Overall

The best record in baseball, 3 dominant rookies, the AL Brock Rutherford Award winner, the electric leader in steals, the best closer in the league … and a crushing defeat in the Whirled Series.

Welcome to San Francisco, where the question is, how to continue with the success and bring home the ultimate prize of the championship.

The Sea Lions, it must be said, are in good shape: there is so much talent here, and so much of it is young, that even some regression to the mean would leave them a very strong club.

What Went Right

Let’s start with the incandescent talent of Norman “Turkey” Stearnes, who burst onto the scene with a 1.151 OPS, 51 homeruns, and 125 RBIs while playing a very solid CF. Just exquisite.

Jack Clark is one of the more underrated players in the league, but he has a great eye (101 BB on the year) and impressive power (51 homers).

Reggie Jackson was a little better last year, but a 283/394/574 slash line is nothing to sneeze at (although you really do wish he would attempt to run a little less often: Jackson sits as the WBL career leader in caught stealing).

So, those are the big three, with each of them both scoring and driving in 100 runs and combining for 143 homers.

Jimmie Foxx‘s obvious power blossomed this season as the burly corner infielder launched 49 homeruns. He could benefit from more contact, but the walk rate is there and at 22, that may come.

Mickey Cochrane took over at catcher and, even before his electric defensive performance in the postseason, was among the better backstops in the league, slashing 289/371/513. Brian Downing hit even better in limited time as his backup, but probably will serve in that capacity next season.

Royce Clayton posted a .919 OPS filling in around the infield and Sal Bando, displaced by Foxx at 3B, performed well as a reserve.

Rickey Henderson stole 126 bases and, as importantly, filled out soem of his offensive game, posting an .839 OPS with a .385 OBP. Dick Lundy added 57 steals while showing some decent offensive skills.

And then we have the pitching, led by their own big three in Lefty Grove, Eddie Plank, and rookie Bump Hadley. Plank led the way with 20 wins, Hadley had the best ERA at 4.10, and Grove walked away with all the hardware in the postseason awards. A 1.15 WHIP and230 strikeouts in 209 innings will do that. The three combined for a 54-19 record on the season.

Watty Clark came over midseason and was excellent over 37 appearances including 17 starts.

Rod Beck led the WBL with 41 saves, despite occasionally being hit quite hard. Ken Howell was excellent setting him up, finishing with a 5-1 record, 6 saves, and 15 holds.

Tim Hudson came back very strong from a long term injury, posting an ERA just over 4 with excellent peripherals over 12 games, and earning a few postseason starts. At 38, it’s not clear how much Hudson has left in the tank, but this was a pleasant surprise for sure.

ALL STARS

Rod Beck
Mickey Cochrane
Lefty Grove
Bump Hadley
Ken Howell
Reggie Jackson
Eddie Plank
Turkey Stearnes

MAJOR AWARDS

Rod Beck All AL First Team; AL Phineas Flint Award
Lefty Grove All AL First Team; AL Brock Rutherford Award
Ken Howell All AL First Team
Turkey Stearnes All AL First Team; AL CF Silver Slugger; AL Rookie of the Year

RECOGNITIONS

Rod Beck AL 25 & Under Team
Jack Clark, All AL 3rd Team
Mickey Cochrane, All AL 2nd Team; AL 25 & Under Team
Jimmie Foxx, All AL 3rd Team; AL All Rookie 1st Team; AL 23 & Under Team
Frank Grant, AL All Rookie 2nd Team; AL 23 & Under Team
Bump Hadley, All AL 2nd Team; AL Rookie of the Year 3rd Place; AL Brock Rutherford Award 2nd Place; AL All Rookie 1st Team; AL 25 & Under Team; AL 23 & Under Team
Ken Howell, AL 25 & Under Team
Reggie Jackson, All AL 3rd Team
Dick Lundy, All AL 3rd Team
Joe Nathan, AL Phineas Flint Award 2nd Place
Eddie Plank, All AL 2nd Team
Turkey Stearnes, AL All Rookie 1st Team; AL 25 & Under Team; ; AL 23 & Under Team

ORGANIZATIONAL AWARDS

Turkey Stearnes, MVP
Eddie Plank, Pitcher of the Year
Jack Clark, Heart & Soul
Rickey Henderson, Fan Favorite

Red Ehret, Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Josh Reddick, Minor League Player of the Year

What Went Wrong

2B was a bit of a mess for most of the year: Jimmy Bloodworth was awful, Phil Garner is a decent utility player, but not much more than that, and Frank Grant struggled to adopt to life in San Francisco after his trade, although he is clearly the future here.

The middle of the bullpen was a bit of a slog, with Huston Street and, especially, Dennis Eckersley struggling more than succeeding, although Street seemed to pick it up after Nathan’s arrival shifted him down the pecking order.

And … yeah … that’s about it. Best record in baseball and all that.

Transactions

March

OF Pedro Guerrero to BRK for P Watty Clark & OF Matt Holliday.

Looks good for San Francisco, as Guerrero has struggled and Clark should be with the WBL team next year.

July

IF John Beckwith to HOD for IF Frank Grant.

They may regret this one, as, at only 19, Beckwith hits the ball as hard as anyone in baseball. But Grant is only 21 and fills a clear and present need, so it seems fine.

August

IF Eddie Miller & IF Freddie Freeman to LAA for P Joe Nathan, IF Wally Joyner, & 1st Round Pick.

It seems solid enough: Nathan makes the Sea Lions’ bullpen stronger, and Freeman for the 1st rounder feels equitable enough long term. Helps both teams, for sure.

Positional Overview

C

This should be Mickey Cochrane for a while, with Brian Downing being brought in as the backup next season. There’s not a lot of talent in the system, so hopefully those two can stay healthy.

1B

At some point, this may become an issue, as Jimmie Foxx really is better suited for 1B than 3B, but for now, Jack Clark reigns, with Foxx filling in.

Wally Joyner and Sid Bream are available as needed as well.

2B

The Sea Lions gave up a lot for Frank Grant, now he needs to produce. The team is pretty confident he will, with Phil Garner on hand as a reserve infielder.

There is some talent in the system here: Jack Farrell, Ron Hunt, and Dario Lodigiani all have some talent, and last year’s incumbent, Jimmy Bloodworth, is still bouncing around.

SS

Dick Lundy has this locked down, offering a rare mixture of speed, defense, and occasional power.

Royce Clayton‘s performance has earned him a hard look, although his lack of versatility is a thing. Bill Sweeney and Jed Lowrie are options as well if needed.

3B

The Sea Lions have a lot of talent here. The starting role is obviously Foxx’s, but Sal Bando is an excellent option. Bando is expendable if the right offer came along as others, including Wayne Gross, Denny Walling, and Don Money could also serve as Foxx’s backup.

LF/RF

With CF settled, the corner spots are a bit congested between Rickey Henderson, Reggie Jackson, and Bobby Bonds. Henderson has a firm lock on LF, and Jackson and Bonds will probably share RF and DH duties, as neither of them are spectacular defensively.

The Sea Lions’ Minor League Player of the Year, Josh Reddick, could figure in here, as could Matt Holliday, Eddie Murphy, or the slugging behemoth that is Frank Howard.

CF

Assuming Turkey Stearnes doesn’t succumb to the sophomore slump, the job is his for a long time.

Lots of players can fill in here, but in terms of true CFers, only Del Unser and Mookie Wilson catch the eye in the system.

DH

A mix of Foxx, Jackson, and Bonds should be more than sufficient here.

SP

This is pretty much set, certainly with the trio of Lefty Grove, Eddie Plank, and Bump Hadley leading the way. Watty Clark showed enough to be projected as the 4th starter, leaving some competition between Tom Brewer, Tim Hudson, Tommy Bridges, and Mel Stottlemyre Sr. Veterans Nick Altrock and Cy Falkenberg and the Minor League Pitcher of the Year, Red Ehret may be given a look as well.

At lower levels, Charlie Ferguson and Jair Jurrjens have both showed some promise.

RP

The back end has the potential to be devastating, with Joe Nathan and Ken Howell setting up Rod Beck. That only gets better if Ron Robinson is able to make a clean return form injury or if Huston Street can develop a bit more consistency.

Draft Outlook

DRAFT PICKS

1st Round: 2
2nd Round: 1
3rd Round: 0
4th Round: 1
5th Round: 1

What do you get the team that has everything? That’s right, 2 first round picks. Especially with the sudden departure of Jules Thomas, the cupboard is a bit bare, so this will be a restocking exercise for the Sea Lions.

Overall

This is a franchise in a bit of crisis, struggling to figure out how to build a team around not one, but two, legitimate MVP candidates in Mike Trout and Kal Daniels. Right now, though, that’s all the Angels have–there is some potential on the mound, but Gerrit Cole‘s disastrous fall from last season’s heights is a reminder of how precarious that can be.

It’s just not clear how the Angels get out of the rut of mediocrity at this point, although if you squint you could convince yourself the pitching will come around and there are enough bit pieces around the two superstars–certainly the mid-season acquisition of Freddie Freeman helps in that regard.

What Went Right

Kal Daniels & Mike Trout were each incredible, combining for 79 homeruns, 81 doubles, 100 SB, 213 RBIs, and 217 runs scored. Just incredible output and with Daniels being 24 and Trout 22, the futures look bright.

Freddie Freeman finally found a home, and immediately began hitting at the same level as Daniels and Trout over about 30 games.

Carlos Delgado keeps rolling along, with the 32 year old veteran leading the team with 44 homeruns and decent secondary numbers.

Between Gene Tenace and Ron Hassey, the long nightmare at catcher may be finally solved for the Angels (but they’ve thought this before as well).

Similarly, Eddie Joost‘s power may have laid a claim to the role at SS and Bill Doran‘s bat may have earned him the 2B spot, although both need to perform well this Spring to cement those positions.

On the mound, Brett Anderson was a revelation, finishing 11-6 with a 4.34 ERA and an excellent 1.12 WHIP. Anderson made 31 starts and seems a lock to lead the rotation.

Doc Gooden was better than an 11-11 pitcher. His floor is a 180+ innings eater, and his ceiling is much, much higher.

Roy Patterson and Ross Reynolds were totally unheralded coming into the season and each were excellent, with Patterson likely moving into the rotation next season. Similarly, Julio Teheran, used in relief all year, may be asked to join the starters.

Elmer Smith hit poorly and pitched better than his 4-5, 6.45 numbers would indicate. He has a semi-realistic shot at contributing both on the mound and in LF. But now we’re moving into what didn’t go badly as opposed to what went well.

ALL STARS

Bobby Grich (subsequently traded)
Doc Gooden

MAJOR AWARDS

Ichiro Suzuki: AL RF Gold Glove

RECOGNITIONS

Brett Anderson, All AL 3rd Team; AL 23 & Under Team
Kal Daniels, All AL 2nd Team; AL All-Rounder 2nd Place
AJ Pierzynski, AL Rookie 2nd Team of the Year
Ross Reynolds, All AL 2nd Team; AL Rookie Team of the Year
Tom Seaver, AL Rookie 2nd Team of the Year
Elmer Smith, AL Rookie Team of the Year
Ichiro Suzuki, AL Rookie 2nd Team of the Year
Julio Teheran, AL 23 & Under Team
Mike Trout, Mel Trench Award 3rd Place; All AL 3rd Team

ORGANIZATIONAL AWARDS

Mike Trout, MVP
Brett Anderson, Pitcher of the Year
Carlos Delgado, Heart & Soul
Kal Daniels, Fan Favorite

Luke Walker, Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Pedro Álvarez, Minor League Player of the Year

What Went Wrong

Most notably, Gerrit Cole imploded, going 7-15 with an ERA well over 6. Cole was the staff ace last season.

The wealth of SP talent continues to not deliver, from Tom Seaver and Pud Galvin–thoroughly mediocre as a full time starter–to the parade of arms given a shot from Nolan Ryan to Harry Howell, Noah Lowry to Bill Doak to John Lackey to … you get the idea.

Francisco Rodríguez, given the job after Joe Nathan was traded, was among the worst closers in the league.

C was a misery for most of the year, with John Stearns, Jeff Torborg, and AJ Pierzynski all stinking up the joint (Pierzynski’s rookie recognition was more due to how few rookie backstops there were than anything else).

Nobody played SS well, with George Wright, Jay Bell, and Freddie Patek all given a shot.

Ichiro Suzuki played in 140 games as a rookie, with stellar defense, but only managed a .688 OPS with little power and virtually zero plate discipline (7 walks total).

Doug Rader, a borderline MVP candidate last year, became a shockingly pedestrian 3B.

Steve Garvey continues to be a mediocre bat without a clear position in the field.

Transactions

March

None.

July

OF Don Buford to NYG for IF Freddie Patek, 2nd Round Pick, & 5th Round Pick.

Sure, as long as the picks are solid. Buford wasn’t going to be here when the Angels turn things around, so it’s a solid haul.

August

IF Bobby Grich & 3rd Round Pick to BBB for C Gene Tenace, P Vic Willis, & 1st Round Pick.

Grich is an all star, but the return is high, with both Tenace and Willis looking to be contributors. We’ll see about the 1st rounder, but it seems like a solid trade.

P Joe Nathan, IF Wally Joyner, 1st Round Pick to SFS for IF Eddie Miller, IF Freddie Freeman.

Given Freeman’s debut, this seems like a win, even if the 1st round pick turns into something (and especially given that Los Angeles still has one from the Grich trade).

Positional Overview

C

Maybe, just maybe, this is settled with Hassey and Tenace. Maybe.

The Angels are still high on John Stearns but there’s not a lot of evidence as to why.

1B

This looks, finally, to be solved with Freeman’s arrival, who will be spelled by Delgado (who is more suited to DH as he ages).

Steve Garvey seems better suited for this side of the infield, but he is now blocked by Freeman. Babe Herman may get a look here in the Spring as well.

2B

Wide open.

Bill Doran and Mark Ellis are the favorites here, but Jay Bell and Freddie Patek–while more natural at SS–can both play here, and veteran Bucky Harris may have performed well enough to get a look.

This is likely to be resolved in ST or via a trade.

SS

Eddie Joost and Jay Bell will likely fight this one out, with the defensive wizardry of George Wright and Andrelton Simmons looming in the background.

Xander Bogaerts is a dark horse here as well, and at 24 is getting to the point of needing to hit a WBL roster soon.

3B

Doug Rader should get a chance to bounce back, and Garvey is occasionally useful here, but this still looks like an area where improvement is needed.

That could come from David Wright or Pedro Álvarez, who should start the year at AAA.

LF/RF

Pretty much set with Daniels and Suzuki, whose struggles will be written off to an adjustment year. Elmer Smith will see some time here as well.

Curt Motton may be available for depth, and Brandon Nimmo is probably the best lower level corner OF prospect at this point.

CF

Trout should patrol here for quite a while, with the Angels faced with the question of what kind of backup they prefer: Brian Giles is solid offensively, while Devon White can chase them down with the best of them.

Jack Gleason (miserable in a WBL trial this year) and Albie Pearson offer some depth as well.

DH

Delgado should transition to a full time (or nearly so) DH next season.

SP

Brett Anderson and Gooden are a lock, and Cole will be given another year to see whether last year’s great season or this year’s bad one is more indicative of his future.

Beyond that, it’s open season, with Harry Howell, Vic Willis, Elmer Smith, Mike Krukow, Bill Doak, Nolan Ryan, Tom Seaver, and Luke Walker all in the mix.

RP

You Could add Roy Patterson, Pud Galvin, and Julio Teheran to the list of starting candidates, but those three are likely to make the bullpen regardless, along with Ross Reynolds.

The team seems committed to giving Francisco Rodríguez another shot at closing games.

Two more interesting names: Chuck Finley and Jonny Venters are both likely fully recovered come Spring Training, and either or both could make the team.

Draft Outlook

DRAFT PICKS

1st Round: 1
2nd Round: 2
3rd Round: 0
4th Round: 1
5th Round: 2

They just need talent. Yeah, LF/CF/1B are sewn up for a while, but they just need talent.

In this post, we’ll slowly carve people off those lists as we get younger, beginning with the under 25’s. As we get younger, future potential will begin to be more of a thing.

A full lineup, with DH, plus 3 starters and 3 relievers for each. We’ll start by relisting the overall selections, then new entries for each group will be bolded.

#WBL Teams of the Year

#WBL 25 & Under Teams

#WBL 23 & Under Teams

300 PA Minimums for batters, with 1 exception: Murray only had 145 PAs–1B in the AL just did not have a lot of youth.

#WBL 21 & Under

All praises to Ty Cobb, Josh Gibson, and Oscar Charleston for remaining on the list this far. The relievers dip into some rarely used arms, but of the rest, only Freddie Lindstrom was a late-season callup.

There really isn’t an all-teenager team: the only change from the teens above would be the addition of Chicago’s Cristóbal Torriente, perhaps the worst offensive player in the league this year in CF, but surprisingly effective in a few mound appearances.

One more, largely for fun

#WBL Over 30 Team

Only 3 names from the All-League Teams (Baily, Konerko, and Lee Smith), reflecting on just how young the league is. This is a very wide range from some very strong performers who are expected to keep it up for a while (those 3, Pettitte, Hornsby, some others) to folks like Dave Henderson and Kiki Cuyler, who are just barely hanging onto their roster spots.

#Silver Sticks

The guideline here is the best offensive performance at each position, with a slightly relaxed PA requirement and combining LF and RF. Players qualify for their team at season’s end, much to Paul Konerko‘s delight.

Joe Morgan was better offensively than Alomar, but Alomar had 200 more plate appearances and was no slouch himself.

#Rookie Of the Year

This was pretty easy in terms of the overall awards, but the second and third place finishers were far more heavily contested.

Al Kaline (DET), David Ortiz (MEM), and Jim Whitney (MCG) in the AL, and John Briggs (BRK), Judy Johnson (HOM), and George Foster (IND) in the NL were the next names on the lists, but these selections feel pretty solid.

#All Rounder Award

This one is given to the player whose offense was most well-rounded–walks, power, speed, all of it.

#Phineas Flint Award

This goes to the best reliever in each league–not necessarily a closer, but often.

#Brock Rutherford Award

This goes to the dominant pitcher in each league, usually a starter.

#Mel Trench Award

And, the biggie, the MVP. A slight prejudice towards batters here, but it’s possible for a pitcher to enter the building.

As has been constant in much of this Award season, the top spots are clear, and beyond that it’s a little bit of a mess.

Trout’s numbers weren’t as good as Turkey Steranes or Tris Speaker, but he carried Los Angeles all season. That said, this could have been a 3 way tie for AL CF’s. In the NL, you can argue that Ron Cey was more important to Brooklyn than Carter was to Ottawa, and certainly Brooklyn’s Whirled Championship counts for something. But Carter did all that … as a catcher (which underscores Gibson’s edge on the field).

This list includes both players who were closers all year and those who moved in or out of that role for a significant part of the year.

Our usual practices prevail: bold for top 3 and italics for bottom 3. Pitchers with below 162 IP aren’t included in the top/bottom markers.

#S Tier

These were the dominant closers all year, with Eric Gagne being the better of the 2, but only barely. And some would argue that Rod Beck, by virtue of being 3 years younger, holds more value.

#A Tier

An interesting group. Bob Howry, much maligned last season, bounced back in a big way despite an injury, while Josh Lindblom was just effective all year, perhaps the only truly dependable arm on Homestead’s staff.

And then there’s Craig Kimbrel, who was essentially unhittable after being moved into the closer spot for Kansas City, where he’ll start next season.

#B Tier

Brian Wilson and Harley Young could belong a tier or 2 above, but Wilson missed a fair bit of the season due to injury while Young wasn’t named the closer for Birmingham until well into the year. Goose Gossage was effective after being made the Black Yankees’ closer, but if you compare him to Young, Young clearly had the better year.

#C Tier

These are either useful arms at the end of the bullpen (Terry Adams, Jonathan Papelbon) or a surprising success in a limited time as a closer (Buddy Groom). Groom’s peripherals indicate this may be a mirage, but he was the best closer the Black Sox had all season.

#D Tier

Everyone has some issues here, from Tom Henke‘s tendency to give up the longball to Mike Henneman‘s injury absence, to the inability of Sparky Lyle and Tug McGraw to really gel in Houston. But none of these are in danger of being forced out of the league, and many of them will return as closers next season.

#F Tier

This group struggled, but are on a variety of paths: Francisco Rodríguez may actually start next season as the Angels’ closer and Trevor Hoffman will get another shot in Portland. But Jeff Pfeffer is likely done as a closer, and Juan Rincón pitched himself right out of the league. Aroldis Chapman remains an elite power arm, but without a little more control is probably destined to bounce around a bit.

From the AL, we have the San Francisco Sea Lions, who finished with the best record in the WBL and 103 wins. They’ll face the Brooklyn Royal Giants, who led the NL with 99 regular season wins.

We’ll do a more detailed preview here, as befits the Whirled Series.

#Starting Pitching

What a pair of staffs we have here …

Brooklyn has a legit top 5, and while Frank Knauss hasn’t seen much action in the postseason, when your #5 starter has a WAR of 3.3 and a WHIP of 1.34, you’re doing OK.

Orel Hershiser (19-5, 3.69) will lead the way, followed by Don Drysedale (11-8, 5.66), Smokey Joe Williams (12-13, 3.93), and Fernando Valenzuela (14-5, 3.69). Some things jump out: first, Drysedale’s ERA. At the end of June, Drysedale was 5-4 with a 7.00 ERA. Since then, he shaved nearly a run off his ERA and won 5 in a row before a bit of a late season slump. Second, Smokey Joe’s record, which is largely inexplicable, other than pitching is weird. His FIP, SIERA, OPS against, etc. are all pretty fantastic. 5 of the losses came in games where Williams delivered a game score over 50, so it seems fine to chalk it up to an extraordinary run of bad luck.

But San Francisco can hold their heads high in the matchup, at least in the first 3 spots, where Lefty Grove (16-6, 4.40), Eddie Plank (20-6, 4.42) and Bump Hadley (18-6, 4.10) form the best rotation in the AL. It’s not clear who starts game 4 for San Francisco, but Tim Hudson, Tommy Bridges, Jim Devlin, and Watty Clark all were quite solid during the season.

Still Brooklyn has a top 4, San Francisco has a top 3, and Brooklyn generally allowed about 1/2 a run less. So, edge Brooklyn as San Francisco faces perhaps the only team where that would be true.

#Relief Pitching

San Francisco had a great back end to their bullpen, and then they acquired Joe Nathan. Nathan had racked up 22 saves as Los Angeles’ closer, but slid easily into a setup role with the Sea Lions, combining with Ken Howell to create a bridge to Rod Beck, whose 41 saves led the WBL. The three of them combined for 69 saves and 22 holds over the season, and while each had struggled at times, Beck finished with a 1.00 WHIP and Howell with a 2.79 ERA. Nathan’s arrival moved Huston Street down a notch in the pecking order, but he’s still a reasonable option.

If Beck wasn’t the best closer in the game, Brooklyn’s Eric Gagne was. Gagne had 39 saves and better peripheral numbers than Beck, proving nearly unhittable over the season. Trevor Hildenberger and Terry Forster were fantastic getting him the ball, with solid support from Dave Von Ohlen. Those 3 combined for 34 holds, although there have been some wobbles as of late. Mention must be made as well of Sandy Koufax, who started the year in Brooklyn’s rotation, but has been even more effective since joining the pen. Koufax’s stuff is eye-popping, and he finished the season with a 1.16 WHIP while averaging nearly 10 strikeouts per 9 innings.

Too close to call imo. Call this one even.

#C

Both teams are extremely strong here. Brooklyn’s Mike Piazza might be the best hitting backstop not named Josh Gibson, finishing the year with 48 homers, 117 RBI’s, and a 297/329/614. The Sea Lions’ Mickey Cochrane gets on base more than Piazza, but his over OPS is 60 points lower. Piazza is also on fire, coming into the Whirled Series having been the MVP of both the Wild Card and Division series. So, despite Cochrane slashing 289/371/513 and being a notch above Piazza defensively, the Royal Giants have a clear edge here.

#1B/3B

Ron Cey was Brooklyn’s best offensive player throughout the season, finishing with 47 homers and a 1.038 OPS. At 1B, when healthy, Dan Brouthers has been excellent, slashing 317/363/587 and, when Brouthers was unavailable, the Royal Giants turned to a mixture of Jackie Robinson and Pedro Guerrero.

But San Francisco counters with 100 homeruns and over 200 RBIs between Jack Clark and Jimmie Foxx. Clear edge, San Francisco.

#2B/SS

This one gets complicated.

San Francisco now trots out Dick Lundy and Frank Grant, who came over in a midseason trade. Lundy and Grant have 100 steals between them, and play great defense. Lundy hit better than Grant, but both are above average for their positions. The Sea Lions have Royce Clayton and his shocking .900+ OPS on the bench, along with the very versatile Phil Garner.

2B for Brooklyn is held down by Robinson, generally considered the heart and soul of the Royal Giants while hitting 288/369/549 with 52 steals. So that’s a clear edge for Brooklyn. But SS has been a struggle for the Royal Giants all year, with a mixture of Ray Dandridge and midseason acquisition Vern Stephens. Stephens .800 OPS with Brooklyn has been great, but is also far above his lifetime performance. Dandridge, on the other hand, is hitting over .400 in the postseason, but that’s an OPS 200 points above his season performance.

So, sure, Brooklyn could have the edge here. Could, if Stephens or Dandridge continue to overperform. But you really have to assume the Sea Lions edge it in the middle infield.

#OF/DH

More separation here.

Brooklyn’s trio of John Briggs, Beals Becker, Duke Snider, and Roy White are all good, with roughly 150 homeruns between them. Becker has speed, White gold glove level defense, and their OPS’ run from .934 (Briggs) to .849 (White). So … absolutely solid.

And then there’s San Francisco. Turkey Stearnes, Reggie Jackson, Bobby Bonds, and Rickey Henderson combined for about the same number of homeruns, but Henderson’s 126 steals led the WBL, the defense is comparable, and while Henderson and White have comparable OPS’, Stearnes and Jackson are both solidly above Briggs.

Clear edge to San Francisco.

#Overall

So, it comes down to a question of whether Brooklyn’s edge on the mound can suppress San Francisco’s superior firepower. It’s not clear they can, and while the teams should be quite close, San Francisco won more in the regular season and should prevail here.

But Brooklyn has a shot, and should certainly make it difficult.

Let’s say San Francisco in 6, with 5 of them being close games.

Previews are in order of seeding, starting with the Sea Lions

#San Francisco Sea Lions

San Francisco won 103 games this year and was the dominant team for almost all of the season. As such, postseason expectations are high, and warrantably so.

The front of their rotation can match up against anyone, with Lefty Grove (16-6, 4.40), Eddie Plank (20-7, 4.42), and the impressive rookie, Bump Hadley (18-6, 4.10) as dominant as they come. The back end of the bullpen is equally strong: Rod Beck led the league in saves with 41, Ken Howell was his usual spectacular self, and Joe Nathan was obtained via trade for the 7th.

Offensively, the Sea Lions are led by the presumptive AL Rookie of the Year, Turkey Stearnes, but he’s far from the only force: Rickey Henderson led the league in steals, Reggie Jackson and Jack Clark each had over 100 RBIs, and Clark, Stearnes, Jackson, and Jimmie Foxx each hit over 40 homeruns.

Even an injury that will prevent Frank Grant from seeing action for a week or 2 has an upside, as it clears playing time for Royce Clayton, who has an OPS over .900 as a reserve IF.

With Grant unavailable, the final spot on the playoff roster came down to a choice between Tommy Bridges and Wayne Gross, with the Sea Lions deciding to go with the the extra bat off the bench.

#New York Black Yankees

90 wins and a Bill James Division Title earned the Black Yankees the 2nd seed in the AL.

The story of the Black Yankees has remained the same over 2 seasons and numerous roster moves: can the bullpen do enough to support good starting pitching and an excellent offense?

Goose Gossage was given closer duties midway through the season and has been excellent overall, but getting to him as been challenging to say the least, prompting New York to overpay for Hoyt Wilhelm as a bridge between the starters, the erratic Aroldis Chapman, and Gossage.

Andy Pettitte has taken over the #1 slot from Ron Guidry, and after those 2 it’s a bit of a tossup between Dave Righetti, Pascual Pérez, and the surprising Tony Brizzolara.

Offensively, the team is a beast, with Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Mickey Mantle combining for over 200 HRs with star level support from Mike Schmidt, Eric Davis, and Rogers Hornsby.

Had he been recalled earlier, the surprising Josh Harrison would have made the playoff roster, but instead Jeff Nelson comes along as an extra bullpen arm.

#Cleveland Spiders

Cleveland faded down the stretch, finishing a game behind the Black Yankees. Still, a solid season for the Spiders, who relied on an impressive offense and a pitching staff that, while lacking star power, remained dependable top to bottom.

Cy Young led the way with 15 wins, but Bob Feller and Bill Steen were probably better as starters. Yordana Ventura started well this season, but faded and may be relegated to bullpen duty. Al Smith has locked down a spot in the pen, teaming with Cory Gearrin to get the ball to closer Terry Adams.

7 everyday starters sport OPS’ over .900, including the 33 year-old, late season callup, Willie McCovey. McCovey’s performance makes the roster a little heavy in 1B/DH/Corner OF types, with Lance Berkman, Ron Blomberg, and John Ellis all fitting that role, but 17 HRs in under 40 games can’t be ignored.

The key to the offense remains evil CF Tris Speaker, but Berkman, who led the Spiders in HR and RBI, isn’t far behind. A late season surge–including 4 homers on the final day of the season–has moved Larry Doby into that conversation, and Evan Longoria and Arky Vaughan have laid full claim to the 3B and SS roles, which were question marks for Cleveland earlier in the season.

Everyone makes the postseason roster, even the disappointing Louis Santop who, after starring last season, forgot how to hit and lost most of his playing time to mid-season acquisition Ed Bailey. Bailey has a bruised thigh, and will be unavailable for the first few games of the opening series, meaning Santop or Ellis will likely start behind the plate.

#Detroit Wolverines

A tailspin at the end of the year forced Detroit into a 1 game playoff for the final Wild Card spot, which they won handily. For that effort, they receive a matchup with San Francisco, in which they will be a significant underdog.

Still, it’s hard to count a team with Ty Cobb, he of the 386/440/841 slash line, out.

Cobb, however, didn’t lead the Wolverines in OPS–that honor fell to JD Martinez who just kept demanding more playing time as the season wore on. It’s only 125 PAs, but still. Hank Greenberg and Al Kaline provide significant support, and behind them, well, nobody is a star but nobody is bad. Oscar Gamble, Juan Beníquez, Ernie Lombardi, and Bob Bailey all have OPS’ over .850. Greenberg is out for the first game or 1, which is a significant blow for Detroit.

The middle infield is an open question, but Charlie Gheringer seems to have locked down 2B and a mixture of Tony Lazzeri and Ray Chapman are producing surprising offense from SS. There is an outside chance Bobby Wallace–obtained to be the solution at SS–is back during the postseason. We’ll see.

The weakness of this team is the starting pitching: Charlie Root was the only constant, and he was pretty mediocre. Hal Newhouser has an explosive arm, but an erratic track record, and after him, we’re looking at trade acquisition Connie Johnson and the surprising Pete Conway.

Closer Mike Henneman is still trying to recover from a back issue, meaning the bullpen will revolve around Chad Bradford, Steve Howe, Troy Percival, and Buddy Napier. Howe and Percival were obtained via trade and have been fairly inconsistent.

The final roster spot came down to a choice between George Bechtel and Johnny Marcum, with Detroit opting for Marcum’s experience, but neither have been very good this year.

#Predictions

San Francisco is just too good. Detroit can take some hope from having split the season series with the Sea Lions at 7 games each. But it just feels like too big of an ask.

San Francisco in 5.

The other series is just a continuation of a back-and-forth battle all season. The teams are completely familiar to each other, having met 23 times in the regular season, with Cleveland taking 12 wins against New York’s 11.

That feels right for the playoffs as well.

My head says New York in 7, but my heart says Cleveland takes advantage of yet another bullpen implosion to take the final game. We’ll see.

#Monday

Miami moved in front of Detroit by a half game in the AL Wild Card race behind a great start from Phenomenal Smith, whose return may be a difference maker for the Cuban Giants. Smith gave up 1 run in 7 innings, moving to 4-0. Hal Newhouser was good for Detroit, but an early homer from Gary Sheffield and a late one from Joe Adcock sealed the game for Miami.

Cleveland was supposed to have an easy time of it, hosting the lowly Memphis Red Sox. But the Spiders’ bullpen collapsed, and they dropped a 9-8 decision to the visitors, who were powered by homers from Lefty O’Doul, Hack Wilson, and David Ortiz.

In a series that means more for Indianapolis than Philadelphia, the ABC’s opened with a decisive win, 15-8 over the Stars. Johnny Bench hit 2 out, and the game wasn’t as close as the score (Philadelphia tallied 5 in the 9th to make it more respectable).

#Tuesday

Detroit pulled back into a dead heat with Miami, pounding out 6 homeruns (2 from JD Martinez) in an 11-5 win. Ernie Lombardi, Tony Lazzeri, Oscar Gamble, and Ty Cobb also went deep for the Wolverines in an easy win for the visitors.

Memphis did it again, beating Cleveland 4-2, and dropping the Spiders 2.5 games behind the Black Yankees. Homers from Reggie Smith and Wade Boggs backed a strong showing from Stubby Overmire, who moved to 13-9 on the year. The Spiders, however, remained only 2 games behind the Black Yankees as New York fell to San Francisco, 9-0, as Bump Hadley improved to 18-6 with a masterful 1-hitter.

Philadelphia stormed back from a 7-1 deficit, beating the ABC’s 8-7 on a pinch-hit walkoff shot from Aaron Judge–his 60th of the year–in a game that saw 2 grandslams, one from Indianapolis’ Ed Swartwood, the other from the Stars’ Charles Rogan. This was good news for Houston, who dropped a 9-8 decision to the New York Gothams, who were powered by 2 homeruns from Willie Mays. Houston remains 3.5 games ahead in the Marvin Miller Division.

Riding an excellent start from Rick Reuschel, the House of David pulled into a tie with Kansas City by defeating the Monarchs 3-1. Reuschel was supported by Ryne Sandberg‘s 40th homer of the year, and the win leaves both teams 1 game behind Indianapolis in the Wild Card race.

#Wednesday

What you see depends on where you stand: Miami fans will be miserable at their bullpen’s performance, as the Cuban Giants’ relievers surrendered 11 runs over the final 4 innings n an 11-8 loss to Detroit. Wolverines fans, of course, will be applauding the clutch performance of their team, led by Juan Beníquez‘ 4 hits and 3 RBI’s from Charlie Gehringer and Bob Bailey. The win moves Detroit 1.5 games up in the Wild Card chase.

The Spiders are struggling, but they refuse to give up: a Larry Doby homerun and walkoff RBI single from John Ellis gave Cleveland a 9-8 win over Memphis, keeping them at least within touch of the Black Yankees for the Bill James Division crown. Willie McCovey hit his 15th homerun in 35 games, and Paul O’Neill (the first of his WBL career) and Ron Blomberg also went deep.

The Black Yankees fell to San Francisco, as Eddie Plank earned his 20th win of the season with 6 strong innings for the Sea Lions. San Francisco’s bullpen–Ken Howell, Joe Nathan, and closer Rod Beck–fanned 7 of the 9 batters they retired, with Beck earning his 40th save of the season.

Houston bounced back in a big way, using a phenomenal start from Ice Box Chamberlain and 7 homeruns to beat the Gothams, 9-2. Chamberlain allowed 1 hit in just under 8 innings, fanning 12 and 2 of the important cogs in the Colt 45’s late season surge–OF Gorman Thomas and C Will Smith–carried the team, twice launching back-to-back homeruns. Jim Wynn led off the game with a dinger, and Paul Goldschmidt and Jim O’Rourke also went deep.

The victory sealed the pennant for Houston, setting off raucous celebrations in the home dugout. It also meant all of the attention in the NL is now focused on the final Wild Card Spot, currently owned by Indianapolis, but with Kansas City and the House of David hot on their heels (and Homestead still hanging around with at least a mathematical chance).

After fighting back from a 6-1 deficit, Indianapolis suffered a gut-wrenching loss, falling to Philadelphia, 12-8. The Stars were led by homeruns from Sherm Lollar, Harmon Killebrew, Jung Ho Kang, and Sherry Magee.

Ryne Sandberg had 4 hits including a go-ahead solo homer in the bottom of the 8th as the House of David topped Kansas City, 6-5. Jack Taylor continued a late-season rebound with a solid start, but both bullpens struggled in this one. The victory moves the House of David into a dead heat with Indianapolis in the Wild Card chase, with Kansas City 1 game back.

#Thursday

Miami just refuses to lose: Cleveland had taken the lead, 5-4 in the 6th inning, but the Cuban Giants scored 8 runs in their final 2 frames in a 12-6 victory. Miami pounded out 17 hits, led by 3 each from Jim Thome and Martín Dihigo. The game was never sure: Cuban Giants pitchers gave up 8 walks, so the Spiders had constant traffic on the basepaths. But they did just enough, with homeruns from Julio Rodríguez, Dihigo, Alejandro Oms, and Thome.

With the result, the Spiders drop to 1.5 games behind the Black Yankees and the Cuban Giants move to 1 game behind Detroit in the Wild Card race.

Speaking of the Black Yankees … their bullpen continues to be their Achilles’ heel, with 4 relievers giving up 9 runs in 2.1 innings. Ouch. The big blows were homeruns from Jimmie Foxx and Bobby Bonds as San Francisco defeated New York, 13-10.

#Friday

The Black Yankees continue not to grab the Bill James Division by the throat, falling to lowly Baltimore 5-4 in the opening game of the final series of the season. Homers from Eddie Murray, Manny Machado, and a final go-ahead blast from Earl Averill gave the Black Sox the edge in another game that saw less than stellar performances from New York’s bullpen.

Two homers from Gary Sheffield carried Miami to a 5-4 win over Cleveland, preserving New York’s 1 game advantage, and keeping the pressure on Detroit. The Cuban Giants got another strong outing from Jim Whitney, and were able to fade a 9th inning comeback from the Spiders for the victory.

So what will Detroit do with their opportunity?

Play a game for the ages where they held leads of 3-1, 4-2, 9-5, and 10-6. And it was never enough as, after closer Mike Henneman was forced from the game with a back injury, Troy Percival came in and gave up a grand slam to Manny Ramírez and a walkoff shot to Gabby Hartnett. Both Ramírez and Hartnett had 2 homers in the game, while Al Kaline had 2 for Detroit. Kaline had 3 hits and 7 RBIs while Hartnett had 4 hits for Memphis. A true thriller of a game that leaves everything pretty much undecided.

The House of David fell to Houston 8-2, as all eyes turned to the 4 game series between Indianapolis and Kansas City.

Kansas City’s Smokey Joe Wood and the ABC’s’ Luis Padrón squared off in the series opener and while each pitched well, neither were involved in the decision. Instead, after a 2 run shot from Ducky Medwick tied the game, Kansas City won it on a sacrifice fly from Dale Murphy in the bottom of the 9th. So Padrón fails in his attempt to win his 24th game of the year and, more importantly, Kansas City forces a 3 way dead heat for the final Wild Card spot.

#Saturday

Memphis keeps embracing their role as spoiler while relying on a handful of late season call ups. In this case, Bucky Walters gave a good starting performance, Lefty O’Doul had 3 hits, and Wayne Causey drove in 2 with an 8th inning single for a 5-3 victory over Detroit.

It sure looks like Miami has found a key part of their rotation: Phenomenal Smith improved to 5-0, combining with Ricky Nolasco on a 3 hit shutout of Cleveland. Smith struck out 10 before yielding to Nolasco, for the last 2 outs. Martín Dihigo drove in 2 runs, continuing his second half surge.

Miami moves a full game ahead of Detroit for the Wild Card slot, and Cleveland falls 1.5 games behind the Black Yankees for the Bill James Division title, with New York’s magic number reduce to 1.

And then it was none. New York topped Baltimore 11-7 behind homers from Mickey Mantle, Babe Ruth, and Roger Maris, giving the Black Yankees their first Bill James Division title.

Oh boy … Indianapolis has nobody to blame but themselves.

Behind a great start from Johnny Cueto and 3 RBI’s from Oscar Charleston, the ABC’s took a 6-2 lead into the bottom of the 9th, with their closer, Rob Dibble, on the mound. Dibble got one out, and then 16 of his next 20 pitches missed the strike zone, resulting in 4 consecutive walks, scoring a run. Rob Murphy relieved Dibble, and an RBI groundout and 2 wild pitches later, the game was tied at 6.

Cool Papa Bell walked in the bottom of the 10th, stole second, and scored on a hit from Ozzie Smith, moving Kansas City a game ahead in the Wild Card race.

#Sunday

The final day of the season leaves both final Wild Card spots up for grabs: in the AL, Miami has a 1 game lead over Detroit and in the NL, Kansas City has the edge over both Indianapolis and the House of David.

Miami was unable to clinch it: Larry Doby became the 2nd player in WBL history (and the first in the AL) to hit 4 homeruns in a game, driving in 7 as Cleveland topped the Cuban Giants, 13-7. That leaves Miami’s fate in the hands of Detroit later in the day.

Detroit used a mix of the old reliable–2 homeruns from Al Kaline and 1 from Ty Cobb–and the newly acquired (a strong start from Connie Johnson and key innings from Steve Howe and Troy Percival) to beat Memphis, 8-4.

And so, we finish in a dead heat.

Eppa Rixey combined with 4 relievers (including an important 1.2 innings from Doc Mitchell), leading the ABC’s to a 7-3 win over Kansas City, meaning Indianapolis and the Monarchs finish with identical 79-83 records. The only question is if the House of David will join them in a 3-way tie for the final playoff spot.

Nope.

The House of David tried valiantly, and even outhit Houston, 10-8, but they fell to the Colt 45’s, 10-9 in a game that saw Tony Gwynn rap out 3 hits, reaching 200 on the season. Richie Hebner, Ryne Sandberg, and Anthony Rizzo each had 2 hits, but they didn’t get enough support as the House of David season ends, falling just short of the postseason.

#Monday

So, two playoff games, winner makes the postseason.

#AL

First up, we have Miami visiting Detroit.

The Cuban Giants will turn to Hugh McQuillan who, despite being roughed up in his last start, has been solid for Miami. If he struggles early, look for Jim Whitney to try to give the team some innings on short rest. For Detroit, Pete Conway will take the mound, also on a pretty short leash.

Ty Cobb may be almost universally disliked, but his baseball talent cannot be denied: he launched a 3 run homer in the top of the first and a grand slam in the 2nd, helping Detroit to a 9-0 lead after 2 innings.

Conway, meanwhile, had allowed a single run on 3 hits through 5, and left after 6 with the score 13-2.

Miami scored 3 in the 9th, but fell well short, 14-5. In the end, a just result, as Detroit really feels like the better team. Still, the Cuban Giants went from being the worst team in the league to being this close to the playoffs: a good year for them.

Cobb finished with 2 homers and 7 RBIs, and Al Kaline, Charlie Gehringer, Ernie Lombardi, and Hank Greenberg each also went deep. There was some bad news on Greenberg, who will be out of action for a few days with a leg injury.

#NL

Indianapolis would turn to Doc White while Kansas City gave the start to young Matt Morris.

Kansas City took an early lead on Albert Pujols‘ second homerun of the game, pulling ahead 6-3 after 3 innings, with the ABC’s runs coming on longballs from George Foster and Chris Sabo.

Morris was OK–not great, but not bad–until Tommy Helms singled and scored on a double from Barry Larkin in the top of the 4th. A Bob Bescher walk put runners on the corner, and fetched Frank Castillo from the bullpen. The move backfired as Sabo and Oscar Charleston singled and, after a couple of outs, Johnny Bench brought home 2 with a single of his own, giving Indianapolis an 8-7 lead. Foster followed with his 2nd dinger of the game, extending the lead to 10-7 and chasing Castillo. His successor, Bob Shawkey, gave upa solo shot to Helms and when all of the dust settled, the ABC’s had scored 8 and were up 11-7.

The ABC’s coasted from there, riding additional homeruns by Ed Charles and Sabo to a 15-8 win, powering Indianapolis into the postseason. Sabo drove in 5 and Foster 4, with each of them notching 3 hits on the day.

Kansas City had ridden its pitching staff all year; here their arms betrayed them, surrendering 14 hits and 15 runs.

As August closes down, we have roster expansion and a bevy of trades.

#Awards

The House of David‘s Ernie Banks hit .483 with a half-dozen homeruns, taking home the NL Player of the Week Award. Another stellar week from Detroit‘s Ty Cobb netted him another AL Player of the Week Award, his 4th of the season. Cobb hit .500 with 6 homeruns over the week.

#Team Performance

Same old: San Francisco (despite going 3-7 over their last 10 games) has the Cum Posey Division sewn up, and Brooklyn has the Effa Manley Division all but so–the Sea Lions have a 17 game edge, and the Royal Giants are up by 11.

The Bill James Division is a 2 horse race, as the Cleveland Spiders now lead the New York Black Yankees by only 2.5 games.

And then we have the Marvin Miller Division, where the Houston Colt 45’s have surged ahead of Kansas City by 1/2 game, but Indianapolis is only 2.5 back, with the House of David 3 and the Black Barons 4.

The Wildcards are all up for grabs, as 8 teams in the NL are within 4 games of making the postseason that way. It’s more settled in the AL, with Miami leading Los Angeles for the 2nd wildcard spot by 4 games.

#Player Performance

#Batters

As usual, top 2 in most categories are listed, with Detroit’s Turkey Stearnes and Los Angeles’ Kal Daniels listed so we have all 6 batters with OPS’ over 1.100.

Ron Blomberg (CLE). 295/361/688. 125 RBI.
José Canseco (MCG). 264/373/759. 60 HR.
Oscar Charleston (IND). 342/384/624. 170 H.
Ty Cobb (DET). 388/443/844. 181 H, 54 2B, 15 3B, 125 R, 8.3 WAR.
Kal Daniels (LAA). 357/444/670.
Josh Gibson (HOM). 406/501/798. 9.0 WAR.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 361/414/621. 60 2B.
Joe Rogan (PHI). 288/343/605. 13 3B.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 273/405/713. 57 HR, 133 RBI, 117 R.
Turkey Stearnes (DET). 340/381/722.

#Pitchers

#Starters

All 7 players with at least 15 wins are listed, as well as the top 2 in other categories.

A. Rube Foster (KCM). 10-5, 2.79. .200 BABIP, 0.95 WHIP, 3.60 FIP.
Roger Clemens (HOU). 13-9, 3.60. .218 BABIP.
Lefty Grove (SFS). 15-5, 4.37.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 8-7, 4.41. 211 K.
Bump Hadley (SFS). 16-5, 4.09
Orel Hershiser (BRK). 16-5, 4.04.
José Méndez (MCG). 11-5, 4.29. 195 IP.
Luis Padrón (IND). 18-3, 3.55. 5.5 WAR.
Andy Pettitte (NYY). 15-8, 4.32.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 15-7, 4.73.
Toad Ramsey (HOU). 15-9, 3.13. 190 IP, 230 K, 0.96 WHIP, 3.26 FIP, 7.1 WAR.

#Relievers

The top 3 in the league remain Josh Lindblom, Rod Beck, and Eric Gagne, who have 30, 29, and 26 saves respectively. Of those, Gagne has been the most dominant, and is probably only challenged by Kansas City’s Craig Kimbrel, who had 11 holds before being named their closer, and has posted 9 saves since. The other 3 relievers with 20-plus saves are listed as well.

26 Min IP.

Terry Adams (CLE), 1-6, 4.93. 21 Sv, 2H.
Rod Beck (SFS). 4-4, 5.65. 30 Sv, 1H.
Eric Gagne (BRK). 2-3, 2.88. 28 Sv.
Eddie Guardado (KCM). 2-1, 2.01. 1 Sv, 8 H.
Bob Howry (PHI). 4-1, 3.27. 21 Sv. 0.85 WHIP.
Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-7, 5.09. 1 Sv, 20 H.
Craig Kimbrel (KCM). 3-4, 1.95. 12 Sv, 11 H.
Josh Lindblom (HOM). 7-4, 3.70. 31 Sv.
Joe Nathan (LAA/SFS). 5-5, 4.64. 20 Sv, 2 H.
Jonathan Papelbon (MEM/MCG). 3-5, 4.80. 20 Sv.
BJ Ryan (OTT). 2-3, 5.03. 1 Sv, 15 H.
Lee Smith (KCM/HOD). 4-2, 2.78. 6 Sv, 10 H. 0.77 WHIP.

#Debuts

Tony Conigliaro isn’t a bad prospect. But he had one of the best days, let alone debuts, in WBL history, going 4 for 4 with a record 4 homeruns in an 11-9 win. The 22 year old was obtained at the all star break last season in the deal that initially sent Sammy Sosa to Memphis (Sosa would return after flopping for the Red Sox).

At least Jorge Orta is listed among the top 100 WBL prospects, coming in 87th. Orta had a great debut for his new club, the New York Black Yankees, going 4 for 5 with 4 doubles.

Memphis’ Dustin Pedroia and the New York Gothams‘ Bill Terry have also turned heads, each with 2 homers in their first few games at the WBL level.

Hoyt There it Is!

P Waite Hoyt, 5th round pick from NYY to CAG for P Hoyt Wilhelm, IF Jorge Orta, 4th round pick.

The New York Black Yankees address a bullpen need by acquiring Hoyt Wilhelm from the Chicago American Giants, in exchange for young starter Waite Hoyt. Chicago will also send young IF Jorge Orta to New York, and the 2 teams exchanged draft picks, with New York getting a 4th and Chicago a 5th rounder.

It’s an odd trade for New York, as it’s not clear that Hoyt (Wilhelm) adds more to their bottom line of wins more than Hoyt (Waite). Chicago probably wins this one, just on the SP > RP evaluation. Orta should have a WBL career, but is not enough to balance the deal.

Now & Later

IF Paul Konerko, P Akinori Otsuka, OF Lenny Dykstra, 3rd round pick from CAG to BBB for P Sam Streeter, IF Trea Turner, 5th round pick.

Chicago officially closed the door on their performance for this season, sending 1B Paul Konerko and his .988 OPS along with Akinori Otsuka and his 1.07 WHIP to Birmingham, receiving P Sam Streeter and prospect Trea Turner in return. Chicago will also send OF Lenny Dykstra and a 3rd round pick, with Birmingham surrendering a 5th rounder to make it all work.

Konerko and Otsuka being on the wrong side of 30 makes this acceptable, and Chicago probably got peak value for them in a long-term starter and the talent of Turner. Birmingham is thrilled, as this addresses two of their most pressing needs for a playoff push: 1B and bullpen help.

The Wolverines Commit

P Gene Conley, P Bill Drake, P Emil Yde, OF Hub Collins from DET to BAL for SS Bobby Wallace, P Connie Johnson.

Detroit addressed two needs in a deal with Baltimore, sending struggling P Gene Conley (who is in search of a reboot to their career after an amazing start last season), promising young Ps Bill Drake and Emil Yde along with OF Hub Collins to Baltimore in exchange for SS Bobby Wallace and P Connie Johnson.

I mean … Detroit loves this for the immediate future. The key here is whether Yde, and especially Drake, ever amount to anything. This does remove any question about the infield of the future for the Black Barons, with Eddie Murray, Miller Huggins, Cal Ripken, Jr. and Manny Machado all but assured of starting roles.

Stars and Sea Dogs move a lot of Bodies

SS Jim Fregosi, P Mark Melancon, OF Harry Hooper, IF Rafael Palmiero from POR to PHI for OF Bobby Abreau, P Dave Stieb, P Jaret Wright, P LaTroy Hawkins, SS Pat Meares, 2nd round pick.

Philadelphia, eyeing a potential playoff run, went shopping in Portland. They added a long-term solution at SS (Jim Fregosi), a much-needed bullpen arm (Mark Melancon), and some OF depth in the struggling Harry Hooper. That haul cost them 3 pitching prospects in Dave Stieb, Jaret Wright, and LaTroy Hawkins, as well as SS Pat Meares, and a 2nd round pick. The teams also swapped high-ceiling-but-blocked prospects, with Portland receiving Bobby Abreu and Philadelphia Rafael Palmiero.

Abreau for Palmiero is a wash. Of the rest, it’s sort of a classic now/later proposition. Fregosi and Melancon step directly into key roles for the Stars, but Hawkins, and especially Stieb, do look like excellent long term prospects.

The American Giants Do Some (More) Things

OF Jake Stenzel from IND to CAG for P Joe Lake.

IF Freddie Lindstrom, 2nd round pick from HOM to CAG for P David Price.

Chicago believes they can solve their pitching woes from within, sending 2 members of their rotation packing. First, they received CF Jake Stenzel from Indianapolis for Joe Lake; then they sent David Price to Homestead for Freddie Lindstrom and a 2nd round pick.

Stenzel steps into a crowded outfield, but should get a lot of play the rest of the season while the American Giants’ commitment to the struggling teen Cristóbal Torriente is tested. This basically decimates the American Giants’ rotation, leaving them with Ed Walsh and a lot of questions, but Lake and Price (who himself only arrived via trade earlier last season) were questions themselves. Lindstrom may step into a WBL role behind Dick Allen at 3B.

A Closer for Some Future

P Jonathan Papelbon, 4th round pick from MEM to MCG for P Josh Beckett, OF Roy Thomas, 3rd round pick.

Memphis sent Jonathan Papelbon to Miami, receiving minor leaguers Josh Beckett and Roy Thomas in return. The team also exchange draft picks, with Memphis surrendering a 4th in exchange for Miami’s 3rd round selection.

Fair enough. Miami desperately needed a dependable arm to join Ricky Nolasco in their pen, and Beckett has a ton of upside.

The Black Barons Upgrade

IF Bobby Grich, 3rd round pick from LAA to BBB for P Vic Willis, C Gene Tenace, 1st round pick.

Birmingham came into this trade period looking for a SS; they left with a 2B (who can play SS). In a bit of a surprise move, they convinced LA to part with Bobby Grich, sending Vic Willis, Gene Tenace, and a 1st rounder to the Angels, who also sent a 3rd round pick back their way.

Grich is a huge pickup for the Black Barons–an all star caliber who can get on base and play both middle infield positions is exactly what the doctor ordered in Birmingham. They gave up a lot–Tenace is excellent, some think Willis will eventually be a number one starter, and of course, the #1 pick is a lot. But it seems Birmingham is convinced they have a shot in the playoffs this year, and you can’t fault the ambition.

First Round Picks On the Move, or Freeman at Last, Freeman at Last

P Joe Beggs, 2nd round pick from BAL to KCM for OF Earl Averill.

IF Freddie Freeman, IF Eddie Miller from SFS to LAA for P Joe Nathan, IF Wally Joyner, 1st round pick.

Baltimore found a potential CF for the future in Earl Averill, who came over from Kansas City for a Joe Beggs and a 2nd round pick.

One of the more promising talents in the WBL may have found a home, as Los Angeles sent a 1st Round Pick, closer Joe Nathan, and Wally Joyner to San Francisco for Freddie Freeman and minor league SS Eddie Miller.

Both of these make some sense, as both Freeman and Averill were totally blocked where they were (Freeman by Jimmie Foxx and others, Averill by Willie McGee and Cool Papa Bell). Freeman should immediately see playing time in LA, while Averill looks to be in the mix for next season.

Gothams Going Gone

P Juan Marichal, P Robb Nen from NYG to HOM for IF Davey Johnson, IF Howard Johnson, 3rd round pick.

P Steve Howe, P Troy Percival from NYG to DET for IF Robby Thompson, P Dellin Betances, 3rd round pick.

The Gothams moved a few pieces around, sending Juan Marichal and Robb Nen to Homestead for 2B Davey Johnson, Howard Johnson, and a 3rd round pick. Then, they moved Steve Howe and Troy Percival to Detroit for 2B Robby Thompson, P Dellin Betances, and a 3rd round pick.

The Gothams will need to totally redo their staff, but each move makes some sense. Between Johnson (Davey) and Thompson, they should now have a post-Larry Doyle plan at 2B.

The Black Yankees Find their SS of the Future?

P Sparky Lyle, IF Elliott Maddox, P Carlos Rodón, 2nd round pick, 4th round pick from NYY to HOU for IF Grant Johnson.

They hope so, sending Sparky Lyle, Elliott Maddox, pitching prospect Carlos Rodón, and a 2nd and a 4th round pick to Houston for Grant Johnson, who will rotate in with both Derek Jeter and Rogers Hornsby for now.

It’s a lot to give up, for sure. But Johnson is only 25, and an established WBL performer who will solve the Black Yankees’ long term needs at either 2B or SS. Lyle is solid, and fills a very strong need for Houston, but the rest of what they gave up was future potential, which is cheap for a team whose goal is to win now.

Other Deals

OF George Hendrick from PHI to BRK for 3rd round pick.

IF Joe Adcock from NYG to MCG for 5th round pick, cash.

Philadelphia sent OF George Hendrick to Brooklyn for a 3rd Round Pick.

Miami picked up Joe Adcock from the New York Gothams essentially for free: they sent the Gothams a 5th round pick, and the Gothams are covering Adcock’s salary for the rest of the year.

Each of these were essentially curtesy trades: having picked up Harry Hooper, Philadelphia had no place for Hendrick and Adcock, at 38, desperately wanted a chance to swing the bat for a contender in what may be his final season.

Summary

Minor Leaguers in italics.