Tag: Duffy Lewis

{ Whoops. This never got published from about 10 game days ago. }

The second game between the Cleveland Spiders and the New York Gothams saw the Spiders’ Bob Feller (4-4, 5.09 ERA) facing off against the Gothams’ Sad Sam Jones (3-3, 3.28). Feller’s peripheral numbers aren’t great, although his strikeout rate is impressive, while Jones has been one of the hottest starting pitchers in the league.

Feller struggled more, but neither pitcher did very well.

Cleveland opened the scoring in the top of the first, with Johnny Bates (who reached to lead off the game on an error by New York’s Pinky Higgins at 3B) coming home on an RBI double from John Ellis.

But the bottom of the first saw New York provide a strong response. Feller sandwiched strikeouts of Jimmy Sheckard and Buster Posey around a double by Higgins, but, after Willie Mays walked, Johnny Callison ripped a double scoring two and–after another walk–RBI singles by Joe Adcock and Brandon Crawford gave the Gothams a 4-1 advantage.

Cleveland would claw one back in the top of the 4th, when Jake Stahl led off the inning with a solo homerun. But again Feller would struggle in the bottom of an inning where his team scored in the top of the frame, and New York would add 2 more runs on two hits and two walks, with RBIs from Higgins and Mays extending the lead to 6-2.

That would be it for Feller, as Mel Harder replaced him in the bottom of the 5th. It wasn’t much better, as Adcock, Cookie Rojas, and Sheckard each hit doubles, making the score 8-2 and seeming to send the Gothams on their way to a comfortable victory.

The Spiders finally got to Jones again in the top of the 7th, with an RBI from Louis Santop and Stahl’s second homerun of the game (moving him into double digits on the year) chasing him from the game in favor of Al Mays. That made the score 8-5, and New York added another run in the bottom of the frame, extending it to a four run lead heading to the 8th inning.

Mays retired Rowland Office to start the inning, but then gave up 3 walks and 2 singles, exiting with the bases loaded and the score 9-7. New York turned to Mike Norris, one of their more reliable bullpen arms so far this season. Norris had one of his worst outings of the year, giving up an RBI single to Ellis, walking Stahl to drive in another run, and hitting Evan Longoria to give Cleveland a 10-9 lead in an inning where the Spiders sent 10 batters to the plate.

We weren’t done, though: Cleveland turned to Cory Gearrin in relief of Stan Coveleski with Gearrin entering the contest with one out and a runner on first. He struck out McCovey for the second out, but then walked two batters to load the bases. Rojas sent a ball to center that Office seemed to lose sight of, turning to see it sail over his head for a bases-clearing double. Higgins would add an RBI single, and we headed to the 9th with the Gothams back in front, 13-10.

Despite surrendering a double to Santop, New York’s closer, Brian Wilson, was able to slam the door, earning his fifth save of the year. Norris picked up both his third blown save and his second win and Mays–despite giving up 5 runs, 3 walks, and 2 hits in under an inning–picked up a hold.

Gearrin took the loss, but in the end, the poor outings from Feller and Harder just dug too deep of a hole.

Santop went 3-for-6 with 2 RBI’s, and Stahl had 3 hits and 4 RBIs for Cleveland. If there was any offensive blame for the Spiders, it went to shortstop Bill Dahlen, who stranded seven runners.

For New York, the offensive star was Rojas, who scored 3 times and drove in 4 with his 3 hits. Higgins also had 3 hits and 3 RBIs. Perhaps most surprisingly, the Gothams’ best player, Buster Posey, went 0-for-5 on the day.

The pitching staffs combined to allow 28 hits and 17 walks. Ouch.

CLE 10 (Gearrin 0-4, 3 BSv) @ NYG 13 (Norris 2-1, 3 BSv; Wilson 5 Sv; Mays 1 H)
HRs: CLE – Stahl 2 (10)
Box Score

#Other Games of Note

Birmingham and Portland combined for 7 homeruns in an 8-7 victory for the Black Barons. For Birmingham, Eddie Mathews, Curtis Granderson, and Frank McCormick all went deep; for the Sea Dogs, Bobby Murcer, Buddy Bell, Fred Dunlap, and Ivan Rodriguez all found the seats.

BBB 7 (Spahn 2-5) @ POR 8 (Munoz 2-1, 1 BSv; Myers 1 H; Santana 16 Sv)
HRs: BBB – Mathews (9), McCormick (5), Granderson (4); POR – Murcer (8), Bell (9), Dunlap (2), Rodriguez (2)
Box Score

Philadelphia edged Brooklyn with a walk-off single by Gavvy Cravath scoring Chase Utley in the bottom of the 11th inning. The game was notable for the very strong starts by both the Stars’ Steve Carlton (6.1 IP, 1 run) and the Royal Giants’ Don Sutton (8 IP, 2 runs). Brooklyn’s Dick Redding took the loss, despite pitching well enough in relief while Bob Howry–Philadelphia’s usual closer–got the win with 2 scoreless innings to close out the game.

BRK 2 (Redding 0-1) @ PHI 3 (Howry 1-2; Reed 4 BSv) [11 Innings]
HRs: none
Box Score

Indianapolis carried a 4-1 lead into the 9th, with closer Rob Dibble on the mound against Chicago. They got there largely on a key double by Davey Concepcion and 6 stolen bases in support of just shy of 8 innings of 1-run pitching from a commanding David Price. But Dibble imploded after Luke Appling reach on an error by Ed Charles (who was in the game as a defensive replacement) to start the inning. After getting an out, Dibble hit a batter and gave up 2 hits, including an RBI single by Eddie Collins that left the bases loaded. Joe Jackson walked, forcing in another run, Frank Thomas hit a sacrifice fly to tie the game, and Duffy Lewis singled to right, scoring Collins for the Chicago win.

IND 4 (Dibble 2-2, 3 BSv; Carroll 2 H) @ CHI 5 (Dixon 2-1)
HRs: none
Box Score

TWIWBL 16.2: Series XIII Notes – Cum Posey Division

By mknn

On September 5, 2021

In TWIWBL

#Baltimore Black Sox

Ned Garvin blanked the Cleveland Spiders on 4 hits as Baltimore rolled to an 8-0 win behind 3 hits from Bobby Wallace and Ramon Hernandez‘ first homerun of the year. Garvin walked none and struck out 3, improving his record to 5-1 and lowering his ERA to 2.09.

Despite a subpar outing, Dennis Martinez joined the list of 7 game winners, moving to 7-1 as the Black Sox came from behind to blow out Cleveland, 10-4. Ken Singleton went 5-for-5, Dan McGann added 3 hits, and Paul Blair–yes, Paul Blair–added 2 homeruns as every Baltimore starter got at least 1 hit.

The Black Sox just find a way to win … down 4-0 after 6, and 5-4 heading into the 9th, Larry Gardner sent the fans home happy with a 2-run walkoff single. Curt Blefary hit 2 homeruns to give him 16 on the year. The win went to Buddy Groom, his first of the year.

#Chicago American Giants

Behind a strong start from Ben Sheets and 3 homeruns from Duffy Lewis, Chicago took apart Birmingham, 12-3. Allowing only 1 run on 3 hits over 7 innings, Sheets improved his record to 5-3. Lewis drove in 4 and Eddie Collins went 3-for-4 with 3 RBIs.

Ed Walsh lasted 8 pitches before having to leave the game with an apparent hamstring injury. The American Giants recalled Fernando Rodney from AAA to take Walsh’s place, and his starts should go to Joe Horlen or Frank Smith.

#Houston Colt 45’s

Trevor Hoffman‘s return from the DL moved Bones Ely back to AAA.

#Kansas City Monarchs

Robinson Cano hit 2 homeruns and drove in 4, leading the Monarchs to a 7-3 victory over Ottawa. Andy Pettite got his 4th victory of the year with 7 scoreless innings and Craig Kimbrel picked up his 8th hold. Ted Simmons also had 2 hits in a game that was a pitcher’s duel until the Monarchs exploded for 4 runs in the top of the 7th.

Willie McGee hit 2 homeruns and Frank Castillo allowed only 1 hit before running out of steam in the 8th inning as the Monarchs won the second game of the series, 9-2. McGee drove in 4, and Albert Pujols went 3-for-5 with 3 RBIs as Castillo moved to 3-4 on the year.

#Ottawa Mounties

The news was not good on Bob Brown: the Mountie’s best starter all season will miss 4-5 months with a shoulder injury. Clayton Richard, 6-1 with a 3.65 at AAA Montreal, was recalled.

Ted Bowsfield threw 1 pitch in the 9-2 loss to Kansas City before having to leave the game. He was placed on the DL with the Mounties recalling Clark Griffith.

Ottawa’s 4-1 victory over the Monarchs to close out their series was costly, as Tom Henke had to leave with an apparent arm injury. A strong start from Old Hoss Radbourn improved his record to 4-3 and Johnny Podgajny made his WBL debut to relieve Henke and pickup the save. Tim Raines had 2 hits and Anthony Rendon 2 RBIs for the Mounties.

TWIWBL Special Edition: All Star Preview – Left Fielders

By mknn

On August 1, 2021

In All Star Games, TWIWBL

{ The All-Star game is about a month away. We’ll post occasional articles about the contenders for participation in the mid-season classic. These are written “as of now,” so the final selections may vary dramatically, but hopefully these will add to the ongoing flavor of the league. }

#AL Left Fielders – Bill James & Cum Posey Division

The leader in the AL is pretty clear: Baltimore’s Frank Robinson has been the key to their surprising season at 341/417/553, and is a fair bit ahead of the rest of the pack.

Probably the best candidates behind Robinson are Chicago’s Duffy Lewis at 311/349/571 with 11 homeruns and 25 RBIs and the House of David’s George Stone, who is hitting 322/412/517.

But Los Angeles’ Don Buford deserves some strong consideration: Buford is hitting 320/412/473, and has been the key to the Angels’ offense all season, scoring 28 runs. Detroit’s Oscar Gamble has hit a bit of a slump, but at 267/385/491 with 28 RBIs is still in the mix.

Buford and Gamble are the only folks here who have done much defensively, but we’re not talking about the great gloves of the WBL with this group.

The AI goes for Lewis, Robinson, and Stone, which is hard to argue with, but I would probably slide Buford ahead of Stone.

#NL Left Fielders – Effa Manley & Marvin Miller Division

The NL starter is pretty easy: the New York Black Yankees’ Babe Ruth is the dominant player in the league at 337/445/697, 16 HRs, and 45 RBIs. And that’s after a recent slump.

After Ruth, Philadelphia’s Rico Carty is a no-brainer at 354/416/570.

And then it gets complicated.

Ruth’s teammate, Albert Belle, is slashing 322/375/579 in somewhat limited playing time, and then there is a large gap to a trio with OPS’ in the low 800s: San Francisco’s Wally Moon, Brooklyn’s Roy White, and Homestead’s Rick Reichardt.

White has been one of–if not the best–LF defensively, so he’ll get my nod for the third slot along with Ruth and Carty.

The AI only selects Ruth and Carty, which is also defensible, given the OF quality in CF and RF.

TWIWBL 11.2: Notes from Series IX – Cum Posey Division

By mknn

On July 11, 2021

In TWIWBL

#Baltimore Black Sox

Mark Baldwin has lost his spot in the starting rotation, with Ned Garvin taking his place.

#Chicago American Giants

Tricky Nichols is emerging as the ace of Chicago’s staff. He threw his second shutout of the season against Memphis, allowing only 4 hits in a 134 pitch effort. Frank Thomas went deep twice, and Mike Fiore and Duffy Lewis also homered, leading Chicago to a 5-0 victory. Nichols is now 4-0 on the season.

Two homeruns by Lewis were almost not enough, as Chicago gave up an early 5-0 lead to fall behind Memphis 6-5. But 4 runs in the bottom of the eighth, keyed by a pinch-hit double from Thomas, keyed a 9-5 American Giants victory. Sonny Dixon threw 2.1 scoreless innings of relief for the win, and AJ Minter picked up his 5th save with a perfect 9th inning.

Robin Ventura–whose OPS was under .400–was demoted to AAA, with Jim Davenport being promoted as Dick Allen‘s backup, and Kevin Mitchell went to the minors as Cristobal Torriente returned from injury.

#Houston Colt 45’s

Houston has been getting solid starts from surprising sources, the most recent being a 7 inning effort from Stubby Overmire where he only allowed 6 hits and 2 runs. Unfortunately, the Colt 45’s offense was totally shutdown, as they lost the game 3-0.

The performance moved Overmire into the rotation, despite Leon Day also making a case for regular starts. With Jeff Bagwell‘s production sky rocketing (he now leads the team in OPS), Paul Goldschmidt was demoted in hopes the big first baseman could find his stroke at AAA.

C Jason Castro has been the best player at AAA San Antonio, but the Colt 45’s already have three catchers on the roster, if you count Craig Biggio. As such, OF Felipe Alou was recalled to the big league club.

#Ottawa Mounties

With Steve Garvey out for at least a week with the flu, the Mounties recalled Josh Donaldson from AAA, a move designed both to add some depth at 3B behind Anthony Rendon and clear room for the impressive Larry Parrish to get more playing time with AAA Montreal.

Roy Halladay got his first win of the year with 8 strong innings, allowing 1 earned run. The Mounties hit 6 homeruns in a 14-2 rout of Birmingham, with Emil Gross hitting 2 and Tim Raines, Roy Sievers, Carlos Delgado, and Rendon all going deep as well.

The Mounties may have found something in thirty-five year old Jamie Moyer. Helped by three hits from Alex Rodriguez, Moyer allowed only 1 run in 8 innings for his first victory of the year, lowering his ERA to 2.08 as Ottawa won 5-1.

TWIWBL 11.0: Series IX Notes

By mknn

On July 11, 2021

In TWIWBL

May 8th

Awards

Duffy Lewis of the Chicago American Giants won the Player of the Week Award, hitting .448 with 5 homeruns–doubling his HR total on the year.

Performance

Given that we’re in early May, standings still don’t mean a whole lot. Portland and the New York Black Yankees have the best record in the league at 25-13, with the Chicago American Giants close behind as 23-15.

Homestead has the worst record at 12-26, already 13 games behind the Black Yankees.

League Standings | League Statistics

Walter Johnson moved to 6-0, becoming the only six-game winner in the league during Series IX. Babe Ruth slugged his 13th homerun of the year–a game-winner to boot–to regain the league lead.

More interestingly, the leaderboards are beginning to diversify. The lists below contain the top 2 performers in most categories, and while Ruth and Johnson still dominate, there a lot of different players there.

Leading SP: Walter Johnson (POR) 6-0, 3.07 ERA, 2.89 FIP, 1.9 WAR; Ron Guidry (NYY) 4-2, 3.23 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 65 Ks; CC Sabathia (HOD) 5-2, 2.79 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 3.13 FIP, 1.8 WAR; Don Drysedale (BRK) 4-1, 1.80 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, Gerrit Cole (LAA) 5-2, 4.45 ERA; Lefty Grove (SFS) 4-1, 3.30 ERA, 54 K; Camilo Pascual (MCG) 4-1, 2.36 ERA.

Leading RP: Johan Santana (POR) 0-1, 3.48 ERA, 13 Sv; Bob Howry (PHI) 0-2, 6.59 ERA, 10 Sv; Ron Reed (PHI) 0-1, 2.37 ERA, 2 Sv, 8 H; Joe Beggs 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 3 Sv; Tom Niedenfuer 0-0, 9.90 ERA, 7 Sv, 1 H; Craig Kimbrel (KAN) 0-1, 2.65 ERA, 6 H.

Leading Batters: Buster Posey (NYG) 394/463/685, 2.4 WAR; Reggie Jackson (SFS) 384/503/670; Babe Ruth (NYY) 371/461/734, 13 HR, 40 R, 2.6 WAR; Willie Mays (SFS) 352/394/509 56 H; Stan Musial (KAN) 380/448/570, 54 H; Rico Carty (PHI) 347/404/562, 14 2B, Kal Daniels (LAA) 289/413/485, 13 2B, Terry Puhl (OTT) 264/311/438, 5 3B; Curt Blefary (BAL) 295/420/676, 12 HR; Eric Davis (NYY) 306/342/571, 46 RBI; Doug Rader (LAA) 331/373/536, 45 RBI; Shoeless Joe Jackson (CAG) 370/458/688, 31 R, 2.5 WAR; Rickey Henderson (SFS) 286/442/397, 34 BB, 32 SB; Mickey Mantle (NYY) 293/414/444, 28 BB.

Streaks

Streaks are hard.

Chicago’s Luke Appling has the longest active hitting streak at 14 games, and Appling, Rico Carty (PHI), and Albert Pujols (KAN) have reached base in 16 straight.

San Francisco‘s Rickey Henderson has stolen 21 straight bases.

Sad Sam Jones of the New York Gothams and Houston‘s Toad Ramsey have each tossed 15 straight scoreless innings, and Baltimore‘s Ned Garvin hasn’t allowed a hit in 9 innings.

The hottest hitters in the league are Baltimore’s Curt Blefary (343/489/829 over 13 games), Cleveland‘s Ron Blomberg (486/488/838 over 11 games), and Indianapolis‘ Johnny Bench (382/493/764 over 16 games). Portland’s Kent Hrbek and Chicago’s Duffy Lewis each have 5 homeruns over their past 7 games.

Baltimore needs to make a choice soon, as Paul Blair continues to be totally overmatched, hitting 113/203/155 over 23 games.

Series Results

Series IX Sweeps

Cleveland over Kansas City

Taking 3 out of 4 in Series IX

Baltimore over San Francisco
Ottawa over Birmingham
Brooklyn over House of David
Houston over Detroit

Series Splits in Series IX

Chicago v Memphis
Homestead v Indianapolis
Los Angeles v Portland
Miami v Philadelphia
NY Black Yankees v NY Gothams

TWIWBL 10.2: Series VII Notes – Cum Posey Division

By mknn

On July 4, 2021

In TWIWBL

#Baltimore Black Sox

Ned Garvin shut out Philadelphia on 3 hits, walking 1 and striking out 4, improving his record to 2-1 in easily his best performance of the year.

A pinch-hit grand slam from Frank Robinson helped power the Black Sox past the Stars in the second game. Dennis Martinez had another strong outing, improving to 3-1 and Ken Singleton also went deep.

#Chicago American Giants

Frank Thomas hit 2 homeruns, leading Chicago past the New York Black Yankees, 8-4. Ben Sheets moved to 4-1 on the year with a strong effort, and Carlton Fisk and Joe Jackson also went deep.

In game two of the series, down 4-2 in the top of the 7th, the American Giants responded with 6 runs, shocking the Black Yankees and providing the final score in the 8-4 victory. The inning started with hits from Luke Appling and Dave Nilsson, chasing New York’s starter, Jake Scott, from the game. He was relieved by A.J. Burnett, who allowed a run to score on a wild pitch, then surrendered a single to Jackson to tie the game … and then things got rough, with Dick Allen hitting a 2 run homerun and Mike Fiore scoring on a fielders’ choice. Thomas went 3-for-5, and both Adrian Gonzalez and Duffy Lewis hit homers as well. The win went to Ed Walsh, who struggled through 126 pitches over 7 innings, allowing 4 runs. Akinori Otsuka and A.J. Minter combined for 2 scoreless innings in relief.

#Houston Colt 45’s

Stubby Overmire got a spot start and made the most of it, allowing only 2 runs in 7 innings against Brooklyn in a game Houston eventually won in the bottom of the 9th, with the victory going to Andrew Chafin, who evened his record at 1-1.

Jeff Bagwell went deep twice–perhaps an indication he’s finding his swing at last–to lead Houston to a 6-2 victory in the 2nd game, with Tony Gwynn adding 3 RBI’s as well. Trevor Hoffman moved to 3-0 on the year, after a decent effort from Stephen Strasburg.

#Ottawa Mounties

Jamie Moyer‘s WBL debut was a thing of beauty: 7.2 innings, 6 hits, 4 strikeouts, and a single earned run. Tom Henke‘s total meltdown was not–4 runs on three hits in the 9th inning, turning a 2-1 lead into a 5-2 defeat to Indianapolis.

The question of what it would take for Ottawa to give up on Randy Johnson–at least for a while–was answered: 1-4 with an ERA approaching 9 and a WHIP over 2. It’s unclear what the long term plans are in Ottawa: for now, Monk Dubiel gets a start and a likely quick hook, with Greg Holland called up to the bullpen.

Holland did well: 3.1 innings in relief of Dubiel (who gave up 4 runs in 3 innings), allowing only 1 run. It was enough, as Ottawa took advantage of a total implosion by Rob Murphy that included 2 bases-loaded walks and a grand slam by the suddenly red-hot Freddy Parent. It all added up to an 8-5 victory for the Mounties.

Series VI Featured Matchup- Chicago American Giants @ Philadelphia Stars

By mknn

On June 1, 2021

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

The American Giants (12-10) head to Philadelphia to take on the Stars (13-9) in a four game series. Series preview here.

Game 1: Mark Buehrle v Robin Roberts

Mark Buehrle brings a 1-2 record and a 3.20 ERA into his matchup with Robin Roberts who is at 2-1 with an inflated ERA of 6.30. Roberts has pitched better than his ERA would indicate, for sure.

Still, the American Giants have a heckuva lineup. Roberts would give up three runs four innings, first on an RBI single by Dick Allen, then twice when Duffy Lewis scored without a hit (first on a Luke Appling double play, then, in the top of the fourth, on a wild pitch).

Buehrle sailed along for five innings, but the Stars broke through in a big way in the bottom of the sixth with George Hendrick, Sherry Magee, and Rico Carty all hitting doubles to cut the lead to 3 to 2. Ted Kluszewski–gaining some redemption on his return from AAA–then took Buehrle deep for a 3-run HR, putting Philadelphia on top, 5-3, and chasing Buehrle from the game, relieved by Koji Uehara.

The lead was short-lived: Roberts would walk Adrian Gonzalez and give up a single to pinch-hitter Kevin Mitchell before giving way to Rheal Cormier. Brought in to face three consecutive left-handed batters, Cormier was hit hard despite getting a few outs, with Dave Nilsson hitting a deep fly to score Gonzalez, Eddie Collins doubling, and Shoeless Joe Jackson plating Mitchell with a groundout. Jack Meyer relieved Cormier and got Frank Thomas to popout to 1B for the final out with the score tied at 5.

Philadelphia’s strategy in the top of the eighth was a bit of a surprise: when Meyer couldn’t come out due to injury, the Stars turned to Jaret Wright, just recalled from AAA. It was a mistake: Allen greeted him with a triple, Mike Fiore walked, and Wright was pulled midway through Duffy Lewis’ AB in favor of Pedro Feliciano, who had been fantastic so far this season. Feliciano gave up a single to Lewis, scoring Allen and then a 2-run double to light-hitting Damian Jackson. An RBI groundout from Eddie Collins pushed the score to 9-5.

Philadelphia would claw back one run, but that was it, and Chicago had the victory in hand.

Carty had three hits, all doubles, for Philadelphia. Lewis went four-for-four and scored 3 runs for Chicago.

CAG 9 (Uehara 1-0; Minter 3 Sv) @ PHI 6 (Wright 0-1; Cormier 1 BS)
HRs: Kluszewski (PHI, 5)
Box Score

Game 2: Joe Lake @ J.M. Ward

John Montgomery Ward gets a spot start for Chicago, his first of the year. Ward has pitched 7 times in relief, with a 1-0 record and 4.50 ERA. Joe Lake is just trying to get on track, coming in with an 0-1 record and an ERA approaching 8.

It was a rough day for everyone who took the mound …

Chicago roared out of the gate, taking a 7-1 lead into the bottom of the fifth, but Philadelphia would at least make a game of it, starting the frame off with five consecutive hits and a sacrifice fly, closing the gap to two runs at 7-5.

But Shoeless Joe Jackson would hit two homeruns in the later innings, and Herb Pennock would throw a perfect 2.2 IP to close it out. Pennock was the only successful hurler for either team: Ward was rocked for 7 runs in under 4 innings, and Rheal Cormier and Pedro Feliciano gave up 6 more in 4 innings in relief. Lake was hit hard as well, surrendering 5 runs and 9 hits in 5 innings, and Lee Meadows gave up 3 more in just over an inning of relief.

Meadows and Lake are unlikely to be in Chicago much longer, as today’s performances were no worse than they’ve shown all season.

Shoeless Joe went 3-for-6 with 4 RBIs, and Mike Fiore added 3 hits and scored 3 times as the American Giants pounded out seventeen hits, with only Dick Allen failing to get a hit on the day.

For Philadelphia, Buck Freeman, Rico Carty, Chase Utley, and Mickey Doolin each had two hits apiece.

CAG 14 (Lake 1-1; Pennock 1 Sv; Meadows 1 H) @ PHI 8 (Ward 1-1)
HRs: Jackson 2 (CAG, 8); Lewis (CAG, 3)
Box Score

Game 3: Tricky Nichols @ Ray Collins

Because of the surprise start of JM Ward last game, game three of the series features the first matchup of two 3-0 pitchers on the season, with Chicago’s Tricky Nichols facing Philadelphia’s Ray Collins. Both pitched well for a while, and then ran out of gas.

Nichols was cruising with a 4-1 lead heading into the bottom of the 6th, but a 3-run HR by Chase Utley and a solo shot by Bill Dickey chased him from the game giving Philadelphia a 5-4 lead.

Collins left after 7 innings with the 1 run lead, but Ron Reed immediately gave it up, surrendering a 2-run blast to Mike Fiore to give the American Giants the edge, 6-5. But, an error by Dick Allen allowed a run to score in the bottom of the 8th, tying it up at 6.

Bob Howry–fantastic so far on the season–came in for Chicago and promptly gave away the farm: Allen atoned for the error with a leadoff shot, and after an RBI single from Duffy Lewis, Shoeless Joe Jackson capped off a 4-for-4 day with a 3-run shot to RF. Ken Sanders mowed through the Philadelphia lineup in the bottom of the 9th, giving Chicago the 12-6 victory and a 3-0 lead in the series.

CAG 12 (Sanders 2-0, 1 BSv) @ PHI 6 (Howry 0-1; Reed 2 BSv)
HRs: Dickey (PHI, 2); Utley (PHI, 1); Jackson (CAG, 9); Fiore (CAG, 3); Allen (CAG, 4)
Box Score

Game 4: Ben Sheets @ Steve Carlton

Despite similar numbers, Ben Sheets comes into the game with a 3-0 record while Steve Carlton sits at 1-3 on the season.

Each pitched a strong game. Sheets looked sharper, but he had one bad inning–with Chicago ahead 2-1 heading into the bottom of the 6th, the big righthander made three mistakes in the span of six pitches, with Buck Freeman, Gavvy Cravath, and Sherry Magee each blasting solo HRs, giving the Stars a 4-2 lead.

Carlton left after getting one out in the seventh, with the Stars having to bring in SP Pete Alexander because their bullpen was so depleted. It worked: Alexander pitched 2.2 perfect innings, and the game ended 4-2 with Carlton picking up the win and Alexander the save for Philadelphia’s first win in the series.

The three homeruns were half the hits Sheets surrendered, but he still went down to his first loss on the year.

CAG 2 (Sheets 3-1) @ PHI 4 (Carlton 2-3; Alexander 1 Sv)
HRs: Freeman (PHI, 4); Kluszewski (PHI, 6); Magee (PHI, 2); Cravath (PHI, 5).
Box Score

Series Notes

For Chicago, Shoeless Joe went 9-for-16 in the series with 3 HRs and 9 RBIs and Fiore went 6-for-13.

Despite going hitless at AAA, Kluszewski found his stroke immediately on his promotion, going 5-for-15 with 2 HRs and 5 RBI’s for Philadelphia.

Chicago looks to have a shot at being a real contender, something that will elude Philadelphia until they find some more consistency on offense.

Series V Featured Game: Chicago visits Detroit

By mknn

On May 21, 2021

In Featured Games, Game Recaps

The featured game of Series V saw Detroit‘s Joe Lake taking on Si Johnson of the visiting Chicago American Giants in the opening match of the four game set.

The game was scoreless until the top of the 4th, when Dick Allen led off with a solo HR to give Chicago a 1-0 lead. It was short-lived, as a 2-run HR from Geoff Jenkins and an RBI double by Bob Bailey put Detroit up 3-1 in the bottom of the frame.

A 3-run blast from 1B Hank Greenberg extended the Detroit lead to 6-1 in the bottom of the 5th, and the Wolverines looked in good shape.

However … this is The Featured Game, right?

Mike Fiore led off the top of the 7th with a leadoff HR, and when Duffy Lewis followed with a sharp single, Johnson was chased from the game, to be replaced by Doyle Alexander, who fanned the first batter he faced, but then gave up a single to light-hitting Damian Jackson, turning over the fearsome Chicago lineup to the top.

It delivered: Shoeless Joe Jackson singled in Lewis, and, after Cristobal Torriente hit into a fielders’ choice, Frank Thomas slammed a 3-run HR to tie the game at 6.

Damian Jackson would strike again in the top of the 8th, singling in two runs with Kevin Hart on the mound for Detroit to give Chicago the lead again, at 8-6.

But the home team still had some fight in them, with Chili Davis tagging Ken Sanders for a solo HR and Greenberg adding an RBI single in the bottom of the 8th to tie the game.

Detroit would keep Hart in the game for the top of the 9th, and Thomas would greet him with a leadoff HR to give the lead back to Chicago, 9-8.

The American Giant’s beleaguered closer, AJ Minter, would take the mound in the bottom of the frame. After George Davis flied out, Tony Phillips would single against Minter, bringing up Detroit’s DH Bob Bailey, who launched a ball deep to LF. Torriente took off at a full sprint and, far in the LF corner, made a tumbling catch. Phillips tagged up from first in a desperate attempt to get into scoring position, but Torriente somehow rolled to his feet, stopped his momentum, whirled, and threw a rope to 2B, just beating Phillips to end the game.

Thomas drove in 4, going 3-for-5, and Allen and Lewis added 2 hits each for Chicago, while Davis, Phillips, and Greenberg had 3 hits each for the home team. Hart took the loss, falling to 0-2, and Akinori Otsuka picked up the win, improving his record to 2-3 (Otsuka wasn’t terribly effective–he gave up 1 hit in one-third of an inning, and picked up a blown save as well), with Minter getting his first save in–by far–his most effective outing of the year.

Box Score | Game Log

Season Preview: Chicago American Giants

By mknn

On August 21, 2020

In Team News

This Chicago team looks dangerous. The pitching staff is deep with an impressive front 3 in Ben Sheets, Lee Meadows, and Joe Lake and the offense has a ton of top tier talent, especially if Mike Fiore or Duffy Lewis can continue their Spring production.

Final Roster

SP: Ben Sheets, Lee Meadows, Joe Lake, Mark Buehrle, Tricky Nichols.
RP: Herb Pennock & Ed Walsh; Koji Uehara; Akinori Otsuka & Ken Sanders; AJ Minter.

C: Carlton Fisk; Dave Nilsson
1B: Adrian Gonzalez
2B: Eddie Collins; Damian Jackson
3B: Dick Allen; Robin Ventura
SS: Luke Appling
LF: Duffy Lewis; Kevin Mitchell
CF: Mike Fiore; Cristobal Torriente
RF: Shoeless Joe Jackson
DH: Frank Thomas

Notes

It’s not clear how permanent it is, but for now Tricky Nichols will fill the 5th spot in the rotation … in a shock move, the American Giants promoted IF Damian Jackson from AAA to the big league roster despite him not seeing a single AB in the Spring: the performances of 2B Nellie Fox and SS Julio Gotay were that bad … Bob Watson did well, the problem for him was he offered little Kevin Mitchell didn’t, and Mitchell hit just that much better … the final position player was harsh, as Avisail Garcia did everything asked of him all Spring, slashing 326/408/372. But he was at the bottom of the OF pack, with Cristobal Torriente offering more both at bat and with the glove … Victor Cruz pitched quite well, but was sent down with Chicago’s decision to go with 11 pitchers …

RP Koji Uehara is one of the oldest players in the league at 39 while OF Cristobal Torriente is one of the youngest at 17.

Frank Smith is likely to be recalled if the pitching staff needs reinforcements while Bob Watson would be first in line to help offensively from AAA. Three players have been turning heads at AA: 21 year old 2B Rickie Weeks, who got an extended look in Spring Trianing, and a pair of 23 year olds, OF Magglio Ordonez and RP Scott Radinsky.