Tag: Ron Blomberg Page 1 of 10

TWIWBL 92.3: Off Season Review – Cleveland Spiders

On April 23, 2026

89 - 73, .549 pct.
2nd in Bill James Division, 1 GB
Won AL WC 4-1 over NYY
Lost in AL Championship 4-0 to SFS

Overall

Cleveland had made the playoffs both WBL seasons, but is still in search of that elusive championship.

And, it’s not clear what’s next: unlike Detroit or the Black Yankees, they lack a young superstar to build around; unlike Brooklyn, they lack the pitching to nonchalantly ignore other concerns. They have talent, for sure, but they also seem at risk of imminent collapse.

So some tinkering is in order, or, at least, some good luck to ensure that some of the young talent continues to develop.

What Went Right

Tris Speaker recovered from injury in a major way, emerging as an elite force at CF, slashing 312/397/631 and scoring 124 runs. Nobody likes him, but he doesn’t care.

Lance Berkman is comfortably home in Cleveland, leading the team with 57 homeruns and finishing with a 1.002 OPS in his first full season with the Spiders. I mean, maybe Berkman and Speaker get along.

Ron Blomberg continues to frustrate his critics, slashing 276/348/640 despite a growing platoon split. Blomberg and Berkman tied for the team lead with 143 RBIs.

At 36, Ed Bailey performed as hoped for after coming over from Detroit. It’s unknown how long that lasts, but a .950 OPS from a catcher is a rare thing.

Larry Doby arrived at last, hitting 41 homeruns and providing a solid presence in RF.

Evan Longoria seized the 3B job, settling an open question for the Spiders with 36 homeruns and 96 RBIs.

Arky Vaughan proved the Spiders were right to trade for him last season, providing an .873 OPS and superlative defense at SS.

And then there’s Willie McCovey. Abandoned by most critics to being a AAA veteran, McCovey seized his WBL chance by the scruff, belting 17 homeruns in 140 PAs and refusing to be kept out of the lineup. How that plays out next season is unknown, and at 33 it’s not clear if this is a single season’s good story or the start of a late career blossoming.

The staff is far less comprehensible.

Bill Steen led the way in WAR, with a 13-10 record and a 4.71 ERA. So perhaps he should be considered the staff ace?

Cy Young led the way in wins with a 15-9 record, but a disappointing 5.38 ERA. So perhaps he should be considered the staff ace?

Bob Feller has the best stuff of the trio, leading to a 13-3 record with a 4.30 ERA in 17 starts, to go along with some impressive bullpen appearances. So perhaps he should be considered the staff ace?

Whomever claims that role, they’ll have decent support form the bullpen, with Terry Adams (23 saves), Cory Gearrin, the impressive debut of Al Smith, Firpo Marberry, and the predicted return of Ron Reed from injury.

Mention should be made of Mel Harder, who posted a 10-4 record and a 4.12 ERA in 10 starts before being injured. Harder should be fully recovered for Spring Training.

ALL STARS

Terry Adams
Ron Blomberg
Evan Longoria
Tris Speaker
Arky Vaughan

MAJOR AWARDS

Ed Bailey, All AL Team
Johnny Bates, AL LF Gold Glove
Evan Longoria, All AL Team
Arky Vaughan, All AL Team; AL SS Gold Glove

RECOGNITIONS

Ed Bailey, AL Over 30 Team
Lance Berkman, All AL 2nd Team
Bob Feller, AL 21 & Under Team
Evan Longoria, AL 25 & Under Team
Firpo Marberry, All AL 3rd Team; AL All Rookie 2nd Team
Ron Reed, All AL 3rd Team
Al Smith, All AL 2nd Team
Tris Speaker, All AL 2nd Team; AL All Rounder 3rd Place

ORGANIZATIONAL AWARDS

Tris Speaker, MVP
Bill Steen, Pitcher of the Year
Lance Berkman, Heart & Soul
Evan Longoria, Fan Favorite

Balor Moore, Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Kenny Lofton, Minor League Player of the Year

What Went Wrong

Probably the biggest disappointment on the offensive end was Louis Santop. Santop is only 20, so he has time to recover from his sophomore slump, but what a slump it is: slashing 195/238/348 will never cut it. Still, Santop’s slump is what prompted the acquisition of Ed Bailey, so that worked out.

Chuck Knoblauch had a hard year, managing only a .700 OPS with very, very little power.

About 200 PAs were wasted on Jake Stahl and Sammy Strang, neither of which could even hit as poorly as Santop.

Pat Malone was thoroughly mediocre on the mound, and while his 28 starts were somewhat useful, his 5.81 ERA was not.

Really, that’s about it–there were other mediocrities on the roster, and some of the usual poor performances across a few dozen innings, but it was a good year by the Lake.

Transactions

March

None.

July

C Victor Martínez, P Bill Drake & 3rd Round Pick to DET for C Ed Bailey & P Claude Passeau.

It was a lot to give up, especially if Drake develops as expected, but Bailey was great and Passeau has some talent, so it probably works out for both teams.

August

None.

Positional Overview

C

Next season will open with the same arrangement as this one closed: Ed Bailey as the regular, with Louis Santop coming in for defense and for his own development. John Ellis can also play here occasionally.

Tucker Barnhart and Andy Etchebarren offer attractive defensive-minded alternatives in the minors.

1B

Willie McCovey has forced himself into this conversation, which has some domino effects, as it moves Lance Berkman from an everyday 1B, to someone splitting their time between 1B, LF, and DH. Ron Blomberg will be here some times, and young Paul O’Neill could be here as well if he makes the roster.

Further down in the system, Bill Phillips and Earl Torgeson have some talent, and Jake Stahl is still at AAA if needed.

2B

The Spring may determine this: Chuck Knoblauch is still the favorite, but both Steve Sax and Sammy Strang will get at least brief looks.

Brandon Drury may be the best in the system.

SS

This is Jim Fregosi‘s job given his arrival via trade.

There were high hopes for Jimmy Rollins, but it feels like both he and Peckinpaugh have been supplanted by Aparicio in the pecking order. Much is open to be determined this Spring.

3B

This was a mess last year, but Evan Longoria has claimed it as his own. This is really useful, as other than Bob Elliott, the talent that is here (Johnny Hodapp, Aubrey Huff, Justin Turner) is all pretty young.

LF/RF

Johnny Bates won the Gold Glove in LF, and probably hits well enough to stay there, but Berkman will eat into some of his time. Larry Doby seems to have the RF spot locked up.

Paul O’Neill will get a long look in the Spring, and both Alexis Rios and Craig Wilson have some talent as well.

CF

An interesting position: Tris Speaker is the CF, no questions there, but Kenny Lofton may be the best trading chip the Spiders have. Doby and Bates can play here as well, and Gus Bell and Jackie Bradley have some talent behind them.

Lower in the system, both Luis Olmo and Randy Winn may have WBL potential as well.

DH

Berkman and Ron Blomberg, with some help from Willie McCovey.

SP

If everything went well, Cy Young, Bill Steen, and Bob Feller would make a strong front 3, with Firpo Marberry, Mel Harder, and Pat Malone providing whatever support is necessary, along with contributions from Stan Coveleski and Yordano Ventura.

But that all feels very, very optimistic: Young and Feller have the talent to take those roles, the rest are a little more suspect.

There is depth in the system, but little high end talent other than perhaps newcomer Claude Passeau. But the group of Wilbur Cooper, Howard Ehmke, Sudden Sam McDowell, Balor Moore, and Whit Wyatt should offer some support at some point.

RP

Terry Adams is a solid closer, and the trio of Ron Reed, Corey Gearrin, and Al Smith look great (there are questions: Reed is recovering from injury and Smith has to avoid that famed sophomore slump). Beyond that, Billy Muffett may get a look in the Spring.

Toby Borland and Andrew Bailey may be needed here at some point.

Draft Outlook

DRAFT PICKS

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

So that’s not great. Especially for a thoroughly mediocre system.

TWIWBL 87.11: The Designated Hitters

By mknn

On February 8, 2026

In TWIWBL

These are players who played more than half their games at DH. We’re using the Def column to note their primary position, and a +/- system to indicate their effectiveness there.

Again, the AL dominates here.

#S Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
AL	DET	Ty Cobb	21	386/440/841	54 HR 140 RBI 157 R 82 SB	RF ++
AL	NYY	Lou Gehrig	24	292/399/721	63 HR 132 RBI 120 R	1B ++

Neither of these players are the typical DH types, but their teams have better options at their primary positions. Ty Cobb‘s season is one for the ages, and Lou Gehrig, often overshadowed by Babe Ruth in New York, was every bit as valuable this year.

#A Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
AL	CLE	Ron Blomberg	25	276/348/640	54 HR 143 RBI 106 R	1B – LF –
AL	MCG	José Canseco	27	257/357/705	68 HR 124 RBI 113 R 22 SB	RF –
AL	SFS	Reggie Jackson	24	283/394/574	41 HR 107 RBI 114 R 36 SB	RF ++
AL	MEM	Manny Ramírez	26	280/354/670	46 HR 110 RBI	RF –
NL	HOM	Willie Stargell	31	278/354/648	56 HR 125 RBI	1B LF –

The miracle of Ron Blomberg continues, unfortunately. Still, his profound platoon split is beginning to take it’s toll, and I foresee a cliff in his future.

Of the rest of this group, only Reggie Jackson really should be in the field, even at the relatively early points in their careers. Manny Ramírez took a massive step forward for Memphis, and Willie Stargell shows no signs of slowing down while José Canseco, once more, pushed Ruth for the HR total until late in the season.

#B Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
AL	BAL	Gavvy Cravath	36	247/342/603	44 HR 111 RBI	RF —
NL	NYG	Benny Kauff	28	278/336/580	38 HR	CF –
NL	OTT	Rick Monday	24	272/364/604	30 HR	CF +

Gavvy Cravath‘s massive FA deal looks justified, and Benny Kauff moved straight from a AAA MVP season into the WBL without missing much of a beat.

Rick Monday is the mystery here: he just kept on hitting and hitting and hitting and hitting, but Ottawa’s OF remains overly crowded. He is clear trade bait for a team looking for a CF upgrade.

#C Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
NL	BBB	Albert Belle	32	238/314/533	46 HR 102 RBI 23 SB	RF —
NL	HOD/ KCM	Joe Harris	36	280/382/516		1B
NL	BRK	Duke Snider	24	259/296/586	51 HR 107 RBI 21 SB	CF +

Albert Belle may belong a tier higher, but that BA is rough. Still, Birmingham has no complaints about the trade that brought him to town. Duke Snider would be an everyday OFer for most teams, but Brooklyn has even better defense in CF with John Briggs, while Joe Harris continues to be a productive veteran presence, although his future may be limited.

#D Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
NL	PHI	Rico Carty	38	275/349/497		1B –
NL	IND	Adam Dunn	22	207/342/463	36 HR 30 SB	LF

Rico Carty still has some value, but his career is clearly winding down while Adam Dunn‘s is just taking off–it’s weird to have a 30/30 guy in this Tier, but the .207 average just drags all of his metrics down.

#F Tier

Lg	Tm	Name	Age	Slash	Other	Def
AL	POR	Gil Hodges	31	208/292/461	38 HR	1B ++

Yeah, this was just a bad year for Gil Hodges, who may find himself on the trading block this off season.

#Rookies

Monday, Harris, and Dunn (B, C, and D Tiers, respectively).

TWIWBL 87.2: The Year in Review

By mknn

On January 30, 2026

In TWIWBL

Just getting this out of the way early … there was way too much offense this year. I blame myself. We picked 2001 as the base year for the game, and that seems to have resulted in an offensive boom.

In reality, MLB posted a .759 OPS in 2001 with an aggregate 264/335/427 slash line. The WBL slashed 261/336/506 for an .842 OPS. And therein lies the problem: the rest of the line is fine, the .080 increase in SLG is … a lot, and is responsible for about a .65 increase in runs per game (4.96 in historical 2001, 5.60 in the WBL Year 2).

This resulted in 2001 owning virtually every single season batting record: only Mike Trout‘s 131 singles in Year 1 survived the onslaught. Everything else came this season.

And, a couple of the marks eclipsed the MLB historical records:

Total Bases: 492, Ty Cobb (DET). Obliterates Babe Ruth‘s mark of 457 in 1921.
Doubles: 72, Ty Cobb (DET). Earl Webb had 67 in 1931.

And, of course, Ruth tied Barry Bonds‘ 2001 homerun record of 73.

So that’s not horrible: Ty Cobb had a stunning year, and I can’t be made at Cobb and Ruth peppering the record book (nor, honestly, at Josh Gibson‘s .400 average, a WBL record).

But I would like to see about 3/4 of a run per game to disappear …

And, of course, if we have record breaking frequencies of homeruns, someone has to be giving up all those taters. Thirteen hurlers gave up more than the MLB record 50 homeruns, with CC Sabathia (64) and Cole Hamels (63) being absolutely rocked throughout the season.

At the team level we had similar issues:

Kansas City’s 444 doubles are 20% more than the historical mark set by the 2004 Boston Red Sox.
And then there are homeruns: only 6 teams had fewer than the all time ream record of 307, shared by the 2019 Twins and the 2023 Braves.
In a bit of a shock, San Francisco’s 393 steals top the all time record of 347 by the 1922 New York Giants.
Unsurprisingly, 5 teams eclipsed the .872 OPS record of the 1927 New York Yankees.

These all had equivalents on the mound, where the all-time historical runs allowed and homeruns allowed records were shattered in the WBL this year.

Look, all of this is a little bit of nit-picking: the league was competitive, and I totally expect off the charts performances in a league peppered with all-time great players. But 18 players with 50+ homeruns is just too many, even if most of the names range from yeah, he did that to ok, in this league that’s plausible.

I mean the whole Ron Blomberg fiasco is still out there, but that will be the topic of another post …

TWIWBL 85.5: AL Championship – Cleveland Spiders v San Francisco Sea Lions

By mknn

On January 19, 2026

In 2001 Playoffs, TWIWBL

#Game 1, Sun Oct 14

Cleveland’s Cy Young, who needs to improve his performance, will face off against San Francisco’s Lefty Grove, who is doing just fine.

Lance Berkman singled in Tris Speaker in the top of the 1st, and Ron Blomberg took Grove deep in the 2nd. Young gave up an RBI single to Jack Clark and an RBI double to Turkey Stearnes in the 4th to tie it up.

So far, so close, but then San Francisco took the lead on a single from Mickey Cochrane and extended it on a hit from Clark, making it 4-2 Sea Lions after 5.

A solo shot from Jimmie Foxx in the 6th chased Young, and Barry Bonds tripled, scoring on a sacrifice fly. That made it 6-2 Sea Lions, which is how it would end after 8 strong from Grove and a closing inning from Ken Howell.

Stearnes had 3 hits, all doubles, and Clark and Foxx added 2 hits each in the victory.

CLE 2 (Young 1-2) @ SFS 6 (Grove 3-0)
HRs: CLE – Blomberg (1); SFS – Foxx (2).
Box Score

Cleveland’s Firpo Marberry was injured, but it’s not clear yet to what extent.

#Game 2. Mon, Oct 15

Still no update on Marberry, leaving Cleveland an arm short in the pen. They’ll turn to Bob Feller–he of the electric, if erratic, stuff–to even the series, while San Francisco will counter with Tim Hudson, getting his 2nd start of the postseason, although he’ll be on a pretty short leash.

Jimmie Foxx opened the scoring with a solo shot in the bottom of the 2nd, but Willie McCovey tied it up in the 3rd with a longball of his own. Three hits in the game through three innings, three homeruns: Rickey Henderson goes deep in the bottom of the 3rd, giving the Sea Lions a 2-1 edge.

Hudson had been rolling, but a Larry Doby double and Evan Longoria moon shot made it 3-2 Cleveland in the 5th. A walk to Ed Bailey and a single to Chuck Knoblauch brought in Watty Clark from the San Francisco bullpen. Johnny Bates singled in a run, but that was it: 4-2 Spiders.

The Sea Lions bounced back right away: 3 walks and a single brought in a run and chased Feller, with Whit Wyatt entering the game with the bases loaded, no outs, and the top of the order due up. Wyatt fanned Henderson, but Cleveland’s shortstop, Arky Vaughan, misplayed a perfect double play ball, scoring a run on the error and leaving the bases loaded. Reggie Jackson stepped up and took advantage, lofting a pitch over the right field wall for a grand slam and an 8-4 lead for San Francisco. Foxx added his second of the game, a 2 run shot, and a walk to Bonds ended Wyatt’s somewhat disastrous showing.

But at the end of all that, 8 runs had scored and San Francisco was up by 6, 10-4. More runs were scored–McCovey went deep again, and Frank Grant hit one out for San Francisco–but the game was decided.

Vaughan’s error was the key moment, as it set the stage for Jackson’s decisive grandslam.

We head to Cleveland with San Francisco holding a 2-0 lead.

CLE 5 (Feller 1-1) @ SFS 12 (Clark 1-1)
HRs: CLE – McCovey 2 (2), Longoria 2; SFS – Foxx 2 (4), Henderson (2), Jackson (6), Grant (1).
Box Score

Marberry tore his labrum, and will be out for a few months. Cleveland brought Claude Passeau onto the playoff roster to take his place.

#Game 3, Wed Oct 17

San Francisco will look to increase their series lead to 3-0 behind Eddie Plank while Cleveland will look to defend their home turf with Bill Steen on the mound.

Bobby Bonds put San Francisco ahead 1-0 with a solo shot in the 2nd and Reggie Jackson doubled it with his 7th homer of the postseason in the 3rd. Singles from Turkey Stearnes and Jimmie Foxx chased Steen, who had whiffed 6, but also walked 4 in just over 4 innings of work. Claude Passeau came in and immediately induced a double play to end the inning.

Meanwhile Plank had a 2 hit shutout into the 6th. But Evan Longoria went deep after a Lance Berkman double, tying the game. Jack Clark answered with a solo shot in the 7th, giving the Sea Lions the lead again, 3-2.

Larry Doby singled home the tying run in the bottom of the 8th, but Cleveland’s closer, Terry Adams, gave up a 3 run shot to Foxx in the 9th. That brought in the Sea Lions closer, Rod Beck, for the bottom of the 9th with the home fans a little dejected and desperate.

Steve Sax singled, but Beck whiffed 2 and got Tris Speaker to line out softly to second to end the game, giving San Francisco a perhaps insurmountable 3-0 lead in the series.

Foxx and Lundy had 3 hits each for San Francisco.

SFS 6 (Howell 1-0, 1 B Sv; Beck 2 Sv; Nathan 1 H) @ CLE 3 (Adams 0-1)
HRs: SFS – Bonds (5), Jackson (7), Foxx (5); CLE – Longoria (3).
Box Score

#Game 4, Thu Oct 18

With everything on the line, Cleveland will turn to Yordano Ventura on a short leash, while San Francisco will ask Bump Hadley to close out the series.

Mickey Cochrane launched his first homer of the postseason in the top of the first, but Cleveland is here to fight: Arky Vaughan took Hadley deep with Johnny Bates on to give the Spiders the lead, 2-1 after 1 inning. Cochrane would score the tying run in the 4th, doubling, moving to 3rd on a wild pitch, and scoring on a Reggie Jackson sacrifice fly to deep right. Jack Clark followed with a homerun, giving the Sea Lions a 3-2 edge.

Ventura lasted 5 innings, leaving trailing by a run, but not having pitched poorly. Cochrane greeted his replacement, Pat Malone, with his 3rd hit of the day and Malone then plunked Jackson. But he recovered, striking out the side to keep it a very close game.

Dick Lundy drove in a run with a single in the 7th, chasing Malone and extending the lead to 4-2. San Francisco scored twice in the 9th, on an inside the park homerun from Turkey Stearnes and a more traditional bomb from Frank Grant.

So, bottom of the 9th, closer Rod Beck in for the Sea Lions, and a 6-2 advantage. Lance Berkman walked, but Beck was effective, ending the game–and the series–on a double play ball by Larry Doby.

Cochrane and Lundy had 3 hits each for San Francisco, who after being pushed to the brink in the Wild Card Round, found their regular season form here, easily brushing Cleveland aside.

SFS 6 (Hadley 2-0; Clark 1 H; Street 1 H) @ CLE 2 (Ventura 1-1)
HRs: SFS – Cochrane (1), Clark (5), Stearnes (3), Grant (2); CLE – Vaughan (3).
Box Score

Jimmie Foxx was the easy choice for MVP, hitting .500 in the series with 5 homers and 7 RBIs.

TWIWBL 85.2: AL Championship Preview

By mknn

On January 16, 2026

In 2001 Playoffs, TWIWBL

The question is, are the Cleveland Spiders satisfied? They dispatched their Bill James Division rival, the New York Black Yankees, with surprising ease in a year that saw the 2 teams battel for supremacy all season. So there may be a bit of a letdown coming into the AL Championship series against San Francisco.

But … San Francisco looks prime for a stumble, as the team that won the most games in the WBL in the regular season was taken to a full seven games by Detroit, who finished well behind Cleveland in their division.

The Spiders didn’t get much out of Willie McCovey, Ron Blomberg, or Tris Speaker, but still got here, largely on the backs of Larry Doby, Arky Vaughan, and Johnny Bates (and the surprising performance of Chuck Knoblauch, a disappointment for most of the regular season). Also look for John Ellis to get a few starts behind the plate, as he is the only backstop hitting in the postseason. On the mound, a strong performance from Cy Young would go a long way to giving the Spiders a chance here. Yordano Ventura and, especially, Bob Feller, showed up well in the first series, and may be moved up a slot in the rotation.

San Francisco may get even stronger, as Frank Grant is back from a short-term injury. This may have happened at the perfect time, as Royce Clayton–superlative over the regular season as a substitute for Grant–struggled in the first series. That left the Sea Lions with a challenging decision, between replacing Wayne Gross or Phil Garner on the playoff roster. They opted to keep Garner, mostly due to defensive flexibility. The Sea Lions also brought Tommy Bridges onto the roster, replacing Mel Stottlemyre Sr.

Other than that, it’s just more of the same for San Francisco: the big 3 of Lefty Grove, Eddie Plank, and Bump Hadley will continue to drive the rotation, and Rod Beck will continue to close the games out. And the offense is clicking on all cylinders right now, hitting 17 homers and stealing 11 bases in the 7 game series.

It’s hard to make any prediction other than San Francisco. And, honestly, it’s hard to see Cleveland putting up much resistance, Sea Lions in 5. But note, we had the same opinion of the matchup with Detroit. So.

TWIWBL 84.5: AL Wild Card Series – Cleveland Spiders v New York Black Yankees

By mknn

On January 10, 2026

In 2001 Playoffs, TWIWBL

#Game 1, Thu Oct 4

Cy Young of the Spiders will take on Andy Pettitte of the Black Yankees in the opening game of the series.

Johnny Bates greeted Pettitte’s 2nd pitch with a drive into the left field bleachers for a 1-0 lead for Cleveland. An RBI double from John Ellis in the 2nd doubled the lead, and a sacrifice fly from Chuck Knoblauch made it 3-0.

But it’s hard to get separation from New York: a homerun from Lou Gehrig put the Black Yankees on the board, and then Mike Schmidt doubled, Rogers Hornsby singled, and Thurman Munson walked to load the bases. Singles from Don Mattingly, HR Johnson, and Eric Davis put New York on top, 4-3, with the bases still loaded and nobody out. Young proceeded to walk Mickey Mantle and Babe Ruth before being lifted from the game with the score 6-3. Whit Wyatt allowed a 2 run single to Schmidt, and by the time the inning was over, the Black Yankees led 8-3.

Ruth hit a 3 run shot in the 6th, making it 11-3.

Having the lead seemed to settle Pettitte down, with the lefty twirling 4 scoreless before Evan Longoria took him out of the park in the 7th. Larry Doby followed with a longball of his own, chasing Pettitte. Cleveland roughed up Herm Wehmeier and Rheal Cormier and by the time the inning was over, they had batted around, scoring 4 times and closing the gap to 11-7. Bates and Lance Berkman drove in runs and Ron Blomberg was walked with the bases loaded for the final tally.

Johnson reinstated New York’s cushion with a 2 run shot in the 7th, and the Black Yankees took the 13-7 lead into the top of the 9th.

Arky Vaughn walked and Tris Speaker singled, which brought Goose Gossage in from New York’s bullpen. The Goose was good, and New York rode that big inning early in the game to a victory and a 1-0 series lead.

Schmidt and Johnson had 3 hits each for New York; Doby had 3 for Cleveland.

CLE 7 (Young 0-1) @ NYY 13 (Pettitte 1-0)
HRs: CLE – Bates (1), Longoria (1), Doby (1); NYY – Gehrig (1), Ruth (1), Johnson (1).
Box Score

#Game 2, Fri Oct 5

Cleveland will turn to young Bob Feller, coming off a 13-3 season, to try to even the series. Feller will be opposed by the Black Yankees’ stalwart, Ron Guidry.

Cleveland’s John Ellis has had a bit of a disappointing season, but he can atone for that with a strong postseason performance. Today, that meant a 2 run shot off Guidry in the 2nd. Lance Berkman added an RBI single in the 3rd, but in the bottom of the frame, Eric Davis took Feller deep, making the score 3-1. Chuck Knoblauch would regain the 3 run advantage for Cleveland in the 4th with a shot to right that barely cleared the wall, but they all count the same. 4-1, Spiders.

Guidry fanned 10 in 6 innings of work, but the 4 runs loomed larger. The Black Yankees turned to Red Ruffing–an all-star last year, but pretty rough this–and it did not go well: Ruffing walked the first 2 batters he faced, and then gave up a 2-run double to Arky Vaughan. Dave Righetti relieved Ruffing, and got out of the inning without further damage, leaving the score 6-1 in favor of Cleveland.

Feller was gassed at this point, but he was also overpowering the impressive Black Yankees lineup. He was left in the game until Grant Johnson‘s 2 out single in the bottom of the 7th. Feller left with 11 strikeouts, having allowed only 5 hits and the single run. His relief, Yordano Ventura, walked Eric Davis and gave up an RBI single to Mickey Mantle.

That brought in Al Smith to face Babe Ruth, lefty on lefty. Smith got the Babe to pop out to left, leaving the score 6-2.

Terry Adams came in to close it out for Cleveland, but gave up Davis’ 2nd homer of the game, a 2 run shot to left. Then, with 2 outs, Ruth singled, bringing up Gehrig as the tying run. But Adams induced a weak groundout to second, ending the game and tying up the series.

Davis had 3 hits for New York, but didn’t get enough support, with Ruth and Thurman Munson leaving 4 on base each. Vaughan and Knoblauch each had 2 hits for the Spiders, but this was really Feller’s game.

CLE 6 (Feller 1-0; Smith 1 H) @ NYY 4 (Guidry 0-1)
HRs: CLE – Ellis (1), Knoblauch (1); NYY – Davis 2 (2).
Box Score

#Game 3, Sun Oct 7

With the series tied at 1, the Black Yankees would call on the unproven Tony Brizzolara, certainly impressive, but only over 50 innings of work. Detroit would counter with Bill Steen, 13-10 on the year with solid supporting numbers to go along with a 4.71 ERA.

Both teams generated some traffic, but nobody could push a run across the plate. In the bottom of the third, Johnny Bates led off with a triple, and then the skies opened up, creating a rain delay of over an hour. That would mark the end of the day for both starters, with Pascual Pérez coming in for New York. Pérez stranded Bates at third, keeping the game scoreless.

Cleveland turned it over to Pat Malone to start the 4th.

Both Pérez and Malone were fantastic, and we remained scoreless into the 7th, when a single by Evan Longoria chased Pérez. Larry Doby greeted Rheal Cormier with a homerun to right, putting the Spders on top, 2-0.

And that’s how it ended, with 4 Spiders hurlers combining on the 4-hit shutout. Malone got the deserved win, but Al Smith and Terry Adams deserve credit for a hitless inning each. You can’t really fault Pérez: he only gave up 1 hit in his four plus innings.

The Black Yankees now trail in the series, 2-1, and desperately need Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig to wake up (Ruth is hitting .167 in the series so far, Gehrig .083).

NYY 0 (Pérez 0-1) @ CLE 2 (Malone 1-0; Adams 1 Sv; Smith 2 H)
HRs: NYY – none; CLE – Doby (2).
Box Score

#Game 3, Mon Oct 8

This may not technically be a must win for New York, but, you know, it’s a must win for New York, who really need their superstars to step up. More importantly, the prior games dug into the Black Yankees bullpen, leaving them with a choice of Herm Wehmeier–decent this year, but having faded a bit down the stretch–or Red Ruffing, who was stellar last season and horrid this one.

They opted for Ruffing, with Cleveland bringing back Cy Young after his ugly Game 1 start. The Spiders will also give Willie McCovey the start at DH in place of the struggling Ron Blomberg.

Ruffing gave up a homerun to Arky Vaughan in the first and third and Larry Doby in the second, making it 3-0 after 3 innings. Not insurmountable, but not what the Black Yankees needed. A single by Johnny Bates chased Ruffing in the bottom of the 5th, bringing in Hoyt Wilhelm, who gave up a 3-run shot to Lance Berkman in the 5th and an RBI single to Bates in the 7th, increasing the lead to 7-1.

Lou Gehrig had gotten one back in the top of the 4th, but Young was (finally, from the Spiders’ perspective) pitching well, lasting 6 innings and even getting Gehrig ejected for arguing a strike call. Hank Gastright and Firpo Marberry finished it off for Cleveland, giving the Spiders a commanding 3-1 lead in the series.

Offensively, Vaughan had 3 hits and Bates and Berkman added 2 each for Cleveland.

Yeah, their pitching could have been better, but only Eric Davis, Mike Schmidt, and Grant Johnson have batting averages above .200 so far in the series for New York.

NYY 1 (Ruffing 0-1) @ CLE 8 (Young 1-1)
HRs: NYY – Gehrig (2); CLE – Vaughan 2 (2), Doby (3), Berkman (1).
Box Score

#Game 5, Tue Oct 9

The Black Yankees find themselves needing to reel off 3 consecutive wins, so everyone in the bullpen is available today. And tomorrow. And the next day. Andy Pettitte who struggled a bit in the opening game, will take the ball for New York, opposed by Cleveland’s Yordano Ventura.

Pettitte continued to struggle: 3 hits and a walk led to 2 runs for Cleveland in the bottom of the first, with RBIs from Lance Berkman and Evan Longoria. Don Mattingly got 1 back with a solo shot in the top of the 3rd. Pettitte gave up 3 more hits and another walk in the bottom of the frame, this time only surrendering a single run. A 2 out double by Johnny Bates marked the end of Pettitte’s day, with the Black Yankees turning to Dave Righetti.

Meanwhile, Ventura was in total control through 5, keeping the Yankees to the lone run, preserving the 3-1 edge for the Spiders.

Eric Davis took Ventura deep in the 6th, cutting the deficit to 3-2 and chasing Ventura. Whit Wyatt entered and walked Mickey Mantle, but fanned Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.

Chuck Knoblauch tripled in a run in the bottom of the 6th; an important moment as, in the top of the 8th, Mantle doubled home Davis. That once again gave Ruth–hitting .211 in the series–a chance to deliver for the Black Yankees, facing Al Smith. Smith induced a groundout to 2B, ending the threat, and continuing Ruth’s struggles.

That brought us to the top of the 9th, with Cleveland’s closer, Terry Adams, in to try to win the series. Gehrig whiffed and Mike Schmidt grounded out, but Rogers Hornsby lined a double into left, bringing up Mattingly … who grounded out to short, ending the Black Yankees’ season.

The star of the series was the Spiders’ pitching–the question mark coming in, who held the vaunted Black Yankees offense firmly in check.

NYY 3 (Pettitte 1-1) @ CLE 4 (Ventura 1-0; Adams 2 Sv; Smith 3 H; Gearrin 1 H; Wyatt 1 H)
HRs: NYY – Mattingly (1), Davis (3); CLE – none.
Box Score

Arky Vaughan (.400 average, 2 homers, 5 RBIs) took home the MVP award, with consideration being given to both Larry Doby‘s 3 homeruns and Al Smith‘s impressive 3 appearances.

TWIWBL 84.2: AL Playoff Previews

By mknn

On January 7, 2026

In 2001 Playoffs, TWIWBL

The Wild Card Round in the AL will see the #1 seed, San Francisco, take on Detroit while Cleveland and the New York Black Yankees resume their season-long rivalry.

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

#San Francisco Sea Lions

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

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

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

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

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

#New York Black Yankees

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

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

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

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

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

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

#Cleveland Spiders

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

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

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

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

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

#Detroit Wolverines

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

#Predictions

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

San Francisco in 5.

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

That feels right for the playoffs as well.

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

TWIWBL 83.3: The Final Week!

By mknn

On December 28, 2025

In TWIWBL

Some notes as we move through the final week of the season.

#Monday

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

Miami Cuban Giants	77-79	—
Detroit Wolverines	77-80	0.5

AL Wild Card

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

New York Black Yankees	89-67	—
Cleveland Spiders	87-69	2

Bill James Division

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

Houston Colt 45s	81-75	—
Indianapolis ABC’s	78-79	3.5
Kansas City Monarchs	77-80	4.5

Marvin Miller Division

Indianapolis ABC’s	78-79	—
Kansas City Monarchs	77-80	1
Wandering House of David	76-81	2

NL Wild Card

#Tuesday

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

Detroit Wolverines	78-80	—
Miami Cuban Giants	77-80	0.5

AL Wild Card

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

New York Black Yankees	89-68	—
Cleveland Spiders	87-70	2

Bill James Division

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

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

Houston Colt 45s	81-75	—
Indianapolis ABC’s	78-79	3.5
Kansas City Monarchs	77-80	4.5

Marvin Miller Division

Indianapolis ABC’s	78-80	—
Kansas City Monarchs	77-81	1
Wandering House of David	77-81	1

NL Wild Card

#Wednesday

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

Detroit Wolverines	79-80	—
Miami Cuban Giants	77-81	1.5

AL Wild Card

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

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

New York Black Yankees	89-69	—
Cleveland Spiders	88-70	1

Bill James Division

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

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

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

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

Indianapolis ABC’s	78-81	—
Wandering House of David	78-81	—
Kansas City Monarchs	77-82	1
Homestead Grays	76-83	2

NL Wild Card

#Thursday

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

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

Detroit Wolverines	79-80	—
Miami Cuban Giants	78-81	1

AL Wild Card

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

New York Black Yankees	89-70	—
Cleveland Spiders	88-71	1

Bill James Division

#Friday

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

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

So what will Detroit do with their opportunity?

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

New York Black Yankees	89-71	—
Cleveland Spiders	88-72	1

Bill James Division

Detroit Wolverines	79-81	—
Miami Cuban Giants	79-81	—

AL Wild Card

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

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

Indianapolis ABC’s	78-82	—
Wandering House of David	78-82	—
Kansas City Monarchs	77-82	—
Homestead Grays	76-84	2

NL Wild Card

#Saturday

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

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

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

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

Miami Cuban Giants	80-81	—
Detroit Wolverines	79-82	1

AL Wild Card

Oh boy … Indianapolis has nobody to blame but themselves.

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

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

#Sunday

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

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

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

And so, we finish in a dead heat.

Miami Cuban Giants	80-82	—
Detroit Wolverines	80-82	—

AL Wild Card

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

Nope.

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

#Monday

So, two playoff games, winner makes the postseason.

#AL

First up, we have Miami visiting Detroit.

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

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

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

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

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

#NL

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

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

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

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

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

TWIWBL 82.3: Bill James Division

By mknn

On December 14, 2025

In TWIWBL

Team	W/L	Pct	GB
Cleveland Spiders	83-65	.561	—
New York Black Yankees	84-66	.560	—
Detroit Wolverines	75-74	.503	8.5
Baltimore Black Sox	69-80	.463	14.5
Memphis Red Sox	65-84	.436	18.5

Bill James Division | 17 September

#Baltimore Black Sox

Justin Hampson and, perhaps more importantly, Gavvy Cravath have been recalled from rehab assignments. Without much to play for, Baltimore may limit Cravath’s appearances as they look to next season. Rafael Betancourt and Ken Griffey Sr were returned to the minors.

With RA Dickey‘s retirement, Baltimore decided to take a look at Dick Ellsworth, removing Dickey from the roster, although they have allowed him to remain with the team as he decides whether or not he has a career in coaching.

Dennis Martínez will get 2 more starts over the final 2 weeks of the season, and Ned Garvin will, as he continues his return from injury, take his regular turn: aside from that, it’s a bit of a free for all, although Kevin Tapani‘s strong debut guarantees him a few starts as well.

Ellsworth’s debut was fantastic: 6 plus innings and only a single run in a 4-2 victory over Los Angeles. Hampson also made his return with a scoreless 8th inning.

Sean Marshall was recalled from the DL with Joe Cascarella heading back to AAA.

#Cleveland Spiders

Lance Berkman and Ron Blomberg each went deep twice as the Spiders dominated Chicago, 13-6. The win (along with a victory in the resumption of a suspended game) pulled Cleveland, at least temporarily, 1/2 game ahead of New York.

#Detroit Wolverines

Wes Covington–coming off a 50 HR season at AAA–was recalled, along with IF Damion Easley and lefty Wilson Álvarez. Logan Hensley was returned, clearing room for Hank Aguirre‘s return from the DL.

JD Martinez went deep twice and the Wolverines edged in front of Miami for the final Wild Card spot with a 5-4 win over San Francisco.

#New York Black Yankees

Jorge Orta did nothing wrong to be sure, but with Grant Johnson due back from a rehab assignment, he was the odd man out, heading back to AAA. Ultimately, Johnson’s return means a reduction in time for quite a few players, most notably Derek Jeter, Don Mattingly, and Nick Etten.

Mattingly and Lou Gehrig had 2 homers each, and Johnson had 4 hits, including 3 doubles, as the Black Yankees overcame a poor start from Ron Guidry to beat Detroit, 11-8 in 10 innings.

The Black Yankees clinched their expected playoff spot in dramatic fashion, scoring 6 in the top of the 9th to top Detroit, 9-6. The win puts New York in a dead heat with Cleveland atop the Bill James Division and, as importantly, drops Detroit into a tie with Miami for the final AL Wild Card spot.

Gehrig hit 2 more out, reaching 62 for the season, and Babe Ruth added his WBL record 70th, as the Black Yankees beat Cleveland, 7-2. The win means New York will go into the final week of the season with a 1.5 game lead over the Spiders.

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.