Ramírez (P), Jing Johnson (P), Billy Redmon (SS), Scott Olsen (P), Steven Ames (P), Mario Ramírez (SS), Francis Martes (P), George Milstead (P)	A	Any draft that gets you Martínez is an A. But … Glasscock may be an overreach.
NYG	Amos Rusie (P)	Red Murray (OF), Dave Veres (P), Harry McCormick (P), Alvin Davis (1B), Kiko Calero (P), Frank West (P), Luis Castillo (P), Héctor Sánchez (C), Andy Rincon (P), Ed Wilkinson (OF), William Coon (OF), Kevin Collins (3B)	C	Love me some Rusie, and he’ll help right away … but the rest … Veres and Calero fit with the Gothams’ bullpen obsession.
NYY	Giancarlo Stanton (OF)	John Kruk (1B), Rich Coggins (OF), John Shaffer (P), Frank Gilhooley (OF), John Ryan Murphy (C), Dutch Rudolph (OF), Marcus Wilson (OF), Darrell Johnson (C), Roy Witherup (P), Mike Shea (P)	D	Stanton is headed out of town, making this a much weaker draft, even if Kruk looks like a solid bat. Still, the Black Yankees never have cared about the draft, so perhaps that’s unfair: if Perry brings them a championship, they’ll see this as a great draft, no matter what Stanton does.
OTT	Jim McCormick (P), Robbie Ray (P), Billy Jurges (SS)	Al Woods (OF), Jesse Carlson (P), Wilton Guerrero (2B), Ed Atkinson (OF), Dane Myers (OF), Bill Collver (OF), Orlando Mercado (C), Emanuel Snyder (OF)	C	Maybe? They need arms, so maybe?
PHI	Darryl Strawberry (OF)	Harry Eisenstat (P), Andy Hansen (P), Ben Tincup (P), Jack Scheible(P), Pat Bohen (P), Doc Amole (P), Ben Froehlich (C), John Peters (OF), Fred Buckingham (P), Andy Sommerville (P), Joe Schultz (C), Travis Swaggerty (OF)	C-	The Strawberry pick makes total sense. The rest … not so much.
POR	Jack Fournier (1B), Josh Johnson (P), Bob Groom (P)	Steve Brye (OF), Rich Reese (1B), David Hulse (OF), Joe Gedeon (OF), Kyle Garlick (OF), Carlos Pascual (P), Moe Berg (SS), Bill Sarni (C), Terry Humphrey (C), Jesús Montero (C), Babe Ellison (1B)	C	Talk about looking to the future … Fournier has a future, but he’s 16. And the run on catchers at the end is just downright odd.
SFS	John Smoltz (P), Dick McBride (P), Jimmie Lyons (OF)	Joe Dunand (2B), Kevin Kobel (P), Nate Mondou (2B), Hank Hulvey (P), Bert Kuczynski (P), Jerar Encarnación (OF), Greg Aquino (P), Dorn Taylor (P), Art Smith (P)	A	I mean … how did they do this? Smoltz is a rotation arm, Lyons has immense talent.

TWIWBL 95.2: Winter Meeting Trades

By mknn

On June 11, 2026

In TWIWBL

While there is a blockbuster, these were actually a pretty quiet Winter Meetings, with only four deals being made.

The Big One

MEM sends OF Mookie Betts, C Billy Bryan, P Jim Kaat, 3rd Round Pick to BRK for P Don Drysdale, P Red Ruffing, 5th Round Pick.

We start off with pretty much a blockbuster: Red Ruffing‘s signing turns out to be a sign and trade as Ruffing and disgruntled starter Don Drysdale head to Memphis for OF Mookie Betts, backup C Billy Bryan, and minor league P Jim Kaat. Brooklyn sends a 5th round pick and Memphis will send a 3rd round pick to even out the deal.

It turns out Drysdale was furious at being surpassed as the #1 starter for Brooklyn, and will now bring his near-manic intensity to the Red Sox, immediately stepping into the top of their rotation along with Stubby Overmire.

Cuban Giants Address Current Need

MCG sends P Jon Matlack, 2nd Round Pick to HOD for P CC Sabathia, 5th Round Pick.

The Cuban Giants addressed a clear need, bringing swingman CC Sabathia over from the House of David. They gave up a prized pitching prospect in Jon Matlack, and took the worst of a pick exchange (a 2nd for a 5th) to bring in Sabathia, who looks to have a shot at the Cuban Giants’ rotation if has a good Spring.

Coming Back Home

OTT sends P Dan Collins, 3rd Round Pick to MCG for P Steve Rogers.

This was about getting Rogers back to his historical franchise to see how that developed.

The Sea Lions Commit Even More

SFS sends IF Royce Clayton to POR for P Trevor Hoffman.

Portland entered these conversations hoping to get back draft picks; instead they ended up with a possible middle infielder for the future–look for an open competition with Clayton and Hughie Jennings in the Spring, while Hoffman walks into a dream situation–no pressure on a near guaranteed contender.