Tag: Gaylord Perry Page 1 of 3

TWIWBL 61.4: Effa Manley Division

On June 13, 2024

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Terry Forster began a rehab assignment, with an eye towards returning to the active roster later this week.

Ray Dandridge‘s offensive struggles have accelerated Germany Smith‘s return to full time status, with Smith taking over at SS. Dandridge will still see a lot of playing time around the diamond, but he–along with Frank Isbell–are in danger of (not) hitting themselves right out of the league.

Juan Mateo will miss about 4 months of action, clearing space for Forster’s return.

#Homestead Grays

The Grays recalled Corey Kluber from his rehab assignment, sending the struggling Tim Lincecum to AAA.

#New York Gothams

Willie Mays had 4 hits and 3 RBIs and Pinky Higgins went deep twice as the Gothams beat the Mounties, 8-2. Don Sutton improved to 3-1 with 10 whiffs in 7 plus innings of work for New York.

Mays and Benny Kauff each went deep twice as the Gothams poured it on late for an 8-3 win over Philadelphia. Gaylord Perry improved to 2-3 with 7 solid innings of work.

#Ottawa Mounties

With Ryan Dempster‘s struggles, the return of closer Tom Henke after a year away can’t come soon enough. Henke should start a rehab assignment later this week, joining Johnny Podgajny in trying to make their way back to the active roster.

#Philadelphia Stars

With Dave Stieb seemingly massively overmatched, the Stars sent him to AAA, recalling Ray Collins from a rehab assignment. Collins will slot into the bullpen for a while, with Larry Jackson taking Stieb’s spot in the rotation.

Bullet Joe Rogan has been the best hitter for the Stars so far this season, and while he’ll move around a lot, it’s expected that he’ll be out there virtually every day from here on out.

Hardie Henderson continues his great start, combining with Brad Kilby, Tim Belcher, and Ted Kennedy on a 4 hit shutout in a 5-0 win over the House of David. Henderson improved to 4-1 and lowered his ERA to 1.64 on the day.

Year II Season Preview: New York Gothams

By mknn

On April 6, 2024

In Team News

Expectations

A deep playoff run, much like last year.

The Gothams could also benefit from additional depth throughout the organization and, perhaps, by not trading away all their damn picks this year.

Best Case

Either Gaylord Perry or Juan Marichal (or both) step forward, joining Christy Mathewson among the league’s elite; the bullpen continues to dominate; and the offensive pieces that clicked last season–Pete Runnels, Pinky Higgins, Jimmy Sheckard, Johnny Callison–continue to do so (or are covered through increased performance/playing time for George Van Haltren or Carl Furillo in the OF).

Worst Case

The bullpen falters, and only Matty remains viable as a starter while everyone not named Willie Mays and Buster Posey struggles offensively.

Key Questions

Like so many other teams, the rotation is key.
The infield feels fragile, so how that plays out will bear watching.
How will the Gothams get PA’s for Benny Kauff?

Trade Bait

The Gothams do have a lot of OFers lying around, but it’s not clear who is actually surplus to requirements. With Kauff’s emergense, perhaps one of the Sheckard / Callison / Van Haltren group, or maybe last year’s 4th OF, Carl Furillo?

Instead, in an attempt to solve their MI issue, the Gothams obtained Davey Concepción, who promptly disappointed and was jettisoned to the minors.

Roster Evaluation

POS	Elite	Strong	Solid	Meh	Weak	Unknown
C		Posey	Westrum
1B		Adcock		Clark
2B			Runnels			Doyle
3B			Higgins		Suárez
SS					Crawford
LF/ RF		Callison	Van Haltren Sheckard	Furillo
CF	Mays					Kauff
SP	Mathewson	Perry		Marichal Waddell
End	Norris ~~Wilson~~	Nen ~~Smith~~				Percival
RP			Howe Sutton			Hubbell

New Addition | ~~Injured~~

There’s a chance, right? A few improvements, and the Gothams could be in the mix.

Talent Ratings

	WBL	Minors
Raw Power	CF Willie Mays	OF Wally Berger IF Jim Ray Hart
Batting Eye	C Wes Westrum	C Dick Dietz
Contact	IF Pete Runnels	1B Bill Terry
Running Speed	OF Jimmy Sheckard	OF Charlie Hamburg IF Pat Listach IF Freddie Patek IF Tim Shinnick OF Kyle Tucker
Base Stealing	OF George Van Haltren	IF Hap Myers IF Tim Shinnick
IF Defense	IF Eugenio Suárez	IF Neifi Pérez
OF Defense	CF Willie Mays	OF Jo-Jo Moore
Stuff	SP Christy Mathewson	P William VanLandingham
Control	P Juan Marichal	P Al Spalding
Velocity	RP Robb Nen RP Troy Percival	P Rick Helling

Best In The Minors

Rank	Age	POS	Name
1 (53)	24	P	Masahiro Tanaka
2 (56)	19	OF	Kyle Tucker
3 (60)	22	P	William VanLandingham
4 (86)	25	P	Al Spalding
5 (104)	22	SS	Joe Sullivan
6 (112)	23	P	Jordan Montgomery
7 (155)	21	IF	Tom Burns

Others: None.

A very weak system in need of some serious replenishment, although Tucker and a couple of the arms should come good eventually.

	Most	Least
Age	1B Joe Adcock, 39	1B Bill White, 19 OF Kyle Tucker, 19
Height	P Mat Latos, 6’6″ P Jordan Montgomery, 6’6″ P Carson Smith, 6’6″	IF Freddie Patek, 5’5″
OPS	OF Carl Warwick, 1.025 (—)	IF Adam Everett, .381 (—)
HR	IF Chick Fulmer, 48 (—)	C Steve O’Neill, 1 (AAA/AA)
SB	OF Jimmy Sheckard, 37 (WBL)	Many with 0
WAR	IF Jim Ray Hart, 5.6 (—) CF Willie Mays, 5.6 (WBL)	IF Frank Malzone, -5.6 (—)
W	Christy Mathewson, 17 (WBL)	Lefty Hoerst, 2 (—/AA)
SV	Brian Wilson, 29 (WBL)
ERA	Joe Bush, 2.86 (—)	Matt Cain, 7.68 (AAA)
WAR	Christy Mathewson, 4.4 (WBL) Wei-Yin Chen, 4.4 (—)	Lefty Hoerst, 6.20 (—/AA)

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

TWIWBL 56.12: Spring Training Notes – New York Gothams

By mknn

On February 29, 2024

In TWIWBL

Spring Training Questions

The offseason signing of Troy Percival means the pitching staff really only has 2 open slots, both likely to go to players that can serve as spot starters, with one of those likely to go to 6th round steal Masahiro Tanaka.

For the rest of the roster, it’s really the infield that has to be settled–whether Will Clark and Joe Adcock will exist in a platoon or some other arrangement and who the reserves will be.

Injuries

The Gothams received some bad news as stalwart reliever Carson Smith will miss most of the season with a torn muscle in his back.

First Cuts

Things are not going as planned: Juan Marichal, Don Sutton, Brian Wilson, Gaylord Perry, Steve Howe, and Robb Nen have all struggled early while most of the long shots to make the club have pitched quite well. Vean Gregg and Jordan Montgomery were both moved to minor league camp, but the Gothams are looking to the next week to help sort out their staff.

C Kirt Manwaring was moved out of camp, along with 1Bs Justin Morneau and (not that) Bill White and 3B Pinky Whitney. The corner spots need some clarity, as players the Gothams’ are depending on–Joe Adcock, Will Clark, and Pete Runnels–are all struggling. 3B Matt Williams remains in camp, but if he doesn’t shoe some of his power potential, he won’t be here very long.

Neifi Pérez and Larry Doyle have impressed, with Brian Dozier and David Eckstein both heading out.

In the OF, Fred Lewis, Jo-Jo Moore, John Reccius, and Kyle Tucker were all sent to the minors, with Steve Kemp and Mike Tiernan both making an argument to stick around a while longer.

Second Cuts

Juan Marichal and Gaylord Perry are struggling, but will make the opening day roster no matter what. There were high hopes for Masahiro Tanaka, but he joins Vean Gregg and Jordan Montgomery in minor league camp.

The IF is still totally muddled. Youngsters Neifi Pérez and Freddie Patek and longshot Larry Doyle are all tearing the cover off the ball, and predicted starters Pinky Higgins and Pete Runnels are struggling mightily. Matt Williams was the odd man out here, being sent down just to clear some space despite a decent performance so far.

The OF is similar: AAA MVP Benny Kauff is demanding a rosters spot, but Steve Kemp and Ben Oglive are hitting well enough to make an argument, while presumed opening-day players Willie Mays, Johnny Callison, Wally Berger, and Jimmy Sheckard have all yet to find their stroke.

Third Cuts

Everyone in camp is pitching decently, except Juan Marichal, who gets a roster spot based on a decent season last year. So these cuts are rough: Luis Avilán, William VanLandingham, and Henry Rodríguez all pitched well enough to stick around, but it’s a numbers game at some point.

Dick Dietz, Mark Loretta and Ben Oglive were sent down.

SS is very cloudy. Freddie Patek and Neifi Pérez are playing very well, as is Brandon Crawford (who has to be considered the favorite).

Some good players are going to miss making the roster in the OF. Willie Mays, Johnny Callison, and Jimmy Sheckard are the starters, with George Van Haltren established as a backup. The problem is that Wally Berger, Benny Kauff, Carl Furillo, Steve Kemp, and Mike Tiernan are all hitting excellently. Kauff is probably the starting DH, but that still leaves 8 active OFers.

Last Cuts

These are nigh impossible. Pinky Higgins, Pete Runnels, and Will Clark are all struggling mightily, but their performance last season keeps them in camp and, indeed, probably keeps them in the starting lineup. That makes the Gothams’ first cut 1B Bill Terry.

Terry’s hope to make the WBL roster was to take Joe Adcock‘s spot but, for now, the 39 year old Adcock remains projected to play a key role of New York’s bench.

Newly acquired Dave Concepción will start the season at AAA, as will utility IF Johan Camargo, who had an outside shot at the opening day roster. They are joined by C Steve O’Neill, who was always a long shot to make the team.

The Gothams need to clear 5 roster spots to get to 30, a process started by placing closer Brian Wilson on the DL. Neifi Pérez had a good Spring, but Larry Doyle‘s was significantly better, sending Pérez down to AAA and handing the reserve 2B spot to Doyle. Joining them are SS Freddie Patek and OF Steve Kemp, as well as SP Al Spalding, who has to be wondering what more he needed to do after posting a sub 2.00 ERA for the Spring.

Guy Hecker and Pete Donohue were demoted and Mickey Welch released, but that only opened the door for the truly hard decisions.

George Van Haltren, Jimmy Sheckard, and Johnny Callison were all great for New York last season. None have an OPS over .600 this Spring. Wally Berger and Mike Tiernan were longshots to make the roster. And both have OPS’ over .890. Berger and Tiernan were sent down, but may find their way back quite quickly.

The final cut was veteran IF Larry Doyle, who had an excellent Spring, but was a victim of too much competition across the infield, and of Pete Runnels‘ fantastic contributions last year.

Season Review: New York Gothams

By mknn

On January 1, 2024

In Season Reviews, Team News

87 - 67, .564 pct.
3rd in Bill James Division, 3 games behind.
Lost to Detroit in Division Round

Overall

The Gothams were one of the more pleasant surprises of the year. Just goes to show how far you can go with a single ace (Christy Mathewson), two elite bats (Willie Mays and Buster Posey), and the best bullpen in the league (Brian Wilson as closer, but also spectacular seasons from Mike Norris and Carson Smith).

This is a team that, despite their talent this year, is a little bereft of talent. With very few draft picks this season, they have a challenge in front of them to remain competitive. This is compounded by the Gothams being built … unusually. They hit for average, but not power; they get batters out, but don’t strike out many. Those are not recipes for long term success, but there’s no arguing with what it accomplished this season.

What Went Right

Willie Mays and Buster Posey, yes; but the contributions of Johnny Callison and Joe Adcock should not be underestimated.

Jimmy Sheckard and Pinky Higgins were solid, and Pete Runnels was fantastic down the stretch.

Wes Westrum quickly established himself as fan favorite, providing some pop as the backup C.

Benny Kauff was dominant in a September call up, and the question of how much more he has in the tank could be key to the Gothams’ success next season. He certainly has nothing left to prove at AAA, having won the MVP award there at age 27.

Christy Mathewson established himself as a true ace in the WBL, and Gaylord Perry‘s peripheral numbers were almost as good, although his results trailed far behind Matty’s.

Don Sutton, Juan Marichal, and Rube Waddell were all thoroughly meh. It’s not exactly something that went right, but that’s almost 400 not bad innings.

Oh, the bullpen … Brian Wilson was perhaps the most effective closer in the league, and he was the 3rd best performer in the Gothams’ bullpen, behind Carson Smith and the magnificent Mike Norris. Robb Nen was quite good and while Steve Howe was fine during the regular season, he found another gear entirely in the postseason.

ALL STARS
OF Willie Mays; C Buster Posey; RP Brian Wilson

What Went Wrong

The left side of the infield was a mess aside from Pinky Higgins as Brandon Crawford, Eugenio Suárez, Mark Loretta, and Johan Camargo all fumbled chances to claim starting roles.

Will Clark was poor after being (re)acquired from Miami. Offensively, that’s about it.

On the mound, even less: injuries to Carl Hubbell, Al Mays, and Pete Donohue probably count. Beyond that, the worse of the Gothams’ starters (Mickey Welch, Sad Sam Jones, and Vean Gregg) were still not horrid. It was about as good a year on the mound as a team can have, all things considered.

Transactions

March

1B Will Clark, C Harry Danning & OF Carlos Morán to Miami for OF Yasiel Puig, 2B Cookie Rojas, 1B Joe Adcock & P Liván Hernández

Half of these players came back later, so we’ll evaluate the deal as a whole below.

June

OF Don Mueller, P Ray Lamb, P Gil Heredia, P Lew Krawusse, Jr, 1st Round Pick & 8th Round Pick to Brooklyn for P Don Sutton

This is a lot to give up. But Sutton showed flashes of front of rotation potential. Call it a push.

July

P Travis Bowyer, OF Mike Shannon & 4th Round Pick to Homestead for P Vean Gregg & 5th Round Pick {Tom Burns}

Gregg wasn’t much, but not much was lost, either.

P Freddie Fitzsimmons, 2B Cookie Rojas, OF Yasiel Puig & 2nd Round Pick to Miami for P Rube Waddell, 2B Pete Runnels & 1B Will Clark

OK, so at the end of the day, this is Danning, Morán, Fitzsimmons, and a 2nd rounder for Adcock, Hernández, and Runnels. New York also got a solid half season from Rojas fwiw. Given Adock and Runnels’ late season heroics, it seems like a decent deal for the Gothams.

P Jeremy Affeldt, OF George Burns, 3B Art Devlin, P Bob Moose & 3rd Round Pick to Ottawa for RP Steve Howe, OF George Van Haltren & 5th Round Pick {Kyle Tucker}

Probably overpaid slightly, but Howe and Van Haltren were excellent down the stretch, and getting Tucker with the pick helps a lot.

Looking Forward

SP

Christy Mathewson, Gaylord Perry, and Carl Hubbell should be good, and the odds are at least a few of the other arms will come good. But some depth would be useful.

RP

Norris is aging but the rest of the bullpen should be around for a while.

C

Buster Posey‘s position to lose.

1B

While Will Clark looks good, long term the Gothams believe Bill Terry will eventually take over from him.

2B

Who knows? Pete Runnels has this right now, but this is an area of need.

3B

Who knows? Pinky Higgins has this right now, but this is an area of need.

SS

Who knows? Eugenio Suárez has this right now, but this is an area of need.

LF

Who kno–no, really, this is Jimmy Sheckard, with some pressure from both Steve Kemp and Ben Oglive. George Van Haltren should help here and in RF as well.

CF

Willie Mays is the one true offensive superstar the Gothams have (depending on how susceptible you think backstops are to injury). Benny Kauff will be here some next year as well.

RF

Johnny Callison and Carl Furillo, with perhaps some pressure from Mike Tiernan.

The Rookie Draft

Rounds 1-4

None. Yep, a team that needs to stock a fairly empty system will add zero high ceiling talent this off season through drafts.

Rounds 5-8

They do have 3 picks in the 5th round, the first two being the 4th and 5th picks of the round. They used these on IF Tom Burns and OF Kyle Tucker. Tucker clearly has the higher ceiling while Burns fills some holes in a system devoid of MI talent. Their final pick is used on 2B David Eckstein.

In the 6th round they unearthed one of the few remaining arms capable of immediately contributing at the WBL level, Masahiro Tanaka and then an arm that is a few years away in Logan Webb. Round 7 brought C depth with Dick Buckley.

Rounds 9-12

P Ferdie Schupp; P Jordan Montgomery; P Bugs Raymond; P William VanLandingham.

TWIWBL 49.6: The Playoffs! Division Round, Day VI– September 30

By mknn

On October 4, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Featured Games, TWIWBL

Two game six’s on tap …

#Detroit Wolverines v New York Gothams, Game 6

Detroit leads, 3-2.

The news on John Hiller was not good, as he will be sidelined for about 5 months with a torn pectoral muscle. Mickey Lolich was added to the playoff roster as Hiller’s replacement.

New York would turn to Gaylord Perry for this must-win contest while Detroit would counter with Gene Conley in their attempt to clinch.

Hank Greenberg would open up the scoring for Detroit in the bottom of the 3rd, singling home Tony Phillips, who had doubled to lead off the inning. Perry would lose the strike zone, walking in not one, but two runs before getting out of the inning. Detroit was up 3-0, one-third of the way through the game.

Perry would last into the 4th, when a 2-out double by Ty Cobb would bring in Juan Marichal from the Gothams bullpen, who was able to end the inning without any damage.

The problem for New York was Conley, who was in full control, scattering 5 hits over 6 innings of work. Conley was relieved after the 7th, and the game remained 3-0 Wolverines as we entered the top of the 9th, with Mike Henneman on the mound to close it out.

Benny Kauff–2-for-3 today and hitting .500 in the postseason–led it off, but whiffed on a pitch on the inside corner. Will Clark foulded out to Oscar Gamble in left. Which meant the Gothams’ season was down to Carl Furillo. A lazy fly ball to Cobb in right later, and we knew the first team to the Whirled Series, the Detroit Wolverines!

Cobb went 4-for-4, but the plaudits need to go to Conley, Lolich, Buddy Napier, and Henneman, who combined on a 6 hit shutout to clinch the series. Mention should also be made of the Gotham’s Marichal, who was roughed up in his first start, but delivered 3 scoreless innings here to keep the game seemingly within reach.

NYG 0 (Perry 0-1) @ DET 3 (Conley 2-1; Henneman 2 Sv; Lolich 1 H; Napier 2 H)
HRs: None.
Box Score

Cobb’s .538 average earned him the MVP award, although a strong argument could made for Hal Newhouser, who finished the series 2-0 with a 0.57 ERA.

#Portland Sea Dogs v Baltimore Black Sox, Game 6

Pascual Pérez‘ recent struggles led Portland to offer Mike Cuellar his first start of the playoffs as they try to finish off Baltimore, whose season rests on the capable right arm of Connie Johnson, 2-0 so far in the postseason.

A bloop single, a walk, a wild pitch, and a sacrifice fly from Kent Hrbek led to Portland’s first run and an RBI double from Gavvy Cravath doubled their lead. Rogers Hornsby singled home Cravath, and the Sea Dogs had staked Cuellar to a 3-0 lead before his first pitch.

Baltimore would come back in the bottom of the 3rd, on RBI singles by Larry Gardner and Curt Blefary and a sacrifice fly from Dan McGann. That tied the game at 3, and got the Sea Dogs’ bullpen up and working. A leadoff double from Bryce Harper chased Cuellar, but Pérez was able to close out the inning cleanly.

Gardner took Pérez deep in the 5th to give the Black Sox a one run lead, but Hornsby sent a pitch from Johnny Sain deep into the night with a runner on, putting Portland back on top.

Mark Melancon came in for the bottom of the 7th and walked pinch-hitter Baby Doll Jacobson and, after a Bobby Wallace sacrifice bunt, retired Gardner. Frank Robinson singled home Jacobson to tie the game and bring in Atlee Hammaker to face Blefary, who fanned. Wade Miller relieved Hammaker and got McGann to ground out to Hornsby at second.

So: 7 innings played, and we are tied at 5 runs each with Baltimore’s season on the line.

Manny Machado has struggled all postseason, but he now has a chance to go down as Black Sox hero, as his homerun in the bottom of the 8th off Miller gave Baltimore a slim advantage.

Joe Beggs was perfect in the 9th, and we were heading to a game seven!

Machado, Gardner, Robinson, and Blefary each had 2 hits for Baltimore, but it will be Machado’s key blast that is most remembered.

POR 5 (Miller 0-1; Melancon 1 B Sv) @ BAL 6 (Beggs 1-0; Sain 1 B Sv)
HRs: POR – Hornsby (3); BAL – Gardner (2), Machado (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 49.0: The Playoffs! Division Round Series Previews

By mknn

On September 22, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Featured Series, TWIWBL

Detroit finished 2 games ahead of the New York Gothams in the Bill James Division: not enough to really say the Wolverines have an edge in the matchup of two teams that each swept their opening rounds.

The other series sees the best record in the league–the Baltimore Black Sox–taking on the team with the worst record of the four remaining: Portland won only 85 games in the regular season, 2 fewer than the Gothams.

For general overviews of the teams, I would refer you to the previews of their opening rounds: Detroit, New York, Baltimore, and Portland. Here, we’ll focus on more specific changes coming out of those matchups.

#Detroit Wolverines

The Wolverines staff seems set after their opening round sweep: Hal Newhouser, Gene Conley, and Charlie Root will take the first three starts.

The question is what to do with the rest of their bench, where neither Ernie Lombardi nor Olmedo Sáenz made an appearance in the first series. Ultimately, the Wolverines decided against making changes.

#New York Gothams

With only backup-catcher-cum-folk-hero Wes Westrum not seeing any action in the opening series, the Gothams also decided to not make any changes, although the temptation to recall Brandon Crawford for late inning defensive help was strong.

The Gothams are in the same situation as they were in the opening round: Christy Mathewson to start, then probably Gaylord Perry and then … well, we’ll see. The Gothams’ bullpen has yet to give up a run in the postseason: if that continues, the Wolverines are probably in deep trouble.

#Baltimore Black Sox

Bill Byrd‘s been magnificent, but won’t be available for at least the first 2 games, so the Black Sox will turn to Dennis Martínez and Connie Johnson in the opening 2 games.

Larry Gardner‘s continued struggles to return from injury mean Brian Roberts will get at least a couple starts at 2B for the Black Sox.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Portland–having secured passage into the next round only yesterday–is the team scrambling most for pitching. Dizzy Trout will get the call in the opening game, with everything beyond that yet to be determined.

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

TWIWBL 48.3: Playoff Previews – New York Gothams @ Cleveland Spiders

By mknn

On September 11, 2023

In 2000 Playoffs, Series Previews, TWIWBL

The final matchup features two teams that got no respect during the season. Everyone focused on the New York Black Yankees, but the Spiders won that division by 5 games (the largest gap of any division); the Gothams were always sort of an afterthought, but won one more game than Cleveland.

#New York Gothams

We’ve got a true #1 starter and the best bullpen in the league. Seems like a good recipe for the playoffs, right?

Christy Mathewson (17-8, 3.50) will pitch as many games as he can, and the Gothams will turn to Carson Smith (3-0, 2.05) and the superlative Mike Norris (4-4, 1.47) to get the ball to Brian Wilson (2-0, 2.13 with 29 saves). Beyond Matty, Gaylord Perry (9-10, 4.27) has been solid and they’ll try to find some mix of Don Sutton, Juan Marichal, and Rube Waddell for the rest.

Two additions (veteran Joe Adcock and OF George Van Haltren) have rounded out New York’s offense, adding some support for Willie Mays (322/384/516), Buster Posey (319/397/462), and Johnny Callison (304/352/543). It’s an offense that gets a lot of hits, but lacks power: Mays and Will Clark led the team with 24 homeruns, but most of Clark’s came with Miami. Callison and Jimmy Sheckard hit 20 each, but really that’s it.

Still, there aren’t really any bad hitters until you get all the way down to SS Eugenio Suárez, and his OPS is just under .700. Pete Runnels has been out of his mind since coming to the Gothams, with an OPS over .900, and could really be the key to their postseason success.

Callison’s return from injury as well as Benny Kauff‘s fantastic WBL debut at the end of the season (a 1.2o2 OPS over 20+ AB) forces LHP Vean Gregg off the playoff roster, and left the Gothams with an interesting tactical choice between defensive SS sub Brandon Crawford and IF Johan Camargo, who can play both 2B and SS, albeit mediocrely. They ended up going with Camargo for the first series.

#Cleveland Spiders

The Spiders are a good team, and Tris Speaker‘s explosion on the scene makes them better. But they are also a pretty thin team all around.

Pat Malone (17-8, 3.84), Bill Steen (13-3, 2.93), and Cy Young (11-10, 4.36) are a solid opening trio, and either Mel Harder or Stan Coveleski will cover behind them. The trio of Chuck Porter, Cory Gearrin, and Terry Adams (38 saves) has been great on the back end. But Ron Reed–an all-star with Philadelphia–has been a large disappointment with the Spiders, and the rest of the bullpen is very unknown.

The offense has been carried all year by Ron Blomberg, with strong support from Jake Stahl, John Ellis, Johnny Bates and Louis Santop. Bates, Ellis, and Stahl all have OPS in the .800s. Blomberg leads the team with 44 homeruns, 125 RBIs, and 109 runs. But only Stahl (26) and Ellis (21) have over 20 dingers, and Stahl, with 85 RBI and 83 R shows just how far behind Blomberg the rest of the offense has been.

Enter Speaker, who was injured for most of the year, and then stuck behind Kenny Lofton in CF. In just under 100 PA, Speaker is slashing 372/443/616, giving the Spiders a true second offensive threat. Also of note, while Lance Berkman‘s overall .744 OPS isn’t much to look at, his OPS with Cleveland is at .800, a significant difference.

The left side of the IF continues to be a challenge: Arky Vaughan has brought his glove with him since the trade that brought him over from Homestead, but his bat remains missing and Sammy Strang does little more at third than get on base (his .370 OBP is 4th on the team, but his .705 OPS is well towards the bottom of the list).

#Prediction

Gothams in 6. Their bullpen carries it for me.

Series XXXII Best Games

By mknn

On May 22, 2023

In Featured Games

This series we have a few more well-pitched games than usual, a contest between 2 imploding bullpens, and a few walk-offs.

Indianapolis ABCs @ New York Gothams, Game 2

The ABC’s were held scoreless by the Gothams for 14 innings, with Christy Mathewson combining with 3 relievers on a 10-hit shutout in Game 1 and Gaylord Perry holding Indianapolis scoreless through 5 innings in Game 2.

The ABC’s starter, Willie Mitchell, gave up 4 runs in the 1st, including a 2 run homerun by Willie Mays, but he settled down well from there. Indianapolis finally scored in the top of the 6th on a 3 run shot from Jake Stenzel. Another New York run made it 5-3 heading into the 9th when Dave Henderson and Edd Roush delivered RBI hits to tie the game.

But Indianapolis’ Francisco Cordero couldn’t hold on, surrendering a double to the red hot Pete Runnels and a walk-off single to Buster Posey.

IND 5 (Cordero 0-2) @ NYG 6 (Nen 3-4, 2 B Sv; Gregg 1 H)
HRs: IND – Stenzel (10); NYG – Mays (21).
Box Score

Detroit Wolverines @ New York Black Yankees, Game 2

This is a key series, as the Black Yankees try to make a late season pennant charge.

New York’s bullpen collapsing is old news; Detroit’s imploding is not.

Both starters–New York’s Waite Hoyt and Detroit’s Hal Newhouser–did well enough. But the Black Yankees’ Dick Tidrow gave up RBI knocks to Hank Greenberg and Chili Davis in the 7th, putting the Wolverines up, 4-2. But Chad Bradford gave it right back as Tom Herr drove in 2 to tie the game.

The 8th inning was more of the same: Goose Gossage gave up an RBI to Ty Cobb to send Detroit in front, but Mickey Lolich and Matt Anderson gave up 2 runs in the bottom of the frame, the first on a solo shot from Mike Schmidt, the second on an RBI double from Manny Sanguillén.

And then we hit the one, and perhaps the most important, bright spot in the Black Yankees’ bullpen: recent acquisition Aroldis Chapman has been essentially lights out, and here, despite putting the tying run on base, he closed out the game for a victory for the Black Yankees.

Detroit lost Tony Phillips for a few days, and were forced to put him on the DL to keep some infield flexibility with Jimmy Collins being recalled from AAA.

DET 5 (Anderson 1-3; Bradford 1 B Sv) @ NYY 6 (Citarella 4-6; Chapman 6 Sv)
HRs: DET – none; NYY – Schmidt (19).
Box Score

Brooklyn Royal Giants @ Homestead Grays, Game 2 & 3

These two games followed similar arcs. Both featured a great 7 innings by Homestead’s starter (Francisco Liriano in the first game, Bob Friend in the second). In the first game, powered by a Josh Gibson homerun, the Grays took a 5-1 lead into the 9th inning; in the second, backed by a grand slam from Chief Wilson, the Grays led 6-1 heading into the 9th.

But, oh those 9th innings.

In game 1, Brooklyn torched Josh Lindblom for a 2-run double from Beals Becker and a 3-run homer from Matt Holliday (the first of his WBL career) to take a 6-5 lead. Homestead responded in this one, with Rick Reichardt sending a walkoff shot into the stands with Andy Van Slyke on base for the Grays to pull out a victory.

The second game was far weirder.

Carlos Zambrano got 2 quick outs to start the 9th and then … Holliday reached on an error by Homestead’s SS, Frank Taveras. Frank Isbell walked and Zambrano plunked Ray Dandridge to load the bases, bringing in Cliff Lee. Lee walked Becker to force in a run, then hit Duke Snider to force in another. Lee was replaced by Michael Jackson, who threw grease on the fire the old fashioned way, by giving up a bases-clearing double to Ron Cey. All told, and all with 2 outs, the Royal Giants scored 5 times on 1 hit, 3 walks, 2 HBPs, and an error.

Becker would single in the winning run in the top of the 10th.

Willie Stargell had 5 hits across the 2 games.

BRK 6 (Clark 3-4, 7 B Sv) @ HOM 7 (Jackson 3-2; Lindblom 5 B Sv)
HRs: BRK – Holliday (1); HOM – Gibson (7), Reichardt (24).
Box Score

BRK 7 (Gagne 5-5; Hildenberger 2 Sv) @ HOM 6 (Jackson 3-3, 3 B Sv) [10 Innings]
HRs: BRK – none; HOM – Wilson (9), Reichardt (25).
Box Score

Houston Colt 45’s @ Memphis Red Sox, Game 4

Memphis’ Dean Chance had a great start, allowing 1 run in just under 7 innings. But it was nothing like Toad Ramsey‘s effort for Houston. Ramsey had his knuckleball dancing, carrying a 2-hit shutout into the 9th inning, but Memphis managed to touch him for a game-tying run when Ted Williams doubled home Reggie Smith with 2 outs.

Ramsey allowed the 1 run on 3 hits through 9 innings, but wasn’t part of the decision. Four hits in the 11th gave Houston a 4-1 lead, and Tug McGraw–who is still sporting an ERA of 0.00 in his WBL career–closed it out. Craig Biggio had 3 hits and Jeff Bagwell and Tony Gwynn 2 each for Houston.

HOU 4 (Qualls 1-1) @ MEM 1 (Farrell 2-4) [11 Innings]
HRs: none.
Box Score