Two teams per league, with preference given to more playing time this year over future potential. No DH.
#WBL All Rookie First Team
Pos
American League
National League
C
Tom Haller (BAL)
Bill Dickey (PHI)
1B
Jimmie Foxx (SFS)
Joe Harris (KCM)
2B
Charlie Gehringer (DET)
César Hernández (PHI)
SS
Cal Ripken Jr (BAL)
Judy Johnson (HOM)
3B
Andy Pafko (BBB/MCG)
Chris Sabo (IND)
LF
Juan Beníquez (DET)
Adam Dunn (IND)
CF
Turkey Stearnes (SFS)
John Briggs (BRK)
RF
Al Kaline (DET)
George Foster (IND)
SP
Jim Whitney (BBB/MCG) Bump Hadley (SFS) Walter Ball (POR)
A. Rube Foster (KCM) Smokey Joe Williams (BRK) Fernando Valenzuela (BRK)
RP
Andrew Miller (MEM) Ross Reynolds (LAA) Elmer Smith (LAA)
Eddie Guardado (KCM) Karl Spooner (HOD) Mike Kume (KCM)
Rookies are interesting.
We run the full gamut here, from the MVP possibilities of Turkey Stearnes to players who ended the year in the minors, or, like César Hernández, project as fringe players at best. Tom Haller, Juan Beníquez, and Joe Harris are all on the wrong side of 30.
The spread of talent makes some comparisons misleading: you would much rather be San Francisco with Jimmie Foxx, Stearnes, and Bump Hadley than Indianapolis with Chris Sabo, Adam Dunn, and George Foster.
#WBL All Rookie Second Team
Pos
American League
National League
C
AJ Pierzynski (LAA)
Dick Dietz (NYG)
1B
David Ortiz (MEM)
JP Arencibia (BBB)
2B
Frank Grant (HOD/SFS)
Craig Reynolds (HOD)
SS
Dobie Moore (MEM)
Jimmy Rollins (PHI)
3B
Freddie Lindstrom (CAG)
Josh Donaldson (OTT)
LF
Rocky Colavito (CAG)
Elliott Maddox (NYY/HOU)
CF
Julio Rodríguez (MCG)
Charles Rogan (PHI)
RF
Ichiro Suzuki (LAA)
Sam Thompson (OTT)
SP
Tony Brizzolara (NYY) Tom Seaver (LAA) Kenshin Kawakami (MCG)
Charles Rogan (PHI) Ice Box Chamberlain (HOU) Kyle Peterson (HOD)
RP
Firpo Marberry (CLE) Skel Roach (MEM) Billy Hoeft (DET)
Brad Kilby (PHI) Mike LaCoss (IND) Fred Fussell (BBB)
Note Bullet Joe Rogan‘s well warranted appearance at 2 positions.
David Ortiz, Julio Rodríguez, Rogan, and Ice Box Chamberlain were the class of this group. Those 4, Frank Grant, Dobie Moore, Freddie Lindstrom, Ichiro Suzuki, and Tom Seaver are the most likely to be future stars–that’s a lot of potential over there in the American League.
We’ll do this Award Show style, ending with the MVP.
#Silver Sticks
The guideline here is the best offensive performance at each position, with a slightly relaxed PA requirement and combining LF and RF. Players qualify for their team at season’s end, much to Paul Konerko‘s delight.
Pos
American League
National League
C
Ed Bailey (DET/CLE)
Josh Gibson (HOM)
1B
Frank Thomas (CAG)
Paul Konerko (CAG/BBB)
2B
Rogers Hornsby (NYY)
Roberto Alomar (OTT)
3B
Evan Longoria (CLE)
Ron Cey (BRK)
SS
Cal Ripken, Jr (BAL)
Ernie Banks (HOD)
OF
Babe Ruth (NYY)
Larry Walker (OTT)
CF
Turkey Stearnes (SFS)
Oscar Charleston (IND)
OF
Kal Daniels (LAA)
Aaron Judge (PHI)
DH
Ty Cobb (DET)
Willie Stargell (HOM)
Joe Morgan was better offensively than Alomar, but Alomar had 200 more plate appearances and was no slouch himself.
#Rookie Of the Year
This was pretty easy in terms of the overall awards, but the second and third place finishers were far more heavily contested.
Rank
American League
National League
1
Turkey Stearnes (CF, SFS, 22)
Charles Rogan (P/Util, PHI, 27)
2
Cal Ripken, Jr (SS, BAL, 23)
A. Rube Foster (P, KCM, 24)
3
Bump Hadley (P, SFS, 23)
Smokey Joe Williams (P, BRK, 24)
Al Kaline (DET), David Ortiz (MEM), and Jim Whitney (MCG) in the AL, and John Briggs (BRK), Judy Johnson (HOM), and George Foster (IND) in the NL were the next names on the lists, but these selections feel pretty solid.
#All Rounder Award
This one is given to the player whose offense was most well-rounded–walks, power, speed, all of it.
Rank
American League
National League
1
Ty Cobb (DET)
Roberto Alomar (OTT)
2
Kal Daniels (LAA)
Jackie Robinson (BRK)
3
Tris Speaker (CLE)
Oscar Charleston (IND)
#Phineas Flint Award
This goes to the best reliever in each league–not necessarily a closer, but often.
Rank
American League
National League
1
Rod Beck (SFS)
Eric Gagné (BRK)
2
Joe Nathan (LAA/SFS)
Lee Smith (KCM)
3
Goose Gossage (NYY)
Craig Kimbrel (KCM)
#Brock Rutherford Award
This goes to the dominant pitcher in each league, usually a starter.
Rank
American League
National League
1
Lefty Grove (SFS)
Luis Padrón (IND)
2
Bump Hadley (SFS)
Toad Ramsey (HOU)
3
José Méndez (MCG)
A. Rube Foster (KCM)
#Mel Trench Award
And, the biggie, the MVP. A slight prejudice towards batters here, but it’s possible for a pitcher to enter the building.
Rank
American League
National League
1
Ty Cobb (DET)
Josh Gibson (HOM)
2
Babe Ruth (NYY)
Oscar Charleston (IND)
3
Mike Trout (LAA)
Gary Carter (OTT)
As has been constant in much of this Award season, the top spots are clear, and beyond that it’s a little bit of a mess.
Trout’s numbers weren’t as good as Turkey Steranes or Tris Speaker, but he carried Los Angeles all season. That said, this could have been a 3 way tie for AL CF’s. In the NL, you can argue that Ron Cey was more important to Brooklyn than Carter was to Ottawa, and certainly Brooklyn’s Whirled Championship counts for something. But Carter did all that … as a catcher (which underscores Gibson’s edge on the field).
We previewed the Gold Gloves in August, but now it’s time to do the real thing, one per position per league. We’ll go through them first, then list the award recipients at the end.
I do believe in defense mattering over time, as such, we’re using an 800 IP minimum for the GG awards. For each position, we’re listing the top 3 in each league, AL followed by NL.
We have our standard defensive stats here, with the leaders in bold and the worst performers in italics. Range Factor (RF) measures the number of plays made per game–the higher the better. Zone Rating (ZR) attempts to credit players for plays other fielders missed and ding them for plays other fielders made–the higher the better, and it has the benefit of being comparative across the position. Defensive Efficiency (dEff) measures the rate at which an individual fielder contributes to outs being made on balls put into play, with any score over 1.000 being a net positive impact. Finally, Fielding Percentage (fPct) reflects the percentage of times a chance was handled without a mistake–if someone made no errors, their fPct would be 1.000.
Of these, Range Factor is the most susceptible to the impact of the pitching staff and the ballpark, although none of these defensive ratings are perfect.
Outfielders also have Assists (A), more romantically referred to as Outfield Kills are runners eliminated on the bases and Arm Runs (AR), which measures the net runs gained on an outfielder’s throws, including runner advancements.
Finally, catchers, who are really their own thing, also have RTO% (the percentage of runners thrown out trying to steal, abbreviated as RT), PB (passed balls), Framing Runs (the number of runs gained by the catcher’s positioning), and cERx, which reflects the ERA while the catcher was behind the plate compared to the overall staff ERA. A cERx below 1 means the catcher was better than the rest of the staff, above 1, worse.
#C
Lg
Tm
Name
IP
fPct
RF
ZR
dEff
RT
PB
cERx
FR
NL
IND
Johnny Bench
1144
.995
9.3
1.3
1.19
36
11
1.03
7
HOD
Elrod Hendricks
923
.994
8.3
3.8
1.14
40
9
1.01
5
NYG
Buster Posey
1095
.996
8.9
0.4
1.00
35
8
0.96
10
AL
POR
Joe Mauer
1103
.996
9.5
3.5
1.04
39
6
1.01
5
NYY
Thurman Munson
1122
.995
9.8
2.3
1.00
35
5
0.96
4
MCG
Iván Rodríguez
1104
.998
9.8
5.7
1.05
46
17
0.98
2
So, what is a catcher’s primary duty? Helping their staff, controlling the running game, and then, a somewhat distant third, making their own defensive plays.
The choice in the AL is pretty obvious, in the NL, I think it comes down to how much do you weigh Posey’s ability to frame pitches, and his ~150 more innings played than Hendricks.
#1B
Lg
Tm
Name
IP
fPct
RF
ZR
dEff
NL
KCM
Boog Powell
1105
.996
9.1
3.4
1.02
HOD
Anthony Rizzo
828
.995
8.7
0.8
1.02
IND
Joey Votto
1072
1.000
8.4
5.1
1.04
AL
DET
Hank Greenberg
1159
.996
8.3
2.5
1.02
POR
Kent Hrbek
1007
.995
8.6
1.3
1.03
MEM
Bill White
886
.993
9.1
0.5
1.01
Again, one choice is pretty clear–the NL this time.
In the AL, it’s much closer, but Greenberg makes some plays that Hrbek just doesn’t.
#2B
Lg
Tm
Name
IP
fPct
RF
ZR
dEff
NL
KCM
Robinson Canó
1134
.990
4.6
11.0
1.06
BBB
Cupid Childs
1022
.983
4.5
7.3
1.09
PHI
Chase Utley
1173
.994
4.9
13.7
1.07
AL
DET
Charlie Gehringer
971
.989
4.9
-10.7
0.94
BAL
Miller Huggins
923
.987
4.3
10.8
1.10
MCG
Cookie Rojas
877
.993
4.4
-3.3
0.97
These are two relatively easy choices. And, there is a question of what’s going on in the AL, where almost everyone has a negative ZR.
#SS
Lg
Tm
Name
IP
fPct
RF
ZR
dEff
NL
NYG
Brandon Crawford
1046
.966
4.2
11.4
1.07
IND
Barry Larkin
911
.975
4.7
9.0
1.07
KCM
Ozzie Smith
1188
.992
4.7
12.2
1.06
AL
SFS
Dick Lundy
934
.987
4.5
10.8
1.06
CAG
Freddy Parent
952
.978
5.0
13.6
1.06
CLE
Arky Vaughan
1143
.982
4.2
13.4
1.09
In the NL, it’s another clear choice: while Smith and Crawford both make the sensational plays, Smith makes all the plays.
The AL is much, much closer and there’s really not much to choose from between Parent and Vaughan. As such, we’ll go with the player who stayed on the field more.
#3B
Lg
Tm
Name
IP
fPct
RF
ZR
dEff
NL
OTT
Adrián Beltré
1055
.974
2.6
-0.8
1.00
BRK
Ron Cey
1138
.975
2.5
6.0
1.03
PHI
Scott Rolen
1155
.970
2.3
5.0
1.06
AL
POR
Buddy Bell
1169
.968
2.5
8.0
1.05
CLE
Evan Longoria
1148
.963
2.2
4.8
1.04
NYY
Mike Schmidt
1140
.958
2.4
5.3
1.03
The hot corner is a challenge: everyone makes 2, 2 1/2 plays a game, so RF is less useful, although Beltré’s 2.6 does stand out, as does Longoria’s more limited mobility. But it means fPct–as a proxy for errors–and dEff rise in importance. In the AL, while it’s not by a mile, I think Bell is the clear choice while in the AL, it ends up being between Cey and Rolen, with the final edge going to The Penguin.
#LF
Lg
Tm
Name
IP
fPct
RF
ZR
dEff
A
AR
NL
IND
Bob Bescher
839
.989
1.9
-4.8
0.96
2
-2.8
PHI
Sherry Magee
839
.994
1.7
4.8
1.04
1
-2.3
BRK
Roy White
1152
.992
1.9
10.3
1.07
6
-1.0
AL
CLE
Johnny Bates
1018
.978
2.0
8.8
1.06
4
-1.3
SFS
Rickey Henderson
1202
.982
1.6
12.2
1.18
3
-3.6
BAL
Frank Robinson
996
.990
1.8
0.2
1.00
5
-2.2
The AR numbers reflect just how hard it is to prevent runners from advancing on flyballs, and makes Jim Wynn‘s 3.7 mark there all the more remarkable. Unfortunately, the rest of Wynn’s numbers leave him out of the finalists entirely.
The NL is an easy choice, and one that gives us a repeat winner in Roy White. Over in the Al, it’s harder, but Bates makes more plays and has a far better arm than Henderson, despite how much ground the Sea Lions’ speedster covers.
#CF
Lg
Tm
Name
IP
fPct
RF
ZR
dEff
A
AR
NL
OTT
Carlos Beltrán
1045
.982
2.9
9.5
1.06
10
-1.0
PHI
Willie Davis
1035
.988
2.9
16.3
1.10
4
-2.8
NYG
Willie Mays
1214
.989
2.8
14.5
1.05
4
-4.7
AL
BAL
Paul Blair
935
.986
2.7
11.8
1.09
3
-2.6
CLE
Tris Speaker
1047
.982
2.8
10.0
1.06
9
-2.4
SFS
Turkey Stearnes
1027
.979
2.8
7.4
1.05
5
-4.7
Assists can be misleading: Detroit’s Chili Davis gunned down 14 runners and Kansas City’s Willie McGee 11, but they, overall, just weren’t effective enough out there to warrant their inclusion. Remember, the weaker the arm, the more often it gets run on, the more chances for assists you may get.
Look, Willie Mays is a great defensive CF. But Willie Davis, simply, had a better year out there. In the AL, you can only unseat Paul Blair if you give massive weight to Speaker’s additional 3 assists. But given how close they are in AR, it’s hard to rationalize that. So Blair it is once again, our 2nd repeat winner.
#RF
Lg
Tm
Name
IP
fPct
RF
ZR
dEff
A
AR
NL
BBB
Hank Aaron
945
.979
1.7
4.4
1.06
6
0.6
HOM
Roberto Clemente
1134
.979
2.2
7.1
1.06
11
-2.6
KCM
Stan Musial
972
.981
2.0
8.4
1.07
2
-0.4
AL
MEM
Mookie Betts
880
1.000
1.9
7.6
1.07
2
-3.8
DET
Al Kaline
971
.991
2.1
3.8
1.03
6
-1.8
LAA
Ichiro Suzuki
1195
1.000
2.0
5.7
1.04
7
-3.0
The NL is insanely close. Musial makes more spectacular plays than Clemente, Clemente makes marginally more plays overall and has that cannon for an arm, although Musial limits baserunners more effectively. It’s a coin flip, but today we’ll go with Clemente’s additional 150 innings as the difference maker.
In the AL, it’s clearly one of the players who didn’t make a single miscue, and although Betts has the edge in a few metrics, Suzuki has over 300 more innings–1200 innings without an error, but with great range, is incredible.
#P
We’re using 140 innings as the cutoff for the pitchers. Additionally, we have access to number of Framing Runs the pitcher benefitted from, as well as the SB numbers against them. Errors tend to be so low from pitchers, that fPct is no longer a really useful metric.
Lg
Tm
Name
IP
RF
ZR
dEff
RT
FR
NL
HOD
Bob Rush
186
1.2
3.7
1.00
60
0
HOD
Jack Taylor
192
0.9
5.2
1.00
57
0
PHI
JM Ward
196
1.0
3.4
1.16
51
0.4
AL
POR
Bert Blyleven
204
0.9
5.6
1.00
59
0.3
BAL
Bob Feller
153
1.0
3.3
0.91
68
-0.3
POR
Walter Johnson
214
0.8
5.0
1.20
59
0
Sample size, of course, wrecks havoc with pitcher’s defensive stats. Still, we have what we have.
Not only does Bob Rush make a lot of plays, he keeps runners from stealing, and while Jack Taylor makes more spectacular plays, Rush’s ZR is more than good enough to take the award home. In the AL, Johnson and Blyleven are neck-and-neck, but we’ll go with Blyleven, who has a slight edge in most categories.
#The Gold Gloves
Pos
American League
National League
C
Iván Rodríguez (MCG)
Elrod Hendricks (HOD)
1B
Hank Greenberg (DET)
Joey Votto (IND)
2B
Miller Huggins (BAL)
Chase Utley (PHI)
SS
Arky Vaughan (CLE)
Ozzie Smith (KCM)
3B
Buddy Bell (POR)
Ron Cey (BRK)
LF
Johnny Bates (CLE)
Roy White (BRK)
CF
Paul Blair (BAL)
Willie Davis (PHI)
RF
Ichiro Suzuki (LAA)
Roberto Clemente (HOM)
P
Bert Blyleven (POR)
Bob Rush (HOD)
There are a surprising number of teams with 2 Gold Glove winners–Baltimore, Portland, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Brooklyn, and the House of David.
But the overall number of finalists may be more interesting, as it should give some indications as to the higher tier defensive units in the league. Here’s how that stacks up:
6. Cleveland 5. Philadelphia 4. House of David, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Portland 3. Baltimore, Detroit, New York Gothams, San Francisco 2. Birmingham, Brooklyn, Memphis, Miami, New York Black Yankees, Ottawa 1. Chicago, Homestead, Los Angeles
We’re doing 3 teams for each league, with players color coded by their Tier Level (S Tier, A Tier, B Tier, C Tier), with selections for each position, 3 starters, 2 bullpen arms, and a closer.
Just a glance shows the differences in the leagues: you want offense, look at the AL, you want pitching, the NL. That’s a generality, and like all such, not fully accurate: the NL actually has more S Tier bats, but the AL is overall more top heavy offensively.
San Francisco, predictably, leads the way with 12 selections while the rivalry between the Black Yankees and Cleveland continues, with the Bill James Division heavyweights having 8 each.
#AL
Pos
First Team
Second Team
Third Team
C
Ed Bailey (DET/CLE)
Mickey Cochrane (SFS)
Curt Blefary (BAL)
1B
Jim Thome (MCG)
Lance Berkman (CLE)
Jack Clark (SFS)
2B
Eddie Collins (CAG)
Rogers Hornsby (NYY)
Miller Huggins (BAL)
SS
Arky Vaughan (CLE)
Cal Ripken, Jr. (BAL)
Dick Lundy (SFS)
3B
Evan Longoria (CLE)
Mike Schmidt (NYY)
Jimmie Foxx (SFS)
LF
Babe Ruth (NYY)
Kal Daniels (LAA)
Frank Robinson (BAL)
CF
Turkey Stearnes (SFS)
Tris Speaker (CLE)
Mike Trout (LAA)
RF
Mickey Mantle (NYY)
Joe Jackson (CAG)
Yasiel Puig (MCG)
DH
Ty Cobb (DET)
Lou Gehrig (NYY)
Reggie Jackson (SFS)
SP
Lefty Grove (SFS) José Méndez (MCG) Jim Whitney (BBB/MCG)
Bump Hadley (SFS) Andy Pettitte (NYY) Eddie Plank (SFS)
Ed Walsh (CAG) Brett Anderson (LAA) Ron Guidry (NYY)
RP
Ken Howell (SFS) Andrew Miller (MEM)
Ross Reynolds (LAA) Al Smith (CLE)
Firpo Marberry (CLE) Ron Reed (CLE)
CL
Rod Beck (SFS)
Goose Gossage (NYY)
Jonathan Papelbon (MEM/MCG)
I do wonder if this points to how fragile Cleveland is. The Spiders are one of only 2 teams to make the playoffs in both WBL seasons, but if you were to pick names likely to fade off this list, Arky Vaughan, Evan Longoria, Al Smith, and Firpo Marberry would jump out.
It also shows just how top heavy Los Angeles is: 2 S-Tier players (plus Brett Anderson and Ross Reynolds) with nothing to show for it. At the other end, there’s Detroit–the other team to make the playoffs each year–with only a single player (the incomparable Ty Cobb) listed, further reinforcing the Wolverines as having done it with a true team effort (although this was also quite close: Terry Adams, Al Kaline, and Hank Greenberg were all in contention for 3rd Team honors).
And the less said about Memphis, the better.
#NL
Pos
First Team
Second Team
Third Team
C
Josh Gibson (HOM)
Gary Carter (OTT)
Mike Piazza (BRK)
1B
Paul Konerko (CAG/BBB)
Will Clark (NYG)
Jeff Bagwell (HOU)
2B
Roberto Alomar (OTT)
Joe Morgan (IND)
Ryne Sandberg (HOD)
SS
Ernie Banks (HOD)
Carlos Correa (HOU)
Alex Rodríguez (OTT)
3B
Ron Cey (BRK)
Albert Pujols (KCM)
Scott Rolen (PHI)
LF
Jim Wynn (HOU)
Ryan Braun (BBB)
Rick Reichardt (HOM)
CF
Oscar Charleston (IND)
Willie Mays (NYG)
Charles Rogan (PHI)
RF
Aaron Judge (PHI)
Larry Walker (OTT)
Tony Gwynn (HOU)
DH
Willie Stargell (HOM)
Benny Kauff (NYG)
Rick Monday (OTT)
SP
Luis Padrón (IND) Toad Ramsey (HOU) A. Rube Foster (KCM)
Smokey Joe Williams (BRK) Smokey Joe Wood (KCM) Fernando Valenzuela (BRK)
Roger Clemens (HOU) Hardie Henderson (PHI) Orel Hershiser (BRK)
RP
Lee Smith (HOD/KCM) Eddie Guardado (KCM)
Robb Nen (NYG/HOM) Terry Forster (BRK)
Andrew Chafin (HOU) Fred Cambria (PHI)
CL
Eric Gagné (BRK)
Josh Lindblom (HOM)
Bob Howry (PHI)
Brooklyn and Kansas City’s pitching is so strong. And imagine just how bad Ottawa’s pitching had to be, given their offensive representation.
Indianapolis has 3 S Tier players, giving them perhaps the most dominant nucleus in the league to build around. Kansas City has 4 S Tier players, but 2 of them are relievers, so most GM’s would prefer the ABC’s group.
And there are some league-wide deficiencies, especially at 1B and LF. Jim Wynn is a nice player, but the best in the league?
Both of Birmingham’s entrants were brought over in trade … but they also lost Jim Whtiney in those deals.
#Team by Team
Portland had nobody–nobody–who was deemed top 3 in the AL at their position. Ouch.
Baltimore. 4: Curt Blefary, Miller Huggins, Cal Ripken, Jr, Frank Robinson. Birmingham, 2: Ryan Braun, Paul Konerko. Brooklyn. 7: Ron Cey, Terry Forster, Eric Gagne, Orel Hershiser, Mike Piazza, Fernando Valenzuela, Smokey Joe Williams Chicago. 3: Eddie Collins, Joe Jackson, Ed Walsh. Cleveland. 8: Ed Bailey, Lance Berkman, Evan Longoria, Firpo Marberry, Ron Reed, Al Smith, Tris Speaker, Arky Vaughan. Detroit. 1: Ty Cobb. Homestead. 5: Josh Gibson, Josh Lindblom, Robb Nen, Rick Reichardt , Willie Stargell. Houston. 7: Jeff Bagwell, Andrew Chafin, Roger Clemens, Carlos Correa, Tony Gwynn, Toad Ramsey, Jim Wynn. Indianapolis. 3: Oscar Charleston, Joe Morgan, Luis Padrón. Kansas City. 5: A. Rube Foster, Eddie Guardado, Albert Pujols, Lee Smith, Smokey Joe Wood. Los Angeles. 4: Brett Anderson, Kal Daniels, Ross Reynolds, Mike Trout. Memphis. 1: Andrew Miller. Miami. 5: José Méndez, Jonathan Papelbon, Yasiel Puig, Jim Thome, Jim Whitney. New YorkBlack Yankees. 8: Lou Gehrig, Goose Gossage, Ron Guidry, Rogers Hornsby, Mickey Mantle, Andy Pettitte, Babe Ruth, Mike Schmidt. New York Gothams. 3: Will Clark, Benny Kauff , Willie Mays. Ottawa. 5: Roberto Alomar , Gary Carter, Rick Monday, Alex Rodríguez, Larry Walker. Philadelphia. 7: Fred Cambria, Hardie Henderson, Bob Howry, Aaron Judge, Charles Rogan, Scott Rolen. Portland. 0. San Francisco. 12: Rod Beck, Jack Clark, Mickey Cochrane, Jimmie Foxx, Lefty Grove, Bump Hadley, Ken Howell, Reggie Jackson, Dick Lundy, Eddie Plank, Turkey Stearnes. Wandering House of David. 2: Ernie Banks, Ryne Sandberg.
For this TWIWBL we’re going to look at two of my favorite emerging plotlines.
Biggest Surprise
Right now, it’s got to be the Birmingham Black Barons. At the end of May, they were 10 games back, a .400 team, and battling Miami for last place in the Marvin Miller Division. Today, they are 7 games over .500, and only 2.5 games behind division-leading Portland. So, what happened?
Birmingham began to turn it around in late May, but their high level of activity at the all-star break has to be mentioned as well. Ultimately, they lost 2 SPs (Dick Rudolph to Chicago and all-star Tim Hudson to San Francisco), a key bullpen piece (Hoyt Wilhelm in the same trade as Rudolph), and two infielders (all-star 2B Tom Herr to the Black Yankees and U Frank Isbell to Brooklyn). They received 10 players and 4 draft picks in return, with only 1B Adrián González making the big leagues immediately.
González’ OPS with the Black Barons has been in the high 600’s, which isn’t great, but is almost 200 points higher than his struggles with Chicago. He is splitting time at 1B with Frank McCormick, and the combo is outperforming Isbell. Hank Aaron is playing more at 2B with Herr gone, allowing Bob Nieman and Curtis Granderson to be joined by a rotating cast of OFers, but overall strengthening the lineup (even if Aaron isn’t exactly good defensively at 2B). Additionally, Eddie Mathews and Pie Traynor are in the lineup most days, with Mathews becoming the primary DH.
It’s worked: the quartet of Granderson, McCormick, Mathews, and Aaron have all come to life, combining for 27 HRs and 103 RBIs since June 1st. All in all, a team that struggled to score at all is now slowly, very slowly, edging away from the bottom of the pack offensively.
But the real success has been on the mound where, quite surprisingly, the loss of Hudson, Rudolph, and Wilhelm hasn’t really been felt. Alejandro Peña has been solid all year, Greg Maddux is finally living up to his hype, and Vic Willis continues to impress in the rotation. Closer Juan Ríncón has 17 saves despite starting the season buried in the bullpen, and the trio of Bruce Chen, Harley Young, and Steve Bedrosian have been fantastic in getting the ball to Rincón.
Rincón got his 2nd, 3rd, and 4th save of the season in consecutive games in late May, about the same time Bedrosian and Willis joined the big league club, with Chen being recalled from AAA in late June.
Look, the Black Barons are still a longshot to make the playoffs–but just being in the conversation has been an unlikely triumph for Birmingham. And it’s not all luck: yes, they are outperforming their Pythagorean projection by 2 wins, but that would still leave them above .500 even if they weren’t.
Second Biggest Surprise
The New York Black Yankees were supposed to run away and hide atop the Effa Manley Division. But the Cleveland Spiders have other ideas, and currently sit 3.5 games above New York in the standings, with the second best record in baseball.
Cy Young and Pat Malone have led the rotation all year, with ERA’s right around 4.00 and excellent peripheral numbers, and the bullpen trio of Chuck Porter, Cory Gearrin, and Ron Reed (who has continued to excel since being acquired from Philadelphia) have been able to consistently get the ball to Terry Adams in good situations. Adams has delivered with 23 saves, despite an 0-5 record.
Offensively, Ron Blomberg is in the argument for the MVP, slashing 334/402/638 with 28 homeruns and 76 RBIs, but the key to the team may have been finding a way to get John Ellis in the lineup almost every day, as the C/1B/DH has an OPS over .900, ranking second to Blomberg in most offensive stats. Add in a great season from Louis Santop behind the plate, solid contributions from Jake Stahl, Chuck Knoblauch, and Johnny Bates and the surprising turnaround from midseason acquisition Lance Berkman (whose OPS is over 300 points above where it was for Houston), and the Spiders have a dangerous lineup, top to bottom.
Can they hold off the Black Yankees? If New York’s bullpen continues to be absolutely porous, yes, yes they can. Will they? That’s another question entirely.
Performance
Awards
I feel like I’ve missed these for a little while, so I’m going to list the last few Players of the Week as well as June’s Players of the Month.
Player of the Month
In an unusual occurence for a reliever, Willie Mitchell of the Indianapolis ABC’s was the Pitcher of the Month for June. Mitchell was 4-0 with a 0.95 ERA out of the bullpen, prompting him to be added to the ABC’s rotation.
The Los Angeles Angels‘ Mike Trout took the Batter of the Month award, by hitting .381 for June. Trout is still looking to add some power to his results, but it moved him firmly into the conversation of elite hitters in the game.
Player of the Week
Willie Stargell of the Homestead Grays was the PotW for the week ending 7/17, hitting .565 with 3 HRs and 9RBIs in the span.
Babe Ruth has recovered from a mini-slump with a vengeance, taking home the PotW award for the week ending 7/10, hitting .500 with 3 homeruns and 12 RBI’s.
Before Ruth, the award went to Brooklyn’s Beals Becker, who raised his season average to a cool .300 with a .478, 3 HR showing during the week.
Batters
Top 2 in all categories, with the WBL leader in bold.
It’s been the Babe Ruth show since Reggie Jackson‘s triple crown run fell apart, but we’re seeing some others, most notably Kansas City‘s Stan Musial, edge into the MVP discussion.
Dick Allen (CAG). 307/375/553. 10 3B. Johnny Bench (IND). 295/411/564. 4.4 WAR. Ron Blomberg (CLE). 334/402/638. 28 HR. Rico Carty (PHI). 287/360/461. 34 2B. Ty Cobb (DET). 350/392/559. 124 H. Mike Epstein (HOM). 332/432/535. Mike Fiore (CAG). 249/405/415. 70 BB. Rickey Henderson (SFS). 252/388/341. 74 BB; 69 SB. Kent Hrbek (POR). 309/379/591. 28 HR. Joe Jackson (CAG). 340/422/593. 76 R. Reggie Jackson (SFS). 327/439/587. Stan Musial (KCM). 340/396/602. 129 H; 36 2B. Doug Rader (LAA). 324/382/532. 94 RBI. Tim Raines (OTT). 290/365/433. 71 SB. Babe Ruth (NYY). 313/421/643. 30 HR; 91 RBI; 80 R; 5.3 WAR. Louis Santop (CLE). 312/344/470. 10 3B.
Pitchers
Starters
Top 3 in each category, with the league leader in bold. No fewer than nine hurlers have 10 victories each, so only the top two in wins–Cole and Mathewson–are listed.
Bill Byrd (BAL). 10-2, 3.12. 1.18 WHIP. Gerrit Cole (LAA). 12-4, 4.10. Don Drysedale (BRK). 6-3, 3.49. 1 H; 1.17 WHIP. Ned Garvin (BAL). 9-3, 2.66. 2 H; 1.15 WHIP. Lefty Grove (SFS). 10-6, 3.72. 150 Ks. Ron Guidry (NYY). 5-8, 3.99. 144 Ks; 3.4 WAR. Walter Johnson (POR). 9-3, 3.54. 3.3 WAR. Frank Knauss (BRK). 10-4, 3.19. 1 Sv. Christy Mathewson (NYG). 11-6, 3.78. 123 Ks. Alejandro Peña (BBB). 8-6, 3.65. 3.6 WAR.
Relievers
Detroit‘s Mike Henneman has finally passed theinjured Johan Santana for the league lead in saves.
22 IP for rate stats; top 2, leader in bold.
Terry Adams (CLE). 0-5, 3.48. 23 Sv; 1 H. Watty Clark (BRK). 3-1, 1.20. 17 Sv. Mike Henneman (DET). 1-4, 3.41. 25 Sv. AJ Minter (CAG). 1-0, 2.22. 18 Sv, 0.86 WHIP. Chuck Porter (CLE). 4-3, 2.04. 1 Sv; 10 H; 0.86 WHIP. Ron Reed (PHI/CLE). 0-3, 2.59. 3 Sv; 16 H. Ron Robinson (SFS). 4-2, 3.35. 13 H. Johan Santana (POR). 1-1, 2.78. 23 Sv; 1 H. Jonny Venters (LAA). 3-3, 3.35. 5 Sv; 13 H. Brian Wilson (SFS). 1-0, 1.15. 20 Sv.
Streaks
Beals Becker‘s on-bas streak ended at 32 games, but Boog Powell‘s is still alive at 29 and counting. Other active streaks of note include Brian Wilson‘s 18 consecutive saves and Bill Byrd‘s 14 starts without a loss, as well as Harley Young‘s 12 scoreless innings in relief.
Series Results
Series XXV Sweeps
Birmingham over Indianapolis
Taking 3 out of 4 in Series XXV
Chicago over Philadelphia House of David over Cleveland Kansas City over New York Black Yankees San Francisco over Portland
The WBL saw its first on-field brawl, as Kansas City‘s Boog Powell charged the mound after getting plunked by Philadelphia‘s Robin Roberts. Powell was suspended for 5 games, Roberts for 6.
WBL Player of the Week
The Wandering House of David‘s Pete Browning went 13 for 22 for the week–that’s a 591/591/909 slash line–with 5 RBIs and 6 runs scored to take home the WBL Player of the Week.
He had some competition: Homestead‘s Mike Epstein hit 571/625/1143; and the New York Black Yankees‘ Babe Ruth hit 417/462/1000 with 4 HRs and 10 RBIs. On the mound, Birmingham‘s Scott Baker went 2-0 with a 0.66 ERA in 2 starts and Philadelphia’s Bob Howry had 3 saves.
The New York Black Yankees saw their 10 game winning streak come to an end in a 4-2 loss to the Wandering House of David. The Black Yankees are tied with the Kansas City Monarchsfor the best record in the league at 11-3, with the Brooklyn Royal Giantsthe only other team with double-digit victories. Those 4 teams–New York, Wandering, Kansas City, and Brooklyn–each lead their divisions.
Two decent hitting streaks are still intact: Babe Ruth has a 14 game streak (see below for a dramatic extension by Ruth) and the Baltimore Black Sox‘s Dan McGann has hit safely in 13 straight games.
Houston‘s George Brett hit .538 with 2 HR’s and 7 RBIs to win the WBL Player of the Week.
#Brooklyn Royal Giants
Orel Hershiser (1-0) gave up only 5 hits while striking out 8 in a complete game victory over Cleveland. Hershiser’s only mistake of the day was a 2-run HR to Evan Longoria as the Royal Giants eased to a 6-2 win.
#Cleveland Spiders
Cleveland has basically created a fast shuttle between their AAA affiliate in Buffalo and the big leagues. Just across these five games, here’s who used it:
With John Ellis no longer carrying an injury, the Spiders demoted Harry Bemis.
Jim Gantner was called up from AAA to provide some depth at 2B behind Chuck Knoblauch.
Whit Wyatt returned from the DL, sending Sudden Sam McDowell down.
Yordano Ventura was put on the IL even though the Spiders were, at the time, unsure as the extent of his injuries (turns out to have been fine, Ventura is out for 4 months with bone spurs).
With the OF totally gassed and lacking depth, Peanuts Lowrey was called up.
Not all news for Cleveland was injury related: Bob Feller moved to 2-0 with 8 shutout innings against Brooklyn in a 9-1 Spiders’ victory.
#Detroit Wolverines
Phenom Ty Cobb continues to press for more playing time, going 3-for-4 with a HR in a start against Kansas City.
#Homestead Grays
With Corey Kluber still injured, Homestead recalled Cliff Lee for an emergency start. Lee was excellent, leading the Grays to keep him on the roster at the expense of Bill Fischer, who had struggled in a few early season appearances.
#Houston Colt 45’s
Bret Saberhagen was still not 100%, so the Colt 45’s did some roster juggling, sending Saberhagen to AAA for a day and recalling David Clyde. Clyde was lit on fire in his start, and sent right back to AAA after the game.
Roy Oswalt (2-1) combined with Trevor Hoffman for a 6 hit shutout against Portland.
#Kansas City Monarchs
The Monarchs’ Luke Hamlin–of all people–threw the best start of the year so far, allowing only 1 hit over 7 innings against Detroit while striking out 11. Neither Frank DiPino nor Jeff Pfeffer allowed a hit in closing the game out for a 1-0 Kansas city win.
#Miami Cuban Giants
Ramon Martinez tied the best game score of the year with a 5-hit complete game shutout of Chicago that took only 94 pitches, earning his first victory of the year.
#New York Black Yankees
With a 12-game hitting streak on the line, Babe Ruth came to the plate as a pinch hitter with his team down 2 in the bottom of the 9th and a runner on first. Ruth deposited Tom Niedenfuer‘s pitch in the left field seats for his 4th HR of the year to tie the game, extending his streak to 13 (New York would lose the game 5-4 in 13 innings).
#San Francisco Sea Lions
Lefty Grove continued his dominant start to the year, pitching 8 innings of 3-hit, 1-run ball while striking out 11 against Ottawa to go 2-0 on the season. Grove’s game score of 80 was the best in the league to date (later surpassed by Hamlin).
#Wandering House of David
OF Pete Browning continued his torrid start with a 4-for-4 game against the Black Yankees with a 2B, a 3B, and 2 RBIs to key a 13 inning HoD victory.
All 20 teams opened with 5 game series this week. Some notes from around the league.
First, the WBL Player of the Week went to Indianapolis’ Hal Morris, Morris did hit 450/476/1000 with 3 HRs and 8 RBIs. Still, Lou Gehrig of the New York Black Yankees (538/600/1154, 2 HRs, 6 RBIs) and the Portland Sea Dog’s Buddy Bell (412/444/1059 with 3 HRs) had to deserve significant consideration as well.
#Birmingham Black Barons
SP Fred Fussell and DH Emil Frisk will both miss about a month with injuries to start the season, with Greg Maddux returning to the WBL to replace Fussell.
The Black Barons’ starter’s ERA of 11.84 is the biggest contributor to their 0-5 start to the season.
#Brooklyn Royal Giants
Dutch Leonard tossed a 5 hit shutout in his 1st start of the year, and teammates Don Drysdale and Brickyard Kennedy only allowed 1 run in their starts, leading the Royal Giants to a 4-1 start. Dickie Thon–handed the starting SS role despite not playing in Spring Training–hasn’t embarrassed himself, hitting .250 so far.
#Chicago American Giants
Ticky Nichols threw a 3 hit shutout on 111 pitches to start the season.
#Cleveland Spiders
With John Ellis out about a week, the Spiders sent Hardie Henderson to AAA and recalled Harry Bemis to spell Andy Etchebarren at C. Ellis is still on the active roster, but Detroit has a league-leading 7 players on the DL, but Whit Wyatt, Doug Corbett, and Bill Steen should all be back within about a week.
#Detroit Wolverines
OF Oscar Gamble was hot out of the gates, with 3 HRs and 7 RBIs in the 1st 5 games. Hal Newhouser lasted less than 2 innings before his elbow gave out, sidelining him for a couple weeks. With Claude Passeau also injured, it’s not clear who will get Newhouser’s starts between Gene Conley, Johnny Marcum, and Justin Verlander.
#Kansas City Monarchs
Stan Musial is as hot as any player in the league, opening the season at a 455/500/773 clip. Jose Rijo fanned 10 in 8 IP in a strong 1st start.
#Miami Cuban Giants
Camilo Pascual only allowed 3 hits in 8.2 IP in a strong opening start for the Cuban Giants.
#New York Black Yankees
Eric Davis leads the league with 11 RBI. Both Willie Randolph and Mike Schmidt are still looking for the 1st hits on the season.
#New York Gothams
It’s been a rough 5 days to be a Gothams pitcher: Carl Hubbell is out for over a month, Carson Smith for a few weeks, and Al Mays will be out about a week. Mat Latos (freshly returned from the injury list himself), Al Spalding, and Gaylord Perry are on hand to pick up the starts.
Brian Wilson has 2 saves in the Gothams’s 3 wins.
#Portland Sea Dogs
Mike Cuellar is the 1st 2-game winner in the league, picking up 2 victories in relief and Johan Santana leads the league with a save in each of the Sea Dogs’ 3 wins.
#San Francisco Sea Lions
Lefty Grove only gave up 3 hits and 1 run in a complete game win in his 1st start of the year. Jack Clark is hitting 417/417/750 with 10 RBI, leading the Sea Lions to a 5-0 record. Newly acquired Dick Lundy proved a sparkplug off the bench for San Francisco, even managing a steal of home in his first appearance.
