PRELIMINARY ROUND
Series #131
1916 New York Yankees (80-74) vs 1992 New York Yankees (76-86)
In 1916 the American League team from New York has a new name called the Yankees and were slowly becoming a factor in the pennant chase. Wild Bill Donovan had an ace pitcher and some viable hitters to win 80 games and finish in 4th. Bob Shawkey was the ace referred to winning 24 games with a 2.21 ERA and 4 shutouts. The 25 year old struck out 122 batters and when he wasnt starting even saved 8 games proving his value. George Mogridge and Ray Fisher each made 21 starts with the lefty being much better with a 126 ERA+ while Fisher had a 1.35 WHIP and was hit quite a bit. At 22 Allen Russell made 19 starts with a 3.20 ERA and nothing really special in this era. Nick Cullup was 13-6 with a fine 2.03 ERA and definitely deserves more chances with a 1.09 WHIP. Ray Caldwell was 5-12 in 18 starts and had some back luck to lose as many as he did. Donovan has a number of options and can play his rotation in this series any number of ways, all these arms could also play key relief roles. Ray Keating at only 22 is the outside wild card, but he is likely too green for this stage. On offense the Yankees had some really nice pieces with the famous Home Run Baker fitting in nicely. Baker hit 10 home runs and drove in 52 while playing in only 100 games. Still Baker brings a championship mentality to a club that wanted to get there. Lee Magee was the fire on the team stealing 29 bases with almost 60 runs and walking 50 times. Almost everyone in the lineup had double digit steals and Frank Gihooley in center was no different, he had a nice .278 average in 58 games but split time with Fritz Maisel who wasn't as consistent. Hugh High hit .263 but only drove in 28 runs with a weak 13 doubles and was not a good answer in right. Roger Peckinpaugh was an excellent short stop with 22 doubles and 58 RBI and was a fine glove man. Wally Pipp was hands down the best hitter on the club and a star at this time before anyone ever heard of Gehrig. Pipp scored 70 runs, hit 12 home runs, and drove in a very impressive 93 runs. He had truly established himself as one of the best overall first basemen at this time in the American League. Joe Gedeon manned second base but was the deadlink of the infield hitting .211 with a brutal 62 OPS+. Les Nunamaker was the catcher and lead the team with a .296 average and a .784 OPS making a supurb part of the offense. Paddy Bauman was a capable bat off the bench hitting .287 and could play almost anywhere. The Yankees had a deep roster and Donovan in truth used it in every way possible, The new digs for the team in the Polo Grounds is also worth noting.
Young Buck Showalter took over manager duties and was on a mission to revive a lost franchise. Baby steps were needed in 1992 for this team but the frame work of a winning side was not far away. The offense did have some work to do as Don Mattingly did not have his best season but was still the head of the class in the Bronx. Donny hit .288 with 14 homers and 86 RBI and also added 40 doubles and some dependable defense but he did hear some critics say he was past his best also nursing a tender back. Danny Tartabull has a masher in rightfield with an .898 OPS thanks to 101 walks and a .409 OPSl he also hit 25 home runs. Roberto Kelly had all the tools in centerfield making defense look easy. His speed translated to 28 steals and 31 doubles while scoring 81 runs. Mel hall was the left fielder hitting .280 with 81 RBI but he may have been swinging for the fences too often and his effort was an issue. Charlie Hayes played a good third base but struck out 100 times and walked only 28. He offered little as did shortstop Andy Stankiewicz who hit .268 with a .685 OPS and only 2 home runs; his defense also did not make up for the lack of power. Matt Nokes had some read power out of the cather position with 22 home runs even if he wasnt consistent with a .224 average. Mike Stanley was a dependable backup for him when he would hit DH. Kevin Maas was the most frequent DH hitting 11 home runs with a .710 OPS which could be considered average at best Pat Kelly was the light hitting second baseman with Randy Velarde also seeing alot of work in the middle infield, his OPS was .719. Young Bernie Williams was still learning the ropes hitting .280 and Mike Gallego along with Jim Leyritz may be two bench names that are recognizable. Melido Perez started 33 games but lost 16 of them even though he deserved better. Perez had a 2.87 ERA with a 3.05 FIP striking out an impressive 8 per 9. He should be considered the ace after Scott Sanderson who came in at a grey 35 years old. Sanderson was 12-11 with a rough 4.92 ERA allowing an alarming 28 home runs. Scott Kamieniecki went 6-14 with a 4.36 but his whip was almost 1.5. Tim Leary was even worse as a starter in 15 starts he had a FIP of 5.17. Greg Cadaret also had his chance to start but was better used in the pen, thus overall the Yankee 4 man rotation was a sore spot for this club. The pen did offer hope but as expected was overused, Steve Farr had 30 saves with a great 1.56 ERA in 50 games. Rich Monteleone, John Habvan and Tim Burke were all fine options for middle or long inning relief. Yankee pitching will need to hold up against a good hitting opponent, as two of the not so legendary Yankee teams face off against eachother.
Game 1 At The Polo Grounds
Clear 75
1992 Yankees....................2
1916 Yankees....................5
WP: N. Cullop (1-0) LP: M. Perez (0-1)
HR: None
POG: Nick Cullop
1916 Yankees Lead Series 1-0
Les Nunamaker drove in two runs as the old Yankees took the opener at the Polo Grounds behind Nick Cullop who stood tall in the win. Cullop went the distance allowing six hits and 2 earned runs while striking out four. Melido Perez also went the distance but had issues with his control and came up on the short end.
Game 2 At The Polo Grounds
Clear 64
1992 Yankees....................2
1916 Yankees....................1
WP: S. Sanderson (1-0) LP: B. Shawkey (0-1)
HR: None
POG: Bob Shawkey
Series tied at 1
A great pitchers duel for game two and a Mel Hall run scoring double in the 5th was the difference. Bob Shawkey struck out nine and was in complete command but an error by Frank Gilhooley set up an unearned run that would tag him with the loss. Scott Sanderson may not have been as sharp striking out only two and allowing 11 hits. His 138 pitch effort however was good enough as he finished what he started allowing only one earned.
Game 3 At Yankee Stadium
Partly cloudy 62
1916 Yankees....................2
1992 Yankees....................12
WP: S. Militello (1-0) LP: R. Keating
HR: D. James (1)
POG: Dion James
1992 Yankees lead series 2-1
An emphatic win for Buck Showalters team as they whip 16 hits and 12 runs to take the lead in this series. A six run second inning set the stage and a three run home run by Dion James in the 5th put the game away; James ended with with 4 RBI and 2 runs. Another complete game as Sam Militello threw 134 pitches and worked around 6 walks to hold the 1916 team to only two runs. Ray Keating lasted only 2.2 innings and was well off his game.
Game 4 At Yankee Stadium
Clear 67
1916 Yankees.......................6
1992 Yankees.......................3
WP: N. Cullop (2-0) LP: M. Perez (0-2)
HR: F. Baker (1)
POG: Home Run Baker
Series tied at 2
In the top of the seventh inning Home Run Baker broke a 3-3 tie in a big way hitting a three run home run off Melido Perez 334 feet over the right field wall. Of course Baker has been a legend with the timing of his home runs and tonight just adds to that. Nick Cullop wins his second game of the series walking none and allowing seven hits. The series has really been dead even between these teams and where it goes is anyones guess.
Game 5 At Yankee Stadium
Cloudy 52
1916 Yankees.......................3
1992 Yankees.......................4
WP: S. Sanderson (2-0) LP: B. Shawkey (0-2) S: S. Farr (1)
HR: None
POG: Bob Shawkey
1992 Yankees Lead Series 3-2
A Wally Pipp error set up a two run double from Don Mattingly as the 1992 Yankees delighted their fans with a 3 run 3rd inning and an advantage they wouldnt lose. Scott Sanderson ran into some trouble in the 6th but got out of it with a one run lead and took it to the 9th before Steve Farr closed the door with the tying run on second. Sanderson gets his second win and Bob Shawkey again loses a game he pitched very well in, allowing only one earned run.
Game 6 At The Polo Grounds
Clear 66
1992 Yankees......................0
1916 Yankees......................5
WP: R. Keating (1-1) LP: S. Militello (1-1)
HR: None
POG: Ray Keating
Series tied at 3
Ray Keating had the task of keeping the 1916 Yankees alive and forcing a game seven and that is exactly what the right hander did. Keating struck out five and walked five but did not allow a run in his complete game as the 1992 Yankees stranded 10 men. Frank Baker drove in his 6th run of the series and Paddy Bauman went 3-4 as the series now heads to its climax of one game for it all.
Game 7 At The Polo Grounds
Partly cloudy 53
1992 Yankees.......................4
1916 Yankees.......................5 (11 inn)
WP: N. Cullop (3-0) LP: M. Perez (0-3)
HR: None
POG: Nick Cullop
In what has been a dead even series, game seven was no different going into extra innings before the 1916 team walked it off. Both Melido Perez and Nick Cullop went the distance into extra innings in their third matchup of the series. In the 11th with two out and the bases loaded, Paddy Baumann singled to left center scoring Lee Magee. Cullop threw 153 pitches and won all three of the games he started in.
1916 New York Yankees Win Series 4 Games To 3
Series MVP:
Nick Cullop
(3-0, 29 IP, 2.48 ERA, 5 BB, 13 K, 1.03 WHIP)