1904 MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL POST SEASON REPORT
(Report Date - 11/6/04)
LEAGUE REPORT
Code:
1904 FINAL STANDINGS
American League
Eastern Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec
Tampa Bay Devil Rays 100 62 .617 - 98-64
Boston Red Sox 92 70 .568 8.0 85-77
New York (A) Yankees 90 72 .556 10.0 88-74
Baltimore Orioles 79 83 .488 21.0 75-87
Toronto Blue Jays 64 98 .395 36.0 70-92
Central Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec
Detroit Tigers 93 69 .574 - 94-68
Minnesota Twins 85 77 .525 8.0 87-75
Chicago (A) White Sox 77 85 .475 16.0 69-93
Kansas City Royals 77 85 .475 16.0 77-85
Cleveland Indians 66 96 .407 27.0 68-94
Western Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec
Los Angeles (A) Angels 94 68 .580 - 95-67
Texas Rangers 82 80 .506 12.0 84-78
Seattle Mariners 74 88 .457 20.0 75-87
Oakland Athletics 61 101 .377 33.0 68-94
PENNANT RACES:
The American League division winners were all decided early again this year as Tampa Bay, Detroit & Anaheim won by healthy margins and were able to rest their regulars down the stretch and heal up any nicks or bruises.
Tampa became the 1st 2-time winners in the East, winning their 2nd straight division title as the only team in the majors with 100 wins. Detroit continued to rule the Central making it 4 pennants in 5 years for the Tigers. And out West, the Angels are back on top of the West, their first division win since 1900 and their 3rd playoff berth.
The remaining spot in the playoffs was a 2-team race between Boston & New York. Boston swept a season ending series over Baltimore to earn the wildcard berth, making it back to the playoffs for the 1st time since 1900 when they were the ALCS Champs.
Code:
1904 FINAL STANDINGS
National League
Eastern Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec
Atlanta Braves 92 70 .568 - 89-73
Florida Marlins 82 80 .506 10.0 89-73
New York (N) Mets 81 81 .500 11.0 77-85
Philadelphia Phillies 79 83 .488 13.0 79-83
Washington Nationals 79 83 .488 13.0 84-78
Central Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec
St. Louis Cardinals 95 67 .586 - 95-67
Chicago (N) Cubs 91 71 .562 4.0 87-75
Pittsburgh Pirates 84 78 .519 11.0 80-82
Houston Astros 82 80 .506 13.0 78-84
Cincinnati Reds 81 81 .500 14.0 88-74
Milwaukee Brewers 65 97 .401 30.0 65-97
Western Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec
Colorado Rockies 88 74 .543 - 90-72
Arizona Diamondbacks 83 79 .512 5.0 80-82
San Francisco Giants 78 84 .481 10.0 71-91
Los Angeles (N) Dodgers 68 94 .420 20.0 72-90
San Diego Padres 68 94 .420 20.0 74-88
PENNANT RACES:
While still not having the late season drama, the NL was a little more closely contended than the AL and a few of the races were still up in the air as the season drew to a close.
The Braves made it 4 playoff berths in 5 years and thier 1st division title since 1901. The 1900 World Series champs rode an amazing 20-6 September record to the pennant as they pulled away from the 5 team race in the East.
The Central featured 2 of the top teams all year in St. Louis & Chicago. In the end, the Cards were able to hold off the pesky Cubs and clinch their 2nd straight Central title. But Cubbie fans still did some celebrating as the team that has never finished better than 5th in the NL Central finally had a good season and made the playoffs for the 1st time in team history.
Out West, Colorado won their first pennant, ending the reign of the D-Backs who had won the divsion 3 of the previous 4 years. Arizona stuck around til the end though and the Rockies weren't able to pop the corks on the champagne until the very end of the year when they took 3 in a row over Arizona to close out the season.
1904 PLAYOFFS
WILDCARD:
2 series going the distance and 2 series going 4 games in the wildcard round this year.
Tampa Bay knocked Detroit, sending them to an early exit in the playoffs again, winning the series 3-1 and taking their home field advantage to the ALCS. In the other series, The Angels took the Sox the distance, but Boston made it an all-AL East ALCS and knocked out the favorite Angels winning the decisive game 5 in Los Angeles.
The NL series were much the same. Colorado knocked off the heavily favorite Cardinals in 4 games, getting 1 step closer to the World Series in their 1st post-season appearance. Atlanta and the Cubs went the distance, but the experience of the Braves overcame the upstarts from Chicago, winning the series in 5 while trying to get back to the World Series for the 1st time since they won it all in 1900.
LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP:
Tampa Bay completed the amazing feat for the AL East as the D-Rays swept Boston 4-0 and earned their 1st World Series trip. The amazingness of this is that the MLB has been in existance for 5 years. And in all 5 of those years, a team from the AL East has made it to the World Series as the league champion. And even more bizarre than that, with Tampa's win in the ALCS, each of the 5 teams in the division have made it once. Truly odd feat. Mr. All-Everything Ron Cronshaw won the MVP for the D-Rays as the superstar went 7 for 19 in the series including 1 homerun and 7 rbi.
In the NL, Atlanta became the 1st MLB team to make it to 2 World Series as the Braves knocked off the Rockies in 6 games. Taking a 2-0 lead in the series, Atlanta rode the bat of 43 yo series MVP Isdel Cano to the Championship. Bananas (his nickname) went Bananas as he hit 4 hr and drove in 11 of the Braves 22 runs in the series in truly a remarkable performance in the NLCS.
WORLD SERIES:
"DEVIL RAYS DESTROY ATLANTA, AL EAST DOMINANCE CONTINUES"
Tampa Bay was the best season in the majors during the regular season, and rightfully so, the best in the playoffs as the D-Rays swept thru the ALCS and now the World Series, beating Atlanta 4-0 to win their first championship. Eduardo "Pongo" Villagomez was names World Series MVP as the 39yo SS put on a great show in what could be his final season. Going out with a ring, Pongo hit 2 3-run HRs in the 4 game series, finishing with 8 RBI in total.
With Tampa's win, the AL East is yet again on top of the league. In amazing fashion, the AL World Series team has come from the division in each of the 1st 5 years, and except for Boston's loss in 1900 to Atlanta, the last 4 champions (including Tampa Bay) were all AL East clubs.
Code:
1904 LEAGUE LEADERBOARD
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Batting AVG
J. Balcorta ANA .380
R. Cronshaw TB .373
J. Sheckard NYY .369
P. Dougherty BOS .363
J. Grimshaw TEX .352
On-Base + Slugging
R. Cronshaw TB 1.161
J. Balcorta ANA 1.028
J. Sheckard NYY .965
A. Capois BOS .954
J. Grimshaw TEX .910
Homeruns
R. Cronshaw TB 40
M. DeBorthwick TOR 31
E. Villagomez TB 31
S. Palomar MIN 29
O. Vargas NYY 27
Runs Batted In
O. Vargas NYY 135
R. Cronshaw TB 130
C. Fibbin ANA 129
F. Marijnissen DET 119
E. Villagomez TB 115
Runs
R. Cronshaw TB 129
J. Balcorta ANA 127
J. Sheckard NYY 122
P. Dougherty BOS 106
J. McMurrich DET 106
Stolen Bases
J. Sheckard NYY 70
L. Davis BAL 61
S. Magee BOS 60
S. Broden CHA 57
P. Huaman TEX 46
ERA
J. St.Vrain TB 2.48
E. Walsh TEX 2.49
L. MacHarold BAL 2.72
M. Henkle ANA 2.90
K. Holland BOS 3.07
Wins
J. Bracken BOS 21-10
E. Walsh TEX 20-11
C. Jaeger MIN 19-10
L. MacHarold BAL 19-9
B. Alleman DET 18-12
Saves
D. Richards BOS 44
L. Arroyl SEA 41
E. Dendy NYY 41
C. Shilvock CHA 41
C. Stropparo ANA 41
Strikeouts
L. MacHarold BAL 257
E. Ceno TB 242
M. Henkle ANA 225
D. Lluy NYY 208
J. Hendren SEA 196
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Batting AVG
S. Reid STL .375
G. Browne CHN .369
H. Wagner PIT .353
C. Muirhead SF .347
M. Lépine ATL .347
On-Base + Slugging
S. Reid STL 1.085
I. Ondarza ARI 1.036
M. von Lenski CIN 1.017
C. Muirhead SF 1.005
X. Delaluz FLO .986
Homeruns
I. Ondarza ARI 40
T. Kenmore COL 38
S. Lopez NYM 33
G. Boutte ATL 31
M. von Lenski CIN 28
Runs Batted In
G. Boutte ATL 127
I. Ondarza ARI 115
I. Cano ATL 107
T. Kenmore COL 106
J. Manrriques ATL 106
Runs
I. Ondarza ARI 137
G. Boutte ATL 127
M. von Lenski CIN 122
D. Gessler ATL 114
S. Reid STL 111
Stolen Bases
A. Penrod SD 61
J. Stahl ARI 53
G. Ledesma ARI 49
T. Burgess NYM 46
I. Waldron SD 45
ERA
C. Earp CIN 2.04
E. Hughs WSH 2.25
D. Lee CHN 2.63
M. Pinejo WSH 2.91
N. Gibson WSH 2.93
Wins
C. Earp CIN 20-7
H. Mori HOU 19-5
J. Romiro COL 19-11
L. Guarjardo FLO 18-10
D. Lee CHN 18-9
Saves
C. Denby PIT 47
J. Millsap CHN 43
H. Greigo ATL 42
S. Balian COL 39
E. Murphy NYM 39
Strikeouts
M. Colter SD 261
C. Earp CIN 247
C. Otero PHI 244
D. Borayo STL 234
W. Han PIT 229
AWARD WINNERS
AMERICAN LEAGUE
MVP AWARD - RF Ron Cronshaw (Tampa Bay Devil Rays)
- 30yo / USA - MLB MVP Awards: 3
- Season Stats: 162 g - 603 ab - .373 avg - 40 hr - 130 rbi - 129 r - 9 sb - 1.161 ops
- Career Stats: 759 g - 2755 ab - .340 avg - 178 hr - 574 rbi - 595 r - 26 sb - 1.090 ops (majors/5 yrs)
759 g - 2755 ab - .340 avg - 178 hr - 574 rbi - 595 r - 26 sb - 1.090 ops (career/5 yrs)
- Overview: And Cronshaw takes the lead. In it's 5 year history, the American League has only seen 2 players with the top award, Jorge Balcorta of Anaheim twice, and this Ron Cronshaw's 3rd. While not equaling his Triple Crown year of 1901, Cronshaw came **** close. He led or tied all the majors in 12 of the 18 offensive categories including HR, Hits, OPS & Vorp. And he just came up short of the quadruptle crown in the AL, leading in HR & Runs and finishing 2nd in Avg & RBI. Another truly great season for one of the best players the league has ever seen.
CY YOUNG AWARD - SP "Big" Ed Walsh (Texas Rangers)
- 23yo / USA - MLB CY YOUNG Awards: 1
- Season Stats: 35 g - 35 gs - 20-11 rec - 0 sv - 2.49 era - 285.2 ip - 88 bb - 153 k - 1.18 whip
- Career Stats: 35 g - 35 gs - 20-11 rec - 0 sv - 2.49 era - 285.2 ip - 88 bb - 153 k - 1.18 whip (majors/1 yr)
35 g - 35 gs - 20-11 rec - 0 sv - 2.49 era - 285.2 ip - 88 bb - 153 k - 1.18 whip (career/1 yr)
- Overview: Busting on the scene in a way no rookie ever has, Big Ed walked away with both the AL ROY & Cy Young honors this year. Taken #1 overall in the last draft, he was the easy undisputed best player available in the draft, but even Texas who drafted him couldn't have seen this much success so quickly. In his 1st season Walsh led all MLB pitchers in IP & Vorp and ranked 2nd in the AL in Wins & ERA while finishing 4th in Whip. With an unbelievable rookie year like this, it's tough not to declare Walsh as the greatest draft pick of the 4 previous rookie drafts and at only 23yo and with 10-15 more seasons in his career, he is on the fast track to Cooperstown.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR AWARD - SP "Big" Ed Walsh (Texas Rangers)
- 23yo / USA - MLB ROY Awards: 1
- Season Stats: 35 g - 35 gs - 20-11 rec - 0 sv - 2.49 era - 285.2 ip - 88 bb - 153 k - 1.18 whip
- Career Stats: 35 g - 35 gs - 20-11 rec - 0 sv - 2.49 era - 285.2 ip - 88 bb - 153 k - 1.18 whip (majors/1 yr)
35 g - 35 gs - 20-11 rec - 0 sv - 2.49 era - 285.2 ip - 88 bb - 153 k - 1.18 whip (career/1 yr)
- Overview: see above
GOLD GLOVE AWARDS:
P - Bob Lawson (Cleveland Indians) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 2
C - Teodor Abascal (Texas Rangers) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 3
1b - Sherry Magee (Boston Red Sox) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
2B - Sergio Loanos (Kansas City Royals) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
3B - Tim Hardesty (Boston Red Sox) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
SS - Les McMurtry (Kansas City Royals) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
LF - Jimmy Thomas (Toronto Blue Jays) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
CF - Tim Blais (Seattle Mariners) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
RF - Socks Seybold (Seattle Mariners) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 3
NATIONAL LEAGUE
MVP AWARD - 2b Steve "Pistol" Reid (St. Louis Cardinals)
- 24yo / USA - MLB MVP Awards: 1 / IRL MVP Awards: 1
- Season Stats: 149 g - 558 ab - .375 avg - 22 hr - 101 rbi - 111 r - 20 sb - 1.085 ops
- Career Stats: 581 g - 2184 ab - .358 avg - 81 hr - 375 rbi - 410 r - 41 sb - 1.011 ops (majors/5 yrs)
665 g - 2502 ab - .355 avg - 96 hr - 412 rbi - 467 r - 43 sb - 1.003 ops (career/5 yrs)
- Overview: Becoming the 1st ever MVP winner who also won the award in the minors, Reid has proven that he is the best youngster in the game, still not even 25yo. Always having the talen, Pistol has has some injury problems earlier in his career, however the past 2 seasons he has been completely healthy and this year was the best all-around player in the NL. Leading the league in Avg, OPS & Vorp, Reid also was one of the tops in runs scored, X base hits and Total bases and with 20 sb and a 20/20 season, he is a 2b who does it all, hit for a batting title, hit with some pop and steal some bases.
CY YOUNG AWARD - SP CJ "Madman" Earp (Cincinnati Reds)
- 26yo / USA - MLB CY YOUNG Awards: 2
- Season Stats: 34 g - 34 gs - 20-7 rec - 0 sv - 2.04 era - 251.0 ip - 28 bb - 247 k - 1.01 whip
- Career Stats: 106 g - 106 gs - 62-22 rec - 0 sv - 2.37 era - 796.1 ip - 72 bb - 810 k - 1.00 whip (majors/5 yrs)
106 g - 106 gs - 62-22 rec - 0 sv - 2.37 era - 796.1 ip - 72 bb - 810 k - 1.00 whip (career/5 yrs)
- Overview: Earp was the feel-good story of the year in baseball. After 2 devasting tricep injuries, the promising career of the Madman was thought to be over. But after diligently working in the off-season, he has come full circle, winning his 2nd NL Cy Young Award and first since 1900 before the injuries started piling up. Fully recovered, and at only 26, Earp's promising career looks to be back on track, and what a career it's been. A career 74% winning %, under a 2.50 era, a 1.00 whip and 11.25 K/bb ratio, it is easy to see why him being healthy was the best story this season. Earp led all the majors in ERA & K/BB ratio and led the NL in Wins, Whip & Vorp.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR AWARD - SP Norwood "Gibby" Gibson (Washington Nationals)
- 27yo / USA - MLB ROY Awards: 1
- Season Stats: 34 g - 34 gs - 16-6 rec - 0 sv - 2.93 era - 224.1 ip - 66 bb - 91 k - 1.21 whip
- Career Stats: 37 g - 37 gs - 16-7 rec - 0 sv - 3.24 era - 242.0 ip - 69 bb - 99 k - 1.24 whip (majors/2 yrs)
58 g - 58 gs - 26-12 rec - 0 sv - 2.91 era - 393.1 ip - 98 bb - 211 k - 1.18 whip (career/2 yrs)
- Overview: The former 3rd rd pick of Cleveland, Gibby had a very solid 1st yr in the rookie year but struggled with the Indians when called up. Claimed off waivers by Washington, Gibson proved Cleveland wrong and that they gave up on him too early. Winning the NL ROY in a tight race with John Titus of Arizona and Claude Elliott of St. Louis, his league leading Vorp among rookies was the difference maker. Gibson also led all NL Rookie pitchers in ERA, Whip & Opp Avg and was 2nd in wins.
GOLD GLOVE AWARDS:
P - Happy Townsend (Houston Astros) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 2
C - Orlondo Chavez (Los Angeles (N) Dodgers) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
1b - Germany "Liberty" Schaefer (Washington Nationals) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
2B - John Spencer (Milwaukee Brewers) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
3B - Wid Conroy (St. Louis Cardinals) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 2
SS - Ernie Hartigan (Milwaukee Brewers) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
LF - Jerrold Olveda (New York (N) Mets) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 2
CF - Steve Middleton (Colorado Rockies) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1
RF - "Silent" John Titus (Arizona Diamondbacks) - MLB GOLD GLOVES: 1