Baseball The Way It Never Was

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TWIWBL 47.0: End Of Season Review

September 14

Just a quick look through the performances at the end of the season. Look for both award posts and more in-depth reviews of the season over the offseason. BUT FIRST … are you ready for some playoffs?

Awards

Portland‘s Jim Fregosi won the final Player of the Week Award, hitting .588 down the final week of the season.

Performance

Batters

Babe Ruth finished the season on fire, taking over the league lead in RBIs and walks and maintaining his edge in … almost everything else. At the end of the season, it looks like he should indeed walk away with the MVP.

Ron Blomberg (CLE). 336/412/649. 44 HR, 109 R.
Eddie Collins (CAG). 315/409/513. 6.5 WAR.
Ty Cobb (DET). 352/391/557. 192 H.
Mike Fiore (CAG). 240/405/390. 109 BB.
Hank Greenberg (DET). 317/374/595. 45 2B.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 279/400/371. 99 SB.
Reggie Jackson (SFS). 317/424/589.
Willie Mays (NYG). 322/384/516. 186 H.
Stan Musial (KAN). 329/395/577. 49 2B.
Alejandro Oms (MCG). 259/313/410. 13 3B.
Doug Rader (LAA). 330/391/529. 134 RBI.
Tim Raines (OTT). 282/362/414. 92 SB.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 312/427/663. 48 HR, 136 RBI, 127 R, 110 BB, 8.1 WAR.
Louis Santop (CLE). 293/322/447. 14 3B.

Pitchers

Starters

For context, included all 15 game winners, as well as the league leaders in BA against, BABIP (Batting Average on Balls in Play), HR/9, and BB/9.

Bill Byrd (BAL). 14-3, 3.33.
Gerrit Cole (LAA). 16-9, 4.16.
Lefty Grove (SFS). 14-7, 3.46. 207 K.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 8-12, 4.35. 188 K.
Walter Johnson (POR). 14-5, 3.50. .211 Avg.
Pat Malone (CLE). 17-8, 3.84. 5.0 WAR.
Christy Mathewson (NYG). 17-8, 3.50. 211 IP.
Tricky Nichols (CAG). 15-9, 4.14.
Roy Oswalt (HOU). 14-8, 3.70. 207 IP.
Alejandro Peña (BBB). 12-9, 3.79. 5.1 WAR, 3.52 FIP.
Andy Pettitte (KAN/BBB). 15-5, 3.20.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 12-7, 3.87. 1 Sv, 3.47 FIP, 0.5 HR/9.
Charlie Root (SFS/DET). 10-6, 3.53. 1.06 WHIP, .239 BABIP.
Jack Taylor (HOD). 15-9, 3.42. 1.14 WHIP.
Cy Young (CLE). 11-10, 4.36. 1.7 BB/IP.

Relievers

35 IP for rate stats.

Terry Adams (CLE). 2-6, 2.65. 38 Sv. 0.0 HR/9.
Rod Beck (SFS). 2-7, 5.23. 33 Sv.
Mike Henneman (DET). 2-7, 4.60. 38 Sv.
Sean Marshall (BAL). 5-0, 1.79. 1 Sv, 8 H. 0.98 WHIP, .182 Avg.
AJ Minter (CAG). 1-0, 2.61. 30 Sv. 2.88 FIP.
Buddy Napier (DET). 2-1, 2.81. 2 Sv, 9 H. 0.94 WHIP, .198 BABIP.
Don Newcombe (MCG/CAG). 4-15, 6.29. 2 H. 1.3 BB/9.
Mike Norris (NYG). 4-4, 1.47. 8 Sv, 15 H.
Ron Reed (PHI/CLE). 1-6, 4.61. 3 Sv, 17 H.
Ron Robinson (SFS). 7-5, 3.86. 1 Sv, 18 H.
Carson Smith (NYG). 3-0, 2.05. 1 Sv, 10 H. 0.0 HR/9.
Brian Wilson (NYG). 2-0, 2.13. 29 Sv, 1 H. 0.0 HR/9, 2.58 FIP.

Final Series Results

Series Sweeps

Detroit Wolverines over Wandering House of David
Memphis Red Sox over Los Angeles Angels

Taking 3 out of 4

New York Gothams over Portland Sea Dogs
Baltimore Black Sox over Kansas City Monarchs
Chicago American Giants over Brooklyn Royal Giants
Houston Colt 45’s over Ottawa Mounties
San Francisco Sea Lions over Indianapolis ABC’s
Miami Cuban Giants over Homestead Grays
Birmingham Black Barons over Philadelphia Stars

Series Splits

New York Black Yankees @ Cleveland Spiders

TWIWBL 45.0: Series XXXVII Notes

September 9th

Pennant Race

And then there were two …

Only one division has been won–the surprise Cleveland Spiders win the Effa Manley Division–but only one postseason spot remains undecided.

That comes down to the Cinderella Birmingham Black Barons and the disappointing New York Black Yankees. Birmingham’s magic number is 3–meaning any combination of 3 wins by the Black Barons or losses by the Black Yankees will seal their improbable run to the playoffs.

The exact order of finish is up in the air, but here are your nine playoff contenders (numbers in bold & italics are that team’s magic number):

TeamPctDivisionNotes
Baltimore Black Sox.587Cum PoseyClinched playoff; 2
Detroit Wolverines.567Bill JamesClinched playoff; 4
Chicago American Giants.567Cum PoseyClinched playoff
Cleveland Spiders.560Effa ManleyClinched division
New York Gothams.560Bill JamesClinched playoff
Portland Sea Dogs.553Marvin MillerClinched playoff; 3
Wandering House of David.553Bill James1 to clinch playoff
Birmingham Black Barons.540Marvin Miller3 to clinch playoff
New York Black Yankees.527Effa Manley

The Black Yankees visit Cleveland to end the season. The Spiders will be focused on getting their roster ready for the post season, so that may open the door for New York. But Birmingham hosts the worst team in the WBL, the Philadelphia Stars, so it seems like that would make them the safe bet to progress.

Portland visits the New York Gothams and the House of David hosts Detroit in other playoff preview matchups.

Performance

Four more games, so these are very close to final numbers.

Batters

With the Black Yankees possibly missing the playoffs, the noise for Ron Blomberg‘s MVP campaign just gets louder.

Remember when it looked like Pete Browning would swoop in from injury and win the batting crown? Yeah, Ty Cobb had something to say about that.

Omitted below are Josh Gibson of the Homestead Grays and Alejandro Oms of the Miami Cuban Giants (tied for 2nd in the league in triples with 12) and Tim Raines of the Ottawa Mounties (2nd in steals with 91).

Ron Blomberg (CLE). 337/412/648. 43 HR, 107 R.
Ty Cobb (DET). 349/389/558. 187 H.
Eddie Collins (CAG). 312/408/512. 6.4 WAR.
Mike Fiore (CAG). 240/405/390. 109 BB.
Hank Greenberg (DET). 317/374/591. 45 2B.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 269/394/357. 95 SB.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 330/412/579. 107 R.
Reggie Jackson (SFS). 319/426/591.
Willie Mays (NYG). 326/389/523. 183 H.
Stan Musial (KCM). 328/393/574. 49 2B.
Doug Rader (LAA). 336/395/539. 183 H, 133 RBI.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 312/428/658. 46 HR, 132 RBI, 122 R, 106 BB, 7.8 WAR.
Louis Santop (CLE). 299/329/457. 14 3B.

Some milestones possible in the final series:

Musial needs one double to reach 50; Elrod Hendricks (HOD) needs two homeruns to join Ruth and Blomberg in the 40+ club; Rick Reichardt and Mike Trout (Homestead and the Los Angeles Angels, respectively) sit at 98 RBIs; six players have between 96 and 99 runs scored; and Frank Thomas (CAG) needs one walk to reach triple digits.

Pitchers

Starters

It’s unclear if Cleveland’s Pat Malone or the Gothams’ Christy Mathewson will get another start in the regular season: if they do, they’ll be aiming to become the WBL’s first 18 game winners.

Gerrit Cole (LAA). 16-9, 4.33.
Lefty Grove (SFS). 13-7, 3.55. 199 K.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 8-12, 4.35. 188 K.
Pat Malone (CLE). 17-8, 3.84. 5.0 WAR.
Christy Mathewson (NYG). 17-8, 3.51. 205 IP.
Stubby Overmire (HOU/MEM). 9-7, 3.31.
Alejandro Peña (BBB). 12-9, 3.86. 3.52 FIP.
Andy Pettitte (KCM/BBB). 15-5, 3.20.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 12-7, 3.87. 3.47 FIP.
Charlie Root (SFS/DET). 10-6, 3.53. 1.06 WHIP.
Jack Taylor (HOD). 15-9, 3.38. 1.14 WHIP.
Cy Young (CLE). 11-10, 4.36. 204 IP, 5.0 WAR.

Overmire needs a few more innings to finish the year qualifying for the ERA title. Cleveland’s Stan Coveleski and Detroit’s Hal Newhouser are the other starters with ERAs under 4.00 who could qualify with 1 more start, although in Newhouser’s case, it would take a complete game. Detroit’s Gene Conley (3.28) and Cleveland’s Bill Steen (a potentially league-leading 2.93) will miss the cutoff, although each are likely to see starts in the postseason.

Relievers

Check out the trio from the New York Gothams bullpen.

Terry Adams (CLE). 2-6, 2.76. 36 Sv, 1 H.
Clay Carroll (IND). 2-6, 4.14. 3 Sv, 11 H. 64 G.
Mike Henneman (DET). 2-7, 4.70. 37 Sv.
Sean Marshall (BAL). 5-0, 1.79. 2 Sv, 8 H, 0.98 WHIP.
AJ Minter (CAG). 1-0, 2.72. 29 Sv. 2.90 FIP.
Buddy Napier (DET). 101, 2.75. 2 Sv, 8 H, 0.97 WHIP.
Mike Norris (NYG). 4-4, 1.52. 8 Sv, 15 H.
Ron Reed (PHI/CLE). 0-6, 4.56. 3 Sv, 17 H. 64 G.
Carson Smith (NYG). 2-0, 1.77. 1 Sv, 10 H.
Brian Wilson (NYG). 1-0, 1.96. 29 Sv, 1 H. 2.63 FIP.

Streaks

Not a lot going on here, other than Mike Trout‘s 33 game streak of reaching base.

Series XXXVII Results

Series XXVII Sweeps

Wandering House of David over Houston Colt 45’s
Indianapolis ABC’s over Philadelphia

Taking 3 out of 4 in Series XXXVII

Detroit over Birmingham
Memphis over Brooklyn
Portland over Chicago

Series Splits in Series XXXVII

Los Angeles @ New York Black Yankees
New York Gothams @ Kansas City Monarchs
Baltimore @ Homestead
Miami @ Ottawa Mounties
Cleveland @ San Francisco Sea Lions

TWIWBL 44.0: Series XXXVI Notes

September 5

Awards

Gavvy Cravath won the WBL Batter of the Month for August, marking a stunning debut month for the Portland Sea Dogs after being acquired from the Philadelphia Stars. Cravath hit .370 with 11 homers and 19 RBIs during the month.

The Pitcher of the Month was Andy Pettite, 4-0 with his new club after being obtained from the Kansas City Monarchs. Pettitte put up a 2.00 ERA for the Birmingham Black Barons in August.

Baltimore’s Curt Blefary was named the WBL Player of the Week, hitting .588 with 4 homeruns and 10 RBI’s.

Playoff Picture

And then there were eight … only eight games remain in the opening season of the WBL.

And only a single playoff spot is secured, that going to the Baltimore Black Sox, who lead the Chicago American Giants by 2 games in the Cum Posey Division, but whose .589 winning percentage is the best in the league. Chicago–with the second best record in the league–is all but guaranteed a spot in the postseason as well.

And then it starts to get flaky.

In the Bill James Division, the Detroit Wolverines and the New York Gothams are tied for first, with the Wandering House of David only 3 games behind. Right now, all three teams make the postseason.

Over in the Marvin Miller Division, Portland and the Cinderalla-story Birmingham Black Barons are tied for first, with both in playoff spots now as well.

And that leaves the shocker, where in the Cum Posey Division, the Cleveland Spiders have ridden a 9-1 record in their last 10 games to extend their lead over the New York Black Yankees to 5 games … leaving the Black Yankees–and presumptive league MVP Babe Ruth–out of the postseason picture. This is of their own doing, as the Black Yankees were swept by the lowly Memphis Red Sox in Series XXXVI.

The Brooklyn Royal Giants have overtaken the Houston Colt 45’s, but the Royal Giants are 4 games out of the playoffs and essentially have to win out to have a shot. They host Memphis in Series XXXVII, so there’s hope (but see above for Memphis’ sudden discovery of how to win ball games).

The Spiders and the Black Yankees both face potentially weaker opponents in this series, with Cleveland visiting the San Francisco Sea Lions and the Los Angeles Angels making the cross-country trip to ply the Black Yankees.

Many of the rest of these teams will beat up each other: Detroit hosts Birmingham, the House of David host the Colt 45’s and Chicago will visit Portland.

Performance

Batters

Only four players have an OPS above the magic 1.000 line: Babe Ruth (1.095), Ron Blomberg (1.065), Reggie Jackson (1.022), and Joe Jackson (1.005).

Again we’re omitting the two players tied for second with 12 triples, Alejandro Oms of the Miami Cuban Giants and Josh Gibson of the Homestead Grays, but we’re also not including the Ottawa MountiesTim Raines, second in the league in SB with 91.

Ty Cobb has regained the lead in BA as Pete Browning has hit a bit of a–for him–cold streak. The batting crown should come down to those 2, with Cleveland’s Ron Blomberg having a shot as well. Ruth looks to have the other 2 legs of the Triple Crown pretty well nailed down.

Ron Blomberg (CLE). 341/416/649. 41 HR.
Pete Browning (HOD). 342/379/614.
Ty Cobb (DET). 344/384/551. 179 H.
Eddie Collins (CAG). 310/409/507. 6.2 WAR.
Mike Fiore (CAG). 235/395/385. 102 BB.
Hank Greenberg (DET). 320/378/601. 44 2B.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 272/400/357. 102 BB, 93 SB.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 335/416/588. 106 R.
Reggie Jackson (SFS). 318/428/594.
Willie Mays (NYG). 330/393/534. 180 H.
Stan Musial (KCM). 325/389/573. 47 2B.
Doug Rader (LAA). 333/395/535. 128 RBI.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 317/433/663. 44 HR, 127 RBI, 119 R, 104 BB, 7.7 WAR.
Louis Santop (CLE). 306/336/468. 14 3B.

Pitchers

Starters

We’re looking at, in all likelihood, a maximum of 2 starts left for the starters, so it feels like 17 or 18 wins will lead the league this year.

Andy Pettitte‘s second half of the season has been stunning. Not only does he look to have the ERA crown wrapped up, his ERA is now sub-3.00, an incredible accomplishment in this league. Only five starters have ERA’s below 3.50: in addition to Jack Taylor, whose stats are below, Baltimore’s Bill Byrd (3.33), Brooklyn’s Frank Knauss (3.39), and Portland’s Walter Johnson (3.44).

Gerrit Cole (LAA). 15-9, 4.30.
Lefty Grove (SFS). 13-7, 3.68. 196 K.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 7-12, 4.51. 182 K.
Pat Malone (CLE). 16-8, 3.96.
Christy Mathewson (NYG). 16-8, 3.54. 198 IP.
Alejandro Peña (BBB). 12-9, 3.69. 5.0 WAR, 3.41 FIP.
Andy Pettitte (KAN/BBB). 15-4, 2.95.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 12-7, 3.96. 3.45 FIP.
Charlie Root (SFS/DET). 9-6, 3.57. 1.08 WHIP.
Jack Taylor (HOD). 15-9, 3.22. 1.13 WHIP.
Cy Young (CLE). 11-9, 4.47. 197 IP, 4.7 WAR.

Relievers

35 IP for rate stats.

Terry Adams (CLE). 2-6, 2.81. 35 Sv.
Mike Henneman (DET). 2-6, 4.40. 37 Sv.
* Sean Marshall (BAL). 5-0, 1.79. 1 Sv, 8 H.
AJ Minter (CAG). 1-0, 2.75. 28 Sv. 0.97 WHIP, 2.90 FIP.
Buddy Napier (DET). 1-1, 2.75. 2 Sv, 8 H. 0.97 WHIP.
Mike Norris (NYG). 4-3, 1.44. 8 Sv, 14 H.
Ron Reed (PHI/CLE). 0-6, 4.50. 3 Sv, 17 H.
Ron Robinson (SFS). 6-5, 4.03. 1 Sv, 17 H.
Brian Wilson (NYG). 1-0, 1.83. 27 S, 1 H. 2.53 FIP.

* On Disabled List.

Streaks

Baltimore’s Larry Gardner heads into the final 8 games with a 19 game hitting streak (the league record is Babe Ruth’s 23). His teammate, Baby Doll Jacobson, has driven in a run in 7 straight games. While Mike Trout‘s teammate, Bobby Grich, had his consecutive games on base streak ended at 32, Trout has a 29 game run of his own.

Brian Wilson of the New York Gothams has 27 saves on the season, having converted 25 straight. More impressively to me, Cleveland’s Bill Steen hasn’t allowed a run in 19 innings, putting him only 5 behind the league record.

Series XXVI Results

Series XXVI Sweeps

Chicago over Kansas City
Cleveland over Philadelphia
Detroit over Indianapolis
Memphis over New York Black Yankees

Taking Three Out of Four in Series XXVI

Birmingham over Houston
Brooklyn over Portland
New York Gothams over Homestead
Miami over House of David

Series Splits in Series XXVI

Ottawa @ Baltimore
San Francisco @ Los Angeles

TWIWBL 43.0: Series XXXV Notes

August 31

Awards

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

Playoff Races

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

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

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

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

Performance

Batters

To keep this list a little shorter, four players are tied for 2nd with 11 triples (Houston’s George Brett, the Philadelphia StarsWillie Davis, the Homestead GraysJosh Gibson, and the Miami Cuban GiantsAlejandro Oms).

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

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

Pitchers

Starters

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

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

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

Relievers

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

35 IP for rate stats.

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

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

Streaks

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

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

Series Results

Taking 3 out of 4 in Series XXXV

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

Series XXXV Splits

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

Series XXXV Preview: Cleveland Spiders @ Detroit Wolverines

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

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

#Cleveland Spiders

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

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

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

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

#Detroit Wolverines

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

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

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

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

Series XXXIII Best Games

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

TWIWBL 39.1: Series XXXI Notes – Bill James Division

#Detroit Wolverines

The Wolverines scored 19 runs on 20 hits in a blowout of San Francisco. Bob Bailey had 4 hits and 6 RBIs, Geoff Jenkins scored 4 times, and Jenkins, Bailey, and Ernie Lombardi all went deep in support of Charlie Root‘s strong 8 innings in the rout.

Buddy Napier‘s return from the DL pushed Whitey Wilshere back to AAA.

#Memphis Red Sox

Mookie Betts had 4 hits in 4 at-bats, leading Memphis to an 8-2 victory over Miami.

Stubby Overmire had a 1-hit shutout heading into the 9th, and finished with a 3-hitter as Memphis blanked Miami 7-0. Billy Bryan had 4 hits, including his 7th homerun of the year, Manny Ramírez had 3 and Bill White drove in 3 in the victory.

#New York Gothams

Christy Mathewson became the league’s first 14 game winner, opening a doubleheader with a scoreless 7 innings against Cleveland in a 4-0 win for New York.

Closer Brian Wilson–perhaps the dominant closer in the league with 24 saves and an ERA of 1.00–will spend a stint on the 10 day DL with shoulder inflammation. Sergio Romo was recalled from AAA.

#Wandering House of David

Joe Harris was placed on the DL and is expected to miss about 2 weeks. IF Frank Grant, who started the year with the big league team, was recalled from AA.

Anthony Rizzo hit 2 homeruns, giving him 11 on the year (in under 150 ABs) to lead the House of David to an 8-3 win over Kansas City. Bob Rush turned in a solid 7 innings, improving to 12-5 on the season. In less positive news, reserve C Gabby Hartnett was injured, forcing him to the DL and opening a shot for Frank Chance‘s return to the WBL.

Chance hit his first career homerun in his first game back in support of a fine outing by Wade Miley, who improved to 7-4 on the year with over 7 innings of 1 run ball. Jim Edmonds and Rizzo went deep as well as the House of David beat Kansas City, 4-1.

TWIWBL 36.1: Series XXVIII Notes – Bill James Division

#Detroit Wolverines

The Wolverines welcome Charlie Root and Chad Bradford to their staff, but perhaps the return of Tony Phillips is even more important for Detroit’s push down the stretch. Mickey Lolich and Si Johnson were sent to AAA, although both pitched decently. Robby Thompson was sent down on Phillips’ return.

Mike Henneman was the first in the league to notch 30 saves, reaching the milestone in a 7-6 victory over Houston. Sparky Adams and Ed Bailey each had 2 doubles in the contest.

An injury to Buddy Napier forced Detroit to put the effective reliever on the DL for 10 days, recalling Jason Schmidt.

#Los Angeles Angels

Pud Galvin and Harry Howell moved into the Angels’ rotation.

#Memphis Red Sox

Jim Paglioroni‘s departure cleared the way for young Kurt Suzuki‘s promotion to Memphis, where he’ll platoon with Billy Bryan behind the plate. Nixey Callahan was returned to AAA to make room for Turk Farrell‘s return from a rehab assignment.

#New York Gothams

Vean Gregg and Steve Howe lengthen the Gothams’ bullpen, and Rube Waddell replaces Don Sutton in the rotation. But the real changes have occurred offensively. 38 year old Joe Adcock is pounding the ball, and will become the full-time DH. Pete Runnels and Will Clark step right into the lineup. Overall, New York is worse off defensively, but may generate more consistent offense. A lot depends on whether Adcock and fan favorite Wes Westrum can continue their levels of production. George Van Haltren will lose playing time coming to the Gothams to serve as a reserve OFer, but he is now in the midst of a pennant race instead of languishing in Ottawa, so there’s that.

Christy Mathewson, helped by a perfect 1.2 IP of relief from Mike Norris, improved to 12-6 on the season in an 8-4 victory over their crosstown rivals. Norris picked up his 4th save, and Jimmy Sheckard, Johnny Callison, and Willie Mays each went deep for the Gothams.

#Wandering House of David

Tweak, tweak, tweak.

Bunny Downs can’t hit any worse than Craig Reynolds and Jung Ho Kang have, and by adding him to the roster, the House of David could also promote veteran Joe Harris as a bat off the bench.

Jack Taylor twirled a 3-hit, complete game shutout as the House of David beat Brooklyn 6-0. Elrod Hendricks went deep twice and drove in 5 in support of Taylor, who improved to 11-8 on the season while lowering his ERA to 3.15, good for tops in the WBL.

TWIWBL 30.1: Series XXIII Notes – Bill James Division

#Detroit Wolverines

3 hits from Ty Cobb, including his 11th homerun of the year, led Detroit to a 4-0 win over Portland. Johnny Marcum and Mike Henneman combined on the 6-hit shutout, with Marcum moving to 8-2 on the year.

Another combined shutout would close out the series as Gene Conley continued his dominance, moving to 10-2 on the year with 7 strong innings. Buddy Napier and John Hiller helped to close out the 7-0 victory. Bill Carrigan had 3 hits and drove in 3 for the Wolverines and Robby Thompson added his 2nd homerun of the year.

#Los Angeles Angels

Anthony Young was sent to AAA, with Mike Smith being recalled for a start.

The Angels trailed 2-0 late, but a Mike Trout homerun in the 8th and George Wright‘s 12th of the year in the top of the 9th sent LA past the House of David 3-2. Pud Galvin got the win in a game that saw another impressive start–6 shutout innings–from Nolan Ryan.

#Memphis Red Sox

Francisco Lindor‘s first career homerun was one to remember: a walkoff blast in the bottom of the 11th, giving Memphis a 6-5 victory over the House of David. Wade Boggs had 3 hits for the Red Sox, including the game-tying single in the bottom of the 9th. Norwood Gibson and Heath Bell combined for 5 innings of scoreless relief, with Bell improving to 7-3 on the year.

#New York Gothams

Pete Donohue moved to 4-0 on the year with just over 7 scoreless innings in a 3-1 win over Houston. Mike Norris picked up his 10th hold and Brian Wilson closed with his 17th save despite giving up a run in the 9th. Buster Posey and Eugenio Suárez had 3 hits each for New York.

#Wandering House of David

The House of David has finally given up on Rollie Fingers for a while, sending the reliever to AAA and recalling Kerry Wood to the WBL for a debut start. In a somewhat surprising move, 27 year old Mark Grace was waived to make room for Wood. Grace, essentially the starting 1B for most of the season, managed only a 236/312/339 slash line. Fred Lynn was sent to AAA, with Jim Edmonds returning to the House of David, presumably because of his ability to also fill in at 1B behind the new starter, Anthony Rizzo.

Early returns were positive: Wood threw a strong 6 innings, with the starter he replaced–Bob Rush–adding a scoreless final 3 for his first save of the year and Rizzo hit his 6th homerun (in 32 ABs) of the season in a 7-2 win for the House of David.

Phil Regan was waived, with Eddie Rommel being recalled for an emergency start, which went fantastically: Rommel allowed 4 hits and no earned runs in 6 innings in a 12 to 2 drubbing of Memphis. Dan Ford and Ron Santo each had 3 hits including a homerun with Santo driving in 4 on the day.

Series XXI Preview: Detroit Wolverines @ Homestead Grays

This is only the 2nd featured series for the Detroit Wolverines, something that is a little unfair given they are in first place in the Bill James Division. Homestead has been featured twice before, despite languishing in last place in the Effa Manley Division, one of only two teams with a winning percentage under .400.

#Detroit Wolverines

Detroit is solid, top to bottom. They are a bit better offensively and defensively than on the mound, but they’ve earned their place atop the division. The heart and soul of the team is Oscar Gamble, who leads the group in HR (18) and RBI (63), although the trio of Hank Greenberg, Ty Cobb, and Bob Bailey have produced better numbers. Cobb is hitting .341, Baily has a .384 OBP, and Greenberg a .587 SLG. All four of them–plus OF Chili Davis–carry an OPS over .830.

The pitching staff is a work in progress, even at this stage of the season. Johnny Marcum (7-2) has been the best of the starters, but Hal Newhouser is quickly taking over as the ace of the staff. The wildcard here is Gene Conley, who was 8-1 out of the bullpen before being moved into the rotation at the all-star break. Mike Henneman has been spectacular as the closer, with 19 saves. There are a few pitchers–Justin Verlander, Kevin Hart, Buddy Napier–who have shown moments of greatness. If any of them take a big step forward, it could make all the difference for the Wolverines.

Detroit only made one move at the all-star break, bringing in Ernie Lombardi to platoon with Ed Bailey behind the plate. Lombardi has only played in 4 games for the Wolverines, with 1 HR.

#Homestead Grays

The Grays can hit a little, but they can’t pitch at all, ranking dead last in the league in runs against and starters’ ERA, and 19th out of 20 in bullpen ERA. It’s not pretty.

Vean Gregg (7-6, 3.95) has easily been the most reliable starter. Beyond that … Earl Hamilton, Stan Banhnsen, and Francisco Liriano have shown flashes of goodness, but none have managed an ERA under 4.60. The less said about the bullpen, the better.

Mike Epstein (335/439/530) and Josh Gibson (304/390/464) were both all-stars, and deservedly so. And, the OF trio of Roberto Clemente, Rick Reichardt, and Andrew McCutcheon have been solid. Add in Pops Stargell‘s 14 HRs and the occasional promise showed by Honus Wagner, and the Grays score enough to be a .500 team, which would be a huge improvement from their current state.

#Series Matchups

Detroit starter listed first

Si Johnson (3-4, 4.48) @ Earl Hamilton (1-2, 4.65)
Gene Conley (8-1, 3.59) @ Francisco Liriano (3-3, 5.08)
Hal Newhouser (4-3, 2.83) @ Vean Gregg (7-6, 3.95)
Johnny Marcum (7-2, 3.77) @ Stan Bahnsen (3-2, 4.64)

#Prediction

I mean … Detroit is just so much better, and the matchups line up well for them as well. I’m going to go ahead and predict a sweep for the Wolverines, prolonging the Grays’ misery.

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