The Whirled League – Page 22 – Baseball The Way It Never Was

Series preview here.

#Game 1: David Price @ Wade Miley

Chicago’s David Price was masterful, allowing only 1 run and 3 hits in just shy of 8 innings, leading the American Giants to a 5-1 victory. Dick Allen hit his 21st homerun and Kevin Mitchell his 2nd for Chicago, who also got 2 hits from Frank Thomas and Duffy Lewis.

The American Giants got a bit of a scare in the 7th as a Scott Downs fastball slammed into Mike Fiore‘s face. The American Giants CF got up from the ground with blood streaming from their nose, and had to be replaced by Jack Doyle.

CAG 5 (Price 2-0) @ HOD 1 (Miley 7-5)
HRs: CAG – Allen (21), Mitchell (2); HOD – Edmonds (15).
Box Score

News after the game was good for Chicago: Fiore would only miss a few days with a broken nose and, perhaps, a new profile.

More importantly, Pete Browning has, at long last, accumulated enough plate appearances to qualify for the the league leader lists. Browning leads the league in BA at .354 and is 3rd in SLG at .636.

#Game 2: Mark Buehrle @ Frank Sullivan

The House of David got one back with a sterling starting performance of their own as Frank Sullivan pitched into the 9th inning having allowed only 1 run and 5 hits. Despite some recent struggles, Bruce Sutter was solid in relief, picking up his 20th save of the year.

Elrod Hendricks gave the House of David an early lead with his 33rd homerun of the year, a 2-run shot in the bottom of the first. They would double their lead in the 5th, first on an RBI double from Skeeter Barnes and then when Barnes pulled off a steal of home with 2 outs.

Chicago’s Mark Buehrle was the hard luck loser, allowing 7 hits in what turned out to be a complete game 8 innings.

CAG 1 (Buehrle 10-9) @ HOD 4 (Sullivan 9-8; Sutter 20 Sv)
HRs: CAG – Collins (18); HOD – Hendricks (33).
Box Score

#Game 3: Ben Sheets @ Jack Taylor

While Chicago considered sending Ed Walsh out instead of the struggling Ben Sheets, the American Giants decided in the end to keep their rotation intact, hoping Sheets can match up against the league’s best pitcher, Jack Taylor.

Homeruns from Frank Thomas and Cristóbal Torriente gave Chicago an early 3-0 lead, but Taylor settled down after that. Surprisingly, Sheets was even better, tossing a 3-hit shutout through 5 innings.

The 6th was decisive: a double by Duffy Lewis made it 4-0, and Dick Allen‘s 22nd homerun (and 99th RBI) chased Taylor with the score 6-0 Chicago. 3 more runs in the 7th made it 9-0, and the game seemed out of reach.

Seemed.

2 runs in the bottom of the inning put the House of David on the board, and then they exploded in the bottom of the 8th, fueled by a 2-run double by Pete Browning and a bases clearing double from Richie Hebner. Suddenly, it was 9-7 with Hebner on 3rd and 1 out. A single from Ron Santo–his 4th hit of the day–made it 9-8 and chased Don Newcombe from the mound. Hoyt Wilhelm got out of the inning, but suddenly we had a ballgame.

But AJ Minter closed it out for his 23rd save, and Chicago won a game that was far closer than it should have been. The win put Chicago ahead 2-1 in the series.

CAG 9 (Sheets 9-8; Minter 23 Sv; Wilhelm 3 H) @ HOD 8 (Taylor 14-9)
HRs: CAG – Thomas (24), Torriente (1), Allen (22); HOD – none.
Box Score

#Game 4: Tricky Nichols @ CC Sabathia

George Stone led off the bottom of the 1st with his 26th homerun, but Chicago answered with a bases-loaded double from Freddy Parent. Chicago’s Tricky Nichols never really settled down, giving up dingers to Jim Edmonds and Ernie Banks in the 3rd before another homerun, this one to Anthony Rizzo, chased him in the 4th.

CC Sabathia, meanwhile, was cruising, not allowing a run since Parent’s double through 6 innings. His relief didn’t do so well: a Dick Allen homerun started their 8th inning, and a flurry of singles brought in 3 more runs. That closed the gap to 8-7 in favor of the House of David.

But, much like the prior game, the closer came through: Bruce Sutter struck out 2 in a perfect 9th to give the House of David a series split.

CAG 7 (Nichols 14-8) @ HOD 8 (Sabathia 11-11; Sutter 21 Sv; Smith 13 H)
HRs: CAG – Allen (23); HOD – Stone (26), Edmonds (16), Banks (23), Rizzo (13).
Box Score

Series XXXIII Best Games

By mknn

On June 13, 2023

In Featured Games, Game Recaps

We have more good pitching than usual in the best games of Series XXXIII.

We’ll start with the opening and closing game from a series with potentially massive playoff implications.

#Birmingham Black Barons @ New York Gothams, Games 1 and 5

Birmingham’s Greg Maddux wasn’t bad: just over 6 innings and only 2 runs allowed. The problem was the Gothams’ Christy Mathewson was stellar, picking up his league-leading 16th win of the season by throwing a 3-hit shutout over 7 innings. Maddux left the game after allowing an RBI single to Will Clark, replaced by Kent Mercker who gave up a deep flyball to the pinch-hitting Carl Furillo, scoring another run.

Hank Aaron took Robb Nen deep in the 8th to cut the lead in half, but Mike Norris (pushed into service due to Brian Wilson‘s injury) picked up his 6th save of the year, allowing only a walk in the 9th.

BBB 1 (Maddux 4-5) @ NYG 2 (Mathewson 16-7; Norris 6 Sv; Nen 11 H)
HRs: BBB – Aaron (25); NYG – none.
Box Score

The Gothams turned to Don Sutton for a spot start, and the 24 year old was simply brilliant … but it wasn’t enough. Sutton gave up 1 run–a solo shot by Aaron–through 7 innings, and while New York’s bullpen beckoned, Sutton was still well under 90 pitches. But with 2 outs in the 8th, Cupid Childs took him deep and Aaron launched his second of the game, edging Birmingham in front, 3-2.

Birmingham’s closer, Juan Rincón, allowed only 1 hit in the 9th, closing out the victory for the Black Barons.

NYG 2 (Sutton 2-4) @ BBB 3 (Whitney 1-2; Rincón 22 Sv)
HRs: NYG – Higgins (13); BBB – Aaron 2 (27), Childs (4).
Box Score

Two more good games with good pitching!

#Memphis Red Sox @ Detroit Wolverines, Game 1

Through six innings, the only score was a solo shot from Memphis’ Manny Ramírez. That was one of only 2 hits allowed by Detroit’s Gene Conley over his 7 innings, further cementing Conley’s adaptation from reliever to starter over the season. Buddy Napier gave up an unearned run in the top of the 8th, putting the Red Sox in front, 2-0.

Memphis’ Stubby Overmire was nearly as good: a shutout through 6, a single run in the 7th on an RBI single from Chili Davis, and finally being chased in the 8th after giving up 2 hits and a walk. Overmire’s relief, Tim Wakefield, gave up a sacrifice fly to Hank Greenberg tying the game at 2.

It stayed that way until the top of the 10th, when Memphis’ Claude Ritchey took John Hiller deep. Jonathan Papelbon pitched a perfect inning in the bottom of the frame, fanning Greenberg to end the game.

MEM 3 (Wakefield 6-7, 2 B Sv; Papelbon 13 Sv) @ DET 2 (Hiller 3-3) [10 Innings]
HRs: MEM – Ramírez (15), Ritchey (8); DET – none.
Box Score

Baltimore Black Sox @ Indianapolis ABC’s, Game 3

Baltimore’s pitching is just hard to gain traction against: Connie Johnson, John Wetteland, and the suddenly resurgent Buddy Groom limited Indianapolis to 5 hits, 2 of which were solo homers by the ABC’s Danny Hoffman. Indianapolis got a good start from Willie Mitchell (2 runs in 6.2 innings), but in the end superstars gonna’ superstar: Frank Robinson took Rob Dibble deep in the top of the 9th with a 2-run shot, his 33rd of the year, to provide the winning margin for Baltimore.

BBB 4 (Wetteland 3-0, 2 B Sv; Groom 5 Sv) @ IND 2 (Mullane 1-1)
HRs: Robinson (33); Hoffman 2 (15).
Box Score

And now back to our usual see-saw slugfests.

#Portland Sea Dogs @ Ottawa Mounties, Game 1

The scoring started fairly innocuously: Ottawa’s Tim Raines led off the bottom of the first with a single, was bunted to second, then scored on a Roy Sievers single (helped along by an error).

Portland took the lead in the 3rd on a 2-run shot by Gavvy Cravath, then Ottawa took it back, scoring twice on back-to-back doubles from Rusty Staub and Sievers, giving the Mounties a 3-2 edge. A George Burns double drove in 2, extending it to 5-2 in the bottom of the 4th.

But, Portland roared back: a 2 run single from Jeff Burroughs chased Ottawa’s starter, Kirk Reuter, from the game, and Jim Fregosi drove in 2 more later in the inning, putting the Sea Dogs back on top, 6-5. The lead would reach 9-5 on Cravath’s 2nd homerun of the day and RBI’s from Buddy Bell (a bases loaded walk) and Gil Hodges (a sacrifice fly).

But Ottawa had also caught on to the utility of the long ball: Larry Parrish and Roberto Alomar both went deep in the bottom of the 6th, cutting the gap to 9-8.

Portland added 2 in the following inning via 2 hits and a walk, but Ottawa was unleashed: Sievers scored on an unlikely triple by Gary Carter and a 2-run shot from Carlos Beltrán. Suddenly, we were tied at 11.

Tired of running, Carter ended the game with a walkoff homerun leading off the bottom of the 9th.

Burroughs had 4 hits and he and Cravath drove in 3 each for Portland. Burns had 4 hits for Portland, and Sievers added 3.

POR 11 (Porterfield 3-1; Hammaker 2 B Sv) @ OTT 12 (Holland 6-2)
HRs: POR – Cravath 2 (6); OTT – Parrish (6), Alomar (3), Beltrán (10), Carter (17).
Box Score

#Los Angeles Angels @ Houston Colt 45’s, Game 2

With Harry Howell sailing along on the mound, the Angels had a 3-0 lead heading into the bottom of the 6th, with the key hit being a solo homerun by Mike Trout. Houston scored 1 in the inning, but Tom Seaver and Jonny Venters were excellent in relief of Howell, allowing Los Angeles to send out their closer, Joe Nathan, for the bottom of the 9th.

Nathan was rough: Casey Stengel walked as a pinch-hitter, Tony Gwynn singled, Jim Wynn doubled in a run, and Jeff Bagwell tied the game with a sacrifice fly, sending us to extra innings.

José Reyes drove in a run in the top of the 11th, but Pete Hill singled in Gwynn, who had doubled, in the bottom of the frame to keep the game going. Which it did, until the 14th, when Bagwell was hit by a pitch. HR Johnson pinch-ran, stole second, and scored on a walk-off single by George Brett.

Trout, Gwynn, and Wynn each had 3 hits in the game, which was rough for Houston’s staff, as both Bones Ely and Tug McGraw were forced to leave with injuries. McGraw’s was especially unfortunate, as the young lefthander was on the brink of being named the Colt 45’s closer for the rest of the season.

The game also saw Los Angeles’ Wally Backman get a hit in his first WBL at-bat.

LAA 4 (Vargas 1-2; Seaver 1 H; Venters 15 H; Nathan 8 B Sv; Anderson 2 B Sv) @ HOU 5 (Clemens 4-1) [14 Innings]
HRs: LAA – Trout (17); HOU – none.
Box Score

Series XXXIII Preview: Chicago American Giants @ Wandering House of David

By mknn

On June 9, 2023

In Featured Series, Series Previews

In Series XXXIII, we’ll focus in on the wild card race, where the Chicago American Giants lead the Wandering House of David by 1 game. We focused on Chicago (our first team to be highlighted in 5 separate series) in Series VI, XX, XXII, and XXX and on the House of David in Series V, XVI, and XXVI.

#Chicago American Giants

We just saw the American Giants, and not a lot has changed: the offense is still fearsome; the bench is still suspect; and the pitching is still a bit irregular.

Eddie Collins (310/406/510) leads the team in WAR, but is behind both Joe Jackson (1.014) and Frank Thomas (.950) in OPS. Those 3, plus Mike Fiore have OBPs over .400 and Dick Allen and Duffy Lewis join Collins, Jackson, and Thomas with SLG over .500.

Cristóbal Torriente should be back at full strength during the series, and Kevin Mitchell has solidified a claim on the other reserve OF spot. The weak spots here are Jack Doyle and Jackie Hayes on the IF, but Doyle’s flexibility keeps him an attractive roster option, while Hayes is just passing time until rosters expand in a few days.

Tricky Nichols at 14-7 leads the rotation, with both Dick Rudolph and Mark Buehrle having 10 wins apiece. One of the questions for Chicago is what to do with Ed Walsh, who has been excellent as a swing starter/long reliever–to the point where he may be preferred as a starter in the playoffs over Buehrle or Ben Sheets. The bullpen trio of Hoyt Wilhelm, Ken Sanders, and AJ Minter continues to impress.

#Wandering House of David

Pete Browning (358/394/642) should emerge onto WBL leaderboards either this series or next. When that happens, he will immediately take over the lead in BA and be 3rd in SLG. Another injury to Browning feels like virtually the only thing that could derail the House of David’s playoff push.

While Elrod Hendricks has been excellent since the year began–even with a recent slump, Hendricks is slashing 287/348/605 with 32 homeruns and 81 RBIs–the House of David has retooled their lineup with spectacular success all season. First it was Dan Ford (.833 OPS) taking over in RF, then it was Anthony Rizzo (.884 OPS) at 1B and Jim Edmonds in CF (1.011 OPS).

Jack Taylor has emerged as the dominant starter in the league, sitting at 14-8 with a 2.99 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. There is a significant gap between Taylor and the rest of the staff, but none of them are bad, they just don’t live up to Taylor’s standards. The back of the bullpen is developing nicely, with the trio of Ed Bauta (obtained mid-season), Lee Smith, and Tom Niedenfuer reliably bridging the gap to Bruce Sutter, who should be back to full strength in a day or two.

#Predicted Starters

Chicago starter listed first.

David Price (5-5, 4.46) @ Wade Miley (7-4, 5.11)
Mark Buehrle (10-8, 4.23) @ Frank Sullivan (8-8, 4.84)
Ben Sheets (8-8, 4.77) @ Jack Taylor (14-8, 2.99)
Tricky Nichols (14-7, 3.68) @ CC Sabathia (10-11, 4.86)

Series XXXI Featured Matchup: Portland Sea Dogs @ Birmingham Black Barons

By mknn

On June 7, 2023

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

{ Whoops … somehow this never got published … }

Series preview here.

#Game One: Bert Blyleven @ Alejandro Peña

There is a statistical argument that Birmingham’s Alejandro Peña has been the best starting pitcher in the WBL this season, but today he was totally out classed by Portland’s Bert Blyleven.

Blyleven was perfect through 5 2/3, had a no-hitter through 7 1/3, and ended up giving up 3 hits and 1 run through 9 2/3 innings, striking out 7 while walking none (he did hit 2 batters, and clearly was tiring towards the end). Still, it was a great performance, lowering Blyleven’s ERA to 4.46 and improving his record to 9-9 on the year.

Peña, on the other hand, lasted only 3 innings, surrendering 9 hits and 6 runs, including homeruns from Bobby Murcer and Kent Hrbek (his 35th of the year). Murcer, Jim Fregosi, and Joe Mauer ended the day with 3 hits each as the Sea Dogs cruised to the 7-1 victory, retaking 1st place in the Marvin Miller Division.

POR 7 (Blyleven 9-9) @ BBB 1 (Peña 10-8)
HRs: POR – Murcer (22), Hrbek (35); BBB – none.
Box Score

After the game, Portland announced that Joséito Muñoz would be out 3-4 weeks. He was placed on the DL with Frank Williams recalled from AAA.

#Game 2: Dizzy Trout @ Vic Willis

Birmingham seemed to bounce back, scoring in the two opening innings on sacrifice flies while Vic Willis quieted the Portland bats. Willis exited after 6 innings with Birmingham up 3-1, and suddenly the game got far more interesting. Kent Mercker gave up 2 homeruns–a 2 run shot by Kent Hrbek and a solo drive by Jim Fregosi–to put the Sea Dogs up by one.

Portland’s starter, Dizzy Trout, was long-gone by this point, with Ray Fontenot providing solid relief until Herman Long tripled with one out in the bottom of the inning. Mike Cuellar relieved Fontenot, and allowed a sacrifice fly to Adrián González, tying the game at 4.

In the bottom of the 8th, an RBI double from Cupid Childs scored Bob Nieman, giving the Black Barons a 1 run lead, and turning the game over to their closer, Juan Rincón.

Rincón couldn’t reclaim first place, giving up RBI singles to Hrbek and Buddy Bell before being replaced by Bruce Chen, who gave up one more run on a base hit from Rogers Hornsby, putting Portland in front 7-5.

Elmer Brown walked 2, but induced a double play from Frank McCormick to end the game. Could Birmingham’s magical run be ending?

POR 7 (Porterfield 3-0; Brown 10 Sv; Cueller 2 B Sv) @ BBB 5 (Rincón 2-4, 5 Sv; Mercker 1 B Sv)
HRs: POR – Hrbek (36), Fregosi (16); BBB – none.
Box Score

Game 3: Wade Miller v Andy Pettitte

Victories in the first two games of the series have moved Portland 1.5 games ahead of Birmingham, who will turn to Andy Pettitte to stop their slide. Pettitte is 3-0 with a 1.29 ERA since arriving in Birmingham.

Another trade acquisition, Portland’s Gavvy Cravath, put the Sea Dogs on top 1-0 with a solo shot in the top of the 2nd. 2 walks and a weak infield hit loaded the bases with 2 outs, and Jim Pagliaroni touched Wade Miller for a 2-run single to give the Black Barons a 2-1 edge. But Pettitte gave it back on a double to Bobby Murcer, knotting the contest at 2.

The Black Barons began to gain some separation with a double by Eddie Mathews in the 3rd and a homerun from Adrián González in the 4th.

Pettitte had settled right down by then, and left the game allowing only 5 hits and the 2 runs over 8 innings. Juan Rincón came in and struck out the first two batters, but singles from Rogers Hornsby, Buddy Bell, and Jeff Burroughs loaded the bases with 2 outs with Harry Hooper at the plate. Rincón got him looking for the save, pulling Birminghan back within 1/2 game of Portland.

POR 2 (Miller 9-5) @ BBB 4 (Pettitte 4-0; Rincón 20 Sv)
HRs: POR – Cravath (4); BBB – González (6).
Box Score

Game 4: Atlee Hammaker v Greg Maddux

Trying to edge back into first place, Birmingham turned to perhaps the hottest arm in the league in Greg Maddux.

In the 2nd, a triple by Gavvy Cravath and a homerun from Rogers Hornsby put Portland ahead 2-0, a lead cut in half when Gene Tenace took Atlee Hammaker into the seats in the bottom of the frame.

It remained that way into the 5th, when Bobby Murcer doubled and scored on a single from Kent Hrbek. Maddux would last one more inning, departing with the Sea Dogs ahead, 3-1. Portland touched his relief for 3 runs in the top of the 7th, the key hit being a 2 run homerun by Joe Mauer.

Hammaker at this point was cruising, allowing only 5 hits through 6 innings, but hits from Curtis Granderson and Pie Traynor chased him with 2 outs in the 7th. Trevor Hoffman relived him, and Birmingham countered by pinch-hitting Eddie Matthews, who delivered a 3-run shot to close the score to 6-4.

There would be more baserunners after, but neither team could score, setting up Elmer Brown‘s entrance for Portland in the bottom of the 9th for the save. Adrián González led off the inning with a double down the left field line, and Brown followed with a walk to Jim Pagliaroni. Brown would allow the game to be tied in the most unlikely fashion: on consecutive wild pitches. That setup a 2-out single from Cupid Childs, winning the game and putting Birmingham back on top of the division, although just barely.

After the game, Mathews referred to himself as, “the straw that stirs the drink.” Wonder where he got that from?

POR 6 (Brown 3-6, 3 B Sv; Porterfield 3 H) @ BBB 7 (Baker 7-3)
HRs: POR – Hornsby (10), Mauer (11); BBB – Tenace (11), Mathews (21).
Box Score

TWIWBL 40.4: Series XXXII Notes – Marvin Miller Division

By mknn

On June 7, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Birmingham Black Barons

Jim Whitney replaced Sam Streeter at the back end of the Black Barons’ rotation.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Make no mistake, Germany Smith is on a WBL roster because of his glove at SS. But once in a while, he can do somethings with the bat, like drive in 4 runs with 3 hits in a 5-3 victory over Homestead. Jackie Robinson had 3 hits as well in a game that saw Watty Clark earn his 22nd save.

Smith really is trying to prove he belongs with another 3 hits and 3 RBIs in the series finale. Duke Farrell and Beals Becker also had 3 hits, with Becker pounding out his 23rd homerun of the year in an easy 8-2 win behind a solid 7 innings from Tommy Hanson, who improved to 3-4 on the year.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Walter Johnson‘s return from the DL forced Frank Williams back to AAA. Mike Cuellar takes Atlee Hammaker‘s place in the Sea Dogs’ rotation. After a few shaky outings, Elmer Brown was replaced by Bob Porterfield as Portland’s closer.

Johnson picked right back up, allowing 1 run in 7 innings to improve to 11-4 on the year. Joe Mauer had 3 hits including his 12th homerun on the year in the 6-2 victory over the House of David.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

Dick Lundy‘s season is over, with the young infielder hitting the DL with a sprained shoulder. Glove man extraordinaire Eddie Miller was recalled from AAA to take Lundy’s spot, meaning Roy Hartzell will finish out the year as the Sea Lions’ everyday SS.

TWIWBL 40.3: Series XXXII Notes – Effa Manley Division

By mknn

On June 6, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Cleveland Spiders

Ron Blomberg went deep twice, giving him 36 on the year (tying him for 2nd in the league) and his 4 RBIs eclipsed the century mark, giving him 101 on the season. It wasn’t enough, as Mel Harder, the disappointing trade acquisition Ron Reed, and Chuck Porter were all hammered in a 13-6 loss to Baltimore.

#Indianapolis ABCs

Oscar Charleston will miss close to a week with a foot injury, prompting the ABC’s to place the teenage outfielder on the DL. Doc Hoblitzell was recalled.

#New York Black Yankees

Red Rolfe‘s offensive struggles forced him back to AAA, with Pee Wee Reese being recalled. Reese struggled mightily for Brooklyn, was released, and has performed well at AAA since signing with New York.

#Philadelphia Stars

Pete Alexander returned (again) from injury (again) and J.M Ward was demoted to AAA–at some point, being able to pinch hit doesn’t warrant carrying an ERA over 6.00. Mickey Doolin was waived and Roger Peckinpaugh returns to Philadelphia, likely to step into a platoon at SS with Pinky Whitney.

TWIWBL 40.2: Series XXXII Notes – Cum Posey Division

By mknn

On June 5, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Baltimore Black Sox

Don Bessent has lost his role as closer for the Black Sox, with that honor now being split between Joe Beggs and Buddy Groom.

Paul Blair threw out a runner at home and launched a grandslam for his 10th homerun of the season, leading the Black Sox to a 6-3 win over Cleveland. Larry Gardner had 3 hits and 2 RBIs and Connie Johnson pitched into the 9th for his first win with Baltimore and Groom got the final 2 outs to pick up his 3rd save of the season.

Dennis Martínez had a solid start, earning his 14th victory of the year in a game where Curt Blefary and Brooks Robinson went deep in a 7-2 win over Cleveland.

The Black Sox kept rolling, pounding out 19 hits in a 13-6 victory in the last game of the series with Cleveland. Bobby Wallace and Baby Doll Jacobson had 3 hits each and Dan McGann and Manny Machado each drove in 3 in a game that saw Bill Byrd improve to 13-3 despite giving up 5 runs in under 6 innings.

#Houston Colt 45’s

Holding onto a slim shot at the playoffs, the Colt 45’s made some changes, abandoning some of their flexibility for some more offensive pop. Jim O’Rourke heads to AAA as Pete Hill is activated from a short stint on the DL.

After another blown save by Brad Lidge–his 7th of the year–Houston decided enough is enough, returning Lidge to AAA and recalling Jay Howell.

Harry Stovey had 4 hits and scored 3 times, but it wasn’t enough as the Colt 45’s fell to Memphis in 12 innings.

#Kansas City Monarchs

Lou Brock‘s year keeps getting better: 3 hits lifted his average to .308, and 4 RBIs led the Monarchs to a 10-2 victory over Ottawa. Ted Simmons drove in 3 runs and a solid start from Luke Hamlin improved his record to 8-11. Brock’s OBP edged over .350, and his OPS is nearing .800, proving he is more than just a set of wheels (although his 45 steals ranks 6th in the league).

#Ottawa Mounties

Clayton Richard pitched 6 strong innings, but left injured after 6 innings of 1 run ball. Chris Leroux, Ryan Dempster, and Gary Peters combined for 5 innings of scoreless relief, and the Mounties eked out 1 2-1 win in 11 innings over Kansas City, with Ken Griffey, Jr. driving in the winning run. Richard hit the DL after the game, with Clark Griffith being recalled.

Sam Thompson will miss the next month–meaning perhaps the rest of the season. Young Julio Gotay was recalled to help out defensively.

TWIWBL 40.1: Series XXXII Notes – Bill James Division

By mknn

On June 2, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Detroit Wolverines

Bob Bailey hit the 10 Day DL with a hamstring issue, prompting the Wolverines to reach all the way down to AA to recall Olmedo Sáenz, mostly for his ability to play both infield corner spots.

#Los Angeles Angels

Wally Moon was recalled from a rehab assignment, with Spud Johnson heading back to the minors.

Harry Howell tossed a 5-hit shutout as the Angels beat Miami 5-0. After the 140 pitch, 9 strikeout performance, Howell’s record improves to 5-6 on the season. Bobby Grich was injured in the game, sending him to the DL for at least 2-3 weeks. 22 year old Wally Backman has been tearing up both AA and AAA, and now gets his chance with the big league club.

José Reyes and Steve Garvey had 3 hits each and Mike Trout drove in 4, leading the Angels to an 8-2 win over Miami. Pud Galvin improved to 5-7, allowing 4 hits and 1 earned run over 7 innings.

#New York Gothams

Johan Camargo was promoted to the WBL with Mark Loretta being sent down in an exchange of bench pieces for the Gothams.

Christy Mathewson continued his run of form, becoming the first 15 game winner in the league as he and 3 relievers combined to shutout Indianapolis despite allowing 10 hits. Pete Runnels had 3 hits and Wes Westrum hit a key homerun to give the Gothams the win.

The pitching continued to dominate as Pete Donohue improved to 6-2 with a 3-hit blanking of the ABC’s, walking 2 and fanning 8. Light-hitting Brandon Crawford had 3 hits and Will Clark, George Van Haltren, and Johnny Callison drove in 2 rusn each in the 7-0 victory.

#Wandering House of David

Jack Taylor continues to roll, allowing only 1 run and 5 hits over 7 innings en route to his 14th victory of the season. Taylor lowered his ERA to a league-leading 2.99, and Bruce Sutter picked up his 19th save with a perfect 9th. George Stone hit his 25th homerun in the 8th, giving the House of David the 2-1 victory over Portland. Sutter was hurt in his outing, but looks likely to only be out for a few days.

Pete Browning and Frank Chance had 3 hits each and Ryne Sandberg hit his 20th homerun of the year, leading the House of David to a 6-2 win over Portland. CF Jim Edmonds had 3 kills on the day, throwing out a runner at each base (other than first).

TWIWBL 40.0 – Series XXXII Notes

By mknn

On June 1, 2023

In TWIWBL

August 18th

Playoff Series of Note

From here on out, it’s pretty much all about the playoffs.

The Bill James Division has been thrown into a bit of chaos, with the Detroit Wolverines falling from first to third place over the past series. The Wolverines dropped 3 out of 4 to the New York Black Yankees, while the New York Gothams swept the Indianapolis ABC’s. That leaves the Gothams 1.5 games ahead of both Detroit and the Wandering House of David. The House of David will host the Chicago American Giants in the featured matchup of Series XXXIII, while Detroit has an easier opponent (the basement dwelling Memphis Red Sox) than the Gothams, who visit Birmingham.

Three consecutive losses leave the Cleveland Spiders clinging to a 1 game edge over the Black Yankees in the Effa Manley Division. This race is key as, right now, the Black Yankees would miss the postseason, trailing Portland for the final wild card slot by 2 games.

The Cum Posey and Marvin Miller Divisions remain unchanged, with Baltimore leading the American Giants by 4 games in the former and Birmingham clingnig to a 1/2 game lead over Portland in the latter.

Really, that’s it: Houston, Brooklyn, Los Angeles, and Indianapolis are all between 5 and 10 games out of the wild card race, so technically we’re saying there’s a chance …

Performance

Batters

The MVP race really is between Babe Ruth, Ron Blomberg, and Doug Rader with Ruth having a clear edge.

Dick Allen (CAG). 302/373/533/ 10 3B.
Ron Blomberg (CLE). 340/408/645. 158 H, 36 HR.
George Brett (HOU). 273/304/407. 10 3B.
Ty Cobb (DET). 343/389/548.
Eric Davis (NYY). 274/350/520. 5.4 WAR.
Mike Fiore (CAG). 234/400/382. 98 BB.
Bobby Grich (LAA). 292/381/483. 41 2B.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 272/402/363. 84 SB.
Kent Hrbek (POR). 309/382/602. 36 HR.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 336/422/592. 97 R.
Reggie Jackson (SFS). 318/438/592.
Stan Musial (KCM). 327/392/579. 41 2B.
Alejandro Oms (MCG). 258/309/402. 10 3B.
Doug Rader (LAA). 339/398/554. 161 H, 119 RBI.
Tim Raines (OTT). 289/365/432. 81 SB.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 316/433/661. 39 HR, 11o RBI, 104 R, 94 BB, 6.7 WAR.
Louis Santop (CLE). 304/334/462. 12 3B.

Pitchers

Starters

All 4 14 game winners are included.

Don Drysedale (BRK). 7-7, 3.77. 1.20 WHIP.
Lefty Grove (SFS). 12-7, 3.61. 178 Ks.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 6-10, 4.67. 162 Ks.
Christy Mathewson (NYG). 15-7, 3.61.
Dennis Martínez (BAL). 14-7, 3.64.
Tricky Nichols (CAG). 14-7, 3.68.
Alejandro Peña (BBB). 10-8, 3.71. 4.5 WAR, 3.42 FIP.
Andy Pettitte (KCM/BBB). 14-4, 3.14.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 10-5, 3.95. 1 Sv, 4.0 WAR, 3.30 FIP.
Jack Taylor (HOD). 14-8, 2.99. 1.13 WHIP.

Relievers

35 IP for rate stats.

Terry Adams (CLE). 2-6, 3.12. 29 Sv, 1H.
Mike Henneman (DET). 1-5, 4.74. 33 Sv.
Ken Howell (SFS). 4-4, 2.39. 4 Sv, 4 H. 0.98 WHIP.
* Sean Marshall (BAL). 5-0, 1.79. 1 Sv, 8 H, 0.98 WHIP.
Mike Norris (NYG). 4-3, 1.40. 5 Sv, 13 H.
Ron Reed (PHI/CLE). 0-6, 4.40. 3 Sv, 16 H.
Ron Robinson (SFS). 6-4, 3.86. 1 Sv, 16 H.
Ed Walsh (CAG). 8-6, 2.82. 5 H, 2.98 FIP.
Brian Wilson (NYG). 1-0, 1.00. 24 Sv, 1 H, 2.58 FIP.

* Currently injured.

Streaks

In terms of active streaks, Bobby Bonds (San Francisco) has hit in 20 consecutive games; Homestead‘s Rick Reichardt has homered in 5 consecutive (tying him for the WBL record); and Los Angeles’ Bobby Grich has reached base in 32 straight.

Kansas City‘s Boog Powell‘s consecutive streak of reaching base ended after an impressive 52 games.

Series Results

Series Sweeps in Series XXXII

New York Gothams over Indianapolis

Taking 3 out of 4 in Series XXXII

Baltimore over Cleveland
Chicago over Birmingham
Brooklyn over Homestead
New York Black Yankees over Detroit
Los Angeles over Miami Cuban Giants
House of David over Portland

Series Splits in Series XXXII

Houston @ Memphis
Ottawa Mounties @ Kansas City
Philadelphia Stars @ San Francisco

Series XXXII Featured Matchup: Philadelphia Stars @ San Francisco Sea Lions

By mknn

On May 31, 2023

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

Series preview here.

#Game One: Pete Alexander @ Nick Altrock

Pete Alexander suffered from what seemed to be a ton of rust on his return from the DL, even have gone through a rehab assignment. Alexander gave up 3 runs on 4 hits and 4 walks in under 3 innings before being lifted, with 2 scoring on a double from Jimmie Foxx.

Despite the early lead, the Sea Dogs got some bad news when Dick Lundy had to leave the game with an apparent shoulder injury.

Philadelphia’s first threat came in the top of the 3rd when base hits from Aaron Judge and Ted Kluszewski put runners at the corners with 2 outs. But Nick Altrock was able to get José Ramírez to line out to right field to end the inning.

Pedro Guerrero increased the Sea Lions’ lead to 4-0 with his 22nd homerun of the year in the bottom of the 5th and Bobby Bonds made it 5-0 with an RBI single in the 7th, extending his hitting streak to 17 games.

But the story was Altrock, who finished with a 7-hit shutout, improving his record to 2-1 and lowering his ERA to 2.45.

PHI 0 (Alexander 2-7) @ SFS 6 (Altrock 2-1)
HRs: PHI – none; SFS – Guerrero (22).
Box Score

#Game 2: Steve Carlton @ Lefty Grove

Each team trotted its ace out in the second game of the series, with both Philadelphia’s Steve Carlton and San Francisco’s Lefty Grove carrying ERAs under 4.00.

A Pedro Guerrero sacrifice fly gave the Sea Lions a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first. (Bobby Bonds extended his hitting streak to 18 games earlier in the inning.) A homerun from Sal Bando doubled the lead in the next inning, and a Rickey Henderson triple scored Roy Hartzell, making it 3-0.

Grove had a shutout through 5, but got into a bases loaded jam in the 6th. He got one out, but José Ramírez singled in a run to make it 3-1 and chase Grove, who gave way to Diego Seguí. Seguí gave up a sacrifice fly to Roger Peckinpaugh, but escaped with the lead intact, 3-2.

Scott Rolen took Seguí deep in the 7th to tie the game. Meanwhile, Carlton was excellent, blanking the Sea Lions into the 7th, when a single from Henderson chased him. Minnie Rojas relieved Carlton and, after Henderson stole second, gave up a single to Bonds. Reggie Jackson walked, but Rojas gave up a fly ball to LF to score a run, giving the Sea Lions a 4-3 lead.

Ramírez tied it up in the 8th with a fly that just cleared the right field wall.

In the bottom of the 9th, after Henderson singled, Bonds tried to bunt him to second (bad choice, that), but popped the ball to Rolen at third who doubled up Henderson. That effectively sent us to extra innings.

In the top of the 11th, Ramírez did it again: another fly to right that just cleared the fence to put the stars ahead, 5-4. The Stars were helped by an error by Bando, eventually pushing the lead to 7-4.

Which is how it ended: Bob Howry was stretched out, but nicely effective, allowing only 1 run in 3 innings to earn the victory.

PHI 7 (Howry 3-5) @ SFS 4 (Robinson 5-4; Seguí 1 B Sv; Howell 3 B Sv) [11 Innings]
HRs: PHI – Rolen (17), Ramírez 2 (8); SFS – Bando (2).
Box Score

#Game 3: Hardie Henderson @ Tim Hudson

Sometimes a single big inning wins the game; sometimes it doesn’t.

The Sea Lions touched Hardie Henderson for 6 runs in the bottom of the 2nd: 2 on a double from Mickey Cochrane, 1 on a Roy Hartzell single, and the rest on a 3 run blast from Reggie Jackson. And, despite losing Tim Hudson to injury early in the game, it seemed like it would hold up.

But the Stars slowly closed the gap: 6-1, then 6-3, then 6-4. A wild pitch here, a sacrifice fly there, and an RBI double from Sherm Lollar over there. All of which set the stage for the 7th inning. San Francisco’s bullpen was a bit worn out, which left Dave LaRoche in the game despite clearly tiring. Still, he had gotten 2 outs on strikeouts. But Scott Rolen took him deep to right for a 3-run shot that put the Stars on top, 7-6.

And that’s how it ended. Ray Collins danced through the 8th despite 2 baserunners and Claude Jonnard pitched a perfect 9th for his first save of the season.

Aaron Judge added 3 hits for the Stars, while Rickey Henderson had 4 knocks for the Sea Lions, raising his average to .270.

PHI 7 (Henderson 1-0; Jonnard 1 Sv; Collins 1 H) @ SFS 6 (LaRoche 1-2, 2 B Sv)
HRs: PHI – Rolen (18); SFS – Jackson (26).
Box Score

It looks like Hudson will only be sidelined a few days and should be good for his next start. Still no clarity for the Sea Lions on the status of Dick Lundy.

#Game 4: Larry Jackson @ Diego Seguí

Diego Seguí gets the start for San Francisco, looking to even the series. The Sea Lions considered pro-actively placing Dick Lundy on the DL in exchange for a fully rested starting pitcher, but decided to hold out hop that their young SS’s injury is less serious than feared.

Seguí looked rough at first, giving up hits to Willie Davis and Roger Peckinpaugh to start the game and score a run. But Pedro Guerrero‘s 23rd homerun of the season reset the game in a 1-1 tie. In the bottom of the 3rd, Rickey Henderson was hit by a pitch, stole second (his 84th steal of the year), and scored on a double from Bobby Bonds, which extended Bonds’ hitting streak to 20 games.

The Stars’ Larry Jackson was struggling: a single from Guerrero scored Bonds, and a single from Jack Clark and a walk to Sal Bando loaded the bases. But Jackson got Phil Garner to lift a soft ball into foul territory, where Peckinpaugh grabbed it for the final out.

In the end, the Sea Lions made the same mistake they did in game 3: Seguí was left in one batter too long, surrendering a 2-run shot to Aaron Judge to tie the game in the top of the 6th.

Jackson–who had settled down–was finally chased in the top of the 7th by hits to Roy Hartzell and Henderson. His replacement, Don Carman, induced a double play from Bonds to end the inning. And so we sailed on into extra innings.

Bobby Abreu led off the 10th for Philadelphia with his 3rd hit of the game, moved to second on a wild pitch, and scored on a pinch-hit double from Ted Kluszewski. Klu scored on a sac fly, given the Stars a 2 run edge, 5-3. Their closer, Bob Howry, came in, which is always interesting. Howry has 24 saves, but also sports an ERA over 5.00 … he was facing the top of the Sea Lions’ lineup, and Henderson and Bonds started it off for San Francisco with back to back singles. Howry balked them to 2nd and 3rd, then gave up a deep, deep fly to center from Jackson, scoring Henderson and moving Bonds to third. A double from Guerrero (who ended the day with 3 hits and 3 RBIs) tied the game, and after Howry got the 2nd out of the inning, a single from Bando won it for the Sea Lions.

PHI 5 (Howry 3-6, 6 B Sv) @ SFS 6 (Robinson 6-4) [10 Innings]
HRs: PHI – Judge (2); SFS – Guerrero (23).
Box Score