Previews are in order of seeding, starting with the Sea Lions

#San Francisco Sea Lions

San Francisco won 103 games this year and was the dominant team for almost all of the season. As such, postseason expectations are high, and warrantably so.

The front of their rotation can match up against anyone, with Lefty Grove (16-6, 4.40), Eddie Plank (20-7, 4.42), and the impressive rookie, Bump Hadley (18-6, 4.10) as dominant as they come. The back end of the bullpen is equally strong: Rod Beck led the league in saves with 41, Ken Howell was his usual spectacular self, and Joe Nathan was obtained via trade for the 7th.

Offensively, the Sea Lions are led by the presumptive AL Rookie of the Year, Turkey Stearnes, but he’s far from the only force: Rickey Henderson led the league in steals, Reggie Jackson and Jack Clark each had over 100 RBIs, and Clark, Stearnes, Jackson, and Jimmie Foxx each hit over 40 homeruns.

Even an injury that will prevent Frank Grant from seeing action for a week or 2 has an upside, as it clears playing time for Royce Clayton, who has an OPS over .900 as a reserve IF.

With Grant unavailable, the final spot on the playoff roster came down to a choice between Tommy Bridges and Wayne Gross, with the Sea Lions deciding to go with the the extra bat off the bench.

#New York Black Yankees

90 wins and a Bill James Division Title earned the Black Yankees the 2nd seed in the AL.

The story of the Black Yankees has remained the same over 2 seasons and numerous roster moves: can the bullpen do enough to support good starting pitching and an excellent offense?

Goose Gossage was given closer duties midway through the season and has been excellent overall, but getting to him as been challenging to say the least, prompting New York to overpay for Hoyt Wilhelm as a bridge between the starters, the erratic Aroldis Chapman, and Gossage.

Andy Pettitte has taken over the #1 slot from Ron Guidry, and after those 2 it’s a bit of a tossup between Dave Righetti, Pascual Pérez, and the surprising Tony Brizzolara.

Offensively, the team is a beast, with Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Mickey Mantle combining for over 200 HRs with star level support from Mike Schmidt, Eric Davis, and Rogers Hornsby.

Had he been recalled earlier, the surprising Josh Harrison would have made the playoff roster, but instead Jeff Nelson comes along as an extra bullpen arm.

#Cleveland Spiders

Cleveland faded down the stretch, finishing a game behind the Black Yankees. Still, a solid season for the Spiders, who relied on an impressive offense and a pitching staff that, while lacking star power, remained dependable top to bottom.

Cy Young led the way with 15 wins, but Bob Feller and Bill Steen were probably better as starters. Yordana Ventura started well this season, but faded and may be relegated to bullpen duty. Al Smith has locked down a spot in the pen, teaming with Cory Gearrin to get the ball to closer Terry Adams.

7 everyday starters sport OPS’ over .900, including the 33 year-old, late season callup, Willie McCovey. McCovey’s performance makes the roster a little heavy in 1B/DH/Corner OF types, with Lance Berkman, Ron Blomberg, and John Ellis all fitting that role, but 17 HRs in under 40 games can’t be ignored.

The key to the offense remains evil CF Tris Speaker, but Berkman, who led the Spiders in HR and RBI, isn’t far behind. A late season surge–including 4 homers on the final day of the season–has moved Larry Doby into that conversation, and Evan Longoria and Arky Vaughan have laid full claim to the 3B and SS roles, which were question marks for Cleveland earlier in the season.

Everyone makes the postseason roster, even the disappointing Louis Santop who, after starring last season, forgot how to hit and lost most of his playing time to mid-season acquisition Ed Bailey. Bailey has a bruised thigh, and will be unavailable for the first few games of the opening series, meaning Santop or Ellis will likely start behind the plate.

#Detroit Wolverines

A tailspin at the end of the year forced Detroit into a 1 game playoff for the final Wild Card spot, which they won handily. For that effort, they receive a matchup with San Francisco, in which they will be a significant underdog.

Still, it’s hard to count a team with Ty Cobb, he of the 386/440/841 slash line, out.

Cobb, however, didn’t lead the Wolverines in OPS–that honor fell to JD Martinez who just kept demanding more playing time as the season wore on. It’s only 125 PAs, but still. Hank Greenberg and Al Kaline provide significant support, and behind them, well, nobody is a star but nobody is bad. Oscar Gamble, Juan Beníquez, Ernie Lombardi, and Bob Bailey all have OPS’ over .850. Greenberg is out for the first game or 1, which is a significant blow for Detroit.

The middle infield is an open question, but Charlie Gheringer seems to have locked down 2B and a mixture of Tony Lazzeri and Ray Chapman are producing surprising offense from SS. There is an outside chance Bobby Wallace–obtained to be the solution at SS–is back during the postseason. We’ll see.

The weakness of this team is the starting pitching: Charlie Root was the only constant, and he was pretty mediocre. Hal Newhouser has an explosive arm, but an erratic track record, and after him, we’re looking at trade acquisition Connie Johnson and the surprising Pete Conway.

Closer Mike Henneman is still trying to recover from a back issue, meaning the bullpen will revolve around Chad Bradford, Steve Howe, Troy Percival, and Buddy Napier. Howe and Percival were obtained via trade and have been fairly inconsistent.

The final roster spot came down to a choice between George Bechtel and Johnny Marcum, with Detroit opting for Marcum’s experience, but neither have been very good this year.

#Predictions

San Francisco is just too good. Detroit can take some hope from having split the season series with the Sea Lions at 7 games each. But it just feels like too big of an ask.

San Francisco in 5.

The other series is just a continuation of a back-and-forth battle all season. The teams are completely familiar to each other, having met 23 times in the regular season, with Cleveland taking 12 wins against New York’s 11.

That feels right for the playoffs as well.

My head says New York in 7, but my heart says Cleveland takes advantage of yet another bullpen implosion to take the final game. We’ll see.

We have 2 weeks left in the season, so a ton of focus on the playoff races feels appropriate.

#Awards

The House of David‘s Anthony Rizzo hit 4 homeruns and hit .429, earning himself the NL Player of the Week Award. Over in the AL, it was a familiar name–Babe Ruth of the New York Black Yankees–earning the Award. Ruth hit .526 with 6 homeruns and 11 RBIs as New York pushes towards the playoffs.

#Team Performance

#AL

The San Francisco Sea Lions have clinched the Cum Posey Division, and either the Cleveland Spiders or the Black Yankees will win the Bill James Division (currently the 2 teams are locked in a dead heat for the top spot), with the other team taking 1 of the 2 Wild Card slots.

The Detroit Wolverines lead the Miami Cuban Giants by 1.5 games for the final playoff spot.

This week offers the Black Yankees a huge opportunity, as they host both Detroit and Cleveland: a strong week from New York could settle a lot of questions.

#NL

Brooklyn has clinched the Effa Manley Division, and all else is chaos.

Philadelphia is (a) 15 games behind the Royal Giants and (b) leading the Wild Card race by 2.5 games.

The Houston Colt 45’s have put their best baseball on the field when it matters, and are currently leading the Marvin Miller Division by 4.5 games, putting them in good position to claim their first postseason appearance.

Behind them, Indianapolis and Kansas City are tied with identical 74-76 records, with the House of David 1.5 games behind them. But the worst team in the NL–the Ottawa Mounties–are only 4.5 games out of the Wild Card. Now, climbing over 6 teams is hard, but anything is possible.

With that many teams still engaged, all of the matchups this week have meaning, but Houston visiting Indianapolis to start the week will certainly grab some attention.

#Player Performance

#Batters

Babe Ruth does Babe Ruth things, as his 6 dingers on the week have allowed the Bambino to retake his customary spot atop the HR log. While it looks like Josh Gibson will fall short in his pursuit of .400, it does seem like he may be able to hold off Detroit’s Ty Cobb in the batting average race.

Cobb reached 200 hits this week, and may very well end the season the only batter to top that milestone (Oscar Charleston and Tony Gwynn each need 14 more hits–doable but perhaps not likely).

Top 2 in most categories.

Lance Berkman (CLE). 281/369/648. 136 RBI.
José Canseco (MCG). 253/356/716. 64 HR.
Oscar Charleston (IND). 333/376/615. 186 H.
Ty Cobb (DET). 383/437/832. 203 H, 62 2B, 16 3B, 142 R, 9.0 WAR.
Josh Gibson (HOM). 394/490/794. 10.2 WAR.
Tony Gwynn (HOU). 338/374/535. 186 H.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 246/377/423. 101 BB, 114 SB.
Pete Hill (HOU). 268/343/446. 14 3B.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 353/406/604. 64 2B.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 279/412/731. 65 HR, 150 RBI, 135 R, 111 BB.

#Pitchers

#Starters

At full usage, most starters have 2-3 chances to win games remaining. Which means 4 players are chasing 20 wins, while Indianapolis’ Luis Padrón just keeps dominating, sitting at 22-3.

This list continues to be dominated by 3 names: A. Rube Foster, Padrón, and Toad Ramsey.

Top 2 in most categories.

Roger Clemens (HOU). 17-9, 3.51. .220 BABIP.
A. Rube Foster (KCM). 11-6, 3.13. .185 BA, .211 BABIP, 1.00 WHIP, 3.67 FIP.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 10-7, 4.32. 239 K.
Orel Hershiser (BRK). 17-5, 3.75.
José Méndez (MCG). 12-5, 4.42. 216 IP.
Luis Padrón (IND). 22-3, 3.20. 6.7 WAR.
Andy Pettitte (NYY). 18-8, 4.14.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 18-7, 4.41.
Toad Ramsey (HOU). 15-10, 3.26. 216 IP, 269 K, .182 BA, 0.98 WHIP, 3.43 FIP, 7.6 WAR.

#Relievers

Top 2 in most stats, top 3 in saves. 30 Min IP for rate stats, which allows the debut of the amazing start to Bartolo Colón‘s career for Homestead.

Rod Beck (SFS). 4-4, 5.20. 38 Sv, 1 H.
Bartolo Colón (HOM). 1-1, 1.70. 1 H.
Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-3, 5.04. 17 H.
Eric Gagne (BRK). 3-3, 3.06. 34 Sv.
Eddie Guardado (NYY). 2-2, 2.11. 2 Sv, 10 H.
Bob Howry (PHI). 4-1, 3.00. 23 Sv, 0.83 WHIP.
Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-7, 5.98. 1 Sv, 20 H.
Josh Lindblom (HOM). 8-4, 3.42. 33 Sv.
Lee Smith (KCM). 4-2, 2.92. 6 Sv, 12 H, 0.79 WHIP.

#Injuries

Some useful pieces may be back in times for the postseason: Cleveland’s Cory Gearrin, Detroit’s Hank Aguirre, Kansas City’s Jock Menefee, Miami’s Gary Sheffield, and the House of David’s Pete Browning may all return to action this week.

#Baltimore Black Sox

Manny Machado and Cal Ripken, Jr. each hit 2 out and the Black Sox held on for dear life in a 16-13 win over Detroit.

In the minor leagues, P George Blaeholder and OF Mike Devereaux retired, as did major league arm RA Dickey. Dickey’s time in Baltimore wasn’t great–to date it encompasses 33 innings, a 1-2 record, and an ERA approaching 9.00. Even for a knuckleballer, though, 42 is a ripe old age in the grand old game.

#Cleveland Spiders

Closer Terry Adams began a rehab stint and should rejoin the Spiders by the end of the week. Claude Passeau was returned to AAA in exchange for Chuck Porter, who seems to have successfully transitioned to a long relief/starting role.

A key arm in the Spiders’ bullpen, Cory Gearrin, will miss about a week, prompting Adams’ recall. Another arm hit the DL, but Willis Hudlin–who tore his rotator cuff–is less likely to be missed, having pitched only a handful of innings after a solid season at AAA. Passeau was called back up to take Hudlin’s spot.

Joe Sewell continues to make a name for himself, as the young backup had 5 hits in a 10-4 victory over Chicago. With the win, Cleveland pulls into a tie with the New York Black Yankees for first place in the Bill James Division.

The dead heat with New York continued as Larry Doby hit 3 homeruns leading the Spiders to an 8-5 come from behind victory over Detroit.

Lance Berkman drove in 6 with 2 homeruns as the Spiders beat Detroit, 13-2. Bob Feller improved to 12-3 with a strong 6 innings, and Arky Vaughan had 4 hits, scored 4 times, and drove in 3.

#Detroit Wolverines

Tony Lazzeri hit the rehab circuit as he tries to make it back to Detroit in time for the playoffs.

Pete Conway was named to the Wolverines’ rotation.

Hank Greenberg had 2 homeruns, but despite that and 4 hits and 4 RBIs from Bob Bailey, the Wolverines fell to Baltimore, 16-13.

OFs Wally Moses and Bill Bruton announced their retirement.

Joe Wood has done fine as a utility player for Detroit, but as they push towards the postseason, Ray Chapman‘s incandescent start to his WBL career has led to the Wolverines sending Wood to AAA as they recall Lazzeri.

#Memphis Red Sox

Gabby Hartnett hit 2 homeruns and the Red Sox topped San Francisco, 8-7.

#New York Black Yankees

Roy Evans was returned to AAA, with Art Ditmar being recalled from AA as the Black Yankees continue to try to tweak their staff.

Three decent bats retired from the Black Yankees’ minor league system, with Red Rolfe, Hal Chase, and Sam Rice all hanging up the cleats, with Rolfe and Chase planning to throw their hats into the ring as coaches.

Babe Ruth hit 2 out, but the Black Yankees’ bullpen couldn’t hold onto a lead late, despite another solid outing from Tony Brizzolara, as they fell to Los Angeles, 11-6. Ruth did it again, taking back the WBL homerun lead, but once more the bullpen collapsed and the Black Yankees fell to Memphis, 7-6.

Mike Schmidt launched 2 deep shots of his own and Eric Davis, Thurman Munson, and Mickey Mantle joined him with homeruns as the Black Yankees beat Memphis in the series finale, 11-7.

HOME PAGE | ROSTER | POSITIONAL STRENGTH | LEADERS

The Spiders don’t lead the league in anything, but they are also top 6 or 7 in everything. Add some very bright lights–Tris Speaker, Ron Blomberg, and Lance Berkman especially–and you have a hard team to beat. The question is if they can maintain it–they also feel like a team that could be broken by the wrong injury.

THE OFFENSE

It’s a bit uneven, but there is plenty of firepower here.

#What’s Going Right

It really all revolves around the big 3, with Tris Speaker, Ron Blomberg, and Lance Berkman each sporting an OPS over 1.000. Speaker leads in all the slash stats, while Blomberg has 41 homers and 117 RBIs. Berkman has chipped in with 38 dingers and 95 RBIs, more than enough to lead most teams.

Ed Bailey, brought in via trade during the all star break, remains a top end offensive catcher, slashing 258/344/617.

Evan Longoria, who struggled most of last season, has seized the 3B role, and is one of 5 batters with over 20 homers (3 more–Arky Vaughan, Larry Doby, and Chuck Knoblauch–are in double digits).

Johnny Bates has 41 SB, despite some struggles otherwise offensively.

#What’s Not Going Right

C Louis Santop, an all star and media darling last season, is slashing 207/252/375. He’s only 20 and remains the franchise’s future behind the plate, but the drop in impact is noticeable. This, of course, was the primary motivation for the decision to bring in Ed Bailey.

John Ellis and Chuck Knoblauch–both key players last season–are struggling to push their OPS over .700 this season.

THE PITCHING

It’s … solid. There is a lot of talent here, but not a lot of star power, something that could prove an obstacle in the postseason.

#What’s Going Right

Bill Steen (10-6, 5.02)and Cy Young (10-6, 5.16) both hold identical records, and seem very dependable in a eat up some innings and get the ball to the bullpen sort of way. Young clearly has the talent to do more than that, but has yet to put it together.

Speaking of talent … Bob Feller (7-3, 4.82) keeps flashing it, averaging nearly 12 strikeouts per 9 innings and forcing himself into the starting rotation.

Terry Adams (20 saves) is excellent at closer, and Cory Gearrin (3-0, 2.41) is one of the better setup arms in the league.

Al Smith (1.88 in 11 appearances) has had a very impressive start to his career, and is a potential impact left handed arm in the pen.

#What’s Not Going Right

Of the starters, only Feller has an ERA under 5.00, and that’s only over 6 starts. Yordano Ventura (5-6, 5.59) and Pat Malone (5-8, 5.45) have each struggled to find their form.

Ron Reed continues to not live up to his billing, although he seems to have stabilized as of late.

THE FARM SYSTEM

TOP PROSPECTS | MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEM

Cleveland has the worst rated system in the league … and it may be accurate. Aubrey Huff, Justin Turner, and Bill Phillips could all contribute at some point, and teenage IF Johnny Hodapp can hit, but … there’s just not much here.

There is some talent in the upper levels of the system, most notably OFers Paul O’Neill and Kenny Lofton, but both are stuck behind established players.

WHAT’S NEEDED

If the Spiders are to make a deep postseason push, they need the big 3 to keep producing and a few players–preferably starters–to step forward over the final few months.

Storylines to Watch

Key Questions from Spring Training

• Who plays 3B? This is a question of scarcity: nobody has seemed able to step up. Longoria has pretty much taken over here.
• 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? Not on this team, no: Lofton didn’t even make the club out of Spring Training, and Speaker is an upper echelon player so far this year, even if he’s a terribly unpopular figure in the clubhouse.

FEATURED SERIES

The Spiders head to Detroit for 3 games against the Wolverines, an in-division rival.

Projected Starters

Cleveland’s starter listed first.

Pat Malone (5-8, 5.45) @ Charlie Root (8-8, 5.60)
Bob Feller (7-3, 4.82) @ Hal Newhouser (5-3, 4.77)
Cy Young (10-6, 5.16) @ Johnny Marcum (6-4, 5.46)

I like this Cleveland team, and especially if Feller shows up, see a sweep as a distinct possibility.

Game One

Bob Feller was moved up to pitch in game one for Cleveland, with Detroit countering with Charlie Root as anticipated.

One of the more pleasant surprises for Detroit, veteran Juan Beníquez, took Feller deep in the 2nd for an early 1-0 Wolverines lead. In the 3rd, another similarly surprising performer–Tony Lazzeri–did the same, making it 2-0.

The Spiders finally broke through against Root in the 6th: Chuck Knoblauch singled to open the inning, was moved to second through a sacrifice bunt from Louis Santop, and scored on a double from Arky Vaughan.

In the bottom of the 6th, after a walk to Oscar Gamble, Beníquez chased Feller from the game with a double in the gap. Al Smith gave up two RBI singles (one to Victor Martínez, the other to Lazzeri) before getting out of the inning, putting the Spiders in a 4-1 hole.

It was short-lived: Ron Blomberg and Lance Berkman went deep back-to-back to lead off the 7th and chase Root from the mound, making it a 1 run one game once more at 4-3.

Chili Davis added an insurance run for Detroit with a solo shot, but Cleveland would not be stopped: Vaughan hit one out in the 8th, then Blomberg hit his 43rd of the year and 2nd of the game with Tris Speaker on board to give the Spiders their first lead of the day, 6-5.

Ron Reed and Terry Adams did their job (although Adams did load the bases in the 9th), and Cleveland took game one.

CLE 6 (Marberry 6-0; Adams 21 Sv; Reed 5 H) @ DET 5 (Hoeft 2-3, 3 BSv; Bechtel 2 H)
HRs: CLE – Blomberg 2 (43), Berkman (39), Vaughan (11); DET – Beníquez (13), Lazzeri (7), C. Davis (27).
Box Score

Game Two

Pat Malone would take his turn for Cleveland in game 2, with Hal Newhouser on the mound for Detroit.

Malone may have needed even more rest–he gave up 3 runs in the bottom of the first, 1 on a single from Ty Cobb, the rest on Al Kaline‘s 22nd round-tripper of the season.

Luckily, Cleveland has some power too, and took the lead in the top of the 2nd behind a pair of 2 run shots, one from Larry Doby and the other from Johnny Bates.

Hank Greenberg tied it up with a solo shot in the 3rd and then, in the 5th, the most unlikely power source of all–Detroit’s George Davis–sent a ball scooting into the gap for an inside-the-park-homerun to give Detroit a 5-4 lead.

Newhouser was done after 5 innings, giving up 4 runs on 5 hits and 4 walks while whiffing 9–sort of a thumbnail of his year to date.

Ron Blomberg did it again, tying the game at 5 with a solo shot to lead off the 8th, but Detroit took it back with an RBI single from Chili Davis in the bottom of the frame.

Detroit’s closer, Mike Henneman, would see his first action since returning form injury. Unfortunately for Cleveland, he looked fully rested, and easily retired the heart of the Spiders’ lineup for his 15th save of the season.

CLE 5 (Morton 5-3; Young 8 Sv; Malloy 2 H) @ DET 6 (Marichal 8-10)
HRs: CLE – Doby (20), Bates (10), Blomberg (44); DET – Kaline (22), Greenberg (36), G. Davis (3).
Box Score

Game Three

Before the game, Detroit sent Joakim Soria out on a rehab assignment.

The starters for game 3 remain unchanged: Cleveland’s Cy Young taking on Detroit’s Johnny Marcum.

Cleveland would score in each of the opening 3 frames: an RBI single from Ron Blomberg, 2 solo shots from Larry Doby, and a 2-run homerun from Ed Bailey. Meanwhile, Young was having a pretty typical start for him: he looked good, but every hit led to a run, with the RBI’s for Detroit coming from Oscar Gamble, Ty Cobb, and Ernie Lombardi. So, 5-3 in favor of Cleveland after 3 innings.

And then, as sometimes happens, both hurlers remembered how to do it, keeping us scoreless until Doby roped his 3rd of the game, chasing Marcum and giving the Spiders a 6-3 edge.

Al Kaline took Young deep in the 6th, closing the edge to 6-4. In the next inning, after a Bob Bailey single chased Young, Al Smith was brought in to face the 2 lefties, Gamble and Cobb. Smith walked Gamble, but got a groundout from Cobb, and Firpo Marberry closed out the inning, preserving the 2 run lead.

Billy Hoeft and Jack Wilson were roughed up in the top of the 9th, with Tris Speaker, Blomberg, and Joe Sewell each going deep and providing the final margin of 10-4 in favor of Cleveland.

Doby had 2 more chances, but could not become the first player in the WBL to hit 4 out in a game.

CLE 10 (Young 11-6; Smith 1 H; Marberry 1 Sv) @ DET 4 (Marcum 6-5)
HRs: CLE – Doby 3 (23), Bailey (9), Sewell (2), Speaker (26), Blomberg (45); DET – Kaline (23).
Box Score

So, the Spiders take the series, showing a lot of who they are: more offense than pitching, and usually enough to get the job done.

#Baltimore Black Sox

A rough year gets rougher, as surprise all-star Justin Hampson will miss most of the rest of the season. RA Dickey, who was decently effective in an earlier run with the Black Sox, was recalled.

Manny Machado hit 2 out giving him 29 for the year, but the Black Sox bullpen couldn’t hold a lead and Baltimore fell to San Francisco, 11-9.

#Cleveland Spiders

Al Smith was recalled from a rehab assignment, with Claude Passeau heading back to AAA.

Bob Feller and Ron Reed combined on a 2-hit shutout of Baltimore, with the Spiders taking the contest 5-0. Feller, who improved to 5-3, allowed 2 hits (but 7 walks) in 7 innings, and Reed was perfect in relief.

Recent acquisition Ed Bailey went deep twice, giving him 4 in his short tenure with the Spiders, as Cleveland topped Detroit, 7-4. Bill Steen was solid, improving to 8-5, and Reed and Cory Gearrin did their job, getting the ball to Terry Adams who picked up his 16th save.

#Detroit Wolverines

George Bechtel hit the DL, with Detroit recalling Gene Conley, who may have gotten himself straightened out at AAA after a miserable start to the year.

#Memphis Red Sox

Dobie Moore will miss a couple of weeks, prompting the Red Sox to recall veteran IF Nomar Garciaparra. Garciaparra had 2 hits in his first game, but was overshadowed by Travis Shaw‘s 2 homeruns as the Red Sox beat the Black Yankees, 8-7 in 12 innings.

In need of a starter, the Red Sox moved Bill Doak to AAA, recalling Nixey Callahan.

#New York Black Yankees

Jack Scott was sent to AAA to make room for Dave Righetti‘s return from the DL. Righetti will move to the bullpen for the time being. It was expected that Nick Etten would head down when Don Mattingly returned, but Etten just continues to mash the ball, leaving Tom Herr the odd man out.

Righetti’s return lasted one appearance, as a strained back will put him on the shelf for up to 22 weeks. Needing a starter, the Black Yankees recalled Tony Brizzolara, the only rested arm at AAA.

Gavvy Cravath hit his 5th and 6th homerun of the year, driving in 4 and leading Baltimore to a 9-7 victory over San Francisco. Dennis Martínez pitched well to improve to 2-1, with Buddy Groom earning his first save of the year in relief of an injured Joe Beggs, who will be unavailable for a few days with an oblique strain.

Connie Johnson finally had a good start: 7 innings, 3 hits, 1 run, and 11 strikeouts. It resulted in his first win of the year, a 2-1 victory over Cleveland. Johnson had been so poor so far that his ERA only dropped to 9.50 with the superlative effort.

#Cleveland Spiders

With Whit Wyatt ready for recall from his rehab assignment, the Spiders had a choice between Bob Feller and Huston Street, both of whom have been absolutely battered in the early going. They opted to waive Street and retain Feller, but will ask the 20 year old to throw from the bullpen for a while, with his roster slot taken by either Wyatt or Mel Harder.

Jake Stahl had 4 hits and Tris Speaker drove in 3 as the Spiders beat Detroit, 9-6. Stan Coveleski got the victory with 6 solid innings and Terry Adams picked up his 3rd save.

Ron Blomberg had 3 hits and drove in 5 as Cleveland came from behind to beat Detroit in 11 innings. 7-5. Yordano Ventura got the win with 2 scoreless innings of relief and Cory Gearrin, filling in for the injured Adams, got his 2nd save with a perfect inning.

Speaker hit 2 homeruns–one in the 9th as Cleveland came from behind to tie the game and one in the 10th to go ahead–as the Spiders topped Baltimore 6-5.

Evan Longoria doubled his homerun total with 2 longballs in a 5-4 win over Baltimore.

#Detroit Wolverines

Buddy Napier was put on the DL (against his protests that he would be fine in a day or three), with Ray Sadecki being promoted to the big league club for the time being.

Sadecki was magnificent, allowing 1 hit in 7 innings. He walked a man to lead off the 8th and was relieved by Chad Bradford … who promptly, with a little help from Billy Hoeft, blew a 3-0 lead. Whatever else happens, Sadecki’s performance guarantees his time with the Wolverines for a little while at least.

Chili Davis went deep twice, but the Wolverines’ bullpen got hit hard, giving up a late lead in 7-5 loss in 11 innings. Ty Cobb had 3 hits and Tony Phillips led off the game with his 2nd homerun of the season.

Charlie Root fanned 13 in 7 innings, but it wasn’t enough as he gave up 5 earned runs in a 6-2 loss to the Black Yankees.

#Memphis Red Sox

Despite a better showing than 2000, Eddie Cicotte was the first to go when the Red Sox needed a starter with Jameson Taillon being recalled from AAA. Taillon was magnificent, clearly earning a chance to stick around, tossing 8 innings of 2 hit ball with 8 strikeouts in his WBL debut. Skel Roach and Andrew Miller combined for a 3-0 shutout win over Miami. Wade Boggs had 3 hits for the Red Sox.

Travis Shaw hit two homeruns as the Red Sox beat Miami 5-1. Len Barker got his first victory of the year with 8 strong innings.

#New York Black Yankees

The Black Yankees hit 5 solo homeruns and Dave Righetti moved to 2-0 with 6.2 solid innings as New York downed Miami 7-5. Derek Jeter, Babe Ruth, Don Mattingly, Mike Schmidt, and Eric Davis each went deep and, perhaps as important for New York, Sparky Lyle threw a perfect 2.1 in relief, whiffing 4.

Righetti tossed 7 innings of 2-hit relief in the completion of a suspended game, leading the Black Yankees to a 9-3 win. Righetti improved to 3-0 on the year, and Davis failed to homer, ending his consecutive game streak at 6 (four of his teammates did go yard: Jeter, Mattingly, Thurman Munson, and Mickey Mantle). Lou Gehrig went deep twice (including a 500+ ft moon shot) in the “regular” game, leading New York to an 8-6 victory.

Ruth went deep twice and, perhaps more importantly for New York, Ron Guidry threw 6 shutout innings, allowing only 2 hits, as the Black Yankees topped the Wolverines 6-2.

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

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

Best In The Minors

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.

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.

#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.

• The battle between the Birmingham Black Sox and the New York Black Yankees for the final playoff spot.
• Other games between playoff contenders that might determine final seedings for the postseason.
• Any other games or performances of note.

#The Battle for the Final Spot

Philadelphia exploded for 6 runs in the 5th, then held on for dear life to defeat Birmingham, 8-5 for the Black Barons 4th consecutive loss (and the Stars’ first win in 11 games). Scott Rolen, Bobby Abreu, and Aaron Judge delivered RBI singles, then Buck Freeman put the icing on top with his 20th homerun of the year, a 3 run shot to put Philadelphia ahead, 7-0. Bob Nieman and Adrián González went deep late to make it close, but it wasn’t enough.

PHI 8 (Collins 9-12; Howry 25 Sv) @ BBB 5 (Baker 7-6)
HRs: PHI – Freeman (20); BBB – Nieman (15), González (10).
Box Score

The Black Yankees were unable to take advantage, however, as a pinch hit homerun from Tris Speaker gave the Spiders a lead they preserved with solid relief efforts from Stan Bahnsen and Cory Gearrin, including Terry Adams picking up his 37th save. This one hurt, as New York scored 4 in the opening inning, and held a 6-4 lead before Speaker’s shot.

NYY 7 (Citarella 4-8, 6 B Sv) @ CLE 8 (Bahnsen 1-0; Adams 37 Sv; Gearrin 14 H)
HRs: NYY – Belle 16; Gehrig 26; CLE – Stahl (26), Speaker (4).
Box Score

#Playoff Seeding

The New York Gothams sealed their wild card spot with a walk-off, 4-3 victory over Portland. Buster Posey delivered the run scoring single in the bottom of the 9th. Jimmy Sheckard (who led off the game with his 20th homerun), Pinky Higgins, and Brian Dozier each had 2 hits for New York. The game also marked Christy Mathewson‘s final start of the regular season–despite a solid 5 plus innings, Mathewson was not around for the decision, leaving him on 17 wins for the season.

Detroit scored 10 runs in the 7th and 8th inning on their way to an 11-6 victory over the House of David. Ty Cobb extended his lead in the batting average race with a 4 hit day, Ed Bailey and Olmedo Sáenz added 3 hits each, and Cecil Fielder hit the first homerun of his career and drove in 4 in the route.

#Other Games

San Francisco eked out a win in 10 innings over Indianapolis, who wasted a strong 7 innings from Dolf Luque (4 hits, only 1 unearned run). Despite giving up 2 runs in the bottom of the 10th, Rod Beck picked up his 33rd save. The Sea Lions’ Rickey Henderson stole his 96th base, keeping the chase for 100 alive.

Jimmy Wynn hit his 19th homerun of the year, a walk-off blast into the Crawford Boxes as Houston edged Ottawa, 2-1. But the real story of the game was the two starting pitchers, each of whom are coming back from injury. For Houston, Bones Ely pitched 7 shutout innings, allowing only 3 hits while Ottawa saw the long anticipated return of Roy Halladay, who allowed only 4 hits and 0 runs in 6 innings. Neither were around for the decision, with the win going to Jay Howell while Sean O’Sullivan took the loss for the Mounties.

Baltimore went back-to-back-to-back in the 3rd inning with homeruns from Bryce Harper, Frank Robinson, and Curt Blefary in their victory over Kansas City. No real impact on the playoff race, but notable nonetheless.

So we end the day with Baltimore’s magic number down to 1 to clinch the Cum Posey Division and Birmingham’s down to 2 for the final playoff spot.