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FuzzyRussianHat · 07-26-2023, 11:41 AM

Major League Baseball’s best record in 1968 went to the New York Yankees, who won the Eastern League at 105-57. New York bounced back from a 75-win 1967 for their second playoff berth in three years and set a MLB record for most saves by a pitching staff at 53, a mark that would hold until 2030. Ottawa gave them a battle in the EL, taking the first wild card at 102-60 for their third playoff berth in four years. The Elks had almost 98 more runs than the next closest National Association team and their .350 team OPB was only one point below Baltimore’s NA record of .351 from 1933. The Midwest League title went to Columbus at 100-62, snapping a 13-year playoff drought. The Chargers last took first back in 1948.

Second in the ML was Minneapolis at 92-70, giving them the second wild card for back-to-back berths. The Moose ended up as the only returning playoff team from the prior year in the National Association. At 91-71, Buffalo took the third wild card to snap an 11-year playoff drought. In the race for the final spot, Chicago and Toronto finished tied at 89-73 with St. Louis one back. The Cubs claimed the one-game tiebreaker to sneak in, turning things around from a 68-win 1967. Defending World Series champ Boston was ultimately a non-factor, placing 10^th in the Eastern League at 77-85.

Veteran 3B Victor Pettit won his third MVP in his fifth season with Louisville. It was a notable gap from his prior MVPs in 1958 and 1961 with Pittsburgh. Pettit was the WARlord at 10.2 and leader in slugging (.644), OPS (1.031) and wRC+ (213), adding a .345 average, 42 home runs, and 106 RBI. Pitcher of the Year went to Will Feliciano in his MLB debut with Buffalo. The 31-year old righty had won three Southern Cone League Pitcher of the Year awards previously with Cordoba. The Argentine ace led the National Association in wins at 20-10 and innings pitched with 279.2, adding a 2.64 ERA, 202 strikeouts, and 7.7 WAR.

Also of note, Omaha’s Hakki Polat won his third straight MLB Reliever of the Year. It is his seventh total, counting the four he won with EBF’s London. The 30-year old Turk would go onto have 428 saves, a 1.28 ERA, 1722 strikeouts, and 59.5 WAR in a 15-year pro career and win a remkarable 10 total Reliever of the Year awards with three more coming in OBA in the 1970s. However, the fact that his numbers were split evenly between three leagues meant he wouldn’t have enough tallies in any one league to earn strong Hall of Fame consideration.

The wild card round matchups each went all three games as Minneapolis beat Buffalo and Chicago topped Ottawa. New York bested the Cubs 3-1 in round two, while the Moose upset Columbus in four. Both New York and Minneapolis were teams shooting for their second-ever National Association title with both taking their title way back at the start of the century (1905 for the Yankees, 1907 for the Moose). It was the fifth appearance for Minneapolis, who last made it in 1953. For the Yankees, it was only their third with the 1905 win and 1915 defeat. New York would roll to the NACS title in five games, setting the longest gap in MLB history between title wins at 62 seasons.

In the American Association, Los Angeles stood out amongst the field. The Angels took the Western League at 103-59, finishing 11 games better than any other team in the AA. This ended a seven year playoff drought for LA and was a noticeable turnaround for a team that only won 73 games the prior year and had won fewer than 60 games in four of the prior six seasons. Meanwhile, the remaining wild card spots and the Southern League were incredibly tight races. Tampa earned the SL title for their first playoff berth since 1958. The Thunderbirds were 91-71, ultimately two games ahead of the closest competition in the final regular season standings.

The first wild card spot went to San Diego at 92-70, giving the defending AA champ their fifth consecutive playoff spot. Just behind them at 91-71 were Phoenix and San Francisco, taking the next two spots. The Gold Rush have the longest active playoff streak at six straight while the Firebirds get their third in six years. Meanwhile for the final spot; Oakland, Portland, Houston, and Charlotte each finished at 90-72 in a four-way tie. The first pair of tiebreaker games saw the Hornets and Owls prevail, then Oakland beat Houston to take the final spot. This ended a five-year playoff skid for the Owls. Six other teams (Miami, Atlanta, New Orleans, Nashville, Seattle, and Vancouver) had between 87 and 85 wins and were in the playoff mix for much of the season.

American Association MVP went to Tampa first baseman Sawyer Williams. The 26-year old in a relatively quiet field had a .332 average, 6.3 WAR, 31 home runs, 206 hits, 101 runs, and 107 RBI. Pitcher of the Year was Las Angeles’ Carny Valvo. The 27-year old lefty was the WARlord at 10.8 and leader in wins at 25-6, innings pitched at 289.2, and shutouts with six. He had a 2.95 ERA and 260 strikeouts.

Phoenix edged San Francisco in three and San Diego topped Oakland in two for round one. Los Angeles easily swept the Firebirds in round two, while Tampa survived a strong challenge in five from the defending champ Seals. It was the first AACS berth for the Angels since the late 1940s dynasty and the first for the Thunderbirds since 1957. Los Angeles would secure the American Association crown 4-1 for the franchise’s fifth title.

In the 68^th World Series, Los Angeles defeated New York in five games, giving the Angels their third MLB title (1945, 1946). CF Teddy Lubelsky was the World Series MVP, posting 15 hits, 4 runs, and 5 doubles in 13 playoff games. Pitcher of the Year Carny Valvo was a rare pitcher to win the AACS MVP, posting a 4-0 record with a 2.18 ERA in the playoffs.

Other notes: San Diego’s Sean Lai threw MLB’s 11^th perfect game on July 11 against Charlotte, striking out 12. Kansas City’s Dale Conrod struck out 20 against Cincinnati on August 30, becoming only the third MLB pitcher to strike out 20+. The other two (Carny Valvo with 22 in 1964 and Eusebio Ramos with 21 in 1938) were done in extra innings, while Conrad hit his mark in nine. Parker Harpaz became only the fourth MLB pitcher to 4000 career strikeouts and the sixth to 300 career wins.

Although Phoenix was knocked out in the second round, 2B Rashard Abram set a playoff record with a .630 batting average. In six games, he had 17 hits over 27 at bats. T.J. Nemeth became the 36^th better to 3000 career hits. Nemeth also crossed 1500 RBI and 400 home runs in the 1968 season. 67 batters have now crossed 1500 RBI in MLB,

07-26-2023, 11:41 AM	#448
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,870	1968 in MLB Major League Baseball’s best record in 1968 went to the New York Yankees, who won the Eastern League at 105-57. New York bounced back from a 75-win 1967 for their second playoff berth in three years and set a MLB record for most saves by a pitching staff at 53, a mark that would hold until 2030. Ottawa gave them a battle in the EL, taking the first wild card at 102-60 for their third playoff berth in four years. The Elks had almost 98 more runs than the next closest National Association team and their .350 team OPB was only one point below Baltimore’s NA record of .351 from 1933. The Midwest League title went to Columbus at 100-62, snapping a 13-year playoff drought. The Chargers last took first back in 1948. Second in the ML was Minneapolis at 92-70, giving them the second wild card for back-to-back berths. The Moose ended up as the only returning playoff team from the prior year in the National Association. At 91-71, Buffalo took the third wild card to snap an 11-year playoff drought. In the race for the final spot, Chicago and Toronto finished tied at 89-73 with St. Louis one back. The Cubs claimed the one-game tiebreaker to sneak in, turning things around from a 68-win 1967. Defending World Series champ Boston was ultimately a non-factor, placing 10^th in the Eastern League at 77-85. Veteran 3B Victor Pettit won his third MVP in his fifth season with Louisville. It was a notable gap from his prior MVPs in 1958 and 1961 with Pittsburgh. Pettit was the WARlord at 10.2 and leader in slugging (.644), OPS (1.031) and wRC+ (213), adding a .345 average, 42 home runs, and 106 RBI. Pitcher of the Year went to Will Feliciano in his MLB debut with Buffalo. The 31-year old righty had won three Southern Cone League Pitcher of the Year awards previously with Cordoba. The Argentine ace led the National Association in wins at 20-10 and innings pitched with 279.2, adding a 2.64 ERA, 202 strikeouts, and 7.7 WAR. Also of note, Omaha’s Hakki Polat won his third straight MLB Reliever of the Year. It is his seventh total, counting the four he won with EBF’s London. The 30-year old Turk would go onto have 428 saves, a 1.28 ERA, 1722 strikeouts, and 59.5 WAR in a 15-year pro career and win a remkarable 10 total Reliever of the Year awards with three more coming in OBA in the 1970s. However, the fact that his numbers were split evenly between three leagues meant he wouldn’t have enough tallies in any one league to earn strong Hall of Fame consideration. The wild card round matchups each went all three games as Minneapolis beat Buffalo and Chicago topped Ottawa. New York bested the Cubs 3-1 in round two, while the Moose upset Columbus in four. Both New York and Minneapolis were teams shooting for their second-ever National Association title with both taking their title way back at the start of the century (1905 for the Yankees, 1907 for the Moose). It was the fifth appearance for Minneapolis, who last made it in 1953. For the Yankees, it was only their third with the 1905 win and 1915 defeat. New York would roll to the NACS title in five games, setting the longest gap in MLB history between title wins at 62 seasons. In the American Association, Los Angeles stood out amongst the field. The Angels took the Western League at 103-59, finishing 11 games better than any other team in the AA. This ended a seven year playoff drought for LA and was a noticeable turnaround for a team that only won 73 games the prior year and had won fewer than 60 games in four of the prior six seasons. Meanwhile, the remaining wild card spots and the Southern League were incredibly tight races. Tampa earned the SL title for their first playoff berth since 1958. The Thunderbirds were 91-71, ultimately two games ahead of the closest competition in the final regular season standings. The first wild card spot went to San Diego at 92-70, giving the defending AA champ their fifth consecutive playoff spot. Just behind them at 91-71 were Phoenix and San Francisco, taking the next two spots. The Gold Rush have the longest active playoff streak at six straight while the Firebirds get their third in six years. Meanwhile for the final spot; Oakland, Portland, Houston, and Charlotte each finished at 90-72 in a four-way tie. The first pair of tiebreaker games saw the Hornets and Owls prevail, then Oakland beat Houston to take the final spot. This ended a five-year playoff skid for the Owls. Six other teams (Miami, Atlanta, New Orleans, Nashville, Seattle, and Vancouver) had between 87 and 85 wins and were in the playoff mix for much of the season. American Association MVP went to Tampa first baseman Sawyer Williams. The 26-year old in a relatively quiet field had a .332 average, 6.3 WAR, 31 home runs, 206 hits, 101 runs, and 107 RBI. Pitcher of the Year was Las Angeles’ Carny Valvo. The 27-year old lefty was the WARlord at 10.8 and leader in wins at 25-6, innings pitched at 289.2, and shutouts with six. He had a 2.95 ERA and 260 strikeouts. Phoenix edged San Francisco in three and San Diego topped Oakland in two for round one. Los Angeles easily swept the Firebirds in round two, while Tampa survived a strong challenge in five from the defending champ Seals. It was the first AACS berth for the Angels since the late 1940s dynasty and the first for the Thunderbirds since 1957. Los Angeles would secure the American Association crown 4-1 for the franchise’s fifth title. In the 68^th World Series, Los Angeles defeated New York in five games, giving the Angels their third MLB title (1945, 1946). CF Teddy Lubelsky was the World Series MVP, posting 15 hits, 4 runs, and 5 doubles in 13 playoff games. Pitcher of the Year Carny Valvo was a rare pitcher to win the AACS MVP, posting a 4-0 record with a 2.18 ERA in the playoffs. Other notes: San Diego’s Sean Lai threw MLB’s 11^th perfect game on July 11 against Charlotte, striking out 12. Kansas City’s Dale Conrod struck out 20 against Cincinnati on August 30, becoming only the third MLB pitcher to strike out 20+. The other two (Carny Valvo with 22 in 1964 and Eusebio Ramos with 21 in 1938) were done in extra innings, while Conrad hit his mark in nine. Parker Harpaz became only the fourth MLB pitcher to 4000 career strikeouts and the sixth to 300 career wins. Although Phoenix was knocked out in the second round, 2B Rashard Abram set a playoff record with a .630 batting average. In six games, he had 17 hits over 27 at bats. T.J. Nemeth became the 36^th better to 3000 career hits. Nemeth also crossed 1500 RBI and 400 home runs in the 1968 season. 67 batters have now crossed 1500 RBI in MLB, __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder) Last edited by FuzzyRussianHat; 07-26-2023 at 05:31 PM.