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TWIWBL 8.0: Series VII Notes

On June 17, 2021

April 30th

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

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

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

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

League Standings | League Statistics

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

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

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

Boldface indicates league leading mark.

Streaks

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

Series VII Results

Series VII Sweeps

Detroit over Baltimore
Los Angeles over Homestead

Taking 3 of 4 in Series VII

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

Series VII Splits

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

TWIWBL 7.0: Notes from Series VI

By mknn

On June 4, 2021

In TWIWBL

April 24th

Series VI saw the Kansas City Monarchs slow down the runaway steam train of the New York Black Yankees (they split a four game series) and the Portland Sea Dogs streak into first place of the Marvin Miller Division by taking 4 straight from the San Francisco Sea Lions.

League Standings | League Stats

Leading SP: Walter Johnson (POR), 4-0, 2.23 ERA, 1.13 WHIP; Don Drysedale (BRK), 4-0, 1.00 ERA, 1.11 WHIP; Ron Guidry (NYY), 4-1, 2.32 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 51 K.

Leading RP: Johan Santana (POR), 0-1, 4.00 ERA, 11 Sv; Tom Henke (OTT), 0.90 ERA, 7 Sv; Bob Howry (PHI) 7 Sv; Ron Reed (PHI) 0-0, 2 Sv, 6 H.

Leading Batters: Babe Ruth (NYY), 449/534/867, 11 HR, 34 R, 32 RBI, 44 H; Jake Stenzel (IND), 261/330/420, 11 2B; Eric Davis (NYY), 290/309/542, 34 RBI; Rickey Henderson 244/421/337, 25 BB, 16 SB.

Boldface indicates league leading mark.

Streaks

Babe Ruth’s hitting streak ended at 23 games, leaving the Wandering House of David‘s Ernie Banks (19 games) and Ruth’s teammate Albert Belle (14 games) as the longest active streaks. Belle has also driven in a run in his last 8 games.

Four players (Bob Bailey of the Detroit Wolverines, Banks, Willie Mays of the New York Gothams, and Frank McCormick of the Birmingham Black Barons) have active streaks of 10 games of reaching base safely.

The Miami Cuban Giants‘ Camilo Pascual hasn’t allowed a run in his last 15 innings.

Series VI Results

Three Game Series

Cleveland Spiders over House of David

Series Sweeps

Portland over San Francisco

Taking 3 out of 4 in Series VI

Birmingham over Indianapolis ABC’s
Chicago American Giants over Philadelphia Stars
Memphis Red Sox over Homestead Grays

Series Splits

Baltimore Black Sox @ Houston Colt 45’s
Brooklyn Royal Giants @ Miami
Detroit v New York Gothams
Kansas City v New York Black Yankees
Ottawa Mounties v Los Angeles Angels

Rain, Rain Go Away …

By mknn

On June 2, 2021

In Game Recaps

April 23rd saw the first suspended game in WBL history (we’ve had a couple of rainouts). The skies began to empty in San Francisco in the 8th, with Portland ahead 3-2.

The game was finished on the 24th, with the scoreline unchanged. Bert Blyleven got the win, moving to 3-1 on the year, and Johan Santana picked up his 10th save of the season, while Jim Devlin–despite a solid showing–took the loss, falling to 0-2 on the young season.

TWIWBL 6.3: Series V Notes – Effa Manley Division

By mknn

On May 25, 2021

In TWIWBL

#Cleveland Spiders

John Ellis went 3-for-4 with 2 HRs and a double in the final game of the Spiders‘ series with Birmingham, leading Cleveland to a 4-2 win and a 3-1 edge in the series.

Rowland Office came off the DL for Cleveland, but with Peanuts Lowery hitting 333/353/424, the Spiders had to look elsewhere to free up space on the roster. They turned to 3B where both Evan Longoria (153/254/271) and Ken Keltner (182/182/303) have struggled and Sammy Strang has only gotten 3 plate appearances. Strang will be given a real shot in platoon with Longoria, meaning Keltner will head down to AAA.

#Indianapolis ABC’s

Virgil Trucks was demoted to AAA after the ABC’s 3 game series with Brooklyn, with Willie Mitchell joining the big league club. Rumors are Indianapolis also wanted Bronson Arroyo to spend some time in AAA, but the 31 year old veteran refused to head to the minors.

Joe Morgan will be out for another week or so, giving Lonny Frey a few more games to show he can handle WBL pitching (so far, he can’t, as he’s hitting at a 143/231/143 clip). With Dennis Menke slashing 321/406/500, Frey looks likely to head down to AAA when Morgan returns.

#New York Black Yankees

Dave Righetti threw one of the finer games of the year so far, a 3-hit shutout against the Homestead Grays. Righetti walked 3 and struck out 11 on his way to an 89 Game Score, improving his numbers on the year to 2-0 with a 2.38 ERA.

Not to be outdone, Ron Guidry improved to 3-1 on the season with his own 3-hit shutout against the Grays, striking out 10 in a 3-0 win. Guidry’s effort yielded an 88 Game Score, and his ERA dropped to 2.39.

In sweeping the four games from Homestead, the Black Yankees outscored the Grays 42 – 6.

#Philadelphia Stars

3B Al Smith hit a pinch-hit HR in the ninth inning against Portland‘s Johan Santana, who had been virtually unhittable up to that point. Buck Freeman hit his 3rd of the season in the 10th–also off Santana–giving the Stars a 3-2 win.

Ken Forsch‘s time in Philadelphia was short: two outings, 2 earned runs in just over an inning, and then back to AAA with Ted Kluszewski returning.

TWIWBL 6.0: Notes from Series V

By mknn

On May 22, 2021

In TWIWBL

Headlines from Series V include the continued dominance of the New York Black Yankees and the league’s first 4 game winner.

The Black Yankees took four games from Homestead, surging to an 18-4 record.

In the final game of Series V, Walter Johnson led Portland to victory, moving to 4-0 on the year, the first pitcher to reach that mark.

League Standings | League Stats

Leading SP: Walter Johnson, POR, 4-0, 2.23 ERA, 1.13 WHIP; Don Drysedale, BRK, 3-0, 1.00 ERA, 1.11 WHIP; Ron Guidry, NYY, 3-1, 2.39 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 46 Ks.
Leading RP: Johan Santana, POR, 0-1, 9 Sv, 4.32 ERA; Bob Howry, PHI, 0-0, 7 Sv, 1.08 ERA; Rod Beck, SFS, 0-0, 6 Sv, 0.00 ERA; Ron Reed, PHI, 0-0, 2 Sv, 6 H, 0.82 ERA.
Leading Batters: Babe Ruth, NYY, 449/515/865, 10 HR, 28 RBI, 31 R; Buster Posey, SFS, 463/511/750; Reggie Jackson, SFS, 456/558/809, 5HR; Eric Davis, NYY, 292/308/596, 31 RBI; Eddie Collins, CAG, 320/469/507, 12 SB; Rickey Henderson, SFS, 247/416/338, 12 SB.

Boldface indicates a league-best mark.

Streaks

The Black Yankees the Chicago American Giants are 8-2 in their last ten games, while the Baltimore Black Sox and Brooklyn Royal Giants have won seven of their last ten.

At the other end, the Memphis Red Sox, Ottawa Mounties, and the Grays have gone 3-7, while the Houston Colt 45’s have managed only two victories in their last ten.

Babe Ruth of the Black Yankees has a 22 game hitting streak heading into Series VI, with the Wandering House of David‘s Ernie Banks having hit in 15 straight and the New York Gotham‘s Buster Posey in 14 straight. Ruth has also driven in a run in 10 straight games.

Series V Results

There were no series splits in Series V–two sweeps and eight series where a team was only able to manage a single victory.

Series V Sweeps

Brooklyn over Indianapolis ABC’s (3 G Series)
Black Yankees over Homestead

Taking 3 out of 4 in Series V

Baltimore over Miami Cuban Giants
Cleveland Spiders over Birmingham Black Barons
Chicago over Detroit Wolverines
New York Gothams over Houston
San Francisco Sea Lions over Kansas City Monarchs
Los Angeles Angels over Wandering House of David
Memphis over Ottawa
Portland Sea Dogs over Philadelphia Stars

TWIWBL 5.6: Series IV Notes – Marvin Miller Division

By mknn

On May 16, 2021

In TWIWBL

Brooklyn leads the division, with San Francisco and Portland close on their heels. Even this early, a bit of a gap appears between those three teams and Miami and Birmingham at the bottom of the division.

Leading Starters: Don Drysedale, BRK, 3-0, 1.27 ERA, 1.03 WHIP; Walter Johnson, POR, 3-0, 2.54 ERA, 1.16 WHIP; Lefty Grove, SFS, 2-0, 1.57 ERA, 0.78 WHIP.
Leading Relievers: Johan Santana, POR, 7 SV, 1.69 ERA, 1.31 WHIP; Dave Von Ohlen, BRK, 2-0, 2 H, 2.19 ERA.
Leading Batters: Reggie Jackson, SFS, 396/500/679; Bobby Bonds, SFS, 364/432/697; Will Clark, MCG, 211/234/493, 6 HR, 19 RBI; Beals Becker, BRK, 293/408/379, 9 SB; Rickey Henderson, SFS, 250/424/359, 9 SB.

#Birmingham Black Barons

OF Al Schweitzer–one of the better performers for the Black Barons in the early season with a 267/389/422 line–is injured; depending on the duration, a roster move might be looming, with both Dale Murphy (038/194/038) and Chipper Jones (088/238/206) possibly being sent to AAA as part of the transaction.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

It was an unkind week for the Royal Giants, with both SP Orel Hershiser and 3B Jim Delahanty hitting the injured list. Hershiser will miss close to 2 months with an oblique strain, moving Dick Redding into the rotation. Lefty Frank Knauss was recalled from AAA to take Redding’s slot in the bullpen. Delahanty will be out close to a year, and Duke Farrell was recalled to take his spot, also clearing room for phenom SS/3B Ray Dandridge to move to AAA.

RP Jeff Montgomery–released by Houston–was signed to a minor league contract.

#Miami Cuban Giants

An 0-4 day at the plate against the New York Giants ended Will Clark‘s 10 game RBI streak.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

Dennis Eckersley was put on the 10-Day IL and Carlos Carrasco was demoted to AAA to help address some pitching issues. If, as expected, Eddie Plank is available in a day, the Sea Lions should be fine with the addition of Ps Rick Langford and Diego Segui from AAA.

FA OF Mookie Wilson was signed to a minor league contract.

Series IV Featured Matchup – Portland Sea Dogs @ Detroit Wolverines

By mknn

On May 10, 2021

In Featured Series, Game Recaps, TWIWBL

The Detroit Wolverines (6-8) host the Portland Sea Dogs (8-6) for four games (series preview here).

Game One: Bert Blyleven v Si Johnson

Game one pitted Portland’s Bert Blyleven against Detroit’s Si Johnson. The game was a blowout for a while, with the Sea Dogs leading 8-1 through 7 innings, led by HR’s from Kent Hrbek, Bobby Murcer, and Joe Mauer. Blyleven had easily his best start of the year, with Bob Bailey‘s double in the bottom of the 8th only the 4th hit he allowed. Johnson, on the other hand, was chased after 6 IP, replaced by Gene Conley, who was pretty miserable, giving up 3 runs in 1.2 IP.

In the 8th, Blyleven retired Jimmy Collins, and was then relieved by Frank Williams, who came in to face Chili Davis … who took him deep for a 2 run HR.

Detroit would add 2 more in the bottom of the 9th, but it wasn’t enough, and Portland opened the series with a win. Mauer ended the day 3-4 with 2 runs and 3 RBIs, with Harry Hooper, Hrbek, Murcer, and Jeff Burroughs each chipping in with 2 hits apiece. Detroit’s Geoff Jenkins had 2 hits and 2 runs scored.

Blyleven finished with a Game Score of 71 (7.2 IP, 4 hits, 10 strikeouts), upping his record to 2-1 and Johan Santana got the final out for his 7th save.

Game Two: Smokey Joe Wood v Whitey Wilshire

Detroit would look to Whitey Wilshire to even up the series against Smokey Joe Wood. Oscar Gamble would put the Wolverines in front in the bottom of the first, ripping a double that scored Jim Fregosi and Gil Hodges. They would double their lead in the bottom of the 4th when Hank Greenberg took Wood deep for a 2-run HR.

Portland would finally break through in the top of the 5th on back to back singles from Kiki Cuyler and Fregosi. They pulled off a double steal, allowing Cuyler to score on a groundout by Hodges. But Jimmy Collins and Chili Davis would hit back-to-back HR’s in the bottom of the inning, pushing Detroit’s lead to 6-1.

Wilshire was replaced by John Hiller and Kevin Hart, who were pretty rough, giving up 3 runs in the 9th. But it was enough to close out the game with Detroit winning 6-4.

Hodges was the offensive star, finishing the game 2-3 with 4 RBIs. Ivan Rodriguez and Fred Dunlap added 2 hits each. For Detroit, Collins continued his strong start with a 2-3 day, 2 runs, and 1 RBI.

Wilshere did well for the win, allowing only 1 run in 6.2 IP, improving his record to 2-1 while Wood fell to 1-2. Mike Cuellar and Jim Kern were good for Portland in relief of Wood, combining for over 3 IP of scoreless relief.

Game Three: Walter Johnson v Long Tom Hughes

With the series tied 1-1, Portland turned to Walter Johnson, who came into the game with a 2-0 record, against Long Tom Hughes for Detroit. This was an old-fashioned blowout with Portland scoring 13 times on 17 hits. Buddy Bell went 5-6 with 2 runs scored, Bobby Murcer went 2-4 with 4 RBIs, Jeff Burroughs scored 3 times, and Smokey Joe Wood atoned some for his pitching performance the previous day, walloping a 3 run HR as a pinch hitter.

Hughes gave up 6 runs in 3 IP, and while Gene Conley bounced back with a scoreless 3 IP, Justin Verlander–who had been fantastic so far this season–gave up 7 runs (3 earned) in 1.1 IP.

Johnson improved his record to 3-0 with 7.2 dominant IP, allowing only 3 hits while fanning 7.

Game Four: Jerry Koosman v Hank Aguirre

In the final game, Detroit will look to Hank Aguirre (1-2) to even the series against Portland’s Jerry Koosman (1-1). Both starters struggled over 4 innings, but Aguirre managed to skate through, allowing a single run in 4 IP despite walking 4. Koosman was far less effective, given up 10 hits and 6 runs in his time.

Frank Williams and Elmer Brown followed Koosman, with each of them giving up runs as well, while Johnny Marcum and John Hiller combined for 5 innings of 3 hit, shutout ball for Detroit. Marcum got the win, giving the Wolverines the series split.

Bob Bailey and Chili Davis had 3 hits and 3 RBIs each, with Bailey and Ty Cobb hitting HRs. Ivan Rodriguez had 2 hits for Portland.

Previewing Series IV – Portland Sea Dogs @ Detroit Wolverines

By mknn

On October 8, 2020

In Series Previews, TWIWBL

The Portland Sea Dogs (8-6) travel to Detroit to take on the Wolverines (6-8) in a 4 game series.

Game 3 may be the one to watch, as both scheduled starting pitchers head into the contest with records of 2-0. Portland’s Walter Johnson (2-0, 3.05) has pitched far better than Detroit’s Tom Hughes (2-0, 5.19), which would seem to give the Sea Dogs the edge.

Portland is hitting well: their .391 team OBP is 1st in the league, and their .879 OPS is 2nd. The Sea Dogs are led by 3B Buddy Bell (362/444/745 with 5 HRs), C Joe Mauer (353/463/676) and CF Bobby Murcer (378/481/600). Bell and Murcer have 12 RBIs, with 1B Gil Hodges leading the team with 13.

Bert Blyleven–who will start the opening game–has struggled in his 2 starts, sporting an ERA of 10.32. Other than Johnson, all of Portland’s SPs have issues, but the bullpen has been fantastic, with the trio of Johan Santana, Frank Williams, and Elmer Brown combining to allow only 3 ERs in 17 IP. Santana leads the league with 6 saves.

Detroit’s offense has been solid, but their pitching has struggled quite a bit. It is unlikely that Hal Newhouser recovers from his injury in time to start game 4 of the series, so Detroit will try to limit Justin Verlander‘s relief appearances so he can take that start. Verlander has been so dominant out of the bullpen, however, that the start may go to Jason Schmidt instead.

Offensively, OF Oscar Gamble (304/458/609) has been the Wolverines’ best hitter, leading the team with 4 HRs. Ty Cobb–kept on the roster despite a horrid Spring Training–is pushing for more playing time as the 20 year old is now hitting 346/370/538 as a reserve. The Bailey Boys–3B Bob and C Ed–continue to impress, with each maintaining an OPS around .900.

TWIWBL 4.1: Notes from Series III

By mknn

On September 30, 2020

In TWIWBL

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

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

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

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

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

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

#Cleveland Spiders

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

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

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

#Detroit Wolverines

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

#Homestead Grays

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

#Houston Colt 45’s

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

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

#Kansas City Monarchs

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

#Miami Cuban Giants

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

#New York Black Yankees

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

#San Francisco Sea Lions

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

#Wandering House of David

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

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.