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98.1: Welcome to Week 1 & Opening Day Games

On August 16, 2026

8 April, 2002

Welcome to Year III! Woot woot!

The Whirled Baseball League opened its third season on the first of April, 2002, but the weather proved a mightier force than the ump crying Play Ball! Four of the ten scheduled openers were impacted by the wet — Houston at Homestead, Birmingham at Brooklyn, Chicago at Baltimore and Los Angeles at Cleveland all went to the tarp, and all four were made up as day-night doubleheaders the following afternoon. Of the six games that did get played, three were interrupted by rain anyway.

After the first week, The Detroit Wolverines sit alone at 6-1. Nobody else in the league has more than five wins. But Detroit is doing it with mirrors: they have scored 43 and allowed 39, which should put them at about 4-3. So we’ll see what holds.

Awards

American League Player of the Week: Dick Allen, Chicago American Giants.

The 24-year-old third baseman opened the year 11-for-27 with three home runs, nine runs batted in and nine runs scored, a .407/.467/.963 line across thirty plate appearances.

National League Player of the Week: Roberto Alomar, Ottawa Mounties.

Fifteen hits in thirty-one at-bats, with two home runs earned Alomar the Award. In one of those early season oddities, he didn’t draw a walk or reach base any other way, so both BA and OBP sit at .484.

Opening Day Games

Kansas City 5, Ottawa 4.

Not a single home run was hit in this one, and it was still the best game of the day. It opened messily on both sides: Kansas City scored twice in the first, one of the runs on a passed ball, and Ottawa gave one straight back in the bottom half on a wild pitch. The Mounties drew level in the third, and there it sat.

Then the sky opened. A thirty-eight minute delay in the fifth ended both starters’ afternoons — Roy Halladay had kept Ottawa in it to that point — and Kansas City came out of the break with two runs in the sixth to lead 4-2.

Ottawa’s answer in the eighth was what lifted the game above the level of the mundane: Eddie Guardado came on for the Monarchs and Roberto Alomar greeted him with a line-drive double. Gary Carter followed with a double of his own — an absolute rocket that left the bat at 111 miles per hour — and Carlos Beltrán scored Carter on a single to center. Tie game, and Kansas City called on Lee Smith to stop the bleeding (which he did).

The winning hit travelled about ninety feet in the air. Doug Rader walked to open the ninth and, after Ted Simmons grounded into a force play, Kolten Wong singled Simmons to second. Frankie Frisch came on to pinch-run from there, tagged up to third on an Ozzie Smith fly ball to right, and scored when Cool Papa Bell beat out a weakly hit infield chopper that left the bat roughly 50 mph slower than Carter’s smash.

Craig Kimbrel set Ottawa down in order in the ninth for the save; the win went to Lee Smith for the eighth.

Benny Kauff finished the day with three hits for the Monarchs.

KAN 5 (Smith 1-0; Kimbrel 1 Sv; Guardado 1 BSv) @ OTT 4 (Dempster 0-1)
HRs: none.
Box Score

San Francisco 5, New York Black Yankees 2.

For six innings this was the pitchers’ duel the marquee promised: Lefty Grove struck out twelve over six and a third — tying the Sea Lions’ franchise record for a single game — and Andy Pettitte matched him nearly stride for stride with six shutout innings and eight strikeouts of his own. Through four the scoreboard was blank in both directions.

Lou Gehrig broke the tie in the bottom of the fourth, taking Grove over the wall with one out for the season’s first run at Yankee Stadium. That held until the seventh, when New York summoned Hoyt Wilhelm to protect the one-run lead.

Whoops. Turkey Stearnes led off the seventh and tied the game on the spot with his opening dinger of the season, and although New York handed Wilhelm a fresh lead in the bottom half — Don Mattingly driving in the go-ahead run for 2-1 — he gave that one back too, and then some. San Francisco put up three in the eighth. Reggie Jackson added a solo shot off David Robertson in the ninth for good measure.

So: blown save, loss, and four earned runs across two innings for Wilhelm, and even on opening day the questions start being asked about the Black Yankees’ bullpen. Trevor Hoffman got the win in relief, Joe Nathan handled the 8th, and Rod Beck finished it off — the Sea Lions’ pen had no such queries asked.

SFS 5 (Hoffman 1-0; Beck 1 Sv) @ NYY 2 (Wilhelm 0-1, 1 BSv)
HRs: SFS – Stearnes (1), Jackson (1); NYY – Gehrig (1).
Box Score

New York Gothams 9, Indianapolis 6.

The week’s largest crowd — 54,814 — was treated to seven home runs (1 by a starting pitcher) and four lead changes. Don Buford led off the bottom of the first by putting a Luis Padrón offering into the seats, and Brandon Crawford did the same in the third.

Indianapolis finally solved Christy Mathewson in the fourth: Johnny Bench went deep with two out, and moments later, with a man aboard, Buddy Bell turned a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead. It lasted one inning. HR Johnson answered with a two-run homer in the fifth, and the Gothams tacked on a couple more in the sixth to lead 6-3 with nine outs to go.

Which is where it got strange. Luis Padrón, still in at the DH for the ABC’s, led off the seventh by homering off Masahiro Tanaka, and two batters later Oscar Charleston hit a two-run shot to tie it at six. Tanaka had blown the save and, in the way these things sometimes go, was about to be rewarded for it: New York retook the lead in the bottom half, and Buford’s second home run of the day, a two-run drive in the eighth, put it out of reach.

Mathewson struck out ten but walked five and got no decision. Tanaka got the win. Nobody got much peace, but the fans got a good show to start the season.

IND 6 (Mitchell 0-1) @ NYG 9 (Tanaka 1-0, 1 BSv; Wilson 1 Sv)
HRs: IND – Charleston (1), Bench (1), Bell (1); NYG – Buford (2), HR Johnson (1), Crawford (1).
Box Score

Detroit 7, Miami 5.

Charlie Root was the story at first — five and two thirds innings, no runs, no walks, and eleven strikeouts. Detroit’s lineup took its time with Miami starter José Méndez, opening with doubles from Bobby Wallace and Charlie Gehringer before Oscar Gamble finally got one out of the park in the fifth. Eustaquio Pedroso came on in relief of Méndez and it went no better — Al Kaline took him deep for two in the seventh, Gehringer in the eighth.

Miami got a two-run shot from Alejandro Oms and three hits from Gary Sheffield, but never was able to overtake the Wolverines.

MCG 5 (Méndez 0-1) @ DET 7 (Root 1-0; Henneman 1 Sv)
HRs: MCG – Oms (1); DET – Gamble (1), Kaline (1), Gehringer (1).
Box Score

Portland 7, Memphis 3.

Walter Johnson started, went three and a third (departing after a rain delay in the 4th), and hit a home run. Paul Molitor added a two-run shot of his own and Ken Griffey Jr had three hits and two runs batted in. Memphis answered through David Ortiz, who drove in three with a homer, and Johnny Briggs, who had three hits, but Portland held the lead throughout.

POR 7 (Trout 1-0) @ MEM 3 (Overmire 0-1)
HRs: POR – Molitor (1), Griffey Jr (1), Johnson (1); MEM – Ortiz (1).
Box Score

Philadelphia 9, Wandering House of David 5.

The ageless wonder that is Rico Carty opened the season by going 4-for-4 with a home run and Roger Peckinpaugh (sitting in at SS for Philadelphia for the suspended Jim Fregosi) drove in three, and Philadelphia was never really threatened once Hardie Henderson got through six. The House of David did get 2 homers from young John Beckwith and another from Anthony Rizzo. Jack Taylor gave up eleven hits in the loss.

PHI 9 (Henderson 1-0) @ HOD 5 (Taylor 0-1)
HRs: PHI – Carty (1), Peckinpaugh (1); HOD – Beckwith (2), Rizzo (1).
Box Score

Bits & Bobs

You Always Remember Your First
Houston’s Pete Hill is 0-for-17 with eight strikeouts. He posted a .800 OPS over 594 plate appearances last season, which makes him the furthest any regular has fallen from his own track. Memphis’s Herman Long is 0-for-10 since being signed to solve shortstop for the Red Sox, and Chicago’s Jay Bell and Birmingham’s Ron Fairly are also hitless.

The Root of Things
Nine and a third innings, seventeen strikeouts — the league lead — and not one walk for Detroit’s Charlie Root.

Singles? We Don’t Need No Stinking Singles.
Baltimore’s Gavy Cravath has six hits this season — three doubles and three home runs. Josh Gibson (Homestead), Manny Ramírez (Memphis), Oscar Gamble (Detroit) and Jack Clark (San Francisco) are also yet to hit a single this season.

Swing, miss, duck.
The Sea Lions’ Lefty Grove has sixteen strikeouts in eleven and a third innings — and a 6.35 earned run average and 0-1 record to show for it.

Who Needs the DH?
Five homeruns came from pitchers during the opening week. 2 came from Charles Rogan (Philadelphia), which isn’t terribly surprising, but Walter Johnson (Portland), Luis Padrón (Indianapolis), and Jim Whitney (Miami) all joined in as well.

Year III Season Preview: Houston Colt .45’s

By mknn

On July 31, 2026

In 2002 Season Previews, Team News

▌ State of the Franchise

Houston has the coldest front office in the league: a compliment.

The Colt .45’s were surprise contenders in 2001 (85-77, a first Marvin Miller Division title, and a playoff round won before Brooklyn ended their season). This team was built without sentiment. Surplus value is currency; names don’t matter, they’ve moved out Lance Berkman, HR Johnson, and Stubby Overmire in major deals, each one built around the notion that they brought more talent in than they surrendered.

The engine underneath is young. The everyday core runs 20 to 25 — Carlos Correa at short, Jeff Bagwell at first, Jim Wynn in center, 20-year-old Pete Hill in left — with a farm system stuffed with arms. The weak point over each of the past 2 seasons has been the bullpen, which has stumbled at every opportunity despite a wealth of good-looking arms — pointing to a challenge either in evaluation or a long string of poor fortune.

And all of it is watched by the most analytics-literate crowd in the league — a fanbase that reads value correctly and whose standing grievance is that nobody outside the 713 appreciates what they’re building.

▌ 2001 Revisited

A year ago the diagnosis was the offense — too weak across the board, especially in its ability to hit for power — and the prescription was for the established bats to break out: some combination of George Brett, Craig Biggio, and Andrés Galarraga.

They didn’t — those 3 in particular. Biggio hit 234/333/398. Brett scuffled to .227 in 357 plate appearances. Galarraga hit his way to a demotion.

Houston won the division anyway, which is the whole point of this franchise. Correa erupted for 318/399/556 and settled the shortstop question to the point Houston was willing to deal Johnson. Tony Gwynn flirted with .400 before tailing off a bit after the All-Star break. Toad Ramsey knuckleballed his way to 282 strikeouts and an 8.2 WAR, arguably the best pitching season anyone had. Clemens won 17. Wynn hit 37 homers and added 38 steals with a .359 OBP and, as usual, was noticed by almost nobody.

The power never really arrived — which is an ongoing concern, and largely responsible for Gorman Thomas making the Opening Day roster (Thomas had a strong showing at the end of last season, and the team is anticipating that Bagwell and Paul Goldschmidt add to their longball numbers as well).

The one thing that went exactly as feared was the bullpen — it didn’t seem to matter who they used, they all got hammered. Sparky Lyle, the arm they sold Johnson to get, had a 3.86 ERA in New York and a 10.12 in Houston.

And yet: division title, Wild Card series win, and clear-eyed optimism for the future.

▌ Key Changes

In: Trea Turner (CAG)
Out: Travis Jackson (CAG)

Opening Day Rookies: Vida Blue; Shanty Hogan; Roberto Osuna; Aramis Ramírez; Will Smith; Gorman Thomas; Trea Turner

▌ Best Case for 2002

The young core steps forward instead of back. Correa’s breakout proves real, and behind Ramsey and Clemens the reclamation arms bounce the way the org keeps insisting they will — Roy Oswalt and Stephen Strasburg were both 4-WAR aces once, and Oswalt’s spring (a 0.69 ERA, the command back) confirms Houston’s faith in them.

Hill and the kids keep climbing, and more power develops throughout the lineup. And the perennial if finally lands: 1 of the electric bullpen arms converts, and Houston has an 8th and 9th inning to go with everything else.

And, with all that, the team confirms that it’s built to be good for a long time.

▌ Worst Case for 2002

The pen stays exactly what it has been. Correa’s 2001 turns out to have been the career year rather than the launching pad. Brett’s swing stays both pretty and empty. And perhaps most concerning, Oswalt and Strasburg stay frustratingly promising, but without impact. Ramsey proves to have been a fluke, leaving the rotation bereft of much beyond Clemens.

▌ Key Questions

Will the bullpen ever convert? A maddening question, because it’s not a blind spot — the org sees it perfectly. The pen is stocked with electric arms that don’t get outs: Billy Wagner‘s stuff grades near the top of the league and he posted an 8.20 ERA. The relievers who actually work are the soft-tossers, Tug McGraw and Andrew Chafin. A large share of Houston’s churn is nothing more than repeated attempts to fix this one thing.
Which Correa is real? The franchise committed hard after the breakout, clearing the middle infield to hand him shortstop outright, and the spring keeps agreeing (a 1.105 OPS). But a .955 season from a 23-year-old could very well be a mirage.
How far does trusting young arms go? Further than anywhere else in the league, for sure: Elton Chamberlain threw 108 innings of 3.56 ball with 100 strikeouts at 19. The next test case is Leon Day, 20, whom the org holds as a future front-of-rotation starter on conviction alone — his 2001 was an 8.49 ERA in a WBL look and 8.34 at Triple-A.

▌ Roster Evaluation

Tier = the player’s 2001 positional grade (S best → F worst; color coded S A B C D F). Bold names carry a substantive WBL track; italic names are pure projection — a hope, not a grade — with no qualifying track to anchor them.

Pos	Players
C	Smith · Hogan
1B	Bagwell B · Goldschmidt
2B	Biggio D · Turner
SS	Correa A
3B	Brett F · Ramírez
LF	Hill C
CF	Wynn B · O’Rourke B
RF	Gwynn B
DH	Goldschmidt · Bagwell B
SP	Ramsey S · Clemens B · Chamberlain · Oswalt F · Strasburg D
RP	Lyle D (CL) · McGraw D · Chafin A · Wagner · Osuna

What the cells won’t tell you: Jim Wynn may be the best player on the roster.

▌ Talent Ratings

	WBL	Minors
Raw Power	CF Jim Wynn	1B Harry Stovey
Batting Eye	1B Paul Goldschmidt	3B Morgan Ensberg
Contact	RF Tony Gwynn	CF Kirby Puckett
Running Speed	2B Trea Turner	CF Willy Taveras
Base Stealing	SP Elton Chamberlain; CF Jim O’Rourke	SP Ed Morris
IF Defense	3B George Brett	SS Roy McMillan
OF Defense	RF Pete Hill	CF Willy Taveras
Stuff	RP Billy Wagner	RP Brad Lidge
Control	RP Roberto Osuna	RP Dan Quisenberry; RP Tim Crews
Velocity	RP Billy Wagner	RP Brad Lidge

▌ Best In The Minors

Rank	Age	Pos	Name
1 (2)	20	SP	Ed Morris
2 (33)	22	SP	Carlos Rodón
3 (40)	19	CF	César Cedeño
4 (53)	22	2B	Yoán Moncada
5 (62)	26	CF	Kirby Puckett
6 (69)	20	2B	Tommy Harper
7 (87)	22	SP	Scott Bankhead
8 (89)	20	SP	Rick Wise

Others: P Leon Day, P Bill Harper, P Lance McCullers, P Bret Saberhagen.

Graduated to the active roster since the ranked list: Trea Turner (21), Will Smith (42).

The deepest, most pitching-rich system in the league. Recent draftee Ed Morris ranks 2nd in all of baseball. Carlos Rodón — pried out of New York in the HR Johnson sale — threw 137 innings at a 2.29 ERA with 121 strikeouts, and with Scott Bankhead and Rick Wise that makes 4 ranked starters. César Cedeño, Kirby Puckett and Tommy Harper feed the outfield behind them.

A year ago this list was topped by Chamberlain, who has since graduated into the rotation, and by catcher Will Smith, who is now the everyday backstop.

Then there’s the layer nobody ranks, which is also arms: Bret Saberhagen is 21 and put up a 3.03 at AA. Lance McCullers is 21 and saved 33 games in the minors, and there is, of course, Day.

▌ Superlatives

	Most	Least
Age	Gorman Thomas, 32	Mike Hedlund, 18
Height	John O’Donoghue, 6’6″	Ed Morris, 5’7″
OPS	Ken Henderson, 1.125 (AA)	Jorge Polanco, .480 (A)
HR	Gorman Thomas, 50 (AAA)	Roy McMillan, 1 (AA)
SB	Jim Wynn, 38	–
WAR (bat)	Ken Henderson, 5.4 (AA)	Victor Reyes, −2.2 (A)
W	Roger Clemens, 17	–
SV	Lance McCullers, 33 (AA)	–
ERA	Carlos Rodón, 2.18 (A)	Leon Day, 6.79 (AA)
WAR (pit)	Toad Ramsey, 8.2	Dock Ellis, 0.2

Stats across all levels, 2001 season. 200 PA / 75 IP minimum. Non-WBL levels tagged in parentheses.

TWIWBL 91.1: Off Season Review – Houston Colt 45s

By mknn

On April 14, 2026

In TWIWBL

85 - 77, .525 pct.
1st in Marvin Miller Division
Won 4-1 v PHI in NL Wild Card
Lost to BRK 4-2 in NL Championship

Overall

Houston was quite a surprise this year, taking home their first division title with a team that came together a year or three earlier than expected. The question is can they maintain this level of play?

A lot depends on how the pitching plays out: Toad Ramsey was among the best in the WBL this year and Roger Clemens wasn’t far behind. If the rest of the rotation can come around, and if the bullpen can just manage to be OK, the Colt 45’s could be back in the playoffs next year.

The distant future is quite bright: this is a very young team with some strong talent working through the system as well.

What Went Right

We’ll start with the pitching this time.

Above all else, we have knuckleballer Toad Ramsey, who was probably the best pitcher in the WBL by any analysis of the metrics, but whose 16-10 record prevented him winning all the awards. Ramsey was nearly impossible to hit, and struck out over 11 per 9 innings, and will be looked to as a staff ace once more next season.

Roger Clemens delivered in his first full season in Houston, going 17-10 with a 3.71 ERA and joining Ramsey in pitching over 200 innings.

Ice Box Chamberlain was hurt for most of the season, but came back very strong, with a 3.56 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP over 15 starts.

Andrew Chafin was good in the bullpen all year, and Jim Kern and Roberto Osuna good over the home stretch.

We’ll start on the offensive side with a couple late season additions. Gorman Thomas rode a 276/415/752 slash line over 34 games to a spot on the playoff roster, and a guaranteed deep look in Spring Training for the 31 year old. Will Smith was even better, pounding out a Ty Cobb like 1.422 OPS in 22 games, creating a virtual lock on the C job going into next year.

Paul Goldschmidt took about half the season to get going, but he was probably the most dangerous hitter on the team once he did, slashing 279/379/663 in 56 games and settling the question of DH (or 1B, depending on how the team evaluates his glovework v Jeff Bagwell‘s).

Speaking of Bagwell, he came good on his talent, leading the team with 112 RBIs and spanking 35 homeruns while showing great patience at the plate.

Carlos Correa was the surprise of the team, flirting with .400 for a while early in the season and finishing at 318/399/556 while playing quite well at SS. If Correa can keep this level of production up, it would both be an extreme boon for Houston and a bit of a surprise.

Speaking of surprises, Jim O’Rourke, a significant disappointment last year, posted an .889 OPS while providing his usual defensive flexibility.

And, speaking of flirting with .400, Tony Gwynn finished at .341, with exactly 200 hits.

Finally, Jim Wynn continues to somehow go underappreciated as a top corner outfielder. He led the team with 37 homeruns and 116 runs scored while posting an .881 OPS.

Oh, one more: Pete Hill‘s .800 OPS doesn’t seem like much until you realize he’s only 20 years old.

ALL STARS

Carlos Correa
Tony Gwynn
Toad Ramsey

MAJOR AWARDS

Toad Ramsey, All NL 1st Team
Jim Wynn, All NL 1st Team

RECOGNITIONS

Jeff Bagwell, All NL 3rd Team; NL 25 & Under Team
Vida Blue, NL 21 & Under Team
Andrew Chafin, All NL 3rd Team; NL 25 & Under Team
Ice Box Chamberlain, NL 21 & Under Team; All NL Rookie 2nd Team
Roger CLemens, All NL 3rd Team
Carlos Correa, All NL 2nd Team; NL 23 & Under Team
Tony Gwynn, All NL 3rd Team
Elliott Maddox, All NL Rookie 2nd Team
Toad Ramsey, NL Brock Rutherford Award, 2nd Place; NL 25 & Under Team; NL 23 & Under Team
Jim Wynn, NL 25 & Under Team; NL 23 & Under Team

ORGANIZATIONAL AWARDS

Toad Ramsey, MVP
Toad Ramsey, Pitcher of the Year
Jim Wynn, Heart & Soul
Pete Hill, Fan Favorite

Lance McCullers, Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Gorman Thomas, Minor League Player of the Year

What Went Wrong

First, the bullpen. It didn’t seem to matter who the Colt 45’s used, from Billy Wagner to Brad Lidge to John Franco to Fred Ely to young Leon Day. They all got hammered. And, at closer, Tug McGraw (and, later, Sparky Lyle) were OK, but not more than that.

More importantly, though, Roy Oswalt and Stephen Strasburg (not to mention an early season trial for Bret Saberhagen) were miserable, and while each ate up innings, instead of anchoring the staff, they were anchors on the team.

There were 3 significant holes in the offense: C, 2B, and 3B.

Behind the plate, Jorge Posada was below average, even for a catcher; at 2B, Craig Biggio was largely miserable, slashing 234/333/398; and at 3B, it took a late season hot streak for George Brett to improve his numbers to 227.272/469. Biggio and Brett are young enough to rebound, and see above for Will Smith‘s ouster of Posada, who is likely to spend next season as the backup catcher.

Goldschmidt’s success lessens its impact, but Andrés Galarraga‘s miserable start must be mentioned. The Big Cat slashed 187/223/373 over 56 games before being sent to the minors.

Transactions

March

None.

July

Also, none. Not for lack of trying, but the Colt 45’s found themselves in a pretty optimistic state of mind these days.

August

IF Grant Johnson to NYY for P Sparky Lyle, IF Eliott Maddox, P Carlos Rodón, 2nd Round Pick, 4th Round Pick.

This was a big one. HR Johnson is an elite talent, and Houston made the Black Yankees overpay, hoping to solve both their closer issues (Lyle was mediocre at best) and gathering the draft picks. This deal settled the Colt 45’s infield, committing them to Biggio, Correa, and Brett and, hence, increasing the pressure on the latter 2 to rebound next year.

Positional Overview

C

The Colt 45’s are turning this over to Will Smith with Jorge Posada as the backup. If either falter, they do have the option of Jim O’Rourke and even Craig Biggio filling in.

Walter Schmidt is probably the best defensive option in the minors, for whatever that’s worth.

1B

Jeff Bagwell and Paul Goldschmidt have this locked up, with whoever isn’t on the field at DH.

Harry Stovey has some upside, as does Charlie Grimm, but Bagwell and Goldschmidt should be here for quite some time.

2B

Craig Biggio will get another shot at this, but a performance like this year will move him to a reserve role pretty quickly.

Bama Rowell would have the first crack at the job, although the Colt 45’s would be likely to try Travis Jackson as well, despite SS being his more natural position.

SS

It’s not quite clear that Carlos Correa belongs in the upper echelon of WBL shortstops, but another season like this one would certainly place him there. Should Correa falter, Travis Jackson is most likely to get a chance, although there is other talent to choose from: Shawon Dunston can hit, and both Bucky Dent and Cristian Guzmán have WBL quality gloves.

3B

George Brett is in a similar position to Biggio: there is great promise, but it’s not clear he can deliver fast enough to hold his role.

This one is more competitive: it’s O’Rourke’s natural position, and both Aramis Ramírez and Wes Helms are serviceable alternatives while Edgar Martínez–only 21–develops.

LF/RF

This is more settled: Jim Wynn in LF and Tony Gwynn in RF with support from Casey Stengel and, occasionally, Pete Hill.

Buddy Bradford, Shin-Soo Choo, Ken Henderson, and Hunter Pence are also available, should Stengel either falter or be injured again.

CF

Pete Hill keeps getting better, and Houston anticipates another step forward this year. Gorman Thomas has earned a shot at the backup spot.

At some point, César Cedeño or Kirby Puckett may demand more time, and if backup is needed before then, Lorenzo Cain looks almost ready.

DH

Goldschmidt and/or Bagwell; Bagwell or/and Goldschmidt.

SP

Toad Ramsey, Roger Clemens, and Ice Box Chamberlain to open. The final 2 spots will come down to Stephen Strasburg, Roy Oswalt, Vida Blue, and Dock Ellis.

At 20, Leon Day is still probably a year or two away, but he may have the highest ceiling in the system–he or Blue.

Dave Dravecky, Bill Harper, Bret Saberhagen, Rick Wise, and Carlos Rodón should also be in the mix down the line.

RP

And now we come to the crux of the matter.

Houston has a huge amount of talent here, but the performance has been pretty miserable. They’ll again look for Tug McGraw and Sparky Lyle to close games, and turn to the best performers from this season to set them up (Andrew Chafin, Roberto Osuna, Jim Kern, and John Franco).

Beyond that … unsure. Brad Lidge and Billy Wagner have immense talent, but have struggled mightily over multiple opportunities.

Dan Quisenberry should get a look, as should their Minor League Pitcher of the Year, Lance McCullers.

Draft Outlook

DRAFT PICKS

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

It’s a good opportunity for Houston to build their system although the temptation to find WBL level bullpen help with some of the early round picks is pretty strong.

TWIWBL 87.9: The Center Fielders

By mknn

On February 6, 2026

In TWIWBL

Fitting for this league, there is a ton of talent here, which makes some of the Tier sorting challenging.

We have a new defensive metric for outfielders: ARM, which is an estimate of the number of runs saved (or allowed) from their throwing arms.

#S Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
NL	IND	Oscar Charleston	21	337/381/619	38 HR 130 RBI 101 R 46 SB
AL	CLE	Tris Speaker	23	312/397/631	35 HR 124 R 46 SB
AL	SFS	Turkey Stearnes	22	357/400/751	51 HR 125 RBI 108 R	-4.7 ARM
AL	LAA	Mike Trout	22	306/392/617	40 HR 107 RBI 106 R 45 SB	.994 fPct

The top of this list is easy: welcome to the WBL, Turkey Stearnes!

After that, it’s unclear. In one sense, maybe it’s just Stearnes? But Tris Speaker–as disliked as he is–had a great season. So, maybe it’s just the two of them? But it feels like Mike Trout and Oscar Charleston are certainly in a different class than the bulk of the A Tier.

I think this is a reflection of how great of a year Sternes had: consider him in an S+ tier by himself.

#A Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
NL	BRK	John Briggs	21	276/377/557	32 HR
NL	NYG	Willie Mays	24	261/337/600	49 HR 112 RBI 107 R 24 SB	14.5 ZR -4.7 ARM
AL	MCG	Julio Rodríguez	20	315/347/661	42 HR	2.30 RF -10.1 ZR
NL	PHI	Charles Rogan	27	308/362/620	21 SB	3.45 RF

Joe Rogan played more CF than anything else (other than pitcher), so he’s listed here.

Willie Mays is Willie Mays, and is expected to spend most of his career here and above. The rest can be considered surprises: John Briggs was seen by many as a AAA player who would fail in his rookie season; Julio Rodríguez was an afterthought invite to Spring Training who seized the opportunity; and while it was expected that Rogan would be solid as a 2-way player, nobody foresaw this.

#B Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
NL	OTT	Carlos Beltrán	25	258/332/533	35 HR 42 SB	10 A
AL	NYY	Eric Davis	25	263/344/538	34 HR 61 SB
AL	POR	Ken Griffey, Jr	20	292/326/568	33 HR	-7.8 ZR

Sure. Eric Davis continues to struggle with injuries, Carlos Beltrán needs to put the ball in play a little more, and Ken Griffey, Jr. is only 20. This also reinforces the trade between Portland and Ottawa–Beltrán deserves his starting spot in the WBL, and Griffey, Jr. needed a fresh start.

Any of these three could move up, while Davis seems the most likely to crash out as his injuries continue to mount.

#C Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
AL	DET	Chili Davis	25	243/318/481		14 A -15.5 ZR .930 dEff 0.5 ARM
NL	HOD	George Gore	26	254/389/440
NL	HOU	Pete Hill	20	274/347/453		2.38 RF
AL	MEM	Reggie Smith	24	270/333/545	34 HR	-5.0 ARM

Here we get to set of CF that are always being questioned–they are good enough, but there’s always a lingering question about whether they’re actually the solution. This impacted George Gore the most, who was essentially a half-time player this year, and is least an issue for Pete Hill, given his age.

Chili Davis is solid, but his defense is far from solid, and Reggie Smith–like some others in the Memphis clubhouse–is under threat from a wave of emerging talent.

#D Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
AL	BAL	Paul Blair	25	262/296/448		11.8 ZR 1.086 dEff
NL	BBB	Curtis Granderson	27	206/293/495	41 HR 21 SB	2.97 RF -5.2 ARM
NL	HOM	Andrew McCutchen	24	238/325/446	52 SB	.963 fPct
—	IND/ CAG	Jake Stenzel	26	244/293/465	22 SB	2.36 RF .917 dEff

Curtis Granderson and Andrew McCutchen had their names penciled in almost every day … which leads to a question of why they escaped the criticism seen by the tier above? For Granderson, it is answered by his defense, power, and the fact that his deficiency–putting the ball safely in play–was a team-wide issue for Birmingham.

Jake Stenzel stopped hitting for power when he arrived in Chicago, cementing his place in this group, while Paul Blair is only here due to his exceptional defense.

#F Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
NL	PHI	Willie Davis	22	233/282/391	21 SB	16.3 ZR 1.095 dEff
NL	HOD	Jim Edmonds	26	218/280/467		.996 fPct 2.95 RF
NL	KCM	Willie McGee	26	246/279/418	40 SB	11 A .969 fPct
NL	KCM	Dale Murphy	23	193/274/456		.971 fPct .936 dEff
AL	CAG	Cristóbal Torriente	18	186/237/247	24 SB	.993 fPct 1.069 dEff 0.4 ARM

Willie Davis and Jim Edmonds do enough with their gloves to stick around somewhere, and Davis is certainly young enough to improve more offensively. The rest are a challenge: Willie McGee is in danger of losing his job, Dale Murphy has obvious power, but is clearly not best suited for CF, and then there’s Cristóbal Torriente, whose defensive impact is unmistakable, but is clearly overwhelmed at the plate at this point.

#Rookies

This is in incredible rookie class, with Stearnes (S Tier), and Rodríguez, Rogan, and Briggs (all A Tier). And, oh yeah, Dale Murphy way down in the F Tier Tier.

#Fielding Notes

We have our standard defensive stats here, with the leaders in bold and the worst performers in italics. Assists (A), more romantically referred to as Outfield Kills are runners eliminated on the bases. Range Factor (RF) measures the number of plays made per game–the higher the better. Zone Rating (ZR) attempts to credit players for plays other fielders missed and ding them for plays other fielders made–the higher the better, and it has the benefit of being comparative across the position. Defensive Efficiency (dEff) measures the rate at which an individual fielder contributes to outs being made on balls put into play, with any score over 1.000 being a net positive impact. Finally, Fielding Percentage (fPct) reflects the percentage of times a chance was handled without a mistake–if someone made no errors, their fPct would be 1.000.

Of these, Range Factor is the most susceptible to the impact of the pitching staff and the ballpark, although none of these defensive ratings are perfect.

TWIWBL 85.4: NL Championship – Houston Colt 45’s v Brooklyn Royal Giants

By mknn

On January 18, 2026

In 2001 Playoffs, TWIWBL

#Game 1, Sat Oct 13

Both teams will go back to the same pitchers that opened the first series, Toad Ramsey for Houston and Orel Hershiser for Brooklyn.

Houston opted for Jim O’Rourke behind the plate over Jorge Posada, while Brooklyn opts to keep the hot hand in the lineup, keeping Ray Dandridge at SS over Vern Stephens. It’s a hard choice–Ron Cey could be benched, allowing both Dandridge and Stephens to play, but Cey was an offensive juggernaut during the season, so despite his struggles in the series against Indianapolis, Cey retains his cleanup position.

Jim Wynn led off the game with a homerun off Hershiser, but Cey must have heard the muttering, as he touched Ramsey with a 3 run shot in the bottom of the frame (John Briggs and Jackie Robinson had singled). As is so often the case, you anticipate a pitching duel, you get homeruns: Paul Goldschmidt hit the 3rd of the game to cut the lead to 1 and Wynn hit his 2nd of the game to tie it at 3 in the top of the 3rd. Then Piazza hit a solo shot in the bottom of the 4th and Robinson a 2 run shot in the 5th, followed by Cey’s 2nd of the game.

So, yeah, 11 hits in the game with 7 of them being homeruns.

Ramsey picked a horrible time for his worst outing of the season, as the Colt 45’s now trailed, 7-3.

Hershiser was relieved by Burleigh Grimes–solid in the postseason so far, but not today. Doubles from Goldschmidt and George Brett narrowed the score to 7-5.

Grimes was relieved by Dave Von Ohlen, who promptly loaded the bases, bringing in Sandy Koufax, who walked Goldschmidt, but got out of the inning without further damage. It was now a 1 run game, 7-6 Royal Giants, which is how it stood in the 9th, with Eric Gagne coming in to face the heart of Houston’s lineup.

Three up, three down, and Brooklyn leads the series, 1-0.

Robinson, Cey, and Piazza had 2 hits each for Brooklyn with Cey driving in 4 with his pair of homers. Wynn, Gwynn, and Goldschmidt had 2 hits for Houston. Hershiser improved to 3-0 in the postseason, but the real story was Ramsey’s ineffectiveness: always a risk for a knuckler.

HOU 6 (Ramsey 2-1) @ BRK 7 (Hershiser 3-0; Van Ohlen 1 H; Koufax 1 H; Hildenberger 3 H)
HRs: HOU – Wynn 2 (3), Goldschmidt (4); BRK – Cey 2 (3), Piazza (6), Robinson (1).
Box Score

#Game 2, Sun Oct 14

Two pitchers of similar molds will face off, Brooklyn’s Don Drysedale and Houston’s Roger Clemens, with the Colt 45’s trying to steal an away game early in the series.

At long last, Dickie Thon is available for Brooklyn, but Ray Dandridge and Vern Stephens are playing so well, he’ll start his postseason from the bench.

Drysedale walked the first 2 batters, but looked to get out of the inning after striking out Carlos Correa and retiring Jeff Bagwell on a brilliant catch by gold glove candidate Roy White in LF. But then Paul Goldschmidt launched a pitch into the LF seats. George Brett followed with a shot to right and it was 4-0 Houston aver a half inning.

John Briggs singled and stole 2nd and scored on a single from Jackie Robinson in the 4th, putting Brooklyn on the board at 4-1. White scored the following inning on a groundout, cutting the lead in half to 4-2.

Bagwell hit a solo shot in the 6th, and a Brett double chased Drysedale. Frank Knauss came in for his first action of the postseason. Pete Hill singled in Brett, and scored on a hit from Jorge Posada, making it 7-2.

Clemens gave up 2 walks in the 6th, and gave way to Jim Kern. Kern got 2 groundouts, 1 scoring a run, making it 7-3, Houston after 6. Some more runs were scored–3 for Houston and a solo shot by Mike Piazza for Brooklyn–but the outcome was never really threatened.

Goldschmidt and Brett had 2 hits each and Goldschmidt drove in 4 for Houston, but the story was really a solid start from Clemens followed by scoreless relief from Kern, Andrew Chafin, and Tug McGraw.

We are now in a best-of-5, with the action swinging back to Houston.

HOU 10 (Clemens 2-0) @ BRK 4 (Drysedale 1-1)
HRs: HOU – Goldschmidt (5), Brett (2), Bagwell (5); BRK – Piazza (7).
Box Score

#Game 3, Tue Oct 16

Game 3 will see Brooklyn’s Smokey Joe Williams face Houston’s Ice Box Chamberlain, in a matchup of pretty cool nicknames.

Gorman Thomas gets the start in CF for Houston, with Ray Dandridge playing SS for Brooklyn.

After Chamberlain struck out the side in the top of the first, Carlos Correa doubled home Tony Gwynn in the bottom of the inning for a 1-0 Houston lead.

Both pitchers ran into some trouble–Williams had runners on 2nd and 3rd with no outs and Chamberlain the bases loaded with 1–but both worked out of the jams without giving up a run. The Colt 45’s added a run in the 4th on a wild pitch, and 4 more on a 2 run homers in the 5th, 1 from Jim Wynn, the other from Correa.

That chased Williams–who honestly hadn’t pitched that badly, despite the 6 runs allowed.

Meanwhile, Chamberlain had a 4 hit shutout until Mike Piazza hit a solo homerun in the 6th. Bagwell added one of his own, and Houston’s bullpen did the rest as the Colt 45’s took a 2-1 lead in the series.

BRK 1 (Williams 0-1) @ HOU 7 (Chamberlain 1-1)
HRs: BRK – Piazza (8); HOU – Wynn (4), Correa (2), Bagwell (6).
Box Score

#Game 4, Wed Oct 17

Fernando Valenzuela will try to tie the series for Brooklyn, opposed by game 1 starter Toad Ramsey, who will try to get his postseason performance on track.

It didn’t start great for Ramsey: Ron Cey went deep after a walk to Jackie Robinson for a 2-0 Brooklyn lead that held until the 4th, when a triple from Dan Brouthers made it 3-0.

Valenzuela was dominant here early: 0 hits, 1 walk, and 5 strikeouts through 3 innings. Houston touched him for a run in the 5th on a single by George Brett, but that was it.

Duke Snider greeted Jim Kern with a solo shot in the 7th, making it 4-1. In the bottom of the frame, Valenzuela hit Jeff Bagwell and gave up a single to Paul Goldschmidt, which ended his day. Dave Von Ohlen eventually loaded the bases, but escaped the inning unscathed, preserving Brooklyn’s 3 run lead.

Trevor Hildenberger had been effective all year setting up Eric Gagne, but he’s struggled this postseason. Here, he gave up a run when Tony Gwynn doubled in Craig Biggio and allowed the tying runs to score on a 2-run double from Goldschmidt.

So we were tied at 4 heading to the 9th. Tug McGraw set Brooklyn down in the top of the frame and a 1-out double by Jim O’Rourke brought Gagne in from the pen. He did his job, and we were off to extra innings.

Beals Becker led off the 10th with a solo shot off Sparky Lyle. Gagne gave up a leadoff single to Gwynn, but induced a double play from Carlos Correa and whiffed Bagwell, ending the game and tying the series at 2.

BRK 5 (Gagne 1-0; Von Ohlen 2 H; Hildenberger 1 B Sv) @ HOU 4 (Lyle 0-1) [10 Innings]
HRs: BRK – Cey (4), Snider (2), Becker (2); HOU – none.
Box Score

#Game 5, Thu Oct 18

With the series tied at 5, we are looking at a best-of-three at this point. Orel Hershiser will get the ball for Brooklyn while Houston, needing to bridge to its primary starters, will go with Stephen Strasburg over Dock Ellis, although Ellis is at the ready should Strasburg falter.

For the first time in the postseason, Houston will start Craig Biggio behind the plate, giving Bama Rowell a chance to make a difference at 2B.

Dan Brouthers walked and stole 2nd and 3rd before scoring on a groundout from Jackie Robinson, but Biggio did gun down Ron Cey at 2nd to end the inning. Still, it put the Royal Giants up, 1-0.

Mike Piazza and Roy White went back-to-back in the top of the 4th, increasing the lead to 3-0, and generating activity in the Houston bullpen.

The Colt 45’s generated traffic each inning, but Hershiser escaped any real danger until the bottom of the 5th, when Pete Hill singled and Rowell walked, putting runners at 1st and 2nd with no outs. Biggio grounded into a double play, but this time Houston at least got a run, as Hill scored on a passed ball, making it 3-1.

Cey took Strasburg deep, making it 4-1 and summoning Ellis from the pen. An errant throw by George Brett brought in Brooklyn’s 5th run and Robinson forced in a run by getting nicked by a Roberto Osuna pitch. So, 6-1 Brooklyn.

Houston wasn’t done, but it’s a long way back. Biggio went deep in the bottom of the 8th and Brett led off the bottom of the 9th with a solo shot of his own. A single from Hill summoned a somewhat fatigued Eric Gagne from the Royal Giants’ pen.

Gagne struck out the side, retiring Jim O’Rourke, Biggio, and Jim Wynn. No problem.

Hershiser was dominant in a crafty way, improving to 4-0 on the postseason, and Brouthers, Piazza, and Becker each had 2 hits pulling Brooklyn to within 1 win of the Whirled Series.

BRK 6 (Hershiser 4-0; Gagne 4 Sv) @ HOU 3 (Strasburg 1-1)
HRs: BRK – White (2), Piazza (9), Cey (5); HOU – Biggio (1), Brett (3).
Box Score

#Game 6, Sat Oct 20

So, will Brooklyn advance to the Whirled Series, or will Houston force a deciding game 7? It will be a rematch of the hurlers from game 2, with Houston’s Roger Clemens taking on Brooklyn’s Don Drysedale.

Houston took the lead in the top of the first, when Jeff Bagwell doubled in Jimmy Wynn, but a Duke Snider dinger in the 2nd tied the game at 1. Tony Gwynn and Carlos Correa went deep back to back in the 3rd, and George Brett scored Bagwell with a double. When Pete Hill doubled home Brett, Drysedale’s day was done, with Houston now leading 5-1 after 3 innings.

Houston added another, but Clemens was dealing until John Briggs took him deep with a runner on in the 5th, making it 6-3, Houston. Jackie Robinson singled to open up the 6th, prompting Clemens’ removal, much to his dismay. Roy Oswalt entered the game for Houston and promptly got a double play from Ron Cey to lower the threat and an inning-ending groundout from Roy White.

We were 9 outs from a Game 7.

Beals Becker got one back in the 7th with a homerun. 6-4, 6 outs to go for Houston to extend their season.

In the bottom of the 8th, Tug McGraw came on for Houston and gave up an RBI single to Cey and a 2 run homer to Piazza. Brooklyn came all the way back, and now lead 7-6.

Once again they turned to Eric Gagne, looking to close the series. With 2 outs, Goldschmidt took a pitch from Gagne and launched it to deep right … where it was caught at the base of the wall by Becker, sending Brooklyn to the Whirled Series.

As they have all year, Piazza and Robinson were the heart of Brooklyn’s offense, but the real story was on the mound, where Frank Knauss–passed over for postseason starts–gave 3 innings of 1-hit relief, earning the victory.

HOU 6 (McGraw 0-1, 1 B Sv; Oswalt 1 H) @ BRK 7 (Knauss 1-0; Gagne 5 Sv)
HRs: HOU – Gwynn (1), Correa (3); BRK – Snider (3), Briggs (1), Becker (3), Piazza (10).
Box Score

TWIWBL 84.4: NL Wild Card Round, Philadelphia Stars v Houston Colt 45’s

By mknn

On January 9, 2026

In 2001 Playoffs, TWIWBL

#Game 1, Wed Oct 3rd

The Stars opted to start Hardie Henderson over Steve Carlton for game 1; for the Colt 45’s there was no question they would turn to Toad Ramsey and his mighty knuckleball.

Sherry Magee continues to be effective as the Stars’ leadoff hitter: here he coaxed a walk from Ramsey, stole 2nd and 3rd, and scored on Jim Fregosi‘s grounder for an early 1-0 lead. It may have been wasted effort, as Aaron Judge hit one into the Crawford Boxes, giving Philadelphia a 2-0 advantage.

It was short-lived: Jim Wynn doubled and scored on a triple from Tony Gwynn. Henderson got 2 outs, but left a sinker up to Paul Goldschmidt, who sent it deep into the seats for a 3-2 edge to Houston after 1 inning.

Ramsey seemed to settle down, but Houston continued its onslaught against Henderson, with George Brett going deep in the 2nd and Goldschmidt, after an error by Scott Rolen put Jeff Bagwell on base, hit his 2nd of the day, making it 6-2.

A single from Pete Hill leading off the 4th chased Henderson, but Robin Roberts escaped the inning without additional damage.

The Stars put runners on 2nd and 3rd (a walk to Chase Utley and a Magee double) with 1 out in the 5th. Ramsey walked in a run, but Philadelphia would be sad not to take greater advantage of the situation. Roberts continued to be effective, and we ended 5 with Houston ahead, 6-3.

Houston got some insurance in the bottom of the 8th as Hill laced a 2 run double, scoring 2 and increasing the score to 8-3.

Philadelphia had their chances, leaving 10 runners on base in the contest, but in the end–in what can only be seen as a good sign for the Colt 45’s–Andrew Chafin, Roberto Osuna, Tug McGraw, and Sparky Lyle combined for 4 scoreless innings in relief of Ramsey.

Goldschmidt was the clear star for Houston, driving in 4, but Carlos Correa and Hill chipped in 2 hits apiece. Magee and Rogan had 2 hits for the Stars.

Houston up, 1-0.

PHI 3 (Henderson 0-1) @ HOU 8 (Ramsey 1-0; Chafin 1 H; Osuna 1 H; McGraw 1 H)
HRs: PHI – Judge (1); Goldschmidt 2 (2), Brett (1).
Box Score

#Game 2, Thu 4 Oct

Philadelphia would turn to Steve Carlton, trying to even out the series against Houston’s Roger Clemens.

Once again Aaron Judge went deep in the opening frame, this time with a solo shot. The Stars scored a second on an RBI single from Rico Carty, meaning, for the 2nd consecutive game, Philadelphia leads 2-0 before Houston comes to bat.

The script diverged there, however briefly: the Colt 45’s cut the deficit in half on a solo shot from Jeff Bagwell in the 2nd. In the 3rd, a leadoff walk to Craig Biggio was followed by a double in the right field corner by Jim Wynn. Tony Gwynn launched a ball to left, forcing a nice diving catch from Sherry Magee, but it was more than enough for Biggio to trot home. But the Colt 45’s weren’t done: Carlos Correa hit an RBI single and then Bagwell launched his 2nd of the game, giving Houston a 5-2 lead.

Carlton lasted 5, Clemens 6, with neither pitching particularly well, turning the game over to the shakiest parts of each bullpen.

Houston seemed to blink first, as John Franco gave up singles to Ted Kluszewski and Bill Dickey to start the 7th. But a pop to short center and a good throw by Jorge Posada to nail Dickey’s attempt to steal second seemed to offer an avenue out. But Franco allowed singles to Magee and Chase Utley, narrowing the lead to 5-4 and fetching Jim Kern from Houston’s bullpen. Kern induced a flyout from Charles Rogan, maintaining the single run advantage for the Colt 45’s.

And this is what Houston had envisioned: Tug McGraw shut it down before yielding to Sparky Lyle to close it out, giving the Colt 45’s a 2-0 edge in the series.

Bagwell’s 2 homeruns were key, of course, but so were Posada’s erasing 2 runners attempting to steal.

It was another game of missed opportunities for Philadelphia, who outhit Houston 11-5 in the contest. 3 of those came from Judge, who is 4-for-8 across the 2 games. The Stars’ bullpen did well, with Brad Kilby, Fred Cambria, and Ted Kennedy combining for 3 frames without giving up a hit.

PHI 4 (Carlton 0-1) @ HOU 5 (Clemens 1-0; Lyle 1 Sv; McGraw 2 H; Kern 1 H; Franco 1 H)
HRs: PHI – Judge (2); Bagwell 2 (2).
Box Score

#Game 3, Sat Oct 6

We head to Philadelphia with something of a must-win game for the Stars, who will turn to the magnificent Charles Rogan, while Houston will counter with Ice Box Chamberlain.

Rogan balked in a run in the top of the first, but escaped a flurry of baserunners without further damage.

Aaron Judge did not hit a homerun in the opening frame, but he did drive in a run with a single, and later scored on a 3-run opposite drive by Jim Fregosi, putting the Stars up 4-1 after 1.

Then both hurlers settled down, and the score was unchanged through 5 innings. Jeff Bagwell took Rogan deep in the 6th, and when that was followed by a walk to Paul Goldschmidt, JM Ward was summoned from the Philadelphia bullpen. Ward retired Pete Hill, and the Stars still led, 4-2.

Judge was not to be denied, hitting one out of the park after Rogan was hit by a pitch. Fregosi followed with his 2nd of the day, chasing Chamberlain who gave up only 4 hits, but 8 runs.

Judge would add another, and Bill Dickey would go deep as well in what turned out to be a bit of walkover, 10-2 in favor of the Stars. Judge drove in 4 and Fregosi 5 on the day as Philadelphia corrected their errors of the first 2 games scoring 10 runs on 6 hits and leaving only a single runner on base.

HOU 2 (Chamberlain 0-1) @ PHI 10 (Rogan 1-0; Ward 1 H)
HRs: HOU – Bagwell (3); PHI – Fregosi 2 (2), Judge 2 (4), Dickey (1).
Box Score

#Game 4, Sun Oct 7

Game 4 presents challenges for each team’s pitching staffs.

For Houston, Stephen Strasburg‘s solid performances down the stretch earned him the start, while Philadelphia will counter with their ace, Hardie Henderson, fully rested after a very short appearance in game 1.

Henderson started well, but walked 3 batters to start the top of the 2nd. George Brett doubled home 2 runs and another scored on a groundout from Jim O’Rourke. Pete Hill tripled home another run and scored on a sacrifice fly from Paul Goldschmidt, making it 5-0.

Chase Utley took Strasburg deep with Willie Davis on 2nd in the 3rd, closing the gap to 5-2.

A leadoff single from Craig Biggio chased Henderson, bringing in Robin Roberts. Bill Dickey whipped Roberts first strike to first, catching Biggio leaning the wrong way–something that may matter, as Jim Wynn followed with a homerun. Houston now led, 6-2–we’ll see if that extra run comes back to haunt them.

Scott Rolen went deep in the bottom of the 4th. 6-3. Doubles from Dickey and Sherry Magee plated another run in the 5th. 6-4.

But Tony Gwynn singled in 2 runs in the 6th to restore the cushion, making it 8-4, Houston.

A 1 out walk to Rolen in the 6th chased Strasburg after a decent enough effort, but Andrew Chafin was able to escape unscathed. The 7th did not go as well for Chafin, who gave up opening singles to Davis and Utley. In came Jim Kern, who induced a double play from Magee and a sharp grounder to short from Charles Rogan, preserving the lead.

But in the 8th, Jim Fregosi came through with a 2-run shot, cutting the lead in half, 8-6.

Philadelphia’s bullpen sort of imploded in the 9th: Bagwell doubled and scored on a single by Hill, who scored on a double by Goldschmidt. Wynn then drew a bases loaded walk, and Gwynn singled in 2 more runs. The 5 run explosion made it 13-6, Houston.

Philadelphia had some baserunners, but it came to naught, and Houston took a commanding 3-1 lead in the series.

Brett and Gwynn had 3 hits each with Gwynn, now hitting .353 in the series, driving in 4 runs on the day.

The bottom of the Stars’ order came to play, with Dickey, Davis, and Utley each having 2 hits.

HOU 13 (Strasburg 1-0, Kern 2 H, McGraw 3 H) @ PHI 6 (Henderson 0-2)
HRs: HOU – Wynn (1); PHI – Utley (1), Rolen (1), Fregosi (3).
Box Score

#Game 5, Mon Oct 8

Perhaps surprisingly, the first team with a chance to clinch their spot in the Division Series is the Houston Colt 45’s. The stellar Toad Ramsey gets the ball for Houston, while the Stars will turn to Ray Collins.

Jeff Bagwell singled in a run in the top of the first, and then Paul Goldschmidt launched a ball deep into the OF. An odd bounce and a poor throw later, and Goldschmidt had an inside-the-park homerun and Houston had a 3-0 edge.

Ramsey started a bit rough giving up singles to Sherry Magee, Aaron Judge, and Scott Rolen to score 1 and a 2-out double to Charles Rogan, resetting the game in a tie. Houston nudged ahead again when George Brett, who had tripled, scored on an RBI groundout from Jorge Posada.

And then both pitchers remembered how to pitch: the score remained 4-3, Houston, through 6 innings, which marked the end of Collins’ day.

Bagwell greeted Brad Kilby with a solo shot in the top of the 8th, extending the lead to 5-3. Houston brought in Jim Kern for the 8th, and he struck out 2, preserving the 2 run advantage, and then they padded it, scoring 3 in the top of the 9th (2 on Carlos Correa‘s first homerun of the series).

The Colt 45’s brought in Sparky Lyle with a 5 run edge, leading 8-3. Rico Carty and Rogan whiffed, bringing Philadelphia to their last batter, catcher Bill Dickey … a hard groundball, fielded by Correa, rifled to first. And Houston is through to the Division Series!

Bagwell, Gwynn, Brett, and Posada each had 2 hits for the Colt 45’s.

HOU 8 (Ramsey 2-0) @ PHI 3 (Collins 0-1)
HRs: HOU – Goldschmidt (3), Bagwell (4), Correa (1); PHI – none.
Box Score

Bagwell, who hit .300 with 4 homeruns, was named Series MVP, but Goldschmidt and Gwynn deserved consideration as well. And, perhaps most importantly for Houston, Tug McGraw, Sparky Lyle, Jim Kern, and Andrew Chafin combined for over 10 innings of scoreless work out of the bullpen.

Aaron Judge (.421 with 4 homeruns and 6 RBIs) also deserved at least cursory MVP consideration.

TWIWBL 84.3: NL Playoff Previews

By mknn

On January 8, 2026

In 2001 Playoffs, TWIWBL

Again, in seeding order.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Sailing under the radar for most of the season, Brooklyn still managed 99 victories, led by a ridiculously strong pitching staff.

The Royal Giants are one of the a very few teams with a legitimate top 4, and it’s unclear if Don Drysedale‘s 2nd half resurgence earns him a start in the opening game, given that Orel Hershiser (19-5, 3.69), Smokey Joe Williams (12-13, 3.93), and Fernando Valenzuela (14-5, 3.69) each had better seasons than Drysedale’s 11-8, 5.66 record.

The bullpen sports 2 of the dominant relievers of the league, with closer Eric Gagne and setup man Trevor Hildenberger, and Burleigh Grimes and Sandy Koufax provide excellent middle inning help when needed.

The offense is a notch below the pitching: Ron Cey and Mike Piazza are stars, and Dan Brouthers, John Briggs, Jackie Robinson, Beals Becker, and Duke Snider are all quite good. Vern Stephens and Dickie Thon seem to be sufficient at SS, and the versatility of Ray Dandridge helps around the IF, despite his lackluster offense.

George Hendrick has been lights out since being brought over in a trade, and makes the playoff roster ahead of swing starter Jim Bunning.

#Philadelphia Stars

Quite a turnaround for Philly, who were horrible last year, mediocre much of this year, and then turned it on the final few months to finish in 2nd place in the Effa Manley Division.

It’s an odd team in many ways. Clearly, Charles Rogan and his unique combination of a 308/362/620 slash line and legitimate #2 starter mound performances count for a lot, as does Aaron Judge breaking out with an OPS over 1.000, 63 homers, 133 RBI’s, and 108 runs scored. Scott Rolen is excellent at 3B, and Rico Carty held off the demons of age for another productive season.

And then the question marks start … Bill Dickey seems to be the answer behind the plate, but is untested, Sherry Magee could be useful, and the newly acquired Jim Fregosi might finally provide some stability at SS. Seems, could be, might …

The rotation is … odd. Hardie Henderson (18-12, 3.78) is probably the #1, but Steve Carlton‘s stuff is electric, despite a 12-13 record and a 5.05 ERA. Then, Rogan. Behind those, JM Ward has been far, far, far better than his 6-10 record would indicate and lefty Ray Collins is dependable.

Bob Howry, Ted Kennedy, Fred Cambria, and Pedro Feliciano form a solid, no-name bullpen (with trade acquisition Mark Melancon‘s selection to the postseason roster in doubt).

In the end, Melancon made it, as did the disappointing Harry Hooper, but that was more a function of a lack of relevant alternatives than anything else.

#Houston Colt 45’s

Most saw this Houston team as being a year or 2 away, but they kept winning through the Summer, and ended up topping the Marvin Miller Division by a comfortable margin.

The pitching staff is not structured as it was to start the season, as both Stephen Strasburg and Roy Oswalt have struggled mightily all season. Still, it’s a strong opening trio, led by the dominant Toad Ramsey (16-10, 3.23) and Roger Clemens (17-10, 3.71) and the now-healthy Ice Box Chamberlain (4-4, 3.56).

The bullpen has been poor all season, with Sparky Lyle (brought over to be the closer) struggling and Tug McGraw having his issues as well. Jim Kern has been a surprising bright spot, and Andrew Chafin and Roberto Osuna have been solid enough.

The offense is an intriguing mix. Carlos Correa, Jeff Bagwell, and Tony Gwynn are a solid core and Paul Goldschmidt has forced his way into the conversation in about 1/3 of a season’s work. Gentleman Jim O’Rourke has bounced back from a poor first season, and the rest of the pieces–mostly Jim Wynn and teenage phenom Pete Hill–are solid enough.

The worst news for Houston is that C Will Smith, who has absolutely destroyed WBL pitching since his recall, is not eligible for the postseason, putting the onus behind the plate on Jorge Posada, who has struggled. Given the presence of Gorman Thomas–who has also been on fire in limited action–we may see O’Rourke catching more than anticipated.

Thomas’ performance forced Casey Stengel off the playoff roster, as, especially with Dock Ellis injured for a few days, both Strasbourg and Oswalt made it.

#Indianapolis ABC’s

It came down to a playoff, but baseball fans are happy to see the ABC’s make the playoffs, as it extends the season for the best pitcher in baseball, Luis Padrón, and the emerging superstar Oscar Charleston.

The postseason likely brings an end to Indianapolis’ 6 man rotation, as the team will try to maximize the starts for Padrón (23-3, 3.22) and Johnny Cueto (12-14, 4.62). Eppa Rixey, Guy White, and Joe Lake are the most likely candidates behind those 2.

The back end of the bullpen was supposed to be a strength, but both Rob Dibble and Rob Murphy have struggle of late, leaving Jack Billingham and the surprising Mike LaCoss as the strongest performers at the moment.

Offensively, this is Charleston’s team, with the young CF slashing 337/381/619 with 38 homers, 130 RBIs, and 101 runs scored. Joey Votto and George Foster have been excellent and while Johnny Bench fell short of last year’s heights, 46 homers and 116 RBIs from behind the plate is nothing to sneeze at.

Chris Sabo has mostly displaced Ed Charles at 3B, but the biggest issue is the absence of Joe Morgan, who will miss the postseason through injury. Morgan was among the best in the game, and without him, the middle infield becomes pretty mediocre, relying on Tommy Helms and Barry Larkin.

#Predictions

Brooklyn is just that much better than Indianapolis across the board, so I think the Royal Giants take that one, 4-2.

The Houston/Philadelphia series is even harder to predict, and I think it is either very close, going the full 7 games, or Houston’s offense clicks on all cylinders and the Colt 45’s win in 5. Let’s say the former, with Houston edging it in a final contest.

TWIWBL 83.1: Year 2, Week 26

By mknn

On December 26, 2025

In TWIWBL

September 23rd

And then there was one … week to go.

#Awards

Houston‘s Jim O’Rourke continues a great recovery from a disappointing performance last season with a National League Player of the Week Award. O’Rourke hit .550 in the penultimate week of the season as the Colt 45’s try to clinch their first Marvin Miller Division title.

In the AL, the often-overlooked Lou Gehrig picked up the Award with the Black Yankee‘s 1B hitting .400 with 6 homeruns.

#Team Performance

#AL

The Black Yankees had a good week in the Bill James Division, moving from a virtual tie with Cleveland into a 1.5 game lead. The Detroit Wolverines, however, have picked a bad time to struggle, and they now hold only a half-game lead over Miami for the final Wild Card spot.

It’s an interesting final week on the schedule: the Black Yankees visit San Francisco in a likely playoff series preview, and then close out the year against the much-improved of late Baltimore Black Sox. Cleveland probably has the easiest schedule, hosting the lowly Memphis Red Sox, and then ending the year at Miami, who play Detroit before that series with the Spiders.

Miami not only has their future in their own hands, they also could decide the Black Yankees / Spiders race.

#NL

With 96 victories in the Effa Manley Division, the Brooklyn Royal Giants have an outside shot at 100 and, with a 5 game lead, Philadelphia looks to have locked up a Wild Card spot.

Houston has a clear path to the Marvin Miller Division crown on paper, with a 4 game lead and series left against the New York Gothams and the Wandering House of David. The final Wild Card spot is likely to come down to the final series of the year, with Kansas City hosting Indianapolis, although the House of David are technically still in the race.

#Player Performance

#Batters

An overpowered year on offense comes to a close. This list has been fairly constant for a while, I’ve added a 2nd list with less desirable stats as well.

Top 2 in most categories.

Lance Berkman (CLE). 279/369/645. 141 RBI.
José Canseco (MCG). 256/357/716. 66 HR.
Oscar Charleston (IND). 336/377/618. 196 H.
Ty Cobb (DET). 384/438/828. 214 H, 65 2B, 16 3B, 148 R, 9.4 WAR.
Josh Gibson (HOM). 395/492/798. 10.7 WAR.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 248/378/421. 103 BB, 121 SB.
Pete Hill (HOU). 270/345/449. 14 3B.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 355/410/607. 67 2B.
Tim Raines (OTT). 250/353/438. 111 SB.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 282/416/745. 70 HR, 162 RBI, 142 R, 117 BB.

Here are some of the less positive performances. Only the leader is listed (although Dunn is 2nd in SO and Lajoie 2nd in negative WAR).

Cupid Childs (BBB). 222/343/327.
Adam Dunn (IND). 207/341/468. 190 SO.
Ted Kluszewski (PHI). 248/291/442. -1.5 WAR.
Nap Lajoie (HOM). 232/254/407. -1.4 WAR.
Manny Machado (BAL). 240/284/518. 24 GIDP.
Mickey Mantle (NYY). 254/367/588. 214 SO.
Doug Rader (LAA). 242/299/455. 24 GIDP.

This list is interesting, honestly. Childs’ OBP and Dunn’s power hide other clear faults, and it’s surprising that WAR sees Kluszewksi as that bad. Mantle is obviously the best of this group.

#Pitchers

#Starters

As it has been for most of the seasion, this list continues to be dominated by 3 names: A. Rube Foster, Luis Padrón, and Toad Ramsey. I’ve added some usage stats (GS, IP) to help fill out the picture as the season winds down, and, as with the batters, a 2nd list for some less desirable leaders (Hardie Henderson could be on both, given 18 wins and his league-leading walks number).

Top 2 in most categories.

A. Rube Foster (KCM). 11-7, 3.27. .187 BA, .217 BABIP, 1.01 WHIP.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 11-7, 4.51. 251 K.
Hardie Henderson (IND). 18-12, 3.78. 98 BB.
Orel Hershiser (BRK). 18-5, 3.76.
José Méndez (MCG). 13-5, 4.47. 35 GS.
Luis Padrón (IND). 23-3, 3.20. 228 IP, 7.0 WAR.
Andy Pettitte (NYY). 18-8, 4.26.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 19-7, 4.46.
Toad Ramsey (HOU). 16-10, 3.23. 223 IP, 282 K, .182 BA, 0.97 WHIP, 3.39 FIP, 7.9 WAR.
Ed Walsh (CAG). 9-10, 3.84. .222 BABIP.
Smokey Joe Williams (BRK). 12-12, 3.87. 3.58 FIP.

Gerrit Cole (LAA). 7-15, 6.45.
Walter Johnson (POR). 13-11, 4.10. 91 BB.
Christy Mathewson (NYG). 7-15, 5.58. 36 GS.

#Relievers

Top 2 in most stats, top 3 in saves. 35 Min IP for rate stats.

Rod Beck (SFS). 4-4, 5.09. 39 Sv, 1 H.
Bruce Chen (BBB). 2-4, 6.71. 4 Sv, 11 H, 67 G.
Rheal Cormier (NYY). 1-3, 4.93. 17 H.
Eric Gagne (BRK). 3-3, 3.12. 37 Sv.
Eddie Guardado (KCM). 2-3, 2.27. 2 Sv, 10 H.
Bob Howry (PHI). 4-1, 3.32. 24 Sv, 0.89 WHIP.
Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-7, 5.81. 1 Sv, 20 H.
Josh Lindblom (HOM). 8-4, 3.52. 33 Sv.
Andrew Miller (MEM). 7-8, 4.42. 4 Sv, 12 H, 71 G.
Akinori Otsuka (CAG/BBB). 8-3, 2.26. 7 Sv, 5 H.
Lee Smith (KCM/HOD). 4-2, 2.75. 6 Sv, 12 H, 0.76 WHIP.

TWIWBL 82.1: Year 2, Week 25

By mknn

On December 12, 2025

In TWIWBL

September 17th

We have 2 weeks left in the season, so a ton of focus on the playoff races feels appropriate.

#Awards

The House of David‘s Anthony Rizzo hit 4 homeruns and hit .429, earning himself the NL Player of the Week Award. Over in the AL, it was a familiar name–Babe Ruth of the New York Black Yankees–earning the Award. Ruth hit .526 with 6 homeruns and 11 RBIs as New York pushes towards the playoffs.

#Team Performance

#AL

The San Francisco Sea Lions have clinched the Cum Posey Division, and either the Cleveland Spiders or the Black Yankees will win the Bill James Division (currently the 2 teams are locked in a dead heat for the top spot), with the other team taking 1 of the 2 Wild Card slots.

The Detroit Wolverines lead the Miami Cuban Giants by 1.5 games for the final playoff spot.

This week offers the Black Yankees a huge opportunity, as they host both Detroit and Cleveland: a strong week from New York could settle a lot of questions.

#NL

Brooklyn has clinched the Effa Manley Division, and all else is chaos.

Philadelphia is (a) 15 games behind the Royal Giants and (b) leading the Wild Card race by 2.5 games.

The Houston Colt 45’s have put their best baseball on the field when it matters, and are currently leading the Marvin Miller Division by 4.5 games, putting them in good position to claim their first postseason appearance.

Behind them, Indianapolis and Kansas City are tied with identical 74-76 records, with the House of David 1.5 games behind them. But the worst team in the NL–the Ottawa Mounties–are only 4.5 games out of the Wild Card. Now, climbing over 6 teams is hard, but anything is possible.

With that many teams still engaged, all of the matchups this week have meaning, but Houston visiting Indianapolis to start the week will certainly grab some attention.

#Player Performance

#Batters

Babe Ruth does Babe Ruth things, as his 6 dingers on the week have allowed the Bambino to retake his customary spot atop the HR log. While it looks like Josh Gibson will fall short in his pursuit of .400, it does seem like he may be able to hold off Detroit’s Ty Cobb in the batting average race.

Cobb reached 200 hits this week, and may very well end the season the only batter to top that milestone (Oscar Charleston and Tony Gwynn each need 14 more hits–doable but perhaps not likely).

Top 2 in most categories.

Lance Berkman (CLE). 281/369/648. 136 RBI.
José Canseco (MCG). 253/356/716. 64 HR.
Oscar Charleston (IND). 333/376/615. 186 H.
Ty Cobb (DET). 383/437/832. 203 H, 62 2B, 16 3B, 142 R, 9.0 WAR.
Josh Gibson (HOM). 394/490/794. 10.2 WAR.
Tony Gwynn (HOU). 338/374/535. 186 H.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 246/377/423. 101 BB, 114 SB.
Pete Hill (HOU). 268/343/446. 14 3B.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 353/406/604. 64 2B.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 279/412/731. 65 HR, 150 RBI, 135 R, 111 BB.

#Pitchers

#Starters

At full usage, most starters have 2-3 chances to win games remaining. Which means 4 players are chasing 20 wins, while Indianapolis’ Luis Padrón just keeps dominating, sitting at 22-3.

This list continues to be dominated by 3 names: A. Rube Foster, Padrón, and Toad Ramsey.

Top 2 in most categories.

Roger Clemens (HOU). 17-9, 3.51. .220 BABIP.
A. Rube Foster (KCM). 11-6, 3.13. .185 BA, .211 BABIP, 1.00 WHIP, 3.67 FIP.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 10-7, 4.32. 239 K.
Orel Hershiser (BRK). 17-5, 3.75.
José Méndez (MCG). 12-5, 4.42. 216 IP.
Luis Padrón (IND). 22-3, 3.20. 6.7 WAR.
Andy Pettitte (NYY). 18-8, 4.14.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 18-7, 4.41.
Toad Ramsey (HOU). 15-10, 3.26. 216 IP, 269 K, .182 BA, 0.98 WHIP, 3.43 FIP, 7.6 WAR.

#Relievers

Top 2 in most stats, top 3 in saves. 30 Min IP for rate stats, which allows the debut of the amazing start to Bartolo Colón‘s career for Homestead.

Rod Beck (SFS). 4-4, 5.20. 38 Sv, 1 H.
Bartolo Colón (HOM). 1-1, 1.70. 1 H.
Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-3, 5.04. 17 H.
Eric Gagne (BRK). 3-3, 3.06. 34 Sv.
Eddie Guardado (NYY). 2-2, 2.11. 2 Sv, 10 H.
Bob Howry (PHI). 4-1, 3.00. 23 Sv, 0.83 WHIP.
Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-7, 5.98. 1 Sv, 20 H.
Josh Lindblom (HOM). 8-4, 3.42. 33 Sv.
Lee Smith (KCM). 4-2, 2.92. 6 Sv, 12 H, 0.79 WHIP.

#Injuries

Some useful pieces may be back in times for the postseason: Cleveland’s Cory Gearrin, Detroit’s Hank Aguirre, Kansas City’s Jock Menefee, Miami’s Gary Sheffield, and the House of David’s Pete Browning may all return to action this week.

TWIWBL 81.1: Year 2, Week 24

By mknn

On October 29, 2025

In TWIWBL

September 9th

This week we have more playoff updates, and a look at the best rookies so far this year.

#Awards

Freddie Freeman is immediately showing he belongs at this level for Los Angeles, with the recent acquisition earning the AL Player of the Week Award, hitting .579 for the week with 4 homeruns. Over in the NL, Brooklyn‘s Duke Snider took home the Player of the Week with a .600 (!) average and 5 homers.

#Team Performance

#AL

The San Francisco Sea Lions have clinched the Cum Posey Division.

The New York Black Yankees have taken a 1 game lead over the Cleveland Spiders in the Bill James Division. Both of these teams will make the postseason, with the 3rd place team in the Bill James, the Detroit Wolverines, leading the Miami Cuban Giants by 4.5 games for the final AL playoff spot.

So, barring some real drama, the only race here is between the Spiders and the Black Yankees for playoff seeding.

#NL

The Effa Manley is a bit of a mirror of the Cum Posey, with the Brooklyn Royal Giants playing out the string, riding a 15.5 game lead over second place Philadelphia, with the Stars currently the highest ranked Wild Card team as well.

And then it gets messy.

Houston has surged in front of the Kansas City Monarchs, with the Colt 45’s leading the Marvin Miller Division by 2.5 games now. However, 3 more teams (Indianapolis, Homestead, and the House of David) are within 2.5 games of the final Wild Card spot, with Birmingham and the New York Gothams only 4 games back. All of that means that only the Ottawa Mounties (5.5 games off the Wild Card, but having 5 teams in the way) have really given up on the season.

#Player Performance

#Batters

It’s late in the year, so there is less churn in these lists. Let’s focus on the races that are still up for grabs.

Ty Cobb‘s lead in most categories is significant, but his 15 triples is only ahead of Houston’s Pete Hill by 1, with Bullet Joe Rogan and Turkey Stearns staying close with 13 each.

Miami’s José Canseco is holding onto the homerun lead with 62. He’s trailed by 2 Black Yankees: Babe Ruth with 59 and Lou Gehrig with 56.

Rickey Henderson is ahead of Ottawa’s Tim Raines by 3 in the stolen base race, 108 to 105.

Top 2 in most categories.

Ron Blomberg (CLE). 279/346/639. 129 RBI.
José Canseco (MCG). 251/357/717. 62 HR.
Ty Cobb (DET). 382/436/827. 195 H, 59 2B, 15 3B, 135 R, 8.6 WAR.
Josh Gibson (HOM). 395/493/791. 9.7 WAR.
Rickey Henderson (SFS). 248/376/431. 95 BB, 108 SB.
Joe Jackson (CAG). 354/407/611. 64 2B.
Babe Ruth (NYY). 269/402/694. 59 HR, 139 RBI, 125 R, 104 BB.

In the less glorious stats, sitting on 197, the Black Yankees’ Mickey Mantle is guaranteed to top 200 strikeouts on the season.

#Pitchers

Luis Padrón continues to totally dominate, winning his 20th and 21st game over the past week. Sitting at 21-3, Padrón has been the best starter in the league for most of the season. With only a few weeks left, it’s possible nobody else reaches 20 victories, but we’ve listed all 5 of the other hurlers with at least 16 wins.

A couple active streaks of note: José Rijo, Padrón’s teammate on the Indianapolis ABC’s, hasn’t allowed a run in 21 innings, and Brooklyn’s Sandy Koufax is riding a streak of 10 innings without giving up a hit.

#Starters

On the one hand, this list could be 3 names long: A. Rube Foster, Padrón, and Toad Ramsey.

Top 2 in most categories.

Roger Clemens (HOU). 16-9, 3.61.
A. Rube Foster (KCM). 10-6, 3.21. .187 BA, .211 BABIP, 0.99 WHIP.
Ron Guidry (NYY). 9-7, 4.29. 232 K.
Bump Hadley (SFS). 16-5, 4.15.
Orel Hershiser (BRK). 17-5, 3.87.
José Méndez (MCG). 12-5, 4.37. 206 IP.
Luis Padrón (IND). 21-3, 3.34. 205 IP, 6.2 WAR.
Andy Pettitte (NYY). 17-8, 4.19.
Eddie Plank (SFS). 17-7, 4.55.
Toad Ramsey (HOU). 15-9, 3.18. 248 K, .181 BA, 0.97 WHIP, 3.33 FIP, 7.4 WAR.
Fernando Valenzuela (BRK). 13-5, 3.60. 1 Sv, 4 H, .220 BABIP.
Smokey Joe Williams (BRK). 12-11, 3.87. 3.69 FIP.

#Relievers

Top 2 in most stats, top 3 in saves and holds. 30 Min IP for rate stats, which allows the debut of the amazing start to Bartolo Colón‘s career for Homestead.

Rod Beck (SFS). 4-4, 4.93. 36 Sv, 1 H.
Bartolo Colón (HOM). 1-0, 0.87. 1 H, 0.84 WHIP.
Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-3, 5.40. 16 H.
Eric Gagne (BRK). 2-3, 2.60. 33 Sv.
Eddie Guardado (KCM). 2-2, 2.20. 1 Sv, 9 H.
Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-7, 5.14. 1 Sv, 20 H.
Josh Lindblom (HOM). 8-4, 3.48. 32 Sv.
BJ Ryan (OTT). 2-3, 4.64. 1 Sv, 16 H.
Lee Smith (KCM). 4-2, 2.79. 6 Sv, 12 H, 0.77 WHIP.

#Injuries

A huge one: Chicago‘s Frank Thomas is out for 8-9 months with a knee injury. The Big Hurt is expected to make a full recovery, but this really will impact the American Giants’ offseason plans, as they will need a 1B for the first half of next season.