Historical Cleveland OOTP6 Dynasty

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — 1903 Preseason
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — After two dismal seasons at the bottom of the American League, the Cleveland Blues decided to make a drastic move — change their nickname.

Cleveland allowed its fans to vote on a small number of potential nicknames during the offseason, and the people overwhelming voted for Broncos.

"Our fans thought the Bronco was a symbol of power," Cleveland general manager Levi Chronister said. "Their support of that name was obvious, so our official choice of it was easy."

With a new name and hoping for a new attitude, Cleveland dove into the free-agent market with both feet.

Quickly realizing the market was cold as ice, the Broncos were forced to rely on the draft once again.

Cleveland considered making an offer for free-agent starter Jesse Tannehill, but the hurler's price tag of more than $10 million was too high for even an opening offer. Tannehill eventually signed a six-year contract with St. Louis (N) for just under $11.8 million a season.

The Broncos did make offer on 29-year-old shortstop Bobby Wallace, a good-hit no-field guy, but he quickly appeared to be too pricey as well before signing with Chicago (N) for $1,643,025 a year for three years.

"We offered Bobby a bit over $1.6 million a year for three seasons, but he told us the Cubs offered a bit more money," Chronister said. "We thought he meant somewhere in the neighborhood of $2 million or more, which was too costly for us. Of course, he meant they offered exactly $1,000 more a year, but we had no way of knowing that."

With no new veteran addition to a roster that needed a shake-up of some sort, Chronister used the draft to add three talented young pitchers.

Picking third, Cleveland took 26-year-old SP Mordecai Brown in the first round for a signing bonus of $29,000. Brown was 12-6 with two saves and a 2.59 ERA at average New Orleans, but ranked 60 out of 80 on the potential scale.

"Brown is a bit older than we'd normally like," Chronister said, "but he was just too talented to pass up, especially with both definite top-3 picks (SP Chief Bender and 2B Johnny Evers) already gone."

In the second round, Cleveland took RF Jack Dunleavy, who hit .282/.316/.379 with 21 stolen bases in 272 at-bats at average Wisconsin-Green Bay last year. Dunleavy will be the starting right fielder in Double-A Akron, and may see action in the majors as soon as next season.

More help for the Broncos' pitching staff came in rounds three and four, where Cleveland took SP Norwood Gibson (11-6, 1 save, 3.36 ERA at very tough Baylor; 53/80 on the potential scale) and MR Grant Thatcher (4-2, 14 saves, 3.57 ERA at very tough Siena).

"We were very lucky those two pitchers dropped to us," Chronister said. "Norwood could start for us now if we had a rotation spot open, and Grant cost us quite a bit to sign him ($1.05 million), but he's ready to come out of the bullpen right now so we thought he was worth it."

With two new starters both ready for the big leagues and four already in Cleveland, the Broncos had a logjam on the mound. Chronister quickly fixed that problem by trading SP Earl Moore, CF Watty Lee and $3 million to Chicago (N) for 1B Frank Chance and LF Topsy Hartsel.

"We had high hopes for both Moore and Lee, and I'm still sure they'll turn out to be fine players," Chronister said, "but we faded down the stretch last season and this was a way for us to pick up two veterans who can really help us in that regard.

"I didn't want to drop $3 million into the deal, but that's what it took so we did it. That's what the money we've been receiving in trades over the past two seasons is for, after all."

Hartsel will replace Lee in right field, with Homer Smoot and Matty McIntyre sharing duties in center. Chance will start against righties, with Harry Davis still playing first against lefties.

After Moore's departure Cleveland manager Wilbur Nether juggled his rotation, putting Bob Wicker in the No. 1 spot, followed by George Mullin, Brown and Gibson. Charlie Shields, last year's third-round pick who went 3-13 in two months with the Broncos, was moved to spot starter. Billy Milligan and Harry McNeal were both demoted to Triple-A Buffalo to make room on the roster.

With the two veteran salaries and raises to Roger Bresnahan ($2,442,857), McIntyre ($1,278,571) and Bill Bradley ($1,378,571) through arbitration, Cleveland's payroll jumped nearly 150 percent to $34.7 million.

"This is more than we've spent on a team, salary-wise, than ever before," Chronister said, "but we really think the money is worth it. Our fans will have a more productive team to cheer for, and we're confident we can make a run at the top of the American League."

In other news, Cleveland signed pitching coach Keneth Wilkerson to a 5-year deal worth $651,000 per year Jan. 26.

Around the league: Bender was taken by Boston (N) as the first overall pick, and quickly became the first overall prospect in the league as well. He will begin the season as the Beaneater's ace.

Detroit took Evers with the second pick. He'll start the season at second for the Tigers, batting in the bottom half of the order.

The Broncos weren't the only American League team changing their name this offseaso. Boston (A) changed its nickname to the Pilgrims, and Chicago (A) changed its name from White Stockings to White Sox. The Baltimore Orioles moved to New York's Hilltop Park and became the Highlanders, and the Washington Senators moved to Griffith Stadium.

League files are up-to-date other than name and place changes.

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — April/May 1903
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — Broncos rookie Mordecai Brown threw a five-hit shutout in his major-league debut, blanking the Boston Americans on April 3. Brown lost his next four decisions, but it was his first outing that helped set the tone for the next two months in Cleveland.

Of course, the Broncos' 15 hits — four doubles and 11 singles — in Brown's debut didn't hurt. Neither did the April 19 trade of SP Matthew Mazarella, SP Jonathan Paynter, CF Homer Smoot and 3B Bill Bradley to New York (A) for 2B Jimmy Williams, CF Mike Donlin and $2 million.

Williams replaced Bradley at third, and Donlin moved into centerfield full time. The Broncos took on more than $11 million in salary, including Donlin's $8.65 million contract that expires after the season.

"This was an expensive trade for us," Chronister said, "but we have more than $71 million sitting in the bank and there's no reason not to spend it on talented young players such as Mike and Jimmy. Mike's contract is up come October, but we're confident we can sit down and get an extension worked out."

The Broncos finished April on a four-game winning streak and had a 16-12 record for their first-ever winning April. Cleveland finished three games behind New York in the American League.

Cleveland had some impressive individual performances in the first month. Designated hitter Sam Crawford led the AL with a .427 batting average and a .994 OPS; LF Jeffrey Schank had a league-high seven homers; Danny Murphy and Donlin tied for second in the AL with 25 RBI; and Bob Wicker tied for AL honors with six wins and also had a league-high 23 strikeouts.

As a team, the Broncos led the American League in batting average (.307), home runs (12), stolen bases (72) and runs scored (172). Their pitching was a bit more questionable, being ranked 11th in three of the five major categories. Cleveland did finish second in homers allowed (1).

"Our pitching staff is still very young. Very talented, but very young and with a lot to learn," Chronister said. "I'm sure they'll come around very shortly, and when they do I'll feel extremely confident in our ability to stick around the top of the American League."

The Broncos won back-to-back player of the week awards in early May. Crawford was named AL player of the week May 3 after hitting .560 with six RBI in 25 at-bats, and Mullin earned the honor the next week with a record of 2-0, a 1.50 ERA and a seven-hit shutout of Washington. Wicker also pitched a shutout that week, blanking St. Louis (A) on four-hits.

Less than a year removed from a terrible second-half collapse, Cleveland went on a 10-game winning streak in the middle of May that put them in first place for the first time in their history. The Broncos moved into a tie for first with New York (A) with an 8-5, 11-inning victory over Boston (A) on Friday, May 14, and took sole possession of the AL lead with a 5-4, 10 inning win over Detroit the next day.

"I can't express how proud I am of these guys and how they played in those two extra-inning games," Broncos manager Wilbur Nether said. "After last year, no one else put pressure on them, but they had heaped quite a load of pressure on themselves to perform better, and they withstood every ounce of that pressure last weekend."

Crawford continued his hot hitting early in the streak, collecting five hits in the win over Boston and four against Detroit. He cooled off quickly, though, hitting just .174 (4-for-23) fives games of the month, though he still finished hitting .373 with a .913 OPS, both of which topped the AL. He was also third in runs scored (42).

When the streak ended May 23, Cleveland sat atop the American League at 30-18, two games ahead of New York and St. Louis. Wicker threw a three-hit shutout against Philadelphia (A) during the streak and finished May with an AL-best 12 wins and 47 strikeouts.

After another loss to the Highlanders, the Broncos began another winning streak, finishing May with six straight victories. At the end of the month, Cleveland was 36-19 and led St. Louis (A) by four games.

"This is exactly what I thought these guys could do," Chronister said. "I knew if we just gave them enough time to gel and get some experience, they'd be able to fight for the league title."

Schank was named player of the week May 31, hitting .500 with five homers and 11 RBI. Three of those homers came against New York on May 25 when Schank was 4-for-5 with six RBI. He finished May second in the AL in OPS (.905), first in homers (12, seven more than anyone else), second in RBI (42) and second in runs scored (44).

Through May the Broncos still lead the American League in batting average (.296), home runs (26), stolen bases (133) and runs scored (324) and were tied for fourth in walks (138). Their pitching had improved considerably, moving up to fifth in ERA (3.40), sixth in opponent average (.265), a tie for first in homers allowed (4) and seventh in runs allowed (240).

In the minors: Jake Dunleavy, the Broncos' second-round pick, hit .236 with four homers and 15 RBI in Double-A Akron and appeared to be well on his way to a call-up to Buffalo. Sure enough, Dunleavy was called up to Buffalo on May 17.

Around the league: Pittsburgh starter Christy Mathewson no-hit New York (N) on April 9 in a 4-0 win over the Giants.

Chicago (N)'s second baseman Cupid Childs collected his 2,000th career hit April 29 against Brooklyn with a ninth-inning double off Ambrose Puttmann.

Former Cleveland starter Bill Hoffer no-hit Chicago (A) on May 12. Hoffer struck out just one batter and walked eight in St. Louis (A)'s 5-0 victory.

April batters of the month: New York (A)'s John Titus (.375, .545 SLG, 28 RBI) and Brooklyn's Joe Kelley (.406. 554 SLG, 11 RBI).

April pitchers of the month: New York (A)'s Harry Howell (6-1, 2.00 ERA, 1 SHO) and Brooklyn's Frank Kitson (6-1, 2.39 ERA).

May batters of the month: St. Louis (A)'s Emmet Heidrick (.390, 1 HR, 26 RBI) and Pittsburgh's Ginger Beaumont (.393, 17 RBI).

May pitchers of the month: Hofer (6-1, 1.74 ERA, 1 SHO) and Kitson (4-1, 1.43 ERA, 1 SHO).

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — June/July 1903
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — After ending May on six-game winning streak, the Broncos lost first two games of June. Cleveland bounced back with six straight victories, though, and put together two more five-game winning streaks later in June, and another in mid-July, keeping a lock on first place in the American League.

Sitting atop the league may have made general manager Levi Chronister a bit complacent. Known for his wheeling and dealing, Chronister actually turned down a trade offer from the Chicago Cubs on June 9.

The Cubs offered 33-year-old SS Bill Dahlen and $2.3 million for backup IF Jimmy Burke. Chronister declined the offer because of age, talent and salary differences.

That didn't mean Cleveland wasn't making any moves, though. Broncos manager Wilbur Nether named Jack Bracken (1.59 ERA in 11.1 IP) to closer June 28 and moved Steven Fava to mop-up duty after Fava put up a 10.80 ERA in 1.2 IP.

"I know it's just a small sample size with Steven," Nether said, "but Jack has been lights out so far and we could really use a strong closer, especially if we end up making the World Series."

The move paid off for Bracken two days later when he was named closer for the American League All-Star team. Cleveland starting pitchers Bob Wicker, George Mullin and Mordecai Brown, third baseman Jimmy Williams, and outfielders Jeffrey Schank, Sam Crawford and Mike Donlin all joined Bracken on the team.

Mullin pitched 1.1 scoreless relief innings, Crawford was 0-for-4, Schank was 0-for-3, Donlin was 1-for-4 and Williams was 1-for-4 in the National League's 4-1 victory. Former Bronco outfielder Homer Smoot was 1-for-1 in a pinch-hitting appearance.

Cleveland finished June at 54-27, eight games ahead of St. Louis and 12 games better than New York. Sam Crawford led the AL with a .371 average and was second with a .892 OPS; Jeffrey Schank had league-bests of 14 home runs, 58 RBI and 60 runs; Bob Wicker led the league with 16 wins and 65 strikeouts.

Mullin named player of the week July 5 after going 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA in two complete games. After starting the season 3-5, Mullin won 12 of his next 14 decisions up to this honor.

With Fava's problems in the bullpen continuing, Chronister sent him to Buffalo on July 19 and called up Harry McNeal.

The Broncos finished July atop the American League at 68-40, 10 games ahead of St. Louis and 11 ahead of third-place New York. Crawford was second in batting (.340); Donlin was third in OPS (.835); Schank was first in homers (16); Wicker was tied for first in wins (19) and first in strikeouts (76); Brown was second in strikeouts (74).

In other news: Because of an accounting error, Cleveland believed Donlin's contract was up at the of the season. In fact, it's up at the end of the 1904 season.

In the minors: MR James Miller (3-2, 6.09 ERA, 31 K, 10 BB, .240 OAVG, 1.18 WHIP in 34.0 IP at Akron) promoted to Buffalo on June 14 and named No. 1 middle reliever.

Around the league: Bill Hoffer, the American League's pitcher of the month for May, threw a one-hit shutout against Detroit on June 15.

The National League won the All-Star game, 4-1.

Philadelphia (N)'s Ed Delahanty hit for the cycle against Chicago (N) on July 3.

Three players picked up their 2,000th career hits in July: Chicago (A)'s Lave Cross on July 23 with a single in the seventh inning off Philadelphia (A)'s Wish Egan; St. Louis (A)'s Steve Brodie on July 18 with a single off Boston (A)'s Bob Ewing; and Brooklyn's Willie Keeler on July 17 with a single off Cincinnati's Bob Rhoads.

Pittsburgh's Rube Waddell pitched his third shutout of the season July 30, blanking St. Louis (N) on two hits.

June batters of the month: Philadelphia (A)'s Nap Lajoie (.382, 1 HR, 17 RBI) and Brooklyn's Joe Kelley (.406, 1 HR, 14 RBI).

June pitchers of the month: Boston (A)'s Cy Young (6-1, 2.38 ERA) and Cincinnati's Noodles Hahn (6-1, 1.83 ERA, 20 strikeouts in 64 IP).

July batters of the month: Cross (.396, 1 HR, 14 RBI) and Cincinnati's Jake Beckley (.376, 1 HR, 17 RBI).

July pitchers of the month: New York (A)'s Ed Scott (6-1, 2.31 ERA) and Hahn (5-1, 1.76 ERA).

League files are up-to-date.

[darkcloud4579]

Great writing!

[firstbigweekend]

Great writing!

Thanks, and same to you. I'm trying to keep up on your Moneyball dynasty, but I haven't had a ton of time since I started this one of my own. Hopefully this summer gives me some more free time to do so.

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — Aug./Sept./Oct. 1903
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — The Broncos entered the final two months of the season trying to knock last year's dramatic plunge in the standings completely out of their heads.

Cleveland succeeded in dramatic fashion, winning the American League with a 98-64 record, 11 games ahead of both New York and St. Louis.

"This team has made me incredibly proud," general manager Levi Chronister said. "They proved that last year's flop was a one-time event by bearing down and showing the league what they're truly capable of."

Cleveland's magic number was 20 going into September, but the Broncos cut it to six within a week, and seven days later they had dropped it all the way to five by winning nine of their first 11 games that month.

Fittingly, Cleveland clinched the AL title Sept. 14 with a 5-1 win over Boston (A), last year's AL champion.

The Bronco's league-champion season resulted in an increase of nearly 600,000 fans, as the team finished with a total attendance of 2,973,439, best in the American League and third best in baseball.

Cleveland will face Philadelphia (N) in the World Series beginning Sept. 4 in Cleveland. The Phillies, who won the first-ever World Series, led the National League with a record of 94-68, two games better than Pittsburgh.

Individual Achievements
• Rookie starter Mordecai Brown was named AL player of the week (2-0, 1.00 ERA, 1 five-hit SHO of Washington on Aug. 8, 2 CG) on Aug. 9.
• Mike Donlin was named AL player of the week (.520, 2 HR, 5 RBI) on Aug. 23.
• Frank Chance set a team record with 62 steals.
• George Mullin set the team record for walks allowed (117).
• Jeffrey Schank set the AL season record for homers (23).
• Brown set and American League record for rookie wins (27, which was also a team record for wins).
• Other team records included hits (198, Crawford); RBI (97, Crawford); walks (100, Topsy Hartsel); hitting streak (19, Crawford); strikeouts thrown (118, Wicker; also tops in American League).

In other news: Cleveland signed Chance to a four-year extension worth $5,261,000 a year Aug. 30. The Broncos tried to begin discussions with Harry Davis, but he wanted to test the market after being unhappy with his playing time.

Team hitting numbers/places: batting average (.279, 4th); home runs (57, 1st); walks (422, 2nd); stolen bases (420, 1st); runs (833, 1st).

Team pitching numbers/places: ERA (3.51, 11th); opponents average (.261, 5th); homers allowed (33, 7th); walks allowed (379, 13th); runs allowed (704, 10th).

Top 10s hitting: average (Crawford, .323, 3rd; Donlin, .319, 6th); HR (Hartsel, 9, T-5th) RBI (Crawford, 97, 6th; Schank, 92, 10th); runs (Schank, 101, 4th; Crawford 99, 5th); OPS (Donlin, .807, 4th); Schank, .781, 9th; Jimmy Williams, .779, 10th).

Top 10s pitching: wins (Wicker, 26, T-2nd; Mullin, 23, T-7th); strkeouts (Brown, 109, 3rd; Mullin, 82, 9th); opponents average (Gibson, .245, 3rd; Mullin, .256, T-7th; Wicker, .257, 9th); opponents OBP (Wicker, .294, 5th; Gibson, .307, 10th); opponents SLG (Wicker, .327, 5th; Mullin, .329, 7th)

In the minors: Robert "Black Hole" Hettinger was promoted to Double-A Akron on Aug. 23. Hettinger was 12-12 with a 3.94 ERA in 24 starts at Kinston, where he struck out 208 batters and walked just 61 in 192 IP. With the Aeros, Hettinger was 1-0 with a 5.63 ERA in one start, but he did strikeout 14 batters in eight innings.

Jake Dunleavy was demoted from Buffalo to Akron on Sept. 6 after hitting .252/.299/.409 with the Bisons. After a nice showing with the Aeros, he was promoted back to the Bisons three weeks later.

It was another year of ridiculous offensive numbers in the top two levels of the minors, as you can see by the following numbers:
Buffalo — Walter Sarratt (.347/.415/.971, 99 HR, 181 RBI), Julius Jefferson (.304/.370/.782, 75 HR, 141 RBI), and Gregory Vaughn (.349/.400/.721, 66 HR, 115 RBI).
Akron — Bill Morell (.362/.432/1.017, 103 HR, 186 RBI), Oliver Nyquist (.328/.385/.956, 107 HR, 188 RBI), Reed Sherrer (.353/.450/.858, 78 HR, 133 RBI), John Daniels (.358/.431/.802, 77 HR, 161 RBI, 28 SB in leadoff spot), Ralph Frisbie (.325/.401/.915, 96 HR, 162 RBI)

Buffalo finished 82-56, two games behind Boston; Akron finished 94-44, 16 games ahead of Chicago; and Kinston finished 76-62, seven games behind New York and Boston.

Cleveland's minor leagues dropped to next to last in ranks, but far ahead of last-place Washington. Only three Broncos prospects (C Reid Goza, 2B Mark Johnson and Dunleavy) were ranked in top 65.

"We're not too worried about the minor-league rankings," Chronister said. "Most of our top young talent is already in Cleveland. Besides, with the numbers some of our guys are putting up, especially in Buffalo and Akron, we're having no problems getting fans to come to games."

AROUND THE LEAGUE
Boston (N)'s Togie Pittinger one-hit Philadelphia (N) on Aug. 5 in a 4-0 Beaneaters victory.

Philadelphia (N)'s Clarence Currie shutout Brooklyn on two hits Aug. 16.

New York (N)'s Roger Denzer one-hit Boston (N) on Aug. 30, and blanked the Beaneaters with a two-hitter Sept. 26.

Just a day after Denzer's first shutout of the month, teammate Oscar Jones one-hit Boston (N).

New York (A)'s Joe McGinnity shutout Detroit on two hits Sept. 9.

August batters of the month: Washington's Sam Dugan (.369, .385 OBP, 15 RBI) and Philadelphia (N)'s Harry Wolverton (.320, 22 RBI).

August pitchers of the month: Philadelphia (A)'s Wish Egan (6-0, 1.65 ERA) and Philadelphia (N)'s Clarence Currie (5-0, 0.75 ERA, 1 SHO).

September batters of the month: New York (A)'s Bill Keister (.414, .453 OBP, 18 RBI) and Pittsburgh's Claude Ritchey (.367, 3 HR, 21 RBI).

September pitchers of the month: New York (A)'s Harry Howell (5-2, 1.89) and St. Louis (N)'s Jesse Tannehill (5-1, 1.02).

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — 1903 Postseason
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — Just a year after finishing next to last in the American League with the third-worst record in baseball, the Cleveland Broncos bounced back and won the 1903 World Series over the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Broncos won the first two games of the series, but the Phillies wouldn't give up and won the next three games. Cleveland, which seemed to have forgotten how to hit during Games 4, 5 and 6, found its stroke in Game 7, winning 6-4.

"We didn't really expect to be able to win this fast," general manager Levi Chronister said. "We had some trades, minor leaguers and draft picks turn out better than we had hoped, and everything just fell together perfectly.

Game 1 — Cleveland 2, Philadelphia 1
Cleveland started strong by putting two runners on in the first and third innings, but Jeffrey Schank struck out in both crucial situations. Roger Bresnahan drove in Danny Murphy for the Broncos' first run with a double in the fourth, and Rudy Hulswitt drove in Murphy with a sac fly in the sixth for the winning run. George Mullin earned the victory with five strikeouts, one walk and nine hits in nine innings. Jimmy Williams finished 3-for-4 with two stolen bases.

Game 2 — Cleveland 3, Philadelphia 1
Another low-scoring affair with the Broncos coming. Schank made up for his Game 1 troubles at the plate with an RBI-single in the first inning and Topsy Hartsel followed with another RBI-single, though Philadelphia cut the lead in half in the seventh. Cleveland added an insurance run in the eighth inning on a triple by Murphy that drove home Jimmy Burke. Bob Wicker got the win, giving up just five hits and one run in a complete-game effort.

Game 3 — Cleveland 6, Philadelphia 5
This was a back-and-forth contest that the Broncos finally won with a run in the top of the ninth. Philly scored single runs in the first, fourth and seventh innings and two in the eighth off reliever Harry McNeal. Cleveland answered each time, though — three runs in the second, one in the fifth and one in the seventh — and scored the game-winning run in the top of the ninth on a single by Sam Crawford. Charlie Shields picked up the win in relief, giving up just one hit in 1.1 innings while striking out two batters. Schank went 3-for-4 with a double, 2 RBI and a run.

Game 4 — Philadelphia 6, Cleveland 5 (12)
Possibly the greatest game in the short history of the World Series. Cleveland scored a pair of runs in the first, but Philadelphia answered with two in the bottom half of the inning. The Broncos answered with two more runs in the third, but Philadelphiai scored one in both the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. Cleveland had a chance to score in the sixth, but Williams was robbed by a great grab by Jimmy Slagle (his second amazing catch of a ball off Williams' bat). Finally in the seventh, Cleveland scored another run, tying the game. The Broncos had a chance to win the game in the ninth with two runners on and no outs, but Hartsel flew out and Murphy grounded into a double play. The Broncos had another chance in the 10th with runners on first and third with just one out, but Mike Donlin popped out and Williams flew out. Philly scored in the 12th to win the game.

Game 5 — Philadelphia 4, Cleveland 0
Doc White absolutely dominated the Broncos, giving up just three hits and a walk in nine innings. The Phillies scored one run in each of the first, second, third and fourth innings. Wicker took the loss, giving up seven hits, four runs (three earned) and a walk in eight innings.

Game 5 — Philadelphia 4, Cleveland 3 (10)
Another extra-inning game with the Phillies coming out on top. Philadelphia scored two runs in the third, but Cleveland cut the lead in half with an RBI-single by Crawford in the bottom half of the inning. Rudy Hulswitt scored the tying run in the eighth on a fielder's choice by Crawford. Both teams scored runs in the ninth, but Philadelphia scored in the 10th for the win. Mordecai Brown took the loss, giving up nine hits, four runs (three earned) and two walks in 10 innings.

Game 5 — Cleveland 6, Philadelphia 4
Cleveland's bats finally came alive in the deciding game with three Broncos getting three hits each. Philadelphia took a 1-0 lead in the second, but the Broncos tied the game in the fifth, scored two runs in the seventh and put the game out of reach with three in the eighth, including a two-run triple by Murphy. Philadelphia made the game a bit more interesting with three runs in the top of the ninth, but it was too little, too late. Donlin finished 3-for-4 with two RBI, Frank Chance was 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run and Hulswitt was 3-for-3 with a run. Mullin picked up the win, giving up 11 hits, four runs (three earned) and three walks in a complete game.

For his efforts, Mullin (2-0, 2.79 ERA, 11 K in 29 IP) was named Most Outstanding Player of the World Series.

MOST OUTSTANDING BATTER
American League: Philadelphia (A)'s Nap Lajoie (.352, .503 SLG, 70 XBH, 307 TB).
National League: Pittsburgh's Honus Wagner (.337, 2 HR, .389 OBP, 198 H, 48 BB).

MOST OUTSTANDING PITCHER
American League: New York (A)'s Harry Howell (26-16, 2.28 ERA, 112 strikeouts in 375.1 IP, 39 CG, 7 SHO).
National League: St. Louis (N)'s Jesse Tannehill (27-14, 2.31 ERA, 40 CG, 6 SHO, 95 strikeouts in 373.1 IP).

MOST OUTSTANDING ROOKIE
American League: Brown (27-14, 3.92 ERA, 37 CG, 2 SHO, 109 strikeouts in 363 IP).
National League: Pittsburgh's Chappie McFarland (17-10, 3.54 ERA, 27 CG, 4 SHO, 64 strikeouts in 254.1 IP).

League files are up-to-date.

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — 1904 Preseason
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — Most general managers would be pleased to return 24 of the 25 players on their major league rosters the year after winning a World Series.

But not Cleveland general manager Levi Chronister.

The Broncos tried to add a couple players during the free-agent period — 1B Dan McGann and SP Al Orth — but the team could agree to a contract with neither. McGann signed with the Detroit Tigers for just under $3.1 million a year for three years, and Orth signed with the Chicago White Sox for seven years at $10,002,500 per season.

"We thought Dan was going to cost too much to be a backup first baseman for us," Chronister said, "but then he signed for much less than we were willing to pay. We'll just have to try to find another first baseman in the draft or through a trade later.

"We seriously considered trying to sign Orth after how well he pitched against us in the World Series last season, but we couldn't justify paying more than $10 million a year for him. Not with the young talent we already have, at least."

With no free agents coming to the Broncos, Chronister had two routes to improving a team that finished with the best record in baseball last season — the draft and trades.

When it came time for the draft, though, Cleveland found itself in unknown terrority — the last pick in each round.

"We're not used to picking so low in the draft," Chronister said, "but it's certainly worth it after last year's title. We may not get a star like Bob Wicker or Mordecai Brown in previous drafts, I'm confident we can find someone who can contribute eventually if not this season."

In the first round, the Broncos took a long, hard look at 1B Jake Stahl (.325/.370/.500, 54 RBI, 34 SB in 240 AB at average Tennessee State) to fill the spot they had considered McGann for, but they ended up signing SP Frank Smith (9-4, 2.88 ERA, 106.1 IP, 100 H, 40 BB, 70 K at very tough Howard) for a signing bonus of $479,400 because of a more drastic need in the rotation.

Stahl went in the second round to Brooklyn, leaving the Broncos a choice between two starting pitchers — Nick Altrock or Del Mason. Cleveland chose Altrock (9-4, 3.18 ERA, 107.2 IP, 114 H, 28 BB, 52 K) in the second round, and was lucky enough that Mason (12-5, 3.09 ERA, 142.2 IP, 131 H, 62 BB, 116 K at fair Southern Mississippi) fell to its pick in the third round.

"We were incredibly fortunate to get both Altrock and Mason," Chronister said. "We think Nick is ready to step into our rotation right now, and Mason should make it to Cleveland next season at the latest."

Cleveland took MR Bull Durham (4-1, 15 SV, 2.98 ERA, 45.1 IP, 41 H, 20 BB, 33 K at average Fresno State) in the fourth round.

Unable to grab a backup first baseman in the draft, Chronister started looking at picking one up via trade. While looking at potential deals, Chronister made a couple that didn't nab him a first baseman, but did help the team on the field and in the bank.

The first trade sent SP Norwood Gibson and Durhamn to Detroit for LF Sherry Magee (19 years old and the No. 4 overall pick in the draft), CL Larry Vaughn and $6 million. The trade opened a spot in the rotation for Altrock and strengthened the Broncos' bullpen.

"We needed to get Nick a starting spot, and getting a closer as talented as Vaughn, an outfielder as young and talented as Magee, and a nice chunk of cash was more than we could have hoped for," Chronister said.

With Magee now on the team and ready to start, Cleveland had one outfielder too many. The obvious candidate to leave the Broncos was Topsy Hartsel, 29 and making nearly $6.5 million a season. Cleveland found a taker in the Chicago Cubs, who Hartsel originally played for, as part of a three-way deal.

Chicago received Hartsel, Brooklyn got Chicago catcher Johnny Kling, Mason and $250,000 from Chicago, and Cleveland received 2B Miller Huggins (the No. 3 overall pick) from Chicago and Stahl and $2 million from Brooklyn.

"Everyone got something they needed in this deal," Chronister said. "The Cubs got a star outfielder, Brooklyn got a star young pitcher, and we filled a couple needs and helped stock our minor-league system."

Speaking of Cleveland's minor leagues, the Broncos' system was ranked No. 1 in baseball after another trade — MR Ty Ellis and MR Grant Thatcher to Chicago (A) for SS Simon Nicholls and $1.9 million. Cleveland now has two top-10 players (Huggins and Frank Smith) and two other top-15 players (Nicholls and Magee).

The deal also opened a spot for Vaughn to move in as closer, with CL Jack Bracken being sent to Buffalo and MR Billy Milligan getting called up to Cleveland.

In other news: Cleveland had three Platinum Glove award winners last season: pitcher Mordecai Brown, catcher Roger Bresnahan (his second) and first baseman Fred Chance.

Hitting coach David Boggs' contract expired after last season, but the Broncos rehired him for five years at $675,000 per season.

AROUND THE LEAGUE
Washington LF Hugh Duffy retired after last season and was the first member of the Hall of Fame. Duffy hit .323/.378/.448 in 16 seasons in the major leagues. He finished with career records for retired players in average, home runs (118), RBI (1,425), hits (2,588), doubles (372), triples (140), runs (1,669) and stolen bases (610).

Dummy Hoy, who spent the final two years of his career with the Chicago White Sox, also was named to the Hall of Fame.

Important free-agent signings were:
• 1B Jake Beckley, $5,949,200 per year for four years with Brooklyn.
• 1B Harry Davis, $2,879,000 per year for three years with Pittsburgh.
• LF Jesse Burkett, $8,467,600 per year for four yeras with Chicago (N).

Other important draft picks were:
• No. 1 Ed Walsh by New York (N)
• No. 5 Hook Wiltse by Washington
• No. 8 Red Ames by Chicago (A)
• No. 9 Jim Delahanty by St. Louis (N)
• No. 17 Art Devlin by New York (N)

League files are up-to-date.

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — April/May 1904
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — After bringing in a new rightfielder, closer and No. 3 starter, the Broncos had some trouble adjusting early in the season.

Cleveland was just 10-7 though April 19, but won eight of its final 11 games and was tied with Boston and New York for the American League lead at the end of the month.

May was just about the same story, with the Broncos falling behind by as many as four games late in the month after being part of a four-way tie for first as late as May 17. Cleveland considered bringing up first-round pick Frank Smith in the last week of the month and putting him in the rotation in place of Mordecai Brown (3-6, 3.42 ERA) but decided against it.

"It was a plan that made some sense," Cleveland general manager Levi Chronister said, "but we ultimately decided that it would have been too hasty of a move this early in the season."

Holding steady was the right course for the Broncos, who won six of their last seven games in May and finished the month tied with Philadelphia (which had winning streaks of six and seven games during the month) atop the American League at 34-21. New York (which had five- and six-game winning streaks during May) sat just a game behind.

"I think that final week or so of May really showed what we're capable of," Chronister said. "We have some guys who are struggling right now, but things seem to be coming together finally as we hit the middle of the season."

Though three regulars were hitting .251 or worse through May, Cleveland was still fourth in batting (.270), third in home runs (19), fifth in walks (147), first in stolen bases (139) and first in runs (268). The Broncos pitching was mediocre, sitting at third in ERA (3.23), but ninth in opponent average (.266), tied for sixth in homers allowed (eight), ninth in walks allowed (134) and seventh in runs allowed (228).

In other news
• George Mullin won player of week honors May 10 after going 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA in two starts, including a four-hit shutout of Washington on May 5. The award was the fourth of his career.

• Bob Wicker threw four-hit shutout against Boston on May 12.

• Through May, Cleveland was on pace for just over $3.4 million fans, half a million more than last year.

In the minors
Miller Huggins was hitting .262/.392/.413 through two months in Buffalo, with 23 RBI, 43 BB, 16 K, 27 SB, 49 runs in 206 AB.

"Miller could be in majors," Chronister said, "but Danny Murphy is playing well and we'd like to see Huggins improve against lefties a bit more."

Part of Huggins' success was because Walter Sarratt is hitting two spots behind him. Sarratt finished May at .351/.404/.902 with 35 HR and 76 RBI, and was moved up to No. 2 spot at the end of the month to help Huggins improve.

Also in Buffalo, Simon Nicholls was hitting .301/.370/.663 with 17 HR, 44 RBI, 21 BB, 12 K in 193 AB. With Rudy Hulswitt hitting just .191/.220/.235 in Cleveland, Nicholls could soon see action in the bigs.

Among Cleveland's other top prospects, RF Jake Dunleavy was hitting .278/.326/.491 with 10 HR and 23 RBI in 212 AB, and Frank Smith was 8-1 with a 1.56 ERA and 66 K in 86.1 IP (10 starts).

AROUND THE LEAGUE
• New York (N)'s Roger Denzer two-hit Boston (N) on April 7.
• Chicago (N)'s Tom Hughes two-hit New York (N) on April 26.
• Chicago (N)'s Bill Dinneen two-hit Pittsburgh on May 3.
• Former Cleveland 3B Bill Bradley won player of the week May 17 (.452, .455 OBP, 8 RBI).
• Philadelphia (N)'s Clarence Currie two-hit Pittsburgh on May 20.
• Former Cleveland SP Norwood Gibson was AL player of the week May 24 (2-0, 0.50 ERA, 1 SHO).

April batters of the month: Philadelphia (A)'s Nap Lajoie (.396, .623 SLG, 23 RBI) and Cincinnati's William Warren (.333, 3 HR, 24 RBI).

April pitchers of the month: Boston (A)'s Cy Young (6-2, 2.21) and New York (N) rookie Ed Walsh (6-2, 1.69 ERA, league-leading 39 K).

May batters of the month: Philadelphia (A)'s Socks Seybold (.373, 3 HR, 22 RBI) and Pittsburgh's Phil Benner (.375, .548 SLG, 19 RBI).

May pitchers of the month: Boston (A)'s Ed Killian (4-0, 0.92 ERA) and Currie (6-1, 2.29 ERA, 21 K in 63 IP).

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — June/July 1904
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — After battling New York, St. Louis and Philadelphia for the American League lead the first two months of the season, the Cleveland Broncos looked to add one more player who could help put them over the top.

General manager Levi Chronister thought he had found his man — New York (N) rookie SP Ed Walsh — but turned down a June 1 deal that would have cost him 2B Danny Murphy, rookie SP Nick Altrock, and first-round pick and No. 2-overall prospect Frank "Piano Mover" Smith.

"The cost was just too much right now," Chronister said. "The Giants are asking for fair value, but we're leading the AL, so we don't feel we have to add someone at this moment. We may revisit the deal after the season, though."

With the battle atop the AL getting no easier through June, though, Chronister decided he couldn't wait until after the season, pulling the trigger on the deal June 28.

"We saw how important a dominant starter was in last year's World Series," said Chronister, recalling the Broncos' troubles against Philadelphia (N)'s Al Orth. "Now we have Walsh, Bob Wicker and George Mullin as our top three starters, which we feel can match up with anyone else's top three. The deal also gives us the chance to see what (Miller) Huggins can do in the majors."

Huggins, the No. 1-overall prospect, was promoted to Cleveland after the deal. He was named the starting 2B and put in the eight hole in the lineup.

Altrock was named the Giants' closer and spot starter, Smith became the team's No. 2 starter, and Murphy was named the starting second baseman and the cleanup hitter against lefties.

The trade worked out for both teams, as Cleveland went 17-10 in July, opening their AL lead by just a game over second-place Philadelphia, but even farther ahead of the rest of the pack. Walsh went 5-2 with 1.75 ERA and 1.00 WHIP during the month, including a four-hit shutout of Chicago (A) on July 28.

New York, 34-46 before the trade, went 17-11 after it after. Altrock was 3-3 with a 4.15 ERA in July, Smith was 5-2 with a 2.97 ERA and Murray hit .373/.396/.461 with two HR and 15 RBI.

In other news
Wicker started June strong with a five-hit shutout against Boston (A) on June 1. Six days later, Mullin threw a five-hit shutout of his own, beating Washington. For his efforts over the week, Mullin (2-0, 1.50 ERA) was named AL player of the week for the second time this season.

Altrock also threw a shutout for the Broncos just three days before being traded, blanking St. Louis (A) on seven hits.

Wicker, Mullin, Walsh, Roger Mortenson, Larry Vaughn, Roger Bresnahan, Frank Chance, Jeffrey Schank, Mike Donlin and Sam Crawford were all named to the AL All-Star team. Chance (0-for-3) started at 1B, Crawford (1-for-3) started in RF, Schank (1-for-4, run) started at DH, Donlin (1-for-2, RBI, BB) started in LF. Walsh (3 IP, 1 H, 1 B, 1 K) started on the mound for the AL, Mullin (2 IP, 1 H, 1 BB) picked up a hold and Mortenson (1.1 IP, 1 H) earned the save in the American League's 4-3 victory.

Broncos team offensive ratings through July: average (.268, 3rd), home runs (41, 3rd), walks (296, 2nd), stolen bases (272, 2nd), runs (522, 3rd).

Broncos team pitching ratings through July: ERA (3.06, 3rd), opponents average (.261, 6th), homers allowed (16, 7th), walks allowed (263, 11th) and runs allowed (424, T-4th).

In the minors
After trade for Walsh, SS Simon Nicholls moved into leadoff spot for Buffalo, ahead of Walter Sarratt, who was hitting .351/.409/.967 with 61 HR and 130 RBI at the time.

Nicholls finished July at .307/.378/.592 with 27 HR, 72 RBI, 44 BB in 407 AB, and Sarratt finished the month hitting .357/.416/1.002 with 88 HR, 183 RBI in 454 AB. Jack Dunleavy was hitting .286/.349/.466, 16 HR, 34 BB, 22 SB in 416 AB.

In Akron, three players hit more than 80 home runs through July — Bill Morell (83), Ralph Frisbie (84) and Oliver Nyquist (82). John Daniels (69) and Reed Sherrer (62) both passed the 60-homer plateau.

Despite the efforts of Nicholls, Sarratt and Dunleavy at the plate, Buffalo was just 62-46, four games behind Boston, in the Triple-A standings. Akron led Double-A by 26 games with an 84-24 record, and Kinston (68-40) was three games behind Chicago in Single-A.

AROUND THE LEAGUE
• Chicago (A)'s Zaza Harvey hit for the cycle June 2 against Philadelphia.
• Brooklyn's Joe Kelley picked up his 2,000th career hit June 7 against New York (N).
• Pittsburgh's Phil Benner hit for the cycle June 7 against Chicago (N).
• Philadelphia (N)'s George Davis hit for the cycle June 25 against Brooklyn.
• Chicago (A)'s Red Ames one-hit New York (A) on June 28.
• Washington's Tully Sparks two-hit Philadelphia (A) on July 18.
• SP Vic Willis was traded from Detroit to Washington for CF Roy Thomas on July 30. The Senators became the third team of the season for Willis, who was signed as a free agent by the St. Louis Browns before being claimed off waivers by the Tigers.
• The New York Giants strengthened their pitching staff with another trade right before the deadline, sending SP Roger Denzer and $2.4 million to Philadelphia (N) for 25-year-old SP Clarence Currie.

June batters of the month: Boston (A)'s Benjamin Keever (.360, .607 SLG, 3 HR, 22 RBI) and Pittsburgh's Alexander Bufkin (.418, .604 SLG, 13 RBI).

June pitchers of the month: Boston (A)'s Cy Young (5-2, 1.29 ERA, 11 K in 63 IP) and St. Louis (N)'s Jesse Tannehill (7-0, 2.29 ERA, 15 K, 58 H in 63 IP).

July batters of the month: Boston (A)'s Freddy Parent (.426, 2 HR, 13 RBI) and Cincinnati's Steven Dunbar (.447, .606 SLG, 2 HR, 14 RBI).

July pitchers of the month: Philadelphia (A)'s James Callahan (6-1, 2.04 ERA, 2 SHO) and Boston (N)'s Jack Harper (6-1, 1.60 ERA).

League files are up-to-date.

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — Aug./Sept./Oct. 1904
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — For the second straight year, the Cleveland Broncos will represent the American League in the World Series.

After battling Philadephia, New York, Boston and St. Louis atop the AL much of the season, Cleveland finally pulled away and clinched the league crown with a 12-1 run over the second half of September. The Broncos finished 103-59, 10 games ahead of the Highlanders, 11 games ahead of the Athletics and 12 games in front of the Pilgrims.

"This team continues to make me proud down the stretch," manager Wilbur Nether said. "These guys keep pulling together late in the season and showing the other teams who's boss."

Cleveland will face Pittsburgh, which won the National League with a 101-61 record, 14 games ahead of Boston.

Cleveland assured its future would be bright with four contract extensions in the final two months of the season. Outfielder Mike Donlin signed a six-year deal worth $9.875 a year, outfielder Sam Crawford signed a four-year contract worth just under $12.5 million a season, catcher Roger Bresnahan signed a five-year extension worth $4,215,200 a year, and outfielder Matty McIntyre inked a four-year deal worth $4,128,450 a season.

"All four guys got nice-sized raises — especially Donlin and Crawford," general manager Levi Chronister said, "but we think they deserve it. They've helped us make two straight World Series, and we want them around for years to come."

The Broncos will have to look for infield help during free agency, though, after not coming to terms on extensions with 3B Jimmy Williams and MI Billy Gilbert.

"We wanted to bring both of them back," Chronister said, "but they priced themselves out of what we felt we could afford. Next season will likely be the first time we sign a major free agent, or maybe even two."

With infielders Nap Lajoie, Honus Wagner, Freddy Parent, Bill Keister, Harry Steinfeldt, Erve Beck, Gene DeMontreville, Kid Elberfeld and others available during the free-agent signing period, Cleveland should be able to land at least a replacement for Williams at third base, if not a high-quality backup infielder as well.

In other news
• Roger Bresnahan hit two homers and drove in six runs against St. Louis (A) on Aug. 17.
• Donlin set team record for doubles with his 39th on Aug. 30. He finished with 42 two-baggers.
• Ed Walsh two-hit Philadelphia (A) on Aug. 31.
• Bob Wicker set a team record with his 27th win Sept. 23 and finished with 28 victories.
• Jeffrey Schank was named AL player of the month for September, hitting .322, 4 HR, 19 RBI. He also set team records of 98 RBI and 80 strikeouts.
• Frank Chance sets team record for runs with 102 on last day of regular season. He also broke the team stolen-bases mark with 78.
• Crawford set a team record with 198 hits.
• Walsh set a Cleveland record with 132 strikeouts.
• George Mullin set a team record with 119 walks allowed.
• Team hitting rankings: second in average (.271) and home runs (64), and first in walks (452), stolen bases (405) and runs scored (802).
• Team pitching rankings: first in ERA (2.88), fifth in opponents average (.255), third in homers allowed (21), sixth in walks allowed (349) and second in runs allowed (610).

Crawford was second in AL in hitting (.321) and third in OPS (.800) and homers (11), Schank led the league in home runs (21) and was second in RBI (98), Chance was third in stolen bases (102), Walsh lead the AL in ERA (2.25) and strikeouts (132), Wicker led in wins (28) and was third in strikeouts (106), Mullin tied for second in wins (27), and Mordecai Brown was third in ERA (2.52).

In the minors
Buffalo (72-66) finished third in Triple-A, Akron (109-29) was first in Double-A by 36 games, and Kinston (84-54) was second in Single-A.

Buffalo shortstop Simon Nicholls, the No. 1-overall prospect in baseball, hit .314/.372/.575 with 33 HR, 88 RBI, 114 runs and 18 SB for the Bisons. With Rudy Hulswitt finishing the season at .201/.229/.264, Nicholls could begin next season in Cleveland.

Ridiculous offensive numbers abounded again this season, namely with Walter Sarratt. The 31-year-old Buffalo 3B hit .375/.425/1.079 with 121 HR, 236 RBI and 177 runs hitting behind Nicholls.

Other Buffalo hitters with big numbers included: Gregory Vaughn (.365/.421/.756, 69 HR, 131 RBI, 132 runs) and Julius Jefferson (.271/.339/.637, 58 HR, 122 RBI). Jack Dunleavy, nearly ready for the majors, hit .275/.333/.444 with 19 HR, 52 RBI, 82 runs and 25 SB in 527 at-bats.

Akron Aeros hitters with incredible offensive production included: Oliver Nyquist (.364/.418/1.033, 111 HR, 198 RBI, 161 runs), Bill Morell (.372/.424/1.114, 110 HR, 186 RBI, 162 runs), Ralph Frisbie (.354/.440/.985, 110 HR, 162 RBI, 172 runs), John Daniels (.355/.427/.853, 89 HR, 136 RBI, 176 runs, 33 SB), Reed Sherrer (.347/.430/.839, 78 HR, 135 RBI, 139 runs) and Carson Bogar (.316/.386/.734, 65 HR, 122 RBI, 114 runs and 20 SB).

AROUND THE LEAGUE
• Frank Smith, traded from Cleveland to New York (N) in late June, was named NL player of the month July 9 after going 2-0 with an 0.50 ERA.
• Detroit's Pink Hawley two-hit Chicago (A) on July 10.
• Philadelphia (A)'s James Callahan blanked Chicago (A) on two hits July 15, his fifth shutout of the season.
• New York (N)'s Deacon Phillippe one-hit Brooklyn on Sept. 1.
• Chicago (A)'s Al Orth two-hit Boston (A) on Sept. 4.
• Pittsburgh's Rube Waddell one-hit Brooklyn on Sept. 5.

August batters of the month: Boston (A)'s Francis Iniguez (.426, 2 HR, 12 RBI) and Cincinnati's Steven Dunbar (.321, 15 RBI).

August pitchers of the month: Boston (A)'s Cy Young (7-1, 2.38 ERA) and St. Louis (N)'s Mike O'Neill (5-2, 1.18 ERA, 20 K in 61 IP).

September batters of the month: Schank and Boston (N)'s Fred Tenney (.420, .480 OBP, 21 RBI).

September pitchers of the month: St. Louis (A)'s Bill Reidy (5-0, 1.47 ERA, 1 SHO) and Brooklyn's Ham Iburg (4-3, 1.48 ERA, 22 K in 61 IP).

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — 1904 World Series
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

Game One — Pittsburgh 13, Cleveland 5
What looked to be a pitchers' duel with Pittsburgh's Christy Mathewson facing Cleveland's Bob Wicker turned into an offensive explosion for the Pirates, who scored four runs in the fourth inning and six in the fifth. Wicker lasted just 4 2/3 innings, giving up 11 hits and 12 runs, just six of which were earned. Cleveland committed four errors, including two by Sherry Magee.

Alexander Bufkin was 3-for-5 with a homer, two RBI and a run, Claude Ritchey was 3-for-3 with two RBI and three runs, and former Bronco Harry Davis was 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs. Mathewson earned the win with a complete-game effort, giving up five runs on nine hits.

Game Two — Cleveland 5, Pittsburgh 4
The Broncos bounced back from the Game 1 shellacking in Game 2, opening up a 4-2 lead with three runs in the fourth and scoring the game-winning run in the seventh on a sacrifice fly by Jeffrey Schank.

Ed Walsh earned the victory for Cleveland, going nine innings and giving up just eight hits while striking out seven. Mike Donlin was 4-for-4 with two 2BH, two RBI and a run, and Rudy Hulswitt was 2-for-3 and scored the game-winning run.

Game Three — Cleveland 19, Pittsburgh 3
The Broncos, wanting to show their fans that their offense was every bit as explosive as the Pirates', broke out for 19 runs and 24 hits in the series' first game in Cleveland. Pittsburgh led, 3-1, through 3 1/2 innings, but Cleveland scored five runs in the fourth, three in the fifth, two in the sixth, one in the seventh and seven in the eighth.

Frank Chance was 4-for-6 with a homer, five RBI and two runs, and five other Broncos had three hits each. Cleveland roughed up Pittsburgh starter Sam Leever for 12 hits and 11 runs in 5.2 innings, and weren't much nicer to the Pirates' bullpen. George Mullin earned the win, giving up just three runs on nine hits while striking out four batters.

Game Four — Cleveland 3, Pittsburgh 2
The rematch of Mathewson and Wicker turned into the pitchers' duel expected in Game 1. Pittsburgh took a 2-0 lead in the second inning, and held onto that margin until the eighth inning when Chance doubled home Hulswitt. Down to their final chance, the Broncos staged a dramatic ninth-inning rally. Schank led off the inning with a triple and scored a batter later on a double by Magee. Mathewson intentionally walked Sam Crawford before Jimmy Williams grounded into a double play. Roger Bresnahan ended the game, though, with a single to left that scored Magee from third.

Chance and Hulswitt were both 2-for-3. Both were hitting .500 or better in the series through Game 4. Wicker earned the win with nine innings of six-hit ball, striking out three batters.

Game Five — Cleveland 4, Pittsburgh 3
Wanting to end the series before heading back to Pittsburgh, the Broncos won the game and the series with two runs in the bottom of the eighth. The Pirates had taken a 3-2 lead in the top of the inning before the Broncos tied the game on a fielders choice by Williams. Bresnahan again proved the hero, this time with a sacrifice fly to right-center field. Ed Walsh held Pittsburgh to just one hit in the top of the ninth.

Crawford was 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run, and Schank was 2-for-4 with two runs. Walsh gave up nine hits and three runs in nine innings.

Chance was named World Series Most Outstanding Player after hitting .455 with a homer and eight RBI against the Pirates.

MOST OUTSTANDING BATTER
American League: Philadelphia (A)'s Nap Lajoie (.335/.380/.463, 98 RBI, 86 runs, 37 SB; fourth straight award).
National League: Cincinnati's Steven Dunbar (.336/.391/.484, 18 HR, 72 RBI, 90 runs).

MOST OUTSTANDING PITCHER
American League: New York (A)'s Harry Howell (27-15, 2.33 ERA, .240 OPPAvg, 1.05 WHIP, 98 K in 390 IP).
National League: Boston (N)'s Togie Pittinger (26-16, 2.69, .272 OPPAvg, 1.34 WHIP, 119 K in 364.2 IP).

MOST OUTSTANDING ROOKIE
American League: Walsh (24-15, 2.25 ERA, .214 OPPAvg, 0.96 WHIP, 132 K in 359.2 IP).
National League: New York (N)'s Nick Altrock (22-16, 3.46 ERA, .283 OPPAvg, 1.29 WHIP, 65 K in 327.1 IP).

League files are up-to-date.

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — 1905 Preseason
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — Having yet to sign a free agent during the preseason signing period, the Cleveland Broncos made a big splash in the 1905 free-agent market, inking two starting infielders and a backup outfielder.

The Broncos signed SS Honus Wagner and 2B Nap Lajoie, giving them a solid middle-infield combo for the first time in their short history. Wagner signed Feb. 23 for $14,351,810 a year for five seasons, making him the top-paid player in baseball.

"We know we're paying Honus a lot," Cleveland general manager Levi Chronister said, "especially for a 30-year-old player, but we have yet to have a shortstop who can hit and field, and we were willing to go above and beyond our usual contract to get the guy who can do both of those things best."

Lajoie, the only Most Outstanding Batter in the four years of the American League, signed a five-year deal worth $9,351,480 a season.

"I know we have Miller Huggins at second," Chronister said, "but we weren't thrilled with the way he played after being called up last season. Also, and I don't know why this is, but it just seemed right to sign Lajoie."

Cleveland also signed Jimmy Slagle as a defensive replacement and backup outfielder. Slagle will make $1,334,850 a season for three years.

"We wanted a backup outfielder who could hit and field," Chronister said, "and Jimmy, while a bit older than we normally look for, can do both very well. He'll back us up at all three outfield spots and will get the occasional start as well."

Though the Broncos added Ed Walsh midseason last year, they made an offer to Noodles Hahn ($10,894,650 a year for five years), but the 25-year-old starter signed a five-year contract with Brooklyn for $13,446,320 per season.

"Noodles would have been a nice addition to our rotation," Chronister said, "but not a real necessary one. We feel we have four quality young starters already and we're perfectly happy to go into next season with them."

There was some disappointment for the Broncos during February. Chronister entered the signing period hoping to sign a replacement for 3B Jimmy Williams, who wasn't signed to an extension after last season. Chronister expected to be able to choose from three or four talented third basement, but, not fully understanding the free-agent and arbitration system, Chronister was finished the period without a replacement for Williams.

"That is completely my fault," Chronister said. "I thought I had finally figured out the financial complexities of this sport, but I guess there was at least one more thing to trip me up. We'll have to either draft someone to play the hot corner, make a trade or start Jimmy Burke, who I think we'd all prefer remained a backup."

Cleveland also unexpectedly signed catcher Mike Grady to a four-year deal worth $1,584,500 a season. The Broncos were trying to drive up Grady's price to other teams, but ended up making an offer no one else would match. They're stuck with him until at least June, as league rules state that teams may not trade recently signed players until after the first two months of the season.

The Broncos had one more important preseason signing, extending the contract of Buffalo manager Richard Richie for five-years at $700,000 a season.

Picking last in a draft that was very weak after the first 20-25 players didn't seem very promising to the Broncos, but they ended up getting just what they needed — a third baseman.

The Broncos selected Wilbur "Lefty" Good, a slick-fielding third baseman with good, no pun intended, potential at the plate. Good hit .592/.612/.748 in an easy high school league in California and signed for a bonus of $133,650.

"I'm shocked Wilbur dropped this far," Chronister said. "We had him rated much higher on our boards, even not taking our lack of a starting third baseman into consideration. We're thrilled to have someone who can play stellar defense and hold his own at the plate. With Good, Wagner and Lajoie now in the infield, we think our pitchers will be much more confident on the mound."

Other Cleveland draft picks were:
• Catcher Howard Wakefield (.325/.358/.438, 3 HR, 47 RBI at fair Southern Illinois). A potential backup or maybe even replacement for Roger Bresnahan behing the plate; now the starting catcher in Buffalo.
• MR Rip Vowinkel (2-2, 12 SV, 3.74 ERA, 47 H, 43.1 IP at average Toledo). A likely future reliever, maybe even closer; now the closer in Buffalo.
• RF Punch Knoll (.292/.324/.422, 4 HR, 53 RBI in 263 AB at very tought Auburn). A potential future backup outfielder; now the starting rightfielder in Kinston.

With a starting lineup finally set, Cleveland appeared ready to defend its back-to-back World Series titles. With a league-high payroll of more than $84 million, though, Chronister wasn't done acquiring players.

Cleveland sent OF Sam Crawford, Huggins, CL James Bracken and $5 million to Chicago (N) on March 2 for RF Frank Schulte, saving the Broncos more than $13 million in salary. Cleveland's payroll dropped to just over $71 million, fifth-highest in the league.

"We had to do something about our payroll," Chronister said. "We had the cash to pay for an team making $84 million a year, but probably not much past this season or next. This trade allowed us to save a nice chunk of change in the future, even if we had to send $5 million to Chicago to help cover Crawford's salary."

Schulte's arrival allowed Sherry Magee to move to left field and Jeffrey Schank to replace Crawford as designated hitter, again helping Cleveland's defense. Huggins' departure was made possible by Lajoie's signing, and Bracken was made available by the drafting of Vowinkel.

After the trade, draft and FA-signing period, Cleveland's starting lineup and rotation looks like this:
 C — Roger Bresnahan (bats 8th against righties, 8th against lefties)
1B — Frank Chance (5th, 6th)
2B — Nap Lajoie (1st, 2nd)
3B — Wilbur Good (9th, 9th)
SS — Honus Wagner (2nd, 5th)
LF — Sherry Magee (6th, 1st)
CF — Mike Donlin (3rd, 3rd)
RF — Frank Schulte (7th, 7th)
DH — Jeffrey Schank (4th, 4th)

SP — Ed Walsh
SP — Bob Wicker
SP — Moredecai Brown
SP — George Mullin
MR — Roger Mortensen
MR — Charlie Shields
SU — Billy Milligan
SU — Harry McNeal (also spot starter)
CL — Larry Vaughn

The Broncos decided to take advantage of their success over the past two years by expanding their stadium. After drawing a record crowd of 3,475,232 people last season, Cleveland added 20,000 seats at a cost of $1,000 per seat.

"We were close to selling out every game last season," Chronister said, "and we wanted to make sure all our fans could attend. I'll admit that some of these new seats don't have the greatest sight lines, but I promise our fans we did the best we could."

Chronister wouldn't comment on rumors that the Broncos would be raising ticket prices from $8 to $9 a person this season.

In other news
• Starting pitchers George Mullin and Bob Wicker each received healthy raises during arbitration. Mullin went from $300,000 a season to $3,821,429, and Wicker jumped from the same original salary to $3,628,571. Schank also receved a raise to just a bit over $4 million a season.
• Signed 30-year-old RF Sport McAllister to a minor-league deal, goes to Buffalo as starting RF

Around the league
• Pitcher Amos Rusie (257-190, 3.13 ERA, 2004 K in 3945 IP) retires and made the Hall of Fame.
• Outfielder Billy Hamilton (.329/.433/.409, 888 RBI, 2486 H, 1856 runs, 1,076 SB in 16 seasons) retired and made the Hall of Fame.

Other notable draft picks included:
• SP Orval Overall to Chicago (A)
• SP Ed Ruelbach to St. Louis (A)
•  C Branch Rickey to Detroit
• 1B Hal Chase to St. Louis (A)

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — April/May 1905
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — After coming up big in the free-agent bonanza, the Cleveland Broncos started slowly before taking two of three games against Philadelphia (A) and tying the Athletics atop the American League at 7-4.

Cleveland fought Philadelphia the rest of the month, never leading the Athletics by more than two games until the final three days of April when the Chicago (A) White Sox moved within two games. The Broncos still led the AL with an 18-10 record at the end of the month.

Emmet Heidrick, signed by Philadelphia in the offseason to help replace the offensive production of Cleveland signee Nap Lajoie, was named April's batter of the month after hitting .373 with a .518 slugging percentage and 17 RBI.

Cleveland starter Bob Wicker matched Heidrick's production, winning the April pitcher of the month award with a 6-1 record, 2.29 ERA and 10 strikeouts in 63 innings. He also shutout Boston (A) on seven hits April 19.

The Broncos finished May at 36-19, five games ahead of St. Louis (A) and slowly pulling away from the pack.

In other news
• Mordecai Brown was named player of week April 12 after going 2-0 with two shutouts — a seven-hitter against Washington on April 7 and a two-hitter against Philadelphia on April 11.
• Honus Wagner had a 27-game hitting streak snapped May 10.
• Ed Walsh was named player of week May 17. He was 2-0 with 1.50 ERA and one shutout (a four-hitter against Washington on May 16) the previous week. He also pitched five-hit shutout against Chicago (A) on May 28.

In the minors
• Second-round pick Howard Wakefield hit .335/.378/.518 with seven homers and 24 RBI as Buffalo's starting catcher.
• Third-round pick Rip Vowinkel was 0-3 with 11 saves and a 5.14 ERA in 15 games as Buffalo's closer.
• Top prospect Simon Nicholls hit .291/.353/.419 with six homers, 22 RBI and 14 SB as Buffalo's shortstop.
• Outfielder Jack Dunleavy hit .287/.368/.505 with seven homers, 37 RBI and 14 SB in Buffalo and is nearly ready for the majors.
• Walter Sarratt hit .336/.389/.905 with 40 HR and 75 RBI for Buffalo.
• Four Akron Aeros put up big numbers in the first two months of the season: John Daniels (.381/.448/.931, 40 HR, 63 RBI, 84 runs), Bill Morell (.357/.415/1.067, 46 HR, 75 RBI, 71 runs), Ralph Frisbie (.400/.496/1.130, 47 HR, 87 RBI, 89 runs) and Oliver Nyquist (.357/.419/1.014, 41 HR, 77 RBI, 68 runs).
• Buffalo was 22-33, just two games out of last in Triple-A.
• Akron was 45-10, 10 games ahead of Boston in Double-A.
• Kinston was 44-11, 13 games ahead of Philadelphia in Single-A.

AROUND THE LEAGUE
• Detroit's Joe Harris two-hit Boston (A) on April 30.
• New York (N)'s Oscar Jones two-hit Philadelphia (N) on May 15.
• Philadelphia's Hughie Jennings got his 2,000th career hit May 27 against Brooklyn off Noodles Hahn. Hahn, who signed a five-year deal for $13,446,320 a year in the offseason, finished May at 5-10 with a 3.41 ERA and 150 hits in 134.2 IP.

April batters of the month: Heidrick and Philadelphia (N)'s Elmer Flick (.404, .505 SLG, 1 HR, 23 RBI).

April pitchers of the month: Wicker and St. Louis (N)'s Jim Buchanan (4-2, 1.38 ERA, 17 K in 52 IP).

May batters of the month: St. Louis (A)'s John Anderson (.378, 2 HR, 16 RBI) and Pittsburgh's Fred Clarke (.348, 2 HR, 23 RBI).

May pitchers of the month: Washington's Red Donahue (7-0, 1.94 ERA) and Chicago (N)'s Jack Taylor (6-1, 0.44 ERA, 12 K in 62 IP).

[firstbigweekend]

Cleveland Blues Update — June/July 1905
By Chauncey St. John, Associated Press

CLEVELAND — The past two months have been full of awards for Cleveland Broncos players, especially pitchers.

Starting pitcher George Mullin was named AL pitcher of the month for June. Mullin was 5-0 with a 1.61 ERA during the month, pitching a three-hit shutout against Washington on June 6 and blanking Chicago (A) on three hits June 18.

Bob Wicker earned his first player of the week honor June 21 after going 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA for the week, which included a two-hit shutout of Chicago (A) on June 20. Wicker didn't have to wait long for his second such honor, picking up the same award July 26. He was 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA and a three-hit shutout of Detroit that week.

No. 4-starter Mordecai Brown was the AL pitcher of the month for July, going 7-0 with a 1.97 ERA and 16 K in 64 IP. He gave up two or fewer runs in five of his seven starts, earning the monthly honor for the first time.

Designated hitter Jeffrey Schank made sure Cleveland's pitchers weren't the only ones getting awards this summer. Schank was named AL player of the week June 7 after hitting .462 with a homer and nine RBI. He also was named AL batter of the month for June, marking the Broncos' first ever sweeping of the monthly awards. Schank hit .379 with three homers and 27 RBI in June.

Starters Ed Walsh and Wicker, closer Larry Vaughn, catcher Roger Bresnahan, second baseman Nap Lajoie, shortstop Honus Wagner, centerfielder Mike Donlin, and leftfielder Sherry Magee joined Mullin and Schank on the AL All-Star team at the end of June.

The American League won the game, 12-1, led by Detroit shortstop Bill Keister (3-for-5 with three runs) and Philadelphia (A) shortstop Kid Elberfield (3-for-4 with three RBI). Lajoie led Cleveland's representatives at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two RBI. Walsh picked up the win with three scoreless innings, and Mullin pitched two scoreless frames.

In other news
• Cleveland traded catcher Mike Grady and reliever Roger Mortenson to St. Louis (N) for reliever Charlie Jaeger, who replaced Mortenson in the bullpen.
• Walsh pitched a five-hit shutout against Boston (A) on July 7.
• First-round pick and starting third baseman Wilbur "Lefty" Good finished July hitting .232/.268/.276 at the bottom of the lineup. After a very poor June (.195/.196/.241), Good picked up in July (.265/.308/.301) for his first .600-OPS-or-better month of his short career.

In the minors
• Third-round pick Rip Vowinkel finished July at 4-4, 23 saves, 5.23 ERA, .323 OPPAvg and 1.78 WHIP as Buffalo's closer.
• Top prospect Simon Nicholls was hitting .299/.354/.424, 12 HR, 40 RBI, 80 runs in 107 games in Buffalo through July.
• Outfielder Jack Dunleavy, nearly ready for the majors, finished July at .284/.353/.448, 10 HR, 56 RBI, 53 runs in 101 games in Buffalo.
• Second-round pick Howard Wakefield was hitting .305/.351/.449, 10 HR, 43 RBI, 59 runs in 108 games in Buffalo.
• Second baseman Mark Johnson was hitting .353/.450/.917, 67 HR, 121 RBI, 119 runs in 106 games in Kinston, earning a promotion to Akron at the end of July.
• Fourth-round selection Punch Knoll finished July at .212/.291/.338, 11 HR, 36 RBI, 51 runs in 106 games in Kinston.
• Buffalo was sixth in Triple-A at 45-63, Akron was first in Double-A at 84-24 (15-game lead) and Kinston was first in Single-A at 81-27 (27-game lead).

AROUND THE LEAGUE
• Chicago (A) first baseman Jack Doyle collected his 2,000th career hit June 7 against St. Louis.

• Boston (A)'s Cy Young earned his 400th career win June 18 against Washington.

• Former Cleveland and current Detroit starter Norwood Gibson two-hit New York (A) on June 20. Highlanders starter Roy Patterson got revenge with a two-hit shutout of his own, blanking Detroit on July 17.

• Philadelphia (N)'s leftfielder Ed Delahanty collected his 3,000th career hit June 25 against New York (N). Cincinnati leftfielder George Van Haltren joined Delahanty in the 3,000-hit club July 12.

• St. Louis (A) starter Ralph Tidwell two-hit New York (A) on July 24, and just three days later Browns starter Barney Wolfe no-hit Washington.

June batters of the month: Schank and Chicago (N)'s Jesse Burkett (.408, .465 OBP, 29 RBI).

June pitchers of the month: Mullin and Pittsburgh's Christy Mathewson (5-1, 1.67 ERA, 1 SHO, 21 K in 54 IP).

July batters of the month: St. Louis (A)'s Bill Friel (.351, 17 RBI) and Brooklyn's Kyle Jarnagin (.358, 4 HR, 15 RBI).

July pitchers of the month: Brown and New York (N)'s Oscar Jones (7-0, 1.83 ERA, 1 SHO, 22 K in 64 IP).

[goroyals]

Great read. Keep up the fine work.

[firstbigweekend]

Thanks. I got away from the league for a while when things got a bit busy at work (and I got a new hard drive that needed filled with music), but I hope to get back to updating every day or two (and more often when I can).