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TWIWBL 65.2 Spotlight on the Los Angeles Angels

By

On August 27, 2024

In TWIWBL

A team still in search of identity, but you can see some reason for optimism. I mean, if you squint.

The Angels inherit players from their namesake and from the New York Mets.

HOME PAGE | ROSTER | POSITIONAL STRENGTH | LEADERS

The Angels sit at exactly .500, closer to last than to first in the Cum Posey Division (5 games behind division leaders San Francisco, 3.5 games out ahead of last place Portland).

Honestly, a .500 finish is probably the goal for the year, so as far as that goes, they’re on track. It’s just hard to get all that excited about that. But you can see things happening for this team, both offensively and, if you look at the talent scattered throughout their minor league system, on the mound.

THE OFFENSE

There’s a budding superstar here, surrounded by a fair number of question marks. That’s not quite fair: Mike Trout is a budding superstar, but Bobby Grich and Doug Rader are both solid, Kal Daniels continues to demonstrate all the tools, and rookie OF Ichiro Suzuki looks set for a long WBL career.

Currently, though, this offense is just about the definition of league average, sitting 9th or 10th in almost all statistical categories.

#What’s Going Right

Trout is still not an elite power hitter, but every other part of his game is on point and Grich, who leads the team in HR with 10, produces far above the norm offensively for 2B. Veteran Carlos Delgado continues to deliver, and may end up being a pretty attractive trade piece if Los Angeles loses contact with the division leaders.

George Wright‘s return from injury has helped to settle the situation at SS, but Wright will always struggle to add much with the bat.

#What’s Not Going Right

Steve Garvey‘s continued struggles may send him down to the minors, and more and more it looks like his future will be at 1B, not 3B. C is a mess, with the platoon of AJ Pierzynski and Jeff Torborg struggling enough that the team plans to recall John Stearns from AAA this week.

With Suzuki, Wright, Garvey, and Mark Ellis all seeing at least semi-regular playing time, the Angels have a lot of players who are pretty allergic to taking a walk.

THE PITCHING

Los Angeles has somehow put together a top end pitching staff. It’s not likely to last top to bottom, but the higher end talent is very encouraging.

#What’s Going Right

Doc Gooden has been spectacular, with the 22 year old sporting a 2.60 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP, but only a 4-3 record across 8 starts. Last year’s ace, Gerrit Cole, has struggled a bit, but the contributions of Tom Seaver (3-2, 3.88) and Brett Anderson (3-2, 4.60), along with the steady innings eating ability of Pud Galvin, has given Los Angeles a very strong rotation. And Cole, at 25, is the veteran of the bunch.

Roy Patterson, Ross Reynolds, and Mike Smith have been excellent in the middle innings, and Joe Nathan has 8 saves.

Perhaps most of all, the Angels decision to send Nolan Ryan and Chuck Finley to the minors seems to have paid off, with each of them performing well at AA.

#What’s Not Going Right

Not a lot, although the back end of the bullpen has been a little weak, with Francisco Rodríguez and Julio Teheran struggling and Nathan’s peripheral numbers being far rougher than his record may indicate.

Lefty Noah Lowry has been very ineffective, and his holding on to his roster spot by his fingernails.

Derrek Lee has struggled, and is in danger of losing his job to Wally Joyner, although that would leave the Angels with 2 lefties at 1B.

THE FARM SYSTEM

TOP PROSPECTS | MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEM

This is not a great system, although if you count Ryan and Finley (who passed their rookie limits last season) it looks much better. IF Xander Bogaerts and closer Bryan Harvey are probably the highest ceiling prospects, followed by IF Marcus Semien, professional hitter Babe Herman, and OFs Dwayne Murphy, Brian Nimmo, and Billy Hamilton.

Of those, only Bogaerts is doing well.

Veteran help is available at AAA in the form of OF Elmer Valo, Stearns, 1Bs Wally Joyner and Jack Hannifin, and 3B Pedro Álvarez.

WHAT’S NEEDED

The offense has to improve faster than the offense reverts to the mean.

Storylines to Watch

Key Questions from Spring Training

  • Who is going to fill out the rotation and the bullpen? This has been resoundingly answered so far, with the pitching staff performing as well as any in the league.
  • Will anyone step up at C? Not yet, no. We’ll see if Stearns, who will replace Torborg, improves the situation here.

FEATURED SERIES

The Angels head to Memphis for 4 games to start the week; we’ll follow those games as it will give us a chance to see the bulk of their rotation.

Projected Starters

Los Angeles starter listed first.

Brett Anderson (3-2, 4.60) @ Jon Lester (2-1, 5.53)
Tom Seaver (3-2, 3.88) @ Bill Doak (3-3, 4.53)
Gerrit Cole (1-4, 5.37) @ Len Barker (1-6, 4.63)
Dwight Gooden (4-3, 2.60) @ Stubby Overmire (2-4, 4.9-2)

Game One

This is what happens when your bullpen is toast. With Joe Nathan and Francisco Rodríguez needing rest, the Angels were forced to turn to Noah Lowry in a high leverage situation … and it did not go well.

Brett Anderson was strong over 6 plus innings, and the Angels held a 7-3 lead heading into the bottom of the 8th. But Roy Patterson and Lowry collapsed, giving up 5 runs, including a go-ahead 3 run shot by Manny Ramírez as Memphis claimed a come from behind victory.

LAA 7 (Lowry 2-1, 3 B Sv) @ MEM 8 (Miller 3-; Papelbon 4 Sv)
HRs: LAA – Trout (9), Daniels (6); MEM – Williams (9), Smith (11), Ramírez (9).
Box Score

Game Two

More of the same. Los Angeles roared out of the gate, with back-to-back homeruns to lead off the game from Don Buford and Kal Daniels. Bobby Grich added a 2 run shot later in the inning, and the Angels were up 4-0. They touched Bill Doak for another run, leading 5-0 after 3.5.

And then Tom Seaver began to struggle, giving up homeruns to Manny Ramírez in consecutive innings, tying up the ballgame at 5. After Ross Reynolds was forced from the game with a forearm issue, David Ortíz greeted Roy Patterson with a solo shot to give the Red Sox a 6-5 lead.

Bobby Grich hit his second of the game, taking Jonathan Papelbon deep in the 9th to tie it, but the Angels bullpen wasn’t up to the task, eventually surrendering a bases loaded single to Mookie Betts for the walkoff win for Memphis.

LAA 6 (Patterson 1-1) @ MEM 7 (Papelbon 2-2, 3 B Sv; Bell 3 H; Miller 4 H)
HRs: LAA – Daniels (7), Buford (9), Grich 2 (12); MEM – Ramírez 2 (11), Ortíz (6).
Box Score

The game was costly for each team, as Memphis’ Dobie Moore also left with an injury. Reynolds will miss about a week, landing him on the DL, with the Angels recalling Scott Rice from AAA. Rice has a shot at taking Noah Lowry‘s role as the pen lefty, depending on how his initial WBL outings go.

Moore’s status is still unknown.

Game Three

Don Buford led off the game with a homerun for the second consecutive game, staking Gerrit Cole to an early 1-0 lead. Cole wasn’t up for the task, giving up 1 in the bottom of the first and a whopping 6 in the 2nd before being chased from the game by a Mookie Betts blast in the 4th.

The Angels offense did well against Len Barker, touching him for 6 runs in 6 innings, and staying close enough that a George Wright homerun (!) in the 8th could make it a 1 run game, 11-10 Memphis. They put two runners on base against Heath Bell in the 9th, but were unable to break through, and the Red Sox take the first 3 games of the series.

Wade Boggs had 3 doubles for Memphis and scored 4 times.

LAA 10 (Cole 1-5) @ MEM 11 (Barker 2-6; Callahan 1 H; Bell 2 Sv)
HRs: LAA – Buford (10), Wright (3); MEM – Ramírez (12), Betts (5).
Box Score

Angels 3B Doug Rader had to leave the game, but isn’t likely to require a trip to the DL. There was great news for Memphis as well, as Dobie Moore will only miss about a day with his bruised shin.

Game Four

Don Buford didn’t lead off this one with a homer: he waited until the 5th inning to launch a 3 run shot, putting the Angels up, 3-2. Steve Garvey and Ichiro Suzuki added 2 RBIs each in the 6th, increasing the lead to 7-2.

Doc Gooden had given up a 2-run shot in the bottom of the 1st to David Ortíz, but had shut Memphis down after that, lasting 7 innings in a very strong outing. Scott Rice relieved Gooden for his WBL debut … and it did not go well, with Rice giving up 3 runs, allowing the Red Sox to close the gap to 9-5.

With a 4 run lead, the Angels turned to Francisco Rodríguez … who promptly loaded the bases to start the bottom of the 9th. A walk to Ted Williams made it 9-6, and brought in Los Angeles’ closer, Joe Nathan. Nathan whiffed two … and then gave up a walkoff grand slam homerun to Billy Bryan, giving the Red Sox the series sweep.

Buford–who had a great series–finished the game with 5 RBIs, giving him 3 homers and 7 RBIs over the 4 games.

LAA 9 (Nathan 3-2, 1 B Sv) @ MEM 10 (Callahan 1-1)
HRs: LAA – Buford (11); MEM – Ortíz (7), Bryan (4).
Box Score

What a miserable series … 4 winnable games, 4 collapses from the Angels’ bullpen, 4 different ways to steal defeat from the jars of victory leading to 4 straight 1 run losses.

TWIWBL 61.1: Year 2, Week 4

By

On June 10, 2024

In TWIWBL

April 23

With 3 weeks in the books, teams will have their first real overhaul this week, so expect some changes to lineups, rotations, etc. to be covered in the TWIWBL’s, making them a little longer than usual.

#NO NO and Near No No

José Rijo of the Kansas City Monarchs tossed the very first no-hitter in WBL history, blanking the House of David 7-0. Rijo didn’t walk a batter and struck out 12 in the 114 pitch masterpiece, supported by a 15 hit attack (including 9 doubles). Ozzie Smith had 4 hits, Albert Pujols drove in 2, and Boog Powell scored twice to lead the offense, but it was really all about Rijo, who improved to 2-1 on the year and dropped his ERA by roughly 2.5 points. It still stands a shade over 5 at 5.08, making the historic performance even more surprising.

Box Score

{In real life, Rijo had 2 1-hitters, but never threw a no-no.}

Christy Mathewson and John Montgomery Ward combined for one of the best pitched games in WBL history as the Matty’s New York Gothams bested the Philadelphia Stars 1-0 in 10 innings. Mathewson threw over 7 shutout innings, allowing only 2 hits and was–by far–the inferior hurler, as Ward allowed a single hit over 9 innings while striking out 12. Buster Posey took Ward’s relief–Bob Howry–deep to lead off the 10th for the only score of the day.

Box Score

#Awards

Miami‘s Gary Sheffield was the AL Player of the Week, hitting .500 with 2 homeruns. In the NL, Ottawa‘s Larry Walker took the award, hitting .444 with 4 homers and 6 RBIs.

#Team Performance

Three teams have exploded out of the gate: the Chicago American Giants and Kansas City lead the WBL in winning percentage, with both teams at .722 (13-5). The New York Black Yankees are at .700, starting the season at 14-6.

At the other end, the Detroit Wolverines have the worst record in the league at 6-14 (.300) while the Baltimore Black Sox and the Portland Sea Dogs are barely better at 6-13 (.316).

For those of you who remember Year I, the theme here is parity–or inconsistency, depending on your streetcorner. Baltimore are the defending champions, Detroit and Portland both made the playoffs, Kansas City was among the worst teams in the league last season, and the Black Yankees were a major disappointment, missing the postseason entirely.

We’re only 20 games in, so take it all with a grain of salt, but it’s fun to see.

#Player Performance

Batters

20 games seems plenty to look at some leaderboards, at least for hitters in a limited way. This list is the top 2 in most offensive categories, leaders in bold.

Ty Cobb (DET). 400/452/769. 15 2B.
Carlos Correa (HOU). 437/481/648. 31 H.
Eric Davis (NYY). 368/430/763. 9 HR, 26 R, 10 SB.
Tony Gwynn (HOU). 452/474/658. 33 H.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 306/398/597. 11 SB.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 425/462/671. 31 H, 12 2B.
Grant Johnson (HOU). 319/373/609. 23 RBI.
Dick Lundy (SFS). 384/451/685. 4 3B, 1.8 WAR.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 362/471/812. 9 HR, 27 RBI, 20 R, 1.7 WAR.
Ryne Sandberg (HOD). 383/406/900. 9 HR.
Joey Votto (IND). 360/484/500.
Larry Walker (OTT). 435/474/826.
Bobby Wallace (BAL). 22 BB. 279/476/377.

There are some surprises here for sure: Correa and Johnson in Houston finally coming good, same with San Francisco‘s Lundy. But it still looks like it’s Babe Ruth’s league, assuming Sandberg’s performance falls back to mere excellence.

Pitchers

Still not enough to really get into stats: 13 starters have 3 wins, nobody has over 30 IP, etc. But some things to note:

  • It seems like there is always a single starting pitcher head and shoulders above the rest at any given time in the WBL. Right now, it’s Portland’s Smokey Joe Wood, who is 3-0 with a 1.82 ERA.
  • Houston’s Toad Ramsey is the ERA leader at an impressive 1.57, just ahead of Wood. Chicago’s Mark Buehrle is the only other starter with an ERA beneath 2.00 at 1.86.

Relievers have yet to really separate as well, as 5 of them have 5 saves on the season so far.

#Featured Series

This time we’ll focus on a four game set as the Los Angeles Angels visit Chicago to take on the American Giants. The Angels come into the game at 10-9 which is essentially “as expected,” while Chicago has roared out of the gate, sitting 1t 15-6.

Scheduled Starters

Los Angeles hurler listed first.

Tom Seaver (1-0, 3.00) @ David Price (2-2, 5.40)
Dwight Gooden (1-2, 3.24) @ Ed Walsh (1-0, 3.80)
Pud Galvin (0-2, 4.85) @ Mark Buehrle (4-0, 1.32)
Brett Anderson (2-1, 4.76) @ Ben Sheets (0-1, 7.71)

Game One

It was a rough start for David Price, as he gave up 2 runs in the top of the first on an RBI single by Mike Trout and a sacrifice fly from Doug Rader. But Price settled right down, and was virtually perfect the rest of the way before being relieved by Hoyt Wilhelm in the 7th. Tom Seaver was as good, leaving in the 6th inning having given up only 1 run.

The American Giants would score again in the 7th, but that would be it until the bottom of the 10th. Mike Fiore led off being hit by a pitch from Julio Teheran, Joe Jackson doubled him to 3rd and, after Ross Reynolds took over on the mound and issued an intentional walk to Frank Thomas, Dick Allen lifted a ball deep to center, where it was caught by Don Buford, but he had no chance to catch Fiore before he crossed the plate with the winning run.

LAA 2 (Teheran 1-2; Patterson 1 H; Lowry 2 BSv) @ CAG 3 (Wilhelm 1-0) [10 Innings]
HRs: None.
Box Score

Game Two

The story for most of the game was Los Angeles’ Doc Gooden, who was spectacular through 8 innings, allowing only 3 hits while fanning 10. The only blemish on Gooden’s day was a solo shot to Duffy Lewis, which tied the game at 1 in the 8th.

We were headed to extra innings once again, but there was less drama this time as the Angels used 3 homeruns in the top of the 10th (Doug Rader, Bobby Grich, and AJ Pierzynski) to ease to the 5-1 win.

LAA 5 (Rodríguez 1-0) @ CAG 1 (Twitchell 2-1) [10 Innings]
HRs: LAA – Rader (2), Grich (6), Pierzynski (4); CAG – Lewis (1).
Box Score

Game Three

Mark Buehrle just keeps rolling along, allowing 5 hits and 1 run over 9 innings and improving to 5-0 on the year. But the Angels’ pitchers were almost as good, and the only tallies in the game came from solo shots from Chicago’s Dave Nilsson and the Angels’ Mike Trout, who seems to be waking from an early season slumber. The game came down to a walkoff single from Joe Jackson in the bottom of the 9th. Jackson, Eddie Collins, and Paul Konerko had 2 hits each for Chicago.

LAA 1 (DeSclafani 0-1) @ CAG 2 (Buehrle 5-0)
HRs: LAA – Trout (3); CAG – Nilsson (1).
Box Score

Game Four

Another great pair of efforts from the starting pitchers, as Los Angeles’ Brett Anderson and Chicago’s Ben Sheets each went 7 innings allowing only a single hit each, and no earned runs (errors had allowed runs to score for each team). A key hit from rookie Ichiro Suzuki drove in 2, providing the margin the Angels needed for a 4-1 victory, splitting the series 2 games apiece. Neither team had an extra base hit, and they combined for only 6 singles (4 for Los Angeles and 2 for the American Giants).

LAA 4 (Anderson 3-1; Reynolds 1 Sv) @ CAG 1 (Sheets 0-2; Otsuka 1 B Sv)
HRs: None.
Box Score

TWIWBL 59.3: Cum Posey Division

By

On May 17, 2024

In TWIWBL

#Chicago American Giants

Eddie Collins had 4 hits and scored 3 times as Chicago topped Detroit 9-2. David Price improved to 2-0 with 5+ scoreless innings, and Ed Walsh closed it out for the rare 3-inning save for the American Giants.

Joe Jackson had 4 hits and 3 doubles helping the American Giants to a 6-4 victory over Detroit. Frank Thomas had 3 hits and Mark Buehrle threw 6 strong innings, improving to 2-0.

Needing a starter, the American Giants moved Ted Lilly to the minors, bringing up veteran Jamie Moyer. Moyer delivered a solid 5 innings, and Thomas had 4 hits as Chicago beat Miami 8-3. Moyer’s performance–and his left-handedness–will keep him in the WBL for a little while longer.

Mike Fiore had struggled quite a bit in the early going for Chicago, but given some at-bats in a blowout, he delivered with his first 2 homeruns of the season. That was about all the good news as the American Giants fell to Miami, 13-5.

#Los Angeles Angels

Elmer “Mike” Smith went to the DL with a dead arm with Ross Reynolds being recalled from AAA.

Don Buford went deep twice to give the Angels an early lead, and then they piled it on in a 12-2 thrashing of Portland. Steve Garvey drove in 4 and Bobby Grich 3 in support of a nice start from Doc Gooden, who allowed 3 hits and 1 run in 7 innings.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Back to back homeruns in the bottom of the 9th by Robin Yount and Ryan Braun rescued the Cuban Giants against the Sea Lions. Leading 10-5 at the start of the 9th, Miami saw Adonis Terry get hammered for 7 runs before Yount tied the game and Braun provided the walkoff in the bottom of the frame.

Jim Thome had 3 hits, including 2 homeruns, but it wasn’t enough as the Cuban Giants fell to the American Giants, 7-5. Thome went deep twice again in a game against Chicago, and this time it was enough, as every starter had at least 1 hit and José Canseco, Yount, and Gary Sheffield also went deep in a 13-5 walkover for the Cuban Giants.

#Portland Sea Dogs

After the opening game of their series against Cleveland, Johan Santana has now pitched in 4 games, giving up 7 hits in 1.1 IP, including 5 homeruns. His record is 0-4 with 4 blown saves and an ERA of 60.75: that’s right, he threw 2/3 of an inning, gave up 2 runs, and saw his ERA go down.

Ken Griffy, Jr. is still finding his footing in Portland, but hitting 2 homeruns in a 9-2 win over Cleveland is a good sign. As important for the Sea Dogs, Pascual Pérez improved his record to 2-0 with 6 shutout innings and has yet to allow a run over his 2 starts.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

Jack Clark hit 2 homeruns and Rickey Henderson, Jimmie Foxx, and Mickey Cochrane also went deep as the Sea Lions defeated the Cuban Giants 10-8.

The Sea Lions scored 7 runs in the 9th to take a 12-10 lead over Miami, but lost when Rod Beck blew his first save of the year in the bottom of the frame. Turkey Stearnes had 4 hits and Jimmy Bloodworth drove in 3 in the loss.

Tim Hudson will be out about 4 months with a forearm injury that has to put the 37 year old’s career in jeopardy as well. Watty Clark will complete his transition to starter by taking Hudson’s spot in the rotation initially, with Bobby Seay being recalled to take Clark’s spot in the bullpen.

The Sea Lions lost a 6-1 lead before scoring 5 times in the top of the 9th to top the Black Yankees 11-9. San Francisco hit 6 homeruns in the game, with Stearnes going yard twice and Reggie Jackson, Henderson, Foxx, and Cochrane each going deep as well. Beck pitched a scoreless 9th for his 5th save of the year.

WBL Year II Statistics

I needed a place to hold statistics that aren’t easily displayed in OOTP. Most of these are game-level performances.

For complete statistics, poke around on the WBL Stats Page.

Batting Statistics

2+ 3B Games

2. Bob Bescher (IND); Craig Biggio (HOU), Ty Cobb (DET); Willie McGee (KCM); Tim Raines (OTT).

3+ 2B Games

4. Chuck Knoblauch (CLE).
3. Craig Biggio (HOU); Curt Blefary (BAL); George Brett (HOU); Ron Cey (BRK); Cupid Childs (BBB); Ty Cobb (DET); Gavvy Cravath (BAL); Josh Gibson (HOM); Hank Greenberg (DET); Joe Jackson (CAG); Reggie Jackson (SFS); HR Johnson (NYY); Napoleon Lajoie (HOM); Herman Long (BBB); Don Mattingly (NYY); Willie McGee (KCM); Joe Morgan (IND); Frank Robinson (BAL); Jackie Robinson (BRK); Cookie Rojas (MCG); Pete Runnels (NYG); Ted Simmons (KCM); Reggie Smith (MEM); Mike Trout (LAA); Bill White (MEM).

3+ HBP Games

3. Jack Doyle (CAG).

3+ HR Games

4. Tony Conigliaro (HOD); Larry Doby (CLE).
3. Jeff Bagwell (HOU); Ed Bailey (DET); Ernie Banks (HOD); Buddy Bell (POR); Carlos Beltrán (OTT); Lance Berkman x2 (CLE); Ron Blomberg (CLE); Ryan Braun (MCG); José Canseco x2 (MCG); Larry Doby (CLE); Gavvy Cravath (BAL); Larry Doby (CLE); Josh Gibson (HOM); Paul Goldshmidt (HOU); George Gore (HOD); Mark McGwire (HOD); Kevin Mitchell (CAG); Rick Monday (OTT); Stan Musial (KCM); Jim Pagliaroni (BBB); Manny Ramírez x2 (MEM); Álex Rodríguez (OTT); Babe Ruth (NYY); Ted Simmons (KCM); Sammy Sosa x2 (HOD); Gorman Thomas (HOU); Mike Trout (LAA); Larry Walker (OTT).

3+ OF Assists

4+ BB Games

4. Ed Bailey (DET); Eddie Collins (CAG); Mike Epstein (HOM); Rickey Henderson (SFS); Willie McGee (KCM); Andrew McCutchen (HOM), Joe Morgan (IND); Gorman Thomas (HOU); Joey Votto (IND).

4+ CS Games

6. Curt Blefary (BAL); Iván Rodríguez (MCG).
4. Brad Ausmus (OTT); Johnny Bench (IND); Curt Blefary (BAL); Gabby Hartnett (MEM); Jorge Posada (HOU); Mike Scioscia (PHI); Ted Simmons (KCM).

4+ Run Games

6. Ron Blomberg (CLE).
5. Chuck Knoblauch (CLE); Tris Speaker (CLE).
4. Roberto Alomar x3 (OTT); Jeff Bagwell x2 (HOU); Bob Bailey (DET); Ed Bailey (DET); Johnny Bates x2 (CLE); Albert Belle (BBB); Curt Blefary x2 (BAL); Dan Brouthers (BRK); Ron Cey (BRK); Roberto Clemente (HOM); Eddie Collins x2 (CAG); Tony Conigliaro (HOD); Gavvy Cravath (BAL); Ray Dandridge (BRK); Larry Doby (CLE); Mike Epstein (HOM); George Grantham (CAG); Rickey Henderson x2 (SFS); Pete Hill (HOU); Benny Kauff (NYG); Paul Konerko (CAG); Evan Longoria (CLE); Willie McGee (KCM); Kevin Mitchell (CAG); Rick Monday (OTT); Eddie Murray (BAL); Billy Nash (DET); Yasiel Puig (MCG); Charles Rogan (PHI); Cookie Rojas (MCG); Babe Ruth (NYY); Gary Sheffield (MCG); Chase Utley (PHI); Arky Vaughan (CLE); Larry Walker (OTT); Jim Wynn (HOU).

4+ SB Games

6. Rickey Henderson (SFS).
5. Roberto Alomar (OTT); Bob Bescher (IND).
4. Frank Chance (HOD); Rickey Henderson (SFS); Dick Lundy (SFS).

5+ Hit Games

5. Jeff Bagwell (HOU); Don Buford (LAA); Joe Jackson (CAG); Aaron Judge (PHI); Chuck Knoblauch (CLE); Jim Pagliaroni (BBB); Ichiro Suzuki (LAA); Mike Trout (LAA); Chase Utley (PHI).

5+ SO Games

6. Dale Murphy (KCM).
5. Beals Becker (BRK); Bobby Bonds (SFS); Ron Cey (BRK); Larry Doby (CLE); Mike Epstein x2 (HOM); Bryce Harper (BAL); Héctor López (NYY); Dale Murphy (KCM).

6+ RBI Games

8. Jeff Bagwell (HOU); Paul Konerko (CAG); Will Smith (HOU).
7. Jeff Bagwell (HOU); Ron Blomberg (CLE); Larry Doby (CLE); Carlton Fisk (CAG); Charlie Gehringer (DET); Hank Greenberg (DET); Evan Longoria (CLE); Manny Machado (BAL); Yasiel Puig (MCG); Manny Ramírez (MEM); Gary Sheffield (MCG).
6. Hank Aaron (BBB); Bob Bailey (DET); Ernie Banks (HOD); Albert Belle (BBB); Lance Berkman (CLE); Ron Blomberg (CLE); Johnny Callison (NYG); Carlos Correa (HOU); Gavvy Cravath (BAL); Kal Daniels (LAA); Chili Davis (DET); George Foster (IND); Josh Gibson (HOM); Kent Hrbek (POR); Joe Jackson (CAG); Aaron Judge (PHI); Tony Lazzeri (DET); Mickey Mantle (NYY); Kevin Mitchell (CAG); Rick Monday (OTT); Jim O’Rourke (HOU); Mike Piazza (BRK); Manny Ramírez (MEM); Babe Ruth x3 (NYY); Ryne Sandberg (HOD); Mike Schmidt (NYY); Ted Simmons (KCM); Roy White (BRK).

Cycles

Roberto Clemente (HOM; 4-5, 4 R, 3 RBI).
Ty Cobb (DET; 4-5, 3R, 2 RBI).
Goose Goslin (HOM; 4-5, 2 R, 2 RBI).

Longest HRs

{Note: OOTP clearly has something weird happening with overpowered HRs. It’s getting better, and, at some point, I’m going to reduce these by roughly 10%, which would leave the list at only 3 at 500 ft+ for the season so far, which seems much more realistic to me, but am waiting to see if I get any additional info/guidance from the game dev’s.}

595 ft. Dale Murphy (KCM).
558 ft. Aaron Judge (PHA).
555 ft. Albert Pujols (KCM).
551 ft. Eddie Mathews (BBB).
550 ft. Lance Berkman (CLE).
544 ft. Eddie Mathews (BBB).
542 ft. Ron Blomberg (CLE); Evan Longoria (CLE).
539 ft. Johnny Bates (CLE); Craig Biggio (HOU).
538 ft. Josh Gibson (HOM), Pete Hill (HOU); Buster Posey (NYG).
535 ft. Buster Posey (NYG).
534 ft. Robinson Canó (KCM).
533 ft. Oscar Charleston (IND).
530 ft. Dale Murphy (KCM).
528 ft. Johnny Callison (NYG); Willie Mays (NYG).
527 ft. Joe Adcock (NYG).
525 ft. Bullet Joe Rogan (PHI).
522 ft. Ron Blomberg (CLE).
519 ft. Babe Ruth (NYY).
518 ft. Willie Mays (NYG).
516 ft. Hank Aaron (BBB); Bob Nieman (BBB).
514 ft. Ron Cey (BRK); Oscar Gamble (DET).
512 ft. Tony Gwynn (HOU).
511 ft. Lance Berkman (CLE); Dan Brouthers (BRK).
510 ft. Ron Blomberg (CLE); Joe Harris (KCM).
509 ft. Johnny Callison (NYG); Jack Clark (SFS); Bryce Harper (BAL); Ted Simmons (KCM).
508 ft. Jeff Bagwell x2 (HOU); Ron Blomberg (CLE); Boog Powell (KCM); Travis Shaw (MEM).
507 ft. Bobby Grich (BBB); Ducky Medwick (KCM); Ted Simmons (KCM).
505 ft. Lou Gehrig (NYA).
503 ft. Larry Doyle (NYG); Joe Rogan (PHI); Ryne Sandberg (HOD); Oscar Gamble (DET).
502 ft. Ernie Banks (HOD); Albert Belle (BBB); Robinson Canó (KCM); Ray Dandridge (BRK); Mike Epstein (HOM).
501 ft. Gary Carter (OTT); Derek Jeter (NYA).
500 ft. Andrew McCutchen (HOM).

Pitching Statistics

80+ Game Scores

99. José Rijo (KCM).
97. JM Ward (PHI).
94. Steve Carlton (PHI).
93. Frank Castillo (KCM); Lefty Grove (SFS); Toad Ramsey (HOU); Jim Whitney (MCG).
92. Bump Hadley (SFS); Bullet Joe Rogan (PHI).
91. Frank Knauss (BRK); Christy Mathewson (NYG); Toad Ramsey (HOU)
90. Brett Anderson (LAA); A. Rube Foster (KCM); Bump Hadley (SFS); Alejandro Peña (BBB); Toad Ramsey (HOU); Joe Rogan (PHI).
89. Bump Hadley (SFS); Dennis Martínez (BAL); Gaylord Perry (NYG); Fernando Valenzuela (BRG); Smokey Joe Wood (KCM).
88. Don Newcombe (PHI); Stubby Overmire (MEM); Luis Padrón x2 (IND); Bill Steen (CLE); Justin Verlander (DET).
87. Ice Box Chamberlain (HOU); Roger Clemens (HOU); Lefty Grove (SFS); Carl Hubbell (NYG); Francisco Liriano (HOM); Dennis Martínez (BAL); José Méndez (MCG); Joseíto Muñoz (MCG); Old Hoss Radbourn (OTT); José Rijo (KCM); Jim Whitney (BBB).
86. Bartolo Colón (HOM); A. Rube Foster (KCM); Doc Gooden (LAA); Frank Knauss (BRK).
85. Roger Clemens (HOU); Gerrit Cole (LAA); Lefty Grove (SFS); Luke Hamlin (KCM); Hardie Henderson x2 (PHI); Luis Padrón (IND); Roy Patterson (LAA); Eddie Plank (SFS); Jameson Taillon (MEM); Ed Walsh (CAG); Cy Young (CLE).
84. Frank Castillo (KCM); Johnny Cueto (IND); Ron Guidry (NYY); Orel Hershiser (BRK); Ed Walsh (CAG); Smokey Joe Wood (KCM).
83. Bob Friend (HOM); Mike Mussina (BAL); Luis Padrón x2 (IND).
82. Mark Buehrle (CAG); Bill Doak (MEM); Connie Johnson (BAL); Frank Knauss (BRK); Toad Ramsey (HOU).
81. Bert Blyleven (POR); Ferguson Jenkins (HOD); Andy Pettitte (NYY); Stephen Strasbourg (HOU); Cy Young (CLE).
80. Frank Castillo (KCM); A. Rube Foster (KCM); Walter Johnson (POR); The Only Nolan (IND); Andy Pettitte (NYY); Toad Ramsey (HOU); José Rijo (KCM); Fernando Valenzuela (BRK).

10+ Strikeout Games

15. Joseíto Muñoz (MCG).
14. Frank Castillo (KCM); Roy Oswalt (HOU); Toad Ramsey (HOU).
13. Brett Anderson (LAA); Bob Feller (CLE); Ron Guidry (NYY); Toad Ramsey (HOU); Charlie Root (DET); Smokey Joe Wood (KCM).
12. Ice Box Chamberlain (HOU); Johnny Cueto (IND); Bob Feller (CLE); Doc Gooden (LAA); Lefty Grove (SFS); Bump Hadley (SFS); Frank Knauss (BRG); Mike Mussina (BAL); Toad Ramsey x2 (HOU); José Rijo (KCM); Bill Steen (CLE); JM Ward (PHI); Jim Whitney (MCG).
11. Len Barker (MEM); Johnny Cueto (IND); Paul Derringer (IND); Ned Garvin (BAL); Ron Guidry x2 (NYY); Ferguson Jenkins (HOD); Connie Johnson (BAL); Walter Johnson x2 (POR); Frank Knauss (BRG); Christy Mathewson (NYG); Joseíto Muñoz (MCG); The Only Nolan (IND); Luis Padrón (IND); Old Hoss Radbourn (OTT); Toad Ramsey x4 (HOU); José Rijo (KCM); Sam Streeter (CAG); Don Sutton (NYG); Justin Verlander (DET); Smokey Joe Williams (BRK); Cy Young (CLE).
10. Tony Brizzolara (NYY); Steve Carlton (PHI); Frank Castillo x2 (KCM); Watty Clark (SFS); Roger Clemens (HOU); Don Drysedale (BRK); Bob Feller (CLE); A. Rube Foster (KCM); Bob Friend (HOM); Ned Garvin x3 (BAL); Lefty Gomez (BBB); Doc Gooden (LAA); Lefty Grove x3 (SFS); Ron Guidry x3 (NYY); Bump Hadley (SFS); Hardie Henderson (PHI); Orel Hershiser (BRK); Connie Johnson (DET); Frank Knauss x2 (BRK); Dennis Martínez (BAL); Ramón Martínez (MCG); Hal Newhouser (DET); Luis Padrón x2 (IND); Alejandro Peña (BBB); Gaylord Perry x2 (NYG); Andy Pettitte (NYY); Billy Pierce (HOM); Toad Ramsey x5 (HOU); José Rijo (KCM); Charlie Root (DET); Bob Rush (HOD); Tom Seaver (LAA); Bill Steen (CLE); Stephen Strasbourg (HOU); Don Sutton (NYG); Fernando Valenzuela x2 (BRK); Jim Whitney (MCG); Smokey Joe Williams (BRK); Smokey Joe Wood (KCM).

8+ Walk Games

8. Ed Brandt (MCG); Hardie Henderson (PHI); Smokey Joe Williams (BRK).
9. Randy Johnson (OTT).

Shutouts

NO HITS. Steve Carlton (PHI); José Rijo (IND).
1 Hit. A. Rube Foster (KCM); Bump Hadley (SFS); Stubby Overmire (MEM) [5 inn]; Luis Padrón (IND); Toad Ramsey (HOU); Bullet Joe Rogan (PHI).
2 Hits. A. Rube Foster (KCM); Lefty Grove (SFS); Bump Hadley (SFS); Frank Knauss (BRK); Francisco Liriano (HOM); Dennis Martínez (BAL); José Méndez (MCG); Stubby Overmire (MEM); Luis Padrón (IND); Old Hoss Radbourn (OTT); José Rijo (KCM); Joe Rogan (PHI); Jim Whitney (MCG).
3 Hits. Frank Castillo (KCM); Roger Clemens (HOU); Bartolo Colón (HOM); Lefty Grove (SFS); Hardie Henderson (PHI); Carl Hubbell (NYG); Christy Mathewson (NYG); Don Newcombe (PHI); Luis Padrón (IND); Gaylord Perry (NYG); Eddie Plank (SFS); Toad Ramsey (HOU).
4 Hits. Bert Blyleven (POR); Frank Castillo (KCM); Gerrit Cole (LAA); Johnny Cueto (IND); Doc Gooden (LAA); Lefty Grove (SFS); Bump Hadley (SFS); Dennis Martínez (BAL); Luis Padrón (IND); Jim Whitney (BBB); Cy Young (CLE).

Shutouts (Combined)

1 Hit. Justin Verlander / Mike Henneman (DET); Bill Steen / Terry Adams (CLE).
2 Hits. Jameson Taillon / Skel Roach / Andrew Miller (MEM); Ed Walsh / Tom Williams (CAG); Pud Galvin / Francisco Rodríguez / Joe Nathan (LAA); Brett Anderson / Ross Reynolds (LAA); Connie Johnson / Justin Hampson (BAL); Bob Feller / Ron Reed (CLE); Luke Hamlin / Craig Kimbrel (KCM).
3 Hits. Hardie Henderson / Robin Roberts (PHI); Orel Hershiser / Eric Gagne (BRK); Stephen Strasbourg / John Franco / Tug McGraw (HOU); Vean Gregg / Mike Norris / Brian Wilson (NYG); Justin Verlander / Billy Hoeft / Chad Bradford (DET); Stubby Overmire / Heath Bell / Jonathan Papelbon (MEM); Brett Anderson / Ross Reynolds / Joe Nathan (LAA).
4 Hits. Toad Ramsey / Bones Ely (HOU); Hardie Henderson / Brad Kilby / Tim Belcher / Ted Kennedy (PHI); Dwight Gooden / Francisco Rodríguez (LAA); Bump Hadley / Jim Devlin / Ken Howell / Rod Beck (SFS); Greg Maddux / John Malarkey / Bruce Chen / Juan Rincón (BBB); Johnny Podgajny / Tom Henke (OTT); Herm Wehmeier / Goose Gossage (NYY); José Rijo / Jeff Pfeffer (KCM); Smokey Joe Williams / Trevor Hildenberger (BRK); Kyle Peterson / Karl Spooner / Ed Bauta (HOD); Frank Knauss / Trevor Hildenberger (BRG); Ice Box Chamberlain / Andrew Chafin (HOU); Walter Ball / Johan Santana / Dick Jones (POR).
5 Hits. Kenshin Kawakami / Barry Latman / Ed Brandt / Sandy Consuegra (MCG); Len Barker / David Bush / Andrew Miller (MEM); Johnny Cueto / Sad Sam Jones / Rob Murphy / Rob Dibble (IND); Smoky Joe Wood / Mike Kume (KCM); Waite Hoyt / Herb Pennock / AJ Minter (CAG); Bob Feller / Whit Wyatt / Al Smith / Ron Reed (CLE).

Year II Season Preview: Los Angeles Angels

By

On March 27, 2024

In Team News

Expectations

Playoff contention.

Best Case

Gerrit Cole and Pud Galvin pitch as they have and someone, or actually a few someone’s, from the group of Doc Gooden, Elmer Smith, Chuck Finley, Nolan Ryan, Tom Seaver, and Sid Fernandez make good on their immense potential while Mike Trout develops into a true superstar, Carlos Delgado holds off age for another year, and 1st round pick Ichiro Suzuki comes good.

Worst Case

The pitching remains a hot mess, Doug Rader reverts to form, and Delgado, Don Buford, and George Wright all feel the effects of age.

Key Questions

  • Who is going to fill out the rotation and the bullpen?
  • Will anyone step up at C?

In addition to Suzuki, draft picks Babe Herman, John Lackey, and Bryan Harvey all have a shot at making the team.

Trade Bait

Nothing immediately, but the team could do a rebuild at some point and there are some that could be valuable.

Roster Evaluation

POSEliteStrongSolidMehWeakUnknown
CPierzynski
Torborg
1BDelgadoLee
2BGrichEllis
3BRaderGarvey
SSWright
LF/
RF		Buford
Daniels		Suzuki
CFTrout
SPColeAnderson
Galvin		GoodenSeaver
EndNathan
Rodríguez		Teheran
RPVentersDeSclafani
Lowry
Patterson
Smith
New Addition | Injured

That’s a lot in the unknown column, and with Rader and Delgado both likely to regress … it could be a long California summer.

Talent Ratings

WBLMinors
Raw Power1B Carlos Delgado1B Jack Hannifin
Batting Eye2B Bobby GrichOF Jack Gleason
ContactOF Ichiro SuzukiOF Elmer Valo
Running SpeedOF Ichiro SuzukiOF Billy Hamilton
Base StealingOF Mike TroutOF Billy Hamilton
IF Defense3B Doug Rader3B Pedro Álvarez
OF DefenseOF Ichiro SuzukiOF Ender Inciarte
StuffP Elmer SmithP Nolan Ryan
ControlSP Pud GalvinP Brian Anderson
VelocityRP Joe Nathan
RP Francisco Rodríguez		P Nolan Ryan

Best In The Minors

RankAgePOSName
1 (19)25P/OFElmer Smith
2 (85)22PJohn Lackey
3 (90)21PRandy Tate
4 (92)21IFMarcus Semien
5 (95)23PJoey Lucchesi
6 (141)23PTom Seaver
7 (154)22PEsteban Loaiza
8 (157)25PRoss Reynolds
9 (178)25PBrian Anderson
10 (187)22OFBrandon Nimmo
Others: RP Bryan Harvey.

The lack of top end talent is a serious issue, but the presence of quite a bit of decent pitching is a very significant advantage, especially when considering how underrated some of the prospects are–Mr. Seaver, we’re looking at you.

MostLeast
AgeP Jose Contreras, 38P Blue Moon Odom, 19
HeightP Chuck Finley, 6’6″
P John Lackey, 6’6″
P John O’Donoghue, 6’6″		OF Albie Pearson, 5’5″
OPSOF Ned Harris, 1.230(—)OF Jack Gleason, .545 (—)
HROF Ned Harris, 58 (—)OF Albie Pearson, 1 (—)
SBOF Mike Trout, 37 (WBL)Many with 0
WAROF Mike Trout, 6.0 (WBL)OF Jack Gleason, -2.0 (—)
WGerrit Cole, 16 (WBL)Carl Willis, 1 (—)
SVJoe Nathan, 22 (WBL)
ERAJose Contreras, 3.04 (—)Jesse Tannehill, 6.72 (—)
WARJose Contreras, 6.5 (—)Brian Anderson, -0.9 (AAA)
Stats are across all levels. 200 PA / 75 IP min. Non WBL leagues indicated by —.

Season Review: Los Angeles Angels

By

On December 19, 2023

In Season Reviews, Team News

72 - 82, .467 pct.
4th in Bill James Division, 17 games behind.

Overall

Perhaps no team in the WBL has a larger gap between their obvious talent on the mound and their performance. Until the Angels figure that out, they are no better than a .500 team, if that, in spite of some useful pieces on offense.

What Went Right

Doug Rader had a career year, leading the WBL in RBIs up to the final few days of the season (his 134 finished 1 behind Babe Ruth, no shame in that), but perhaps the best news was the season-long development of CF Mike Trout, who only needs to add some power to move into the elite of the league.

Carlos Delgado–acquired when the Angels were still in the hunt–continued to mash the ball, and Bobby Grich was excellent at 2B all year long.

It’s unclear if the performances of Don Buford, John Stearns, or George Wright went right or wrong. They weren’t bad, but they also weren’t especially good.

For a team whose struggles were attributed to their pitching, the Angels had some surprising bright spots: the starting trio of Gerrit Cole, Pud Galvin, and Brett Anderson were excellent (when Anderson was healthy) and Jonny Venters and Francisco Rodríguez were excellent out of the bullpen. Cole, of course, was one of the better in the league for much of the year, finishing with 16 wins and Rodríguez will most likely challenge Joe Nathan for the closer role next season.

ALL STARS
P Gerrit Cole; 3B Doug Rader

What Went Wrong

There is so much talent on the mound here: the ball just explodes out of the hand for Doc Gooden, Tom Seaver, Nolan Ryan, and Chuck Finley. But of them, only Gooden had anything close to a good season, and he finished 8-10 with an ERA over 5. It’s really that simple: if two of this group step up, they’re a borderline playoff team; if three of them step up, they’ll challenge for the division championship; if all four of them deliver, they could challenge for a championship.

Too much mediocrity from position players: C never got settled (John Stearns was decent, Ron Hassey poor), RF was OK, although Kal Daniels–for all his tools–is probably better suited for a platoon arrangement.

It’s unclear if the performances of Don Buford or George Wright went right or wrong. They weren’t bad, but they also weren’t especially good.

Transactions

March

None

June

OF Rusty Staub to Ottawa for IF Steve Garvey & OF Spud Johnson

Garvey played very well for LA, so call this one a push.

P Dave Bennett, OF Carlos Beltrán, C Jim Stephens & P Sean O'Sullivan to Ottawa for 1B Carlos Delgado

Remember, they were in contention. As such, it’s not a bad deal, although Los Angeles clearly did give up more talent.

C Brian Downing, IF Kurt Stillwell, P Dave LaRoche to San Francisco for OF Wally Moon, OF Dwayne Murphy, 4th Round Pick {John Lackey} & 6th Round Pick {Omar Olivares}

Feels like a win overall.

July

None

Looking Forward

SP

If things develop as expected, the Angels are loaded, looking at a rotation of Gerrit Cole, Tom Seaver, Nolan Ryan, Doc Gooden and Pud Galvin. And those are only the arms under long term deals.

RP

Lots of talent here, both at the WBL (Joe Nathan, Jonny Venters, Francisco Rodríguez) and in the minors, led by Carlos Mármol, Darren Holmes, Larry Anderson, and some others.

C

An area of need, especially if John Stearns cannot step up.

1B

Needs some talent long term, but Carlos Delgado has it for a little while. The Wally’s–Joyner and Pipp–have shown some promise as well. Steve Garvey may end up here, but it’s not clear if he’ll hit enough to warrant an everyday slot.

2B

Bobby Grich for the foreseeable.

3B

Doug Rader for now, with very little behind.

SS

George Wright is elite defensively, but offers little else. Andrelton Simmons should take over at some point.

LF

Don Buford was good enough, but they could take an upgrade here.

CF

Mike Trout, Mike Trout, Mike Trout.

RF

If Kal Daniels continues to struggle against lefties, a platoon may be in order.

The Rookie Draft

Rounds 1-4

Los Angeles needs star power. With the 8th pick in the first round, they get a player who should step right into the RF spot: Ichiro Suzuki. The Angels should spend the rest of the draft adding offensive talent–a luxury few franchises have, but the sheer glut of pitching potential in their system sort of necessitates it.

In the 2nd round, they took Babe Herman, who is probably a year away, but look like a masher; and in round 3, Marcus Semien, who is a few years away, giving him time to figure out where on the infield he might settle.

Los Angeles has back-to-back picks in the 4th round and looked to add some pitching in franchise pick John Lackey and using their final franchise exception on Estaban Loiza.

Rounds 5-8

The Angels’ 5th round pick, OF Brandon Nimmo, has aspirations to carry Mike Trout’s luggage.

They followed that with P Omar Olivares and Bryan Harvey with back-to-back selections in the 6th round and continued the focus on pitching with Tom Morgan in round 7 and Al Jackson in round 8.

Rounds 9-12

P Tom Hausman; 1B Casey Kotchman; IF Tony Womack; and P Randy Tate.

The Angels’ 10th round pick, Casey Kotchman, refused Los Angeles’ final offer, preferring to go back into next year’s draft.

Series XXXVII Featured Matchup: Los Angeles Angels @ New York Black Yankees

By

On August 16, 2023

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

Series preview here.

#Game 1: Gerrit Cole @ Waite Hoyt

Lou Gehrig‘s 25th homerun of the year and an RBI single from Thurman Munson put the Black Yankees on top 2-0, but Waite Hoyt was unable to hold it, surrendering 2 runs in the top of the 3rd to tie the game.

Hoyt was chased by singles from Mike Trout and Doug Rader to leadoff the 5th, with AJ Burnett coming in for New York. Burnett escaped further damage but Gerrit Cole gave up the lead in the bottom of the inning as Mickey Mantle led off the frame with his 26th homer.

Burnett walked Trout with the bases loaded to tie the game again, and then gave up a 2 run single to Rader. Dave Righetti was brought on, but Carlos Delgado delivered an RBI single, and Elmer Valo a run-scoring double and when the smoke cleared, the Angels were up, 7-3.

They would add 5 more in the following inning, and the score was only respectable due to Babe Ruth hitting his 45th homer of the year in the 9th inning.

Trout and Rader had 4 hits each, and Delgado added 3. The 3 of them drove in 11 runs, with Rader maintaining his overall lead in the RBI race over Ruth, 131 to 130.

LAA 12 (Cole 16-9) @ NYY 7 (Burnett 5-3)
HRs: LAA – Delgado (11); Gehrig (25), Mantle (26), Ruth (45).
Box Score

With Cleveland losing, this was a lost opportunity for New York, who end the day still 3 games out of the final wild card spot and 5 behind the Spiders for the division lead.

#Game 2: Pud Galvin @ Jack Scott

Mike Trout‘s 21st homerun of the year put the Angels up 2-0 in the top of the first. Two more homeruns (Bobby Grich‘s 12th and Doug Rader‘s 18th) doubled the lead in the 3rd to 4-0. RBI singles from Thurman Munson and Don Mattingly cut it back to 4-2 in the bottom of the inning.

Both pitchers were laboring and New York’s Jack Scott was relieved by Bryan Hickerson with 1 out in the top of the 6th while Pud Galvin gave way to Chuck Finley in the bottom of the frame.

Harry Howell led off the 7th with a pinch hit triple, but was gunned down at the plate on a nice throw from Albert Belle.

Rader doubled in another run–his 133rd RBI of the year–in the top of the 8th, extending Los Angeles’ lead to 5-2. That run loomed large after the bottom of the 8th, when Mattingly hit his 27th homerun of the year after a leadoff double from Munson (his 40th of the year) made it 5-4.

The Angels brought in their closer in the bottom of the 9th, but Joe Nathan was greeted by a leadoff homerun from Mickey Mantle. That sent us to extra innings.

Kal Daniels took Aroldis Chapman deep in the top of the 12th after Hi Myers led off with a walk. And that was it: Francisco Rodríguez held on in the bottom of the 12th as the Angels put another dent in the Black Yankees’ post-season hopes.

Daniels finished with 3 hits for the Angels.

LAA 7 (Rodríguez 4-3; Nathan 9 B Sv; Finley 6 H; Seaver 2 H) @ NYY 5 (Chapman 1-1) [12 Innings]
HRs: LAA – Trout (21), Grich (12), Rader (18), Daniels (14); NYY – Mattingly (27), Mantle (27).
Box Score

#Game 3: Jason Vargas @ Ron Guidry

The Black Yankees enter game 3 of the series 3.5 games back of the final wild card slot with 6 games left in their season. Not only do they need to, essentially, win out, they need help.

But all they can control is trying to win out.

Consecutive doubles by Thurman Munson and Doug DeCinces gave New York the lead in the 2nd, and a 2-run homerun from Hardy Richardson (the first of his career) extend it to 4-0- in the 4th. Ron Guidry was dominant early, but began to struggle in the 5th walking in a run and giving up another on a sacrifice fly, but a 2-run shot from Don Mattingly essentially ended the contest, giving New York a 6-2 edge.

As always, New York’s bullpen is a question mark, but AJ Burnett, Dick Tidrow, and Rheal Cormier were solid in relief of Guidry, and the Black Yankees remain alive.

LAA 2 (Vargas 1-3) @ NYY 7 (Guidry 8-12)
HRs: LAA – none; NYY – Richardson (1), Mattingly (28).
Box Score

#Game 4: Brett Anderson @ Red Ruffing

The Black Yankees bypass Jamie Moyer‘s spot in the rotation, sending out a rested Red Ruffing to face Los Angeles’ Brett Anderson.

Don Buford greeted Ruffing with a dinger to lead off the game, but Thurman Munson–who else for New York?–tied it up with a single in the 2nd, scoring Lou Gehrig. Derek Jeter would bring Munson home, giving the Black Yankees a 2-1 edge.

Both pitchers settled, and the score stayed that way until the bottom of the 5th, when Babe Ruth launched one over 450 feet for his 46th of the year and a 4-1 lead for New York.

Ruffing had to leave injured in the 7th, but he was likely coming out anyway after giving up a leadoff single to Mike Trout. The Angels scored one off Goose Gossage on a double by Don Buford, and then loaded the bases with one out against Aroldis Chapman. Steve Garvey lofted a deep fly to center to make it a 1-run game, but Hi Myers grounded out to end it.

LAA 3 (Anderson 7-8) @ NYY 4 (Ruffing 14-9; Chapman 13 Sv; Righetti 1 H; Gossage 7 H)
HRs: LAA – Buford (18); NYY – Ruth (46).
Box Score

TWIWBL 43.1: Series XXXV Notes – Bill James Division

By

On July 26, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Detroit Wolverines

Roberto Hernández‘ stay was brief, as he returns to AAA with Bob Bailey‘s return from the DL. Bailey will step back into the starting role, but Olmedo Sáenz’ hot start will force him into the lineup from time to time as well.

#Los Angeles Angels

Jeromy Burnitz was recalled from AAA to provide some depth in RF.

The Angels pounded out 22 hits and 15 runs, beating Philadelphia 15-8. Doug Rader had 4 hits, Wally Backman 3 (maintaining his .500 average), and Mike Trout scored 4 times. Jason Vargas picked up the first save of his career, dropping his ERA to 3.21 with 3 scoreless innings of relief.

The offense rolled on with 16 hits and 9 runs, led by a 4-hit day from Kal Daniels and 3 from Don Buford. Trout added his 19th homerun of the year as Gerrit Cole improved to 15-9 with a solid outing.

#Memphis Red Sox

Vern Stephens drove in 5 and Bill White had 3 hits as the Red Sox survived a poor 9th inning to beat San Francisco, 10-7. Stephens, Ted Williams, and Manny Ramírez all went deep with the win going to Stubby Overmire and Heath Bell picking up his 2nd save of the year.

With C Billy Bryan out for–most likely–the rest of the year, the Red Sox recalled Bob Brenly from AAA.

#Wandering House of David

Pete Browning hit a grand slam for his 25th homerun of the year, keying a comeback 8-6 victory over Baltimore. Ernie Banks added 3 hits for the House of David in a game where Rick Reuschel picked up his first career win and Bruce Sutter his 23rd save of the season.

TWIWBL 37.1: Series XXIX Notes – Bill James Division

By

On April 4, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Detroit Wolverines

Kevin Hart will be out about 4 weeks, meaning a trip to the DL is in order. Mickey Lolich was recalled–again.

Oscar Gamble went deep twice, giving him 25 on the season, and drove in 4, leading Detroit to a 6-4 win over Brooklyn. Ty Cobb added 3 hits, including his 18th dinger of the season, and 7 decent innings from Hank Aguirre (now 5-9) set the stage for Mike Henneman‘s league-leading 32nd save of the season.

#Los Angeles Angels

2 homeruns and 5 RBIs from Don Buford led Los Angeles to an 11-4 thrashing of Chicago. Doug Rader had 3 hits and upped his league leading RBI total to 109 with 4. Jason Vargas–knocked around in his first few appearances–picked up the win with 4.1 innings of 2-hit ball.

Gerrit Cole finally got his 13th win of the year as the Angels shellacked the American Giants, 12-3. Carlos Delgado had a grand slam and a ground rule double for 6 RBIs and Ron Hassey added 3 hits as Cole improved to 13-6.

#Memphis Red Sox

Norwood Gibson, ineffective all year, was sent to AAA with Nixey Callahan (also, you know, ineffective all year) brought back up for the start.

Sammy Sosa‘s talent has been undeniable–the ball just explodes off the 24 year old’s bat. But he hasn’t put much together, and while he’s hitting more with Memphis than he did with the House of David, he’s still not doing much. So perhaps his 3 hit game with a double and a homerun in an 8-6 win over the Gothams is the start of something for Sosa.

#New York Gothams

Christy Mathewson became the WBL’s first 13 game winner, allowing 1 unearned run over 6+ innings in a 10-1 victory over Memphis.

#Wandering House of David

Bob Rush was masterful, tossing a complete game, 3-hit shutout in a 9-0 win over Ottawa. Pete Browning had 4 hits including 3 doubles, and Dan Ford and Richie Hebner added 3 hits each.

Elrod Hendricks went deep twice, giving him 31 on the year, but it wasn’t enough as the House of David lost 8-5 to Ottawa.

TWIWBL 34.0: Series XXVII Notes

By

On February 27, 2023

In TWIWBL

July 27th

Let’s Talk About D, Baby

While the rest of the league is buzzing with trade talk, let’s take a look at what the game tells us about flashing the leather. We’ll go by position, trying to get a sense of the best fielders in the league so far.

C (500 IP min)

Thurman Munson of the New York Black Yankees has over 150 more total chances than Homestead‘s Josh Gibson, having started 86 games behind the plate. That has to count for something. Of starting catchers, Baltimore‘s Curt Blefary leads in cERA with 4.08, and Cleveland‘s Louis Santop–yet to turn 20–leads the league in framing runs–1.2 ahead of Gibson. In terms of gunning down base runners, everyone is clustered around 33% or so–Emil Gross (Ottawa) was way up at 46%, but couldn’t hit enough to stay in the league and Alan Ashby (Miami) has been excellent at 36% since taking over for Miami. Looking at all of that, it’s got to be Munson, Gibson, Blefary, or Santop, with apologies to Indianapolis‘ Johnny Bench and the House of David‘s Elrod Hendricks.

IPTCERTO%cERAFRM
C. Blefary (BAL)5994011129.44.08-1.2
J. Gibson (HOM)7185591427.25.771.5
T. Munson (NYY)765719533.04.72-1.3
L. Santop (CLE)624542232.64.202.7
IP = Innings Played; TC = Total Chances; E = Errors; RTO% = Runners Thrown Out %; cERA = Catching ERA; FRM = Framing Runs Saved

I think Santop takes it, but I would be OK if Munson’s higher usage swung it to him.

1B (600 IP min)

Philadelphia‘s Ted Kluszewski has the best fielding percentage (.996), having committed only 3 errors, but trails well behind Dan McGann (BAL)’s league leading 10.20 Range Factor. Will Clark of the Miami Cuban Giants leads in Zone Rating at 3.3. So McGann makes the most plays overall, but Clark makes the most plays that other 1B miss.

IPTCEPCTRNGZR
Will Clark (MCG)7918185.9949.253.3
Ted Kluszewski (PHI)6767113.9969.431.0
Dan McGann (BAL)7498545.99410.202.5
Bill White (MEM)7888144.9959.251.8
IP = Innings Played; TC = Total Chances; E = Errors; PCT = Fielding %; RNG = Range Factor; ZR = Zone Rating

It comes down to whether you think McGann’s RNG is more a product of his glovework or the superior Black Sox pitching staff. For me, Clark making plays nobody else in the league makes takes it.

2B (600 IP min)

Cleveland‘s Chuck Knoblauch and San Francisco‘s Jimmy Bloodworth each sport a .993 Fielding Percentage with only 3 errors each. The House of David’s Ryne Sandberg has, by a fair bit, played the most at 2B, making his leading the league in Range Factor more impressive. The New York Gotham‘s Cookie Rojas leads in ZR, trailed by Chicago‘s Eddie Collins. Those are the contenders.

IPTCEPCTRNGZR
Jimmy Bloodworth (SFS)7534233.9935.023.7
Eddie Collins (CAG)7153905.9874.855.5
Chuck Knoblauch (CLE)8014263.9934.75-1.8
Cookie Rojas (NYG)7033693.9924.686.5
Ryne Sandberg (HOD)8505247.9875.480.8
IP = Innings Played; TC = Total Chances; E = Errors; PCT = Fielding %; RNG = Range Factor; ZR = Zone Rating

I can’t get away from Rojas. Behind him it’s rough: Collins makes some great plays, but Sandberg’s greater usage may give him the edge.

3B (600 IP min)

Mike Schmidt of the Black Yankees has the highest fielding percentage, Ottawa’s Anthony Rendon leads in Range Factor, and Philadelphia’s Scott Rolen has a massive edge in Zone Rating. It’s hard to put together.

IPTCEPCTRNGZR
Ron Cey (BRK)8082216.9732.395.4
Anthony Rendon (OTT)8532667.9742.731.8
Scott Rolen (PHI)8132405.9792.608.5
Mike Schmidt (NYY)6771933.9842.536.3
IP = Innings Played; TC = Total Chances; E = Errors; PCT = Fielding %; RNG = Range Factor; ZR = Zone Rating

Rendon’s ZR confirms that his other stats are really a product of being on the field a lot. I think that leaves Rolen and Schmidt pretty much neck and neck.

SS (550 IP min)

The lower requirement is basically to allow Philadelphia’s Mickey Doolin to be listed. Homstead’s Arky Vaughan has played the most at SS, giving him roughly 20% more chances than the next few shortstops. Couple that with only 5 errors for a .990 PCT and Vaughan has to be in the argument. George Wright (Los Angeles) has a .995 PCT with only 2 errors, which is remarkable. Vaughan also leads in RNG, and is one of 3 SS with a ZR over 10, along with Detroit‘s George Davis and Kansas City‘s Ozzie Smith.

IPTCEPCTRNGZR
George Davis (DET)85547912.9754.9113.0
Mickey Doolin (PHI)5973435.9855.108.0
Ozzie Smith (KCM)8684675.9894.7912.5
Arky Vaughan (HOM)8845205.9905.2410.1
George Wright (LAA)7544112.9954.889.8
IP = Innings Played; TC = Total Chances; E = Errors; PCT = Fielding %; RNG = Range Factor; ZR = Zone Rating

You gotta’ give it to Wright, right? But after that, how do you figure out the difference between Smith and Vaughan? Smith is more spectacular, Vaughan more steady … I’ve always been a sucker for the spectacular.

LF (500 IP min)

Homestead’s Rick Reichardt has spent the most time out there, has the best RNG among qualifiers, and leads LFers with 10 OF Kills. Los Angeles’ Don Buford and Ottawa’s Phil Bradley are second with 6, so that’s quite a gap. There are six–SIX–LFers who qualify who are yet to make an error. Of those, only Brooklyn‘s Roy White and Detroit’s Oscar Gamble have positive supporting metrics as well. White has routinely pulled of the spectacular, making roughly 4 additional plays in LF than the Gotham’s Jimmy Sheckard and San Francisco’s Rickey Henderson.

IPTCAEPCTRNGZR
Phil Bradley (OTT)552121601.0001.97-1.9
Don Buford (LAA)62914463.9792.021.0
Oscar Gamble (DET)535118201.0001.991.5
Rickey Henderson (SFS)68917353.9832.222.7
Rick Reichardt (HOM)799211102.9912.35-1.2
Jimmy Sheckard (NYG)86520754.9812.112.6
Roy White (BRK)865204201.0002.126.7
IP = Innings Played; TC = Total Chances; A = Assists; E = Errors; PCT = Fielding %; RNG = Range Factor; ZR = Zone Rating

I think White has to get the nod here, and behind him it’s a bit f a jumble. Reichardt is far from spectacular, but he’s added twice as many cold, hard outs than the next contenders without many miscues, so he gets a nod despite the negative ZR.

CF (600 IP min)

The Gothams’ Willie Mays has 15 OF kills to lead the way, but of note is Ottawa’s Ken Griffey, Jr., who has 13 in half the games. Griffey, currently at AAA, doesn’t qualify here, but what an arm! Baltimore’s Paul Blair has yet to make an error. Mays and Philadelphia’s Willie Davis make the most plays, with Blair, Mays, and Birmingham‘s Curtis Granderson leading in ZR.

There are others having strong years–Kansas City’s Willie McGee, Memphis’ Reggie Smith, and Detroit’s Chili Davis spring to mind–but it’s really between those initial four names.

IPTCAEPCTRNGZR
Paul Blair (BAL)801303801.0003.409.0
Willie Davis (PHI)78132372.9943.705.2
Curtis Granderson (BBB)631247103.9883.486.4
Willie Mays (NYG)899381152.9953.797.7
IP = Innings Played; TC = Total Chances; A = Assists; E = Errors; PCT = Fielding %; RNG = Range Factor; ZR = Zone Rating

Mays and Blair seem the easy choices here.

RF (500 IP min)

RF is probably the most difficult of the OF spots to evaluate. The Gothams’ Johnny Callison leads in OF Kills, but with only 8. Callison is tied with Homestead’s Roberto Clemente in ZR, far, far ahead of the next cluster. Jeff Burroughs (POR) has yet to make an error, but the rest of his numbers aren’t terribly impressive. The House of David’s Dan Ford leads in RNG and is solid enough elsewhere.

The challenge is that several of the best in RF–Miami’s Alejandro Oms, Indianapolis’ Oscar Charleston, and Ottawa’s Larry Walker–don’t qualify here. Walker especially draws the eye, with 7 Kills and great peripheral numbers. But all of them are under 400 innings.

IPTCAEPCTRNGZR
Johnny Callison (NYG)67118181.9942.416.2
Roberto Clemente (HOM)74719442.9902.316.2
Dan Ford (HOD)54216054.9752.591.2
IP = Innings Played; TC = Total Chances; A = Assists; E = Errors; PCT = Fielding %; RNG = Range Factor; ZR = Zone Rating

I think it’s pretty clear that Ford is in third place here and I think it’s hard to push Clemente above Callison.

SP (100 IP min)

Sample size is clearly an issue here, but the Gothams’ Gaylord Perry had handled the most chances and leads in RNG. Jack Taylor (HOD) and Dutch Leonard (BRK) lead in ZR. Unwinding a pitcher’s responsibility for controlling stolen bases is hard, but since we know that, on the whole, the league runs about 33% in terms of cutting them down, we can look for who is far above that: Leonard shows up, but if we look at those with at least 10 attempts against them, we are looking at San Francisco’s Eddie Plank, Taylor, and Portland‘s Jerry Koosman.

IPTCRNGZRRTO%
Jerry Koosman (POR)119120.832.246
Dutch Leonard (BRK)139181.172.467
Gaylord Perry (NYG)117271.92-0.521
Eddie Plank (SFS)116130.931.864
Jack Taylor (HOD)142211.262.556
IP = Innings Played; TC = Total Chances; RNG = Range Factor; ZR = Zone Rating; RTO% = Runners Thrown Out %

I think this ends up going to Taylor and Leonard, but there will probably be more churn here than in other fielding evaluations between now and the end of the season.

Final Analysis

Gold GloveSilver Glove
CLouis Santop (CLE)Thurman Munson (NYY)
1BWill Clark (MCG)Dan McGann (BAL)
2BCookie Rojas (NYG)Ryne Sandberg (HOD)
3BScott Rolen (PHI)Mike Schmidt (NYY)
SSGeorge Wright (LAA)Ozzie Smith (KCM)
LFRoy White (BRK)Rick Reichardt (HOM)
CFWillie Mays (NYG)Paul Blair (BAL)
RFJohnny Callison (NYG)Roberto Clemente (HOM)
SPJack Taylor (HOD)Dutch Leonard (BRK)

Defense is so hard to evaluate, right? Despite being the only team with 3 players listed here, the Gothams aren’t at the top of any of the team fielding ratings.

Looking at overall mentions may be more interesting–here is the list of players considered above, by team.

5 – New York Gothams
4 – Homestead; Philadelphia
3 – Baltimore; Brooklyn; House of David; San Francisco
2 – Cleveland; Detroit; Los Angeles; New York Black Yankees; Ottawa
1 – Birmingham; Chicago; Kansas City; Memphis; Miami; Portland
0 – Houston

Yeah, not any better actually. The Gothams are among the best teams in the league, but both Homestead and Philadelphia are most decidedly not.

Defense. Shrug.

Performance

Batters

Top 2 in each stat, leader in bold.

Dick Allen (CAG). 310/380/544. 10 3B.
Johnny Bench (IND). 314/421/608. 5.2 WAR.
Ron Blomberg (CLE). 338/407/649. 31 HR.
Rico Carty (PHI). 285/356/460. 35 2B.
Ty Cobb (DET). 350/390/572. 134 H.
Eric Davis (NYY). 278/353/539. 81 R.
Bobby Grich (LAA). 284/370/474. 35 2B.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 252/383/335. 76 BB, 72 SB.
Kent Hrbek (POR). 303/376/591. 31 HR.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 334/419/592. 81 R.
Reggie Jackson (SFS). 331/445/610.
Stan Musial (KCM). 332/391/594. 37 2B.
Doug Rader (LAA). 335/391/546. 135 H, 100 RBI.
Tim Raines (OTT). 299/371/449. 72 SB.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 312/429/643. 32 HR, 96 RBI, 85 R, 79 BB, 5.6 WAR.
Louis Santop (CLE). 304/336/468. 10 3B.

Pitchers

Starters

Top 2 in each stat (top 4 in ERA and WHIP), leader in bold.

17 pitchers have at least 10 wins, accounting for why we went deeper in ERA and WHIP this time. Have also included FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) for the first time, helping to unravel some of the mystery of Alejandro Peña.

Bill Byrd (BAL). 11-2, 3.09. 1.17 WHIP.
Gerrit Cole (LAA). 12-5, 4.07.
Don Drysedale (BRK). 7-4, 3.37. 1.15 WHIP.
Ned Garvin (BAL). 9-4, 2.80. 1.18 WHIP.
Lefty Grove (SFS). 11-7, 3.75. 160 K.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 6-9, 4.41. 155 K, 3.5 WAR.
Frank Knauss (BRK). 10-4, 3.07.
Alejandro Peña (BBB). 9-7, 3.54. 3.24 FIP, 4.2 WAR.
Gaylord Perry (NYG). 8-7, 3.92. 3.54 FIP.
Stephen Strasburg (HOU). 6-6, 3.27.
Jack Taylor (HOD). 10-8, 3.35. 1.18 WHIP.

Relievers

Top 2 in each stat (top 4 in ERA and WHIP), leader in bold. 25 IP for rate stats.

Terry Adams (CLE). 2-5, 3.09. 24 Sv.
Elmer Brown (POR). 3-4, 1.65. 7 Sv, 9 H.
Mike Henneman (DET). 1-4, 3.94. 28 Sv.
Trevor Hildenberger (BRK). 3-0, 2.45. 1 Sv, 3 H, 0.94 WHIP.
Ken Howell (SFS). 3-4, 2.17. 4 Sv, 7 H, 1.01 WHIP.
AJ Minter (CAG). 1-0, 2.81. 19 Sv, 0.97 WHIP.
Mike Norris (NYG). 4-3, 1.62. 3 Sv, 10 H.
Ron Reed (PHI/CLE). 0-5, 3.73. 16 H.
Ron Robinson (SFS). 4-3, 3.80. 14 H.
Carson Smith (NYG). 2-0, 1.80. 1 Sv, 8 H.
Brian Wilson (NYG). 1-0, 1.11. 21 Sv, 1.02 WHIP.

Series Results

Series XXVII Sweeps

Baltimore over Philadelphia

Taking 3 out of 4 in Series XXVII

Detroit over Miami
Kansas City over Los Angeles
Portland over Memphis
New York Gothams over San Francisco

Series XXVII Splits

House of David @ Birmingham
Houston @ Brooklyn
New York Black Yankees @ Chicago
Homestead @ Cleveland
Ottawa @ Indianapolis

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