1922 AL Preseason Predictions
Last year we saw the best pennant race in AL history with all eight teams having some impact on the race. This year may be a repeat of the same thing. To show the volatility in the American League right now, the Red Sox won the 1919 pennant and then fell to 6th place the following season. That year, 1920, the White Sox won the pennant, and then they plummeted to last place the next year. Now the Twins are the defending champs and they face very stiff competition in their attempt to repeat. The Twins have a solid, but not spectacular, offense but also one of the deepest benches in MLHR. They upgraded their bullpen in the offseason, but their starting rotation is a bit of a concern. We all know that 7-time PoY
Walter Johnson (20-8, 2.49 ERA), at age 34, is still one of the best pitchers on the planet. The question for Minnesota's pitching rotation is two fold: first, can former reliever
Jim Shaw (8-2, 6 Sv, 2.97 ERA) solidify the back end of the rotation and second, can
Doc Ayers (14-10, 3.18 ERA) and
Marv Goodwin (16-9, 3.28 ERA) repeat their solid performances from last season?
Every team except Baltimore can honestly say they have pennant hopes this season, so let's look at the contenders beginning with the two teams who tied for second place last year: Cleveland and Detroit. These two teams made some strategic offseason upgrades to their pitching staffs and they are actually tied for first place in my preseason rankings. This year's staff may be the best one Detroit has ever had. Both teams have great offenses, but surprisingly, the Indians actually have a slightly better starting lineup. However, Detroit's bench is much deeper than Cleveland's. It is a toss up between these two, but in a pinch I would choose Detroit to win the pennant simply because they have the experience of being a contender for multiple seasons plus the significantly deeper bench. But, a lot of that potential rests on the ability of Detroit's starting rotation to perform up to expectations. As for Cleveland, they are young and getting better every year. The future is certainly bright for them.
Next, you have two old faithful franchises in Boston and Oakland. Both are consistently in the pennant mix and they both have plenty of pennant race and World Series experience. However, they also both have plenty of age. The Red Sox have added a few new players to the mix, but Oakland has been better over the past two years in keeping the roster somewhat young. This season, the addition of slugging first baseman
Joe Hauser (6-6-9-6-5 ratings) should go a long way in supporting aging veterans
Joe Jackson (.320, 28 HR, 110 RBI) and
Frank Baker (.259, 38 HR, 113 RBI) in the middle of the order.
Finally you have two teams with something to prove. I have been singing the Yankees praises for several seasons now, but they have never quite fulfilled their promise. This year, their starting pitching rotation may prevent them from making much noise in the pennant chase. Their offense is deadly, but they need several solid performances from their pitching staff if they hope to compete. Then you have the White Sox, who have a chip on their shoulder after winning 104 games in 1920 and then winning just 66 last year - a 38 game slide! They made some changes to their pitching staff, which they hope will make a difference this year. On paper, their offense is very weak and that's how they performed last season. However, I think their offense is potentially better than they look, but we will have to wait to see if they can put it all together.
Predicted Standings
(Scale of 1-12)
| Rank | Team | Rotation | Bullpen | Offense | Bench | Speed | Defense | Totals | Grade | Predicted Record |
| 1a | Cleveland Indians | 8 | 7 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7.8 | A- | 90 | 72 |
| 1b | Detroit Tigers | 7 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 6 | 7 | 7.8 | A- | 90 | 72 |
| 3 | Oakland Athletics | 8 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 7.7 | A- | 89 | 73 |
| 4 | Boston Red Sox | 8 | 6 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 7.6 | B+ | 88 | 74 |
| 5 | Minnesota Twins | 7 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 7.1 | B | 82 | 80 |
| 6a | Chicago White Sox | 7 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 6.3 | B- | 73 | 89 |
| 6b | New York Yankees | 5 | 6 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6.3 | B- | 73 | 89 |
| 8 | Baltimore Orioles | 6 | 10 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 5.5 | C | 64 | 98 |
MLB results for the AL in 1922
Champs: New York Yankees, (94-60, .610)
World Series: Giants defeated Yankees 4-0
For players who appear below on a team they are not playing with in MLHR, their MLHR team is listed in parenthesis
Combined WAR: George Sisler, Orioles, 8.7
Offensive WAR: George Sisler, Orioles, 8.2
Defensive WAR: Everett Scott, Yankees (Red Sox), 2.6
Batting Title: George Sisler, Orioles, .420
On-Base%: Tris Speaker, Indians (Red Sox), .474
Slugging%: Babe Ruth, Yankees (Red Sox), .672
Runs: George Sisler, Orioles, 134
RBI: Ken Williams, Orioles (Reds), 155
SB: George Sisler, Orioles, 51
OPS+: Babe Ruth, Yankees (Red Sox), 182
AB/HR: Babe Ruth, Yankees (Red Sox), 11.6
Pitching WAR: Red Faber, White Sox, 9.6
Win%: Joe Bush, Yankees (Athletics), .788
WHIP: Red Faber, White Sox, 1.185
K/9: Guy Morton, Indians, 4.530
Innings: Red Faber, White Sox, 352.0
K/BB: Urban Shocker, Orioles (Yankees), 2.614
ERA+: Red Faber, White Sox, 143
FIP: Red Faber, White Sox, 3.30
MLHR Milestone Watch
3000 Hits
Tris Speaker, BOS, Age 33, 2928 Hits
600 Home Runs
Frank Baker, OAK, Age 36, 576 HR
1500 RBI
Tris Speaker, BOS, Age 33, 1496 RBI
1500 Runs
Frank Baker, OAK, Age 36, 1478 R
1000 Walks
Harry Hooper, BOS, Age 34, 991 BB
Frank Baker, OAK, Age 36, 979 BB
800 Games pitched
Ray Fisher, NYY, Age 34, 798 games
700 Games pitched
Buddy Napier, BAL, Age 32, 692 games
Addie Joss, CLE, Age 41, 681 games
250 Wins
Walter Johnson, MIN, Age 34, 244 Wins
Ed Walsh, CHW, Age 40, 244 Wins
Joe Wood, BOS, Age 32, 230 Wins
3000 Innings Pitched
Ray Collins, BOS, Age 35, 2818 IP
Willie Mitchell, CLE, Age 32, 2811 IP
4000 Strikeouts
Ed Walsh, CHW, Age 40, 3857 K's