Month: July 2023 Page 1 of 2

TWIWBL 43.4: Series XXXV Notes – Marvin Miller Division

On July 31, 2023

#Birmingham Black Barons

Birmingham welcomed back reliever Harley Young from the DL.

Curtis Granderson and Pie Traynor had 2 hits each, leading the Black Barons to a 7-6 victory over Miami. Alejandro Peña was sailing along until things fell off the rails in the 7th, but still emerged with the victory, improving his record to 12-9. Juan Rincón picked up his 24th save for Birmingham.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

5 RBI’s including a grand slam from Germany Smith led the Royal Giants to a 9-2 victory over the Black Yankees. Sandy Koufax threw 5 strong innings to improve to 5-8 on the year.

Dave Von Ohlen will miss the rest of the season with a herniated disk. The Royal Giants promoted Smokey Joe Williams in his absence, something that was sure to annoy their AAA club who was looking for Williams to contribute to their playoff run.

Matt Holliday had 3 hits, including a walk-off homerun as Brooklyn won 7-6 over the Black Yankees in 10 innings.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Eustaquio Pedroso turned in a great start, allowing only 1 run in just shy of 8 innings as the Cuban Giants topped Birmingham 7-1. Paul Molitor and Robin Yount had 3 hits, with Yount driving in 3 in the win, which improved Pedroso’s record to 9-6.

Jim Thome had 2 hits including a grand slam (his 13th homerun of the year), but Miami’s comeback fell short as they were unable to overcome a disastrous start by Martín Dihigo in a 7-6 loss to Birmingham.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Gavvy Cravath–slugging around .800 since joining Portland–hit another 2 homeruns as the Sea Dogs topped Kansas City, 6-5.

3 hits from Harry Hooper helped Walter Johnson improve his record to 14-4 as Portland edged the Monarchs 2-1. Johnson allowed 1 run in just over 7 IP, with Trevor Hoffman picking up his first save since joining the Sea Dogs.

TWIWBL 43.3: Series XXXV Notes – Effa Manley Division

By mknn

On July 28, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Homestead Grays

Andrew McCutcheon had 4 hits and Roberto Clemente and Davey Johnson had 3 each leading a 10-6 victory over Chicago. McCutcheon and Clemente both went deep, and John Candelaria, Dave Giusti, and Josh Lindblom combined for 3 innings of 1-hit relief to cement the victory, which went to Carlos Zambrano, who leveled his record at 6-6 on the year.

#Indianapolis ABC’s

With its minor league teams finishing their seasons, the ABC’s recalled Pete Rose, Robin Ventura, and Virgil Trucks from AAA.

The ABC’s lashed 13 hits in an 8-2 win over Houston. Joey Votto and Ed Charles had 3 hits each, with Votto driving in 3 runs, 2 coming on his 6th homerun of the season. Willie Mitchell put in a solid 6-plus innings for the win, and Francisco Cordero and Lefty James closed out the game with hitless relief for Indianapolis.

#New York Black Yankees

The Black Yankees filled out their 32 man roster by recalling 2B Willie Randolph.

TWIWBL 43.2: Series XXXV Notes – Cum Posey Division

By mknn

On July 27, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Houston Colt 45’s

With Luke Gregerson out for the rest of the season, Houston brought Dock Ellis back to the big leagues.

#Kansas City Monarchs

Called in for a spot start, Adam Wainwright turned in 6 innings of 3-hit ball, earning his 2nd win of the year. Salvador Pérez had 3 hits and 3 RBI’s in the 6-1 victory over the Sea Dogs.

TWIWBL 43.1: Series XXXV Notes – Bill James Division

By mknn

On July 26, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Detroit Wolverines

Roberto Hernández‘ stay was brief, as he returns to AAA with Bob Bailey‘s return from the DL. Bailey will step back into the starting role, but Olmedo Sáenz’ hot start will force him into the lineup from time to time as well.

#Los Angeles Angels

Jeromy Burnitz was recalled from AAA to provide some depth in RF.

The Angels pounded out 22 hits and 15 runs, beating Philadelphia 15-8. Doug Rader had 4 hits, Wally Backman 3 (maintaining his .500 average), and Mike Trout scored 4 times. Jason Vargas picked up the first save of his career, dropping his ERA to 3.21 with 3 scoreless innings of relief.

The offense rolled on with 16 hits and 9 runs, led by a 4-hit day from Kal Daniels and 3 from Don Buford. Trout added his 19th homerun of the year as Gerrit Cole improved to 15-9 with a solid outing.

#Memphis Red Sox

Vern Stephens drove in 5 and Bill White had 3 hits as the Red Sox survived a poor 9th inning to beat San Francisco, 10-7. Stephens, Ted Williams, and Manny Ramírez all went deep with the win going to Stubby Overmire and Heath Bell picking up his 2nd save of the year.

With C Billy Bryan out for–most likely–the rest of the year, the Red Sox recalled Bob Brenly from AAA.

#Wandering House of David

Pete Browning hit a grand slam for his 25th homerun of the year, keying a comeback 8-6 victory over Baltimore. Ernie Banks added 3 hits for the House of David in a game where Rick Reuschel picked up his first career win and Bruce Sutter his 23rd save of the season.

TWIWBL 43.0: Series XXXV Notes

By mknn

On July 25, 2023

In TWIWBL

August 31

Awards

Far too often overlooked in the New York Black Yankees‘ lineup, Mickey Mantle has been on fire lately, netting the WBL Player of the Week award, hitting .429 with 3 homeruns.

Playoff Races

Other than the Birmingham Black Barons beginning to fade somewhat, nothing has really changed: The New York Gothams, Baltimore Black Sox, Cleveland Spiders, and Portland Sea Dogs all lead their divisions, but none by more than 4 games. The teams in close pursuit–the Wandering House of David and Detroit Wolverines in the Bill James Division, the Chicago American Giants in the Cum Posey Division, The New York Black Yankees in the Effa Manley Division, and Birmingham in the Marvin Miller Division–are all firmly in the hunt for the postseason.

If the season ended today–the first use of those words, but not the last–Birmingham and the Black Yankees would be tied for the final wildcard spot.

Both the Houston Colt 45’s (4 games back) and the Brooklyn Royal Giants (5 games) have a shot.

All of this is not for lack of trying: the Black Yankees, Detroit, Houston, and Portland all won 3 out of 4 this series. But it’s hard to make up games without series against your direct rivals: Series XXXVI will see Houston travel to Birmingham and Portland host Brooklyn in the only matchups where both teams have a legitimate playoff shot.

Performance

Batters

To keep this list a little shorter, four players are tied for 2nd with 11 triples (Houston’s George Brett, the Philadelphia Stars‘ Willie Davis, the Homestead Grays‘ Josh Gibson, and the Miami Cuban Giants‘ Alejandro Oms).

Usual pattern: league leader in bold, top 2 in each category are listed.

Ron Blomberg (CLE). 338/411/646. 40 HR, 101 R.
Pete Browning (HOD). 352/389/627.
Ty Cobb (DET). 345/385/550. 173 H.
Eric Davis (NYY). 275/350/514. 5.8 WAR.
Mike Fiore (HOM). 235/399/389. 102 BB.
Hank Greenberg (DET). 314/373/584. 43 2B.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 270/398/355. 99 BB, 89 SB.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 331/413/575. 101 R.
Reggie Jackson (SFS). 319/432/604.
Willie Mays (NYG). 330/394/532. 175 H.
Stan Musial (KCM). 323/388/567. 45 2B.
Doug Rader (LAA). 340/401/548. 175 H, 128 RBI.
Tim Raines (OTT). 289/366/427. 90 SB.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 317/434/670. 44 HR, 124 RBI, 117 R, 102 BB, 7.4 WAR.
Louis Santop (CLE). 304/335/464. 14 3B.

Pitchers

Starters

Christy Mathewson lost a chance to solidify his claim as the best starter in the league (see here): now it’s a 3-man race between Matty, Andy Pettitte, and Jack Taylor.

Pettitte and Charlie Root look like (along with Portland’s RF Gavvy Cravath) look like the gems of the trade market, with each of them performing fantastically for their new clubs.

Gerrit Cole (LAA). 15-9, 4.20.
Lefty Grove (SFS). 13-7, 3.68. 196 K.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 7-11, 4.42. 178 K.
Pat Malone (CLE). 15-8, 3.92.
Christy Mathewson (NYG). 16-7, 3.46.
Alejandro Peña (BBB). 12-9, 3.69. 5.0 WAR.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 11-7, 4.11. 3.46 FIP.
Andy Pettitte (KCM/BBB). 14-4, 3.03. 3.42 FIP.
Charlie Root (SFS/DET). 8-6, 3.55. 1.09 WHIP.
Jack Taylor (HOD). 15-9, 3.22. 193 IP, 1.13 WHIP.
Cy Young (CLE). 11-9, 4.47. 197 IP, 4.7 WAR.

Relievers

I always liked Mike Norris irl. It’s pretty fantastic seeing him be, possibly, the best reliever in the WBL here. I know the 35 year old has a limited future so I’m just enjoying the ride for now.

35 IP for rate stats.

Terry Adams (CLE). 2-6, 2.85. 34 Sv, 1 H, 3.04 FIP.
Clay Carroll (IND). 2-5, 4.29. 3 Sv, 10 H. 61 G.
Mike Henneman (DET). 2-6, 4.60. 35 Sv.
* Sean Marshall (BAL). 5-0, 1.79. 1 Sv, 8 H. 0.98 WHIP.
Buddy Napier (DET). 1-1, 2.84. 2 Sv, 7 H. 1.00 WHIP.
Mike Norris (NYG). 4-3, 1.46. 8 Sv, 13 H.
Ron Reed (PHI/CLE). 0-6, 4.46. 3 Sv, 17 H, 61 G.
Ron Robinson (SFS). 6-5, 4.03. 1 Sv, 17 H.
Carson Smith (NYG). 2-0, 1.63. 1 Sv, 9 H.
Jonny Venters (LAA). 5-3, 2.83. 5 Sv, 15 H.
Brian Wilson (NYG). 1-0, 1.93. 25 Sv, 1 H. 2.56 FIP.

* On the DL, likely out for the rest of the season.

Streaks

No really interesting active streaks (perhaps understandable as the season goes on), although both Brooklyn’s John Briggs and the House of David’s George Stone have succeeded int heir last 4 pinch hit attempts.

Wait, there’s one: Bobby Grich of the Los Angeles Angels has reached base in 32 straight games, tied for 4th in the league this year.

Series Results

Taking 3 out of 4 in Series XXXV

Black Yankees over Brooklyn
Detroit over Cleveland
Houston over Indianapolis ABC’s
Portland over Kansas City Monarchs

Series XXXV Splits

Baltimore @ House of David
Birmingham @ Miami
Chicago @ Homestead
Los Angeles @ Philadelphia
Memphis @ San Francisco Sea Lions
Gothams @ Ottawa Mounties

Series XXXV Featured Matchup: Cleveland Spiders @ Detroit Wolverines

By mknn

On July 24, 2023

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

Series preview here.

#Game 1: Bill Steen @ Johnny Marcum

Bill Steen improved to 11-3 on the year with nearly 8 shutout innings as Cleveland rolled to a 9-2 victory.

Cleveland took the lead with 5 runs in the top of the 2nd, led by unexpected sources: 2 RBI’s from Louis Santop and 3 from Sammy Strang. They chased Detroit’s starter, Johnny Marcum, from the game in the top of the 4th with consecutive hits from Lance Berkman, Arky Vaughan, and Jim Gantner. At that point, it was 8-0, and a Tris Speaker pinch-hit homerun made it 9-0 after 8.

Detroit scored twice in the bottom of the 9th, but the game was long decided. Tony Phillips had 3 hits for Detroit in the loss.

CLE 9 (Steen 11-3) @ DET 2 (Marcum 11-4)
HRs: CLE – Speaker (2); DET – none.
Box Score

#Game 2: Pat Malone @ Gene Conley

Game 2 had a shot at being a decent pitching duel between Cleveland’s Pat Malone and Detroit’s Gene Conley.

Cleveland had an early lead as Lance Berkman scored on a Sammy Strang sacrifice fly. And that was it … Detroit loaded the bases in the bottom of the 6th, but Malone escaped without any damage, leaving the score at 1-0.

Both Conley and Malone were pretty much toast at this point, but both bullpens were able to preserve the score, despite some traffic on the bases.

That lasted until the 8th, when John Hiller uncorked a wild pitch with the bases loaded to make it 2-0. The Spiders added another in the 9th, allowing them to send their closer, Terry Adams, out for the bottom of the 9th with a 3-0 lead.

Adams was perfect, and the Spiders had a combined 5-hit shutout between Malone, Chuck Porter, Cory Gearrin, and Adams.

CLE 3 (Malone 15-8; Adams 34 Sv; Porter 13 H; Gearrin 12 H) @ DET 0 (Conley 11-6)
HRs: None.
Box Score

#Game 3: Mel Harder @ Charlie Root

Detroit turns to Charlie Root–3-1 with a 2.29 ERA since his mid-season acquisition from San Francisco–in their attempt to turn the series around. He’ll be opposed by Mel Harder, 5-2 on the year for Cleveland.

Detroit led early, with Bob Bailey tripling and scoring on a single from Al Kaline in the 2nd and Oscar Gamble singling home Hank Greenberg in the 4th.

Root was strong, allowing only 3 hits through 6 innings, but a Louis Santop triple (his league leading 14th) to lead off Cleveland’s 7th and got the Wolverine’s bullpen up and busy. Chuck Knoblauch singled home Santop, closing the score to 2-1 and chasing Root in favor of Justin Verlander … who promptly gave up a dinger to Lance Berkman, putting the Spiders in front, 3-2.

After an Al Kaline single chased Harder, the Spiders turned to Ron Reed, brought in for exactly these kind of situations. It hasn’t gone as planned. Reed, an all-star with Philadelphia, is 0-4 with an ERA near 7 with the Spiders. Here, he walked Jenkins and gave up a single to Robby Thompson to load the bases. Bill Carrigan pinch-hit and delivered a sacrifice fly to tie the game once more, but Reed escaped without further damage.

Evan Longoria gave the Spiders the lead again in the top of the 9th with an RBI single. Terry Adams came in for Cleveland to close out the game. Jenkins greeted Adams with a double, and his pinch-runner, Jimmy Collins, scored on a sacrifice fly from George Davis.

That sent us to extra innings, tied at 4.

In the bottom of the 11th, Kaline greeted Yordano Ventura with a leadoff single, and Chili Davis followed with a double. An intentional pass to Thompson loaded the bases, and a single from George Davis won the game for Detroit.

CLE 4 (Ventura 0-2; Reed 2 B Sv; Adams 7 B Sv) @ DET 5 (Henneman 2-6; Verlander 1 B Sv) [11 Innings]
HRs: CLE – Berkman (9); DET – none.
Box Score

#Game 4: Cy Young @ Hal Newhouser

After the extra inning heroics in game 3, the Wolverines would turn to Hal Newhouser to try to even up the series.

Newhouser and Cy Young were both solid through 5, with Cleveland leading 1-0 behind an RBI single from Jim Gantner. That lasted until the bottom of the 7th when Al Kaline scored on a wild pitch from Young, tying the game. At this point, Newhouser was gassed, bringing in John Hiller from Detroit’s bullpen, who surrendered the lead on an RBI double to Jake Stahl with 2 outs.

With Detroit’s closer, Terry Adams, unavailable after 2 innings yesterday, the Wolverines sent Young back out for the bottom of the 9th, clinging to the 2-1 lead. It worked: 3-up / 3-down and the Spiders both took the game and the series.

CLE 2 (Young 11-9) @ DET 1 (Hiller 3-4)
HRs: None.
Box Score

The two teams finished the series with identical 78-64 records, with both teams looking likely for the playoffs.

Series XXXV Best Games

By mknn

On July 21, 2023

In Featured Games, Game Recaps

A mixture of checking in on series that impact the playoffs, the drive towards statistical milestones, and just good old fashioned close games.

#New York Gothams @ Ottawa Mounties, Game 1

Oh what could have been … Christy Mathewson headed into the bottom of the 8th inning with 16 wins on the year, a 3-hit shutout in the works, and a 7-0 lead. The Gothams had been propelled to that lead via homeruns from Buster Posey and Will Clark and 3 hits from Wes Westrum. Matty walked Bernie Allen and gave up a single to Tim Raines, which brought in Mike Norris from New York’s bullpen.

Norris was less than his stellar self, giving up a double to Jim Stephens that scored 2 runs and allowing a 3rd to score on a wild pitch. Still, that left the Gothams with a 4-run lead, 7-3, with perhaps the most effective closer in the league, Brian Wilson, taking the mound in the bottom of the 9th.

Wilson surrendered 4 consecutive hits including a 2-run triple from Roberto Alomar, closing it to a 1-run game. Robb Nen came on in relief of Wilson and promptly gave up a double to Larry Walker and a game-ending single to Stephens, scoring Walker and Rusty Staub and giving Ottawa a highly improbably 8-7 walk off win.

Mathewson should have come out of this with 17 wins, an outside shot at 20, and a strong argument for being the best starter in the WBL. Instead, the Gothams bullpen collapsed, a clear warning sign for their postseason ambitions.

NYG 7 (Nen 3-5, 3 B Sv) @ OTT 8 (Leroux 1-1)
HRs: NYG – Posey (11), Clark (4); OTT – none.
Box Score

#Baltimore Black Sox @ Wandering House of David, Games 2 and 4

Baltimore’s series against the House of David was perhaps the best matchup of Series XXXV, with both teams seemingly safe in their postseason ambitions.

It opened with a 15 inning classic, with Baltimore’s Johnny Sain twirling a shutout over 7+ innings, allowing only 3 hits. Singles from Ken Singleton and Ramón Hernández, helped by an error by House of David RF Dan Ford, put the only run of the game on the board in the 4th. But Baltimore’s current closer, Buddy Groom, couldn’t shut the door in the 9th, allowing a solo homerun to Jim Edmonds, his 17th of the season, to send the game into extra innings.

Baltimore’s bullpen took over form there, with a dominant outing from John Wetteland, a shaky one from Gregg Olsen, and a solid one from Don Bessent combing for 6 shutout frames. Singleton, who finished the day 3-for-6, launched a 3-run shot in the top of the 15th, giving the Black Sox a 4-1 victory.

BAL 4 (Bessent 2-7) @ HOD 1 (Smith 0-1) [15 Innings]
HRs: BAL – Singleton (17); HOD – Edmonds (17).
Box Score

The House of David would win the next 2 games, setting up a confrontation in the final match between Baltimore’s Connie Johnson and the Hosue of David’s ace Jack Taylor. What looked like a great pitching matchup on paper sizzled out a bit, with each starter allowing 4 runs over the first 6 innings.

Baltimore was able to pull away, scoring in the 7th, 8th, and 9th en route to the 7-4 victory for the series split. Bryce Harper (who had 3 hits), Manny Machado, and Frank Robinson all went deep for the Black Sox. The House of David left 13 runners on base, meaning Edmonds’ 4 hits, Browning’s 3, and Elrod Hendricks‘ 35th homerun of the year were all for naught.

Baltimore’s bullpen was stellar again, as Rafael Betancourt, Lindy McDaniel, Bessent, Joe Beggs, and Groom combining for just over 4 scoreless innings in relief of Johnson.

BAL 7 (McDaniel 1-0; Bessent 2 H; Beggs 10 H) @ HOD 4 (Niedenfuer 0-2)
HRs: BAL – Robinson (35), Machado (8), Harper (12); HOD – Hendricks (35).
Box Score

#New York Black Yankees @ Brooklyn Royal Giants, Game 4

Brooklyn still has a slim chance at the postseason, so every game counts. Which is why wasting a great start from their ace, Don Drysedale, is such a shame. Drysedale had 8 shutout innings allowing only 3 hits, and the Royal Giants were riding a pinch-hit RBI from John Briggs to a 1-0 lead. And then, the 9th …

Babe Ruth singled, but Drysedale induced a horrible bunt from Tommy Herr, caught by a hard-charging Ray Dandridge at 3B. Eric Davis doubled home Ruth to tie the game and bring Brooklyn’s closer, Watty Clark, from the bullpen. Clark gave up RBI singles to Mickey Mantle, Mike Schmidt, and Don Mattingly for a 4-1 lead. Aroldis Chapman had a perfect 9th for his 12th save for the Black Yankees.

Still, Brooklyn took 3 of the 4 games in the series, keeping their postseason hopes alive.

NYY 4 (Lavelle 2-3; Chapman 12 Sv) @ BRK 1 (Drysedale 8-9)
HRs: None.
Box Score

#Memphis Red Sox @ San Francisco Sea Lions, Game 4

Just because teams are out of the playoffs doesn’t mean they can’t play good games …

Each team had their presumptive ace on the mound (Jon Lester for Memphis, Lefty Grove for San Francisco), but neither were terribly impressive. We pick up the action with Memphis leading, 4-3, heading into the bottom of the 6th, where a 2 RBI single from Pedro Guerrero and a 3 run shot from Reggie Jackson put San Francisco up, 8-4.

Bill White would double in 2 to cut the lead in half in the top of the 7th, and then Ron Robinson, usually reliable this year, gave it all back in the top of the 8th on a 3 run homer from Reggie Smith. Tim Wakefield, Heath Bell, and Jonathan Papelbon were excellent in relief, allowing only 1 hit in over 3 innings out of the pen.

Gene Oliver had 3 hits for the Sea Lions and Jackson drove in 4 while Memphis got 2 hits each from Smith, White, Mookie Betts, and Iván de Jesus.

MEM 9 (Wakefield 7-7; Papelbon 14 Sv; Bell 8 H; Cicotte 2 B Sv) @ SFS 8 (Robinson 6-5, 3 B Sv)
HRs: MEM – Smith (20); SFS – Bonds (19), Oliver (3), Jackson (30).
Box Score

Series XXXV Preview: Cleveland Spiders @ Detroit Wolverines

By mknn

On July 18, 2023

In Featured Series, Series Previews

We roll into Series XXXV with its two teams barely making the playoffs. So, this could be a big one.

We saw the Cleveland Spiders–currently 1 game behind the New York Black Yankees in the Effa Manley Division–in Series VII, XIX, XXVIII, and XXX. The Detroit Wolverines, featured in Series IV, XXI, and XXVII, are tied with the New York Gothams for first place in the Bill James Division.

#Cleveland Spiders

Cleveland’s offense revolves around the odds-on favorite to finish runner-up in the MPV race, Ron Blomberg. Blomberg is slashing 339/410/655 with 36 2B, 40 HR, 111 RBI, and 101 R, all of which lead the team’s regulars (late season call-up Tris Speaker is slashing 386/426/523 in just under 50 PA’s, and is clearly arguing for more playing time–to the point where he is seeing time at the corner OF positions).

But there is more here than Blomberg. John Ellis and Jake Stahl each have over 20 HRs, over 70 RBI’s, and OPS’ in the .800’s. Add to that excellent production from 2B (Chuck Knoblauch) and C (Louis Santop) and, as importantly, no real weak links, and it’s a strong offense, top to bottom.

4 starters have double-digit wins, led by Pat Malone (14-8, 4.06). Bill Steen (10-3) has the best ERA in that group, but arguably Stan Coveleski (13-5, 3.93) has been better. The rotation is rounded out by Cy Young (10-9, 4.64), whose analytics are better than his raw numbers. Terry Adams has been excellent at closer (33 saves, 2.84), and the combination of Chuck Porter and Cory Gearrin have been great getting him the ball.

Some midseason acquisitions have been question marks: OF/1B Lance Berkman is still hitting far better with the Spiders than he did in Houston, but has hit a cold streak after an incredible start to his time in Cleveland. Reliever Ron Reed was an all-star with Philadelphia; he’s 0-4 with an ERA around 6.50 with Cleveland while SS Arky Vaughan, obtained from Homestead to cement the SS position, has hit so poorly that the team continues to experiment with other options.

#Detroit Wolverines

Detroit has two elite players on offense: Ty Cobb is slashing 348/391/557 with 20 HR and 45 SB and Hank Greenberg is at 317/376/589 with 27 HR and 102 RBI. Oscar Gamble has 26 HR and 3 other players are in double digits (Chili Davis has 18, Geoff Jenkins 13, and Ernie Lombardi 10, 4 coming since his mid-season acquisition from Indianapolis).

That’s enough for a solid offense. To become elite, Detroit needs 38 year old Tony Phillips–just back from injury–to pick up where he left off, getting on base and generally being a pest at the leadoff spot. Additionally, while both Al Kaline (302/362/667) and Olmedo Sáenz (350/395/525) are likely to revert to form at some point, the longer they can impersonate superstars, the better for the Wolverines.

After some juggling, Detroit’s rotation seems to be coming into shape at the right time. Hal Newhouser has a 3.06 ERA, and has an outside chance at accumulating enough innings to qualify for the ERA lead and Johnny Marcum is 11-3 with a sub 4.00 ERA. Add to them Gene Conley, whose first 28 appearances were from the bullpen but has been fantastic throughout (11-5, 3.63), and Charlie Root, 3-1 with a 2.29 ERA since being acquired at the all-star break.

None of the starters go very deep in games, which makes the performance of Chad Bradford, Buddy Napier, and Justin Verlander in the middle innings quite important to their success. Mike Henneman leads the league in saves with 35, but has been touched for an ERA just under 5.00.

TWIWBL 42.5: Series XXXIV Notes – Marvin Miller Division

By mknn

On July 17, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Jackie Robinson had 3 hits including his 13th homerun, driving in 3 and leading the Royal Giants to a 7-2 victory over the Monarchs. Don Drysedale was solid through 5 innings, evening his record at 8-8 and stopping a recent streak of poor starts.

Dave Von Ohlen was injured during the game, but it’s not clear how long he’ll be out.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Ramón Martínez tied a WBL record with 8 walks but a great debut performance by Yasiel Puig and José Canseco‘s 32nd homerun of the year were enough for Miami to top Indianapolis, 8-7. Puig’s Miami debut saw him go 4-for-4 with an RBI and 2 runs scored. Dontrelle Willis and Eustaquio Pedroso pitched well in relief of Martínez, and the win went to Bob Duliba as Braden Looper picked up his 5th save despite a rocky 9th.

#Portland Sea Dogs

3 hits from Gavvy Cravath and a grand slam from Buddy Bell (his 18th homerun of the season) were more than enough as the Sea Dogs beat Homestead, 10-0. The real story here was Walter Johnson, who allowed only 2 hits through 6 innings and finished with a 9 strikeout, 5 hit shutout, improving to 13-4 on the season.

Bert Blyleven evened his record at 10-10 on the year with a strong 7.2 IP in a 4-3 win over Homestead. Cravath hit his 9th homerun with Portland (his 22nd overall), and Bobby Murcer, Rogers Hornsby, and Jeff Burroughs each had 2 hits.

TWIWBL 42.4: Series XXXIV Notes – Effa Manley Division

By mknn

On July 14, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Indianapolis ABC’s

Both Tommy Helms and Oscar Charleston were activated from the DL.

2 homeruns from Johnny Bench–his 29th and 30th of the year–led the ABC’s to a 5-4 victory over Miami.

#New York Black Yankees

The Black Yankees used 5 homeruns (Eric Davis, Mike Schmidt, Albert Belle, and 2 from Mickey Mantle) to power over San Francisco 11-7. Belle had 4 hits and AJ Burnett improved to 5-2 with 3 perfect innings in relief of an ineffective Red Ruffing.