A .500 average and 3 homeruns was enough for Jeff Bagwell of the Houston Colt 45’s to win the NL Player of the Week Award while, in the AL, Portland‘s resurgent Buddy Bell took home the Award, doing even better over the span by hitting .522 with 4 dingers.
#Team Performance
The yawner is the Cum Posey Division, where San Francisco continues to coast with the best record in the league, leading the division by 15 games and going 8-22 over their last 10 contests.
In the Bill James Division, where the New York Black Yankees once looked as comfortable as San Francisco, the Cleveland Spiders have closed to within 2.5 games of New York. That’s the same margin the Brooklyn Royal Giants hold over Homestead in the Effa Manley Division while, over in the Marvin Miller Division, it’s a 3 team race between Kansas City, Indianapolis, and Houston with only 2.55 games separating those 3 franchises.
Baltimore continues to flounder with the worst record in the WBL at 41-58.
#Player Performance
#Batters
Returning to this, a few things stand out: Detroit‘s Ty Cobb has hit a little bit of a lull, pulling his average well below .400 while Babe Ruth keeps doing Babe Ruth things, but isn’t as dominant as he has been in past moments. All of this has allowed the exploits of Homestead’s Josh Gibson to come to the forefront.
Gibson was an all-star, but he was overshadowed by Cobb and Ruth until now. But he’s slashing 407/500/781, which may make the young backstop the most dangerous bat in the league at the moment.
As always, top 3 in most stats with the leaders in bold.
It’s an odd list, as the gap between the truly elite performers–essentially Gibson, Cobb, and Ruth and, maybe, Cleveland’s Tris Speaker–and the next group is pretty wide.
Ron Blomberg (CLE). 286/355/681. 38 HR, 101 RBI. José Canseco (MCG). 252/370/709. 42 HR. Oscar Charleston (IND). 345/390/639. 130 H, 11 3B. Ty Cobb (DET). 381/432/818. 130 H, 41 2B, 5.8 WAR. Kal Daniels (LAA). 331/434/626. Josh Gibson (HOM). 407/500/781. 1221 H, 6.5 WAR. Tony Gwynn (HOU). 366/406/563. 130 H. Rickey Henderson (SFS). 260/386/482. 63 BB, 69 SB. Joe Jackson (CAG). 362/407/592. 124 H, 44 2B. Stan Musial (KCM). 325/390/573. 40 2B. Mike Piazza (BRK). 313/350/709. 38 HR. Babe Ruth (NYY). 291/428/769. 47 HR, 108 RBI, 94 R, 78 BB, 6.0 WAR. Tris Speaker (CLE). 343/423/692. 81 R. Larry Walker (OTT). 274/355/669. 38 HR, 93 RBI. Ted Williams (MEM). 306/419/636. 81 R, 63 BB.
#Pitchers
#Starters
All 6 players with 12 or more wins are listed.
A. Rube Foster (KCM). 6-2, 2.48. 0.93 WHIP. Lefty Grove (SFS). 12-4, 3.86. 156 K. Ron Guidry (NYY). 8-6, 4.24. 169 K. Bump Hadley (SFS). 14-4, 3.62. 3.55 FIP. Orel Hershiser (BRK). 12-5, 3.76. José Méndez (MCG). 9-5, 4.12. 3.9 WAR. Luis Padrón (IND). 13-3, 3.70. 3.57 FIP, 4.4 WAR. Eddie Plank (SFS). 14-4, 3.90. Toad Ramsey (HOU). 13-5, 2.82. 175 K, 0.93 WHIP, 2.81 FIP, 6.1 WAR. Jim Whitney (MCG). 5-2, 2.88. 1 Sv, 2 H. 0.98 WHIP.
#Relievers
22 IP Min.
Rod Beck (SFS). 3-2, 3.58. 25 Sv, 1 H. 0.76 WHIP. Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-2, 5.48. 12 H. Eric Gagne (BRK). 2-1, 3.14. 20 Sv. Eddie Guardado (KCM). 2-1, 1.87. 1 Sv, 6 H. Bob Howry (PHI). 3-1, 3.91. 13 Sv. 0.78 WHIP. Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-4, 3.48. 1 Sv, 14 H. Josh Lindblom (HOM). 4-3, 3.44. 25 Sv. Robb Nen (NYG). 3-2, 1.72. 10 Sv, 9 H. Lee Smith (KCM). 4-1, 2.37. 6 Sv, 6 H. 0.82 WHIP. Brian Wilson (NYG). 1-0, 1.19. 14 Sv.
#Injury Report
Detroit’s Mike Henneman may start a rehab assignment later in the week.
For each section, if a player doesn’t qualify for batting stats (roughly 270 PA), their G and PA are listed. Bold indicates a leader at that position for the stat; top 3 listed for most stats.
One thing became quite clear through all this: the AL is far more potent at the plate than the NL. Here, the challenge is omitting some players with 30 homeruns or near 1.000 OPS.
#C
Name
OPS
Slash
Reg Stats
Other
Ed Bailey (DET)
.985
269/365/619
20 HR; 46 RBI; 2.1 WAR
62 G/230 PA 43.2 RTO%
Mickey Cochrane (SFS)
.899
297/368/531
1.9 WAR
1.6 FRM; 4.31 CERA
Joe Mauer (POR)
.850
297/373/477
1.7 WAR
2.7 FRM
Curt Blefary (BAL)
.814
251/348/465
16 HR; 47 RBI
Carlton Fisk (CAG)
.801
222/285/516
21 HR; 56 RBI
40.2 RTO%; 2.2 FRM
FRM = Framing Runs | RTO% = Runners Thrown Out | CERA = Catcher ERA
Ed Bailey (whose defensive performance has been surprisingly good) and Mickey Cochrane are clearly in, with Bailey starting. That leaves Joe Mauer in a bit of no-man’s land: if the AL goes with 3 catchers, he’d be the 3rd. With Portland needing representation in the game, and a general desire for 3 backstops, Mauer makes the cut.
Iván Rodríguez has probably been the best defensive catcher in the AL (although Mauer has been quite good), but Pudge’s 237/272/448 slash line is just too weak to merit much consideration.
#1B
Name
OPS
Slash
Reg Stats
Other
Lou Gehrig (NYY)
1.029
283/394/635
28 HR; 67 RBI; 2.5 WAR
.995 Fldg
Frank Thomas (CAG)
.994
297/418/576
1.8 WAR
8.84 RF
Lance Berkman (CLE)
.980
271/364/615
28 HR; 69 RBI
Hank Greenberg (DET)
.976
276/347/629
28 HR; 2.0 WAR
.998 Fldg; 3.1 ZR
Jim Thome (MCG)
.954
231/352/603
32 HR; 72 RBI
8.84 RF
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
It’s hard to imagine that 32 HR and 72 RBI at the all star game doesn’t make the roster, but that’s what Jim Thome is facing. Lou Gehrig and Frank Thomas clearly are on the roster and while Lance Berkman and Hank Greenberg have better overall numbers than Thome, his power is gaudy enough to have the 3 in a dead heat. Perhaps Greenberg’s defense edges him in front?
In the end, none of the 3 of them made it, which is remarkable.
#2B & SS
Because Dick Lundy and Bobby Grich–two strong contenders–essentially split their time between 2B and SS, we’ll consider the two positions together. First the 2Bs.
Name
OPS
Slash
Reg Stats
Other
Rogers Hornsby (POR)
.867
280/386/481
11 HR; 33 RBI
58 G / 254 PA
Bobby Grich (LAA)
.829
238/367/462
15 HR; 44 RBI; 1.8 WAR
1.3 ZR
Eddie Collins (CAG)
.828
310/404/424
19 2B; 38 SB; 1.3 WAR
4.60 RF
Charlie Gehringer (DET)
.823
260/335/488
11 HR; 34 RBI
62 G / 242 PA; 4.96 RF
Cookie Rojas (MCG)
.800
321/365/436
29 2B
.988 Fldg; 4.51 RF
Miller Huggins (BAL)
.795
302/423/372
1.9 WAR
67 G / 241 PA; 6.4 ZR
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
And now the SS
Name
OPS
Slash
Reg Stats
Other
Cal Ripken, Jr. (BAL)
.926
293/339/587
45 G / 1655 PA
Arky Vaughan (CLE)
.906
312/400/506
19 2B; 44 RBI; 2.8 WAR
6.7 ZR
Bobby Grich (LAA)
.829
238/367/462
15 HR; 44 RBI; 1.8 WAR
Robin Yount (MCG)
.828
273/313/515
16 HR; 42 RBI
.983 Fldg; 4.42 RF
Dick Lundy (SFS)
.799
296/357/442
18 2B; 7 3B; 35 SB; 2.3 WAR
4.40 RF; 5.9 ZR
Jim Fregosi (POR)
.795
259/351/444
16 2B
.985 Fldg
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
This is rough all around.
Arky Vaughan is just about the only clear choice here, with the best all around performance by a SS if you discount Cal Ripken, Jr., who just hasn’t played enough (likewise, a lack of playing time eliminates both Miller Huggins and, most controversially, Charlie Gehringer from consideration).
If we need 4 more middle infielders, they should come from Rogers Hornsby, Grich, Lundy, Eddie Collins, and Robin Yount.
Hornsby has been the best hitting 2B, which is no surprise, but he’s also missed some time and is somewhat of a liability defensively. Still, the best OPS of the group has to count for something, so he’s in as the starting 2B for the AL.
Eddie Collins is having a bit of an off year compared to last year season. Grich, Collins, and Yount are almost indistinguishable: as such, Grich’s versatility earns him a roster spot, and Collins edges Yount for the final spot, leaving Lundy in the cold as well.
#3B
Name
OPS
Slash
Reg Stats
Other
Evan Longoria (CLE)
.958
296/352/606
26 2B; 55 RBI; 2.3 WAR
.962 Fldg; 1.5 ZR
Mike Schmidt (NYY)
.951
251/367/584
26 HR; 60 RBI; 2.4 WAR
2.57 RF; 2.2 ZR
Gary Sheffield (MCG)
.937
281/327/611
22 2B; 60 RBI; 2.0 WAR
1.3 ZR
Wade Boggs (MEM)
.887
325/396/491
28 2B
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
Wade Boggs is really just there for comparison. Mike Schmidt gets the starter’s nod over Evan Longoria, as much for his team’s performance as any discernable statistical edge.
#LF/RF
We’ll treat the corner OF’s together.
Name
OPS
Slash
Reg Stats
Other
Babe Ruth (NYY)
1.191
288/428/763
41 HR; 94 RBI; 5.4 WAR
6.7 ZR
José Canseco (MCG)
1.101
258/378/723
38 HR
Ted Williams (MEM)
1.059
310/425/634
69 RBI
Frank Robinson (BAL)
1.038
305/398/640
1.000 Fldg
Mickey Mantle (NYY)
1.009
270/380/629
32 HR; 82 RBI
Joe Jackson (CAG)
.981
354/397/584
40 2B; 31 SB
Rickey Henderson (SFS)
.866
264/386/479
62 SB; 3.0 WAR
7.3 ZR
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
Babe Ruth, José Canseco, and Ted Williams are locks. After that, it would seem criminal to omit either Frank Robinson or Mickey Mantle, although it must be noted that Uncle Robbie’s performance is ever-so-stronger than Mantle’s, earning him one of the final spots.
That would leave the electric Rickey Henderson and the extraordinary Joe Jackson on the outside looking in.
#CF
Name
OPS
Slash
Reg Stats
Other
Tris Speaker (CLE)
1.113
341/413/700
32 2B; 64 RBI; 4.6 WAR
6.2 ZR; 6 Kills
Eric Davis (NYY)
1.080
319/399/681
29 SB
45 G / 208 PA
Turkey Stearnes (SFS)
1.063
334/373/690
9 3B; 24 HR; 61 RBI; 2.9 WAR
Julio Rodríguez (MCG)
1.061
346/369/691
43 G/195 PA
Mike Trout (LAA)
.987
309/389/598
25 2B; 4 3B; 57 RBI; 3.0 WAR
1.000 Fldg
Alejandro Oms (MCG)
.881
344/406/474
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
Look, I don’t like Tris Speaker either, but the man can flat out play. So, he’s in, as is Stearnes, perhaps the leading candidate for the AL Rookie of the Year. And neither Eric Davis nor the surprising Julio Rodríguez have played enough to make the cut. So that leaves Mike Trout as the open question: Trout is clearly deserving, so the question is whether the AL goes with 2 pure CF’s or 3.
Alejandro Oms misses out, despite being 3rd in the league in BA.
#DH
Name
OPS
Slash
Reg Stats
Ty Cobb (DET)
1.299
399/450/849
38 2B; 9 3B; 75 RBI; 32 SB; 5.6 WAR
Ron Blomberg (CLE)
1.032
288/361/671
32 HR; 85 RBI
Reggie Jackson (SFS)
1.029
300/422/608
21 2B; 24 SB; 3.0 WAR
Kal Daniels (LAA)
1.013
326/425/589
21 2B; 31 SB; 2.3 WAR
Ryan Braun (MCG)
.975
280/327/648
31 HR
Gavvy Cravath (BAL)
.956
247/349/607
23 2B; 28 HR; 71 RBI
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
My lord. 31 homeruns at the all star break and a possibility of not being selected? Welcome to your life, Ryan Braun.
Obviously, Ty Cobb and Ron Blomberg are in. And it seems ridiculous to omit either Kal Daniels or Reggie Jackson.
#SP
And now we move into the AL’s weakness–there are strong top-end candidates here, but far less depth than over in the NL.
Name
W-L; ERA
Reg Stats
Other
Doc Gooden (LAA)
7-6, 3.26
.240 BABIP
58% QS
Ed Walsh (CAG)
6-3, 3.36
1.05 WHIP; .199 BABIP
0.6 WPA
Eddie Plank (SFS)
13-3, 3.73
0.5 WPA
Lefty Grove (SFS)
10-4, 3.80
140 K; 3.2 WAR
3 SHO; 2.87 SIERA; 0.5 WPA
Andy Pettitte (NYY)
10-5, 3.90
Brett Anderson (LAA)
8-2, 3.93
1.05 WHIP; .234 BABIP
Bump Hadley (SFS)
12-4, 3.98
3.67 FIP; 3.1 WAR
58% QS
Cy Young (CLE)
9-3, 4.37
3.81 FIP; 3.3 WAR
2 SHO
Ron Guidry (NYY)
8-5, 4.15
150 K
2.52 SIERA
FIP = Fielding Independent Pitching | BABPI = BA Allowed on Balls In Play | QS = Quality Starts | SHO = Shutouts | SIERA = Skill Interactive ERA | WPA = Win Probability Added
The spots fill up quickly. Eddie Plank will start the game for the AL, and his teammates Bump Hadley and Lefty Grove clearly belong. It seems silly to omit the ERA leader, Doc Gooden.
After that, it gets confusing. Ed Walsh has been almost unhittable, but is only 6-3. Andy Pettitte has 10 wins and a sub 4.00 ERA.
That would leave the overall WAR leader, Cy Young, the strikeout and SIERA leader, Ron Guidry, and the overall excellence of Brett Anderson missing out.
#RP
Name
W-L; ERA
Reg Stats
Other
Ron Robinson (SFS)
1-0, 1.64
3 Sv; 3 H; 1.00 WHIP
{ injured }
Ken Howell (SFS)
4-1, 1.72
1 Sv; 4 H
Ross Reynolds (LAA)
2-0, 2.30
1 Sv; 2 H; 1.88 FIP
Goose Gossage (NYY)
2-3, 2.41
10 Sv; 8 H
.90 Sv%
Akinori Otsuka (CAG)
3-1, 2.48
1 Sv; 5 H
Skel Roach (MEM)
1-0, 2.62
7 H; .160 BABIP
Justin Hampson (BAL)
0-0, 2.86
7 H; .159 BABIP; 1.05 WHIP
Rod Beck (SFS)
3-2, 3.20
23 Sv; .156 BABIP; 0.67 WHIP
15 SD; 2.83 SIERA; .885 Sv%
Terry Adams (CLE)
1-3, 3.80
15 Sv; 2 H
.882 Sv%
Sparky Lyle (NYY)
2-1, 4.37
3 Sv; 8 H
Rheal Cormier (NYY)
0-2, 5.75
11 H
FIP = Fielding Independent Pitching | BABPI = BA Allowed on Balls In Play | SD = Shutdowns | SIERA = Skill Interactive ERA | Sv% = Save %
The AL is a little weak in bullpen depth as well. Rod Beck is easily the class of the closers, with Terry Adams close behind. The overall excellence of Ken Howell and Goose Gossage also merit a spot, leaving Ross Reynolds, Skel Roach, and Justin Hampson on the bubble.
Hampson gets the nod, both because of how surprising his season has been and as a nod to the paucity of lefties in the AL pen.
#AL All Stars
The final 2 spots came down to choices between Mike Trout, Reggie Jackson, Kal Daniels, Mickey Mantle, Eddie Collins, and Robin Yount. A fourth middle infielder seemed like a requirement, giving the nod to Collins.
So. Reggie or Kal. Kal or Reggie. I mean. Kal Daniels is having an incredible year. But there’s just no way to argue he is more deserving than Reggie.
There is an argument to be made that the AL should only take 2 3B, replacing Gary Sheffield with Daniels. But the final choice is always going to be onerous.
Some more arguments about who was wronged (these are the highest ranked layers in each stat not to make the game).
Joe Jackson (CAG). #2 in H (109); #1 in the league in 2B (40); #2 in BA (.354). Mickey Mantle (NYY). #3 in HR (32); #3 in RBI (82). Kal Daniels (LAA). #4 in OBP (.425); #11 in OPS (1.013). Ryan Braun (MCG). #7 in SLG (.648). Rickey Henderson (SFS). #1 in SB (62); #4 in WAR (3.0). Dick Lundy (SFS). #3 in 3B (7).
And, on the mound
Cy Young (CLE). #5 in W (9); #2 in FIP (3.81); #1 in WAR (3.3). Ron Guidry (NYY). #1 in K (150); #1 in SIERA (2.52). Brett Anderson (LAA). #5 in ERA (3.93); #2 in WHIP (1.05). Walter Johnson (POR). #2 in IP (125). 4 Players have 14 saves, tied for #3. Of those, Only Ricky Nolasco (MCG) has an ERA below 4.00. Rheal Cormier (NYY). #1 in H (11).
Starters in bold.
C: Ed Bailey (DET); Mickey Cochrane (SFS); Joe Mauer (POR). 1B: Lou Gehrig (NYY); Frank Thomas (CAG). 2B: Eddie Collins (CAG); Bobby Grich (LAA); Rogers Hornsby (POR). SS: Arky Vaughan (CLE). 3B: Evan Longoria (CLE); Mike Schmidt (NYY); Gary Sheffield (MCG). LF: Frank Robinson (BAL); Ted Williams (MEM). CF: Tris Speaker (CLE), Turkey Stearnes (SFS). RF: José Canseco (MCG), Babe Ruth (NYY). DH: Ron Blomberg (CLE); Reggie Jackson (SFS), Ty Cobb (DET). SP: Doc Gooden (LAA), Lefty Grove (SFS), Bump Hadley (SFS), Andy Pettitte (NYY); Eddie Plank (SFS), Ed Walsh (CAG). RP: Terry Adams (CLE); Rod Beck (SFS); Goose Gossage (NYY); Justin Hampson (BAL); Ken Howell (SFS).
And, by team. Unsurprisingly, the 3 American League teams with records over .500 (San Francisco, the Black Yankees, and Cleveland) are supplying 18 of the 32 players.
San Francisco Sea Lions (.625). Rod Beck (P), Mickey Cochrane (C), Lefty Grove (P), Bump Hadley (P), Ken Howell (P) Reggie Jackson (DH), Eddie Plank (P), Turkey Stearnes (OF). New York Black Yankees (.618). Lou Gehrig (1B), Goose Gossage (P), Andy Pettitte (P), Babe Ruth (OF), Mike Schmidt (3B). Cleveland Spiders (.558). Terry Adams (P), Ron Blomberg (DH), Evan Longoria (3B), Tris Speaker (OF), Arky Vaughan (SS). Chicago American Giants (.466). Eddie Collins (2B), Frank Thomas (1B), Ed Walsh (P). Miami Cuban Giants (.483). José Canseco (OF), Gary Sheffield (3B). Detroit Wolverines (.453). Ed Bailey (C), Ty Cobb (DH). Los Angeles Angels (.448). Doc Gooden (P), Bobby Grich (2B). Portland Sea Dogs (.438). Rogers Hornsby (2B), Joe Mauer (C). Baltimore Black Sox (.416). Justin Hampson (P), Frank Robinson (OF). Memphis Red Sox (.494). Ted Williams (OF).
A whopping 15 players are repeat all-stars from last season: Terry Adams, Rod Beck, Ron Blomberg, José Canseco, Eddie Collins, Lou Gehrig, Lefty Grove, Rogers Hornsby, Ken Howell, Reggie Jackson, Joe Mauer, Babe Ruth, Frank Thomas, and Ted Williams.
We’ll preview the All Star selections, so this will be a bit of a longer entry.
#Awards
Lots of awards, as we moved into a new month!
First, the smaller ones. Houston‘s Jeff Bagwell was the National League Player of the Week, hitting .409 with 5 homeruns while Eric Davis of the juggernaut New York Black Yankees was the American League Player of the Week, hitting .481 with 5 homers in the same span.
In the monthly awards, the American League Rookie of the Month for June was San Francisco‘s Turkey Stearnes, who hit .378 with 11 homeruns in the month.
Kansas City‘s A. Rube Foster was both the National League Rookie of the Month and the NL Pitcher of the Month, going 3-1 with a 1.65 ERA, as the young hurler announced himself as, at least so far, a premier WBL starter. The American League Pitcher of the Month was Bump Hadley, Stearnes’ teammate in San Francisco. Hadley was 5-0 in June with a 2.66 ERA.
Ottawa‘s star backstop, Gary Carter, was the National League Batter of the Month, hitting .397 with 14 homeruns in June while in the American League, unsurprisingly, the award went to the stellar Ty Cobb. The Detroit OF hit .408 with 11 homers in June, which actually brought his overall average down in that span (Cobb is leading the WBL in BA at .418).
#Team Performance
Yawn.
The Black Yankees and the Sea Lions continue to be the 2 best teams in the league, leading their divisions by 5 and 11 games respectively.
The Effa Manley Division might offer some excitement in the second half, as Brooklyn still leads Homestead by 4 and the New York Gothams by 5.5. But the only true race is in the Marvin Miller Division, where Kansas City has overtaken Indianapolis, now leading the ABC’s by 2.5 games.
The Houston Colt 45’s are 8-2 over their last 10 games, but still sit 5 games under .500. Detroit and Philadelphia are moving in the other direction, with each team managing only 2 wins in their last 10 contests.
Birmingham still has the worst record in the league, but they have moved over .400, sitting at .410 (34-49).
#Player Performance
Batters
It’s still Ty Cobb’s world, although Babe Ruth is doing Babe Ruth things, and reached the 40 homerun plateau during the last week.
José Canseco (MCG). 254/375/734. 36 HR. Oscar Charleston (IND). 336/386/642. 103 H, 9 3B. Ty Cobb (DET). 416/464/885. 116 H, 37 2B, 8 3B, 5.8 WAR. Josh Gibson (HOM). 392/481/748. 5.1 WAR. Tony Gwynn (HOU). 389/425/601. 116 H. Pete Hill (HOU). 291/371/487. 10 3B. Joe Jackson (CAG). 356/398/588. 103 H, 39 2B. Stan Musial (KCM). 329/392/573. 37 2B. Babe Ruth (NYY). 292/426/775. 40 HR, 90 RBI, 82 R, 68 BB, 5.0 WAR. Larry Walker (OTT). 293/369/721. 36 HR, 85 RBI.
Rickey Henderson (San Francisco) and Tim Raines (Ottawa) continue to be 1-2 in the league in steals, but it’s getting closer, with Henderson’s edge now 60 to 53.
Pitchers
Starters
While his performance has been somewhat below par, the New York Gothams’ Christy Mathewson continues to be definition of workhorse, leading the WBL with 20 starts, 2 ahead of a bevy of hurlers with 18.
7 pitchers have reached double-digits in wins, with Luis Padrón (Indianapolis) leading the way at 11-2. All 7 are included below. Houston’s Toad Ramsey was so dominant for so long, he is still the top starter in the league despite a recent dip in form, but I would probably choose Lefty Grove of San Francisco or the emergent A. Rube Foster.
Frank Castillo (KCM). 10-1, 4.22. A. Rube Foster (KCM). 5-1, 2.30. .203 BABIP, 0.98 WHIP, 3.70 FIP. Lefty Grove (SFS). 10-4, 3.71. 126 IP, 132 K, 3.1 WAR. Ron Guidry (NYY). 8-4, 3.86. 143 K, 3.80 FIP, 3.2 WAR. Bump Hadley (SFS). 11-4, 4.21, 3.50 FIP, 3.0 WAR. Orel Hershiser (BRK). 10-4, 3.87. Luis Padrón (IND). 11-2, 4.21. 3.57 FIP, 3.3 WAR. Eddie Plank (SFS). 11-3, 3.54. Toad Ramsey (HOU). 11-4, 2.77. 124 IP, 152 K, 0.89 WHIP, 2.80 FIP, 5.2 WAR. Ed Walsh (CAG). 6-3, 3.41. 1 Sv, .201 BABIP. Smokey Joe Williams (BRK). 7-7, 3.41. 3.66 FIP, 3.4 WAR.
Relievers
We’ve listed the top 3 leaders in saves, all 5 of the relievers who have reached double digits in Holds, as well as all 5 with an ERA below 2.00.
18 IP minimum.
Rod Beck (SFS). 3-2, 3.47. 21 Sv. Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-2, 6.03. 11 H. Eric Gagne (BRK). 1-1, 2.92. 19 Sv. Ken Howell (SFS). 4-1, 1.72. 1 Sv, 4 H. Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-4, 4.13. 1 Sv, 10 H. Brad Kilby (PHI). 1-2, 4.39. 2 Sv, 10 H. Craig Kimbrel (KCM). 2-1, 1.14. 2 Sv, 11 H. Josh Lindblom (HOM). 4-2, 3.45. 20 Sv. Rob Murphy (IND). 1-3, 3.75. 1 Sv, 11 H. Robb Nen (NYG). 3-2, 1.95. 9 Sv, 6 H. Ron Robinson (SFS). 1-0, 1.64. 3 Sv, 3 H. BJ Ryan (OTT). 1-2, 4.15. 1 Sv, 10 H. Harley Young (BBB). 1-0, 1.23. 3 Sv, 5 H.
#Injury Report
Portland lost half of their backstop platoon as AJ Pierzynski will be out for close to a month. News was worse for Ottawa, as SP Bob Moose is out for close to a year.
Houston’s Casey Stengel and Kansas City’s Lou Brock are awaiting diagnosis on their current injuries.
Baltimore’s Bobby Wallace, Detroit’s Billy Hoeft, and the Black Yankees’ Dave Righetti should all begin rehab assignments this week.
#The All Star Candidates
We’ll look at these by position, mixing the two leagues for the time being.
For each position, we’ve included as many players as it takes to have at least 3-4 candidates from each league, highlighting some pretty severe disparities in talent between the AL and the NL.
If players don’t qualify for the batting stats, their playing time is noted, as are some other potentially influencing factors. This indicates a leader at that position among the players listed (but not necessarily overall).
Each league can only select 32 players for the All Star Game itself (usually 20 or 21 position players and 11 or 12 pitchers), so quite a few of the players listed here will be left on the outside looking in.
#C
The NL dominates here, with 3 catchers with an OPS over 1.000. That means some worthy candidates–most notably NYG’s Buster Posey –are likely to miss out.
Name
Tm / Lg
OPS
Reg Stats
Other
Josh Gibson
HOM / NL
1.229
5.1 WAR; 67 RBI
3.1 FRM
Gary Carter
OTT /NL
1.073
28 HR
47.1 RTO%
Mike Piazza
BRK / NL
1.042
29 HR; 65 RBI
4.87 CERA
Ed Bailey
DET / AL
.972
57 G/216 PA; 43.6 RTO%
Jim Pagliaroni
BBB / NL
.925
61 G/231 PA
Mickey Cochrane
SFS / AL
.917
10 SB; 4.39 CERA
Ted Simmons
KCM / NL
.900
63 G/256 PA; 4.15 CERA
Buster Posey
NYG / NL
.870
3.8 FRM
Joe Mauer
POR / AL
.856
14 SB
Curt Blefary
BAL /AL
.826
Carlton Fisk
CAG / AL
.800
67 G/254 PA; 11 SB
FRM = Framing Runs | RTO% = Runners Thrown Out | CERA = Catcher ERA
The other stalwart defensive catchers–Miami‘s Iván Rodríguez and Indianapolis’ Johnny Bench–just haven’t hit enough, although a late surge by Bench has moved him up these lists.
I don’t think there is any question in the NL, where it’s Gibson, Carter, and Piazza. Cochrane and Mauer should be in for the AL, with a question of whether you go with Bailey’s bat in more limited appearances or Blefary. Should the NL decide to carry 4 backstops, the choice between Pagliaroni and Simmons (and, perhaps, Posey) is close.
Gibson and Cochrane should be the starters.
#1B
The AL has a slight edge here, but there’s a lot of talent throughout.
Name
Tm / Lg
OPS
Reg Stats
Other
Lou Gehrig
NYY / AL
1.057
28 HR; 21 2B; 65 RBI
.995 Fldg
Will Clark
NYG / NL
1.006
Frank Thomas
CAG / AL
1.004
Hank Greenberg
DET / AL
.991
26 HR
.998 Fldg; 3.1 ZR
Mike Epstein
HOM / NL
.965
Anthony Rizzo
HOD / NL
.964
Lance Berkman
CLE / AL
.957
Jim Thome
MCG / AL
.927
28 HR; 64 RBI
Jeff Bagwell
HOU / NL
.923
66 RBI
.995 Fldg
Boog Powell
KCM / NL
.920
.995 Fldg; 9.23 RF; 2.9 ZR
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
Gehrig and Clark are almost certainly the starters, and the AL will likely take Thomas and Greenberg as well. In the NL, it gets a little trickier, as Powell (along with Greenberg) is one of the better 1B defensively. Epstein’s offense will carry him, but after that my guess is Rizzo gets the selection (but cannot participate via injury), and is replaced by Powell, with Bagwell having a legitimate complaint.
#2B
The NL is ridiculously stacked in terms of offensive-minded 2B.
Name
Tm / Lg
OPS
Reg Stats
Other
Joe Morgan
IND / NL
1.088
47 G/199 PA
Roberto Alomar
OTT/ NL
1.008
21 2B; 18 HR; 64 RBI; 31 SB; 3.5 WAR
Ryne Sandberg
HOD / NL
.995
28 HR; 60 RBI; 2.9 WAR
.997 Fldg; 5.00 RF
Jackie Robinson
BRK / NL
.938
Rogers Hornsby
POR / AL
.919
53 G/234 PA
Charlie Gehringer
DET / AL
.876
57 G/225 PA; .989 Fldg; 5.09 RF
Eddie Collins
CAG / AL
.850
36 SB
Bobby Grich
LAA / AL
.845
15 HR
Craig Biggio
HOU / NL
.841
Chase Utley
PHI / NL
.781
4.92 RF; 9.3 ZR
Cookie Rojas
MCG / AL
.766
27 2B
.987 Fldg
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
Joe Morgan is included just for interest–he missed too much time to injury to warrant serious consideration. Detroit’s Charlie Gehringer, on the other hand, probably makes the cut, despite starting the season in the minors.
In the NL, it’s pretty clear: Alomar, Sandberg, and Robinson, with the starter being decided between Sandberg and Alomar over the next week. The AL is trickier, but I think it ends up going according to form: Eddie Collins to start, with Gehringer and Hornsby behind him.
#SS
It’s pretty impressive there are this many shortstops that can hit, and Ernie Banks‘ production is incredible.
Name
Tm / Lg
OPS
Reg Stats
Other
Ernie Banks
HOD/ NL
.978
30 HR; 71 RBI
Cal Ripken, Jr.
BAL / AL
.967
39 G/140 PA; .993 Fldg; 4.90 RF
Carlos Correa
HOU/ NL
.929
18 2B; 2.8 WAR
Arky Vaughan
CLE / AL
.887
19 2B; 2.4 WAR
6.3 ZR
Álex Rodríguez
OTT / NL
.885
23 HR
Robin Yount
MCG / AL
.845
15 HR
5.8 ZR
Jim Fregosi
POR / AL
.793
Dick Lundy
SFS / AL
.783
7 3B; 2.1 WAR; 33 SB
Derek Jeter
NYY / AL
.762
Dobie Moore
MEM / AL
.750
22 SB
.983 Fldg
Ozzie Smith
KCM / NL
.672
19 2B; 25 SB
.994 Fldg; 6.3 ZR
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
Ripken, Jr. is really not a serious contender, but he has been impressive in the 40 G’s he’s played. That gives us Banks, Correa, and Rodríguez in the NL and Vaughan, Yount, and either Fregosi or Lundy in the AL.
Smith is included because of his superlative defense, but doesn’t probably make the cut.
This is an interesting position: Vaughan and Rodríguez changed teams in the off season, and Correa’s performance has been a bit of a shock.
#3B
The top 5 are locks, beyond that, it gets much trickier, especially in the NL.
Name
Tm / Lg
OPS
Reg Stats
Other
Albert Pujols
KCM / NL
1.046
32 2B; 60 RBI; 2.8 WAR
Ron Cey
BRK / NL
.967
2.4 WAR
.976 Fldg; 3.3 ZR
Gary Sheffield
MCG/ AL
.929
22 HR; 55 RBI; 15 SB
Evan Longoria
CLE / AL
.926
2.2 ZR
Mike Schmidt
NYY / AL
.926
23 HR; 55 RBI
2.59 RF
Scott Rolen
PHI / NL
.922
2.1 WAR
.974 Fldg; 2.7 ZR
Ron Santo
HOD /NL
.906
52 G/192 PA
Eddie Mathews
BBB / NL
.904
24 HR
.978 Fldg; 2.66 RF
Wade Boggs
MEM / AL
.896
26 2B
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
After Pujols and Cey, it’s hard in the NL. Matthews and Rolen edge ahead of Santo due to defense and Santo’s relative low usage, but picking between the two of them is very challenging, to the point the NL may go with 4 players at the hot corner.
#OF
All of the OF spots are a bit combined in the end, but we’re keeping them separate for the sake of comparison.
#LF
When Detroit’s Ty Cobb plays the OF, he plays here as well, making the AL selections pretty simple.
Name
Tm / Lg
OPS
Reg Stats
Other
Babe Ruth
NYY / AL
1.201
40 HR; 90 RBI; 5.0 WAR
.988 Fldg; 5.1 ZR
Ted Williams
MEM / AL
1.063
23 2B; 65 RBI
Frank Robinson
BAL / AL
1.035
24 HR; 64 RBI; 2.3 WAR
1.000 Fldg
Adam Dunn
IND / NL
.906
24 HR
.989 Fldg; 3.41 RF
Roy White
BRK / NL
.866
Oscar Gamble
DET / AL
.852
Rickey Henderson
SFS / AL
.840
2.8 WAR; 60 SB
7.2 ZR
Tim Raines
OTT / NL
.773
7 3B; 53 SB
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
So, Ruth, Williams, and Robinson are in, and perhaps Henderson’s 60+ SB warrant a spot. In the NL, it’s more challenging. Dunn seems to be a lock, and White is a bit of a sentimental choice. It may be just those 2 from this group.
#CF
Tris Speaker, as despicable of a human being as he is, is the best in the AL right now, especially considering the defensive contribution. Over in the NL, Willie Mays probably edges Oscar Charleston as the starter.
Name
Tm / Lg
OPS
Reg Stats
Other
Rick Monday
OTT /NL
1.172
41 G/136 PA
Tris Speaker
CLE / AL
1.088
31 2B; 4.0 WAR
2.68 RF; 5.1 ZR; 6 Kills
Turkey Stearnes
SFS / AL
1.065
7 3B; 24 HR
Eric Davis
NYY / AL
1.058
26 SB
41 G/188 PA; 1.000 Fldg
Julio Rodríguez
MCG / AL
1.052
39 G/177 PA
Oscar Charleston
IND / NL
1.027
9 3B; 60 RBI; 24 SB
Willie Mays
NYG / NL
.977
31 HR; 62 RBI; 2.9 WAR
.990 Fldg; 2.70 RF; 7.7 ZR
Mike Trout
LAA / AL
.965
24 2B; 2.8 WAR; 21 SB
1.000 Fldg
Carlos Beltrán
OTT / NL
.916
63 RBI; 21 SB
Alejandro Oms
MCG / AL
.883
5 3B
6.3 ZR
Curtis Granderson
BBB / NL
.876
26 HR
3.01 RF
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
Monday, Davis, and Rodríguez aren’t really in contention, but their performances in limited action have been pretty spectacular.
Speaker, Stearnes, and Trout are pretty much locks in the AL, with Oms being a hard luck case. Beltrán deserves the spot behind Mays and Charleston.
#RF
A deep, deep group, probably 4 deep in each league.
Name
Tm / Lg
OPS
Reg Stats
Other
José Canseco
MCG / AL
1.109
36 HR
Larry Walker
OTT / NL
1.090
36 HR; 85 RBI; 22.4 WAR
3.89 RF
Reggie Jackson
SFS / AL
1.027
63 RBI; 2.8 WAR; 24 SB
Tony Gwynn
HOU / NL
1.026
6 3B; 24 2B; 2.8 WAR
Aaron Judge
PHI / NL
.994
.992 Fldg
Mickey Mantle
NYY / AL
.993
30 HR; 76 RBI
Joe Jackson
CAG /AL
.986
39 2B; 27 SB
Stan Musial
KCM / NL
.964
37 2B
5.5 ZR
Johnny Callison
NYG / NL
.945
.993 Fldg
Mookie Betts
MEM / AL
.865
24 2B
1.000 Fldg
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
Canseco, Mantle, and the 2 Jacksons seem locks in the AL, with Walker, Gwynn, and Judge in the NL. It’s possible Musial misses the cut, as ridiculous as that sounds.
#DH
The pressure here is immense, given the competition for the other OF spots.
Name
Tm / Lg
OPS
Reg Stats
Other
Ty Cobb
DET / AL
1.350
37 2B; 8 3B; 26 HR; 73 RBI; 5.8 WAR; 31 SB
Kal Daniels
LAA / AL
1.023
21 2B; 2.3 WAR; 30 SB
Manny Ramírez
MEM / AL
.986
56 G/224 PA
Ryan Braun
MCG/ AL
.982
31 HR
Willie Stargell
HOM / NL
.980
27 HR
Gavvy Cravath
BAL / AL
.926
22 2B; 69 RBI
Benny Kauff
NYG / NL
.909
Fldg = Fielding % | RF = Range Factor | ZR = Zone Rating
Cobb is, of course, a lock, and it would be hard to keep Daniels off the roster. Beyond that, though, it gets difficult to justify a pure DH, although Braun, Stargell, and Cravath all have decent arguments.
#P
Pitching is, of course, a constant crapshoot, and a lot could change in the outings this week.
All pitchers are sorted by ERA.
#SP
This list has everyone with an ERA under 4.00 or 10 or more wins.
Name
Tm / Lg
W-L; ERA
Reg Stats
Other
Toad Ramsey
HOU / NL
11-4, 2.77
152 K; 0.89 WHIP; 5.2 WAR; 2.80 FIP
71% QS; 5 CG; 2 SHO; 2.34 SIERA; 1.7 WPA
Doc Gooden
LAA / AL
7-5, 3.17
Hardie Henderson
PHI/ NL
9-6, 3.18
Smokey Joe Williams
BRK / NL
7-7, 3.41
3.4 WAR
Ed Walsh
CAG / AL
6-3, 3.41
1.06 WHIP
Eddie Plank
SFS / AL
11-3, 3.54
Roger Clemens
HOU / NL
9-4, 3.71
65% QS
Lefty Grove
SFS / AL
10-4, 3.71
132 K
4 CG; 3 SHO; 2.87 SIERA
Johnny Cueto
IND / NL
8-4, 3.75
67% QS
Rube Foster
IND / NL
6-4, 3.80
Ron Guidry
NYY / AL
8-4, 3.86
143 K
2.58 SIERA
Orel Hershiser
BRK / NL
10-4, 3.87
Brett Anderson
LAA / AL
7-2, 3.91
1.06 WHIP
Andy Pettitte
NYY / AL
9-5, 4.05
Bump Hadley
SFS / AL
11-4, 4.21
3.50 FIP
Luis Padrón
IND / NL
11-2, 4.21
3.3 WA; 3.57 FIP
Frank Castillo
KCM / NL
10-1, 4.22
3 CG; 2 SHO
José Méndez
MCG / AL
6-4, 4.45
FIP = Fielding Independent Pitching | QS = Quality Starts | SIERA = Skill Interactive ERA | WPA = Win Probability Added
Right now, I would guess the starting matchup is Toad Ramsey for the NL and Eddie Plank for the AL.
Beyond that, in the AL, I see Gooden, Walsh, and Grove as easy picks. Guidry is likely in as well, leaving Anderson and Hadley on the bubble.
The NL is much harder to figure out. Henderson, Hershiser, Padrón, and Castillo feel like they deserve selections, with Williams having a very strong case as well. That would leave some excellent performances–Clemens and Cueto especially–on the outside looking in.
#Swingmen / Long Relivers
These are players who are either swing starters or have seen more innings than the finishers below. As is often the case, there are a few folks here who, for whatever the reason, took a while to be inserted into the rotation.
Name
Tm / Lg
W-L; ERA
Reg Stats
Other
A. Rube Foster
KCM/ NL
5-1, 2.30
0.98 WHIP
7 GS; 90 IP; 86% QS; 2 SHO; 1.0 WPA
Jim Whitney
BBB / NL
4-2, 3.26
1 Sv; 2 H; 1.03 WHIP
11 GS; 94 IP; 73% QS; 1.9 WPA
Tom Brewer
SFS / AL
0-1, 2.33
1 Sv; 2 H
2 GS; 27 IP
Fernando Valenzuela
BRK / NL
5-0, 2.37
1 Sv; 4 H; 0.96 WHIP
1 GS; 60 IP; 1.0 WPA
Rheal Cormier
NYY / AL
0-2, 6.03
11 H
FIP = Fielding Independent Pitching | QS = Quality Starts | SIERA = Skill Interactive ERA | WPA = Win Probability Added
Foster and Valenzuela seem clear selections, with Brewer and Cormier missing the cut and Whitney being on the bubble.
#Closers & Setups
20 IP Minimum, with a possible exception for Brian Wilson of the New York Gothams.
Name
Tm / Lg
W-L; ERA
Reg Stats
Other
Brian Wilson
NYG/ NL
1-0, 1.08
11 Sv
17 IP
Craig Kimbrel
KCM / NL
2-1, 1.14
2 Sv; 11 H; 0.89 WHIP
15 SD; 5.6 IRS%; 2.90 SIERA; 2.0 WPA
Harley Young
BBB / NL
1-0, 1.23
3 Sv; 5 H
Ron Robinson
SFS / AL
1-0, 1.64
3 Sv; 3 H
Ken Howell
SFS / AL
4-1, 1.72
1 Sv; 4 H
Robb Nen
NYG / NL
3-2, 1.95
9 Sv; 6 H
Eddie Guardado
KCM / NL
2-1, 2.08
1 Sv; 5 H
2.92 SIERA
Tug McGraw
HOU / NL
3-3, 2.16
7 Sv
Ross Reynolds
LAA / AL
2-0, 2.19
1 Sv; 1 H
Goose Gossage
NYY / AL
2-3, 2.32
9 Sv; 8 H
.90 Sv%
Lee Smith
HOD / NL
4-1, 2.73
5 Sv; 6 H; 0.73 WHIP
Eric Gagne
BRK / NL
1-1, 2.92
19 Sv
17 SD
Justin Hampson
BAL / AL
0-0, 3.00
7 H; 0.95 WHIP
Terry Adams
CLE / AL
1-2, 3.18
15 Sv; 2 H
.94 Sv%
Josh Lindblom
HOM / NL
4-2, 3.45
20 Sv
.95 Sv%; 16 SD; 1.3 WPA
Rod Beck
SFS / AL
3-2, 3.47
21 Sv; 0.73 WHIP
15 SD
Rob Murphy
IND / NL
1-3, 3.75
1 Sv; 11 H
Michael Jackson
HOM / NL
1-4, 4.13
1 Sv; 10 H
BJ Ryan
OTT / NL
1-2, 4.15
1 Sv; 10 H
Brad Kilby
PHI / NL
1-2, 4.39
2 Sv; 10 H
2.73 SIERA
Rob Dibble
IND / NL
2-2, 5.25
16 Sv
Jeff Pfeffer
KCM / NL
1-3, 5.61
16 Sv
FIP = Fielding Independent Pitching | QS = Quality Starts | SIERA = Skill Interactive ERA | WPA = Win Probability Added
A difficult set of choices for sure. Of the true closers, Gagne, Lindblom, and Beck seem locks, with Kimbrel, Young, Howell, Nen, McGraw, Gossage, and Smith deserving nods as well.
That would give the NL 7 selections, likely keeping Wilson from making the team. It would also give the AL only 3, opening the door for Adams and even Reynolds or Hampson.
We’re rounding the corner towards the selection of this year’s All-Star teams. Today, we’ll check in on last year’s all stars from the AL.
#Awards
Duke Snider hit .444 with 5 homeruns last week, earning the Brooklyn OFer the NL Player of the Week Award. In the other league, Detroit‘s irrepressible Ty Cobb was named AL Player of the Week. Cobb moved his average back over .400, finishing the week at .411 after hitting .579 with 5 homers.
And, over in the Effa Manley Division, 5.5 games separate Brooklyn in first and Ottawa at the bottom.
Memphis and Brooklyn have gone 8-2 over their last 10 games, while Miami has done the inverse, finishing 2-8 over their last week and a half.
#Player Performance
Batters
Someone poked Babe Ruth, insinuating that the Black Yankees’ OF might not be the dominant player in the league. Since then, he has been on fire, retaking the league lead in his usual categories.
Three batters sit over .400: Houston‘s Tony Gwynn at .427, Ty Cobb at .411, and Homestead‘s Josh Gibson at .402. Gwynn, predictably, is the only batter with over 100 hits so far in the season.
Oscar Charleston (IND). 328/380/626. 9 3B. Ty Cobb (DET). 411/462/864. 97 H; 34 2B; 4.9 WAR. Josh Gibson (HOM). 402/480/776. 4.5 WAR. Tony Gwynn (HOU). 427/460/668. 108 H. Joe Jackson (CHI). 368/417/611. 35 2B. Stan Musial (KCM). 329/394/573. 35 2B. Babe Ruth (NYY). 297/420/768. 34 HR; 81 RBI; 67 R; 55 BB. Larry Walker (OTT). 321/390/782. 32 HR; 73 RBI. Ted Williams (MEM). 306/425/624. 60 R; 48 BB.
San Francisco’s Rickey Henderson continues to lead the league in steals with 51, but Ottawa’s Tim Raines has recovered a bit offensively, and being on base more has allowed him to close the gap a bit, now sitting with 44 on the year.
Pitchers
Starters
Indianapolis’ Luis Padrón and San Francisco’s Bump Hadley are the only hurlers in double digits for wins. The three pitchers with 9 victories are also included below, as well as the usual statistical leaders. Of note is the appearance of Kansas City’s A. Rube Foster, who now has (barely) enough IP to qualify here.
The dominance of Kansas City and San Francisco is worth mentioning as well.
Frank Castillo (KCM). 9-1, 4.01. A. Rube Foster (KCM). 4-0, 2.44. 0.86 WHIP. Lefty Grove (SFS). 8-4, 3.19. 107 IP; 3.1 WAR. Ron Guidry (NYY). 8-3, 3.68. 116 K. Bump Hadley (SFS). 10-4, 3.81. 3.29 FIP. Luis Padrón (IND). 10-2, 3.90. Eddie Plank (SFS). 9-3, 3.65. Toad Ramsey (HOU). 9-4, 3.03. 107 IP; 134 K; 0.94 WHIP; 2.72 FIP; 4.6 WAR.
Relievers
Five relievers have 9 Holds at this point, and all of them are listed, making this a bit of a larger group than usual.
16 IP minimum.
Rod Beck (SFS). 2-2, 3.79. 19 Sv. Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-1, 3.72. 9 H. Ken Howell (SFS). 4-1, 1.46. 3 H. Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-3, 3.55. 1 Sv; 9 H. Craig Kimbrel (KCM). 1-0, 0.92. 2 Sv; 9 H; 0.71 WHIP; 2.07 FIP. Josh Lindblom (HOM). 3-2, 4.01. 18 Sv. Rob Murphy (IND). 1-1, 2.70. 1 Sv; 9 H. Ross Reynolds (LAA). 2-0, 1.93. 1 Sv; 1 H; 2.02 FIP. BJ Ryan (OTT). 1-2, 4.85. 1 Sv; 9 H. Lee Smith (HOD). 4-1, 2.97. 3 Sv; 6 H; 0.73 WHIP.
#2 Way Players
It’s been a while, so figured we should check back in on these guys. Here’s the list:
Name
Team
Batting
Pitching
Total WAR
Charles Rogan
PHI
311/356/605. 1.8 WAR.
4-5, 4.55. 1.8 WAR.
3.6
Luis Padrón
IND
252/331/390. 0.1 WAR.
11-2, 3.90. 2.9 WAR.
3.0
Smokey Joe Wood
KCM
263/364/526. 0.1 WAR.
8-3, 3.41. 2.1 WAR.
2.2
JM Ward
PHI
158/186/246. -0.7 WAR.
3-2, 3.68. 1.8 WAR.
1.1
Jim Whitney
BBB
140/178/256. -0.4 WAR.
2-2, 4.00. 1.1 WAR.
0.7
Elmer Smith
LAA
323/462/387. 0.2 WAR.
0-1, 6.46. -0.1 WAR.
0.1
Eustaquio Pedroso
MIA
210/312/296. -0.3 WAR.
2-1, 6.11. -0.2 WAR.
-0.5
Wood has received very little time in the field, so we’ll see how he does as that expands. It looks like Ward should stay on the mound, and that really, it’s only Rogan and Padrón as truly valuable 2-way talents.
#Injury Report
Cleveland’s Mel Harder, Detroit’s Hal Newhouser, Miami’s Kenshin Kawakami and perhaps most importantly, Portland’s Joséito Muñoz should all start injury rehabs later this week. Should those go well, all four teams should receive rotation boosts in the near future.
#Last Year’s All-Stars
As we ramp up to this year’s all-star game, seemed a good time to check in on last year’s designees. This week, we’ll take a look at (what was last year) the AL.
#OBV
Bob Bailey (3B, DET). Just a dependable offensive machine at the hot corner.
Rod Beck (RP, SFS). Still racking up the saves, and doing better than last season otherwise.
Hank Greenberg (1B, DET). Keeps pounding the ball.
Mike Henneman (RP, DET). Remains dominant from the bullpen.
Rogers Hornsby (2B, POR). Keeps rolling along with better numbers than last season.
Joe Jackson (OF, CAG). This year’s version is a doubles machine without nearly the homerun power, but still maintaining on OPS over 1.000.
Craig Kimbrel (RP, KCM). Dominant, and really making the argument to be moved into the closer slot for Kansas City.
Willie Mays (OF, NYG). Somehow underappreciated despite his stellar performance.
Andy Pettitte (SP, NYY). Just keeps rolling. Like the whole league, his ERA is a little higher, but his peripheral numbers are strong.
Buster Posey (C, NYG). More power than last year, a little less of everything else, but still elite.
Frank Thomas (1B, CAG). Significantly better offensively across the board, which is a truly frightening statement.
Ted Williams (OF, MEM). A borderline selection last year, he’s upped his game significantly this season, with an OPS of 1.049.
#Mebbe
Curt Blefary (C, BAL). Nowhere near as good as last season, but still a good offensive player, showing both power and control of the strike zone.
Eddie Collins (2B, CAG). Power output has fallen off, and while he’s still a top performer, is not the MVP candidate of last season.
Mike Epstein (1B, HOM). The shape of his production has changed, as his BA has dropped 80 points. But he’s slugging .570 and his OPS is virtually the same as last season.
Dan McGann (1B, BAL). At 37, he’s performing better than last season, but remains under the radar for some reason.
Stan Musial (OF, KCM). He’s hitting almost exactly the same as he did last year, but has struggled with the longball. That may be enough to nudge him off the team, unfair as that may be.
#Meh
Dick Allen (3B, CAB). Not doing badly, but clearly a long wasy from an all star at this point.
Gerrit Cole (SP, LAA). May be pitching better than last season, but without the dominant W/L record, should fall far short of the all-star game.
Mark Melancon (RP, POR). Perhaps a stretch choice last year due to a ridiculous number of wins for a reliever, is doing fine this year, but far from all-star levels.
AJ Minter (RP, CAG). Still the American Giants’ closer, but no longer among the best in the league.
Reggie Smith (OF, MEM). Other than a boost in power, struggling a bit across the board.
Bobby Wallace (SS, BAL). Injured and not performing nearly as well regardless, Wallace is still an on base machine, and clearly has value.
Brian Wilson (RP, NYG). Injured and limited to 13 games so far, but dominant in those appearances, so there’s a chance.
#What Happened?
Bill Byrd (SP, BAL). Well below average so far this season.
Elrod Hendricks (C, HOD). Last year’s magnificent performance looks more and more like a mirage. Hendricks still has power, but is no longer elite among league backstops.
Duffy Lewis (OF, CHI). Struggling, especially in the power department.
Tricky Nichols (SP, CAG). An ERA over 6.00 and a ton of HR’s allowed.
Freddy Parent (SS, CAG). Parent rode his All Star selection–deserved at the time–to a trade to a contender, and then lost the ability to hit for power at all. Without that, he’s a mediocre SS.
Doug Rader (3B, LAA). A stunningly productive 2000 has been followed with … very little.
George Stone (OF, HOD). Significantly worse across the board. Stone looked like a budding star last year, now he looks like a decent 4th OFer.
#Other
Ned Garvin (SP, BAL). Garvin was the dominant pitcher in the league last year when he got injured. He’s been fine since his return, but has yet to find the same level.
Sean Marshall (RP, BAL). Hit by a long-term injury, Marshall is due to return to Baltimore’s bullpen by the all-star game.
Ottawa‘s Roberto Alomar won the NL Player of the Week, hitting .625 with 4 homeruns, while scoring and driving in 9.
Manny Ramírez of the Memphis Red Sox is already approaching his production from last season, and hitting .368 with 3 homers and 10 RBI’s earned him the AL Player of the Week.
#Team Performance
I am likely to regret writing this as the season unfolds, but three of the divisions really seem to be settling down. The New York Black Yankees continue to have the best record in the WBL, leading Cleveland by 7 games in the Bill James Division. In the Cum Posey Division, San Francisco has pulled away from Miami and Chicago, leading the former by 6.5 games and the latter by 7. And, over in the Marvin Miller Division, Indianapolis and Kansas City are tied for the top spot, 7 games ahead of the House of David.
That leaves the Effa Manley Division, where nobody really wants to take control, with Homestead currently in first and Philadelphia in last place, only 4.5 games back
The New York Gothams have ridden an 8-2 streak to move within 1 game of Homestead and the Birmingham Black Barons may finally be showing some life, going 7-3 in their last 10 games. It’s too early to really get excited in Birmingham, though: that run of success leaves them with still having the worst record in the league, 11 games out of first place.
Cleveland, Homestead, the Brooklyn Royal Giants, and the House of David have all struggled a bit, sporting 3-7 records over their last 10 games.
Some differences in style are emerging across the league, with all teams playing between 62 and 65 games.
Ottawa continues to have by far the most terrifying offense in the league, sporting a team OPS over .900 and leading the way with 160 homeruns. They are also the only team to have scored 400+ runs at this point.
San Francisco and Baltimore are the most patient teams in the WBL, each with over 260 walks, over 100 more than Brooklyn and Miami at the other end of the list. San Francisco and the Black Yankees strike out the most while Kansas City and Philadelphia are the hardest to whiff by a long shot.
Finally, Indianapolis and San Francisco are neck and neck in SB with 138 and 137 respectively. Only Ottawa and Chicago are also over 100, while the New York Gothams have only swiped 45 bases.
#Player Performance
Batters
This may be the first time in the history of the WBL that Babe Ruth only leads in 2 categories and those 2–runs and walks–are arguably the least important metrics being tracked.
José Canseco and Larry Walker have each reached the 30 HR mark and Walker’s amazing streak has vaulted him over Ruth for the RBI lead.
Tony Gwynn–at a blinding .420–is the only hitter over .400, although Homestead’s Josh Gibson is edging into that territory at .399.
Roberto Alomar (OTT). 324/407/616. 56 R. José Canseco (MCG). 289/400/821. 30 HR. Oscar Charleston (IND). 325/382/582. 7 3B. Ty Cobb (DET). 396/446/806. 86 H, 4.1 WAR. Josh Gibson (HOM). 399/467/759. 3.9 WAR. Tony Gwynn (HOU). 420/457/656. 96 H, 31 2B. Pete Hill (HOU). 288/368/498. 8 3B. Joe Jackson (CAG). 376/424/615. 31 2B. Stan Musial (KCM). 319/384/552. 32 2B. Babe Ruth (NYY). 292/410/712. 27 HR, 69 RBI, 58 R, 47 BB. Larry Walker (OTT). 324/395/781. 30 HR, 71 RBI. Ted Williams (MEM). 311/432/612. 45 BB.
Pitchers
Starters
Indianapolis’ Luis Padrón was the first hurler to 10 wins, leading the league at 10-1, and Houston‘s Toad Ramsey is the only player with 9. We’ve included the 3 starters with 8 wins and 2 or fewer losses below and everyone with an ERA below 3.00, as well as the usual statistical leaders.
It paints an odd picture, as Ramsey has actually faded a bit over the past few weeks, but retains his spot as the best pitcher in the WBL right now.
Frank Castillo (KCM). 8-1, 4.03. Johnny Cueto (IND). 8-2, 3.38. Lefty Grove (SFS). 7-4, 3.26. 99 IP, 2.9 WAR. Ron Guidry (NYY). 8-2, 3.65, 109 SO. Bump Hadley (SFS). 8-4, 4.15. 3.39 FIP. Hardie Henderson (PHI). 6-4, 2.98. Luis Padrón (IND). 10-1, 3.61. Toad Ramsey (HOU). 9-3, 2.68. 117 SO, 0.93 WHIP, 2.78 FIP, 3.9 WAR. Ed Walsh (CAG). 5-2, 2.95. 1 Sv. JM Ward (PHI). 3-2, 3.56. 1.00 WHIP.
Relievers
All three relievers with 9 holds are included, as well as all 3 with ERA’s below 1.50.
15 IP minimum.
Rod Beck (SFS). 2-2, 4.60. 15 Sv. Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-1, 3.12. 9 H. Ken Howell (SFS). 4-1, 1.23. 4 H. Bob Howry (PHI). 3-1, 3.60. 10 Sv, 0.75 WHIP. Michael Jackson (HOM). 1-2, 2.66. 1 Sv, 9 H. Craig Kimbrel (KCM). 1-0, 1.04. 1 Sv, 9 H. Josh Lindblom (HOM). 3-2, 3.86. 17 Sv. Tug McGraw (HOU). 2-2, 1.04. 4 Sv. Lee Smith (HOD). 4-1, 3.55. 1 Sv, 5 H, 0.79 WHIP.
#Injury Report
Baltimore may receive a big boost to its bullpen with both John Wetteland and, more importantly, Sean Marshall due to begin rehab assignments this week. Marshall was among the most dominant relievers in the league last season before being injured.
Indianapolis’ 3B Ed Charles and Miami’s OF Al Oliver should both begin a rehab assignment late in the week
#Oddities
Thought we would check in on some of the odder performances in the league so far.
We’ll start with Homestead’s Mike Epstein and San Francisco’s Jimmie Foxx, each of which are hitting under .240 with OPS’ over .900. Epstein’s slash line is 236/369/577 while Foxx’s is 222/326/593. Half of Foxx’s 42 hits have been homeruns (Birmingham’s Curtis Granderson has 38 hits and 20 homers).
14 players who have seen a decent amount of playing time are sporting batting averages below .200. Only 2 of them have an OPS over .800. If you’re a diehard fan of the WBL, you may guess that one of them is Chicago’s eternal dilemma, Mike Fiore. Fiore is hitting .194. But 33 walks gives him a respectable .344 OBP, and 11 homers up his SLG to .472, giving him an OPS of .816. The other is Birmingham’s Eddie Mathews, who is doing it all with power. His OBP is barely over .300, but 19 homeruns gives him a .519 SLG to go with it.
On the mound, in the won-loss record is a bad stat department, I’ll offer up Bert Blyleven of the Portland Sea Dogs and Philadelphia’s John Montgomery Ward. Blyleven has 14 starts and is 6th in the league in IP, but sports only a 2-4 record while Ward has pitched excellently, holding a 3.56 ERA over 13 starts and the second best WHIP in the league at 1.00, but only managing a 3-2 record.
At the other end of the scale, 2 hurlers with at least 7 wins also have ERAs over 5.00: Ottawa’s Old Hoss Radbourn at 8-4, 5.79 and the New York Gothams’ Don Sutton at 7-3, 5.40.
We’ve entered June, so we’re clearly heading towards our midseason stride.
#Awards
Since we cross into June we have a bevy of awards.
In the AL, the New York Black Yankees‘ Babe Ruth was named the Batter of the Month, hitting .347 with 15 homers in May, driving in 34 and scoring 30 times. And look, that’s impressive. But Ruth’s reputation certainly helped him with the honor, given that he had the 3rd best OPS in the AL for the month, trailing behind Miami‘s José Canseco (1.430) and Detroit‘s Ty Cobb (1.429). Canseco also had more homeruns, leading the WBL for the month with 18. Ruth’s RBI and R numbers did lead the league, and it is hard to argue against his numbers.
In the NL, the award went to Ottawa‘s Larry Walker for the second consecutive month. Walker hit .273 with 17 dingers and a whopping 38 RBI, but his selection wasn’t unanimous. Looking at just the major slash stats, his BA was eclipsed by Houston‘s Tony Gwynn, who hit .441 for the month; his OBP by Homestead‘s Josh Gibson, who led the NL with a .480 mark; and Gibson’s teammate Mike Epstein SLG mark of .833 SLG eclipsed Walker’s .818. But Walker’s HR and RBI numbers led the league by a lot, and 38 RBI in 26 games is just remarkable.
The Black Yankees doubled it up, with Ron Guidry winning the AL Pitcher of the Month, going 6-0 with a 1.73 ERA in May while in the NL, Rob Dibble of the Indianapolis ABC‘s was a bit of a surprise selection. Dibble went 2-0 with a 1.64 ERA and 8 saves, certainly a strong performance. You really can’t quibble with Guidry’s selection, but Dibble was selected over San Francisco‘s Lefty Grove (5-1, 1.18) and Brooklyn‘s Smokey Joe Williams (4-1, 2.16). Homestead’s Josh Lindblom had more saves than Dibble (11 to 8), but Lindblom’s other numbers weren’t nearly as impressive. Still, if it were up to me, the award would have gone to Grove.
There’s just not a lot to say about Julio Rodríguez other than wow. Miami’s surprise starter in CF leaving Spring Training hit .397 with 13 homeruns in the month, earning the AL Rookie of the Month. Over in the NL, the award went to Smokey Joe Williams, who, as mentioned above, was in the running for the overall award, let alone the rookie honor.
Player of the Week Awards were given out as well, although overshadowed by the larger honors for May.
Philadelphia‘s Aaron Judge has continued to develop from his impressive showing last season, and a recent hot streak where he hit .444 with 3 homeruns earned him the NL Player of the Week. Canseco was significantly hotter, hitting .636 with 5 homeruns to earn the AL award for the second consecutive week, perhaps some comfort against being snubbed for the monthly honor for May.
#Team Performance
Last week I wrote The New York Black Yankees and the Indianapolis ABC’s have each gone 8-2 over their last 10 games. This week, it’s still true. New York now leads Cleveland in the Bill James Division by 6.5 games, while Indianapolis has moved into 1st place in the Marvin Miller Division, leading Kansas City by .5 games.
San Francisco has a little more breathing room in the Cum Posey Division, leading Chicago by 5.5 games and the surprising Miami Cuban Giants by 6. The Effa Manley Division is still tight, with all 5 teams separated by only 4.5 games, from Homestead in 1st to Philadelphia and Ottawa in a virtual tie for 5th.
Detroit continues to flounder, going 2-8 in their last 10 games and plummeting to 13.5 games behind the Black Yankees.
#Player Performance
Batters
A shorter list: Ty Cobb is first or second in each of the slash categories, and he, Larry Walker, and José Canseco are all challenging Babe Ruth‘s historical dominance of the league.
Cobb and Tony Gwynn are still well over .400 as the calendar turns to June.
José Canseco (MCG). 304/421/881. 29 HR. Oscar Charleston (IND). 333/390/611. 7 3B. Ty Cobb (DET). 420/471/862. 79 H, 28 2B, 4.0 WAR. Josh Gibson (HOM). 382/447/742. 48 R. Tony Gwynn (HOU). 427/463/683. 85 H. Pete Hill (HOU). 282/366/505. 8 3B. Stan Musial (KCM). 312/382/540. 29 2B. Babe Ruth (NYY). 307/426/743. 66 RBI, 55 R, 44 BB, 3.7 WAR. Larry Walker (OTT). 318/394/764. 26 HR, 61 RBI.
It often feels like the SB leaders should be handled separately: San Francisco’s Rickey Henderson leads the WBL with 42 steals. Indianapolis’ Bob Bescher has moved into 2nd place with 32 (and only 6 CS) while Ottawa’s Tim Raines has 30. Raines’ struggles at the plate are clearly contributing to his not challenging Henderson this year: while Rickey’s has an OBP just under .400 at .392, Raines is way down at .332.
Pitchers
Starters
Indianapolis’ Luis Padrón leads the league at 9-1, with Houston’s Toad Ramsey (9-2) and the Black Yankees’ Ron Guidry (8-1) close behind. Six pitchers have 7 wins, we’ve only included below the 3 that have only 1 or 2 losses. Also included are all 3 starters with sub-3.00 ERA’s (Ramsey, Philadelphia’s Hardie Henderson, and Los Angeles‘ Doc Gooden).
Frank Castillo (KCM). 7-1, 3.88. Johnny Cueto (IND). 7-1, 3.43. Doc Gooden (LAA). 5-4, 2.92. Lefty Grove (SFS). 7-4, 3.13. 92 IP, 2.7 WAR. Ron Guidry (NYY). 8-1, 3.17. 99 K, 3.39 FIP, 2.7 WAR. Hardie Henderson (PHI). 6-3, 2.83. Luis Padrón (IND). 9-1, 3.66. Eddie Plank (SFS). 7-2, 3.94. Toad Ramsey (HOU). 9-2. 2.69. 87 IP, 108 K, 0.93 WHIP, 2.66 FIP, 3.8 WAR. JM Ward (PHI). 2-1, 3.46. 1.00 WHIP.
Relievers
There really isn’t a dominant closer in the WBL this season–the league leaders in saves have given up a bunch of runs; the dominant performers haven’t been racking up the saves. Indianapolis’ Rob Dibble is probably the best of the group. Kansas City’s Craig Kimbrel, tied with the Black Yankees’ Rheal Cormier for the league lead in Holds, has probably been the best bullpen performer overall so far, and is pushing teammate Jeff Pfeffer for a shot at the closer spot.
13 IP minimum.
Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-0, 2.84. 9 H. Rob Dibble (IND). 2-1, 3.06. 12 Sv. Rod Beck (SFS). 2-2, 4.91. 14 Sv. Craig Kimbrel (KCM). 1-0, 1.10. 1 Sv, 9 H. Josh Lindblom (HOM). 3-1, 3.80. 15 Sv. Tug McGraw (HOU). 2-2, 1.26. 1 Sv. Jeff Pfeffer (KCM). 1-2, 6.16. 12 Sv.
Some mention somewhere should be made of Brooklyn’s Fernando Valenzuela, who is 3-0 with a 1.98 ERA and 4 Holds in over 40 innings. The Royal Giants have a very strong rotation, and Valenzuela is still looking for his first opportunity to step into a starting role.
#Injury Report
Will this week be the long awaited reckoning for Chicago’s Jack Doyle? The return of SS Damian Jackson, expected at the end of the week, may be the final nail in Doyle’s WBL service time.
#A Ball Check In
Wrapping up our 3 week trip through the minors, we’ll examine A ball this week. Given A ball’s focus on youth, we won’t have an age division, instead just presenting the top 2 performers at each position. 100 A PA minimum for batters.
Frank Dwyer (21, HOD). 6-1, 1.58. Jim McElroy (21, PHI). 4-1, 1.65.
RP
Joe Edelin (24, NYY). 1-0, 1.77. 14 Sv.
Mélido Pérez (20, NYY). 3-1, 2.05. 9 Sv, 4 H.
Griffin and Kershaw standout as the only teenagers listed. The Gothams have two 2B listed, although Washington is really spending more time at SS. And, Memphis’ Bill Buckner, although currently out for a couple of weeks through injury, is just dominating the league in most categories. Of this group, he, Kershaw, and Herman are probably the best long term prospects.
Roberto Alomar hit .500 on the week with 4 homeruns, earning the Ottawa 2B the National League Player of the Week. Over in the American League, Miami‘s José Canseco had 7 homeruns to go with a .417 average, earning the American League award.
#Team Performance
The New York Black Yankees and the Indianapolis ABC‘s have each gone 8-2 over their last 10 games. For New York, this has helped them extend their lead over Cleveland in the Bill James Division to 4 games, while Indianapolis has roared int 2nd place in the Marvin Miller Division, sitting 1.5 games behind Kansas City.
Birmingham and Detroit have each gone 2-8 over their last 10, with the Black Barons now 13 games behind Kansas City and the Wolverines falling to 10 games behind the Black Yankees.
#Player Performance
Batters
The changing of the guard continues: Ty Cobb leads the league in most things, and Larry Walker is ahead of Babe Ruth (and Canseco) in homers.
A sign that it’s still early in the season: 2 batters are still hitting over .400 (Cobb and Houston‘s Tony Gwynn); 2 have OBPs over .450 (Cobb and Ruth), and 4–FOUR–are still slugging over .800 (Cobb, Walker, Ruth, and Canseco).
José Canseco (MCG). 280/392/803. 24 HR. Oscar Charleston (IND). 314/361/581. 7 3B. Ty Cobb (DET). 420/471/882. 71 H, 28 2B, 3.6 WAR. Tony Gwynn (HOU). 417/447/669. 73 H. Rickey Henderson (SFS). 269/374/491. 39 SB. Pete Hill (HOU). 272/344/503. 8 3B. Joe Jackson (CAG). 366/411/579. 25 2B. Babe Ruth (NYY). 339/457/814. 24 HR, 62 RBI, 52 R, 41 BB, 3.8 WAR. Joey Votto (IND). 287/439/507. 36 BB. Larry Walker (OTT). 339/416/819. 26 HR, 61 RBI, 45 R.
Seems like a good time to check on the underperformers as well. Clearly a player who leads the league in whiffs can certainly have more value than someone who leads the league in worst OPS while still qualifying for the leaderboards.
Cupid Childs (BBB). 241/371/350. 6 RBI, 13 CS. Adam Dunn (IND). 242/349/571. 64 SO. Andrés Galarraga (HOU). 190/222/393. -1.1 WAR. Oscar Gamble (DET). 234/376/422. 10 GIDP. Mickey Mantle (NYY). 278/385/650. 65 SO. Tony Phillips (DET). 174/266/304. -1.2 WAR. Doug Rader (LAA). 249/305/379. 10 GIDP. Cristóbal Torriente (CAG). 187/228/253. 7 RBI.
It’s an interesting group, with only Galarraga, Phillips, and Torriente really in danger of losing their spots. Dunn and Mantle are clearly excellent players, they just strike out a lot. Childs’ OBP keeps him vital to the top of Birmingham’s lineup, and Gamble and Rader are clearly everyday players.
Pitchers
Starters
With a rain-shortened CG on Sunday, Houston’s Toad Ramsey became the first 8 game winner in the league. I’ve also included the four 7-game winners in the list, as well as the two other hurlers with sub 3.00 ERAs.
If you go by black ink, it remains Ramsey’s season.
Mark Buehrle (CAG). 5-3, 2.86. Frank Castillo (KCM). 7-1, 3.62. Roger Clemens (HOU). 6-1, 3.63. 1.01 WHIP. Johnny Cueto (IND). 7-1, 3.73. Doc Gooden (LAA). 4-3, 2.59. Lefty Grove (SFS). 6-4, 3.08. 3.36 FIP, 2.5 WAR. Ron Guidry (NYY). 7-1, 3.52. 82 K. Hardie Henderson (PHI). 6-3, 2.78. Luis Padrón (IND). 7-1, 3.45. Toad Ramsey (HOU). 8-2, 2.73. 94 K; 0.97 WHIP; 2.76 FIP; 3.4 WAR.
Relievers
Homestead‘s Josh Lindblom and San Francisco‘s Rod Beck continue to lead the league in saves with a dozen each, although Brooklyn‘s Eric Gagne (11 saves) has probably been more effective overall.
12 IP minimum.
Rod Beck (SFS). 2-2, 5.40. 12 Sv. Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-0, 2.70. 8 H. Trevor Hildenberger (BRK). 1-0, 1.06. 1 Sv, 5 H, 0.65 WHIP. Eric Gagne (BRK). 1-1, 3.18. 11 Sv. Mike Henneman (DET). 4-0, 1.02. 8 Sv. Lefty James (IND). 1-0, 3.55. 1 Sv, 7 H. Ted Kennedy (PHI). 2-2, 3.18. 2 Sv, 7 H. Josh Lindblom (HOM). 3-1, 4.00. 12 Sv. Lee Smith (HOD). 1-0, 1.80. 1 Sv, 5 H, 0.60 WHIP.
#Injury Report
Kansas City’s Bob Gibson should start a rehab assignment later this week, as should Philadelphia‘s Jack Meyer, who has missed over a year of action.
#AA Check In
This week, it’s a look at AA, looking at both the best performers and the best prospects (24 and under) roughly 1/4 of the way through the season. 100 AA PA minimum for batters.
Pos
25+
< 25
C
Kelly Shoppach (28, BRK). 305/362/537.
Bill Dickey (22, PHI). 387/416/639.
1B
Del Bissonette (27, BBB). 337/456/675.
John Mayberry (20, OTT). 349/476/771).
2B
Steve Sax (25, CLE). 398/438/508.
Dario Lodigiani (20, SFS). 363/471/516.
SS
Jhonny Peralta (26, IND). 244/338/472.
Xander Bogaerts (23, LAA). 359/432/538.
3B
Brook Jacoby (29, CLE). 319/393/553.
Ryon Healy (20, OTT). 330/365/637.
LF
Earl Webb (28, POR). 322/386/644.
Andrew Benintendi (22, MEM). 340/447/551.
CF
Keon Broxton (26, CAG). 291/413/563.
Cool Papa Bell (21, KAN). 368/429/747.
RF
Roger Maris (27, NYY). 312/425/720.
Chuck Klein (22, POR). 282/339/602.
SP
Whitey Ford (25, NYY). 5-2, 2.92. 1.6 WAR. George Winter (27, HOU). 5-0, 2.34. 1.4 WAR.
Gary Lucas (24, HOM). 3-2, 3.42. 1.6 WAR. Masahiro Tanaka (24, NYG), 6-4, 4.40. 1.4 WAR.
RP
Rob Wooten (26, MEM). 2-2, 3.00. 11 Sv.
Oad Swigert (23, IND). 0-2, 3.45. 10 Sv.
Lots and lots of talent here, as to be expected. Dickey–part of the haul Philadelphia got for Mike Schmidt–may be recalled shortly, but most of the rest of these hitters are either blocked positionally (trade bait?) or need a year or 2 more in the minors before making their case for WBL time. Dickey, Bell, Klein, and Ford are probably the best long-term prospects.
Miami Cuban Giants OF Ryan Braun, who hit 6 homeruns with a .417 average, was the AL Player of the Week and Mike Epstein of the Homestead Grays took home the NL Player of the Week. Epstein hit .556 with 5 homeruns.
#Team Performance
It’s still far too early, of course, but there is a sliver of daylight emerging in 3 of the 4 divisions.
So that leaves the Effa Manley Division, where all 5 teams are separated by only 5 games from the Grays on top to the Philadelphia Stars at the bottom. Here’s how it stacks up:
Team
W/L
PCT
GB
Homestead Grays
26-19
.578
–
Brooklyn Royal Giants
24-19
.558
1
New York Gothams
23-22
.511
3
Ottawa Mounties
22-22
.500
3.5
Philadelphia Stars
21-24
.467
5
Marvin Miller Division Standings
#Player Performance
Batters
Returning to normalcy: all the bold next to Babe Ruth.
But there are a ton of new storylines here as well: is Ty Cobb for real? Just how many doubles can he hit? Ruth tied for the league lead in homeruns isn’t news, but being joined by Ryan Braun and Larry Walker is (similarly, Ruth leading with 50 RBI’s is familiar; Walker joining him is not).
Also, Tony Gwynn hitting .421 is fun.
League leaders in bold, top 2 for most categories listed.
Ryan Braun (MCG). 320/366/765. 20 HR. Ty Cobb (DET). 404/462/861. 61 H; 25 2B; 3.2 WAR. Tony Gwynn (HOU). 421/456/679. 67 H; 40 R. Rickey Henderson (SFS). 271/377/484. 34 SB. Pete Hill (HOU). 286/356/539. 8 3B. Joe Jackson (CAG). 365/416/591. 22 2B. Reggie Jackson (SFS). 312/398/659. 40 R. Babe Ruth (NYY). 316/443/770. 20 HR; 50 RBI; 43 R; 37 BB; 3.2 WAR. Joey Votto (IND). 295/442/508. 31 BB. Larry Walker (OTT). 342/423/770. 20 HR; 50 RBI. Bobby Wallace (BAL). 250/387/342. 31 BB.
Pitchers
Starters
6 pitchers have 6 wins, but only 2 have 7 and of those only Kansas City’s Frank Castillo is undefeated.
Houston‘s Toad Ramsey has come back to the pack some, but all that bold shows just how far ahead of them he had gone. It’s no longer clear who the best starter in the league is at the moment, although Castillo certainly has a decent argument. But Ramsey’s teammate Roger Clemens is in there, as is Indianapolis’ Johnny Cueto, and it’s hard to ignore the ERA leader, Chicago’s Mark Buehrle.
League leaders in bold, top 2 for most categories listed.
Mark Buehrle (CAG). 5-2, 2.42. Frank Castillo (KCM). 7-0, 2.85. Watty Clark (SFS). 2-0, 5.21. 3.24 FIP. Roger Clemens (HOU). 6-0, 3.47. 0.98 WHIP. Johnny Cueto (IND). 7-1, 3.51. Doc Gooden (LAA). 4-3, 2.60. Lefty Grove (SFS). 5-4, 3.49. 67 IP. Ron Guidry (NYY). 6-1, 3.52. 75 K; 2.0 WAR. Walter Johnson (POR). 4-4, 2.94. 67.1 IP; 2.0 WAR. Toad Ramsey (HOU). 6-2, 2.60. 81 K; 2.9 WAR; 0.88 WHIP; 2.52 FIP.
Relievers
Brooklyn‘s Trevor Hildenberger is probably the hottest reliever in the league, but really nobody is truly dominant from the pen so far, other than his teammate, Fernando Valenzuela, whose future is almost certainly as a starter.
12 IP minimum; league leaders in bold, top 2 for most categories listed.
Rod Beck (SFS). 2-2, 5.40. 12 Sv. Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-0, 3.38. 7 H. Trevor Hildenberger 1-0, 1.20. 1 Sv, 5 H; 0.60 WHIP. Ted Kennedy (PHI). 2-2, 3.48. 2 Sv, 7 H. Josh Lindblom (HOM). 3-0, 2.55. 12 Sv. Lee Smith (HOD). 1-0, 2.04. 1 Sv; 5 H; 0.57 WHIP. Fernando Valenzuela (BRK). 2-0, 1.16. 4 H.
#Injury Report
Brooklyn’s Jackie Robinson is expected back this week, as is Detroit‘s SS George Davis.
The New York Black Yankees hope to send Red Ruffing–out for nearly a year–on a rehab assignment later in the week.
#AAA Check In
We’ll take a little look at AAA, both in terms of the best performers and the best prospects (24 and under) roughly 1/4 of the way through the season.
Pos
25+
< 25
C
John Stearns (26, LAA). 266/380/587.
Darrin Fletcher (23, NYY). 383/408/742.
1B
Fred Luderus (32, PHI). 336/375/734.
Eddie Murray (22, BAL). 321/389/629).
2B
DJ LeMahieu (28, MEM). 377/417/521.
Jorge Orta (23, CAG). 216/250/405.
SS
Bill Dahlen (34, CLE). 250/325/519.
Travis Jackson (22, HOU). 331/358/559.
3B
Jung Ho Kang (29, HOD). 313/361/701.
Chris Brown (23, HOD). 346/452/731.
LF
Lefty O’Doul (26, MEM). 385/416/644.
Starling Marte (24, HOM). 341/410/609.
CF
Kenny Lofton (26, CLE). 354/424/599.
Jack Gleason (23, LAA). 257/361/478.
RF
Elmer Valo (35, LAA). 397/484/733.
Tony Conigliaro (23, HOD). 299/361/649.
SP
Cliff Lee (29, HOM). 3-2, 1.67. 1.8 WAR. George Bechtel (28, DET). 402, 2.38. 2.2 WAR.
Dick Redding (21, BRK). 6-2, 2.93. 2.6 WAR. Kyle Peterson (22, HOD). 4-3, 3.38. 1.8 WAR.
RP
Roberto Osuna (22, HOU). 1-1, 3.86. 8 Sv.
George Jeffcoat (26, NYG). 0-1, 2.57. 9 Sv.
For the batters, the dominance of players from Las Vegas (Los Angeles‘ AAA franchise) and Columbus (the AAA home for the House of David) is striking. Of these, Stearns may get a look soon given the Angels’ current struggles behind the plate and Valo’s performance may force himself back to the WBL. With both Kang and Brown blocked by Ron Cey–having a great season with the House of David–perhaps those 2 end up as trade bait?
Pitchers are highly unpredictable, of course. Redding and Peterson are doing excellently and seem destined for great things; at the same time, both Lee and Bechtel have struggled with their big league clubs.
The season is beginning to hit its stride, very rapidly approaching the quarter-pole. Clearly, the time from now through the all-star break is vital in defining how things fall out.
#Awards
Albert Pujols of the Kansas City Monarchs hit .650 for the week, winning the NL Player of the Week Award while Babe Ruth took home the AL Player of the Week, hitting .522 with 5 homeruns.
Pujols beat out the House of David‘s Ernie Banks, who had 7 homeruns and drove in 14, and Scott Rolen of the Philadelphia Stars who posted a 1.997 OPS, hitting .474 with 6 dingers and 8 RBIs.
#Team Performance
The New York Black Yankees (Bill James Division) and the Kansas City Monarchs (Marvin Miller Division) continue to be the only teams above .600, while Birmingham (in the basement of the Marvin Miller Division) and defending champs Baltimore are both at 13-26, tied for the worst record in the league, and a 1-9 record in their last 10 games has seen the Memphis Red Sox (in the Bill James Division along with Baltimore) plummet to a .378 percentage.
Usual stuff here–top 2 in most categories, league leaders in bold. Ruth’s performance is expected, but Detroit‘s young star, Ty Cobb, is far exceeding expectations at this point.
Lance Berkman (CLE). 326/393/803. 17 HR. Ty Cobb (DET). 400/463/846. 22 2B; 2.8 WAR. Tony Gwynn (HOU). 402/441/621. 53 H. Rickey Henderson (SFS). 294/386/515. 31 SB. Pete Hill (HOU). 273/356/531. 7 3B. Joe Jackson (CAG). 386/427/636. 54 H; 21 2B. Reggie Jackson (SFS). 308/386/664. 38 RBI; 34 R. Babe Ruth (NYY). 326/440/770. 17 HR; 42 RBI; 37 R; 28 BB; 2.7 WAR. Larry Walker (OTT). 357/431/754. 38 RBI. Bobby Wallace (BAL). 233/385/341. 30 BB.
Pitchers
Starters
Just look at that Toad go! Ramsey has been magnificent for the Houston Colt 45’s, although he’s struggled a little in his most recent starts. There are a few more pitchers with 6 wins, I’ve only included the two sitting at 6-1, plus Ramsey.
Johnny Cueto (IND). 6-1, 2.85. 0.91 WHIP. Doc Gooden (LAA). 4-2, 1.72. 2.80 FIP; 1.8 WAR. Ron Guidry (NYY). 5-1, 3.79. 66 K. Walter Johnson (POR). 4-3, 2.82. 60.2 IP; 1.8 WAR. Frank Knauss (BRK). 6-1, 2.19. Toad Ramsey (HOU). 6-2, 1.63. 60.2 IP; 74 K; 0.77 WHIP; 2.31 FIP; 2.9 WAR.
Relievers
12 IP Minimum.
None of the closers have really been dominant–Gagne had been, but his ERA has risen over the past few weeks.
Rod Beck (SFS). 1-2, 5.84. 12 Sv. Jack Billingham (IND). 0-1, 2.25. 2 H; 0.62 WHIP. Rheal Cormier (NYY). 0-0, 3.29. 6 H. Eric Gagne (BRK). 0-0, 2.51. 12 Sv. Bob Howry (PHI). 2-1, 3.29. 8 Sv; 0.51 WHIP. Kenshin Kawakami (MCG). 2-0, 1.02. Tim Lincecum (HOM). 0-0, 9.00. 1 H; 1.19 FIP. Ross Reynolds (LAA). 1-0, 0.75. 1 Sv; 1 H. Ron Robinson (SFS). 1-0, 1.38. 1 Sv; 3 H; 1.96 FIP.
2 Way Players
Not a ton of change here. Most of these guys are clearly contributing significantly more one side or the other, with only Luis Padrón of the Indianapolis ABC‘s and Philadelphia’s Joe Rogan really manifesting as 2-way contributors (indeed, those are the only players with positive WARs each way). Chicago’s Cristóbal Torriente saw his first time on the mound in a blowout, but has a ways to go before being listed here.
Player
Pitching
Batting
pWAR
bWAR
WAR
Luis Padrón (IND)
5-1, 4.04 (42 IP, 6 GS)
365/441/596 (59 PA)
1.2
0.6
1.8
Joe Rogan (PHI)
3-3, 4.50 (46 IP, 7 GS)
288/328/504 (134 PA)
0.4
0.5
0.9
J.M. Ward (PHI)
0-1, 3.43 (42 IP, 7 GS)
207/233/379 (30 PA)
0.7
-0.2
0.5
Jim Whitney (BBB)
1-0, 2.19 (37 IP, 16 G)
100/143/150 (21 PA)
0.8
-0.4
0.4
Eustaquio Pedroso (MCG)
0-0, 4.24 (23 IP, 13 G)
222/344/222 (32 PA)
0.1
-0.1
0.0
#Injury Report
Chicago’s Akinori Otsuka is out for about 2 weeks, weakening the American Giants’ bullpen significantly.
Detroit lost both Hal Newhouser and Johnny Marcum from their rotation this week.
Memphis may get some help on the mound this week, as both Shane Bieber and Skel Roach may return from injury.
Jimmy Bloodworth is out for over a month for San Francisco, which is not all bad news for the Sea Lions as it opens more playing time for the irrepressible Dick Lundy.
81 - 73, .525 pct.
2nd in Effa Manley Division, 5 games behind.
Overall
From pre season championship favorite to missing the playoffs: it was a massively disappointing year in the Bronx, and while most of the blame has been focused on the bullpen, there are other concenrs.
Long term, this is an old franchise; but it is also built to win now, so it has conflicting incentives in terms of getting WBL level help immediately and building depth throughout the organization.
Also, Babe Ruth.
What Went Right
Babe Ruth did Babe Ruth things.
Perhaps no other team offers as dangerous a series of 7 hitters as the Black Yankees, with Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig, Albert Belle, Thurman Munson, Eric Davis, and Don Mattingly. It is very hard to work more than 6 of them into the lineup at the same time, but still.
Waite Hoyt, Jack Scott, and Red Ruffing were all excellent (Ruffing will miss much of next season through injury, however).
After being blasted for much of the season, the bullpen finally turned the corner with the acquisition of Aroldis Chapman. Once Chapman arrived, he, Rheal Cormier, and Goose Gossage began to consistently close out games.
The stats wonks insist that Ron Guidry was a top 5 starter this year, so he has that going for him.
ALL STARS
OF Eric Davis; 1B Lou Gehrig; SS Derek Jeter; OF Mickey Mantle; C Thurman Munson; P Red Ruffing; OF Babe Ruth.
What Went Wrong
The Black Yankees came out of the break with all-stars at both 2B (Tom Herr, acquired from Birmingham) and SS (Derek Jeter). Both struggled the rest of the season. Nothing worked in the middle infield all year: Willie Randolph was replaced by Herr, neither Hardy Richardson nor Red Rolfe did anything of note, and New York even turned to Pee Wee Reese, released earlier by Brooklyn. 2B/SS remains several notches below the level of the rest of the team.
So much ink has been spilled about their bullpen struggles, but it has to be mentioned. Suffice to say that Sparky Lyle and Dave Righetti pitched themselves right down to AAA, Ralph Citarella was pretty poor all season, and Gossage struggled until Chapman’s arrival.
The naked eye would insist that Guidry–their #1 starter going into the season–struggled. Plenty of strikeouts, but an 8-12 record and a 4.35 ERA are not what was expected.
Transactions
March
C Bill Dickey, OF Aaron Judge & 1B Prince Fielder to Philadelphia for 3B Mike Schmdit & P Cole Hamels
Right now, looks like a steal for New York, but the jury is still very much out.
June
IF Reddy Mack, OF Bill Buckner, P Heathcliff Slocumb, OF Charlie Keller, 1B Moose Skowron & 10th Round Pick to Birmingham for 2B Tom Herr
Birmingham got as much as they could from the deal and, given Herr’s struggles in New York, probably got the best of it.
IF Dick Bartell, OF Sam Thompson & 4th Round Pick to Ottawa for P Gary Lavelle and P Jamie Moyer
Meh. Given that both Lavelle and Moyer are in the twilights of their careers, you have to give Ottawa the edge here if any of the players turn into anything.
July
C Smoky Burgess & P Cole Hamels to Miami for P Aroldis Chapman & 3rd Round Pick {Brett Gardner}
A win for New York, even if Hamels develops as expected.
P Jim Clinton, 3B Chris Brown & 2nd Round Pick to House of David for P Dick Tidrow & 8th Round Pick {Elliott Maddox}
Tidrow was wildly inconsistent, so who knows.
P LaTroy Hawkins, P Fritz Coumbe, IF Mike Bordick & 3rd Round Pick to Philadelphia for P Rheal Cormier & 4th Round Pick {Mark Grudzielanek}
Meh. All of these deals were made to win now, and since that didn’t happen, have to be judged somewhat harshly.
Looking Forward
SP
Should be strong. Ron Guidry, Waite Hoyt, Whitey Ford, and Lefty Gomez will be supported by Vic Raschi, Frank Viola, and Dave Righetti long term. That’s a solid bunch.
RP
There is depth here, but not a lot of confidence. For now, Aroldis Chapman and Goose Gossage will close out games, but Sparky Lyle and David Robertson are both available as reinforcements.
C
Thurman Munson had a magnificent season.
1B
Lou Gehrig and Don Mattingly should have this–and DH–locked down for quite some time.
2B
The Black Yankees still hope that Willie Randolph comes around. But there’s a decent chance they are in the market for a 2B.
3B
Mike Schmidt should have a lot of good years left, although there is very little talent behind him.
SS
There is a lot of optimism about Derek Jeter, but so far it seems to have been misplaced.
LF
Ruth forever, some Albert Belle sprinkled in for now.
CF
A mixture of Mickey Mantle and Eric Davis.
RF
Ruth, Mantle, and Belle–essentially the Black Yankees have 4 starting OFers to go along with their 2 starting 1Bs.
The Rookie Draft
Rounds 1-4
What the Black Yankees need most–immediate help in the bullpen and depth at the big league level–won’t come through the rookie draft. As such, they are guided here by a desire to grab the best, youngest talent available. In the first round, that meant 19 year old David Cone, who has the advantage of being a franchise player as well.
With the 2nd pick of the 3rd round, they added another franchise selection in CF Brett Gardner and with the first choice of the 4th round, tried to fill in some MI depth with Mark Grudzielanek.
Rounds 5-8
The Black Yankees took a high risk/high reward flyer on P Noah Syndergaard, who could contribute in the next year or so, but also looks unlikely to stay healthy for very long, and then picked U player Jess Barbour in the 6th. Carlos Rodón is a bit of a project, but he becomes the final exception for the Black Yankees in round 7.
From here on out, it’s best talent with a slight preference for young position players, as their A level is pretty empty. That starts with young SS Anthony Volpe followed by IF/OF Elliott Maddox.
Rounds 9-12
OF Aaron Hicks; P Scott Kamieniecki; IF Charlie Irwin.
They were unable to come to terms with their first round pick, P David Cone.
