Tag: Cleveland Spiders Page 1 of 7

TWIWBL 59.2: Bill James Division

On May 16, 2024

#Baltimore Black Sox

Dennis Martínez spun a masterful 2-hit shutout and Baltimore sent 13 people to the plate in a 9 run 6th inning as they demolished Detroit 12-0. Martínez fanned 4 without giving up a walk in the complete game effort, evening his record to 1-1. Frank Robinson and Manny Machado had 3 hits each for Baltimore.

Curt Blefary went deep twice, including a long grand slam, as the Black Sox topped the Wolverines, 14-6. Blefary scored 4 times, drove in 5, and had 3 hits total.

#Cleveland Spiders

Lance Berkman went deep twice, driving in 4, and Evan Longoria delivered a walkoff blast as Cleveland beat Portland 8-7. Johnny Bates and Tris Speaker had 3 hits each for the Spiders.

Speaker drove in 4 and Berkman 3 as the Spiders took a 10-0 lead, and then held on for dear life in a 10-8 victory over Memphis. Berkman would continue his hot start the following day, driving in the winning run in the 10th in a 3-2 win for the Spiders.

#Detroit Wolverines

Ty Cobb had 4 hits–3 of which were doubles–leading the Wolverines to a 7-6 victory over Chicago. Mike Henneman continued his perfect start to the year, earning his 4th save.

Whitey Wilshere was sent to AAA temporarily as the Wolverines needed a starter. George Bechtel was recalled for the start, with an expectation that Wilshere would be recalled shortly after the game. Bechtel did fine and got the victory, but was returned to AAA that evening.

#Memphis Red Sox

Reggie Smith went deep twice, but those were the only runs Memphis could score in a 3-2 loss to Cleveland.

#New York Black Yankees

Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle each had 2 homeruns as the Black Yankees outslugged Baltimore 14-11. Ruth drove in 6–his 2nd 6 RBI game of the young season–and Mantle and Manny Sanguillén had 3 hits each for New York.

Eric Davis went deep twice and Elliott Maddox had 3 hits as the Black Yankees beat up on San Francisco, 12-4. Waite Hoyt had a decent 8 innings, moving to 3-0 on the year and Lou Gehrig and Mantle each also had homeruns for New York.

Year II Season Preview: Cleveland Spiders

By mknn

On March 20, 2024

In Team News

Expectations

This is a hard one. Cleveland was one of the best teams in the league last season, but they also got a few career years which are unlikely to duplicate (Ron Blomberg for sure, but also perhaps Bill Steen and Pat Malone). On the other hand, they discovered some elite talent that will be available all year (Tris Speaker and Bob Feller). So maybe that balances out, and a championship push is possible?

Best Case

Blomberg remains an MVP candidate (unlikely) and the offense solidifies behind Speaker, Chuck Knoblauch, and Lance Berkman and the pitching staff is a net gain (perhaps Steen or Malone regress, but Cy Young steps forward, for example).

Worst Case

Blomberg collapses, leaving only Speaker as a true offensive force (if he actually is one) with the rest of the big bats from last season (John Ellis, Jake Stahl, Knoblauch, Johnny Bates) all regressing towards mediocrity. There is a lot of pitching depth here, but of course there is the danger of injury or total collapse, but it feels like someone will produce here.

Key Questions

Who plays 3B? This is a question of scarcity: nobody has seemed able to step up.
What happens in the OF? Both Speaker and Kenny Lofton offer strong defense, is it possible to move one of them to LF or RF effectively?

Trade Bait

Sure. One way to solve the OF situation is to trade some of them for a 3B.

Roster Evaluation

POS	Elite	Strong	Solid	Meh	Weak	Unknown
C		Santop
1B	Blomberg	Stahl Ellis		Berkman
2B			Knoblauch
3B				Strang	Longoria
SS				Vaughan		Sewell
LF/ RF			Bates			Doby
CF						Speaker
SP		Malone Young	Coveleski Steen	Feller
End		Adams	Gearrin Reed
RP			Harder ~~Wyatt~~			Street Marberry Ventura

New Addition | ~~Injured~~

Pretty accurate, and pretty optimistic: especially if Speaker performs anywhere like he did in his debut 100 PA’s. The Spiders just need a few players to lean left, and they have a shot at a championship.

Talent Ratings

	WBL	Minors
Raw Power	1B/OF Ron Blomberg 1B/OF Lance Berkman	1B/OF Paul O’Neill
Batting Eye	IF Sammy Strang	IF Bobby Avila
Contact	OF Tris Speaker	OF Kenny Lofton
Running Speed	2B Chuck Knoblauch	OF Kenny Lofton OF Randy Winn 1B Bill Phillips
Base Stealing	OF Johnny Bates	OF Kenny Lofton
IF Defense	3B Evan Longoria	IF Jim Gantner
OF Defense	OF Tris Speaker	OF Rowland Office
Stuff	P Bob Feller	P Billy Gumbert P Wes Whisler
Control	P Mel Harder	P Edward Mujica
Velocity	RP Cory Gearrin	RP Joe Smith

Best In The Minors

Rank	Age	POS	Name
1 (45)	22	1B	Aubrey Huff
2 (93)	21	P	John Keefe
3 (96)	26	P	Hank Gastright
4 (99)	23	SS	Joe Sewell
5 (133)	20	1B	Bill Phillips
6 (186)	23	P	Huston Street
7 (194)	24	P	Wade LeBlanc

Others: None.

This is a barren system, probably one of the worst in the WBL. Sewell and Street start the season in Cleveland. Beyond them, especially given that Huff is blocked positionally, it’s not clear where help might come from.

	Most	Least
Age	P Stan Coveleski, 37	IF Johnny Hodapp, 18
Height	P Toby Borland, 6’6″ P Ron Reed, 6’6″	OF Herbie Moran, 5’5″
OPS	1B/OF Ron Blomberg, 1.061 (WBL)	IF Brandon Phillips, .468 (—)
HR	IF Roy Howell, 49 (—)	IF Rick Burleson, 0 (WBL/AAA)
SB	OF Johnny Bates, 41 (WBL)	Many with 0
WAR	1B/OF Ron Blomberg, 5.8 (WBL)	IF Brandon Phillips, -3.7 (—)
W	Pat Malone, 17 (WBL)	Ron Reed, 1 (WBL)
SV	Stew Cliburn, 39 (—)
ERA	Bill Steen, 2.93 (WBL)	Willis Hudlin, 6.41 (AAA/AA)
WAR	Pat Malone, 5.0 (WBL)	Willis Hudlin, -0.8 (AAA/AA)

Stats are across all levels. 200 PA / 75 IP min. Non WBL leagues indicated by —.

TWIWBL 56.5: Spring Training Notes – Cleveland Spiders

By mknn

On February 22, 2024

In TWIWBL

Spring Training Questions

A couple bullpen slots are available, but most of the focus will be on the 3B and OF.

Injuries

Justin Speier will miss the start of the season with an elbow issue.

First Cuts

Cleveland removed a few arms from its big league camp, sending General Crowder, Eric Wilkins, and Steve Gromek to the minors. Both John Keefe and Sudden Sam McDowell are still around, but neither have impressed, and need to improve if they want to survive the next round of cuts.

Sal Butera has been hitting well, and Victor Martinez has done enough to stick around, sending Ray Fosse and Andy Etchebarren down to the minors. They’ll be joined by James Loney, Aubrey Huff, Don Kessinger, and Jim Gantner (surpassed by Bobby Avila in the depth chart). Bill Phillips really hasn’t hit enough to stick around, but his defensive versatility keeps him in camp.

At SS, Bill Dahlen‘s glove continues to keep him in camp, but Joe Sewell–no slouch with the leather himself–is hitting well enough that Dahlen needs to show some improvement at the plate to survive the next round.

Which brings us to the confusion at 3B. Evan Longoria and Bob Elliott have hit well; Brandon Drury has been OK, and neither Ken Keltner nor Sammy Strang have shown much at all. In other words, nothing is much more clear than when camp opened: working this out over the next week is key for the Spiders.

The OF picture has gotten a bit clearer as four of the contenders (Luis Olmo, Randy Winn, Trot Nixon, and Bruce Campbell) combined to hit well under .200, earning a group ticket back to the minors. At the other end, Larry Doby may finally be living up to his scouting hype, starting out on fire in early action.

Second Cuts

John Keefe and Sudden Sam McDowell were unable to improve enough to stay in camp.

Hal Trosky mashed the ball in a brief WBL appearance last year, but hasn’t done enough to preserve his place with the Spiders. Trosky refused to head to minor league camp, earning him his release. Bill Phillips, Bob Elliott, Ken Keltner, and Rick Burleson were all demoted.

SS remains a concern: Joe Sewell has been fine, but both Bill Dahlen and Arky Vaughan are hitting well under .200.

Third Cuts

Sergio Romo‘s performance in a handful of games last season keeps him in camp, but he’s on the edge for sure. Balor Moore was not as lucky, as the lefty headed to minor league camp. Justin Speier, currently injured, was sent down as well.

Louis Santop has struggled, but is clearly the starting C. The battle between Victor Martinez and Sal Butera to be his backup is fierce, however.

1B is a total logjam, and a likely source of trade bait. Jake Stahl, Lance Berkman, and John Ellis are all locks, and Paul O’Neill has been the Spiders’ best hitter in camp. With Ron Blomberg slotted in as the DH, one of these four probably needs to move on.

Over at 3B, Evan Longoria may be finally delivering on his promise, and is pushing Sammy Strang as the presumed starter. Strang continues to not be able to hit, but his ability to get on base and his defense clearly have some value. That leaves the injured Brandon Drury the odd man out.

The OF is slowly clearing out, but remains overcrowded especially as Berkman and O’Neill should see some time here as well. Elmer Flick heads to AAA. A key here is the ability of Tris Speaker, Rowland Office, Peanuts Lowrey, and Johnny Bates to all develop some positional flexibility. The battle between Office and Lowrey is key, and likely to come down to whether Lowrey batting right handed means more or less than Office’s better defense and greater flexibility.

The Final Cuts

Bobby Avila was the first odd man out, a move that essentially assures Sammy Strang his spot as a reserve 2B if nothing else. Sal Butera won the competition with Victor Martinez to break camp as the backup backstop–and with John Ellis able to play there as well, there was no need for Martinez to stay in camp.

In a bit of a surprise, Peanuts Lowrey, who was useful for Cleveland last season, heads to AAA. The Spiders may regret moving out Lowrey’s right-handed bat, but the OF situation just didn’t have any remaining room. Less surprising, but still unexpected, it looks like Joe Sewell has won the backup SS role, with veteran Bill Dahlen heading to AAA.

The Spiders needed 2 cuts to make it to 30. Those were C Sal Butera and P Wilbur Cooper.

Al Smith and Sergio Romo were the final cuts from the staff, meaning both Firpo Marberry and Yordano Ventura made the roster. From there on, it was all surprises and hard choices. Kenny Lofton lost not only the starting CF spot but his roster spot, and the Spiders were unable to find a roster spot for Paul O’Neill despite him being among the Spring batting leaders. Finally, Rowland Office was squeezed out, as the Spiders’ OF was just too crowded.

TWIWBL 55.3: Offseason Notes – Effa Manley Division

By mknn

On January 10, 2024

In TWIWBL

#Cleveland Spiders

C Harry Bemis retired from the game.

The Spiders like what they saw in Mel Harder, and signed the starter to a 3 year, $13M contract. They were less enthusiastic about the performance of midseason acquisition Ron Reed, who was supposed to be the magic salve for their bullpen. Reed struggled, but showed enough to earn himself a 3 year, $5.1M contract.

OF Chuck Hostetler and RP Doug Jones both retired at the end of the AAA season.

#Homestead Grays

Mad Dog Madlock had a solid year at AAA, but the 35 year old decided his future lay outside the lines as he announced his retirement.

The Grays signed FA C Del Crandall, presumably to serve as Josh Gibson‘s backup next season.

#Indianapolis ABC’s

IF Casey Candaele and RP Eddie Fisher have both retired from the game.

25 year old free agent Bill Smith was signed to a $14.5M, 3 year deal and is looking to compete for a rotation spot come spring.

#New York Black Yankees

Art Howe capped his career with 3 games and 6 at-bats at the major league level before calling it quits on his time as a player.

The Black Yankees clearly expect Red Ruffing to fully recover form his rotator cuff surgery, signing him to a 5 year, $21M contract.

Red Schoendienst‘s WBL career was pretty unnoticed: 0 hits in 10 at-bats over 3 games. Both he and RP Mike Stanton announced their retirement.

The Black Yankees released 2 veteran arms who were highly ineffective in their time in the Bronx: Dick Tidrow and Jamie Moyer.

#Philadelphia Stars

Marlon Byrd hit well at AAA, but struggled mightily over a couple of short stints with Philadelphia. At 38, he decided to call it a career.

Jaret Wright suffered a major setback, re-tearing his meniscus while trying to rehabilitate it. Wright will be out well into next year, although he may be back in time for some of Spring Training.

Pete Alexander will require surgery on his shoulder, keeping the young pitcher out of action until the middle of next summer.

Season Review: Cleveland Spiders

By mknn

On December 29, 2023

In Season Reviews, Team News

86 - 68, .558 pct.
1st in Effa Manley Division
Lost to New York Gothams in Wild Card Round

Overall

One of the storylines of the year was Cleveland’s winning their division over the much-hyped Black Yankees. They did it with excellent pitching and just enough offense, but will need to do some work in the offseason to maintain their edge: MVP candidate Ron Blomberg is likely to regress and it’s unlikely all of the pitchers who made good will do so again.

What Went Right

Ron Blomberg shocked the world.

The Spiders thought they had their CF issue solved when Kenny Lofton emerged as a speedy, solid presence at the top of the lineup. Then Tris Speaker returned from injury and exploded onto the scene, essentially hitting like Blomberg, but with speed and defense over his first 100 PA’s.

Jake Stahl and John Ellis were far better than anticipated, each posting an OPS safely over .800.

Louis Santop was solid at C as a teenager.

The Spiders had seven–seven–pitchers who were strong enough to be front half of rotation starters. The top three (Pat Malone, Bill Steen, and Cy Young) were magnificent; Mel Harder was as good in limited appearances; and Whit Wyatt (injured and likely to miss the start of next season), Stan Coveleski, and Stan Bahnsen all were better than many team’s #3 arms.

Terry Adams was excellent, ending the season tied for the WBL lead in saves and Chuck Porter and Cory Gearrin were among the better setup units in the league.

ALL STARS
RP Terry Adams; OF Ron Blomberg; 2B Chuck Knoblauch; P Cy Young

What Went Wrong

The 3rd OF slot was a struggle all season: Peanuts Lowrey was decent enough, and Lance Berkman hit better for Cleveland than he did for Houston, but Lofton faded badly and both Larry Doby and Rowland Office were pretty miserable out there.

3B was an issue all year: Sammy Strang gets on base, but offers little else, but neither Evan Longoria nor Jim Gantner did even that.

Arky Vaughan was acquired at some cost to solidify the SS position, but while he was better than Bill Dahlen, Bill Knickerbocker, or Mickey Doolin, he still struggled.

On the mound, not much: Bob Feller was inconsistent but he’s 20. Ron Reed was OK, but not the world-beater he was with Philadelphia. That’s really not a lot to complain about.

Transactions

March

IF Jim Thome & OF Gus Bell to Miami for IF Evan Longoria

Looks like a loss: Thome struggled but Longoria was miserable.

June

OF Andrew Payne, P Hardie Henderson, OF Darrell Miller & OF Gibby Brack for RP Ron Reed

It seemed fine at the time, but unless Reed recovers his form, it may be a loss.

OF Harry Stovey, 1B Charlie Grimm, P Chad Qualls & 3rd Round Pick to Houston for OF Lance Berkman

At Berkman’s best, this is a good deal; during his slumps, though …

July

IF Nap Lajoie, P Arodys Vizcaíno & 1st Round Pick to Homestead for SS Arky Vaughan

Clearly overpaid. At the same time, the notion was to solidify the infield for a final playoff push, which it almost did.

Looking Forward

SP

The pitching is excellent right now, but only Bob Feller and Cy Young look to be around long term. As such, the Spiders are looking both for young arms and see this as a sign their window for championship competition may be small.

RP

Another strong group, with probably the most interesting arm behind the trio of Terry Adams, Cory Gearrin, and Ron Reed being Firpo Marberry at AAA.

C

Should be Louis Santop for a long, long time.

1B

Ron Blomberg is here, with Jake Stahl and Hal Trosky pushing for time should he stumble.

2B

Chuck Knoblauch looks solid for the time being.

3B

A bit of a mess: it would be great if someone between Sammy Strang, Ken Keltner, and Evan Longoria would step up and take control of this position.

SS

Arky Vaughan was brought in to solidify this position, and will be given at least a year to do that, although Joe Sewell may pressure him. Worst case, the trio of Bill Dahlen, Mickey Doolin, and Bill Knickerbocker have all shown the ability to field at an elite level, although none of them can hit.

LF

Johnny Bates for now, with Paul O’Neill looking decent in the minors.

CF

There is a real glut here. Tris Speaker has basically seized this spot, but the Spiders are looking at moving him to LF to take advantage of Kenny Lofton‘s speed and defense in CF. Larry Doby may also move to a corner spot, if he ever shows an ability to hit WBL pitching.

RF

See above: currently open, but Blomberg will play there some as well.

The Rookie Draft

Rounds 1-4

The Spiders didn’t have a 1st round pick, and then only have a single selection for the rest of the rounds of the draft: they need a lot of talent, so it may be a challenge to fill it all.

That starts with SP Howard Ehmke, a franchise selection who is a few years away from the WBL. Missing out on Carlos Baerga by a single selection may hurt–not only does he play positions the Spiders need, but he would have been a franchise selection. Instead, in round 3, Cleveland takes Justin Turner, perhaps anticipating that by the time the IF is ready for the WBL, their 3B situation will have clarified.

Rounds 5-8

Cleveland will focus on pitching, 2B, 3B, and OF depth.

That begins with Bill Drake in round 5 and 3B Aubrey Huff in round 6 and OF Bruce Campbell in round 7 and IF Johnny Hodapp in round 8.

Rounds 9-12

1B Bill Phillips; 3B Brandon Drury; P Al Smith; P Charlie Knepper.

TWIWBL 48.7: The Playoffs! Wild Card Round, Day IV– September 19

By mknn

On September 19, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Featured Games, TWIWBL

Three teams could clinch today: Detroit, New York, and Baltimore all lead their series 3-0. A victory by Chicago over Portland, however, would even that series at 2 games apiece.

#Portland Sea Dogs v Chicago American Giants, Game 4

Portland leads, 2-1.

The choice for the Sea Dogs comes down to either Pascual Pérez (1-2, 4.92) or Mike Cuellar (13-8, 4.56). Cuellar has been more comfortable coming out of the pen all season, making only 6 starts, which is probably the reason for Pérez getting the nod. There is little controversy for Chicago, where Dick Rudolph takes his scheduled turn.

Adrián Beltré gets the nod at 3B for Portland over Buddy Bell while Rocky Colavito gets the start in LF for Chicago.

The choice of Pérez proved immediately controversial: Eddie Collins took his 4th pitch into the right field stands for a 1-0 Chicago lead. But Pérez quickly settled down, lasting all the way until the 7th, when Dick Allen doubled with one out and Mike Fiore walked. Cuellar was called on, and got the second out of the inning, but Colavito doubled, increasing the lead to 3-0.

Rudolph was even better, not giving up a hit until a Gavvy Cravath single in the top of the 5th inning, then nothing thereafter. The one-hit shutout was still intact after 8, and with Rudolph on only 88 pitches, he headed back out to the mound.

He got the first two outs, but Joe Mauer singled. After a visit to the mound, Rudolph fanned Kent Hrbek, and we had a series tied at 2 games each!

Obviously, this one was all about Rudolph: 2 hits and 5 strikeouts in a complete game, 99 pitch gem.

POR 0 (Pérez 0-1) @ CAG 3 (Rudolph 1-0)
HRs: POR – none; CAG – Collins (2).
Box Score

And now we move to the win or go home games.

#Detroit Wolverines v Birmingham Black Barons, Game 4

With no need to push things, Detroit will turn to the red hot Hank Aguirre (9-10, 4.34) while Birmingham counters with Vic Willis (4-6, 3.57), but today, and for any future games, all of Birmingham’s staff is down in the pen, ready to go. The Black Barons make 2 tweaks to their lineup, starting Al Schweitzer in CF over the struggling Curtis Granderson, and giving Jim Pagliaroni a day off behind the plate in favor of Gene Tenace.

Schweitzer repaid the faith immediately, singling in the bottom of the first and coming around to score on a hit from Eddie Mathews. Not to be outdone, Tenace doubled to lead off the home second, but was stranded at third.

Willis was sailing until the 4th, when he gave up homeruns to Bob Bailey, Hank Greenberg, and Chili Davis, putting Detroit up 4-1, and ending his afternoon. Andy Pettitte was summoned from the bullpen, hoping to make up for his subpar start in game one of the series.

Aguirre struggled a bit through his five plus innings, giving up 6 hits and a walk, but he surrendered only the single run.

Johnny Marcum relieved Aguirre and got into some trouble in the bottom of the 7th: Tenace walked, and Granderson pinch-ran and promptly stole second. Then, Adrián González, pinch-hitting for Herman Long, was granted first on catcher’s interference. After an out, Marcum walked Bob Nieman to load the bases. That fetched Buddy Napier from the Wolverines’ bullpen to face Schweitzer, who lifted a fly to shallow center. Chili Davis made the catch and nailed the runner at home to end the inning.

And so we made our way to the bottom of the 9th with Birmingham trailing 4-1 and the Wolverines’ closer, Mike Henneman, on the mound. Three up, three down, and Detroit were through to the next round!

Yeah, Willis gave up the three homers, but Birmingham knew it would need to tally more than a single run to have a chance. At the end of the day, the fault has to be laid at the feet of their offense, who managed only a single homerun in the 4 games. Mention should be made of Pettitte’s effort as well: 3.2 scoreless innings and, clearly tiring, getting Ty Cobb to end the 7th with his final pitch.

DET 4 (Aguirre 1-0; Henneman 1 Sv; Marcum 1 H; Napier 1 H) @ BBB 1 (Willis 0-1)
HRs: DET – B. Bailey (1), Greenberg (2), C. Davis (1); BBB – None.
Box Score

Hank Greenberg was declared the MVP of the series, hitting .438 with 2 homeruns and 7 RBIs.

#Cleveland Spiders v New York Gothams, Game 4

This one surprised quite a few people, but the Gothams are just a solid team. The Spiders will turn to Stan Coveleski in what could be their final game of the season, while New York has the luxury of giving the mercurial Rube Waddell a game.

Lance Berkman gets the start at first for Cleveland, with John Ellis sliding behind the plate in place of the slumping Louis Santop.

The Spiders would clearly not go quietly: Kenny Lofton beat out an infield hit to start the game, moved to second on a walk to Tris Speaker, and scored on a soft single to right by Jake Stahl. A 2-out double by Chuck Knoblauch plated them both, giving the Spiders an early 3-0 lead.

Benny Kauff continues to impress: after a leadoff double from Willie Mays, Kauff took a pitch from Coveleski off the wall in centerfield, putting the Gothams on the board. Without another hard hit ball, New York loaded the bases and scored on a soft topper by Jimmy Sheckard that didn’t make it past the mound. Another infield hit–this one by Pete Runnels–tied it up.

Both pitchers recovered, but were beginning to tire. Coveleski didn’t make it out of the 5th: a walk to Buster Posey and a single from Mays chased him. Cleveland turned to Ron Reed, looking to prove he was worth his mid-season acquisition: the jury is out, as Reed walked Kauff and surrendered a bases-clearing double to Will Clark for a 6-3 lead for the Gothams.

That took the wind out of Cleveland’s sails, and when New York added 2 more on a double from Runnels and sacrifice hit from Mays.

New York rode its bullpen, like it’s done all year, right into the next round.

Nobody hit for Cleveland, other than Lofton. But Ron Blomberg‘s 1-for-16 performance jumps off the page–that ain’t no MVP performance, that’s for sure.

CLE 3 (Coveleski 0-1) @ NYG 8 (Waddell 1-0)
HRs: None.
Box Score

Willie Mays won the MVP hitting .438 for the series, but Will Clark rediscovering his stroke and the contributions of Benny Kauff deserve some recognition as well. And if you could, the MVP award really could go to the entire Gothams bullpen, who allowed 4 runs in 11 effective innings.

#Baltimore Black Sox v Wandering House of David

Baltimore leads, 3-0.

Can any of the teams with their backs against the wall gain any breathing room? The House of David will turn to CC Sabathia (13-13, 4.83), with a full bullpen behind him, while Baltimore will counter with Mike Mussina (7-4, 4.08).

Jim Edmonds slides over to 1B, with George Gore taking over in CF for the House of David.

A sacrifice fly from Edmonds scored the first run of the game in the bottom of the second, and Richie Hebner and George Stone took Mussina deep with back to back jacks in the next inning. That made it 3-0, but Dan McGann hit his second homerun of the series with a man on to close the score to 3-2.

Mussina gave up another shot to Stone in the 5th, and was relieved by Jim Palmer, who let in another run. The House of David had hope, a 5-2 lead, and a cruising Sabathia. He was replaced by Ed Bauta in the 7th, then Lee Smith in the 8th, and Bruce Sutter in the 9th.

Each team added runs, but the outcome was secured: we will have a game 5!

Stone and Gore had 3 hits each for the House of David, and Elrod Hendricks even had his first hit of the series–a weak single to right, but still, a hit.

Things just got worse for Baltimore: Larry Gardner was forced out of the game in the bottom of the 7th with an apparent rib injury.

BAL 3 (Mussina 0-1) @ HOD 8 (Sabathia 1-0)
HRs: BAL – McGann (2); HOD – Stone 2 (2), Hebner (1), Gore (1).
Box Score

News on Gardner was better than feared: he’ll be day-to-day for about a week, so Baltimore will hold off on roster moves for now.

TWIWBL 48.6: The Playoffs! Wild Card Round, Day III – September 18

By mknn

On September 18, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Featured Games, TWIWBL

All four series now shift locations. Today is a key day: Portland, Detroit, New York, and Baltimore all hold 2-0 leads, making this pretty much a must-win day for Chicago, Birmingham, Cleveland, and the House of David.

#Portland Sea Dogs @ Chicago American Giants, Game 3

Portland leads, 2-0.

Dizzy Trout (7-5, 4.18) will take the mound for Portland, opposed by Ed Walsh (8-3, 3.26). Walsh is a bit of a wild card for the American Giants, having made only 11 starts during the season, but with Dick Rudolph struggling down the stretch, he’s emerged as a solid choice for a game Chicago knows it has to win.

Walsh worked out of a bases loaded jam in the 3rd, and with Trout only allowing one hit–a single to Freddy Parent–we were scoreless through three innings. We stayed that way until the 5th, when a Joe Mauer single scored Gil Hodges for the game’s first run. Again, Walsh faced a bases-loaded jam, but after whiffing Kent Hrbek, he walked Gavvy Cravath to force in a second run, which also prompted a call to Chicago’s bullpen, bringing in Don Newcombe, who gave up a 2-RBI single to Rogers Hornsby, making it 4-0 in favor of Portland.

Frank Thomas broke up the shutout, knocking home Freddy Parent in the bottom of the 6th. Duffy Lewis followed with a double, and that was it for Trout, who gave way to Mark Melancon. Dick Allen greeted Melancon with a sharp single to right, scoring both Thomas and Lewis, pulling Chicago within a run.

Eddie Collins picked a heckuva time to announce himself: he was hitless in the series until he rocked a Trevor Hoffman slider into the right field seats with Parent on base. Chicago had come all the way back to take a 5-4 lead. Hoffman gave up a further walk and a single, but Elmer Brown came in to prevent any further damage.

That setup the 9th inning Chicago had hoped for all along: AJ Minter on the mound against the lefty dominant lineup of the Sea Dogs. Three up, three down, and Chicago was back in the series led by Parent’s 3 hits and Collins’ key clout.

POR 4 (Hoffman 1-1, 1 B Sv; Melancon 1 H) @ CAG 5 (Sanders 1-0; Minter 1 Sv)
HRs: POR – none; CAG – Collins (1).
Box Score

#Detroit Wolverines @ Birmingham Black Barons, Game 3

Detroit leads, 2-0.

This is an interesting matchup, with Detroit sending Charlie Root (10-6, 3.53 overall, but 5-1, 2.62 since joining the Wolverines) to face Greg Maddux, who overcame some early season struggles to end the season at 6-7, 3.53.

Detroit would score first, as Oscar Gamble and Al Kaline each took Maddux deep in the second inning. Ed Bailey would add a moon shot of his own in the 4th, putting the Wolverines in front, 6-0. A walk and a single chased Maddux, but Sam Streeter was able to get out of the inning without further harm.

With Root only allowing 3 hits through 5 innings, Detroit looked like they were sailing towards a dominant series lead. But Pie Traynor and Bob Nieman led off the 6th with singles, and a double from Hank Aaron scored the first 2 runs of the day for the Black Barons, chasing Root from the game. His repalcement, Justin Verlander, was solid, escaping the inning without allowing more runs despite allowing a walk.

That brought us to the top of the 7th, with the Wolverines leading, 6-2.

A double by Ty Cobb–only the 2nd hit allowed by Streeter–brought in Larry Benton for Birmingham, who allowed an RBI single to Hank Greenberg before escaping the inning. The Wolverines threatened again in the 8th, but a tired Bruce Chen was called on to face Cobb, and induced an inning-ending double play without letting the 5 run deficit get any worse.

But all it did was delay the inevitable, with Detroit going up 3-0 in the series with the 7-2 win. George Davis had 3 hits in support of Detroit’s three long balls, but the real story might be Maddux having very bad timing to have arguably his worst outing of the season.

Both bullpens were excellent with Verlander and John Hiller combining to allow only 2 hits in 4 innings for Detroit and, while hit a little harder, Streeter, Benton, Harley Young, Chen, and Steve Bedrosian held the Wolverines to 1 run over 5 innings.

DET 7 (Root 1-0) @ BBB 2 (Maddux 0-1)
HRs: DET – Gamble (1), Kaline (1), E. Bailey (1); BBB – none.
Box Score

#Cleveland Spiders v New York Gothams, Game 3

New York leads 2-0.

Cleveland will hope Cy Young can slow the Gothams down. The Gothams had a more difficult choice picking between Juan Marichal (13-9, 5.47) and Don Sutton (6-8, 4.94). In the end, they went with Marichal, partially because Sutton was far more used to coming out of the bullpen.

Both teams tweaked their lineups slightly: for Cleveland, they still have been unable to find a way to get Lance Berkman in the starting lineup, preferring to have Kenny Lofton and Tris Speaker back to back at the top of the lineup, but they did replace Sammy Strang at 3B with Jim Gantner. The Gothams’changes were a little more drastic, with George Van Haltren starting in RF and Benny Kauff at DH.

Cleveland’s choices paid immediate dividends: Lofton led off the game with a double and scored on Speaker’s single. Perhaps more importantly for the Spiders, Ron Blomberg picked up his first hit of the series, a comebacker through the middle for a single. Marichal settled down, allowing only one more run despite loading the bases.

The Gothams’ response was immediate: Jimmy Sheckard singled, stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Pete Runnels. Despite a Buster Posey double and another wild pitch by Young, the Gothams only managed the single tally, ending the first inning trailing 2-1.

Singles to lead off the 4th by Louis Santop and Arky Vaughan brought in Sutton in relief of Marichal. He shut the door, retiring Gantner, Lofton, and Speaker in succession.

Kauff took Young deep in the 5th to tie the game at 2, but the Cleveland starter closed out the inning. He was chased from the game in the 6th, after giving up 2 hits and a walk to start the inning (Sheckard led off with a hit, but was caught stealing). In came Yordano Ventura, who surrendered a sharp hit to Willie Mays, but Lofton was able to gun down Runnels at the plate to preserve the tie.

Sutton was fantastic, most likely sealing his role as a starter should the Gothams progress, allowing only a hit in just over 3 innings. He was relieved by Steve Howe, who had been erratic all year, but usually effective against lefties. Howe came through here: a routine grounder from Lofton was bobbled by Runnels, but Speaker flew out and Blomberg grounded into a double play.

And from there, things just got more and more tense as the bullpens proved their worth until Mays led off the bottom of the 9th with a single, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt from Johan Camargo, and scored on a base hit from Will Clark.

The key here for New York was their bullpen, as it has been all year, although there were some different names involved this time: Sutton, Howe, and Robb Nen combined to allow only 2 hits over 6 innings.

On the whole, the managerial choices proved solid: Gantner had a hit and Kauff the key homerun.

CLE 2 (Porter 0-1) @ NYG 3 (Nen 1-0)
HRs: CLE – none; NYG – Kauff (1).
Box Score

#Baltimore Black Sox v Wandering House of David, Game 3

Baltimore leads 2-0.

Baltimore had indicated that Mike Mussina would get the third start, but have opted instead for Connie Johnson, one of the hottest arms in the league. Johnson was 9-5 on the year with a 3.65 ERA, so he’s been pretty stellar throughout. The House of David will counter as planned, with Frank Sullivan (9-10, 4.77).

For Baltimore, Baby Doll Jacobson will get the start in CF in place of Paul Blair. The House of David react to a somewhat desperate situation with Ron Santo and Joe Harris both joining the starting lineup in place of Richie Hebner and Anthony Rizzo, a move questioned by fans, given the choice to give up the platoon advantage.

Baltimore wasted no time: Bobby Wallace led off the game with a triple and scored on a long flyball from Larry Gardner. A homerun from Dan McGann in the top of the second doubled the lead to 2-0.

Sullivan settled down after that, but Johnson was just that much better, striking out 7 over 5 scoreless innings.

Wade Miley relieved Sullivan, but not effectively: two walks and a 3-run homer from Ken Singleton pushed the Black Sox lead to 5-0.

A glimmer of hope for the House of David in the 7th, when Pete Browning took Jim Palmer deep with a man on, cutting the deficit to 5-2. Which is how it ended: the House of David had their chances, but couldn’t come through when it mattered, and now face the steepest of uphill climbs.

McGann had 3 hits for Baltimore; Ryne Sandberg and Dan Ford 2 each for the House of David.

BAL 5 (Johnson 1-0; Groom 2 Sv; Beggs 1 H) @ HOD 2 (Sullivan 0-1)
HRs: BAL – McGann (1), Singleton (2); HoD – Browning (2).
Box Score

TWIWBL 48.5: The Playoffs! Wild Card Round, Day II – September 16

By mknn

On September 14, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Featured Games, TWIWBL

#Birmingham Black Barons v Detroit Wolverines, Game II

Game two would see Birmingham send its second ace–Alejandro Peña–to the mound against perhaps Detroit’s most effective pitcher all season, Gene Conley, who started out in the bullpen, but has made 16 starts since moving into the rotation.

Peña seemed to have a hard time settling, and in the bottom of the 3rd, Detroit finally broke through: a single from Tony Phillips, who moved to second on Bob Bailey‘s sacrifice bunt, and came around to score on a single from Hank Greenberg. It continued in the 4th: 4 more hits brought in 2 more runs (one on a single from Ed Bailey and the other on a sacrifice fly from Bob), making it 3-0 in favor of the Wolverines.

Meanwhile, Conley had allowed 2 hits through 7 innings, but was showing signs of fatigue, prompting the Wolverines to bring in Matt Anderson for the 8th. Anderson got 2 outs, then had to leave with some sort of leg injury.

The Wolverines added a run in the bottom of the 8th, which looked like it could be important when Cupid Childs greeted Mike Henneman with a leadoff triple. Henneman got two quick outs, but Curtis Granderson brought home Childs, and when Adrián González walked, Herman Long stepped up as the potential tying run. Long singled to load the bases, but Henneman got Jim Pagliaroni to fly out to end the game. So, a typical Mike Henneman save.

Phillips had 3 hits for Detroit, but the star was Conley, who struck out 8 in his 7 scoreless innings.

Two close games, but 2 wins for Detroit to open the series at home.

BBB 1 (Peña 0-1) @ DET 4 (Conley 1-0; Anderson 1 H; Hiller 1 H)
HRs: None.
Box Score

#Chicago American Giants v Portland Sea Dogs, Game 2

Chicago decided to go with the hot hand to try to even up the series, sending out David Price to face Bert Blyleven. Price is 4-0 with a 2.44 ERA since coming over from Indianapolis, making him preferred over Dick Rudolph and Ed Walsh (the likely game 3 starter).

Chicago came out firing after their game one loss: Eddie Collins and Frank Thomas walked, both scored on Duffy Lewis‘ double, and Lewis came home on a groundout by Dick Allen. But a shot from Bobby Murcer with 2 on board in the bottom of the inning reset us in a tie. Game one hero Gil Hodges–the 9th Sea Dog to bat in the inning–hit a 2-run single before Price could finally get the final out in an inning that saw 2 Chicago errors, a walk, and 4 hits.

Portland scored again in the 2nd, but the lead was short lived as Carlton Fisk took Blyleven deep in the 3rd with the bases loaded, putting Chicago back in front, 7-6.

Price didn’t make it out of the 4th, as a leadoff single from Kent Hrbek brought in Ben Sheets from the Chicago bullpen. Likewise, Blyleven was relieved by Wade Miller to start the 5th.

And suddenly the offenses were held in check: Chicago preserved its one run lead through the 5th, through the 6th, through the 7th. But in the 8th, Hoyt Wilhelm surrendered an RBI single to Hrbek and then, after Thomas dropped a throw for the American Giants’ 3rd error of the day, Rogers Hornsby laced a 2-run double down the left field line. A single from Buddy Bell scored Hornsby and chased Wilhelm.

That gave the Sea Dogs a 10-7 lead heading to the 9th. Singles from Thomas and Lewis brought the tying run to the plate, but Bob Porterfield induced a double play from Allen, leaving Chicago’s hopes up to Mike Fiore … who grounded out weakly to first, giving Portland a 2-0 edge in the series.

It’s hard to overcome 3 errors, even harder in the post season.

Thomas had 3 hits for Chicago, and Hrbek 3 for Portland, who got 3 RBIs each from Murcer and Hornsby.

CAG 7 (Wilhelm 0-1, 1 B Sv) @ POR 10 (Hoffman 1-0; Porterfield 1 Sv)
HRs: CAG – Fisk (1); POR – Murcer (1).
Box Score

#New York Gothams v Cleveland Spiders, Game 2

Cleveland would send out Bill Steen to face the Gothams’ Gaylord Perry.

Cleveland sat Johnny Bates in favor of getting both Kenny Lofton and Tris Speaker in the lineup, and it paid dividends early against Perry. Lofton singled, stole second, and scored on a homerun from Speaker that curled just around the right field foul pole. Cleveland would bat around, but score only one more run, on an RBI single by Chuck Knoblauch, giving the Spiders a 3-0 lead after one inning.

New York clawed one back in the 3rd on an RBI single from Pete Runnels. But that was really it, as Steen allowed only 3 hits through 6 innings.

Sergio Romo relieved Perry, but had to leave with injury after the first two outs.

New York had a chance in the bottom of the 8th, as Pinky Higgins led off the inning with a walk and moved to second on Jimmy Sheckard‘s single. That brought in Chuck Porter, who got Runnels to hit into a double play, ending the threat and the inning, and preserving the Spider’s 3-1 lead.

Terry Adams came in for Cleveland to close it out, but promptly gave up singles to Buster Posey and Willie Mays and, after an out, a game-tying single from Johnny Callison. Carl Furillo delivered a pinch-hit single, plating Callison and giving the Gothams a 4-3 lead.

That brought Brian Wilson in to seal the deal, with the unusual move of Posey playing third. Kenny Lofton singled, setting up a 2-out confrontation with Ron Blomberg. Wilson got him to fly out to center, giving the Gothams a dramatic victory and a 2-0 series lead.

This one will hurt: the Spiders out-hit the Gothams 10-8 and left 9 runners on base. The victory went to Mike Norris, who pitched 1.1 scoreless innings despite giving up 2 hits.

NYG 4 (Norris 1-0; Wilson 2 Sv) @ CLE 3 (Adams 0-1, 1 B Sv; Porter H 1)
HRs: NYG – none; CLE – Speaker (1).
Box Score

The news was encouraging on Romo, who will only miss a day or two of action with a stiff back.

#Wandering House of David v Baltimore Black Sox, Game 2

The House of David will try to even the series behind Bob Rush while Baltimore will counter with Dennis Martínez.

A solo shot by Ernie Banks put the House of David in front in the top of the 3rd. That was all the offense through five innings, with Martínez actually pitching better than Rush, despite the 1-0 deficit for Baltimore.

In the bottom of the 6th, Bryce Harper tied the game with a solo shot that barely cleared the right field wall. Two hits in the top of the 7th chased Martínez, but John Wetteland caught George Stone looking to end the inning, leaving the game tied, 1-1.

This is the kind of situation for which the House of David brought Ed Bauta over from. Here, the reliever gave up a leadoff single to Paul Blair, who stole second and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Bobby Wallace. But Ryne Sandberg cut down Blair at the plate on a slow ground ball, and Bauta got a groundout from Frank Robinson to end the threat. So, onto the 8th, still tied.

Pete Browning‘s end of season struggles have been well documented, but he had two sharply hit singles today before facing Wetteland in the 8th, when he drove a pitch deep to straight away center for his first post-season homerun, and a 2-1 edge for the House of David.

Harper would strike again with a triple, scoring Brian Roberts (who had pinch run for Curt Blefary, who singled to lead off the frame) to tie the game. Ken Singleton followed with a soft single to right for a 3-2 lead. Lee Smith struggled some more, and the House of David had to turn to Wade Miley to get the final out of the inning. But, he did, sending us to the top of the 9th with Baltimore having seized a 1 run edge.

Buddy Groom gave up a leadoff single to Dan Ford, but Banks bounced into a tailor made 6-4-3 double play, leaving the House of David’s hopes on pinch hitter Ron Santo, who lined a ball hard to the left side, caught by Bobby Wallace, putting the Black Sox up in the series, 2-0.

Browning had 3 hits–a welcome sign for House of David fans, and a requirement if they are to make a comeback. For Baltimore, 3 players–Harper, Singleton, and Manny Machado–had 2 hits each, with Harper the clear hitting star.

HOD 2 (Smith 0-1, 1 B Sv) @ BAL 3 (Miller 1-0; Groom 1 Sv)
HRs: HOD – Banks (1), Browning (1); BAL – Harper (1).
Box Score

TWIWBL 48.4: The Playoffs! Wild Card Round, Day I – September 15

By mknn

On September 13, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Featured Games, TWIWBL

We’ll be going day by day here as the playoff series evolve.

#Birmingham Black Barons v Detroit Wolverines, Game I

Series preview here.

With Alejandro Peña not fully rested, Birmingham turns to ERA champ Andy Pettitte in Game 1 with Detroit countering with Hal Newhouser in a lefty v lefty matchup.

A walk, a sacrifice bunt, an infield hit, and a long 3-run homer: just like that, Detroit took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first as a Hank Greenberg longball scored Tony Phillips and Ty Cobb. Birmingham would scratch a run back in the 3rd on an RBI single by Frank McCormick, another in the 4th on an RBI double from Cupid Childs, and another in the 5th to tie the game, this one an RBI single from Hank Aaron.

Greenberg gave the Wolverines the lead again in the bottom of the 5th with a single scoring Bob Bailey, but Birmingham would tie it up in the top of the 7th as McCormick brought home Bob Nieman.

It would stay that way until the top of the 9th, when Detroit left John Hiller in one batter too long, and Pie Traynor–much maligned after a hot start earlier in the year–took him deep with Al Schweitzer on base, putting the Black Barons up, 6-4.

Juan Rincón was called in to close it out, but couldn’t, eventually surrendering a 2 out, bases loaded single to Bill Carrigan to tie the game. Rincón walked Al Kaline to load the bases again, and was relieved by Steve Bedrosian … who promptly walked Chili Davis, forcing in the winning run.

McCormick and Nieman had 3 hits each for Birmingham, while Bob Bailey had 3 for the Wolverines.

This one could hurt: with neither Pettitte or Newhouser really pitching as expected, the Black Barons had done well to come back to tie the game, and then Traynor’s shot in the 9th seemed to have the victory stolen. Instead, Detroit takes the first game in an improbable fashion.

BBB 6 (Rincón 0-1, 1 B Sv) @ DET 7 (Anderson 1-0; Bradford 1 B Sv)
HRs: BBB – Traynor (1); DET – Greenberg (1).
Box Score

#Chicago American Giants v Portland Sea Dogs, Game 1

Series preview here.

Game one is a matchup of each team’s ace, which also reveals the gap in pitching between the sides. For Chicago, Tricky Nichols takes the mound with a record of 15-9 and a 4.14 ERA. Nichols has been good all year, clearly a top of rotation type starter. But Portland gets to run out The Big Train, with Walter Johnson ending the season 14-5 with a 3.50 ERA in a season punctuated by a few spells of absolute dominance.

Gil Hodges launched an offering from Nichols into the stands in the bottom of the 3rd for a 1-0 Portland lead, and Gavvy Cravath doubled it later in the inning with an RBI single. Hodges would do it again in the 4th, sending his 2nd home of the game over the wall for a 3-0 lead.

On the other side, Johnson had faced 9 batters through 3 innings (an HBP and a caught stealing were in there, so not a perfect 3 innings). Eddie Collins walked to leadoff the third, but he was caught leaning the wrong way on a snap throw by Portland catcher Joe Mauer. Dick Allen finally notched Chicago’s first hit of the game, a single in the top of the 5th.

Nichols was left in one batter too long, and again it was Hodges, whose third homerun of the day put Portland up, 6-0. Hodges, who finished with 5 RBIs, didn’t get a chance to hit a 4th, as Portland cruised to the win. This performance makes Hodges the first player in WBL history to hit 3 homeruns in a game on 2 separate occasions.

Cravath had 3 hits for the Sea Dogs. Johnson finished with 7 scoreless, allowing only 3 hits.

CAG 0 (Nichols 0-1) @ POR 7 (Johnson 1-0)
HRs: CAG – none; POR – Hodges 3 (3).
Box Score

#New York Gothams v Cleveland Spiders, Game 1

Series preview here.

The WBL’s only 2 17 game winners are matched in the opening game of the series (New York’s Christy Mathewson and Cleveland’s Pat Malone), with the only real question being how Cleveland would work wunderkind Tris Speaker into its lineup (Speaker was called up when Johnny Callison hit the DL, Callison is back now). Today, it’s Kenny Lofton as the odd man out, with Speaker starting in centerfield–essentially the Spiders deciding to keep MPV candidate Ron Blomberg, John Ellis, and Jake Stahl all in the lineup.

In the top of the 3rd, New York’s Jimmy Sheckard singled and stole second, and then scored on a 2-out singly by Buster Posey. Willie Mays plated Posey with a double, and the Gothams took a 2-0 lead.

It took until the fifth inning for the Spiders to get their first hit: a single from Ellis, who was left stranded at second. Cleveland had some more base runners–Matty hit 2 batters in the 6th and gave up a walk in the 7th–but no further hits through 7 innings.

With Mathewson on 109 pitches, New York had him on a short leash in the 9th. He got the first 2 outs easily, but a Jake Stahl single brought in the Gothams’ dominant closer, Brian Wilson, to face Chuck Knoblauch. An easy pop fly to right later, and the Gothams were up, 1-0 in the series.

Mays had 2 hits, but the real story was Matthewson, who allowed 2 hits through 8 2/3, striking out 8 and walking 2.

NYG 2 (Mathewson 1-0; Wilson 1 Sv) @ CLE 0 (Malone 0-1)
HRs: None.
Box Score

#Wandering House of David v Baltimore Black Sox, Game 1

Series preview here.

Some may have been surprised that Baltimore turned to Bill Byrd instead of Dennis Martínez for game one, but Byrd has been on fire lately and certainly deserves the recognition as the Black Sox’s best. The House of David’s choice was more obvious, with Jack Taylor–despite a bit of a late season fade–being their clear ace.

A Frank Robinson double plated Bobby Wallace in the bottom of the first for an early 1-0 lead for Baltimore. Manny Machado made it 3-0 with a 2 run shot in the second.

Taylor settled down, but in the bottom of the fifth, gave up 2 singles before plonking Robinson, loading the bases with 1 out. But Taylor emerged unscathed, with the score still 3-0. The problem for the House of David was that Byrd was pitching excellently, allowing only a single hit through his 5 innings of work.

Jim Edmonds led off the 8th with the House of David’s second hit, a double to centerfield. A Richie Hebner single chased Byrd in favor of Gregg Olson, who emerged from the inning unscathed.

Kerry Wood‘s playoff debut was much rougher, as he gave up a wind aided grand slam to Ken Singleton, pushing the Black Sox ahead, 7-0.

And so we have our third shutout of the opening day of the playoffs–and the second that finished 7-0. Wallace had 3 hits, but the star was Byrd, striking out 4 and yielding only 3 hits in just over 7 innings.

HOD 0 (Taylor 0-1) @ BAL 7 (Byrd 1-0; Olson 1 Sv)
HRs: HOD – none; BAL – Machado (1), Singleton (1).
Box Score

TWIWBL 48.3: Playoff Previews – New York Gothams @ Cleveland Spiders

By mknn

On September 11, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Series Previews, TWIWBL

The final matchup features two teams that got no respect during the season. Everyone focused on the New York Black Yankees, but the Spiders won that division by 5 games (the largest gap of any division); the Gothams were always sort of an afterthought, but won one more game than Cleveland.

#New York Gothams

We’ve got a true #1 starter and the best bullpen in the league. Seems like a good recipe for the playoffs, right?

Christy Mathewson (17-8, 3.50) will pitch as many games as he can, and the Gothams will turn to Carson Smith (3-0, 2.05) and the superlative Mike Norris (4-4, 1.47) to get the ball to Brian Wilson (2-0, 2.13 with 29 saves). Beyond Matty, Gaylord Perry (9-10, 4.27) has been solid and they’ll try to find some mix of Don Sutton, Juan Marichal, and Rube Waddell for the rest.

Two additions (veteran Joe Adcock and OF George Van Haltren) have rounded out New York’s offense, adding some support for Willie Mays (322/384/516), Buster Posey (319/397/462), and Johnny Callison (304/352/543). It’s an offense that gets a lot of hits, but lacks power: Mays and Will Clark led the team with 24 homeruns, but most of Clark’s came with Miami. Callison and Jimmy Sheckard hit 20 each, but really that’s it.

Still, there aren’t really any bad hitters until you get all the way down to SS Eugenio Suárez, and his OPS is just under .700. Pete Runnels has been out of his mind since coming to the Gothams, with an OPS over .900, and could really be the key to their postseason success.

Callison’s return from injury as well as Benny Kauff‘s fantastic WBL debut at the end of the season (a 1.2o2 OPS over 20+ AB) forces LHP Vean Gregg off the playoff roster, and left the Gothams with an interesting tactical choice between defensive SS sub Brandon Crawford and IF Johan Camargo, who can play both 2B and SS, albeit mediocrely. They ended up going with Camargo for the first series.

#Cleveland Spiders

The Spiders are a good team, and Tris Speaker‘s explosion on the scene makes them better. But they are also a pretty thin team all around.

Pat Malone (17-8, 3.84), Bill Steen (13-3, 2.93), and Cy Young (11-10, 4.36) are a solid opening trio, and either Mel Harder or Stan Coveleski will cover behind them. The trio of Chuck Porter, Cory Gearrin, and Terry Adams (38 saves) has been great on the back end. But Ron Reed–an all-star with Philadelphia–has been a large disappointment with the Spiders, and the rest of the bullpen is very unknown.

The offense has been carried all year by Ron Blomberg, with strong support from Jake Stahl, John Ellis, Johnny Bates and Louis Santop. Bates, Ellis, and Stahl all have OPS in the .800s. Blomberg leads the team with 44 homeruns, 125 RBIs, and 109 runs. But only Stahl (26) and Ellis (21) have over 20 dingers, and Stahl, with 85 RBI and 83 R shows just how far behind Blomberg the rest of the offense has been.

Enter Speaker, who was injured for most of the year, and then stuck behind Kenny Lofton in CF. In just under 100 PA, Speaker is slashing 372/443/616, giving the Spiders a true second offensive threat. Also of note, while Lance Berkman‘s overall .744 OPS isn’t much to look at, his OPS with Cleveland is at .800, a significant difference.

The left side of the IF continues to be a challenge: Arky Vaughan has brought his glove with him since the trade that brought him over from Homestead, but his bat remains missing and Sammy Strang does little more at third than get on base (his .370 OBP is 4th on the team, but his .705 OPS is well towards the bottom of the list).

#Prediction

Gothams in 6. Their bullpen carries it for me.