Tag: Gaylord Perry Page 3 of 4

TWIWBL 24.14: Mid-Season Reviews – New York Gothams

On March 31, 2022

Summary

For a team that still feels like it’s putting it all together, the Gothams are doing very well–first place in the Bill James Division and 8 games over .500.

What’s Gone Right

Dynamic Duo. Willie Mays and Buster Posey look to be the heart of this franchise for years to come, with OPS’ nearing 1.000 and solid defense to boot.

Help From Below. The performances of Yasiel Puig and, especially, Wes Westrum, have been fantastic, and unexpected. Westrum actually has the highest OPS on the team (a SLG over .750 will do that) and Puig is solidly in the mid .800’s. John Kerins has been solid as well.

The Back End. Brian Wilson, Carson Smith, and Mike Norris have been great shutting down teams at the end of games.

What’s Gone Wrong

Mound Mediocrity. Christy Mathewson eats innings. Sad Sam Jones has been decent, and both Gaylord Perry and Juan Marichal a little more than that. But a team hoping to go far in the postseason needs more than that.

Not So Long Ball. There’s not a lot of homerun power here, once you get past Mays and Posey (and, in limited at-bats, Westrum). Much of the blame falls on Willie McCovey, who may lose his starting spot.

Reserve Infielders. I mean, they’ve been fine but I’m looking for 3 things, so … the performances of Mark Loretta and Brandon Crawford leave a bit to be desired.

Key Storylines

The biggest question is if the Gothams can keep on keeping on? Right now, it looks like they will go as far as the duo of Mays and Posey will take them. That said, the Gothams do need a pitcher or two to step up on the staff–two of Mathewson, Marichal, and Perry need to emerge as a legitimate front of the rotation for them to go far.

Puig is unlikely to keep up his current level of performance, but there are some players who are likely to improve (Carl Furillo, Johnny Callison), so that may even out.

Trading Outlook

BUYING, if they can, but it’s not really clear where the pieces are they can offer.

AAA Shuttle

It’s been a key part of their success: Puig, Kerins, and Westrum have all excelled, and Crawford seems to have solidified the backup SS role.

Midseason Changes

Mickey Welch and Mat Latos move down to AAA with Pete Donohue taking Welch’s spot in the rotation. Bob Moose comes up.

Awards

All Stars: Willie Mays (CF); Buster Posey (C); Brian Wilson (P).

Offensive MVP: Willie Mays (OF)
Pitching MVP: Juan Marichal (SP)

Down on the Farm

AAA: Hartford Dark Blues

Next to the Show: P Edwin Jackson, OF Benny Kauff, C Dick Dietz, OF Jo-Jo Moore

Prospects: None.

Projects: P Willie Banks (26), OF Benny Kauff (27), OF Jo-Jo Moore (26), C Dick Dietz (28).

Suspects: P Liván Hernández (29), SS Chico Carrasquel (28), Dan Johnson (35)

AA: Troy Trojans

Prospects: P Lew Krausse, Jr. (21), OFs Don Mueller & Mike Shannon (both 22)

Projects: C Steve O’Neill (21)

Suspects: OF Johnny Rucker (24).

Series XVII Featured Game: Birmingham Black Barons @ Houston Colt 45’s

By mknn

On December 8, 2021

In Featured Games, Game Recaps

We’re going to focus on the usual see-saw affair, this one between the Birmingham Black Barons and Houston’s Colt 45‘s, pitting Birmingham’s Tim Hudson against Houston’s Stephen Strasburg.

It’s an interesting matchup: Hudson was seen as pretty washed-up, but the 36-year old has posted a 5-0 record with an ERA in the mid 2.00’s, and could begin appearing on league leaderboards within a few starts. Strasburg, on the other hand, has shown great promise at only 23, but has yet to harness his potential, posting a 2-4 record with an ERA in the low 4.00’s.

The two hurlers were at the top of their game, and we saw a scoreless contest into the bottom of the 5th when a solo homerun from Jim O’Rourke gave Houston a 1-0 lead. Houston missed a chance to double their lead when HR Johnson missed on a suicide squeeze attempt, leaving Craig Biggio to be easy pickings at home.

The Black Barons would finally touch Strasburg in the top of the 7th, when Hank Aaron launched a 2 run homerun, scoring Curtis Granderson to put Birmingham in front. They would add another run in the 8th, scoring against Mark Melancon when an RBI single from Tom Herr plated Omar Infante for a 3-1 lead, and then another in the 9th when Eddie Mathews took Melancon deep.

So. 4-1 Birmingham. But Hudson was gassed at this point after a marvelous effort: 8 innings, 5 hits, and only the single run allowed. But, Birmingham’s closer, Carlos Díaz, wasn’t an option. So the Black Barons turned to Harley Young to close the door.

It went OK at first: Jim Wynn led off the bottom of the 9th with a single, but Johnson grounded out, and after consecutive singles loaded the bases, Lance Berkman struck out. So, bases loaded, 2 outs.

Young gave up an RBI single to Jorge Posada, prompting Birmingham to bring in hard-throwing Steve Bedrosian … who promptly surrendered a walk-off, grand-slam, homerun to Casey Stengel.

Melancon, who did not pitch very well, improved his record to a stunning 7-1 out of the bullpen, while Birmingham ended up with nothing to show for Hudson’s great effort.

Granderson had 2 hits for Birmingham, while Jeff Bagwell and Tony Gwynn had 2 each for Houston.

BBB 4 (Young 0-4; Bedrosian 2 BSv) @ HOU 6 (Melancon 7-1)
HRs: BBB – Aaron (11), Mathews (11); HOU – O’Rourke (5), Stengel (6).
Box Score

Other Noteworthy Games

The Ottawa Mounties turned to Gary Peters, freshly back from AAA, to take on Ned Garvin of the Baltimore Black Sox, who is making an argument for the best pitcher in the WBL at the moment: this certainly seemed like a mismatch. But it was Ottawa, perhaps enlivened by the return of Larry Walker from the DL, who held the lead, 4-3, heading into the 9th. Curt Blefary turned it around with a 2-run shot, Brian Roberts added another RBI, and while they gave up a run in the bottom of the frame, Baltimore’s bullpen held on.

BBB 6 (Miller 2-0, 1 BSv; Bessent 8 Sv) @ OTT 5 (Bowsfield 2-1, 1 BSv; Dempster 2 H; Leroux 1 H)
HRs: BBB – Blefary (19).
Box Score

A 6-run Homestead comeback in the bottom of the 8th, keyed by homeruns from Tom Brown and Rick Reichardt, went for naught as Yasiel Puig hit his third homerun of the day in the 9th inning to give the New York Gothams the win. Puig tied the league record for homeruns in a game and picked up 6 RBIs, while Mike Epstein and Reichardt each had 3 hits for the Grays. While note involved in the decision, the Gothams’ Gaylord Perry was fantastic through 5 innings, allowing only 1 unearned run.

NYG 8 (Wilson 1-0) @ HOM 7 (Jackson 2-2, 1 BSv)
HRs: NYG – Puig 3 (6), Rojas (1); HOM – Brown (1), Reichardt (9).
Box Score

When the Los Angeles Angels closed out their series against the San Francisco Sea Lions, they were looking to salvage a series split and, perhaps as importantly, to find out more about what they have in young Nolan Ryan, who has been a bit erratic since moving into the starting rotation. Ryan delivered a typical “good” performance for him: 5 innings, 2 hits (but 7 walks), and no runs. San Francisco’s Eddie Plank turned in another strong start, going 7.2 innings allowing only 2 runs. So the Angels took a 2-1 lead into the 9th. And then the wheels fell off for both teams: Los Angeles rocked Ron Robinson for four runs, the key hit being a 2-out, bases loaded triple from Doug Rader. But two of the Angels better bullpen arms–Jonny Venters and closer Joe Nathan–couldn’t hold it, with Mickey Cochrane, who seems perpetually on the verge of being sent to AAA, ending the contest with a walk-off 3 run homerun.

LAA 6 (Nathan 3-4, 4 BSv; Galvin 1 H; Rodríguez 6 H; Venters 8 H) @ SFS 7 (Robinson 4-1)
HRs: SFS – Cochrane (5).
Box Score

Series XIV Preview: Birmingham Black Barons @ New York Gothams

By mknn

On September 10, 2021

In Featured Series, Series Previews

We last focused on the Birmingham Black Barons in Series III and on the New York Gothams in Series II.

Since then, their fortunes have diverged significantly, with Birmingham 12 games back in the Marvin Miller Division at 22-32 and the Gothams only 1/2 game behind Los Angeles in the Bill James Division at 28-25.

So we go into this series expecting a dominant performance from the Gothams.

#Birmingham Black Barons

The bright spots are, as you may guess from their record, few and far between.

Offensively, the story of the year has to be 2B Tom Herr, who has come out of nowhere to lead the team regulars in all 3 categories of his 348/384/464 slash line. Other than Herr, there are some reasons for optimism, as Pie Traynor, Bob Nieman, Del Crandall, and Al Schweitzer have all hit well in very limited opportunities (Crandall and Traynor are recent recalls from AAA, Schweitzer has just returned from the DL).

Eddie Mathews has 9 homeruns to lead the team, while Hank Aaron has 28 RBIs.

Herr has a parallel on the mound, where Tim Hudson has moved from AAA into the rotation, going 4-0 with a 2.51 ERA, although in under 30 innings (3 relief appearances and 3 starts). Scott Baker leads the team in wins at 5-3, but has an ERA over 5. Alejandro Pena, with a 4-4 record and a 3.76 ERA, has probably been Birmingham’s most dependable starter.

#New York Gothams

The Gothams’ offense revolves around Buster Posey (347/433/568) and Willie Mays (354/408/561), but the surprise of the season is probably SS Eugenio Suarez, who continues to hit for power, at 304/349/506 on the season. Posey and Mays have 9 homeruns each, with Mays leading the team with 46 RBIs.

Two minor league callups have been impactful, with Wes Westrum (318/375/727) taking over the backup C role behind Posey and Yasiel Puig becoming a nearly everyday player, with an OPS just under .800.

The starting pitching has been a little uneven: while Juan Marichal (6-1), Mickey Welch (5-2), and Christy Mathewson (5-5) have a lot of victories, they all have pretty high ERA’s. New York’s best starter has probably been Sad Sam Jones, who is 3-3, but has an ERA of 3.49.

The bullpen has been excellent, with Mike Norris (2-1, 1 Sv, 3 H, 1.91 ERA) and Robb Nen (4 Sv) setting up Brian Wilson, who has 6 saves and a 2.40 ERA.

#Series Matchups

Birmingham’s projected starter first: Scott Baker (5-3, 5.08 ERA) @ Sad Sam Jones (3-3, 3.49 ERA); Dick Rudolph (3-4, 4.52 ERA) @ Christy Mathewson (5-5, 4.96 ERA); Tim Hudson (4-0, 2.51 ERA) @ Mickey Welch (5-2, 6.04 ERA); Sam Streeter (2-3, 5.00 ERA) @ Gaylord Perry (2-4, 3.56 ERA).

You have to think the Gothams will take this series, with a sweep a distinct possibility.

TWIWBL 12.1: Series X Notes – Bill James Division

By mknn

On July 21, 2021

In TWIWBL

#Detroit Wolverines

Johnny Marcum‘s return to the rotation was a good sign for Detroit fans. Marcum combined with Mickey Lolich, Kevin Hart, and Mike Henneman, allowing 6 hits and 1 run in a 2-1 victory over Brooklyn. Marcum improved to 3-1, with Henneman picking up his 7th save.

All 7 of the Wolverines’ hits came from Tony Phillips (3) and Ty Cobb and Hank Greenberg (2 each).

Hank Aguirre will be on the DL for at least a 10 days, forcing the Wolverines into another change in their starting rotation. Buddy Napier was recalled from AAA to take Aguirre’s roster spot.

#Los Angeles Angels

Doc Gooden, Nolan Ryan, Jonny Venters, and Joe Nathan combined on a 5-hit shutout and Derrek Lee broke open a scoreless game with a 2-run double as the Angels triumphed over Chicago, 3-0. Gooden allowed only 2 hits in 4 innings before a rain delay forced him out of the game, a very positive sign for the struggling, young righthander.

Gerrit Cole joined the WBL’s group of 6 game winners with 7 innings of 4-hit, 1-run pitching against Chicago. Chuck Finley and Nathan finished the game off, with Cole’s record now 6-2 and Nathan picking up his 5th save. The difference in the game was Kal Daniels‘ 3rd homerun.

#Memphis Red Sox

During an 11-3 loss to the Gothams, Nomar Garciaparra was injured in a collision at home plate, and will miss at least a week. Wayne Causey was recalled from AA for infield depth.

#New York Gothams

4 hits from Willie Mays and 4 RBIs from Carl Furillo led the Gothams to an 11-3 win over Memphis, with a strong start from Juan Marichal moving the right-hander to 3-1 on the year.

Helped by back-to-back homeruns from Mays and Johnny Callison and 5 double plays, the Gothams rolled to a 9-2 victory in the second game of the series. Mickey Welch pitched 6 solid innings to improve to 4-1 and Al Mays earned his first save with 3 scoreless innings in relief.

Gaylord Perry‘s first start didn’t go so well. Then, Christy Mathewson was called into the game to replace an injured Carson Smith, who was put on the DL. All of that made the Gothams look for an SP to recall from AAA, and they settled on Buck O’Brien. Pete Donohue looks better right now, but after a recent start, Donohue would be unavailable for use for a few days, a luxury New York cannot afford.

#Wandering House of David

Closer Tom Niedenfuer, who’s been excellent all season, will miss about 3 months with shoulder inflammation. Bruce Sutter is likely to take over as closer with Phil Regan being recalled from AAA.

TWIWBL 11.1: Series IX Notes – Bill James Division

By mknn

On July 11, 2021

In TWIWBL

#Detroit Wolverines

Hank Aguirre had pitched well all season, but had only a 1-3 record to show for it. Here, he combined with Mike Henneman on a 3-hit shutout of Houston, figuring the only way to win was to ensure the opposition didn’t score. Hank Greenberg was 1-for-3 with 2 RBIs in the 3-0 victory.

Si Johnson lasted less than 2 innings before leaving his start injured, but it was long enough to give up 5 runs and take the loss in a game the Wolverines dropped to Houston, 6-3. Johnson was put on the 10 day DL after the game, with Mickey Lolich called up to Detroit to take his place and Johnny Marcum taking Johnson’s place in the rotation.

Tom Brookens‘ stay in Detroit was short, but going hitless in 15 ABs will do that. The 33-year old veteran was out of options, so the Wolverines waived him, freeing up a spot on their 40-man roster as well. 1B Greg Brock was recalled, adding some power to their bench.

#Los Angeles Angels

Armando Benitez made 4 appearances for the Angels, none of them good. He’ll be given another 12 games to see if there’s anything worth salvaging–having made it clear he’s unwilling to go to the minors, the Angels will then be faced with the choice of releasing or trading Benitez.

#Memphis Red Sox

Where did that come from? Nothing Eddie Cicotte had done yet indicated ha had this in him: 7.1 innings of shutout, 6-hit ball against Chicago, easily the hottest offense in the league. Mookie Betts, Ted Williams, Vern Stephens, and Bill White all went deep as the Red Sox eased to a 10-0 win. Williams was 3-for-4 with 3 runs and Betts was 3-for-4 with 4 RBIs.

Pete Runnels was moved to AAA, with Claude Richey being recalled. 1B George Scott would have joined Runnels, but refused the demotion, potentially signaling the end of Boomer’s time with the Red Sox.

#New York Gothams

Despite walking 3 in the top of the 9th, Sad Sam Jones tossed a complete game, 4-hit shutout against the mighty Black Yankees. Jones moved to 2-3 on the year, with the key hit being a 2-run homerun by Eugenio Suarez. Willie Mays added 3 hits for the Gothams.

Al Mays‘ recent struggle cost him his rotation spot, with Gaylord Perry taking his place.

#Wandering House of David

C.C. Sabathia spun a 5-hit shutout against Brooklyn to raise his record to 5-2. The Royal Giants’ Don Drysedale–who gave up a grand slam to Ernie Banks in the first inning before delivering a very Drysedalesque performance–lost his first game of the year. Banks, George Stone, Pete Browning, and Mark McGwire each had 2 hits for the House of David.

Gabby Hartnett and Frank Grant were both sent to AAA (sub .500 OPS will do that), with Frank Chance being promoted to serve as Elrod Hendricks‘ backup at catcher. The House of David reached down to AA for Grant’s replacement, recalling Bunny Downs, who had been hitting 360/436/472 for Albuquerque.

TWIWBL 3.0: Series II – Brooklyn Royal Giants @ New York Gothams

By mknn

On September 11, 2020

In TWIWBL

This time up, we’re heading for a Subway Series between the Brooklyn Royal Giants (4-1) and the New York Gothams (3-2).

Brooklyn may be better built for the future than this year. A lot of their success will depend on how a pair of youngsters, 21 year old Dutch Leonard and 20 year old Don Drysedale, do in the starting rotation. Roy White and Duke Snider look solid offensively, but any team with 2 Spring Training insertions in the regular lineup (2B Davey Lopes and RF Raul Mondesi) is taking a lot of risk.

The Gothams, on the other hand, could be contenders this year. Christy Mathewson anchors what should be a deep pitching staff, and especially if Buster Posey continues to produce at an all-league level, a lineup with the 2 Willie‘s–Mays and McCovey–should score some runs.

The first game matched up the aces, as Leonard faced off against Mathewson. Leonard was fantastic in his first start; in this one, not so much as New York rocked him for 9 runs in 5.2 IP. Mays paced a 17 hit attack for the Gothams, going 4 for 5. Most of the damage was in the 3rd, when the Gothams scored 5 runs with Art Fletcher driving in 2 runs with a 1-out double. Newly acquired 2B Cookie Rojas chipped in with 3 hits, 2 runs, and 2 RBI’s, allowing New York to overcome a mediocre start by Mathewson that saw him surrender 4 runs in 6 IP. Still, it was enough: New York got the win 12-5 and both pitchers leveled their records at 1-1.

New York was on the verge of taking a 2-0 lead in the series, taking a 5-3 lead in the bottom of the 8th on 4 consecutive singles from Rojas, Eugenio Suarez, Mark Loretta, and Posey. Ron Cey singled to lead off the 9th for Brooklyn, bringing in Gotham’s closer, Brian Wilson. After a walk to Jim Delahanty, Wilson gave up a 2 run double to White, sending us into extra innings. It remained scoreless until the 15th inning, when Cey and Dickie Thon managed to drive in runs. Brooklyn closer Watty Clark pitched the final 4 innings, giving up only 1 hit and earning the victory, 7-5. The loss went to New York’s Mike Norris, who was tagged for those final 2 runs in 3.2 IP of relief.

With the series tied 1-1, game 3 saw Brooklyn’s Don Sutton taking the mound against New York’s Sad Sam Jones. A solo HR in the top of the 5th by Brooklyn’s Beals Becker increased the Royal Giants’ lead to 3-1, but the Gothams would tie the game in the bottom of the 6th and put it away in the bottom of the 8th behind a 3-run HR from Wally Berger. Robb Nen got the 7-3 win with Marcel Lachemann picking up the save and Smokey Joe Williams was tagged with the loss.

Brooklyn rode a great start from Drysedale to even the series at 2-2. He gave up 8 hits and only 1 run in 8 IP, which was plenty as the Brooklyn offense tallied 9 runs against losing pitcher Juan Marichal and reliever Gaylord Perry. Drysdale moved to 2-0 on the year with the 9-1 victory, and White led the way for Brooklyn, with 4 hits in 5 at-bats, totaling 3 2Bs, 2 runs, and 2 RBIs. Dan Brouthers added his 2nd HR of the year, and Becker continued his hot streak with 3 hits.

So, a split series, which has to be more encouraging for Brooklyn than the Gothams. White was the key for the Royal Giants, amassing 12 hits–8 of which were doubles–in the series and raising his BA to .425 on the young season.

TWIWBL 2.1: Notes From The Opening 5 Games

By mknn

On September 4, 2020

In TWIWBL

All 20 teams opened with 5 game series this week. Some notes from around the league.

First, the WBL Player of the Week went to Indianapolis’ Hal Morris, Morris did hit 450/476/1000 with 3 HRs and 8 RBIs. Still, Lou Gehrig of the New York Black Yankees (538/600/1154, 2 HRs, 6 RBIs) and the Portland Sea Dog’s Buddy Bell (412/444/1059 with 3 HRs) had to deserve significant consideration as well.

#Birmingham Black Barons

SP Fred Fussell and DH Emil Frisk will both miss about a month with injuries to start the season, with Greg Maddux returning to the WBL to replace Fussell.

The Black Barons’ starter’s ERA of 11.84 is the biggest contributor to their 0-5 start to the season.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Dutch Leonard tossed a 5 hit shutout in his 1st start of the year, and teammates Don Drysdale and Brickyard Kennedy only allowed 1 run in their starts, leading the Royal Giants to a 4-1 start. Dickie Thon–handed the starting SS role despite not playing in Spring Training–hasn’t embarrassed himself, hitting .250 so far.

#Chicago American Giants

Ticky Nichols threw a 3 hit shutout on 111 pitches to start the season.

#Cleveland Spiders

With John Ellis out about a week, the Spiders sent Hardie Henderson to AAA and recalled Harry Bemis to spell Andy Etchebarren at C. Ellis is still on the active roster, but Detroit has a league-leading 7 players on the DL, but Whit Wyatt, Doug Corbett, and Bill Steen should all be back within about a week.

#Detroit Wolverines

OF Oscar Gamble was hot out of the gates, with 3 HRs and 7 RBIs in the 1st 5 games. Hal Newhouser lasted less than 2 innings before his elbow gave out, sidelining him for a couple weeks. With Claude Passeau also injured, it’s not clear who will get Newhouser’s starts between Gene Conley, Johnny Marcum, and Justin Verlander.

#Kansas City Monarchs

Stan Musial is as hot as any player in the league, opening the season at a 455/500/773 clip. Jose Rijo fanned 10 in 8 IP in a strong 1st start.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Camilo Pascual only allowed 3 hits in 8.2 IP in a strong opening start for the Cuban Giants.

#New York Black Yankees

Eric Davis leads the league with 11 RBI. Both Willie Randolph and Mike Schmidt are still looking for the 1st hits on the season.

#New York Gothams

It’s been a rough 5 days to be a Gothams pitcher: Carl Hubbell is out for over a month, Carson Smith for a few weeks, and Al Mays will be out about a week. Mat Latos (freshly returned from the injury list himself), Al Spalding, and Gaylord Perry are on hand to pick up the starts.

Brian Wilson has 2 saves in the Gothams’s 3 wins.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Mike Cuellar is the 1st 2-game winner in the league, picking up 2 victories in relief and Johan Santana leads the league with a save in each of the Sea Dogs’ 3 wins.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

Lefty Grove only gave up 3 hits and 1 run in a complete game win in his 1st start of the year. Jack Clark is hitting 417/417/750 with 10 RBI, leading the Sea Lions to a 5-0 record. Newly acquired Dick Lundy proved a sparkplug off the bench for San Francisco, even managing a steal of home in his first appearance.

Getting to 30: Bill James Division

By mknn

On August 6, 2020

In 2000 Spring Training, Team News

#Detroit Wolverines

The starting rotation looks set, with Justin Verlander and Jason Schmidt both being relegated to the bullpen for the time being. John Hiller was brought into camp to add a left hander to the bullpen, as Hal Newhouser, Whitey Wilshere, and Hank Aguirre all made the rotation. If Hiller sticks around, it will be most likely at the expense of Kevin Hart.

Promising youngsters Al Kaline and Charlie Gehringer failed to hold on to a spot in camp. Jorge Orta raised some eyebrows with his performance, but not enough to force his way into a crowded infield. The final cut at this point was Wes Covington, who was displaced from the roster by a fantastic showing from Tony Phillips.

20 year old Ty Cobb will need to impress to make the final 25, and the Wolverines would like to sort out the competition between Ray Chapman and George Davis at SS.

#Los Angeles Angels

Only two of Mike Smith, Chuck Finley, and Nolan Ryan should make the opening day roster. Similarly, the Angels will most likely break camp with only two arms in middle relief, meaning Darren Holmes and Jeurys Familia are battling for the final bullpen slot.

Andrelton Simmons beat out Kevin Elster as the reserve SS.

The other choices to get down to 30 are far more difficult. It was assumed Tim Wallach‘s power and High Pockets Kelly‘s versatility would earn them a roster spot, instead they are off to AAA, with both Mark Ellis and Doug Rader perhaps surprising many to still be in big league camp.

It has left them with fairly weak defense at 3B.

The organization is pretty thin at C, and is scouring for some depth.

#Memphis Red Sox

Luiz Gohara‘s implosion continued, and landed him in AAA. There are still a few spots up for grabs on the pitching staff, with Dean Chance and Eddie Cicotte fighting for the final long relief slot. Roger Clemens slipped into the #5 starting spot, settling the rotation, at least for now.

Closer Eddie Watt‘s injury is yet to be diagnosed, and could throw the bullpen into disarray, although both Jonathan Papelbon and Joe Beggs look capable of stepping into the role.

Truly poor performances from Claude Ritchey, Francisco Lindor, David Justice, and Dwight Evans made some decisions easy; a glut of players at 3B sent Bill Melton packing. But the final decisions were more difficult, with the failure of either Reggie Smith or Joe Kelley showing enough to claim the CF spot leading to an essential coin-flip that saw Smith stick with the big league team.

Bill White and George Scott will platoon at 1B. There is a battle in the OF between Mookie Betts and Tony Conigliaro for a final roster spot, with Betts holding the edge at this point.

#New York Gothams

Carl Hubbell‘s return from injury should setup a competition with Al Spalding for the final place in the starting rotation. Both should make the roster in what looks like a very deep pitching staff.

There are probably only 2 roster slots available for Buck O’Brien, Gaylord Perry, and Marcel Lachemann. The challenge is that all of them are pitching quite well. Matt Thornton and Aaron Loup pitched decently, but are headed to AAA. This leaves New York without a lefthanded arm on the staff aside from Hubbell, which may be an argument for him to land in the bullpen.

Bill Terry lost the battle at 1B and was sent to AAA.

The Gothams struggle from a real lack of defensive versatility, which constrains many of their roster decisions. If Benny Kauff, Art Devlin, or Brandon Crawford could play a 2nd position, they would probably still be on the roster.

#Wandering House of David

The initial cuts from the pitching staff were obvious, as 15 year old Joe Nuxhall‘s first exposure to big league camp was a disaster, and neither Kerry Wood nor Jeff Heathcock showed enough to stick around.

Tom Niedenfuer is the closer, but both Joakim Soria and especially Bruce Sutter have shown enough to handle that role as well. Veteran Dick Tidrow is getting a longer look than expected for the bullpen, and Arnold Carter may stick around as the only lefty in the pen, especially with the struggling Hector Rondon heading to AAA.

19 year old Cap Anson never found anything resembling a stride in Spring Training, and will be heading to AAA, along with Patsy Dougherty and Dave Altizer. All 3 of those had expectations of roles at the WBL level; they’ve been supplanted by Mark Grace and Anthony Rizzo at 1B, George Stone at LF, and George Gore and Jerry Mumphrey in CF.

Elrod Hendricks has seized a platoon role at C, with Frank Chance and Gabby Hartnett still fighting for their lives. They could keep both, but that would likely mean 1 of the pair of talented 20 year olds of Dick Lundy and Frank Grant would start the season at AAA.

This Week In Whirled Baseball: Spring Training Update I

By mknn

On June 30, 2020

In TWIWBL

Welcome to the very first installment of TWIWBL, 10 days into Spring Training. Each team’s individual Spring Training Preview page has been updated, and here are some highlights from around the league, focusing on injuries and performances that have shuffled depth charts.

#BALTIMORE BLACK SOX

When Bill Byrd went down, Mike Mussina was called up and his early performances have moved the 23 year old into the competition for the end of the rotation spots.

#BROOKLYN ROYAL GIANTS

Closer Watty Clark has been nearly unhittable with 3 saves in 3 chances in the Spring.

#CLEVELAND SPIDERS

CF Tris Speaker is out for several months with a torn calf muscle, throwing the Spiders OF into some chaos, and opening the door for both Larry Doby and Kenny Lofton to see more playing time.

#HOMESTEAD GRAYS

C Josh Gibson will miss most of Spring Training, but should be back for Opening Day. His absence, however, has revealed a paucity of talent at C, both at the WBL level and throughout the organization. Hobie Landrith and Blake Swihart will see some time during the Spring in support of Peaches Graham and the GM has begun scouring the land to help fill up the Grays’ roster of minor league backstops.

#INDIANAPOLIS ABC’S

Some of the best battles of the Spring are in the infield in Indianapolis, where Jake Stenzel and Johnny Bench are both hitting incredibly well at C, and there’s barely a hair’s width difference between Joe Morgan and Miller Huggins at 2B and Piggy Ward and Ed Charles at 3B.

#MEMPHIS RED SOX

With projected front of rotation SPs Sadie McMahon, Roger Clemens, and Nixey Callahan all posting ERA’s over 8, and Jon Lester‘s 7.00 ERA the best of other options, the starting rotation is a mess in Kansas City. Luckily, they’re only 10 games in.

#NEW YORK BLACK YANKEES

One thing is constant in the WBL: Babe Ruth leads the league in HR, with 5 in 9 games. He, Mickey Mantle, Eric Davis, and Aaron Judge may be the best 4 man OF in the league.

#NEW YORK GOTHAMS

The trio of Christy Mathewson, Gaylord Perry, and Mickey Welch are having a remarkable Spring, with 5 wins and only 5 ER in over 30 IP between them.

#SAN FRANCISCO SEA LIONS

The Sea Lions are committed to the running game, with Pete Browning and Rickey Henderson tied for the Spring league with 5.

Spring Training Preview: New York Gothams

By mknn

On June 20, 2020

In 2000 Spring Training, Team News

There’s a lot of SP depth, but perhaps 1 of Sad Sam Jones, Matt Latos, and Al Mays could force their way into the conversation.
- The Gotham pitching has been pretty remarkable all Spring, which hasn’t really clarified the situation. It has meant that Pete Donohue‘s struggle probably move them out of the rotation contenders.
  - Donohue is headed back to AAA. The 5th spot is still up for grabs, most likely between Gaylord Perry and Al Spalding, with Buck O’Brien and Mays having a shot as well.
  - Carl Hubbell should be back before the end of Spring Training, but Latos will miss opening day.
Will Clark and Willie McCovey will both make the roster, but it’s not clear which will play 1B.
- Neither McCovey nor Bill Terry are playing well, and the less said about Clark’s first 10 games, the better.
  - Terry is still struggling, but both McCovey and Clark have recovered.
2B is up for grabs between Brian Dozier and Mark Loretta.
- Not so much: Dozier is playing great and Loretta could lose the backup spot to newly recalled Larry Doyle.
The starting OF is pretty much set, but it’s not clear who between Jimmy Sheckard, Wally Berger, Carl Furillo, and Carlos Moran will make the team as reserves.
- Johnny Callison‘s struggles have opened up an opportunity in the OF, with Berger, Moran, and Furillo all playing very well.
  - George Burns is back in AAA.
SS has been remarkable productive, with Brandon Crawford, Art Fletcher, and Eugenio Suarez all knocking the cover off the ball with regularity.
- Suarez has cooled off a bit.
Pinky Higgins has seized the 3B job, with neither Art Devlin nor Ken Boyer doing much at all. Boyer, in fact, has been optioned to AAA.
John Kerins has leapfrogged Dick Dietz to be the likely backup to Buster Posey behind the plate.

	Near Definite	Likely	Possible	Long Shot
Starting Pitchers	Christy Mathewson Mickey Welch	Sad Sam Jones Juan Marichal	Gaylord Perry Al Spalding ~~Matt Latos~~ ~~Carl Hubbell~~	Al Mays Buck O'Brien
Middle Relievers		Matt Thornton Mike Norris		Aaron Loup Marcel Lachemann Sergio Romo
Setup		Robb Nen Carson Smith
Closer	Brian Wilson
C	Buster Posey	John Kerins	Dick Dietz
1B		Willie McCovey	Will Clark Bill Terry
2B		Brian Dozier	Mark Loretta	Larry Doyle
3B		Pinky Higgins	Art Devlin
SS		Art Fletcher Brandon Crawford	Eugenio Suarez
OF	Willie Mays Wally Berger	Benny Kauff Carl Furillo Carlos Moran	Johnny Callison Jimmy Sheckard	Ben Oglive