Out of the Shadows: The Eclipse League

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

While nothing is set in stone just yet, all four Association races have started to look a little clearer,

The Liberty Stars demolish any lingering doubts about whether they are the real deal, sweeping Hilldale after the A's had closed the gap in the WC American to just 3 1/2 games and following that up with two from two against the American Giants, their likely opponent in the first round of the playoffs. Their 7 1/2-game lead is the widest of the four.

• FC BATTER OF THE MONTH: Jonathan Villar (Crawfords) 376 / 4 HR / 18 RBI.
• FC PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Ismael Valdez (Black Barons) 4-0 / 1.25 / 41 K / 50.1 IP.
• FC ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Ismael Valdez.
• WC BATTER OF THE MONTH: Rickey Henderson (Lincoln Giants) 414 / 2 HR / 19 RBI.
• WC PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Rogelio Armenteros (Liberty Stars) 5-0 / 2.17 / 33 K / 58 IP.
• WC ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Lefty Williams (American Giants) 3-1 / 1.87 / 26 K / 57.2 IP.

One almighty dogfight, one race that has tightened up and two that are done in the TL. The FRC American is the main one to watch, with Baltimore, Philly and Washington all tied on 71-64 and five clear of Akron. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh has hit a rough patch after looking home and their lead over the Stars has shrunk to just three. Dayton has clinched, Indy's MN is 1.

• CAC BATTER OF THE MONTH: Enos Cabell (Stars) 396 / 7 HR / 28 RBI.
• CAC PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Willie Gisentaner (Stars) 6-1 / 2.78 / 43 K / 68 IP.
• FRC BATTER OF THE MONTH: Brandon Allen (Black Senators) 337 / 11 HR / 27 RBI.
• FRC PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Wilmer Font (Bears) 6-1 / 1.37 / 63 K / 59.1 IP.

Top 20s





News and Leaders

[luckymann]

A couple close-run races with the Harlem Stars timing their run perfectly in the CAC American to swoop and pinch the conference title from the Pittsburgh Keystones, while across in the FRC American the Baltimore Black Sox just see off the Washington Black Senators.




Which means the inaugural Transit League playoff match-ups look like this.

[luckymann]

Hilldale are still making fairly heavy weather of things. That said, the LibStars just can't quite shake them completely, with the gap currently at 7 games. Let's see if this superstar effort by Santiago puts a rocket up the A's.

[luckymann]

The Stars sweep the Marcos, while the Black Sox spring a huge upset by beating the highly-fancied Clowns in four.

Here are the two squads that will contest the very first Transit League AAA World Series, which will be a best-of-seven affair with the Stars having home-field advantage:

[luckymann]

Meanwhile, up in the bigs, Hank Thompson sets a new EL season record with his 44th home run. Still twenty games to go - let's see if he can make it to 50.

[luckymann]

In the midst of a truly outstanding debut season, Fernando Tatis jr becomes the first EL player to hit in 30 straight games, eventually getting all the way to 37 before having an ohfer.




It will be very interesting to see which way the voters lean for the FC RoY - Nando or Bonds? I'm almost certain it will be the former, and rightly so - apart from homers and RBI, Nando's numbers are just that little bit better.

Tatis jr




Bonds

[luckymann]

In a monumental AAA World Series befitting the occasion, the home team wins every game as the Harlem Stars eventually triumph in seven. The ending can hardly be more dramatic, as - with the score tied at 4 with two out and a man on third in the bottom 9th - Harlem 1B Randall Simon singles off Juan Perez to seal the deal. Joe Cannon, who comes in with that walkoff-winning run, is named MVP.

[luckymann]

Man, I just love this save. A lot of it has to do with the amount of work I have put into its establishment, more than for any of my (many... perhaps too many??) saves, and the chance it affords me to use these magnificent NeL franchises appropriately. A lot of it has to do with how good I think it looks (thanks txrngr!!). But most of all I love how it keeps delivering the unexpected.

At the middle of September, this season looked set to run its course without much drama as the four Association races became clearer-cut. And then BOOM! out of nowhere things completely livened up and now all four are in play once more.

The Fleet American remains the most fascinating as a combination of the Black Yankees getting a dose of the death wobbles and the Crawfords catching fire - including a 10-game winning run - means they go into the final fortnight tied at 87-66 with the Dodgers still well in the hunt just two games adrift.

Meanwhile, the other three have tightened right up as well with the American Giants' 4 1/2-game advantage in the Weldy National the widest and everything still totally up for grabs.

All in all, we look set for a grandstand finish.







Here are the monthly award-winners:

• FC BATTER OF THE MONTH: Erubiel Durazo (Black Yankees) 352 / 7 HR / 18 RBI.
• FC PITCHER OF THE MONTH: CC Sabathia (Black Yankees) 6-1 / 2.63 / 61 K / 65 IP.
• FC ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Erubiel Durazo.
• WC BATTER OF THE MONTH: Willie Stargell (Athletics) 433 / 2 HR / 20 RBI.
• WC PITCHER OF THE MONTH: Dave Brown (Athletics) 6-1 / 2.51 / 28 K / 57.1 IP.
• WC ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Louis Dula (Grays) 4-1 / 2.08 / 19 K / 47.2 IP.

A full recap to come at the end of the regular season, although I greatly suspect you'll be hearing more from me between now and then...

[luckymann]

While the other three Association races conclude without any real drama, all hell breaks loose in the WC American as Philly stops in its tracks and Hilldale goes supersonic, winning eleven straight to amazingly hit the lead with one to play.

But then the A's lose 3-1 to the lowly Lincoln Giants in their Game 162 and the Lib Stars somehow lift to get a 7-3 road win at Newark in theirs, which of course leaves them level at 91-71 and needing a tiebreak to be separated.

We will watch this game in full later today.

[luckymann]

Tuesday 12th October, 1971 – Hilldale Athletic Club @ Philadelphia Liberty Stars

WELDY CONFERENCE, AMERICAN ASSOCIATION TIEBREAK GAME

7.05pm ET, 44th & Parkside Ballpark, Philadelphia PA

And so, for Hilldale and Philadelphia, the 1971 Eclipse league all comes down to this sudden-death tiebreaker.

Plenty of mixed emotions for me here. Given IRL I am an Oakland fan, the Hilldale Athletics have nominally become my adopted team in the EL. But if there is any justice in this world, even I'll concede the LibStars deserve the playoff spot.

Another aspect making me even more partial to the A's is the presence of a number of my favourite NeL players in their squad - namely Chino Smith, Pop Lloyd and the pitcher responsible for getting them the win tonight, Dave "Lefty" Brown.


I am already most familiar with DB, as he was a star for us at Pittsburgh across in my Bucs save until his career was cut short by injury. He is now our Pitching Coach and was part of the 1935 Induction Class into the HoF.

IRL, Dave was a bit more of a mystery, mixing stellar on-field performances with some fairly shady dealings away from the game including an alleged highway robbery beat in the late 1910s that Rube Foster - for whose Chicago American Giants Dave was one of the stars - reportedly put up a $20k bond to get him off. Little mystery, however, surrounds the incident that forced his premature exit from the game in 1925. Out with teammates Oliver Marcell and Frank Wickware, Brown got into a barroom fight (some suggest a drug deal gone wrong) that resulted in a man's death. On the run from the FBI, Dave vanished and - despite numerous Elvis-esque reported sightings in the ensuing years - was never heard from again. He is said to have died under equally-mysterious circumstances in 1930 and, indeed, Seamheads has no data on his demise.

In between all this, he fashioned a cracking 79-33 record with a career ERA+ of 146 and is widely recognised among the best pitchers of his generation.

He is certainly living up to that billing in the EL since entering via the Inaugural Draft, with a career 54-34 record over that period, along with a 115 ERA+ and nearly 15 pWAR. The season currently in progress has seen him take it to the next level and join the league's elite pitching fraternity, with him putting together a 27-10 (most wins in the EL) campaign with a sub-3 ERA, including a 7-0 performance down the stretch that has been one of the integral reasons the A's are even in this game at all.

He and his A's teammates are unlikely to have things all their own way tonight, with Rogelio Armenteros on the mound for the LibStars. Like Dave, Rogelio has been simply monumental this season with a 26-8 / 2.50 performance, and both are sure to be prominent come awards season.

This should be some sort of fierce contest. Here's how the two combatants will be lining up:

No doubt the visitors have a distinct class advantage here, but the heart these Philly boys have shown all year cannot be underestimated, especially with some 27000 screaming fans urging them on.

I know I am hyperbolising here, but tonight strikes me as two implacable opposing forces running full pelt toward each other - I sure hope the game lives up to the hype.

Let's get amongst it then, shall we?


A nervous start for the home side in the top 1st as McDowell singles and an error by Philly 3B Bobby Bonilla on a DP groundball puts Pop Lloyd aboard as well. A deep flyout to RF by Chino Smith gets McDowell to third but a risky steal attempt by Lloyd doesn't pay off. However, Willie Stargell comes through with a two-out hit to put the A's ahead.

History nearly repeats in the home 1st when, after Bonilla singles, a two-out error by Hilldale 3B Eric Chavez keeps the inning going. Unlike Armenteros, however, Brown is able to escape the jam unscathed as Carlos Delgado flies out harmlessly to end the inning.

In the 2nd, the A's stay aggressive as Ruben Mateo leads off with a single and steals second. He comes home on a Yordan Alvarez double and the visitors add a third on a sac fly by Brown.

You've never heard so many people suddenly make so little noise. Even more so when Lloyd leads off the next with an opposite-field jack. 4-0 A's.

Brown, meanwhile, looks cool, calm and collected, allowing just two singles over the first three frames.

The LibStars finally get something going in the 6th with doubles to Watson and Moore giving them their first run and the home fans some hope, and when yet another two-base hit by George Hendrick makes it 4-2, the crowd - and their heroes - are right back in the game.

Not for long, however, as a solo shot in the 7th by Hector Sanchez - just the second hit Armenteros has given up since the 4th - quickly douses the fire. It also ends Rogelio's night as he is hit for in the bottom half, with Kelvin Herrera coming in in relief for the 8th.

After a leadoff single by Lloyd, another Bonilla error puts him under immediate pressure as the pressure continues to play havoc with the hosts. Chino Smith, the lucky recipient, then steals second and a free pass to Stargell loads them up with none down. Herrera fans Chavez and when they get a forceout at home, followed by another strikeout, Philly has somehow escaped unhurt.

With rain starting to fall, the poor defensive game by the respective third-basemen continues as Chavez boots his second one for the night. This prompts Hilldale skipper Micah Romeo to go to the pen, with Armando Benitez called into action. He gets two outs but then walks Delgado to bring the tying run to the plate in the form of George Hendrick, who gets within about four feet of knotting it up as a deep fly to LF falls agonisingly short.

Gary Eave takes over on the mound for the home side and is greeted in the rudest fashion as a solo homer by Hector Sanchez all but ends it.

Then the heavens open and we are forced to sit through a 14-minute rain delay.

That doesn't seem to slow the Athletics as two singles and a Lloyd sac bunt put two men into scoring position with just one out and Chino Smith up. His flyout to CF is just deep enough for the run to score, making it 7 to 2. A run-scoring double by Stargell is the final nail in the LibStars' coffin and they go down quietly in the bottom 9th.

All of the Athletics' class was on full display tonight and in this sort of form you'd have to think they'll give the upcoming playoffs a real shake.

For the Liberty Stars, no amount of praise will do their efforts this season justice, nor soften the pain they'll feel whenever they think about this missed opportunity.

[luckymann]

And so, after all that, here are the final 1971 Eclipse League Standings:




That tiebreak victory allowed Dave Brown to equal CC Sabathia's record of 28 wins and also set a new standing for IP with 354. A host of other highwater marks fell as well:

• Chino Smith - 442 OBP
• Bobby Bonilla / George Hendrick - 163 G
• Hank Thompson - 44 HR
• Jose Reyes - 78 SB

• Gready McKinnis - 44 GS
• Carlos Zambrano - 317 K
• Juan Marichal - 11.46 pWAR

Batting titles to Alejandro Oms (FC; 350) and Willie Stargell (WC; 340). Chino Smith led all position players with 10.6 bWAR. Grant Jackson led the league with 41 saves.

Final Top 20s

Hitters - overall




Pitchers - overall




Hitters - NeLers




Pitchers - NeLers




To wrap things up, some news and the final leaders.

[luckymann]

Fleet Conference

New York Black Yankees (94-68) v Birmingham Black Barons (87-75)

Best of seven, Black Yankees with home-field advantage.

• The Black Yankees get through in straight sets, but it is a lot closer a series than that might indicate, with three of the games one-run affairs.
• After scoring just 3 runs through the first 35 innings, the Birmingham bats finally come alive with 4 runs in the bottom 9th of game 4, but the BYs edge ahead with a run in the top 10th and hang on for a 7-6 win to complete the sweep.
• Black Yankees 2B Ernie Riles repeats as MVP with another strong performance, hitting 467 with 2 HR and 5 RBI.

Weldy Conference

Chicago American Giants (94-68) v Hilldale Athletics (92-71)

Best of seven, American Giants with home-field advantage.

• The Athletics continue their torrid form, winning the first three games to look in complete control.
• After the AGs finally get a win in Game 4, Game 5 is nothing short of ridiculous as the A's come back with 2 in the home 9th to send the game into extra innings, fall behind and tie it up again in the 12th, and finally win the game and the series in the 14th on a walkoff RBI single by Abraham Almonte.
• Hilldale's Chino Smith, who hits 400 with a dinger and 5 ribbies, is named series MVP.

[luckymann]

New York Black Yankees v Hilldale Athletics

Best of seven, Black Yankees with home-field advantage.

And so the two most recent EL Champions meet in what must be looked upon as a generational heavyweight title decider.

There's no way you can pick a winner here, and I'm not going to try. I am simply going to sit back and watch these two elite teams presumably go hammer-and-tongs at each other until only one is left standing.

While perhaps not quite living up to expectations, this nevertheless turns out to be a fascinating series.

The first five games all go to the visiting side as the Black Yankees start slowly, then get it going and finally overrun the A's by winning four straight to defend last year's Championship.

Whereas last year Sabathia was the lightning-rod for New York, this time it is Pat Scantlebury, who allows just the one earned run in his two starts to take MVP honors. In a series dominated by pitchers for the most part, New York 3B Hank Thompson leads both sides with 7 RBI.

A fitting end to another mesmerising Eclipse League season.

Game 1





Game 2





Game 3





Game 4





Game 5





Game 6

[luckymann]

GRANT MEDAL (MOST VALUABLE PLAYER)

STOVEY MEDAL (PITCHER OF THE YEAR)

WHITE PLATE (RELIEVER OF THE YEAR)




FOWLER MEDAL (ROOKIE OF THE YEAR)




GARRETT BUTTON (MANAGER OF THE YEAR)

FC: Bob Honeycutt, Black Yankees
WC: Ryan McCharen, American Giants


KINDLING AWARD (SILVER SLUGGER)

Fleet Conference
P: Martin Dihigo, Crawfords
C: Yasmani Grandal, Giants
1B: George Scott, Giants
2B: Lou Whitaker, Crawfords
3B: Hank Thompson, Black Yankees
SS: Fernando Tatis jr, Monarchs
LF: Lourdes Gurriel jr, Monarchs
CF: Ken Singleton, Royal Giants
RF: Don Baylor, Black Yankees


Weldy Conference
P: Shohei Ohtani, Buckeyes
C: Bob Watson, Liberty Stars
1B: Andre Thornton, Motown Stars
2B: Chino Smith, Athletics
3B: Tim Anderson, Motown Stars
SS: Elvis Andrus, Elite Giants
LF: Rickey Henderson, Lincoln Giants
CF: Ruppert Jones, East
RF: Willie Stargell, Athletics


SLICK AWARD (GOLD GLOVE)

Fleet Conference
P: Reynaldo Lopez, Black Yankees
C: Cliff Johnson, Dodgers
1B: Erubiel Durazo, Black Yankees
2B: Chin-Lung Hu, Giants
3B: Hiram Bocachica, Giants
SS: Orlando Arcia, Giants
LF: Gates Brown, Black Barons
CF: Chuck Carr, Crawfords
RF: Larry Murray, Dodgers


Weldy Conference
P: Eddie Miller, East
C: Larry Brown, Buckeyes
1B: Rod Carew, ABCs
2B: Anderson Tejeda, Motown Stars
3B: Ed Charles, Elite Giants
SS: Ozzie Smith, Grays
LF: Tony Scott, ABCs
CF: Ender Inciarte, American Giants
RF: Richard Hidalgo, ABCs

[luckymann]

Well - somewhat nervously, I might add, as it is the first save I'm doing this for - there'll just be a short hiatus as I shift this across to v23. I also have to curate the new Draft Pool and realign whatever settings need doing, but we'll be back with the 1972 Eclipse and Transit League seasons in next to no time.

Some late news before I go as there's plenty of carnage amongst the managerial ranks, with the following skippers let go:

• CJ Daniels (Bacharach Giants)
• Ryushi Ogata (Royal Giants)
• Nate Matheny (Monarchs)
• Dakota LeRoy (Red Sox)
• Justin Jellison (Lincoln Giants)

OK, see you on the flip side!

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

Some more huge names joining the Eclipse League this time around, with position players all the rage in the early picks. AC takes Frank "The Big Hurt" Thomas first overall, with Edgar Martinez (LGs), Roberto Alomar (RGs), Mookie Betts (MoStars) and Jim Rice ABCs rounding out the top 5. Hurley McNair, who goes 6th to the EGs, is the first of the NeL players to get snapped up, while no pitcher is selected until the AGs pick Jose Quintana with the 19th overall.

Here are the first three rounds in full:




Can't wait to see some of these guys in action.

[luckymann]

OK, so the Janus Reports this time around will consist of nothing more than the squad lists. After transferring this save and the AtHoL from v22 to v23 and having to do all of the offseason stuff I gotta say I just want to get on with things for now - too much writing over the past few days for my liking. I'll slowly catch y'all up on things as 1972 progresses and do the usual mid-term report card.

Here is a summary of the gains and losses over the offseason for the various teams:

BNN is seeing the Black Yankees, Monarchs, Athletics and Buckeyes on top this season.

Here are the top-ranked position players and pitchers:

The top farm systems and prospects:

And finally, with the 1972 offseason set to be the first where the FA market really heats up, here's how the franchises look financially at the moment:

[luckymann]

Atlantic City Bacharach Giants

Brooklyn Royal Giants

Newark Dodgers

New York Black Yankees

Pittsburgh Crawfords