Montreal's second season was pretty similar to the first as we finished 47-115. Deron Johnson (.251/.305/.471, 33 HR, 80 RBI) , Jim Lefebrve (.254/.296/.431, 21 HR, 72 RBI), and Jesus Alou (.298/.334/.397, 6 HR, 54 RBI) paced the offense. Al Downing (11-13, 3.56) continued to do yeoman's work as the staff ace. 19 year old Rick Burleson (.275/.320/.342) made his debut late in the season, starting 29 games at SS. With the 2nd pick of the June draft we selected 17 year old Dominican fireballer Joaquin Andujar. Kansas City selected IF Mike Schmidt with the 1st overall pick.
News from Around the League
The NL East saw a classic race in 1970, with the Phillies (103 wins) once again coming out on top, this time ahead of the Cardinals (102 wins) and Mets (102 wins). In the NL West, the Houston Astros (94 wins) finished in front of San Francisco (93 wins) and Los Angeles (90 wins).
Philadelphia's Dick Allen (.300/.380/.594, 46 HR, 136 RBI) was elected the NL MVP, and the Mets' Jon Matlack (23-5, 2.19) won both the NL Cy Young and Rookie of the Year awards.
In the American League both New York and California won 117 games, coasting to their respective division titles. The Yankees' Bobby Murcer (.345/.418/.598, 33 HR, 115 RBI) won the AL MVP award. California's Fred Newman (24-6, 2.22) won the AL Cy Young. The AL Rookie of the Year was Chicago's Buddy Bell (.350/.411/.480, 12 HR, 106 runs).
Each post-season series went the distance, with New York beating California in the AL (3-2) and Houston topping Philadelphia in the NL (3-2). And after winning 7 World Series in the 1960s, the New York Yankees wins the 1970 series 4-3 over Houston.
Both Mickey Mantle and Henry Aaron joined the 3000th hit club, and Houston's Vada Pinson picked up his 2000th hit. California's Harmon Killebrew and Chicago's Frank Robinson both hit their 400th HR, while Detroit's Al Kaline hit his 300th HR.