1914 NL Preseason Predictions
This season, the Pirates are predicted to edge out the Giants for the pennant. However, I have to disagree. The Giants are coming off an impressive World Series victory, not to mention a season in which they dominated the NL standings. They return virtually their entire roster intact. Their biggest question mark is the fifth starters' spot where
Al Demaree (6-6, 5.72 ERA) will once again attempt to hold down the job after losing it halfway through last season.
Meanwhile, the Pirates finished 10 games behind the Giants last season in second place, and they said goodbye to offensive leader
Honus Wagner just a year after losing Hall of Fame pitcher
Rube Waddell to retirement. That being said, the future looks bright for Pittsburgh. Last season they dominated the post-season awards with a BoY in
Max Carey (.306, 34 HR, 95 RBI, 101 R, 65 SB), a PoY in
Claude Hendrix (21-6, 3.01 ERA) and a RoY in
Al Mamaux (13-10, 3.17 ERA). Awards are nice, but the pennant is all that really matters and this team has something to prove.
In Chicago, the Cubs offense should continue to mash the ball, while their pitching staff should continue to struggle. This year they added rookie
Mike Prendergast (6-6-6 ratings) to the pitching rotation but I doubt that will be enough to solve their pitching woes. In Cincinnati, the Reds hope to bounce back from a disappointing 79-83 record, but their only real change was the addition of rookie pitcher
Chief Johnson (6-6-6 ratings) to the rotation.
Braves first baseman
Buck Freeman (.243, 35 HR, 90 RBI) quietly set the new all-time home run record last season at 622. His accomplishment was overshadowed by the offense's inability to score runs. They expect that to improve this year and that was part of the reason that they shuffled their outfield.
Joe Connolly (.310, 7 HR, 33 RBI in 239 AB) will get the bulk of the work in left field, while
Les Mann (.359, 3 HR, 13 RBI in 92 AB) takes over in center and
Tommy Griffith (.263, 14 HR, 53 RBI in 346 AB) should get even more playing time in right. They also added the top player from the offseason in the NL in pitcher
Dolf Luque (6-6-7 ratings).
The Phillies may have the best pitching staff in the NL, but their offense is getting excessively old with almost no depth. The Cardinals are piecing together a nice offense and they have three strong pitchers atop their rotation but their last two starting pitchers are a huge question mark and their bullpen is a mess. The Dodgers made big upgrades to their bullpen this offseason, but their starting rotation is a big weakness. Their offense has some serious fire power with players like
Zack Wheat (.304, 41 HR, 91 RBI),
Jake Daubert (.262, 32 HR, 72 HR, 86 R) and
Casey Stengel (.288, 42 HR, 111 RBI) but I do not believe the entire offense is consistent enough to overcome their pitching issues.
Predicted Standings
(Scale of 1-12)
MLB results for the NL in 1914
Champs: Boston Braves, (94-59, .614)
World Series: Braves defeated Athletics 4-0
Combined WAR: George Burns, Giants, 6.4
Offensive WAR: Sherry Magee, Phillies, 5.8
Defensive WAR: Rabbit Maranville, Braves, 4.2
Batting Title: Jake Daubert, Robins (Dodgers), .329
On-Base%: Casey Stengel, Robins (Dodgers), .404
Runs: George Burns, Giants, 100
RBI: Sherry Magee, Phillies, 103
SB: George Burns, Giants, 62
OPS+: Gavvy Cravath, Phillies, 161
AB/HR: Gavvy Cravath, Phillies, 26.3
Pitching WAR: Grover Cleveland Alexander, Phillies, 8.4
Win%: Bill James, Braves, .788
WHIP: Babe Adams, Pirates, 1.032
K/9: Ben Tincup, Phillies, 6.271 (rookie!)
Innings: Grover Cleveland Alexander, Phillies, 355.0
K/BB: Christy Mathewson, Giants, 3.478
ERA+: Bill Doak, Cardinals, 162
FIP: Grover Cleveland Alexander, Phillies, 2.26
MLHR Milestone Watch
2500 Hits
Sam Crawford, CIN, Age 33, 2491 Hits
Buck Freeman, ATL, Age 33, 2488 Hits
Elmer Flick, PHI, Age 38, 2469 Hits
650 Home Runs
Buck Freeman, ATL, Age 33, 622 HR
2000 RBI
Nap Lajoie, PHI, Age 39, 1962 RBI
500 Stolen Bases
Bob Bescher, CIN, Age 30, 429 SB
200 Wins
Christy Mathewson, SFG, Age 33, 189 Wins
3500 Innings Pitched
Christy Mathewson, SFG, Age 33, 3283.0 Innings
3000 Innings Pitched
Doc White, PHI, Age 34, 2943.1 Innings
3500 Strikeouts
Noodles Hahn, CIN, Age 34, 3420 K's
Christy Mathewson, SFG, Age 33, 3346 K's
800 Games Pitched
Harry Howell, LAD, Age 37, 738 Games
700 Games Pitched
Homer Hillebrand, PIT, Age 33, 688 Games
Martin Glendon, CIN, Age 37, 683 Games
Cy Falkenberg, PIT, Age 34, 673 Games