Tag: Ed Bailey Page 2 of 4

Year II Season Preview: Detroit Wolverines

On March 20, 2024

Expectations

You finish as the runner-up, you’re supposed to get back there next year. Championship competition for sure. This is just a very well-balanced team: none of the pitchers are really superstars, but Charlie Root, Hal Newhouser, and Gene Conley could hang with any trio in the league. Likewise, the offense revolves around two stars (Ty Cobb and Hank Greenberg) and a solid supporting cast.

Best Case

It all keeps humming, with especially both Root and Conley being able to maintain their level of performance on the mound while supporting talent–the Bailey Boys (3B Bill and C Ed) and the Davis Duo (OF Chili and SS George) especially–keep on keeping on and youngster Al Kaline continues to deliver on his promise.

Worst Case

The pitching seems like it could collapse at any time–especially the bullpen, where Mike Henneman (despite tying for the league lead in saves) feels somewhat precarious. Four key players (Ed Bailey, George Davis, Tony Phillips, and Oscar Gamble) are on the wrong side of 30, so falling off a cliff is always a concern.

Key Questions

Who is the 5th starter?
Can the 3 catchers continue to be an effective approach (meaning, worth sacrificing the roster spot to carry both Bill Carrigan and Ernie Lombardi behind Ed Bailey)?
The MI is a concern: George Davis is a wizard with the glove, but cannot hit and 2B clearly needs a long term solution given Phillips’ age.

Trade Bait

No obvious opportunities.

Or so we thought until it became clear that Charlie Gehringer, offering a long term solution at 2B, could be available.

Roster Evaluation

POS	Elite	Strong	Solid	Meh	Weak	Unknown
C		Carrigan	Bailey, E	Lombardi
1B	Greenberg					Beníquez
2B			Phillips			Gehringer Wood
3B			Bailey, B			Nash
SS			~~Davis, G~~
LF/ RF	Cobb		Gamble Kaline
CF			Davis, C
SP		Conley Root	~~Aguirre~~ Newhouser	Verlander	Marcum
End		Napier	Bradford Henneman
RP					Wilshere	Hoeft Conway

New Addition | ~~Injured~~

Al Kaline gets moved down a little due to low usage, but he certainly looks like the real deal.

That’s a lot of unknowns for a contender. But none of them are really in key spots, although Billy Nash, who isn’t truly a SS, will have to fill in there until George Davis‘ return.

Talent Ratings

	WBL	Minors
Raw Power	OF Oscar Gamble	DH JD Martinez
Batting Eye	U Tony Phillips	OF Floyd Robinson
Contact	OF Ty Cobb	OF Ron Swoboda
Running Speed	OF Ty Cobb	OF Dan Gladden
Base Stealing	OF Ty Cobb	SS Ray Chapman
IF Defense	1B Hank Greenberg	3B Jimmy Collins
OF Defense	RF Al Kaline	CF Jim Piersall
Stuff	P Vernon Wilshire	P Wilson Álvarez
Control	RP Chad Bradford	RP Dick Donovan
Velocity	RP Mike Henneman	P Delin Betances

Best In The Minors

Rank	Age	POS	Name
1 (17)	21	OF	Al Kaline
2 (68)	19	SS	Wander Franco
3 (73)	23	P	Emil Yde
4 (113)	24	2B	Charlie Gehringer
5 (121)	23	P	George Mullin
6 (175)	18	P	Billy Hoeft
7 (198)	20	3B	Billy Nash

Others: None.

Hoeft and Franco were a surprise this Spring, with Hoeft, Nash, Gehringer, and Kaline all breaking camp with the Wolverines. That’s the good news. The bad news is the cupboard is bare at this point.

	Most	Least
Age	U Tony Phillips, 38	RP Billy Hoeft, 18 C Bill Freehan, 18
Height	P Gene Conley, 6’8″	SS Bill McClellan, 5’5″ SS Earl Adams, 5’5″
OPS	OF Hi Myers, 1.019 (WBL/AAA)	1B Eric Hosmer, .509 (WBL)
HR	3B Joe Werrick, 51 (WBL)	OF Wally Moses, 1 (AAA/AA) SS George Davis, 1 (AAA/AA) 2B Earl Adams, 1 (WBL)
SB	OF Ty Cobb, 52 (WBL)	Many with 0
WAR	OF Al Kaline, 4.9 (WBL)	1B Eric Hosmer, -3.0 (WBL)
W	Ray Washburn, 17 (—)	Doyle Alexander, 1 (WBL/AAA/AA)
SV	Mike Henneman, 38 (WBL)
ERA	Ray Washburn, 2.44 (—)	Dennis Rasmussen, 6.75 (—)
WAR	Ray Washburn, 5.6 (—)	Vernon Wilshire, -0.7 (WBL/AAA)

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

Season Review: Detroit Wolverines

By mknn

On January 3, 2024

In Season Reviews, Team News

89 - 65, .577 pct.
1st in Bill James Division, 3 games behind.
Lost to Baltimore in Whirled Series

Overall

Finishing runner up to the best team in the league made last year a success in Detroit, but it also leaves a bit of a sour taste: what did they need to get over that final hurdle, and how quickly is the window closing? That last is more of a concern for the Wolverines than most WBL teams with sparkplug Tony Phillips, C Ed Bailey, and SS George Davis all on the wrong side of 35.

On the other hand, none of their three top starters were in Detroit’s rotation at the start of the season (Hal Newhouser was at AAA, Gene Conley was in the bullpen, and Charlie Root was pitching for San Francisco), so a full season of them should help. And on the third hand, this is a team that did it with only two stars–Hank Greenberg and Ty Cobb–and, even if you add phenom Al Kaline to that group, could really use some additional high end offense.

What Went Right

Greenberg and Cobb, for sure. Both are young, Cobb won the batting title and hit for power with speed and Greenberg was on the fringes of the MVP discussion all season.

Kaline had an OPS nearing .950 over 34 games. So, that went very right, but is also not a proven commodity at this point.

Chili Davis, Oscar Gamble, and Bob Bailey all hit better than expected, combining for 68 homers and 242 RBI.

George Davis managed 2.7 WAR despite a .662 OPS–that’s how good he was with the glove at shortstop.

Tony Phillips was an ageless wonder, posting an OBP near .400 at the top of the lineup.

The catching trio–Ed Bailey, Bill Carrigan, and Ernie Lombardi–was effective, although as you would guess, finding enough at bats for them all was a challenge.

Once Newhouser, Conley, and Root settled in, this was as good a top 3 as there was last year. Conley led the trio–and the team–with 12 victories, but it was Newhouser who really provided consistent greatness on the mound for Detroit.

Mike Henneman tied for the league lead in saves with 38 and Chad Bradford and Buddy Napier were among the best in the business in bridging to the closer.

Hank Aguirre and Johnny Marcum were solid, especially once they moved to the back half of the rotation.

ALL STARS
3B Bob Bailey; 1B Hank Greenberg; RP Mike Henneman

What Went Wrong

Sparky Adams was never meant to be more than a utility infielder … but wow did he not hit well. It was only his defensive flexibility that kept him around over Robby Thompson–clearly a better option at 2B–and Jimmy Collins, who despite being great with the glove at 3B, barely hit more than Adams.

Tony Phillips was fragile, and it’s not clear, at 38, if he has any full seasons left in him.

Justin Verlander never really established himself despite a lot of opportunities. He wasn’t bad, for sure, as evidenced by his 10-4 record, but he wasn’t consistent and couldn’t hold a rotation spot.

Vernon “Whitey” Wilshere and Si Johnson were both downright bad as starters.

Transactions

March

1B Nate Colbert to Birmingham for P Ron Perranoski and 3B Billy Nash

Sure, whatever.

June

SS Donie Bush, 2B Jorge Orta, P Brandon League, OF Gene Martin & 2nd Round Pick to Indianapolis for C Ernie Lombardi

Unsure. Lombardi was OK for Detroit, and more will be asked of him, but that’s a lot to give up for a part-time catcher.

July

2B Charlie Gehringer, P Red Ehret, 3B Bill Sweeney & 4th Round Pick to San Francisco for P Charlie Root & P Chad Bradford

A clear win, even if Gehringer eventually finds his footing.

Looking Forward

SP

This should be solid, with an eventual combination of Hal Newhouser, Charlie Root, Gene Conley, Mickey Lolich, and Justin Verlander.

RP

It’s a strong trio now with Buddy Napier, Chad Bradford, and Mike Henneman, and Matt Anderson and Delin Betances offer some depth in the system.

C

Could be an area of need, but for now Bill Carrigan and Ernie Lombardi will see more of the time here, with the aging Ed Bailey being phased out.

1B

Hank Greenberg.

2B

Another area of need, unless Robby Thompson takes a major step forward.

3B

Bob Bailey looks good here, as did Olmedo Saénz in a brief audition.

SS

George Davis has this for now, but after that it’s not really clear: it’s possible Alfredo Griffin, Ray Chapman, or even Ed Brinkman develop; it’s possible they need to bring some more talent in.

LF

Oscar Gamble should have this for a while.

CF

Some mixture of Ty Cobb and Chili Davis, although each of them may be more suited to a corner OF spot. There is some talent behind them in Jody Gerut and Ron LeFlore.

RF

The Wolverines are banking a lot on Al Kaline‘s performance not being a mirage, although Geoff Jenkins will continue to push for more time as well.

The Rookie Draft

Rounds 1-4

The first round pick is pretty easy: with Joe Torre taken, the C talent is pretty thin, add in the fact that Bill Freehan is a franchise choice, and Detroit has–it hopes–its backstop of the future.

Another franchise pick, Frank Lary, was picked up in the 3rd round.

Rounds 5-8

With all of their exceptions still available, the Wolverines can cherry pick–of mediocre talent, but still. They can use depth across the board: every position, plus arms, so it truly is a “best player available” moment.

It started with another franchise selection, P Billy Hoeft and was followed in the 6th round by C Johnny Romano who is so much better than the other remaining talent behind the plate his selection felt pretty mandatory. They picked up P Logan Hensley in the 7th and OF Bob Fothergill in the 8th.

Rounds 9-12

IF Wander Franco (final exemption); OF Riley Greene; OF Kerry Carpenter; C Derek Norris.

10th round pick Riley Greene refused Detroit’s offer.

TWIWBL 50.7: THE WHIRLED SERIES! Detroit Wolverines v Baltimore Black Sox, Game VII – October 11th

By mknn

On October 19, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, 2000 Whirled Series, Game Recaps, TWIWBL

And it all, as they say, comes down to this …

#Detroit Wolverines v Baltimore Black Sox, Game 7

Detroit will turn to Gene Conley, although they’ll have him on a short leash. Conley is a great story in the season: in mid June, Conley was 7-1 with an ERA just under 4.00, having made 28 relief appearances. At that point, he was moved into the starting rotation, going 5-5, but finishing the year with a 3.28 ERA, which would have placed him 2nd in the league if he had thrown 8 more innings. His postseason starts have been up and down: two starts of 7 scoreless innings, two others where he was hit hard.

Baltimore has a clearer choice: Bill Byrd was 14-3 with a 3.33 ERA in the regular season and 3-1 since the playoffs started, although his most recent outings have been a little rougher.

Hank Greenberg opened the scoring with a solo shot in the top of the second, and Byrd and Conley were excellent throughout. Bryce Harper sent a pitch from Conley deep in the 5th to tie the game. After one out, a walk to Manny Machado and a single by Paul Blair chased Conley. But Johnny Marcum was able to get out of the inning, meaning Detroit was now in the bullpen dance from here on out.

Byrd gave up a hit to Bob Bailey to leadoff the 6th but whiffed Ty Cobb and induced a fielders choice groundout from Greenberg. But another walk, this one to Oscar Gamble, brought in Connie Johnson from the bullpen. Chili Davis lifted a bloop into left that dropped between Machado, Bobby Wallace, and Frank Robinson for the cheapest of hits. It was effective enough: Greenberg scored for a 2-1 lead for the Wolverines.

Robinson may have felt at fault: he launched a pitch from Marcum into the night to start off the Baltimore half of the 6th, tying the game at 2. Detroit’s bullpen struggled immediately: Chad Bradford gave up a double to Harper scoring Blefary, and walked Ken Singleton. He got out of the inning without further damage and Baltimore having reclaimed the lead, 3-2.

Detroit decided the 7th was the inning to go for it: Ed Bailey walked and Bill Carrigan was sent in as a pinch runner with Geoff Jenkins heading to the plate to hit for George Davis. Jenkins whiffed, Carrigan was caught trying to steal second and, after a Tony Phillips single, Bob Bailey grounded out to third for the final out.

Baltimore has refused to use a traditional closer throughout the season, and today they turned to Buddy Groom–the closest they’ve come–in the 8th, maximizing the number of lefties he’ll face. It worked: Groom retired Cobb, Greenberg, and Gamble without incident.

Detroit was far less fortunate in the bottom of the 8th, as Baltimore plated 3 insurance runs on RBI singles from Machado, Wallace, and Gardner. That made it 6-2 Baltimore, with only 3 outs between them and the Whirled Series trophy.

Joe Beggs came on to seal the deal, and seal it he did: the Baltimore Black Sox win the inaugural Whirled Series, taking game seven at home, 6-2. Harper had 3 hits and drove in 2 for Baltimore.

DET 2 (Marcum 0-1) @ BAL 6 (Johnson 3-0; Miller 2 H; Groom 3 H)
HRs: DET – Greenberg (5); BAL – Harper (4), Robinson (5).
Box Score

Larry Gardner took home the MVP trophy–a reasonable choice as the Black Sox’ 2B slashed 400/406/500 with 7 RBI’s. Paul Blair–PAUL freaking BLAIR–who hit 381/458/619 would have been a reasonable choice as well.

TWIWBL 50.4: THE WHIRLED SERIES! Detroit Wolverines v Baltimore Black Sox, Game IV – October 7th

By mknn

On October 16, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, 2000 Whirled Series, Game Recaps, TWIWBL

This is such a critical game: either Detroit takes a commanding 3-1 lead, or Baltimore roars back to setup a best two out of three finish.

#Detroit Wolverines v Baltimore Black Sox, Game IV

Detroit will ask red-hot lefty Hank Aguirre to cement their lead in the series while Baltimore will counter with Connie Johnson. With Ed Bailey struggling a little, Detroit moves Bill Carrigan behind the plate, while Baltimore’s Bryce Harper gets his usual rest facing a lefty with Baby Doll Jacobsen taking his place in rightfield.

Detroit opened the scoring in the bottom of the first when Hank Greenberg doubled home Bob Bailey. But Jacobsen repaid his manager’s faith in him, driving home two with a triple in the top of the second. Jacobsen would trot home on a long fly ball to center by Manny Machado, making it 3-1 Baltimore.

Aguirre struggled, and a two-out hit by Dan McGann in the third chased him from the game with Mickey Lolich being summoned from the bullpen for a potentially long relief outing.

Bob Bailey cut Baltimore’s lead in half in the 3rd with his fifth homerun of the postseason, making it 4-2, and then Carrigan took Johnson deep in the 5th, cutting it to 4-3. Johnson seemed shook, walking the next three batters. That brought in Mike Mussina to face Ty Cobb with the bases loaded and no outs. Mussina answered emphatically, striking out Cobb, getting Greenberg to pop out, and retiring Oscar Gamble on a lazy fly to left.

Baltimore added to their lead in the 7th on consecutive doubles by Bobby Wallace and Larry Gardner and an RBI single from Ken Singleton.

That meant we headed eventually to the bottom of the 9th with the Black Sox ahead, 6-3. With one out, Al Kaline singled and Carrigan followed with a double, bringing the tying run to the plate in the form of pinch-hitter Geoff Jenkins. Jenkins flew out, Tony Phillips grounded out, and that was that: the Whirled Series was now tied at 2 games apiece.

Both Lolich and Mussina were excellent in relief, with each pitching 3 innings without allowing a hit.

BAL 6 (Mussina 1-2; Beggs 2 Sv; Groom 2 H) @ DET 3 (Aguirre 1-2)
HRs: BAL – none; DET – B. Bailey (5); Carrigan (1).
Box Score

TWIWBL 50.1: THE WHIRLED SERIES! Detroit Wolverines v Baltimore Black Sox, Game I – October 3rd

By mknn

On October 10, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, 2000 Whirled Series, Game Recaps, TWIWBL

And away we go!

#Detroit Wolverines v Baltimore Black Sox, Game I

Hal Newhouser, 3-0 with a 1.64 ERA in the postseason, gets the ball for Detroit with Dennis Martínez taking the mound for Baltimore. El Presidente has only 1 post season win, but has pitched well across his 3 starts, as his 2.55 ERA will attest.

Sometimes it feels like Detroit almost has a script for their opening innings: Tony Phillips walks, Bob Bailey bunts him to second, and Ty Cobb singles him home. Which is exactly how they opened the ballgame. A walk to Hank Greenberg and a soft single by Oscar Gamble loaded the bases for the Wolverines, but Baltimore turned a nifty 4-2-3 double play on a hard hit ball from Chili Davis to end the inning.

Phillips led off the 3rd with a single, but this time Bailey’s bunt was poor and Martínez whirled to catch the lead runner at second. Cobb singled and a 2-out error by Larry Gardner loaded the bases with 2 outs, bringing up Chili Davis again with the bases loaded. This time, he hit the ball far more weakly, and far more effectively, beating out an infield single that scored the Wolverines’ second run. Ed Bailey would single home 2, putting Detroit on top, 4-0.

Martínez recovered well, allowing only the single earned run through 5 innings. Meanwhile, Newhouser was absolutely dominant allowing only 1 hit (a Gardner double) and fanning 6 into the 5th. Back-to-back walks to Bryce Harper and Ken Singleton gave Baltimore their first real threat. Manny Machado blooped a single to right to load the bases, and Newhouser walked Paul Blair, putting Baltimore on the board and raising activity in the Wolverines’ bullpen. Newhouser struck out Bobby Wallace and got Gardner to groundout, ending the threat and leaving the score 4-1, Detroit.

Mike Mussina relieved Martínez and got 2 quick outs, but then surrendered 3 consecutive singles to George Davis, Phillips, and Bob Bailey, the last of which scored another run. The 5-1 lead gave Detroit some room to maneuver, and they brought in the struggling Johnny Marcum in relief, who promptly struggled, loading the bases with 1 out, but did not surrender a run.

Detroit added 2 in the top of the 9th, and Baltimore went gently in their half, giving the Wolverines a 1-0 leas in the series.

Cobb had 3 hits for Detroit and Chili Davis and Ed Bailey each drove in 2.

DET 7 (Newhouser 3-0) @ BAL 1 (Martínez 1-1)
HRs: None
Box Score

TWIWBL 50.0: THE WHIRLED SERIES, Preview Edition

By mknn

On October 9, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, 2000 Whirled Series, Series Previews, TWIWBL

We have our matchup for the very first WHIRLED SERIES, the Detroit Wolverines against the Baltimore Black Sox. This was the matchup the numbers wanted from the beginning: Baltimore had the best record in the league during the regular season, finishing with 91 wins and a .591 winning percentage, but Detroit was right behind them with 89 wins and a .578 percentage.

As you would expect, both teams were solid all around, but the general theme is that the Black Sox rode a superior pitching staff while the Wolverines do a little more offensively.

Today we’ll do things a little differently, comparing the teams position by position as we get ready for the fall classic.

#Starting Pitching

The Wolverines starters have been excellent, led by Hal Newhouser. Their rotation has been transformed since opening day, with Gene Conley joining the staff from the bullpen and Charlie Root being obtained via midseason trade. Behind those three, Justin Verlander and lefty Hank Aguirre are most likely to get starts, with the struggling Johnny Marcum being moved to the bullpen.

Some questions have emerged during the postseason for Baltimore’s rotation. During the regular season, the trio of Bill Byrd, Dennis Martínez, and Connie Johnson (a mid-season acquisition) were spectacular, but in the postseason, only Martínez has really lived up to his billing, with Byrd alternating dominant starts with being hit pretty hard. Behind them, there is a bit of a logjam: Mike Mussina is struggling, as is Jim Palmer, so if a 4th starter is needed, look for Johnny Sain to get the opportunity.

Edge: I’ve got to go with Baltimore, with an expectation that their top three bounce back to their level of performance during the regular season. But Newhouser has been the most dominant pitcher left in the postseason, which can always count for something.

#Relief Pitching

This gets interesting. Baltimore’s bullpen has suffered injuries all year, and has just kept rolling along. Ned Garvin was here before spending a few weeks as the best starter in the league, before getting injured. Don Bessent and Bob Miller were co-closers for a time, before getting injured. Sean Marshall was among the most dominant bullpen arms in the league, before getting injured. Sense a theme?

Now, midseason acquisition Joe Beggs and Buddy Groom form the back end. Groom has been especially dominant, with a 1.96 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP over 51 games. John Wetteland has been excellent since being recalled from the minors, and Bessent and Miller join him in handling the middle innnings.

For the Wolverines, the bullpen has been a bit of an oddity. Mike Henneman ended the season tied for the season league in saves, but he certainly had his struggles, exemplified by his 4.60 ERA and 6 blown saves. John Hiller and Buddy Napier were excellent getting the ball to Henneman, but Hiller is out injured, meaning Detroit will be leaning heavily on Matt Anderson and Chad Bradford, both of whom were solid in the regular season. Either Aguirre or Mickey Lolich may be called on for key outs against lefties in Hiller’s absence. Finally, there is Verlander, who was on the verge of moving into the rotation all season, but never quite made it. He is the most reliable option in the early or middle innings, if needed.

Edge: Solidly in favor of Baltimore. That said, Verlander, Henneman, Napier, and Anderson have combined to allow 3 runs in 17 innings this postseason, so the gap may be narrower than it appears from the regular season performances.

#C

In the regular season, Detroit split its duties behind the plate between Bill Carrigan, Ed Bailey, and Ernie Lombardi with Carrigan and Bailey in a rough platoon until Lombardi came over from Indianapolis. Bailey is one of the hottest hitters around these days, so look for him to get most of the starts, but Carrigan was the best of them in the regular season, slashing 316/369/477.

Curt Blefary had a spectacular year for Baltimore, with a 280/392/549 slash line and 29 homeruns. He has struggled mightily in the postseason, but showed signs of coming out of it against Portland.

Edge: Even with Detroit’s far greater depth, you have to give the edge here to Baltimore and Blefary.

#1B

Baltimore’s Dan McGann may be 37, but sure plays like he has a lot left in the tank, racking up a 282/388/445 slash line for the Black Sox.

It’s all about Hank Greenberg for Detroit, one of the Wolverines’ two elite players. Greenberg finished the regular season at 317/374/595 with 31 homeruns and 113 RBI’s.

Edge: McGann had a great year. Greenberg is in the second tier of the MVP conversation. Edge, Detroit.

#2B

Detroit is thrilled to have their 38 year old sparkplug, Tony Phillips, back from injury. Phillips is a nuisance at the top of the batting order, with an OBP just shy of .400. He is not very good defensively, as Sparky Adams will often replace him late in the game, earning him the nickname The Old Man’s Glove.

Larry Gardner‘s 318/393/471 slash line is fantastic for anywhere, let alone a middle infielder. Gardner looks like he is fully recovered from a chest contusion suffered in the first round of the playoffs.

Edge: Baltimore.

#SS

Bobby Wallace is one of the better offensive shortstops in the WBL, slashing 302/396/418, drawing lots of walks and hitting 40 doubles in the regular season. He’s not bad defensively.

Detroit’s George Davis is a whiz defensively, and his .662 OPS, while well under league average, isn’t awful for a middle infielder.

Edge: Baltimore, although Davis’ defense does close the gap a bit.

#3B

When Bob Bailey was injured, Olmedo Sáenz filled in admirably, earning a spot on the playoff roster over Jimmy Collins, by far the better fielder. But he was no replacement for Bailey, who slashed 277/364/462 in the regular season. Sáenz remains a threat off the bench.

Manny Machado hit better for Baltimore than he did for Miami at the start of the year, but is still seen as a bit of a disappointment overall, with a .729 OPS for the year. Brooks Robinson hasn’t shown anything offensively, but is a whiz defensively, providing essentially the same role at 3B as Adams does for Detroit at 2B, but without the cool nickname.

Edge: Detroit

#LF

Frank Robinson is the most feared hitter on the Black Sox, with 37 homeruns, 111 RBIs, and a 302/383/539 slash line. Truly elite.

For Detroit, this is usually the provenance of Oscar Gamble, whose 28 homeruns were second on the team. Gamble was the emotional heart of the Wolverines, and should stay out there despite some late season struggles. Gamble is the best fielder of the group here.

Edge: I love Gamble, too, but the edge here goes clearly to Baltimore.

#CF

Detroit’s Chili Davis is fairly significantly under appreciated, both in Detroit and across the WBL. But Davis is a solid performer out there, slashing 273/328/443 while playing solid defense. The Wolverines are a bit thin here, with Cobb the presumed backup should Davis go down.

Paul Blair could barely make contact for the first third of the season. The fact that he got his OPS to .700 is a strong accomplishment, and, combined with his elite level defense, makes Blair a solid contributor for Baltimore. Baby Doll Jacobsen, who has a fair bit of pop, is the usual reserve here, although Harper can slide over as well.

Edge: Detroit

#RF

The Black Sox stuck with Bryce Harper through his early season struggles, and it paid off as the nineteen year old settled into the league. He has a great eye, a bit of power, and ended up slashing 259/360/403 on the year.

The other legitimate elite player for the Wolverines is the batting champion, Ty Cobb, whose 352/391/557 slash line and 52 SB’s combine to form a truly fantastic offensive player.

Edge: Detroit.

#DH

Al Klaine has 34 games under his belt at the WBL, and has slashed 301/374/573 in that span. That performance has generally left Detroit without a spot for Geoff Jenkins, who was the usual DH, especially against right-handers.

As both Harper and Jacobson established themselves throughout the season, DH duties for Baltimore fell more and more often to Ken Singleton, who was … fine. Singleton was almost the picture of a useful hitter, slashing 266/352/407 with 17 homeruns and 88 RBIs. Nothing to complain about, but nothing to love, either. He’s been excellent so far in the postseason.

Edge: Toss up, although if Kaline maintains his level of performance, slides to Detroit.

#Overall

Quantitatively, 6-4 in favor of Baltimore, with one tie. So, very close.

I have to go with Baltimore: they are so good at getting on base, and their pitching is just better. But Detroit really has no weak spots offensively (maybe SS with Davis), and if they can get enough from their pitching staff, they certainly have a shot.

Prediction: Black Sox in 6.

TWIWBL 49.3: The Playoffs! Division Round, Day III– September 26

By mknn

On September 28, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Game Recaps, TWIWBL

Both series are tied at 1, giving us a best of five situation in each of them.

#Detroit Wolverines v New York Gothams

Charlie Root will get the ball for Detroit; he’ll be opposed by Don Sutton, making his first start of the postseason for the Gothams. Al Kaline will get a start at DH for the Wolverines, with Oscar Gamble starting the game on the bench.

The top of Detroit’s lineup has been key for them. Here, Tony Phillips led off the game with an infield hit and Bob Bailey followed with a long drive into the right field seats for an early 2-0 Wolverines lead. Sutton gave up two more hits and a wild pitch, but no more runs.

The Gothams loaded the bases in the bottom of the first, and Benny Kauff got one run back with a single, but Root got a double play ball from Carl Furillo to end the inning with the score 2-1. Root again loaded the bases in the bottom of the second, and this time Buster Posey drove in 2 with a single, putting the Gothams up, 3-2.

Hank Greenberg sent an offering from Sutton into the seats in the 3rd, resetting the game in a 3-3 tie, and then RBI singles from Bob Bailey and Ty Cobb drove in 3 more runs and chased Sutton from the mound. Detroit poured it on, keyed by a triple from Ed Bailey, and built an 8-run lead.

That made Posey’s grand slam in the 9th a moot point, although perhaps New York putting up a fight means something for the Gothams’ fan base.

Bob Bailey had 3 hits and 5 RBI, and Chili Davis, George Davis, and Kaline each added 3 hits for Detroit. Posey had a good day, with 3 hits and 6 RBIs in the losing cause.

DET 12 (Root 2-0) @ NYG 8 (Sutton 0-1)
HRs: DET – B. Bailey (3), Greenberg (3), C. Davis (3); NYG – Posey (1).
Box Score

#Baltimore Black Sox v Portland Sea Dogs, Game 3

With the series reduced to a best-of-five, we have the matchup everyone wanted: Baltimore’s Bill Byrd against Portland’s Walter Johnson. Both hurlers are 2-0 in the postseason.

Although perhaps not 100%, Larry Gardner returns to Baltimore’s starting lineup after missing a few postseason came through a chest injury.

Byrd struggled mightily: 5 hits and an error in the bottom of the first led to a 6-0 lead for Portland, with Jim Fregosi blasting a 3-run homerun. Johnson struggled in the top of the first, walking two, but the lead seemed to energize him, and he struck out the side in the second.

Byrd settled down, keeping Portland scoreless into the fifth when he tired, but Johnny Sain got the final out of the inning in relief, preserving the score. Fregosi’s 4th hit of the night was a double in the bottom of the 8th, and he scored when Gil Hodges followed with a two-bagger of his own, making it 7-0.

The challenge for Baltimore was finding some traction against the Big Train, who had allowed 3 hits and whiffed 5 through five shutout innings. Gardner picked up the Black Sox’s 4th hit in the 8th, but that was it as Johnson picked up his second shutout of the postseason and the Sea Dogs took a 2-1 lead.

Gardner had 2 hits in his return and Fregosi drove in 3 to go with his 4 hits. Johnson ended the day with 7 strikeouts, giving up only 4 hits and 2 walks in another dominant performance for the Sea Dogs.

BAL 0 (Byrd 2-1) @ POR 7 (Johnson 3-0)
HRs: BAL – none; POR – Fregosi (2).
Box Score

TWIWBL 49.2: The Playoffs! Division Round, Day II– September 24

By mknn

On September 26, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Featured Games, TWIWBL

#New York Gothams v Detroit Wolverines

Detroit leads, 1-0.

New York will have to solve the mystery of Gene Conley to get their offense back on track, something few teams have been able to do, especially of late. Gaylord Perry will get the start for the Gothams, at least on paper a much less daunting hurler for the Wolverines to attack.

Oscar Gamble was almost benched in favor of Al Kaline; instead, he delivered a 2-out hit in the bottom of the first, scoring the game’s first run for Detroit. Ed Bailey doubled their lead in the 2nd with a solo shot, his 2nd of the post-season.

The Gothams ended Conley’s scoreless streak with a run in the 3rd, but have to wonder if they shouldn’t have gotten more: Pete Runnels delivered a 2-out hit to right, but Ty Cobb threw out Pinky Higgins at the plate to end the inning, leaving the score 2-1, Detroit. But the Gothams were onto something: Buster Posey singled and Willie Mays followed with a double to start hte 4th, then Benny Kauff touched Conley for a 2-run single, giving New York their first lead of the series. Kauff would score on a triple from George Van Haltren, who would come home on a sacrifice fly. When the dust settled, the Gothams had seized the lead, 5-2.

Conley was chased in the top of the 5th, giving up a single to Runnels, a walk to Posey, and a single to Mays. Justin Verlander got out of the inning with only a run scoring on a sacrifice fly.

Geoff Jenkins–the other player Kaline almost replaced–went deep in the 5th, cutting the lead to 6-3.

Perry didn’t allow another baserunner until the 8th, when he was relieved by Mike Norris, who did Mike Norris things: a groundball double play to end the inning. An error by Runnels made it interesting in the 9th, but Brian Wilson pitched through it, and we had a series tied at 1!

Runnels had 3 hits on the day, outweighing the error for sure. But the star for New York was Perry, who settled down and ended up with 9 strikeouts in just over 7 innings of work.

NYG 6 (Perry 1-0; Wilson 3 Sv; Norris 1 H) @ DET 3 (Conley 1-1)
HRs: NYG – none; DET – E. Bailey (2), Jenkins (1).
Box Score

#Portland Sea Dogs v Baltimore Black Sox

After eking out a victory in game one, Portland will turn to Pascual Pérez in game two. With Walter Johnson looming in game three, this one is important for Baltimore to take, and they’ll turn to Connie Johnson, dominant in his initial playoff start.

Frank Robinson put Baltimore in front in the bottom of the first with his second bomb of the postseason. Portland loaded the bases in the top of the 2nd, and Johnson walked Gil Hodges to tie it up. The struggling Harry Hooper laced a single scoring 2, and the Sea Dogs took a 3-1 lead. Hooper added a kill in the bottom of the inning, throwing out Bryce Harper as he tried to score.

Brian Roberts–given the start as Larry Gardner continues to recover–singled to lead off the 3rd for Baltimore, stole second, and moved to third on soft single from Bobby Wallace. Pérez plunked Dan McGann to load the bases, and get the Sea Dogs’ bullpen up. It was too late: Pérez gave up a grand slam to Robinson for his second dinger of the day, and a 5-3 Black Sox lead. Curt Blefary was nicked by a fastball that tailed too far inside and Harper singled, and that was all for Pérez, with Wade Miller coming in from the pen. Miller allowed a sacrifice fly, but that was it: after 3, the Black Sox were up, 6-3.

There were a bunch of runs, including homeruns by Wallace, Harper, and Rogers Hornsby, but after a solo shot from Gil Hodges to lead off Portland’s 9th, we were back at the same point: Baltimore up by 3, this time 10-7.

The Sea Dogs got closer for the first time: Hooper launched a pitch from Buddy Groom into the seats for his 4th hit of the game, making it 10-8. But that was it, and the series was tied at 1 game each.

Bobby Murcer finished with 3 hits for Portland; Harper did the same for Baltimore in a game that saw 8 homeruns (5 by the Black Sox).

The Sea Dogs’ bullpen was a bit stretched in this one–we’ll see how that plays out in game three and beyond. On the other side, this was by far the best showing by Jim Palmer, a key piece of Baltimore’s pen.

POR 8 (Pérez 0-2) @ BAL 10 (Johnson 2-0; Groom 4 Sv; Palmer 1 H)
HRs: POR – Hornsby (1), Hooper (1), Hodges (4); BAL – Robinson 2 (3), Wallace (1), Harper (2), McGann (3).
Box Score

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

By mknn

On September 18, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Featured Games, TWIWBL

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

#Portland Sea Dogs @ Chicago American Giants, Game 3

Portland leads, 2-0.

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

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

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

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

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

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

#Detroit Wolverines @ Birmingham Black Barons, Game 3

Detroit leads, 2-0.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

#Cleveland Spiders v New York Gothams, Game 3

New York leads 2-0.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Baltimore leads 2-0.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

By mknn

On September 14, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Featured Games, TWIWBL

#Birmingham Black Barons v Detroit Wolverines, Game II

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

#Chicago American Giants v Portland Sea Dogs, Game 2

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

#New York Gothams v Cleveland Spiders, Game 2

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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