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Series XXIX Best Games

On March 29, 2023

Detroit‘s trip to Brooklyn and Kansas City‘s visit to Indianapolis each provided 3 games worth recapping.

We’ll take a look at the Wolverines matchup with the Royal Giants first.

#Detroit Wolverines @ Brooklyn Royal Giants

Detroit’s Charlie Root and Brooklyn’s Frank Knauss hooked up in a pitcher’s duel. Ty Cobb‘s 17th homerun of the year–a 3 run shot–gave the Wolverines a 3-1 lead in the top of the 8th, but John Briggs sent one over the fence to tie it in the bottom of the frame. Bill Carrigan doubled in Hank Greenberg in the top of the 10th, and Detroit turned to the league leader in saves, Mike Henneman, to close it out. Ron Cey greeted Henneman with a double, but was thrown out, inexplicably trying to stretch the hit into a triple. That ended the threat, and Henneman ended the game.

DET 4 (Hiller 3-1, 2 B Sv; Henneman 31 Sv) @ BRK 3 (Von Ohlen 5-2) [10 Innings]
HRs: DET – Cobb (17); BRK – Becker (18), Briggs (4).
Box Score

Detroit won game 2, taking the lead on a 3-run homer from Oscar Gamble in the top of the first and never looking back. That put the Wolverines up 2-0 in the series, setting the stage for game 3.

Gene Conley continues to be a rare find for Detroit, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) and 3 hits in 7 innings. But the usually reliable Wolverines bullpen wasn’t able to hold a lead, giving up 4 runs in the final 3 innings with Duke Farrell doubling in the winning run in the bottom of the 9th.

John Hiller blew his second save of the series, falling to 3-2 on the season, with the victory going to Trevor Hildenberger who pitched a scoreless final 2 innings.

DET 3 (Hiller 3-2; 3 B Sv) @ BRK 4 (Hildenberger 4-1)
HRs: DET – Greenberg (22); BRK – Briggs (5).
Box Score

Whoops he did it again … Just like in Series XXV, Beals Becker ended a game with a walk-off grandslam. Again it was the Detroit bullpen that collapsed, this time–shockingly–it was Mike Henneman who gave up a walk and 3 hits (including Becker’s blast) to the 4 batters he faced.

Tony Phillips–who has sparkled since his return from injury–had 4 hits for Detroit, and Frank Isbell went 3-for-3 for Brooklyn.

DET 5 (Henneman 1-5, 4 B Sv; Lolich 3 H; Anderson 6 H) @ BRK 7 (Dreifort 1-3)
HRs: DET – Bailey (17), Kaline (2), Phillips (7); BRK – Farrell (6), Snider (27), Becker (21).
Box Score

#Kansas City Monarchs @ Indianapolis ABC’s

Indianapolis won all four games against Kansas City. A bases-clearing double by Joe Morgan was the key hit in game 1. The other 3 games were all close contests.

In the 2nd game, Kansas City out hit the ABC’s 17-7, but 4 RBIs (3 on his 25th homerun of the year) by Johnny Bench keyed an 8-6 Indianapolis victory. Ted Simmons had 4 hits for the Monarchs and Ducky Medwick 3, but Kansas City left 11 runners on base.

KCM 6 (Blong 3-2, 1 B Sv) @ IND 8 (Murphy 2-4; Dibble 24 Sv; Carroll 8 H)
HRs: KCM – Pujols (18), Medwick (12); IND – Votto (5), Bench (25).
Box Score

Game 3 saw Kansas City’s Trevor Rosenthal and Frank DiPino implode as the ABC’s scored 6 runs in the 7th, coming back from a 7-2 deficit. The ABC’s Dolf Luque logged only 2 innings, but Johnny Cueto had his best appearance in a while, allowing a single run in 5 strong innings of relief work.

KCM 7 (DiPino 1-5) @ IND 8 (Cueto 8-6; Carroll 2 Sv; James 5 H)
HRs: KCM – Medwick (13); IND – none.
Box Score

It took 12 innings for Indianapolis to secure the sweep in a see-saw game. The ABC’s were wasteful throughout, leaving 19–nineteen–runners on base in the contest. Joey Votto and Jake Stenzel had 4 hits each, with Votto driving in 3. Kansas City’s Boog Powell tied the game in the top of the 9th with his 14th homerun of the season.

Both bullpens were exhausted, so an unexpectedly strong performance from Octavio Dotel was desperately needed by Indianapolis.

KCM 8 (Rosenthal 5-2; Kimbrel 4 B Sv; Russell 1 B Sv) – IND 9 (Dotel 1-1; James 6 H; Murphy 2 B Sv) [12 Innings]
HRs: KCM – Powell (14); IND – Stenzel (8).
Box Score

Series XXVIII Featured Series: Cleveland Spiders @ Kansas City Monarchs

By mknn

On March 10, 2023

In Featured Games, Featured Series

Series preview here.

#Game 1: Pat Malone @ Bob Gibson

Early on, it didn’t look good for either Cleveland’s Pat Malone‘s attempt at his 12th win of the year or for Kansas City’s Bob Gibson looking to establish himself in the Monarchs’ rotation.

Louis Santop tripled in Jake Stahl and scored on a groundout from Chuck Knoblauch to give the Spiders a lead in the top of the 2nd, but the game would be tight for a while as Lou Brock doubled in Robinson Canó and scored on a sacrifice fly from Frankie Frisch to tie it up.

Cleveland would retake the lead with a leadoff double from Johnny Bates and an RBI single from John Ellis, but again Kansas City would respond as an error in RF by Ron Blomberg allowed Boog Powell to score, and an RBI single from Canó gave the Monarchs their first lead, at 4-3.

Gibson would be chased in the 5th, surrendering 3 doubles and a walk to the first four batters, with Ellis driving in 1 and Stahl 2. Trevor Rosenthal came in and promptly gave away the store: 4 walks and an HBP and by the end of the inning, the Spiders were ahead, 9-4.

Malone had settled down at this point, and with the Monarchs’ getting a nice effort from Rube Marquard, the game stayed the same until the top of the 9th, when Marquard’s stuff ran out with Sammy Strang driving in 2 and Kenny Lofton 1. That made it 12-4, which was the final tally.

Malone is now tied for the league lead in victories. Ted Simmons had 3 hits for the Monarchs in a losing cause.

CLE 12 (Malone 12-5) @ KCM 4 (Gibson 0-2)
HRs: none.
Box Score

#Game 2: Bill Steen @ Luke Hamlin

A wild pitch by Cleveland’s Bill Steen allowed Ted Simmons (who had tripled) to score in the bottom of the 2nd. Steen walked 3 in the inning, but got Boog Powell to ground out, limiting the Monarchs to a single run.

Steen continued to struggle with his control, but made it through 5 innings only surrendering the 1 run.

You never know which Luke Hamlin will show up for Kansas City. This was the good one, as he spun a 2-hit shutout through 5 innings. The Monarchs do know which Louis Santop shows up, though, as the 19 year old continues to make a name for himself. Here, in the bottom of the 6th, his snap throw to first picked off Ozzie Smith, who had walked.

John Ellis led off the 7th with a double, and moved to 3rd on a single from Lance Berkman, chasing Hamlin from the mound. Santop tied the game with a sacrifice fly, but Frank DiPino was able to get out of the inning without further damage.

Cleveland fans love to disparage Sammy Strang, but the 3B has had a decent year, especially in terms of getting on base. Power has been an issue, but here he led off the 8th with his 2nd homerun of the year, putting the Spiders up, 2-1. The lead was short-lived, as consecutive pinch-hits by Steve Evans and Jack Rowe tied it up in the bottom of the 8th. Ron Reed, who was shaky all inning, got Stan Musial to fly out with 2 on, leaving the game tied heading into the 9th.

And it stayed that way, sending us to extra innings.

In the top of the 11th, Berkman chipped a one-out single into RF, and was replaced by Bill Dahlen. Dahlen moved to second on the 2nd out of the inning and scored on a single by Chuck Knoblauch.

The Monarchs tried to duplicate the pattern: Musial opened the inning with a hit, and was replaced by the pinch-running Frankie Frisch. Terry Adams walked Albert Pujols, prompting Cleveland to go to their bullpen for Bob Feller. Feller could not do it: Ducky Medwick, who had 3 hits on the day, drove home a run with a single, and Willie McGee won the game with a sacrifice fly to deep LF.

CLE 3 (Adams 2-6; Feller 1 B Sv) @ KCM 4 (Pfeffer 5-2; DiPino 2 B Sv) [11 Innings]
HRs: CLE – Strang (2); KCM – none.
Box Score

#Game 3: Stan Coveleski @ Adam Wainwright

Adam Wainwright has been struggling of late, and it continued, although he escaped damage until the 3rd, when Ron Blomberg singled in a run. John Ellis drove in a 2nd with a sacrifice fly giving the Spiders an early 2-0 lead. Wainwright settled down until Blomberg took him deep in the top of the 6th, increasing Cleveland’s lead to 3-0 and forcing Kansas City to bring in Joe Blong from the pen.

That didn’t work so well: Blong gave up a walk and 5 consecutive hits, pushing the lead to 6-0 and bringing in Adam Russell in relief, who gave up a sacrifice fly before bringing the inning to a close.

Stan Coveleski, on the other hand, went to the bottom of the 6th with the 7-0 lead nursing a 4-hit shutout. The shutout lasted into the 7th, when Lou Brock took Coveleski deep.

Each team added a run, but the outcome was never really in doubt. Blomberg ended with 4 hits for Cleveland while Willie McGee and Brock had 3 hits each for Kansas City in the losing cause.

CLE 8 (Coveleski 11-2) @ KCM 4 (Wainwright 1-5)
HRs: CLE – Blomberg (32); KCM – Brock (9).
Box Score

#Game 4: Cy Young @ Frank Castillo

Neither Cy Young nor Frank Castillo were very good, with each team scoring in the first frame. Cleveland used doubles from Ron Blomberg and Kenny Lofton and Kansas City RBI singles from Stan Musial and Robinson Canó, and we came out of the first inning with the Spiders leading, 3-2.

But, despite allowing a lot of traffic, only one more run crossed the plate until a 3-run shot by Lance Berkman made it 7-2 in favor of Cleveland in the top of the 7th.

Kansas City made it close with a 2 run single from Albert Pujols and a 2 run jack from Ducky Medwick making it a 1-run game at 7-6, but the Spiders’ Terry Adams pitched a perfect 9th for his 25th save giving Cleveland the 3-1 edge in the series.

CLE 7 (Young 9-7; Adams 25 Sv; Porter 11 H) @ KCM 6 (Castillo 6-9)
HRs: CLE – Berkman (8); KCM – Medwick (11).
Box Score

TWIWBL Special Edition: All Star Preview – AL Relievers

By mknn

On July 17, 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. The AL comprises the Bill James & Cum Posey Divisions}

There are, of course, a lot of candidates in relief. Many of these will fall off the radar, as a single bad outing (or injury) is likely to take them out of all-star contention.

Tom Henke of the Ottawa Mounties has 10 saves, with a 3.29 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP, easily the AL leading closer at this point.

Detroit‘s Mike Henneman (0-2, 2.89 ERA) and Kansas City‘s Jeff Pfeffer (4-1, 3.05 ERA) have 7 saves each (as does the House of David‘s Tom Niedenfuer, who was arguably having a better year before injuring his shoulder) and either could sneak in, with Pfeffer’s record perhaps giving him an edge. Memphis‘ Joe Beggs has only 4 saves, but he has yet to give up a run: clearly if that continues, he deserves serious consideration.

Baltimore‘s Don Bessent (0-1, 6 saves, 1.42 ERA) is the only other closer with decent usage with a WHIP below 1, at 0.87 (Baltimore has actually split closing opportunities between Bessent and Bob Miller, but Bessent has had more saves and save opportunities–Miller sits at 1-0 with 3 saves and 2 holds and a 3.29 ERA, but a similar 0.95 WHIP).

In addition to Beggs, the Memphis bullpen offers Jonathan Papelbon, who has a 1.35 ERA and a sparkling WHIP of 0.80 to go along with an 0-1 record, 3 saves, and 2 holds. Setting up Henke, Ottawa’s Gary Lavelle is 2-1 with 1 save and 2 holds and a 1.96 ERA and teammate Ted Bowsfield is 2-0 with a 2.14 ERA.

Kansas City may have the best quartet of relievers in the league, with–in addition to Pfeffer as the closer–Craig Kimbrel, who has been virtually unhittable, at 1-1 with a 2.37 ERA and a WHIP of 1.00 and Adam Wainwright and Frank DiPino. Wainwright has only an 0-1 record, but a 1.80 ERA and 0.96 WHIP and DiPino is 0-2 with 1 save and 2 holds along with a 1.74 ERA.

The House of David’s Bob Rush may be the closest competition Wainwright has as a high inning reliever. Rush is 3-1 with a 1.66 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP. Some would argue that Baltimore’s Ned Garvin belongs here as well–Garvin has made 2 starts and 8 relief appearances, accumulating a 3-1 record with 2 holds and a 2.62 ERA with a 0.96 WHIP.

Chuck Finley‘s role for Los Angeles has been in flux all year, but he’s been excellent no matter how he’s been used, at 2-0 with 4 holds and a 2.96 ERA to go along with a 1.11 WHIP.

The AI’s choices are somewhat inexplicable: Finley, Baltimore’s Buddy Groom (0-0, 1 save, 4 holds, 2.42 ERA), Lavelle, and the Gothams‘ Mike Norris (1-1, 1 hold, 2.25 ERA). I mean, I love me some Mike Norris, but …

I would project five relievers as Henke, Papelbon, Finley, Kimbrel, and Wainwright. But it’s very unpredictable this early in the game.

Series X Featured Matchup: Indianapolis ABC’s @ Kansas City Monarchs

By mknn

On July 15, 2021

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

Series preview here.

This was a very close series, with each game decided by a single run.

Game One: Johnny Cueto @ Luke Hamlin

A matchup of similar hurlers, each of which have turned in some strong starts and each of which have turned in some duds. Johnny Cueto comes in at 4-2 with a 4.60 ERA and Luke Hamlin 2-3 and 4.24.

A 2-run homerun by Stan Musial put the Monarchs up in the bottom of the first, but in the top of the 4th, Oscar Charleston both extended his hitting streak to fourteen games and cut the lead in half with a shot into the left field seats. Johnny Bench and Hal Morris followed with consecutive singles, and the game was tied when Edd Roush lined a pitch into centerfield, scoring Bench. Roush was thrown out trying to stretch the hit into a double, and a strikeout of Chase Headley got Hamlin out of the inning.

Cueto would give up one more run in the bottom of the sixth: Rogers Hornsby singled, moved to second on a passed ball, tagged up to take third on a fly to deep CF by Ducky Medwick, and scored on a single by Ted Simmons. The bottom of the seventh was more traditional: an infield single by Ozzie Smith and a smash into the left field stands by Boog Powell put Kansas City up 5-2 and chased Cueto from the mound, to be relieved by Lefty James.

Indianapolis scored once in the 8th on a triple by Joe Morgan (in his first game back from the DL) and a sac fly from Charleston, closing the score to 5-3.

That only served to setup the top of the 9th. Frank DiPino came in for Kansas City, and gave up a double to Roush. He was relieved by Craig Kimbrel, who induced a groundout from Ernie Lombardi before giving way to the Monarchs’ closer, Jeff Pfeffer. Pfeffer walked Bob Bescher, but got a flyout from Danny Hoffman for the second out, bring up Morgan once again.

Little Joe came through with a single, scoring Roush, and Charleston doubled down the right field line, scoring 2 and putting the ABC’s on top, 6-5.

It was enough as Doc White pitched a perfect 9th for his first save.

Morgan had 3 hits and Charleston 4 RBIs for Indianapolis; Hornsby, Simmons, and Lou Brock had 2 hits each for Kansas City.

IND 6 (James 2-0; White 1 Sv) @ KAN 5 (Pfeffer 3-1, 2 BS; Wainwright 1 H; Kimbrel 7 H)
HRs: IND – Charleston (2); KAN – Powell (5), Musial (6)
Box Score

Game 2: David Price @ Jose Rijo

Jose Rijo has struggled this year, with an ERA approaching 7 while David Price–despite only two decisions on the year–is dragging his down towards a sub-4.00 level.

Once more the Monarchs took the early lead: a double from Stan Musial and an RBI single from Albert Pujols made it 1-0 Kansas City after 1 inning. The ABC’s tied it up in the top of the second, but then both pitchers settled down, until, with 2 outs in the bottom of the fifth, Lou Brock and Ozzie Smith delivered back-to-back doubles against Price, putting Kansas City ahead, 2-1.

Rijo got out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the 6th by striking out Ed Charles for the final out. That was it for the Kansas City hurler–6 innings, 5 hits, 1 run was a very good day for him, and the somewhat shaky Connie Johnson took over in the top of the 7th.

The score remained 2-1, and again the Monarchs turned to Jeff Pfeffer in the 9th. The big right-hander walked Edd Roush, got two batters to fly out to Willie McGee in center, and then walked Danny Hoffman. So, two on and two out, and once again Joe Morgan at the plate in a key situation. This time, a lazy fly ball to left ended the game, evening the series at one with the Kansas City victory.

Both starters were excellent: Price gave up 7 hits and 2 runs in 7 innings, but still took the loss.

Johnny Bench and Hal Morris had 2 hits each for Indianapolis and Oscar Charleston was hitless, ending his streak at 14 games. McGee and Musial had 2 hits apiece for Kansas City.

IND 1 (Price 1-2) @ KAN 2 (Rijo 3-2; Johnson 1 H; Pfeffer 6 Sv)
HRs: none
Box Score

Game 3: Rube Foster @ Andy Petite

An interesting game where Indianapolis took the lead without a hit (Bob Bescher walked, stole second, and scored on an error Kansas City’s Gene Freese at 3B). They doubled the lead when a Joe Morgan double scored a laboring Ernie Lombardi all the way from first in the top of the 4th.

But the Monarchs answered immediately, with a leadoff homerun from Albert Pujols and then, after two quick outs, five consecutive hits: a double from Freese and singles from Fielder Jones, Lou Brock, Ozzie Smith, and Ted Simmons. Those hits scored 2, with the inning ending when Bescher gunned down Brock at the plate. The Monarchs were now ahead, 3-2.

Rube Foster gave up 10 hits in 6 innings, but only 3 runs while Andy Petite was spectacular, allowing 4 hits and only 2 earned runs in just over 7 innings.

Careful readers would know, then, that Indianapolis would score again: after Dave Henderson walked with 2 outs in the top of the 7th, Johnny Bench was sent to the plate to pinch-hit for Davey Concepcion. Bench sliced a triple down the right-field line, scoring Henderson and tying the game at 3.

It stayed that way to the bottom of the 9th, when Kansas City scored a run in what has become a bit of a trademark style: Brock reached on a walk (OK, that’s not so common), stole second, moved to third on a soft single to CF by Smith, and scored on a fly ball to right by Simmons, ending the game.

Willie Mitchell pitched well, but took the loss, with Craig Kimbrel earning the victory with 1.2 innings of hitless relief.

IND 3 (Mitchell 1-1) @ KAN 4 (Kimbrel 1-1)
HRs: KAN – Pujols (6)
Box Score

Game 4: Red Faber @ Frank Castillo

Attempting to gain a series split, Indianapolis jumped on Frank Castillo quickly, with consecutive doubles by Oscar Charleston and Johnny Bench and a single from Joe Morgan leading to an early 3-0 lead. After a Boog Powell RBI put Kansas City on the board, the ABC’s used an unexpected source to re-establish their 3-run lead when light-hitting Chase Headley doubled home Jake Stenzel.

Red Faber sailed along until the fifth, when another RBI from Powell–this one a double that scored Ozzie Smith–opened the floodgates. Albert Pujols singled home Powell, and then Rogers Hornsby hit a long homerun to right-center, putting the Monarchs in front, 5-4. That meant that, despite a subpar performance, Castillo turned the game over to Trevor Rosenthal with the lead and a chance for a victory.

Rosenthal allowed a run on a wild pitch, tying the game at 5, and putting the match in the hands of the two bullpens. Kansas City would strike first, with a 2-run homerun from Willie McGee putting them up, 7-5. But Rosenthal would be unable to hold it, allowing consecutive doubles to Bob Bescher and Hal Morris before giving way to Adam Wainwright. Wainwright would allow one more run on a sacrifice fly, so once again we were tied, this time 7-7.

Once again the ABC’s found success from an unlikely source, as Dennis Menke–called on to pinch hit for Bescher–delivered a single to center to score the go-ahead run. The ABC’s Rob Murphy, who has struggled most of the year, retired Kansas City in order in the bottom of the 8th. That setup Indianapolis’ closer, Rob Dibble, to face the heart of Kansas City’s lineup in the bottom of the 9th.

Stan Musial walked, and was replaced at first by pinch-runner Fielder Jones. Pujols whiffed, but Hornsby lifted a ball to shallow center. It fell for a single, putting runners on 1st and 2nd with one out. Dibble induced a groundball to second base by Lou Brock, but Headley–called into emergency service at shortstop–couldn’t handle the throw, loading the bases for Ducky Medwick, hitting .359 since being recalled from AAA a few weeks back.

Medwick lifted it deep enough into the OF for Jones to score easily, tying the game. Dibble struck out Salvador Perez, sending us into extra innings.

It was the bottom of the 11th, and Medwick once again: he delivered a single, scoring Jones to win the game–and the series–for Kansas City. Hornsby had 3 hits for the Monarchs.

The win went to Jeff Pfeffer, who moved to 4-1 on the year, with Lefty James suffering the loss.

IND 8 (James 2-1; Murphy 3 H; Dibble 1 BS) @ KAN 9 (Pfeffer 4-1; Rosenthal 4 BS; Wainwright 1 BS)
HRs: KAN – McGee (3), Hornsby (4)
Box Score

Series Notes

Joe Morgan returned from the DL in strong form, going 5-for-18 and Hal Morris went 6-for-17. But the offensive leader for Indianapolis was Johnny Bench, who had 6 hits in 13 at-bats.

Ted Simmons led the way for the Monarchs, with 6 hits in 11 at-bats. Ozzie Smith went 6-for-17 and Rogers Hornsby 5-for-14. Jeff Pfeffer was involved in the decision in all four games, going 2-0 with 1 save and 1 blown save.

Series X Preview: Indianapolis ABC’s @ Kansas City Monarchs

By mknn

On July 12, 2021

In Featured Series, Series Previews

This is our first featured series with Indianapolis. Kansas City was featured in Series VIII, where they split 4 games with Los Angeles.

The ABC’s come into the game with a record of 17-20, putting them 7.5 games behind the Black Yankees in the Effa Manley division while Kansas City is at .500, 19-19, 4 games back of Chicago in the Cum Posey division.

Both teams have decent potential to be better than their records, predictably given that, there are a few strong perofrmances, but the teams need more players to step forward.

For the ABC’s, the best of them has been C Johnny Bench, who is hitting at a 281/383/596 clip while adding great defense behind the plate. Nineteen year old Oscar Charleston looks like the real deal as well, slashing 337/360/494 with speed and defense in the outfield. Indianapolis is looking to the return of Joe Morgan from the DL and the institution of Edd Roush into the lineup on the regular to fire up the offense.

But the pitching needs to improve as well: all five starters have an ERA between 3.98 (Rube Foster, 3-2 on the year) and 4.99 (Dolf Luque, 2-4). That means they’ve all been solid, but none spectacular. Rob Dibble has been great on the back end of the bullpen, but Rob Murphy hit hard setting him up.

Kansas City’s record has been more disappointing in some ways: the Monarchs are top 8 in almost all offensive categories in the league (except homeruns, which, of course, matters), and they are first in the advanced pitching metrics–WAR and FIP. They really have two flaws: not enough homeruns, and a defense that has continually let them down.

The Monarchs knew they had a “Big Three” coming into the year, and Stan Musial (380/448/570), Albert Pujols (320/380/503), and Rogers Hornsby (283/367/467) haven’t disappointed. Boog Powell‘s contribution (300/423/473) has been unexpected, and the real key to the offense is if their speedsters–Willie McGee, Lou Brock, Ozzie Smith–can get on base enough to keep the innings going.

The pitching has been a bit less consistent. Frank Castillo (2-4, 3.62) has pitched far better than his record and Andy Pettite (3-2, 3.83) has been solid. But both Rube Marquard and Jose Rijo are in danger of moving out of the rotation, with ERA’s of 5.67 and 6.63 respectively. The bullpen has been pretty fantastic, with the closing trio of Frank DiPino (1 Sv, 1 H, 1.62), Craig Kimbrel (6 H, 2.65), and closer Jeff Pfeffer (3-0, 5 Sv, 2.16) nearly unmatched in the league.

Projected Series Matchups

Indianapolis first: Johnny Cueto (4-2, 4.60) @ Luke Hamlin (2-3, 4.24); David Price (1-1, 4.15) @ Jose Rijo (2-2, 6.63); Rube Foster (3-2, 3.98) @ Andy Pettite (3-2, 3.83); Red Faber (3-2, 4.71) @ Frank Castillo (2-4, 3.62).

The Foster v Pettite matchup is clearly the most intriguing, but there are important questions to be answered about Rijo (can he keep his rotation spot?) and Castillo (can he move into the elite starts in the league?) as well.

Series VIII Featured Series: Los Angeles Angels @ Kansas City Monarchs

By mknn

On June 28, 2021

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

Series preview here.

#Game 1: Doc Gooden @ Andy Pettitte

Things started well for Los Angeles, as Don Buford led off the game with a homerun to left off Andy Pettitte.

But that was about all that went well for him, as Pettite quickly settled down, allowing 5 hits over 8 innings, with Buford’s blast the only run he allowed.

The Angels’ starter, Doc Gooden, was nowhere near as good, allowing 8 runs–5 earned–in just under 3 innings to the potent Monarchs‘ offense. Albert Pujols had 3 RBIs and Lou Brock, Willie McGee, Gene Freese, and Ozzie Smith each chipped in with 2 hits for Kansas City as they cruised to a 10-1 win in the opening game of the series.

Gooden fell to 1-5 on the year, and his immediate future in the WBL has to be coming into question. Nolan Ryan and Armando Benitez combined for just over 5 innings of decent relief (1 earned run and a dozen strikeouts between them). Pettitte’s win improved his record to 3-2.

LAA 1 (Gooden 1-5) @ KCM 10 (Pettitte 3-2)
HRs: LAA – Buford (3)
Box Score

#Game 2: Gerrit Cole @ Frank Castillo

Gerrit Cole succeeded where so many others failed, becoming the WBL’s first 5-game winner, despite a rough outing against Kansas City in the second game of their series. Cole allowed 7 hits in 5.2 innings, with 4 runs scoring against him (1 unearned).

Los Angeles took the lead in the top of the 3rd on a triple by Don Buford that scored Jim Stephens and a single from Mike Trout, giving the Angels a 2-1 lead. Albert Pujols tied the game in the bottom of the inning with an RBI single.

The top of the 4th would see the Angels strike again against Frank Castillo, with an RBI single from Buford and a sacrifice fly from Kal Daniels giving them a 4-2 edge.

Cole would be chased from the game in the bottom of the 6th when, after giving up an RBI single to Gene Freese, he walked Ozzie Smith with the bases loaded. Aaron Heilman relieved Cole, and got out of the inning with the Angels ahead, 5-4.

Los Angeles would gain some buffer in the top of the 7th, with Derrek Lee leading the inning off with a homerun, and Doug Rader hitting a bases-loaded triple, putting the Angels up, 9-4.

The Monarchs scored 4 times in the bottom of the 8th, with RBIs from Fielder Jones, Smith, Boog Powell, and Pujols, but Jeurys Familia was able to close the door, and Los Angeles evened the series with the 1-run victory.

Buford had 3 hits for Los Angeles, and Pujols and Freese had 3 for Kansas City.

Cole moved to 5-1 on the year, with Familia picking up his first save. Castillo took the loss, falling to 2-3, and Connie Johnson got hit hard, giving up 5 runs in 1 innings. Adam Wainwright closed out the game for Kansas City with 3 hitless innings.

LAA 9 (Cole 5-1; Heilman 2 H; Familia 1 Sv) – KCM 8 (Castillo 2-3)
HRs: LAA – Lee (2)
Box Score

#Game 3: Brett Anderson @ Rube Marquard

Fresh off a shutout, Los Angeles’ Brett Anderson is hoping to keep improving on his year. He sits at 2-3 with an ERA just under 4 while his opposition, Rube Marquard, comes in with a 2-2 record and an ERA 2 runs higher.

It didn’t really work out for either of them. Both starters lasted 5 innings, with Anderson giving up 4 runs and Marquard 5. Kansas City beat up Armando Benitez, who followed Anderson, for 5 runs in under an inning, then tagged Chuck Finley for 3 more on the way to an 11-5 victory.

The Monarchs’ relievers–Trevor Rosenthal, Craig Kimbrel, and Frank DiPino–combined for 4 inning of scoreless, 2-hit relief, with Rosenthal getting the win.

Willie McGee, newly promoted Ducky Medwick, and Gene Freese each had 3 hits for Kansas City, with Medwick (who is now 6-for-11 in his WBL career) driving in 3.

For the Angels, Don Buford was 3-for-3, raising his average to .325.

LAA 5 (Benitez 0-1) @ KCM 11 (Rosenthal 3-0; Kimbrel 5 H)
HRs: None
Box Score

#Game 4: Pud Galvin @ Luke Hamlin

Luke Hamlin has had some great starts and some rough ones, but overall he’s been solid for Kansas City, coming into the game with a 2-3 record and a 4.28 ERA. Pud Galvin has similar underlying numbers, sitting with a record of 1-1 and a 4.23 ERA.

Galvin struggled more, leaving the game after 5 innings, having given up 8 hits and 4 runs (3 earned), including a solo homerun to Lou Brock.

Hamlin lasted longer, but with similar results: 6.2 innings, 4 runs (3 earned), and a homerun to Brian Downing. Connie Johnson struggled again in relief, and after the top of the 7th, Los Angeles was in front, 5-4.

It was a sloppy game up to that point, with errors by Mike Trout and Bobby Grich for the Angels and two by Albert Pujols for Kansas City.

The score held, and when Joe Nathan retired the first two batters in the bottom of the 9th, all looked good for Los Angeles. But Stan Musial and Pujols singled, and Ducky Medwick scored Musial with a double. Nathan fanned Ted Simmons to end the inning, but we were tied at 5, and headed to extra innings.

In the top of the 10th, Kansas City’s Frank DiPino walked Tim Wallach. Don Buford was inserted as a pinch runner, and, after Jim Stephens bunted him to second, George Wright singled him home as a pinch-hitter. Wright would score on a single by Kal Daniels, giving Los Angeles a 2-run cushion at 7-5.

Despite giving up two walks in the bottom of the 10th, Jonny Venters managed to get Robinson Cano to ground into a game-ending double play to preserve the victory.

Elmer Valo, Trout, and Doug Rader each had 2 hits for Los Angeles. Pujols had 4 hits and 2 RBIs for Kansas City.

Nolan Ryan was the most effective pitcher all day, but his 3 innings of 1-hit relief resulted in a no-decision, with the victory going to Nathan, who improves to 3-1, and Venters picking up his 2nd save of the season. Dipino took the loss for Kansas City.

LAA 7 (Nathan 3-1, 1 BS; Venters 2 Sv) – KCM 5 (DiPino 0-2; Johnson 1 BS)
HRs: LAA – Downing (2); KCM – Brock (3)
Box Score

#Series Notes

A series split, with the two teams alternating victories.

For Kansas City, Gene Freese went 8-15 with 4 RBIs; Ducky Medwick was 5-for-11 with 4 RBIs; and Albert Pujols was 9-for-17 with 8 RBIs. Medwick’s start is demanding more playing time for the recently recalled rookie.

Los Angeles was led by Don Buford, who was 7-for-9 with 2 triples, 4 runs and 4 RBIs and Mike Trout, who had 7 hits in the 4 games. Trout’s emergence is probably the most important event for Los Angeles, as the infinitely talented CF is key to their success.

TWIWBL 8.0: Series VII Notes

By mknn

On June 17, 2021

In TWIWBL

April 30th

Perhaps shockingly, given the nature of the featured game of Series VII, the real theme of the 40 games was quality pitching.

Game 3 of the series between the Wandering House of David and the Indianapolis ABCs saw the ABC’s Johnny Cueto improve to 3-2 with 8.2 innings of 6-hit, 1-run ball. Jack Taylor (2-2) took the loss, despite only giving up 2 earned runs himself. The final game saw 2 great performances as well, with the House of David’s Frank Sullivan and the ABC’s David Price each only allowing 1 run in 8 innings (Indianapolis would win the game in 11 innings).
The series between the Houston Colt 45’s and the Miami Cuban Giants saw Houston’s Stephen Strasburg throw 6 strong innings, giving up only 1 run in the opening game. The hottest pitcher in the WBL, the Cuban Giants’ Camilo Pascual dealt 6 innings of 1-run ball in game 3, and then Houston’s Toad Ramsey outdid them all with a complete game, 4-hit shutout in game 4.
The Birmingham Black Barons‘ Dick Rudolph opened their series against the Brooklyn Royal Giants with 8.1 innings giving up only 5 hits and 2 runs.
The Detroit Wolverine‘s Si Johnson improved to 2-2 with 5 shutout innings against the Baltimore Black Sox in their series opener. Baltimore only managed 3 hits in game 2, with Detroit’s Hal Newhouser (moving to 1-0 on his return from the DL), Gene Conley, and Kevin Hart combining on the 3-hit shutout. The Wolverines kept up their dominance in game 3 as Whitey Wilshere moved to 4-1 with 6-plus innings of shutout ball.
The Philadelphia Stars won their series opener against the New York Gothams behind 5.1 innings from Robin Roberts, who gave up only 1 earned run on 5 hits. Roberts improved to 3-1 with the effort. The Stars’ Ray Collins allowed 1 run in 8 innings in the series finale, but was not involved in the decision.
Frank Castillo of the Kansas City Monarchs allowed 5 hits and 1 run against the Memphis Red Sox, improving his record to 2-2. Memphis took game 2, as Kansas City could only manage 2 hits and 1 run against Nixey Callahan, who got his first victory. Jon Lester continued the Red Sox’s success on the mound in game 3, leveling his record at 2-2 with a 7 inning, 1-run, 7-hit effort.
Cy Falkenberg moved to 2-0 on the year, allowing 1 run in just over 5 innings as the San Francisco Sea Lions took the opening game from the Chicago American Giants.
Los Angeles‘ Brett Anderson threw a complete game, 3-hit shutout against the Homestead Grays.

The other big news of the series was the Portland Sea Dogs‘ statement series against the New York Black Yankees. Portland took 3 out of 4 from New York, and now has the 2nd best record in the league.

Also, Baltimore’s Curt Blefary took over the league HR lead from New York’s Babe Ruth with 12.

League Standings | League Statistics

Leading SP: Don Drysedale (BRK) 4-0, 1.00 ERA, 1.11 WHIP; Walter Johnson (POR) 4-0, 2.55 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 2.85 FIP; Ron Guidry (NYY) 4-1, 2.32 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 51 K.

Leading RP: Johan Santana (POR) 0-1, 12 Sv, 3.72 ERA; Tom Henke (OTT) 0-0, 8 Sv, 0.84 ERA; Ron Reed (PHI) 0-0, 2 Sv, 8 H; 2.40 ERA; Frank DiPino (KCM) 0-1, 1 Sv, 1 H, 0.69 ERA.

Leading Batters: Babe Ruth (NYY) 421/504/807, 1.311 OPS, 11 HR, 32 RBI, 36 R; Kal Daniels (LAA) 329/441/579, 13 2B; Eric Davis (NYY) 288/323/517, 37 RBI; Rickey Henderson (SFS) 273/434/404, 27 BB, 20 SB; Shoeless Joe Jackson (CAG) 389/478/743, 1.221 OPS; Buster Posey (SFS) 416/470/733, 1.202 OPS; Curt Blefary (BAL) 289/408/747, 12 HR, 25 RBI.

Boldface indicates league leading mark.

Streaks

The House of David’s Ernie Banks‘ hitting streak ended at 20 games, leaving Ty Cobb‘s 14 game streak as the longest active. Banks has reached base in 14 straight contests. Cleveland’s Ron Blomberg has scored a run in 8 straight games and has an extra-base hit in 6. Baltimore’s Sean Marshall hasn’t allowed a hit in 6.1 innings.

Series VII Results

Series VII Sweeps

Detroit over Baltimore
Los Angeles over Homestead

Taking 3 of 4 in Series VII

Chicago over San Francisco
Cleveland over Ottawa
Portland over New York Black Yankees

Series VII Splits

Birmingham at Brooklyn
Houston @ Miami
House of David @ Indianapolis
Kansas City @ Memphis
Philadelphia @ New York Gothams

WBL Year I 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. Oscar Charleston (HOM); Rickey Henderson (SFS); Pete Hill (HOU); Gary Pettis (POR); Rick Reichardt (HOM); Manny Sanguillen (NYY); Billy Southworth (BBB); George Stone (HOD)

3+ 2B Games

4. Stan Musial (KCM)
3. Bob Bailey (DET); Curt Blefary (BAL); Pete Browning (HOD); Rico Carty (PHI) x2, Rick Ferrell (HOM); Pinky Higgins (NYG); Baby Doll Jacobson (BAL); Davey Johnson (HOM); Scott Rolen (PHI); Jimmy Sheckard (NYG); Ozzie Smith (KCM); Roy White (BRK)

3+ HR Games

3. Joe Adcock (NYG); Gil Hodges (POR); Reggie Jackson (SFS); Yasiel Puig (NYG); Chase Utley (PHI)

3+ OF Assists

3. Jim Edmonds (HOD); Curtis Granderson (BBB)

4+ BB Games

4. Eddie Collins (CAG); Gavvy Cravath (PHI); Mickey Mantle (NYY); Joe Morgan (IND); Babe Ruth (NYY) x2; Reggie Jackson (SFS); Reggie Smith (MEM); Elmer Valo (LAA); Joe Votto (IND)

4+ Run Games

5. Don Mattingly (NYA)

4. John Briggs (BRK); Johnny Callison (NYG); Robinson Cano (KCM); Cupid Childs (BBB); Will Clark (MIA); Mark Ellis (LAA); Carlton Fisk (CAG); Dan Ford (HOD); Bryce Harper (BAL); Kent Hrbek (POR); Frank Isbell (BBB/BRK) x2; Joe Jackson (CAG); Reggie Jackson (SFS); Geoff Jenkins (DET); Eddie Mathews (BBB); Willie Mays (NYG); Andrew McCutcheon (HOM); Willie McGee (KCM); Boog Powell (KCM); Edd Roush (IND); Pops Stargell (HOM); Mike Trout (LAA) x2; George Wright (LAA)

4+ SB Games

4. Bobby Bonds (SFS); Lou Brock (KCM); Eddie Collins (CAG); Billy Southworth (BBB)

5+ Hit Games

5. Pete Browning (HOD); Robinson Cano (KCM); Ty Cobb (DET); Chili Davis (DET); Mark Ellis (LAA); Tom Herr (BBB); Frank Isbell (BBB); Stan Musial (KCM); Ken Singleton (BAL); Jim Stephens (LAA); Mike Trout (LAA); Andy Van Slyke (HOM); Jim Wynn (HOU)

5+ SO Games

5. Phil Bradley (OTT); Mike Piazza (BRK); Bobby Wallace (BAL)

6+ RBI Games

9. Jim Stephens (LAA)
7. Mickey Cochrane (SFS); Eric Davis (NYY) x2; Reggie Jackson (SFS); Doug Rader (LAA); Pete Runnels (MCG)
6. Bob Bailey (DET); Carlos Delgado (LAA); Rogers Hornsby (KCM); Jim Pagliaroni (MEM); Yasiel Puig (NYG); Honus Wagner (HOM)

Longest HRs

526 ft. Jim Thome (MCG)
525 ft. Albert Pujols (KCM)
524 ft. Frank McCormick (BBB)
515 ft. Carlos Correa (HOU)
514 ft. Casey Stengel (HOU)
511 ft. Boog Powell (KCM)
504 ft. Curt Blefary (BAL); Eugenio Suárez (NYG)
503 ft. Ernie Banks (HOD)
502 ft. Wally Moon (SFS)
501 ft. Curt Blefary (BAL)

Pitching Statistics

80+ Game Scores

91. Sandy Koufax (BRK); Christy Mathewson (NYG)
89. Dave Righetti (NYY)
88. Bert Blyleven (POR); Bob Gibson (KCM); Ron Guidry (NYY); Bill Steen (CLE)
87. Pete Donohue (NYG); Jack Taylor (HOD); Jim Whitney (BBB).
86. Luke Hamlin (KCM); Mel Harder (CLE); José Rijo (KCM); Jack Taylor (HOD)
85. Freddie Fitzsimmons (MCG); Waite Hoyt (NYY)
84. Bert Blyleven (POR); Gene Conley (DET); Freddie Fitzsimmons (MCG); Ned Garvin (BAL); Lefty Grove (POR); Luke Hamlin (KCM); Harry Howell (LAA); Greg Maddux (BBB); Stubby Overmire (MEM); David Price (CAG); Frank Smith (CAG).
83. Jamie Moyer (OTT); Toad Ramsey (HOU).
82. Ned Garvin (BAL); Luke Hamlin (KCM); Walter Johnson (POR); Dutch Leonard (BRK); Tricky Nichols (CAG); Bob Rush (HOD); Stephen Strasburg (HOU); Jack Taylor (HOD); Jim Whitney (BBB); Cy Young (HOM)
81. Brett Anderson (LAA); Bert Blyleven (POR); Walter Johnson (POR); Tricky Nichols (CAG); Camilo Pascual (MCG); Whit Wyatt (CLE)
80. Brett Anderson (LAA); Bob Brown (OTT); Steve Carlton (PHI); Gerrit Cole (LAA); Lefty Grove (POR); Waite Hoyt (NYY), Ramón Martínez (MCG); Wade Miley (HOD); Old Hoss Radbourn (OTT); Charlie Root (DET)

10+ Strikeout Games

14. Bert Blyleven (POR)
12. Ed Walsh (CAG)
11. Bob Brown (OTT); Lefty Grove (POR) x2; Ron Guidry (NYY); Luke Hamlin (KCM); Tommy Hanson (BRK); Ramón Martínez (MCG); Christy Mathewson (NYG); Tricky Nichols (CAG); Dave Righetti (NYY); Bret Saberhagen (HOU); Ed Walsh (CAG)
10. Bob Feller (CLE); Lefty Grove (POR); Ron Guidry x2 (NYY) x2; Walter Johnson (POR); Mike Mussina (BAL); Frank Knauss (BRK).

8+ Walk Games

8. Ramon Martínez (MCG); Nolan Ryan (LAA); Carlos Zambrano (HOM)

Shutouts

1 H. Sandy Koufax (BRK); Christy Mathewson (NYG)
2 H. Luke Hamlin (KCM); Waite Hoyt (NYY) [7 Inn]; David Price (CAG); José Rijo (KCM); Frank Smith (CAG); Jack Taylor (HOD)
3 H. Brett Anderson (LAA); Pete Donohue (NYG); Freddie Fitzsimmons (MCG); Ned Garvin (BAL): Bob Gibson (KCM); Luke Hamlin (KCM); Mel Harder (CLE); Ron Guidry (NYY); Greg Maddux (BBB); Tricky Nichols (CAG); Stubby Overmire (MEM); Dave Righetti (NY); Bob Rush (HOD); Jack Taylor (HOD).
4 H. Brett Anderson (LAA); Bert Blyleven (POR); Gerrit Cole (LAA); Gene Conley (DET); Ned Garvin (BAL); Waite Hoyt (NYY); Wade Miley (HOD); Tricky Nichols (CAG); Old Hoss Radbourn (OTT); Toad Ramsey (HOU); Bill Steen (CLE); Jack Taylor (HOD); Cy Young (CLE)
5 H. Bert Blyleven (POR); Steve Carlton (PHI); Harry Howell (LAA); Walter Johnson (POR); Dutch Leonard (BRK); Ramon Martinez (MCG); Jamie Moyer (OTT); Milt Pappas (BAL); José Rijo (KCM); CC Sabathia (HOD); Sam Streeter (BBB)

Shutouts (Combined)

1 H. Luke Hamlin / Frank DiPino / Jeff Pfeffer (KCM)
3 H. Whit Wyatt / Chad Qualls / Chuck Porter (CLE); H. Newhouser / Gene Conley / Kevin Hart (DET); Stephen Strasburg / Billy Wagner (HOU); Mel Harder / Chuck Porter (CLE)
4 H. Hank Aguirre / Mike Henneman (DET); Dizzy Trout / Elmer Brown (POR); Vic Willis / John Malarkey (BBB); Doc Gooden / Mike Smith (LAA); Stubby Overmire / Lance Broadway / Heath Bell / Jonathan Papelbon (MEM); Willie Mitchell / Clay Carroll / Rob Dibble (IND)
5 H. Ray Collins / Rheal Cormier (PHI); Vean Gregg / Stan Bahnsen (HOM); Connie Johnson / Smokey Joe Wood / Jeff Pfeffer (KAN); Bob Rush / Rollie Fingers / Scott Downs / Lee Smith / Bruce Sutter (HOD); Francisco Liriano / Frank Linzy (HOM); Gene Conley / Buddy Napier / John Hiller; Jack Taylor / Scott Downs / Kerry Wood (HOD); Roenis Elías / Phenomenal Smith / Ed Bauta / Aroldis Chapman (MCG); Stephen Strasburg / Chad Qualls / Brad Lidge (HOU) / Eddie Plank / Dave LaRoche / Rob Beck (SFS); Jack Scott / Aroldis Chapman (NYY); Pat Malone / Chuck Porter / Cory Gearrin / Terry Adams (DET)

TWIWBL 6.4: Series V Notes – Marvin Miller Division

By mknn

On May 26, 2021

In TWIWBL

#Birmingham Black Barons

John Clarkson fell to 1-2 with a miserable outing against the Cleveland Spiders, giving up 7 earned runs in under 3 IP and sending his ERA to 12.74. Jim Whitney was ineffective in relief, and Dick Rudolph‘s 2.2 scoreless IP may have been enough to slide him into the rotation. With only three rotation spots settled, look for those three, Greg Maddux, and Sam Streeter to get opportunities starting for Birmingham.

OF Al Schweitzer, who had a solid start to the season slashing 267/389/422 will be out over a month with a hamstring strain, with Curtis Granderson being promoted to Birmingham to take his roster spot.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Jackie Robinson‘s first HR of the year was a 2-run shot in the bottom of the 7th against Indianapolis, providing the winning margin in a 3-1 victory for the Royal Giants.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Rube Waddell, Eustaquio Pedroso, Ed Bauta, and Aroldis Chapman combined for a 6-hit shutout of the Baltimore Black Sox, with Waddell moving to 1-1 on the year with the 4-0 Cuban Giants victory.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Gil Hodges became the first player in the WBL to swat 3 HRs in a single game, sending 3 balls out of the park against Philadelphia‘s Pete Alexander in a 7-4 win for the Sea Dogs.

Walter Johnson threw 8 strong innings to become the league’s first four game winner, leading the Sea Dogs over Philadelphia 4-1.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

Wally Moon may have defined Moonshot, sending a pitch from Kansas City‘s Luke Hamlin 502 feet into the night, helping San Francisco eke out a 7-6 victory.

Capping a 3-for-4 day, Reggie Jackson tagged Kansas City’s Frank DiPino with his first earned runs of the year with a 2-out, 2-run HR, 9th inning HR to give the Sea Lions a 3-2 lead. Rick Langford debuted with three innings of scoreless relief for the victory, and Rod Beck pitched a perfect bottom of the 9th for his 6th save of the season.

TWIWBL 4.1: Notes from Series III

By mknn

On September 30, 2020

In TWIWBL

The New York Black Yankees saw their 10 game winning streak come to an end in a 4-2 loss to the Wandering House of David. The Black Yankees are tied with the Kansas City Monarchs for the best record in the league at 11-3, with the Brooklyn Royal Giants the only other team with double-digit victories. Those 4 teams–New York, Wandering, Kansas City, and Brooklyn–each lead their divisions.

Two decent hitting streaks are still intact: Babe Ruth has a 14 game streak (see below for a dramatic extension by Ruth) and the Baltimore Black Sox‘s Dan McGann has hit safely in 13 straight games.

Philadelphia‘s Ray Collins and Brooklyn‘s Don Drysedale are the only 3 game winners in the league (both are 3-0), and Portland‘s Johan Santana leads the league with 6 saves.

Houston‘s George Brett hit .538 with 2 HR’s and 7 RBIs to win the WBL Player of the Week.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Orel Hershiser (1-0) gave up only 5 hits while striking out 8 in a complete game victory over Cleveland. Hershiser’s only mistake of the day was a 2-run HR to Evan Longoria as the Royal Giants eased to a 6-2 win.

#Cleveland Spiders

Cleveland has basically created a fast shuttle between their AAA affiliate in Buffalo and the big leagues. Just across these five games, here’s who used it:

With John Ellis no longer carrying an injury, the Spiders demoted Harry Bemis.
Jim Gantner was called up from AAA to provide some depth at 2B behind Chuck Knoblauch.
Whit Wyatt returned from the DL, sending Sudden Sam McDowell down.
Yordano Ventura was put on the IL even though the Spiders were, at the time, unsure as the extent of his injuries (turns out to have been fine, Ventura is out for 4 months with bone spurs).
With the OF totally gassed and lacking depth, Peanuts Lowrey was called up.

Not all news for Cleveland was injury related: Bob Feller moved to 2-0 with 8 shutout innings against Brooklyn in a 9-1 Spiders’ victory.

#Detroit Wolverines

Phenom Ty Cobb continues to press for more playing time, going 3-for-4 with a HR in a start against Kansas City.

#Homestead Grays

With Corey Kluber still injured, Homestead recalled Cliff Lee for an emergency start. Lee was excellent, leading the Grays to keep him on the roster at the expense of Bill Fischer, who had struggled in a few early season appearances.

#Houston Colt 45’s

Bret Saberhagen was still not 100%, so the Colt 45’s did some roster juggling, sending Saberhagen to AAA for a day and recalling David Clyde. Clyde was lit on fire in his start, and sent right back to AAA after the game.

Roy Oswalt (2-1) combined with Trevor Hoffman for a 6 hit shutout against Portland.

#Kansas City Monarchs

The Monarchs’ Luke Hamlin–of all people–threw the best start of the year so far, allowing only 1 hit over 7 innings against Detroit while striking out 11. Neither Frank DiPino nor Jeff Pfeffer allowed a hit in closing the game out for a 1-0 Kansas city win.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Ramon Martinez tied the best game score of the year with a 5-hit complete game shutout of Chicago that took only 94 pitches, earning his first victory of the year.

#New York Black Yankees

With a 12-game hitting streak on the line, Babe Ruth came to the plate as a pinch hitter with his team down 2 in the bottom of the 9th and a runner on first. Ruth deposited Tom Niedenfuer‘s pitch in the left field seats for his 4th HR of the year to tie the game, extending his streak to 13 (New York would lose the game 5-4 in 13 innings).

#San Francisco Sea Lions

Lefty Grove continued his dominant start to the year, pitching 8 innings of 3-hit, 1-run ball while striking out 11 against Ottawa to go 2-0 on the season. Grove’s game score of 80 was the best in the league to date (later surpassed by Hamlin).

#Wandering House of David

OF Pete Browning continued his torrid start with a 4-for-4 game against the Black Yankees with a 2B, a 3B, and 2 RBIs to key a 13 inning HoD victory.