December 13, 1938
MAJOR DEAL FOR MINERS
The Pittsburgh Miners took another big step towards reclaiming the Federal Association Pennant they surrendered to the Chicago Chiefs in October by acquiring arguably the best center fielder in the game. The deal which brings 27 year old Pablo Reyes from Montreal was a costly one for the Miners as they were forced to surrender pitchers Bud Robbins and Lou Ellertson along with highly touted infield prospect Spud Bent and their first and fifth round draft picks to the Saints. The Miners were said to be in a bidding war for Reyes' services with Brooklyn before the Kings pulled out at the last minute when they felt the cost became too great.
Reyes, nicknamed "The Cuban Comet' has been a fixture in center field for Montreal the past 5 seasons and hit a career best .300 with 9 homers and 86 rbi's last year. The two-time all-star is very fast on the base paths and should combine with current Miners outfielder Joe Owens as a terrific 1-2 combo at the top of the Pittsburgh batting order. As talented as he is with the bat it is Reyes work in the field that draws him the most praise and made him a perfect fit for Montreal's Parc Cartier. Fitzpatrick Park in Pittsburgh has similar dimensions and will suit Reyes perfectly, allowing him to add plenty of extra base hits while at the plate and take away a number while patrolling the Pittsburgh outfield.
This trade combined with the one to bring veteran pitcher Karl Johnson over from Washington may elevate the Miners to favourite status in the Federal Association especially with Pete Layton's retirement announcement recently in Chicago. The Miners won the pennant in 1937 but finished a distant third behind Chicago and Detroit this past season.
As for the Saints, fans in Quebec will be sad to see the popular Reyes leave but the rebuilding club did add some solid pieces in the move. Bud Robbins is a 24 year old lefthander who made his big league debut briefly last season and was 15-11 with a 3.98 era at AAA. He has a projected ceiling as a middle of the rotation arm who is likely ready to join the Saints rotation this season. Spud Bent is a 22 year old third baseman who was one of the lottery players in 1937 after an All-American career at Maryland State. He spent most of last season in AAA and might be ready to man the hot corner for Montreal on Opening Day. Ellertson is a veteran pitcher who will help steady the Montreal bullpen and the expectation is the first round pick, 12th overall, should yield a solid prospect as well.
JIGGS MCGEE'S TAKE: The Miners paid a hefty price but one they were willing to absorb as club insiders feel their window to win another pennant with this core group is shrinking. Starting pitchers Charlie Stedman and Bill Ketterman will both be 36 years old on Opening Day so the worry is just how many more seasons of peak contribution do those two have? With Les Tucker being just 24 years old and firmly entrenched at third base it was decided that Bent could be moved. I like this deal from Pittsburgh's point of view for this season but going forward don't be surprised if they regret giving up so much for Reyes, who admittedly is an outstanding center fielder, but decent outfielders are still plentiful throughout FABL.
For Montreal it will be tough seeing Reyes leave but the Saints have not finished with 17 games of first place since 1930 and after a dreadful 63 win season last season that culminated with a change in their General Manager it is clear that the club needs a lot more than a superstar centerfielder to be competitive so this deal is a nice first step in the right direction.
WILSON WALKS AWAY FROM FORESTERS
Shock is the reaction in Cleveland with the news that manager Jim Wilson has decided to retire at the age of 36. Wilson, who became one of the youngest managers in FABL history in 1933 when he assumed the reigns in Cleveland, posted a 531-376 record in his 6 seasons at the helm while winning two pennants and guiding the Foresters to their first ever World Championship Series title in 1934. The club was over .500 in each of his seasons in the manager's seat including back to back 82-72 campaigns the past two years. Wilson had survived a pair of GM changes and there is some speculation that he might eventually come out of retirement and rejoin the GM who gave him his start in Cleveland by taking the Detroit Dynamos job whenever 76 year old George Thoebald decides to step down. At present there is no announcement of a new manager for the Foresters.
Cleveland also received some bad news about the recovery of Lyman Weigel. The 34 year old pitcher who suffered an elbow injury in September has had a bit of a setback in his recovery but the club is optimistic he will be healthy for spring camp in March. Weigel went 5-4 in 1938 for the Foresters and is 86-78 in his 9 year big league career that also included stops in Brooklyn and Montreal.
WASHINGTON IS BUSY IN THE RULE FIVE DRAFT
Very rarely does a player selected in the Rule Five draft pan out and become an decent big leaguer but the Washington Eagles decided to maximize their odds of landing that 'needle in a haystack' by selecting what is believed to be a record 8 players in this year's selection draft. It does not come as a surprise since the club had stated before the draft it would be busy but what is surprising is the Eagles did not take a single pitcher among their 8 selections. Washington will almost assuredly be returning some players to their original clubs as there is no way they can keep all eight on the active roster. The Eagles selected 5 outfielders, a pair of first baseman and a catcher. The first player taken in the draft was 26 year old centerfielder Red Looney, whom the Eagles drafted out of the Cougars organization with the second pick after Baltimore passed on the opening selection. Speaking of the Cannons, the Continental Association doormats lost 5 players on the day thru the draft - the most of any team.
Here are the
RULE FIVE SELECTIONS
Code:
Round 1
Round 1, Pick 2 - Washington Eagles: CF Red Looney from the Chicago Cougars.
Round 1, Pick 5 - Montreal Saints: SP Clay Jackson from the Baltimore Cannons.
Round 1, Pick 6 - New York Stars: SP Phil Gregg from the Washington Eagles.
Round 1, Pick 7 - Boston Minutemen: SP Bill Stewart from the Montreal Saints.
Round 1, Pick 8 - Chicago Cougars: RF Tommy Sandstrom from the Philadelphia Keystones.
Round 1, Pick 9 - St. Louis Pioneers: C Dave Wade from the Montreal Saints.
Round 1, Pick 10 - Cleveland Foresters: SP Gordon Ross from the St. Louis Pioneers.
Round 1, Pick 11 - Philadelphia Sailors: SP Lee Marshall from the Baltimore Cannons.
Round 1, Pick 12 - Pittsburgh Miners: C Johnson Starks from the Philadelphia Sailors.
Round 2
Round 2, Pick 2 - Washington Eagles: 1B Bud Berry from the Boston Minutemen.
Round 2, Pick 6 - New York Stars: LF Howie Smith from the Washington Eagles.
Round 2, Pick 11 - Philadelphia Sailors: 3B Joe Haggard from the Pittsburgh Miners.
Round 3
Round 3, Pick 2 - Washington Eagles: RF George Bond from the Philadelphia Sailors.
Round 3, Pick 6 - New York Stars: 1B Ralph Conner from the Detroit Dynamos.
Round 3, Pick 11 - Philadelphia Sailors: SP Tom Cipolla from the Montreal Saints.
Round 4
Round 4, Pick 2 - Washington Eagles: CF Herb Loflin from the Detroit Dynamos.
Round 4, Pick 6 - New York Stars: 1B Gene Harp from the Pittsburgh Miners.
Round 5
Round 5, Pick 2 - Washington Eagles: 1B Nick Shed from the Baltimore Cannons.
Round 5, Pick 6 - New York Stars: LF Jim Mason from the Baltimore Cannons.
Round 6
Round 6, Pick 2 - Washington Eagles: RF Len Calvert from the Montreal Saints.
Round 7
Round 7, Pick 2 - Washington Eagles: LF Ed Duggins from the St. Louis Pioneers.
Round 8
Round 8, Pick 2 - Washington Eagles: C A.J. Warren from the Baltimore Cannons.
QUICK HITS
- The Chicago Chiefs had great success grabbing a veteran middle infielder from the New York Stars a couple of years ago with the acquisition of Pete Layton so they figured why not try again. Now, no one is expecting 36 year old Bill Rich to have anywhere near the impact on the field that Layton did but the Chiefs feel he will provide the leadership the club has long been searching for. Rich, who has played over 1,300 big league games with the Stars was told recently by the New York club his services would no longer be needed and it appeared he may end up finishing his career with an Independent team until the Chiefs came calling. Rich hit just .225 in spot duty a year ago and his defense is not what it once was but he has long been a player that teammates look up to. I wouldn't be surprised to see him step into a coaching role in the next couple of seasons.
- The Brooklyn Kings had been pushing hard to pry Reyes from Montreal and felt they were in the running until the Saints told them what was needed to top Pittsburgh's offer. It was rumoured to have included top 100 prospects Jim Lightbody and Sergio Vergara along with Brooklyn all-star reliever Del Lyons and a couple of draft picks.
- The Kings appear willing to gamble that Bob Worley can hit enough to hold down the center field job, or failing that may try Sal's big brother Alf Pestilli in center once Frank Lightbody gets a clean bill of health after missing most of last season.
- How valuable is the Rule 5 draft? Well teams occasionally find a piece that fits but the Chicago Cougars, who have been more active than most teams during recent drafts, have not had a lot of success. Twice the Cougars drafted 5 players in a single rule 5: Here are the five:
1932: C Cliff Ray, 1B Barney Meeker, RHP Norm Stewart, C Ron Ruppe, LF Vallie Turner
1936: LHP Ed Myers, RHP Jim Baggett, LHP Clarence Crane, 3B Russ Griffin, RHP Jonah Brown
None of these guys have really done too much. Crazy thing about 1936 is four of them got playing time and two of them survived the season. Of course, none remain on the Cougars 40 man roster now.
- Speaking of the Cougars it is with a heavy heart they waived two players who made such an impact on the sport. Bill Ashbaugh was the first amateur draft selection of the club in the human GM era and spent parts of 12 seasons in Chicago but he played just 29 games the past two seasons and his best days are clearly behind him. He was a big piece of their 1931 World Championship team. The other is Tommy Wilcox, who won an Allen Award and was part of the big trade with Brooklyn 7 years ago but blew out his arm in 1934 and hasn't been the same pitcher since. Wilcox was at one point considered to be on a path to superstardom but it at all changed so suddenly with that first serious arm injury and he has spent the past two seasons in the minor leagues. Ashbaugh will leave the organization rather than accept a demotion to the minors but Wilcox has indicated he is willing to remain despite being removed from the 40-man roster.
The Week That Was
Current events from 12/12/1938
- Britain acts to block German seizure of Memel following decisive election victory of Memel Nazis. Memel used to be German territory prior to the World War before it became Lithuanian possession.
- German Ministry of Economics put further obstacles in the way of Jews removing their property from Germany. The decree forbids Jews leaving Germany after January 1st from taking any objects except those necessary for strictly personal use.
- Spanish insurgent leader General Franco has set Thursday as the zero hour for an offensive in eastern Spain in an effort to break loyalist resistance.
- George Burns of the comic radio team Burns and Allen, pleaded guilty to a pair of charges for transporting and possessing smuggled jewelry and clothes from Europe. Full penalties for each indictment would be four years in prison and $10,000 fine.