Category: TWIWBL Page 1 of 38

TWIWBL 69.6: Marvin Miller Division

On December 9, 2024

Team	W/L	Pct	GB
Indianapolis ABC’s	39-31	.557	—
Kansas City Monarchs	39-31	.557	—
Wandering House of David	31-38	.449	7.5
Houston Colt 45s	31-41	.431	9
Birmingham Black Barons	28-43	.394	11.5

Marvin Miller Division | 18 June

#Birmingham Black Barons

John Malarkey replaced Sam Streeter in the rotation for Birmingham.

Jim Whitney had easily his best outing of the year with a 4 hit shutout of Houston. He improved to 3-2 with the 1-0 victory, lowering his ERA to 3.55. Whitney followed that up with a masterful 8+ in a 5-1 win, again over Houston, adding another victory and shaving another 0.20 from his ERA.

#Houston Colt 45’s

Bones Ely heads to AAA with Ice Box Chamberlain coming back up for another stint. Johnny Damon was also sent down and while the Colt 45’s strongly considered recalling Roberto Osuna to help their bullpen, they settled instead on veteran OF Luis Gonzalez.

Toad Ramsey struck out 11 and allowed only 1 hit–that a homerun–in a 4-1 victory over Birmingham. The Colt 45’s scored 4 in the top of the 9th–2 on solo shots from George Brett and Jimmy Wynn and 2 on a double by Pete Hill–to help Ramsey improve to 10-4.

#Indianapolis ABCs

Emil Frisk was returned to AAA as Ed Charles was recalled from his rehab assignment.

Johnny Bench continues to emerge from a season long sense, hitting 2 out in an 8-6 loss to Brooklyn, giving him 17 on the year.

Jake Stenzel will miss about a week, warranting a trip to the DL with Frisk coming back up.

The Only Nolan put in his best start of the year, allowing 1 run in 8 innings and striking out 11 in an 8-2 win over the Gothams.

#Kansas City Monarchs

Boog Powell hit 2 out, but those were the only runs the Monarchs could manage in a 10-2 loss to Homestead.

A. Rube Foster was magnificent, spinning a 2-hit shutout in a 10-0 win over Homestead. Ted Simmons had 3 doubles and Powell and Lou Brock each went deep in the victory.

The Monarchs’ best hitter, Stan Musial, will miss about a week as a strained groin will send him to the DL. Jim King was called up from AAA.

#Wandering House of David

Bruce Sutter and Lee Smith swapped roles, with Smith becoming the designated closer for the House of David.

Ernie Banks went deep twice and drove in 5 as the House of David pounded Ottawa, 15-4. Anthony Rizzo, Joe Harris, and Frank Grant also went deep for the home team.

TWIWBL 69.5: Effa Manley Division

By mknn

On December 6, 2024

In TWIWBL

Team	W/L	Pct	GB
Brooklyn Royal Giants	39-30	.565	—
Homestead Grays	37-33	.529	2.5
New York Gothams	37-34	.521	3
Philadelphia Stars	37-35	.514	3.5
Ottawa Mounties	33-35	.485	5.5

Effa Manley Division | 18 June

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Darren Dreifort‘s struggles proved too much, with Brooklyn sending him to AAA in exchange for Rick Aguilera.

Mike Piazza, Dan Brouthers, and John Briggs each hit 2 out as the Royal Giants bowled over the Mounties, 17-8. Brouthers scored 4 times and Piazza drove in 6 in the win.

#Homestead Grays

Brickyard Kennedy failed his WBL audition, heading back to AAA in exchange for Moose Haas. The Grays also stabilized their rotation for the time being, naming Cliff Lee and Billy Pierce to the final 2 spots.

Mike Epstein reached 20 homers on the year with 2 longballs in a 10-2 win over Kansas City.

Honus Wagner had 4 hits including 2 homeruns as the Grays moved past the Stars, 7-4.

#Indianapolis ABC’s

Oscar Charleston went deep twice, leading the ABC’s to a 6-2 win over the Gothams behind a strong outing from Doc White.

#New York Gothams

Last season’s AAA MVP Benny Kauff hit 2 out, giving him 18 on the year, as the Gothams beat Philadelphia, 9-2.

Needing a starter, the Gothams exchanged Guy Hecker for Vean Gregg, who will make his WBL debut. It did not go well, as Gregg surrendered 7 runs in under 4 IP in an 8-2 loss to Indianapolis.

#Ottawa Mounties

Bill Smith moved into the rotation for Ottawa, while Clark Griffith was sent t0 AAA with Clayton Richard being recalled for his first shot at WBL action this season.

Rick Monday continues to press for playing time, hitting 2 out in a 6-3 win over Brooklyn. Monday now has 14 on the year, and Sam Thompson, Roberto Alomar, and Gary Carter also went deep for Ottawa. Bob Brown was hurt in the game, and will miss about 6 weeks, with Chris Bosio rejoining the Mounties.

#Philadelphia Stars

John Burkett, who did fine in his time in the WBL, was sent down as closer Bob Howry was ready to return from injury.

TWIWBL 69.4: Cum Posey Division

By mknn

On December 5, 2024

In TWIWBL

Team	W/L	Pct	GB
San Francisco Sea Lions	45-27	.625	—
Chicago American Giants	34-35	.493	9.5
Miami Cuban Giants	33-38	.465	11.5
Los Angeles Angels	31-38	.449	12.5
Portland Sea Dogs	30-40	.429	14

Cum Posey Division | 18 June

#Chicago American Giants

Carlton Fisk went deep twice (one a grand slam) and drove in 7 as the American Giants beat Detroit 11-7 in 11 innings. Eddie Collins had 4 hits for Chicago as well.

#Los Angeles Angels

Bobby Grich hit his 14th homerun in the bottom of the 9th, giving the Angels an 8-6 walkoff victory over Memphis.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Ryan Braun hit 2 homeruns, but, despite several comebacks, the Cuban Giants fell to San Francisco in 10 innings.

José Méndez had a no-hitter through 7 and Gary Sheffield hit 2 out as the Cuban Giants beat the Sea Lions, 8-4.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Harry Hooper‘s struggles have led to Kiki Cuyler getting more and more playing time, essentially moving the two into a platoon in LF. More importantly, Joseíto Muñoz began his rehab from a long term injury, something that offers significant help to the Sea Dogs’ rotation.

Gil Hodges went deep twice, but the Sea Dogs fell to Cleveland, 11-6, in 13 innings. Jerry Koosman was forced from the game with a shoulder injury, earning himself a trip to the DL. Bobby Witt was recalled to take his place.

Hodges did it again, giving him 21 on the year, and Portland beat the New York Black Yankees despite an off day from Walter Johnson, who moved to 8-5 barely making 5 innings. Hooper, Paul Molitor, and Joe Mauer also went yard for the Sea Dogs in the win.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

Jimmy Bloodworth started his injury rehab, perhaps offering some help to the MI challenges faced by San Francisco.

Jack Clark hit out 2, reaching 20 on the year, and the Sea Lions edged Miami in 10 innings. Clark drove in 5 and Rickey Henderson scored 4 times for San Francisco.

TWIWBL 69.3: Bill James Division

By mknn

On December 4, 2024

In TWIWBL

Team	W/L	Pct	GB
New York Black Yankees	45-26	.634	—
Cleveland Spiders	38-30	.559	5.5
Memphis Red Sox	33-35	.485	10.5
Detroit Wolverines	33-37	.471	11.5
Baltimore Black Sox	28-44	.389	17.5

Bill James Division | 18 June

#Baltimore Black Sox

Time for some changes. Bobby Wallace, Sean Marshall, and John Wetteland were all recalled from rehab assignments, with Mark Baldwin, Gregg Olson, and–yes–Larry Gardner heading to AAA. This means Miller Huggins will see most of the time at 2B, and while Wallace is the starter, Cal Ripken, Jr. will rotate through SS, 3B, and occasionally 2B in a quest for playing time.

Baltimore continues with only 3 named starters (Dennis Martínez, Ned Garvin, and Mike Mussina).

#Cleveland Spiders

Bill Steen returned to the Spiders’ rotation.

Both Sammy Strang and Victor Martinez were moved to AAA as Cleveland’s patience for them to turn around horrible starts to their season ran thin. John Ellis‘ recent mini-revival means Cleveland doesn’t necessarily need to recall a C; instead they brought IFs Steve Sax and Chico Walker up from AA.

Mel Harder‘s injury status remains unknown, but needing a starter, the Spiders placed him on the DL, recalling Hank Gastright. Gastright was OK, and Ron Blomberg went deep twice, but the Spiders couldn’t keep Memphis’ bats quiet, losing 8-4 to the Cuban Giants.

Al Smith, decent in a very small sample size as a lefty in the pen, will miss about a week, earning him a trip to the DL. Joe Smith (no relation) was promoted from AAA.

The Spiders finally got a diagnosis on Harder, who will miss the rest of the season with a fractured elbow.

A strong start from Steen combined with 2 homers from Evan Longoria carried Cleveland to a 4-1 win over Memphis.

#Detroit Wolverines

Bill Carrigan was sent to AAA to see if he could break out of his season-long slump. The Wolverines recalled Jack Wilson from his rehab assignment to help out their beleaguered staff.

Charlie Gehringer continued to impress with his 9th and 10th homeruns of the year as the Wolverines topped Chicago, 5-2. Charlie Root was excellent, allowing 1 run in 7 plus innings to level his record at 6-6.

The Wolverines finally had seen enough of Gene Conley‘s struggles, sending the former pro basketball player to AAA along with Claude Passeau and activating Billy Hoeft and Pete Conway being recalled. With Hal Newhouser starting a rehab assignment, look for more changes in the Detroit mound corps in the days to come.

#Memphis Red Sox

Ted Williams reached 20 homeruns on the season, going deep twice in an 8-6 loss to Los Angeles.

#New York Black Yankees

Hank Bauer did well in his time in the WBL, with 6 homers in under 30 games. But he’s no Eric Davis, and with Davis ready to return from his rehab assignment, Bauer moves back to AAA and the Black Yankees become, if anything, more formidable.

Mickey Mantle went deep twice and Waite Hoyt improved to 5-0 as the Black Yankees beat Portland, 9-4.

Dave Righetti will miss a couple weeks with a strained shoulder, prompting the Black Yankees to recall Roy Evans from AAA Newark. Evans isn’t very heralded as a prospect, but he led AA in IP in 2000, and was 6-3 with a 3.20 ERA so far at AAA.

TWIWBL 69.2 Spotlight on the Baltimore Black Sox

By mknn

On December 3, 2024

In TWIWBL

What a collapse. From Whirled Series champions to last place in their division, Baltimore is finding out what happens when your pitching staff goes from being among the best in the league to something very far away from that.

Baltimore inherits players from the St. Louis Browns and the Baltimore Orioles, as well as NeL players closely aligned with either the Baltimore Black Sox or the Baltimore Elite Giants.

HOME PAGE | ROSTER | POSITIONAL STRENGTH | LEADERS

Baltimore is floundering in last place, 17.5 games behind the Black Yankees, with the worst record in the league. It’s just pretty miserable.

THE OFFENSE

The offense hasn’t been great, but it’s not really been the dominant issue for the Black Sox.

#What’s Going Right

Frank Robinson continues to argue for a spot among the truly elite of the league, slashing 300/389/623. But he doesn’t lead the Black Sox in HRs or RBIs: that falls to Gavvy Cravath, who is coming through as the largest free agent acquisition of the off season. Cravath has 21 homeruns and 54 RBIs, shading ahead of Robinson in both counts.

Cal Ripken, Jr. is tearing the cover off the ball in about 20 games, arguing for a lot more playing time.

Bryce Harper and Dan McGann continue to be well above-average with only a low BA for Harper and not enough power for McGann keeping them out of superstar status.

Miller Huggins has been surprisingly good, getting on base at a near .400 clip.

#What’s Not Going Right

Larry Gardner, excellent last year, has almost played himself out of a job at this point, struggling to get his OPS over .550. His lack of productivity and Bobby Wallace‘s injury are what opened the door for Ripken, Jr. and Huggins.

Baby Doll Jacobson has been quite average.

Paul Blair cannot hit, but we knew that, and he does continue to play stellar defense in CF.

THE PITCHING

The rotation is in total disarray and the bullpen isn’t much better.

#What’s Going Right

Um.

Ned Garvin is on the mound again.

Justin Hampson has been effective as an option versus lefties from the bullpen.

Mike Mussina has pitched well, far better than his 3-4, 5.11 numbers would indicate.

#What’s Not Going Right

Everything else.

Let’s start with the staff ace, Dennis Martínez, who has a decent 7-4 record, but has been hit pretty hard, with a 5.19 ERA and poor peripherals.

The rest of the starters have been so bad that the Black Sox refuse to name a #4 and #5 starter. Nobody else has an ERA under 5.00, and while Connie Johnson and Bill Byrd have decent analytics, the results have been relatively miserable.

Joe Beggs has 11 saves, but has also started 2 games, and looks betwixt and between no matter what his role.

THE FARM SYSTEM

TOP PROSPECTS | MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEM

Not great.

Ripken, Jr. started the year in the minors, and he and Eddie Murray are clearly the future of the org. But there isn’t much beyond them–Bruce Bochte and Steve Brodie have some talent in the OF; Gunnar Henderson, Mark Belanger, and Asdrúbal Cabrera could offer some help on the IF; and … who knows, maybe Joe Dobson, maybe Jack Kramer on the mound?

WHAT’S NEEDED

A miracle. I mean, just not finishing in the basement would be something at this point. My guess is this team is a seller at the deadline, which may mean McGann moves on, clearing room for Murray.

Storylines to Watch

Key Questions from Spring Training

Not many: the twelve arms are–pending injury or spring training collapse–pretty much set, as is most of the lineup with only a single roster spot currently available, which would be filled by a reserve 2B? Ah, such arrogance …

FEATURED SERIES

Baltimore closes the week with 3 games at Detroit, which will be our focus.

Projected Starters

Baltimore starter listed first.

Dennis Martínez (7-4, 5.19) @ Johnny Marcum (5-2, 3.78)
Ned Garvin (3-3, 5.33) @ Justin Verlander (2-8, 66.06)
Mike Mussina (4-4, 5.31) @ Charlie Root (6-6, 4.89)

Game One

Dennis Martínez‘ struggles have been a major issue for Baltimore so far this year. El Presidente won 14 games with an ERA under 4.00 in their championship run. This year, his ERA is about a run-and-a-half higher, although he does have 7 wins.

Martínez struggled here, giving up 5 runs in 5 innings on 4 homers. But Cal Ripken Jr., Curt Blefary, and Manny Machado all hit one out for Baltimore, and both starters left after 5 innings, with the Black Sox up, 6-5.

The surprising Juan Beníquez drove in the go-ahead run for Detroit in the bottom of the 7th, setting up a great situation for the Wolverines, with Chad Bradford pitching the 8th and Mike Henneman the 9th. Bradford did his job, but Henneman gave up a pinch-hit homer to Ken Singleton giving Baltimore an edge that Joe Beggs–not terribly dependable so far this season–was able to preserve.

Both Ripken and Detroit’s Ed Bailey had 2 homers on the day.

BAL 8 (Sain 1-2; Beggs 12 Sv; Hampson 7 H; Dickey 1 Bsv) @ DET 7 (Henneman 4-2, 3 B Sv; Bradford 6 H)
HRs: BAL – Ripken, Jr. 2 (10), Machado (24), Blefary (15), Singleton (9); DET – C. Davis (18), E. Bailey 2 (16), Gamble (11).
Box Score

Detroit got some bad news after the game, with Henneman out for just over a month. Joakim Soria was recalled from AAA.

Game Two

With Ned Garvin not yet rested, the Black Sox turned to Jim Palmer for the matchup against Detroit’s struggling Justin Verlander.

Detroit took the lead in the bottom of the first, but both Palmer and Verlander were doing well early. Verlander gave up a lot of base runners, but it took a an RBI single from Miller Huggins for Baltimore to go ahead, 2-1, in the top of the 4th.

A solo shot from Oscar Gamble tied the game, but the Black Sox greeted Verlander’s replacement, Jack Wilson, for 4 runs, led by Frank Robinson‘s bases-clearing, 2-out double.

A double from Ty Cobb in the bottom of the 8th finally chased Palmer, who made a decent argument for a return to Baltimore’s rotation. His numbers won’t reflect that, as John Wetteland came in, walked a batter, and gave up a grand slam to Gamble followed by a solo shot to Chili Davis, tying the game.

More bad news for Detroit’s staff, as Billy Hoeft will miss a couple weeks.

With Chad Bradford and Sean Marshall each doing their jobs, we head into extra innings in this one.

In the 10th, Cal Ripken Jr. singled and was replaced by Baby Doll Jacobson, who stole second. Bobby Wallace delivered an RBI single for the lead, and Baltimore turned the game over to Joe Beggs. Ty Cobb, Hank Greenberg, and Gamble? No problem, and Baltimore holds on for the victory.

Most importantly, Marshall looked like his old self with 1.2 scoreless innings.

Gamble ended with 5 RBIs and Bobby Wallace had 3 hits on the day.

BAL 8 (Marshall 1-0; Beggs 13 Sv) @ DET 7 (Bradford 2-4) [10 Innings]
HRs: BAL – none; DET – Gamble 2 (13), C. Davis (19).
Box Score

Hoeft hit the DL, and Detroit recalled Mike Griffin.

Game Three

Last year, Baltimore’s Ned Garvin and Detroit’s Charlie Root were among the best hurlers in the league. This season … not so much. But both of shown flashes of their past ability, so we’ll see if Garvin can nail down the sweep or Root can salvage a game for the Wolverines.

Gavvy Cravath put Baltimore in front 1-0 in the 2nd with his 22nd homer of the season. That wasn’t terribly surprising, but Paul Blair‘s 8th of the year, a 3 run shot, was, giving the Black Sox a 4-0 edge.

Garvin was unable to hold it, though, as a series of walks and singles brought Detroit back to within 1 at 4-3. Garvin loaded the bases in the 3rd as well, including his 6th walk of the game. For the second time on the day, George Davis came through with an RBI single, this time tying the game and chasing Garvin, who was replaced by Connie Johnson, who promptly walked in a run, putting Detroit up, 5-4.

Ty Cobb and Hank Greenberg hit back-to-back shots in the 4th, but Frank Robinson and Bryce Harper tied it up in the 5th with longballs of their own. That, and a short rain delay, chased Root.

In the top of the 7th, Cravath sent out his 2nd of the game, this one with the bases loaded. RBI’s from Blair and Miller Huggins made it 13-7. In this contest, it just might be enough …

Cravath hit his 3rd of the day and Justin Hampson and Johnny Sain were able to close it out. Cravath finished with 4 runs scored and 6 RBIs for Baltimore while Kaline was 4 for 4 for Detroit.

BAL 14 (Byrd 4-3) @ DET 7 (Bechtel 1-2)
HRs: BAL – Cravath 3 (24), Blair (8), Robinson (22), Harper (15); DET – Greenberg (26), Cobb (23).
Box Score

The game was a little rough, as Baltimore’s Bobby Wallace and Detroit’s Mike Griffin (on his WBL debut) had to leave via injury. Wallace was sent to the DL with light hitting IF Dave Anderson being recalled.

This gives Baltimore a 5 game winning streak, during which they are giving up over 7 runs a contest. So, yeah, it’s really been all about the offense. But if they can get some pitching, they can at least claw their way out of the basement. After that, who knows?

TWIWBL 69.1: Year 2, Week 12

By mknn

On December 2, 2024

In TWIWBL

June 18th

We’re rounding the corner towards the selection of this year’s All-Star teams. Today, we’ll check in on last year’s all stars from the AL.

#Awards

Duke Snider hit .444 with 5 homeruns last week, earning the Brooklyn OFer the NL Player of the Week Award. In the other league, Detroit‘s irrepressible Ty Cobb was named AL Player of the Week. Cobb moved his average back over .400, finishing the week at .411 after hitting .579 with 5 homers.

#Team Performance

Pretty much status quo here.

The New York Black Yankees lead Cleveland in the Bill James Division by 5.5 games; San Francisco has extended their lead in the Cum Posey Division to 9.5 over Chicago; and Indianapolis and Kansas City remain tied atop the Marvin Miller Division.

And, over in the Effa Manley Division, 5.5 games separate Brooklyn in first and Ottawa at the bottom.

Memphis and Brooklyn have gone 8-2 over their last 10 games, while Miami has done the inverse, finishing 2-8 over their last week and a half.

#Player Performance

Batters

Someone poked Babe Ruth, insinuating that the Black Yankees’ OF might not be the dominant player in the league. Since then, he has been on fire, retaking the league lead in his usual categories.

Three batters sit over .400: Houston‘s Tony Gwynn at .427, Ty Cobb at .411, and Homestead‘s Josh Gibson at .402. Gwynn, predictably, is the only batter with over 100 hits so far in the season.

Oscar Charleston (IND). 328/380/626. 9 3B.
Ty Cobb (DET). 411/462/864. 97 H; 34 2B; 4.9 WAR.
Josh Gibson (HOM). 402/480/776. 4.5 WAR.
Tony Gwynn (HOU). 427/460/668. 108 H.
Joe Jackson (CHI). 368/417/611. 35 2B.
Stan Musial (KCM). 329/394/573. 35 2B.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 297/420/768. 34 HR; 81 RBI; 67 R; 55 BB.
Larry Walker (OTT). 321/390/782. 32 HR; 73 RBI.
Ted Williams (MEM). 306/425/624. 60 R; 48 BB.

San Francisco’s Rickey Henderson continues to lead the league in steals with 51, but Ottawa’s Tim Raines has recovered a bit offensively, and being on base more has allowed him to close the gap a bit, now sitting with 44 on the year.

Pitchers

Starters

Indianapolis’ Luis Padrón and San Francisco’s Bump Hadley are the only hurlers in double digits for wins. The three pitchers with 9 victories are also included below, as well as the usual statistical leaders. Of note is the appearance of Kansas City’s A. Rube Foster, who now has (barely) enough IP to qualify here.

The dominance of Kansas City and San Francisco is worth mentioning as well.

Frank Castillo (KCM). 9-1, 4.01.
A. Rube Foster (KCM). 4-0, 2.44. 0.86 WHIP.
Lefty Grove (SFS). 8-4, 3.19. 107 IP; 3.1 WAR.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 8-3, 3.68. 116 K.
Bump Hadley (SFS). 10-4, 3.81. 3.29 FIP.
Luis Padrón (IND). 10-2, 3.90.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 9-3, 3.65.
Toad Ramsey (HOU). 9-4, 3.03. 107 IP; 134 K; 0.94 WHIP; 2.72 FIP; 4.6 WAR.

Relievers

Five relievers have 9 Holds at this point, and all of them are listed, making this a bit of a larger group than usual.

16 IP minimum.

Rod Beck (SFS). 2-2, 3.79. 19 Sv.
Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-1, 3.72. 9 H.
Ken Howell (SFS). 4-1, 1.46. 3 H.
Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-3, 3.55. 1 Sv; 9 H.
Craig Kimbrel (KCM). 1-0, 0.92. 2 Sv; 9 H; 0.71 WHIP; 2.07 FIP.
Josh Lindblom (HOM). 3-2, 4.01. 18 Sv.
Rob Murphy (IND). 1-1, 2.70. 1 Sv; 9 H.
Ross Reynolds (LAA). 2-0, 1.93. 1 Sv; 1 H; 2.02 FIP.
BJ Ryan (OTT). 1-2, 4.85. 1 Sv; 9 H.
Lee Smith (HOD). 4-1, 2.97. 3 Sv; 6 H; 0.73 WHIP.

#2 Way Players

It’s been a while, so figured we should check back in on these guys. Here’s the list:

Name	Team	Batting	Pitching	Total WAR
Charles Rogan	PHI	311/356/605. 1.8 WAR.	4-5, 4.55. 1.8 WAR.	3.6
Luis Padrón	IND	252/331/390. 0.1 WAR.	11-2, 3.90. 2.9 WAR.	3.0
Smokey Joe Wood	KCM	263/364/526. 0.1 WAR.	8-3, 3.41. 2.1 WAR.	2.2
JM Ward	PHI	158/186/246. -0.7 WAR.	3-2, 3.68. 1.8 WAR.	1.1
Jim Whitney	BBB	140/178/256. -0.4 WAR.	2-2, 4.00. 1.1 WAR.	0.7
Elmer Smith	LAA	323/462/387. 0.2 WAR.	0-1, 6.46. -0.1 WAR.	0.1
Eustaquio Pedroso	MIA	210/312/296. -0.3 WAR.	2-1, 6.11. -0.2 WAR.	-0.5

Wood has received very little time in the field, so we’ll see how he does as that expands. It looks like Ward should stay on the mound, and that really, it’s only Rogan and Padrón as truly valuable 2-way talents.

#Injury Report

Cleveland’s Mel Harder, Detroit’s Hal Newhouser, Miami’s Kenshin Kawakami and perhaps most importantly, Portland’s Joséito Muñoz should all start injury rehabs later this week. Should those go well, all four teams should receive rotation boosts in the near future.

#Last Year’s All-Stars

As we ramp up to this year’s all-star game, seemed a good time to check in on last year’s designees. This week, we’ll take a look at (what was last year) the AL.

#OBV

Bob Bailey (3B, DET). Just a dependable offensive machine at the hot corner.

Rod Beck (RP, SFS). Still racking up the saves, and doing better than last season otherwise.

Hank Greenberg (1B, DET). Keeps pounding the ball.

Mike Henneman (RP, DET). Remains dominant from the bullpen.

Rogers Hornsby (2B, POR). Keeps rolling along with better numbers than last season.

Joe Jackson (OF, CAG). This year’s version is a doubles machine without nearly the homerun power, but still maintaining on OPS over 1.000.

Craig Kimbrel (RP, KCM). Dominant, and really making the argument to be moved into the closer slot for Kansas City.

Willie Mays (OF, NYG). Somehow underappreciated despite his stellar performance.

Andy Pettitte (SP, NYY). Just keeps rolling. Like the whole league, his ERA is a little higher, but his peripheral numbers are strong.

Buster Posey (C, NYG). More power than last year, a little less of everything else, but still elite.

Frank Thomas (1B, CAG). Significantly better offensively across the board, which is a truly frightening statement.

Ted Williams (OF, MEM). A borderline selection last year, he’s upped his game significantly this season, with an OPS of 1.049.

#Mebbe

Curt Blefary (C, BAL). Nowhere near as good as last season, but still a good offensive player, showing both power and control of the strike zone.

Eddie Collins (2B, CAG). Power output has fallen off, and while he’s still a top performer, is not the MVP candidate of last season.

Mike Epstein (1B, HOM). The shape of his production has changed, as his BA has dropped 80 points. But he’s slugging .570 and his OPS is virtually the same as last season.

Dan McGann (1B, BAL). At 37, he’s performing better than last season, but remains under the radar for some reason.

Stan Musial (OF, KCM). He’s hitting almost exactly the same as he did last year, but has struggled with the longball. That may be enough to nudge him off the team, unfair as that may be.

#Meh

Dick Allen (3B, CAB). Not doing badly, but clearly a long wasy from an all star at this point.

Gerrit Cole (SP, LAA). May be pitching better than last season, but without the dominant W/L record, should fall far short of the all-star game.

Mark Melancon (RP, POR). Perhaps a stretch choice last year due to a ridiculous number of wins for a reliever, is doing fine this year, but far from all-star levels.

AJ Minter (RP, CAG). Still the American Giants’ closer, but no longer among the best in the league.

Reggie Smith (OF, MEM). Other than a boost in power, struggling a bit across the board.

Bobby Wallace (SS, BAL). Injured and not performing nearly as well regardless, Wallace is still an on base machine, and clearly has value.

Brian Wilson (RP, NYG). Injured and limited to 13 games so far, but dominant in those appearances, so there’s a chance.

#What Happened?

Bill Byrd (SP, BAL). Well below average so far this season.

Elrod Hendricks (C, HOD). Last year’s magnificent performance looks more and more like a mirage. Hendricks still has power, but is no longer elite among league backstops.

Duffy Lewis (OF, CHI). Struggling, especially in the power department.

Tricky Nichols (SP, CAG). An ERA over 6.00 and a ton of HR’s allowed.

Freddy Parent (SS, CAG). Parent rode his All Star selection–deserved at the time–to a trade to a contender, and then lost the ability to hit for power at all. Without that, he’s a mediocre SS.

Doug Rader (3B, LAA). A stunningly productive 2000 has been followed with … very little.

George Stone (OF, HOD). Significantly worse across the board. Stone looked like a budding star last year, now he looks like a decent 4th OFer.

#Other

Ned Garvin (SP, BAL). Garvin was the dominant pitcher in the league last year when he got injured. He’s been fine since his return, but has yet to find the same level.

Sean Marshall (RP, BAL). Hit by a long-term injury, Marshall is due to return to Baltimore’s bullpen by the all-star game.

TWIWBL 68.6: Marvin Miller Division

By mknn

On November 4, 2024

In TWIWBL

Team	W/L	Pct	GB
Indianapolis ABC’s	36-28	.563	—
Kansas City Monarchs	36-28	.563	—
Wandering House of David	28-34	.452	7
Houston Colt 45s	29-36	.446	7.5
Birmingham Black Barons	25-39	.391	11

Marvin Miller Division | 11 June

#Birmingham Black Barons

Andy Pafko went deep twice, reaching 11 on the year, but those were the only runs Birmingham could manage as they fell, 3-2 to Brooklyn in 14 innings.

Hank Aaron hit 2 out, giving him 24 on the year, and the Black Barons beat Homestead 9-4. Aaron drove in 5, and Curtis Granderson and Eddie Mathews each hit their 22nd dinger of the year in support of Sam Streeter.

#Houston Colt 45s

Tony Gwynn went had 3 hits, pushing his season total over 100 and raising his average to .429 in a 7-2 victory over Philadelphia. Roger Clemens improved to 8-2 with a strong 7 plus innings.

#Indianapolis ABC’s

The ABC’s will be without their sparkplug, as Bob Bescher heads to the DL with a bruised knee. Emil Frisk was recalled from AAA. They also exchanged the struggling Sad Sam Jones for the return of Gorham Leverett from a rehab assignment.

Oscar Charleston went deep twice, leading the ABC’s to a 7-5 win over Kansas City.

Luis Padrón increased his win total to a league-leading 11 in an 8-2 victory over Kansas City. Padrón was solid through 7-plus, moving to 11-2 on the year and lowering his ERA to 3.90 while Joey Votto went deep twice for the ABC’s.

#Kansas City Monarchs

Jock Menefee, who had pitched well over a half-dozen appearances, will miss 3-4 months with a shoulder injury. Mike Kume was recalled from AAA.

Dale Murphy went deep twice as the Monarchs pounded out 20 hits in a 17-3 win over Indianapolis. Frank Castillo improved to 9-1, striking out 10 in 7 solid innings of work.

#Wandering House of David

The House of David shook up their staff, sending Wade Miley and Kerry Wood to AAA, and moving Rick Reuschel out of the rotation. Kyle Peterson and Jim Clinton were recalled from the minors.

George Gore would not be who you would have picked: he entered the day with only 3 homeruns and ended it having doubled his total to 6. It was not enough, however, as the House of David fell to the Gothams 10-9 in extra frames.

Sammy Sosa hit 3 solo homers, giving him 17 on the season. The last one gave the House of David the lead in the top of 9th, with Lee Smith earning his 2nd save in a 4-3 victory over the Gothams.

Needing a starter, the House of David sent the mightily struggling Frank Sullivan to AAA with Karl Spooner being recalled.

Clinton’s time in the WBL only lasted 2 appearances. He was effective across his 6 innings of work, but came down with a sore shoulder. Bob Shaw was recalled.

TWIWBL 68.5: Effa Manley Division

By mknn

On November 1, 2024

In TWIWBL

Team	W/L	Pct	GB
Homestead Grays	35-29	.547	—
New York Gothams	34-30	.531	1
Brooklyn Royal Giants	33-30	.524	1.5
Ottawa Mounties	32-31	.508	2.5
Philadelphia Stars	31-34	.477	4.5

Effa Manley Division | 11 June

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Duke Snider went deep twice, but Brooklyn needed a single from John Briggs in the bottom of the 9th to best Birmingham, 7-6.

Mike Piazza hit 2 out to reach 23 on the year as Brooklyn topped the Gothams 9-3.

#Homestead Grays

Andrew McCutchen had 4 hits, scored twice, and hit 2 homeruns as the Grays beat Birmingham, 13-7. Perhaps more importantly, Cliff Lee was solid on the mound in a spot start, earning his first victory of the year.

#New York Gothams

Benny Kauff hit a walkoff dinger in the bottom of the 10th to give the Gothams a 10-9 win over the House of David.

Needing a starter, the highly ineffective Tony Mullane was sent to AAA, with Rube Waddell being recalled for the outing. Waddell was injured in his outing, placed on the DL, and Guy Hecker was recalled in the Gothams never-ending search for reliable arms.

Johnny Callison went deep twice and the Gothams poured on runs throughout in a 10-3 defeat of the House of David.

#Ottawa Mounties

Gary Carter went deep twice but it wasn’t enough as the Mounties fell to Homestead, 8-5.

#Philadelphia Stars

Ray Collins took Larry Jackson‘s place in the Stars’ rotation and Art Fletcher took over from Jimmy Rollins as the everyday shortstop.

Aaron Judge went deep twice, leading the Stars to an 8-2 win over Houston.

This lineup is so much more dangerous if Ted Kluszewski gets his bat working. Klu went deep twice, as did Chase Utley, and the Stars weathered some rough pitching to beat Houston 11-9 in 12 innings.

TWIWBL 68.4: Cum Posey Division

By mknn

On October 31, 2024

In TWIWBL

Team	W/L	Pct	GB
San Francisco Sea Lions	40-25	.615	—
Miami Cuban Giants	33-31	.516	6.5
Chicago American Giants	32-31	.508	7
Los Angeles Angels	29-33	.468	9.5
Portland Sea Dogs	26-38	.406	13.5

Cum Posey Division | 11 June

#Chicago American Giants

Jamie Moyer replaced David Price in the American Giants’ rotation.

Paul Konerko went deep twice, leading the American Giants to a 10-4 win over Portland.

The time finally came, with Jack Doyle heading to AAA and Damian Jackson being activated from his rehab assignment. Doyle’s saga made him a fan favorite, but even the most diehard of supporters had to agree that a 107/153/107 slash line needed replacing.

Chicago roared out to a 10-0 lead, then held on for dear life in an eventual 11-10 win over Portland. The American Giants hit 6 homeruns in the game, with Joe Jackson, Eddie Collins, Dick Allen, Konerko, Duffy Lewis, and Carlton Fisk all reaching the seats. Starter Tricky Nichols improved to 4-6 with a decent effort, but the bullpen was roughed up. Still, a win’s a win.

#Los Angeles Angels

Noah Lowry‘s struggles–along with the presence of Elmer Smith and Scott Rice as lefthanded options in the pen–earned him a trip to AAA, with Mike Krukow being called up for his WBL debut.

Doc Gooden struck out 12, improving to 6-4 in a 7-3 win over Miami. Don Buford had 5 hits and 4 Angels–Buford, Kal Daniels, AJ Pierzynski, and Carlos Delgado–went deep in the victory.

Krukow did well enough over 3 appearances, but Ross Reynolds was healthy again, and was recalled from his rehab assignment with Krukow returning to AAA. The MI question is more challenging, and George Wright has been left rehabbing at AAA as the Angels need a few more days to sort out the future roles of him, Mark Ellis, and Eddie Joost.

Brian Anderson struck out 13 in a dominant performance as the Angels topped the Sea Lions, 7-1. Anderson allowed 3 hits and walked none in the complete game effort, improving his record to 6-2.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Ramón Martínez finally got his first win of the year with a strong 7 innings against Los Angeles. José Canseco hit his 30th homer of the year (the first to that milestone) and Martínez fanned 10 as his record improved to 1-7.

Gary Sheffield went deep twice and drove in 5, but the Cuban Giants bullpen couldn’t protect a strong start from Steven Wright as Miami fell 6-5 to Detroit.

#Portland Sea Dogs

The Sea Dogs have overhauled their bullpen, sending Johan Santana to AAA in an attempt to sort out his horrific performance since major surgery along with Elmer Brown who has been, if anything, even worse, as well as Wade Miller. They’ll recall Art Fowler, Tom Zachary, and Scott Terry from AAA, with Trevor Hoffman sliding into the closer role.

Buddy Bell may finally be showing signs of life as the struggling 3B went deep twice in a 9-6 loss to San Francisco.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

Tommy Bridges was recalled from a rehab assignment, with Huston Street being waived.

Bump Hadley twirled a masterpiece, striking out 12 in a 2-hit shutout of the New York Black Yankees. Homeruns by Sal Bando and Mickey Cochrane carried the offense to the 6-0 victory.

Turkey Stearnes went deep twice, giving the rookie 15 on the year, as San Francisco triumphed over Portland, 9-6.

Ron Robinson, a key part of the Sea Lions’ bullpen, will miss nearly a year with elbow surgery. San Francisco recalled Street (who had grudgingly accepted his waiver demotion earlier in the week), a major dropoff on past WBL performance from Robinson.

Eddie Plank improved to 8-3 with a 3 hit shutout of Portland. Reggie Jackson and Gene Oliver went deep in support of Plank who struck out 8.

TWIWBL 68.3: Bill James Division

By mknn

On October 30, 2024

In TWIWBL

Team	W/L	Pct	GB
New York Black Yankees	41-23	.641	—
Cleveland Spiders	33-29	.532	7
Memphis Red Sox	29-34	.460	11.5
Detroit Wolverines	28-36	.438	13
Baltimore Black Sox	27-38	.415	14.5

Bill James Division | 11 June

#Baltimore Black Sox

The Black Sox got some good news as Sean Marshall and John Wetteland both began rehab assignments in their journeys back from injury. This was followed by bad news, as John Tudor will miss a couple months with a shoulder issue. Veteran knuckleballer RA Dickey was recalled for his WBL debut.

Frank Robinson hit his 18th and 19th homeruns of the year, but Baltimore fell to Memphis, 5-4.

#Cleveland Spiders

Bill Steen was called into an emergency start. 8 1/3 innings, 12 strikeouts, and 139 pitches later, he had only allowed 1 hit. But 139 pitches and 2 walks in the top of the 9th, and the Spiders summoned Terry Adams from the bullpen. 2 pitches later, the Spiders had a 4-0 lead and a joint 1-hitter.

Stan Coveleski will be out into next season. Sergio Romo was added from AAA.

#Detroit Wolverines

Ed Bailey and Ty Cobb had 3 hits each, with Bailey going yard twice and Cobb moving his average back over .400 to .403 in a 7-2 win over Memphis.

Hank Greenberg went deep twice and Detroit pulled off a come from behind win over Miami, 6-5.

Pressed into a spot start, Si Johnson delivered 4 plus innings of 1 hit ball, then exited with an oblique strain. Claude Passeau, Chad Bradford, and Mike Henneman allowed only a single walk over the rest of the game, giving the Wolverines a 1 hitter by committee. Juan Beníquez and Greenberg went deep in the 6th for the only runs in the 3-0 blanking of Miami.

Ed Bailey hit 3 out and Cobb went deep twice as the Wolverines beat Miami, 6-3.

#Memphis Red Sox

David Bush and Jameson Taillon have moved into the rotation, taking the spot of the injured Shane Bieber and Bill Doak. Derek Lowe was promoted to take Bieber’s roster spot.

Ted Williams went deep twice and the Red Sox beat Baltimore, 9-3.

Manny Ramírez hit 3 homeruns, reaching 19 on the year, as the Red Sox beat Baltimore, 10-7. Skel Roach had to come out of the game with a blister, and will miss about a week, warranting a trip to the DL. Tommy De La Cruz was added to the big league bullpen.

#New York Black Yankees

Mike Schmidt went deep to tie the game in the 8th, and then powered the Black Yankees to a 9-5 win over Los Angeles with a walkoff grand slam in the bottom of the 9th. Schmidt had 6 RBIs on the day.

Schmidt did it again the next day, going deep twice in a 10 inning, 8-7 win over the Angels.

And then it was Babe Ruth‘s turn to hit 2 out, but this time it wasn’t enough as the Angels topped the Black Yankees, 6-3.

Clearly annoyed at people questioning his dominance, Ruth took over the WBL lead in homers, hitting another 3 out in a 15-3 shellacking of Cleveland. For the 3rd time this year, Ruth drove in 6, increasing his RBI total to 79. Héctor López, Nick Etten, Lou Gehrig, and Mickey Mantle also went deep, and Dave Righetti improved to 6-3 on the year with a strong showing.