AL BATTER OF THE MONTH
Baltimore Orioles – RF Frank Robinson - .413/.483/.740, 26 G, 104 AB, 23 R, 43 H, 11 2B, 1 3B, 7 HR, 23 RBI, 2 SB
Frank was definitely the story of the month as he matched Reggie Smith for the longest hitting streak of the season and propelled the O's to second place in the AL East with a major league leading 19 wins during May.
NL BATTER OF THE MONTH
New York Mets – RF Art Shamsky - .325/.404/.805, 24 G, 77 AB, 20 R, 25 H, 7 2B, 10 HR, 18 RBI
Art has been the motor of the Mets offense as the second team in New York is holding their own on the pages of the Post.
AL PITCHER OF THE MONTH
New York Yankees – Al Downing - 5-0, 1.60, 6 G, 6 GS, 45.0 IP, 31 HA, 12 R, 8 ER, 3 HRA, 9 BB, 28 K, 0.89 WHIP, .187 OAVG
Al has paced the Bronx Bombers' pitching staff as they continue to chase down the East leading Tigers.
NL PITCHER OF THE MONTH
Pittsburgh Pirates – Bob Veale - 5-0, 0.66, 5 G, 5 GS, 41.0 IP, 28 HA, 6 R, 3 ER, 0 HRA, 12 BB, 34 K, 0.98 WHIP, .190 OAVG
Bob was easily the ace of the Bucs staff as they managed their lead in the NL East. In each of his May starts, Bob pitched at least 7 innings, going 8 twice and tossing a couple of complete games as well.
AL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH
New York Yankees – C Thurman Munson - .284/.333/.432, 28 G, 88 AB, 15 R, 25 H, 4 2B, 3 HR, 19 RBI
Tugboat has cemented himself as the Yankees first string catcher with his efforts this month. His defensive prowess has been on display as well as he's only allowed 3 passed balls and thrown out 37% of baserunners attempting to steal.
NL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH
San Francisco Giants – LF Frank Baker - .388/.435/.518, 21 G, 85 AB, 16 R, 33 H, 3 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 10 RBI
Frank has sparked the Giants run up the NL West as San Fran has surged into second place past the fading Atlanta Braves.
STANDINGS AS OF MAY 31
Code:
AL EAST W L PCT GB LAST 10 STREAK
Detroit Tigers 30 17 .638 ---- 6-4 W2
Baltimore Orioles 31 21 .596 1.5 8-2 W1
New York Yankees 28 23 .549 4.0 6-4 W3
Boston Red Sox 25 12 .532 5.0 3-7 L6
Washington Senators 25 27 .481 7.5 5-5 L1
Cleveland Indians 21 26 .447 9.0 7-3 W1
AL WEST W L PCT GB LAST 10 STREAK
Oakland Athletics 26 20 .565 ---- 4-6 L1
Kansas City Royals 27 22 .551 0.5 6-4 L3
Chicago White Sox 23 20 .535 1.5 6-4 W1
Minnesota Twins 23 23 .500 3.0 5-5 W2
California Angels 17 28 .378 8.5 5-5 L1
Seattle Pilots 10 37 .213 16.5 1-9 L9
NL EAST W L PCT GB LAST 10 STREAK
Pittsburgh Pirates 31 19 .620 ---- 7-3 W3
New York Mets 28 21 .571 2.5 6-4 L2
Montreal Expos 25 23 .521 5.0 4-6 L4
Philadelphia Phillies 24 23 .511 5.5 4-6 L5
St. Louis Cardinals 24 25 .490 6.5 4-6 L1
Chicago Cubs 23 27 .460 8.0 5-5 L1
NL WEST W L PCT GB LAST 10 STREAK
Los Angeles Dodgers 31 16 .660 ---- 7-3 W4
San Francisco Giants 26 23 .531 6.0 7-3 W2
Atlanta Braves 22 27 .449 10.0 3-7 W1
Houston Astros 22 29 .431 11.0 3-7 L3
Cincinnati Reds 18 29 .383 13.0 6-4 W1
San Diego Padres 19 31 .380 13.5 5-5 W2