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italyprof · 03-02-2018, 01:10 PM

1906

The Blues did repeat, which I found shocking, if enjoyable. the team stumbled out of the gate and at one point had all three OF starters - Gary Maddox, Kirby Puckett and Bobby Murcer, out with 2 week plus injuries.

But newcomer Tino Martinez, obtained in a controversial trade (for the fans) in which Jim Kaat (his last hurrah as a Blues being getting the last out of the World Series the year before) and Rip Collins plus a couple of bench players were traded to Milwaukee, came through big all season long. And bench player Jorge Soler played so well, as did rookie CF Casey Stengel, that when the regular came back, Maddox found himself platooned in Center with Stengel, and Puckett and Murcer platooned together in RF, with Soler as the lone regular. Thus the declining productivity of longtime Blues starters was compensated for by platooning, as happened as well at catcher as Yogi Berra platooned with Mike Stanley to maximize production. John Lowenstein anchored several positions as an all-purpose backup.

The bullpen struggled, except for the magnificent Ramiro Mendoza, who pitched 42 games, 45 innings for a 7-4 record, 7 saves and a 1.54 ERA. The starting pitching was the key, as Papish, Dock Ellis, and Luis Tiant pitched well, but Al Downing was almost unbeatable. The team ended up somehow at 98-56, 13 games ahead of Philadelphia.

The NL saw another good pennant race, this time between the Reds, Giants and Cardinals. The Cardinals pulled it out ending up 2 ahead of NY and 4 ahead of Cincinnati. At 87-67 St. Louis depended on the pitching of Jake Arrieta and Bert Blyleven, and the hitting of David Justice, George Grantham, Tony Fernandez and Wes Covington.

But Cleveland's pitching was too much for the Cards, and the Series went to the Blues 4-1.

Ted Williams led the NL with a .397 average, just shy of .400 and well ahead of Ty Cobb's .363 for Chicago. Cobb's 35 homers and 135 RBI were both the best in the NL however.Former Blues pitcher Tex Hughson won 24 games and his 2.54 ERA was one point better than the Phillies' Clayton Kershaw's. Cobb stole 76 bases and Bump Hadley struck out 287 batters to lead the NL.

Mike Donlin won another batting title, hitting .360, and Sherry Magee who has been turning in near-MVP seasons for the Red Sox since the league began, hit .333. Tino Martinez hit 44 homers to lead the AL and Frank Robinson of the Athletics drove in 122 runs. Sherry Magee stole 83 bases, to finally deny Tim Raines a stolen base crown, Raines stealing 77 on the year. Al Downing won 21 games for the Blues, with a 2.16 ERA, both best in the league, while Washington's Sid Fernandez struck out 313.

Pittsburgh in 1901-2 and the Milwaukee Brewers in 1903-4 both won back to back World Championships, while the Phillies won the NL pennant in both of the Brewers' championship seasons. But now the Blues have repeated the feat. So far, no team has ever won three pennants nor World Series in a row. Can Cleveland do it?

03-02-2018, 01:10 PM	#7
italyprof All Star Reserve Join Date: Feb 2014 Posts: 983	1906 The Blues did repeat, which I found shocking, if enjoyable. the team stumbled out of the gate and at one point had all three OF starters - Gary Maddox, Kirby Puckett and Bobby Murcer, out with 2 week plus injuries. But newcomer Tino Martinez, obtained in a controversial trade (for the fans) in which Jim Kaat (his last hurrah as a Blues being getting the last out of the World Series the year before) and Rip Collins plus a couple of bench players were traded to Milwaukee, came through big all season long. And bench player Jorge Soler played so well, as did rookie CF Casey Stengel, that when the regular came back, Maddox found himself platooned in Center with Stengel, and Puckett and Murcer platooned together in RF, with Soler as the lone regular. Thus the declining productivity of longtime Blues starters was compensated for by platooning, as happened as well at catcher as Yogi Berra platooned with Mike Stanley to maximize production. John Lowenstein anchored several positions as an all-purpose backup. The bullpen struggled, except for the magnificent Ramiro Mendoza, who pitched 42 games, 45 innings for a 7-4 record, 7 saves and a 1.54 ERA. The starting pitching was the key, as Papish, Dock Ellis, and Luis Tiant pitched well, but Al Downing was almost unbeatable. The team ended up somehow at 98-56, 13 games ahead of Philadelphia. The NL saw another good pennant race, this time between the Reds, Giants and Cardinals. The Cardinals pulled it out ending up 2 ahead of NY and 4 ahead of Cincinnati. At 87-67 St. Louis depended on the pitching of Jake Arrieta and Bert Blyleven, and the hitting of David Justice, George Grantham, Tony Fernandez and Wes Covington. But Cleveland's pitching was too much for the Cards, and the Series went to the Blues 4-1. Ted Williams led the NL with a .397 average, just shy of .400 and well ahead of Ty Cobb's .363 for Chicago. Cobb's 35 homers and 135 RBI were both the best in the NL however.Former Blues pitcher Tex Hughson won 24 games and his 2.54 ERA was one point better than the Phillies' Clayton Kershaw's. Cobb stole 76 bases and Bump Hadley struck out 287 batters to lead the NL. Mike Donlin won another batting title, hitting .360, and Sherry Magee who has been turning in near-MVP seasons for the Red Sox since the league began, hit .333. Tino Martinez hit 44 homers to lead the AL and Frank Robinson of the Athletics drove in 122 runs. Sherry Magee stole 83 bases, to finally deny Tim Raines a stolen base crown, Raines stealing 77 on the year. Al Downing won 21 games for the Blues, with a 2.16 ERA, both best in the league, while Washington's Sid Fernandez struck out 313. Pittsburgh in 1901-2 and the Milwaukee Brewers in 1903-4 both won back to back World Championships, while the Phillies won the NL pennant in both of the Brewers' championship seasons. But now the Blues have repeated the feat. So far, no team has ever won three pennants nor World Series in a row. Can Cleveland do it?