1932 AL Preseason Predictions
Like St. Louis in the National League, the New York Yankees have won three of the past four pennants. They have faced the Cardinals in the World Series each time, and the Yankees have won the last two meetings. The Yankees are again favored to win the AL pennant this season. They have gotten stronger with the additions of rookies
Johnny Allen (10-7-5 ratings) in the starting rotation and
Johnny Murphy (8-8-5 ratings) in the bullpen. That should make the Yankees even more formidable since their offense already scored more runs last season than any other team in MLHR, and they show no signs of slowing down this year.
The one big change for the New York offense was the decision to award the primary right field job to 21-year-old
Dixie Walker (.273, 4 HR, 22 RBI in 154 AB) instead of 35-year-old veteran
Bob Meusel (.280, 39 HR, 100 RBI). We will see if that move pays off. They have also moved shortstop
Lyn Lary (.195, 72 R, 36 SB) to the bench, moved
Billy Werber (.292, 14 HR, 59 RBI, 104 R, 104 SB) from second base to shortstop and given the second base job back to
Tony Lazzeri (.245, 9 HR, 34 RBI in 208 AB) after a year in a backup role. The team has also officially named
Ben Chapman (.300, 7 HR, 38 RBI, 50 R, 53 SB in 220 AB) their starting centerfielder and leadoff hitter, moving 32-year-old
Earle Combs (.243, 38 RBI, 50 R in 470 AB) to the bench.
Detroit, Cleveland and Oakland should again be New York's primary competition this season, but it is hard to see anyone being better than the Yankees. The Tigers have a good offense and they play very good defense as a team, but they need their pitching staff to step up and pitch up to it's capabilities. The Indians already have one of the best pitching rotations in the AL and their offense has been very good the past two seasons. Now, their bullpen should be much better with rookie
Monte Pearson (11-7-5 ratings) closing out games. As for Oakland, they still have the #2 offense in the league and last season, their pitching was much better. This season, they are moving
Slim Harriss (13-12, 4.46 ERA), a 12-year veteran of the Oakland rotation, to the bullpen as the new closer. They are moving rookie
Joe Bowman (6-7-6 ratings) into the 5th starter's role. The A's hope that the move will help solidify a wobbly bullpen.
Predicted Standings
(Scale of 1-12)
| Rank | Team | Rotation | Bullpen | Offense | Bench | Speed | Defense | Totals | Grade | Predicted Record |
| 1 | New York Yankees | 7 | 7 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 5 | 8.6 | A | 103 | 59 |
| 2 | Detroit Tigers | 7 | 7 | 6 | 12 | 8 | 10 | 8.0 | B+ | 95 | 67 |
| 3 | Cleveland Indians | 8 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 7.8 | B+ | 93 | 69 |
| 4 | Oakland Athletics | 7 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 7.6 | B+ | 91 | 71 |
| 5 | Minnesota Twins | 7 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6.3 | C+ | 75 | 87 |
| 6 | Baltimore Orioles | 7 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 6.0 | C | 71 | 91 |
| 7 | Chicago White Sox | 5 | 6 | 3 | 8 | 9 | 6 | 5.5 | C- | 66 | 96 |
| 8 | Boston Red Sox | 6 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 4.6 | D | 54 | 108 |
MLB results for the AL in 1932
Champs: New York Yankees, (107-47, .695)
World Series: Yankees defeated Cubs 4-0
MVP: Jimmie Foxx, Athletics
For players who appear below on a team they are not playing with in MLHR, their MLHR team is listed in parenthesis
Combined WAR: Jimmie Foxx, Athletics, 10.5
Offensive WAR: Jimmie Foxx, Athletics, 10.0
Defensive WAR: Joe Cronin, Twins (Pirates), 1.5
Batting Title: Dale Alexander, Tigers/Red Sox (Tigers), .367
On-Base%: Babe Ruth, Yankees (Red Sox), .489
Slugging%: Jimmie Foxx, Athletics, .749
Runs: Jimmie Foxx, Athletics, 151
RBI: Jimmie Foxx, Athletics, 169
SB: Ben Chapman, Yankees, 38
OPS+: Jimmie Foxx, Athletics, 202
AB/HR: Jimmie Foxx, Athletics, 10.1
Pitching WAR: Lefty Grove, Athletics, 9.0
Win%: Johnny Allen, Yankees, .810 (rookie!)
WHIP: Lefty Grove, Athletics, 1.193
K/9: Red Ruffing, Yankees (Red Sox), 6.602
Innings: General Crowder, Twins, 327.0
K/BB: Lefty Grove, Athletics, 2.380
ERA+: Lefty Grove, Athletics, 160
FIP: Lefty Grove, Athletics, 3.13
MLHR Milestone Watch
750 Doubles
Harry Heilmann, DET, Age 37, 729 Doubles
500 Home Runs
Joe Hauser, OAK, Age 33, 453 HR
2500 Walks
Babe Ruth, BOS, Age 37, 2412 BB
750 Stolen Bases
Johnny Mostil, CHW, Age 35, 733 SB