The Bucs Start Here - A Pirates Do-Over

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A day to remember for Jersey City's Speed Martin.

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I've not seen a rookie put up numbers like the ones Chuck Klein is putting up this season.



As if that wasn't impressive enough, he does this today in a DH against the Braves:





Which briefly puts him level with Gehrig for most HR until Lou does this, tying his own and Babe's season record:

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The HR race is still up in the air but Lou gets the honour of being the first player in history to hit 50 in a season.



After his flurry, Chuck Klein sits on 47 with 16 games to play.

A few days later, Lou cracks two more to reach this milestone.




Here's the latest HR career leaderboard.

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And so this outrageous season has finally come to an end. So engrossing has it been I just realised I'd forgotten to post at the end of August, so I've plenty to catch you up on.

For a while there it looks as if we're going to see two spectacular collapses as the Sox and Giants hit the wall. But both right the ship - the Sox by winning 11 straight - and eventually get home by a relatively comfortable margin. The Browns make some unwanted history, with their 110 losses tying the 1906 Beaneaters for the most ever.




OK, let's start - naturally - with the Bucs.

Despite not getting the prize, they can be extremely proud of how they kept at it all year and really made the Jints work hard for their pennant.





After that horror start, the pitching came roaring back to finish with a 3.69 ERA, second best in the div, and Brown, Foster and Streeter each winning 20 games. The bats were strong all year. Grantham has been a fantastic pickup for them, while Pie Traynor, the Waner boys and Rube Bressler all had great seasons. They have an abundance of riches but Honus will need to spend plenty of time over the offseason figuring out how to get the most out of them.





As far as individual performances go, this season was one out of the box.

Lou Gehrig's season has been nothing short of gargantuan, and an injury to Johnny Mostil of the White Sox leaves him shy of enough PA, handing Lou the AL Triple Crown. I'll let the screenshot tell you all you need to know, but no doubt he'll be taking home his 4th straight Wagner-Lajoie Medal.



I've been keeping you apprised of Chuck Klein's superlative rookie year, and he ends up with 54 HR as well as 141 RBI, losing out on the BA to Jim Bottomley's 369 by 15 points. Jacking up those LTMs has had the desired effect, homer-wise, with a record 1582 leaving the park. Klein's teammate Chick Hafey belts 46, with Ruth on 39 and Turkey Stearnes 38. Cleveland's Max Bishop also sets a new all-time mark with 146 bases on balls.

Those records will probably fall one day. The same can't be said for Satchel Paige's unbelievable 469 strikeouts. He also ties Dazzy Vance's 33 wins season record from 1923 and is runner-up in ERA. It's fair to say there was no sophomore slump for Satch.

The offseason will be the judge as to whether or not Ty Cobb will stick around to add to his 4125 hits and Walter Johnson keep on going with his quest for 500 wins, with him needing just 10 more.

Here are the top 20 hitters and pitchers by WAR for the season:





And here are the last few pages from the league newsletter and final traditional leaderboards for the year.







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New York Giants (90-64) v Boston Red Sox (93-61)
Best-of-seven, Giants with the home-field advantage.

NEW YORK GIANTS S+ PAGE

BOSTON RED SOX S+ PAGE


I can’t resist pointing out that his is just the second WS without the Pirates featuring since the Giants last made it this far in 1914.

That said, they thoroughly deserve their place here after a really dogged campaign. Stearnes has made a huge difference and 2 thru 6 in their lineup – with Lindstrom, Ott, Stearnes, Terry and Travis Jackson – are as good as any other side’s heart. Add to that Carl Hubbell (a 26-win rookie year) and Rube Curry, and they are right in this.

But I just think the Sox are due after two losses. Ed Morgan was another superstar rookie for them, while Foxx and Hack Wilson are out-and-out guns. Paige is almost a lock at the moment but, if they do have a vulnerability, it’s behind him in the rotation, with Mayer’s absence a big one.

The Sox in 6 for mine.

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The San Antonio Bullets exact some revenge for last year as they put the Scranton Miners away in four for their maiden AAA Championship.

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Game 1 in New York, October 3rd 1928
Carl Hubbell (26-12, 2.57) v Satchel Paige (33-11, 2.82)

What a way to kick things off with two outright superstars on the mound. In the end, the Jints will almost certainly need to beat Satch once to get home, and this will most likely come down to how well young Hubbell handles the pressure of his first WS game.

As it turns out, none of that really matters as Stearnes comes out firing with two taters and Terry knocks in 4 to get the Giants that key win. They look to be fairly comfortable at 5-2 ahead after 6, but the Sox come at them with a pair in the 7th. The home side holds its nerve, however, kicking away again with 3 in the next on a bases-loaded double by Terry and closing it out no problems.

Giants 8, Red Sox 4

BOX SCORE


Game 2 in New York, October 4th 1928
Reuben Curry (25-13, 2.87) v Lefty Williams (20-12, 3.44)
Giants lead series 1-0

Two crafty veterans who know how to win big names take the hill here and the Giants would dearly love to be able to head to Boston with another win under their belt.

Unfortunately that won’t be the case as the Sox take a tenacious 4-3 decision. Both hurlers go the distance and the outcome remains in doubt until the very end as the Giants, trailing 4-2 in the bottom 9th, plate one and put the winning run on base before Williams finally shuts them down.

Red Sox 4, Giants 3

BOX SCORE


Game 3 in Boston, October 6th 1928
Dazzy Vance (14-17, 4.64) v Jakie May (4-4, 3.93)
Series tied 1-1

Not a great season for Vance and it continues along the same vein here with him unable to make it out of the 2nd as the big Giants bats get to him early with 3 runs in each of the first two innings.

Another 4 in the 6th should have put this one to bed but the Sox rally with 5 in the 7th and keep closing the gap to the very end. But they run out of outs with the final score 10-7.

Ott is superb for the visitors, hitting for the cycle and driving in 2, while Lindstrom belts a 3-run HR, as does Hack Wilson for the hosts.

Giants 10, Red Sox 7

BOX SCORE


Game 4 in Boston, October 7th 1928
Satchel Paige (0-1, 6.43) v Carl Hubbell (1-0, 4.00)
Giants lead series 2-1

Hubbell shows what a huge future he has with a gutsy complete game win to put the Giants on the verge of a somewhat unlikely triumph after so many years spent in the wilderness. His bats gets to Paige early again with 3 in the 1st on a bases-clearing triple by Stearnes, but the Sox answer with a deuce in the 4th and it’s game on.

The Giants will not be denied, however, kicking away again with runs in both the 6th and 7th that hold up for a 5-2 win.

Giants 5, Red Sox 2

BOX SCORE


Game 5 in Boston, October 8th 1928
Lefty Williams (1-0, 2.00) v Reuben Curry (0-1, 4.00)
Giants lead series 3-1

Williams will need to be every bit as good as he was in Game 2, as the Giants have got their tails up now.

After a tense start, he falls behind in the middle innings as the Giants’ remorseless offensive machine grinds him down, with the guests leading 4-0 in the middle 6th and looking good. But the Sox rally with 3 in the home half of that inning and then go ahead for good with another 3 in the next on a big fly by Ed Morgan, before the pen closes it out to let them live for another day or two.

Red Sox 6, Giants 4

BOX SCORE


Game 6 in New York, October 10th 1928
Jakie May (1-0, 6.43) v Dazzy Vance (0-1, 40.50)
Giants lead series 3-2

Well it is all set up nicely for the Giants with two bites of the cherry at home, but with Paige awaiting them should they falter here, you know they’ll be aiming to close it out with the first bite. For the Sox, they’d have to believe Vance can’t possibly be as bad as he was in Game 3 and it’s not like May was solid in that win, so they’d feel they are still well and truly in this.

And what a game it is. One for the ages.

The Sox do themselves no favours with a catastrophic three errors in the first to gift the Giants 6 runs on just one hit and this one seems done already. But they are a quality unit and don’t panic, closing the gap to 6-5 by the end of the 3rd.

In a seesawing contest, the Giants make for home again with 2 on a Lindstrom longball, but then May completely loses his way in the 5th as the Sox post a 4-spot to hit the front 9-8.

That has blown out to 12-8 by the bottom 9th but the Giants refuse to go quietly, with Bill Terry cutting the deficit in half with a 2-run triple. A walk to Jackson puts the tying run on with two outs, but John Taylor gets Otis Brannan to fly out to deep left and we have ourselves a Game 7.

Red Sox 12, Giants 10

BOX SCORE


Game 7 in New York, October 11th 1928
Carl Hubbell (2-0, 3.00) v Satchel Paige (0-2, 6.00)
Series tied 3-3

It is almost unfathomable to think that the Giants have got two wins against Satchel in this series and now need to beat him a third time to win it all. Hey, baseball is so often like that it isn’t funny.

They give it a great shake, but in the end it proves a bridge too far as the Sox finally win a Game 7 and take the prize.

Paige goes the distance without dominating and the bats do just enough, as Ed Morgan cracks another homer to stake them to a 3-0 lead in the 1st that they never surrender. With the score 6-4 after 6, the series ends almost anticlimactically with 3 scoreless frames and jubilation for the Red Sox Nation.

Red Sox 6, Giants 4

BOX SCORE


BOSTON WINS SERIES 4-3

SERIES MVP: Hack Wilson (Boston)





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AL 1928 HISTORY INDEX

NL 1928 HISTORY INDEX

AWARDS HISTORY


Another WLM for Lou Gehrig, while Chuck Klein becomes just the second player after Eddie Collins way back in '06 to win both the RoY and MVP.

Satchel Paige wins the AL Waddell Medal and Carl Hubbell the NL, while the AL RoY goes to Boston's Ed Morgan.

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Just the one managerial change as the Braves let skipper Tommy Sheehan, wasting no time in replacing him with Sumner Bowman. The Tigers franchise has a change of ownership.

Some big names and potentially future HOFers hanging them up including George Sisler, Smoky Joe Wood, Max Carey, Eddie Cicotte, Dutch Leonard, Frank Lange and "Count" Jose Leblanc.

The Bucs void the contract options of Rube Bressler, Specs Toporcer and Bob O'Farrell. They also lock down Cool Papa Bell for a year.

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Held on 12/20/1928.

Just 3 Legacies and a fairly unremarkable Draft class this time around.

These are the Legacy Players for the 1929 season:

Brooklyn Dodgers: Johnny Frederick (16.5; 805 – one club player)
Chicago Cubs: Larry French (45.4; 272)
Cleveland Indians: Earl Averill (51.6; 1510)

Larry French also qualified for the Pirates, but played more games for the Cubs.


There are 115 rookies for this season, and the Draft will consist of 5 rounds.

The Draft order will be as follows (winning percentage from 1928 IRL season in brackets; bold indicates Legacy Pick in 1st Round):

Round 1

1. Cleveland Indians (403) – Earl Averill
2. Chicago Cubs (591) – Larry French
3. Brooklyn Robins (503) – Johnny Frederick
4. Philadelphia Phillies (283)
5. Boston Braves (327)
6. Boston Red Sox (373)
7. Detroit Tigers (442)
8. Chicago White Sox (468)
9. Washington Senators (487)
10. Cincinnati Reds (513)
11. St. Louis Browns (532)
12. Pittsburgh Pirates (559)
13. New York Giants (604)
14. St. Louis Cardinals (617)
15. Philadelphia Athletics (641)
16. New York Yankees (656)

Rounds 2 thru 5

1. Philadelphia Phillies (283)
2. Boston Braves (327)
3. Boston Red Sox (373)
4. Cleveland Indians (403)
5. Detroit Tigers (442)
6. Chicago White Sox (468)
7. Washington Senators (487)
8. Brooklyn Robins (503)
9. Cincinnati Reds (513)
10. St. Louis Browns (532)
11. Pittsburgh Pirates (559)
12. Chicago Cubs (591)
13. New York Giants (604)
14. St. Louis Cardinals (617)
15. Philadelphia Athletics (641)
16. New York Yankees (656)



Here are the new Pirates players:

1. OF Evar Swanson, 26
2. OF Liz Funk, 24
3. P Bobo Newsom, 21
4. C Tom Angley, 24
5. 3B Joe O’Rourke, 24


FULL DRAFT LOG


Here's the 1st Round in its entirety:

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Cushy pennants to the A’s and Cubs, with the former winning 104 games and having little trouble putting the Baby Bears away in 5 in the WS.

AL CHAMPIONS: Philadelphia Athletics (104-46)
NL CHAMPIONS: St. Louis Cardinals (98-54)
WORLD SERIES: Athletics 4, Cubs 1


Top Ten Lists (courtesy of thisgreatgame.com)

NL Hitters

1. ROGERS HORNSBY, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 156 games, .380 average, 156 runs, 229 hits, 47 doubles, 8 triples, 39 home runs, 149 RBIs, 87 walks, .679 slugging percentage.
• Playing for his fourth team in four years, Hornsby gave journeymen everywhere a good name by finishing a decade in which he averaged a record 209 hits per season.

2. MEL OTT, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .328 average, 138 runs, 179 hits, 37 doubles, 42 home runs, 151 RBIs, 113 walks.
• Few, if any players, have produced dominant numbers at age 20 as Ott did in 1929; some fans thought he’d have a crack at Ruth’s season record of 60 home runs after belting 20 through his first 54 games.

3. CHUCK KLEIN, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: .356 average, 126 runs, 219 hits, 45 doubles, 6 triples, 43 home runs, 145 RBIs.
• In his first full season at age 24, Klein tipped Mel Ott for the NL home run crown—and in the process set the league season record that would be shattered a year later by Hack Wilson.

4. HACK WILSON, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: .345 average, 135 runs, 198 hits, 30 doubles, 39 home runs, 159 RBIs, 78 walks, 83 strikeouts.
• Most players would be thrilled collecting 350 RBIs over three seasons. This was the first of two seasons in which Wilson would gather up that total.

5. LEFTY O’DOUL, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: .398 average, 152 runs, 254 hits, 35 doubles, 32 home runs, 122 RBIs, .465 on-base percentage.
• A disaster of a pitcher earlier in the decade, O’Doul proved a worthy reinvention of himself by setting the NL record for hits.

6. BABE HERMAN, BROOKLYN

• Key Numbers: .381 average, 105 runs, 217 hits, 42 doubles, 13 triples, 21 home runs, 113 RBIs, 21 stolen bases.
• Often remembered for his buffoonish play, Herman’s 1929 numbers were otherwise seriously good.

7. KIKI CUYLER, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: .360 average, 111 runs, 15 home runs, 102 RBIs, 43 stolen bases.
• Freed from Donie Bush’s doghouse in Pittsburgh, Cuyler regained his dynamic form that earlier shot him to instant stardom with the Pirates.

8. CHICK HAFEY, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: .338 average, 101 runs, 47 doubles, 9 triples, 29 home runs, 125 RBIs.
• The season résumé for Hafey included a run of 10 straight hits, which set a major league record for the time.

9. PAUL WANER, PITTSBURGH

• Key Numbers: .336 average, 131 runs, 200 hits, 43 doubles, 15 triples, 15 home runs, 100 RBIs, 89 walks, 15 stolen bases.
• Waner muscled up for a career-high total in homers—most of them probably inside the park, given the spacious dimensions in his home park at Forbes Field—and for the third straight season grouped with “little” brother Lloyd to each collect 200 hits.

10. BILL TERRY, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .372 average, 103 runs, 226 hits, 39 doubles, 14 home runs, 117 RBIs.
• This was the first of seven straight years in which Terry led the Giants in batting average; during this stretch, he would hit .357.

AL Hitters

1. BABE RUTH, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .345 average, 121 runs, 46 home runs, 154 RBIs, 72 walks, .697 slugging percentage.
• For the second time in three years, Ruth hit grand slams in back-to-back games; no other AL player would do it until Bill Dickey in 1937.

2. AL SIMMONS, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: .365 average, 114 runs, 212 hits, 41 doubles, 9 triples, 34 home runs, 157 RBIs, 20 grounded into double plays.
• Jimmie Foxx and Lefty Grove may have commandeered the Athletics’ marquee, but Simmons quietly commanded the most attention from weary opponents.

3. JIMMIE FOXX, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: .354 average, 123 runs, 183 hits, 9 triples, 33 home runs, 108 RBIs, 103 walks, 70 strikeouts, .463 on-base percentage.
• In his first season as everyday player, Foxx was hitting over .400 into early July—and then he went on a 22-game hit streak, in which his average actually dropped to .392.

4. LOU GEHRIG, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .300 average, 127 runs, 32 doubles, 10 triples, 35 home runs, 126 RBIs, 122 walks.
• Normally considered a shoo-in to hit over .300, Gehrig had to collect 11 hits over his final 26 at-bats of the year to finish right at that figure.

5. DALE ALEXANDER, DETROIT

• Key Numbers: 155 games, .343 average, 110 runs, 215 hits, 43 doubles, 15 triples, 25 home runs, 137 RBIs.
• Setting a then-rookie record for RBIs, Alexander would have had a more memorable career had it not been cut short by severe mistreatment of his leg four years later.

6. CHARLIE GEHRINGER, DETROIT

• Key Numbers: 155 games, .339 average, 131 runs, 215 hits, 45 doubles, 19 triples, 13 home runs, 106 RBIs, 64 walks, 27 stolen bases.
• Gehringer had his first of seven career 200-hit seasons and tied teammate Alexander (above) for the AL lead.

7. HARRY HEILMANN, DETROIT

• Key Numbers: 125 games, .344 average, 41 doubles, 7 triples, 15 home runs, 120 RBIs.
• The future Hall of Famer finished a decade in which he hit .364 and won four batting titles. So how did the Tigers reward him? By waiving him.

8. TONY LAZZERI, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .354 average, 101 runs, 193 hits, 37 doubles, 11 triples, 18 home runs, 106 RBIs, 68 walks.
• Almost quietly, Lazzeri continued to be strong supporting cast member in the Yankees’ lineup, producing a career-high batting average.

9. LEW FONSECA, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: .369 average, 97 runs, 209 hits, 44 doubles, 15 triples, 103 RBIs, 7 hit-by-pitches, 19 stolen bases.
• Fonseca was one of the first major leaguers to get opposing pitchers caught on camera, studying their deliveries to help win the AL batting title.

10. EARL AVERILL, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: .332 average, 110 runs, 198 hits, 43 doubles, 13 triples, 18 home runs, 96 RBIs, 63 walks.
• Arriving from Snohomish, Washington via the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League, Averill made an immediate impression by, among other things, homering in his major league first at-bat.

NL Pitchers

1. CHARLIE ROOT, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 3.47 ERA, 19 wins, 6 losses, .760 win percentage, 43 appearances, 31 starts, 272 innings.
• Rebounding from a mediocre 14-18 mark in 1928, Root got the winning knack back and became the stingiest component of a strong Cubs rotation.

2. RED LUCAS, CINCINNATI

• Key Numbers: 3.60 ERA, 19 wins, 12 losses, 28 complete games, 270 innings, 58 walks.
• While performing a star turn from the mound, Lucas had an intriguing side job: Leading the NL in pinch hits. (He would eventually have 80 over his career.)

3. BURLEIGH GRIMES, PITTSBURGH

• Key Numbers: 3.13 ERA, 17 wins, 7 losses, .708 win percentage.
• Still legally riding the spitball after all of these years, Grimes won his first 10 decisions—he was 15-1 by mid-July—in his second and last year at Pittsburgh.

4. PAT MALONE, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 3.57 ERA, 22 wins, 10 losses, 5 shutouts, .688 win percentage, 40 appearances, 30 starts, 267 innings, 166 strikeouts.
• There were 10 games in 1929 where a pitcher struck out 10 or more batters—and Malone was the guy in four of them. His league-leading total ended Dazzy Vance’s seven-year run at the top of the charts.

5. CARL HUBBELL, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 3.69 ERA, 18 wins, 11 losses, 39 appearances, 35 starts, 268 innings, 67 walks.
• Hubbell’s first full-scale assault on hitters included the first no-hitter thrown by a lefty in 11 years—and the last thrown by a Giant until Juan Marichal in 1963.

6. WATTY CLARK, BROOKLYN

• Key Numbers: 3.74 ERA, 16 wins, 19 losses, 41 appearances, 39 starts, 279 innings, 71 walks.
• A former batting practice pitcher for the Indians, Clark held his own as Brooklyn’s most reliable pitcher of the moment despite pacing the NL in losses.

7. GUY BUSH, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 3.68 ERA, 18 wins, 7 losses, .720 win percentage, 8 saves, 50 appearances, 30 starts, 270.2 innings.
• Overwork started to work over Bush after taking a 16-1 record into early August.

8. BILL WALKER, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 3.09 ERA, 14 wins, 7 losses, .667 win percentage.
• Survivor of two heart attacks before the age of 15, Walker began his peak as one of the most unheralded pitchers in Giants history—winning his first of two ERA crowns.

9. JESSE PETTY, PITTSBURGH

• Key Numbers: 3.71 ERA, 11 wins, 10 losses, 42 walks.
• You wouldn’t know it from the name, but Petty—whose short four-year tenure as an effective rotation pitcher came to an end in 1929—was a member of the Cherokee Nation.

10. DAZZY VANCE, BROOKLYN

• Key Numbers: 3.89 ERA, 14 wins, 13 losses, 231.1 innings, 47 walks.
• Though still effective at age 39, Vance’s drop-off in strikeouts and rise in ERA got him teed off enough that he received the one and only ejection of his major league career.

AL Pitchers

1. FIRPO MARBERRY, WASHINGTON

• Key Numbers: 3.09 ERA, 19 wins, 12 losses, 9 saves, 49 appearances, 26 starts, 250.1 innings.
• Baseball’s ultimate reliever of the day, Marberry was given as many starts as relief roles in 1929—and led the Senators in both wins and saves.

2. LEFTY GROVE, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: 2.81 ERA, 20 wins, 6 losses, .769 win percentage, 42 appearances, 37 starts, 275.1 innings, 170 strikeouts.
• As the live-ball era neared its peak, Grove emerged as the only major leaguer with a sub-3.00 ERA in 1929.

3. GEORGE EARNSHAW, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: 3.29 ERA, 24 wins, 8 losses, .750 win percentage, 44 appearances, 33 starts, 254.2 innings, 257 total bases allowed, 125 walks.
• Long before Bill Skowron and Mike Moustakas, the big right-hander was the first major leaguer to go by the nickname of Moose and led the AL in wins during his first full season.

4. WILLIS HUDLIN, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: 3.34 ERA, 17 wins, 15 losses, 40 appearances, 33 starts, 22 complete games, 280.1 innings.
• The Yankees had long bugged the Indians to nab the double play-inducing ground ball specialist to New York, and here’s why: He was 5-1 against the Yankees in 1929.

5. TOMMY THOMAS, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 3.19 ERA, 14 wins, 18 losses, 36 appearances, 24 complete games, 259.2 innings, 60 walks.
• Thomas finished third in the AL ERA race but tied for fourth in losses; something just didn’t add up.

6. WES FERRELL, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: 3.60 ERA, 21 wins, 10 losses, .677 win percentage, 5 saves, 43 appearances, 25 starts.
• Barely 21, rookie Ferrell threw like a star veteran—and kept throwing like one in the first of four years winning at least 20 games.

7. RUBE WALBERG, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: 3.60 ERA, 18 wins, 11 losses, 40 appearances, 33 starts, 267.2 innings.
• Walberg’s continued improvement made him one of many prime talents to slip away from the Giants during the 1920s.

8. JAKE MILLER, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: 3.58 ERA, 14 wins, 12 losses.
• Though he barely registers in the minds of even the most noted of Cleveland baseball historians, Miller—who enjoyed his most productive year with the Indians—should get plaudits for establishing a career 3.27 ERA at cozy League Park.

9. DANNY MACFAYDEN, BOSTON

• Key Numbers: 3.62 ERA, 10 wins, 18 losses, 4 shutouts.
• The year’s hard-luck pitcher award goes to the young Cape Cod native who had to practically earn every one of his precious victories for a lousy Red Sox team.

10. SAM GRAY, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: 3.72 ERA, 18 wins, 15 losses, 43 appearances, 37 starts, 23 complete games, 305 innings, 4 shutouts.
• As Gray went, so went the Browns; after this stellar workhorse effort, he went 29-55 over the next four seasons—and the Browns wouldn’t have another winning season until 1942.

[luckymann]

After a few years without inductions, Cooperstown has its newest member.

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With so many quality FAs coming onto the market (see the next post), I find myself violently head-scratching at Honus's utter lack of involvement in the offseason trade action.

This is the only trade of note he enters into:




The reacquisition of Bressler via a QO after having voided his option year is equally baffling.

Oh, well, it's his show and he can run it how he likes. Maybe he knows something I don't...

[luckymann]

An offseason like few, if indeed any, before it. Some massive names up for grabs and more action than I can ever remember. The Yanks once again throw money around like confetti at a wedding, but they are not Robinson Crusoe on that island. The Tigers continue to press for that elusive title with a big signing and the Phillies are busier than ever as well.

Here are the biggest of the bunch:

• OF Turkey Stearnes: Yankees, 8 years / $136400
• OF Hack Wilson: Phillies, 7 years / $118800
• 3B Rogers Hornsby: Tigers, 5 years / $93800
• OF Harry Rice: Indians, 7 years / $89600
• OF Jimmy O’Connell: Giants, 5 years / $64000
• P Garland Braxton: Phillies, 5 years / $58000
• 1B George Scales: Phillies, 6 years / $56400
• OF Chick Hafey: Phillies, 4 years / $54200 (extension)
• C Earl Smith: Red Sox, 4 years / $52800
• C Jimmie Wilson: Giants, 4 years / $51600
• 3B Marty McManus: Yankees, 3 years / $33600
• P Roosevelt Davis: Reds, 4 years / $29120 (extension)
• P Slim Branham: Giants, 3 years / $26400
• C Wally Schang: Cardinals, 2 years / $25600
• OF Ken Williams: Braves, 2 years / $25600
• OF Alex Metzler: Yankees, 4 years / $25440 (extension)
• P Bullet Rogan: Indians, 2 years / $25000
• C Pinky Hargrave: Robins, 4 years / $20600 (extension)

• P Herman Pillette and P Ed Baecht from Reds to Braves for 3B Dewey Creacy
• OF Ray Blades from Robins to Tigers for OF Paul Easterling, OF Dave Barbee and P Dick Coffman
• OF Pepper Martin and 3B Larry Bettencourt from Cardinals to Senators for SS Willie Wells
• 1B Harvey Hendrick from White Sox to Tigers for 2B Walter Cannady

ALL TRANSACTIONS


The Bucs go 13-5 in ST, but have fallen out of favour with the prognosticators this time around. They see the Giants repeating in the NL from the Reds, while they see the Tigers just getting home in the AL from the Tribe and Yanks.


FULL PRESEASON PREDICTIONS

[luckymann]

The Pirates squad looks like this entering the new season:






More info HERE.


It's actually a better squad than I'd previously thought. I'd love to see Honus go out and upgrade at SS and find one solid workhorse SP, though. The biggest issue for this group is its lack of depth. If one of the key guys goes down or doesn't perform, there's not much by way of backup. It won't take much, though - let's see if Dutchie has some moves up his sleeve.

[luckymann]

Man, how awesome would it have been to see these guys all running around and playing together IRL...

[luckymann]

A nice start to 1929 for the Red Sox SS, almost matching his entire 1928 total in one game.

[luckymann]

This makes it two 5-hit games for Mel in the season's first week. At age 20...

[luckymann]

A slight regress last year after his breakout 1927 seaon, but John's looking ready to bust out again, as this tidy game shows...