Alltime Baseball League

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ABL 2022 Midseason Reports
Western League North

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ABL 2022 Midseason Reports
Western League South

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July 2022 Standings & Statistics

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ABL Around The Horn: July 2022

• Ty Cobb's pursuit of .400 is still very much in play 2/3 of the way through the season. After his first sub-.400 month in June, Cobb batted .423 in July and is batting .426 on the season as the calendar turns to August. The Denver slugger has a 1.032 OPS and is more than 100 points ahead of the second-place batter in the Western League, Phoenix's Ozzie Smith, who is batting .317.

• Three of the four expansion teams are in the cellar of their division. But the St. Louis Steamers, despite posting their first losing month, are still eight games over .500. Their lack of offense (ninth in runs in the Eastern League) has hurt them, and the defending champion Orlando Orcas going 35-20 in the last two months has dropped St. Louis seven games back. But the franchise has to feel great about its beginnings and is expected to address its offense this offseason.

• Memphis thought Jesse Tannehill - their ace who led them to the ABL Championship in 2018 - was done after a rough start (3-5, 5.33) to 2021, following a back injury that plagued him toward the end of the 2020 season. They dealt him to Sacramento, where he put up a 3.48 ERA over 21 starts. Sacramento turned around and dealt him to Chicago this offseason for catcher Salvador Perez. Now, while Memphis sits in the cellar of the Eastern League South and Perez is the backup catcher for a Sacramento team 17 games out of first, Tannehill is second in the Eastern League in ERA (2.39) for a Chicago team only six games out of first in the tightly packed Eastern League North.
  

• After a 65-95 campaign that was their worst ever in 2021, Sacramento decided to make changes, firing their GM and bringing in former Memphis manager Bob Melvin to take over. They also committed to a free agency splash, signing Dave Henderson, whose breakout season (.303-37-105) for Louisville saw him earn Eastern League Outstanding Hitter honors, to a seven-year, $163.8M deal. Henderson is batting .222 with 11 homers and 49 RBI so far this season and Sacramento has to wonder what the next six years will bring.

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ABL July 2022 Batting & Pitching Registers

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August 2022 Standings & Statistics

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ABL Around The Horn: August 2022

• The annual August trade rush saw the usual array of complementary deals, but one big move captured the eyes - and raised the eyebrows - of many. Louisville dealt ace Bob Feller to Charlotte on August 2nd. Feller was 10-8 with a 3.01 ERA, and posting his best season to date, poised to break the single-season strikeout mark. Louisville was six games out in the Eastern League North at the time, and Charlotte has been in the cellar of the Eastern League South for much of the season. Plus, Feller is signed through 2025. The deal included first baseman Wally Joyner in return for Hod Eller (7-6, 3.98 at the time), Jim Lefevbre and cash.
  
  Feller made two starts for Charlotte before being diagnosed with a torn elbow ligament that will keep him out of action for at least a year. The Charlotte front office is livid but Louisville denies any knowledge of an injury to Feller before the deal.
  
  Though he was taken in the inaugural draft, Feller is still only 22 years old. Taking the Louisville/Charlotte "scandal" out of the equation, the real story is that the league has lost one of its most dynamic players to a serious injury.
  
  
• Denver's Ty Cobb enters September batting .412, keeping his push for .400 alive but coming off his worst month of the season, a .357 August. With Denver having run away with the Western League North, and after last year's disappointing postseason finish, one has to wonder how Cobb will be handled during the season's final month. It would be hard to criticize manager Joe Maddon for resting Cobb sufficiently, which could generate criticism of the mark if Cobb attains it - or draw Cobb's ire if he falls short.

• Omaha may have struck gold with unheralded draft pick Wally Judnich. Taken 20th overall in last year's draft, Judnich sits third in the league in homers with 20. He figures to battle Las Vegas' Johan Santana (10-7, 3.22) for Rookie of the Year honors.
  
  
• New Orleans' Frank Viola became the fourth player in ABL history to throw a no-hitter, shutting down Seattle on August 19th. Viola struck out 8 and walked 4 in the Knights' 6-2 win. He joins A.J. Burnett (2018), Satchel Paige (2020) and Wiley Piatt earlier this season in accomplishing the feat. Oddly enough, the gem comes in the 2018 ERA champ's worst season of his career. He's 12-6, but holds a 4.63 ERA.

[G-Force]

ABL August 2022 Batting & Pitching Registers

[G-Force]

It's ABL Pennant Chase time! Up next, a day-by-day overview of the final two weeks of the season races that are within five games.

Right now, Denver leads the Western League North by 12 games over Omaha, while the defending champion Orlando Orcas hold a 10-game advantage in the Eastern League South. So we won't follow those divisions unless something miraculous happens down the stretch.

The Eastern League North sees the New York Heroes with a two game lead over Boston and 5 1/2 games over Chicago. Meanwhile, in the Western League South, the San Antonio Stallions have caught the Los Angeles Lightning and lead them by 2 1/2 games.

Teams have 13 or 14 games remaining.

I'll also give updates on other things like leaderboard races and such.

And so on we go to the conclusion of the ABL's 2022 season.

GH

[G-Force]

September 12, 2022

Eastern League North

New York 4, Louisville 3 (11 innings). Larry Walker hit a two-out walkoff homer, his 18th, off Bill Donovan to lift the Heroes to a dramatic victory! The New York bullpen allowed one run over six innings of work. Walker was the only batter Donovan faced, relieving Todd Worrell, who had thrown 2 2/3 innings of shutout relief, striking out five.


St. Louis 7, Boston 5. The Riders lost a game and possibly more, as batting leader Sam Crawford left with an apparent shoulder injury. Meanwhile, Francisco Lindor homered and drove in four for the Steamers, who continue to push for a winning season in their first year in existence. They are currently 77-71.


Chicago 3, Columbus 2 (11 innings). Jesse Tannehill threw 10 innings of 2-run ball and Bob Howry earned his 11th win in relief as the Hitmen won it when Kelly Johnson scored on a Joe Beggs wild pitch to walk it off in the 11th. Columbus got nine innings of 2-run ball from John Lackey, who has posted a 3.16 ERA in four starts since being acquired from Omaha in August.

Western League South

Denver 7, San Antonio 4. The Pilots rode a 2-run shot from Willie McCovey, his 13th, as part of a 4 RBI day to victory after the Stallions struck starter Billy Pierce for three runs in the first. Pierce would settle in and the Denver attack would grind its way back in a 16-hit attack. Pierce improved to 17-7, while Tom Henke earned his 32nd save. Roy Oswalt fell to 14-9 for the Stallions. Ty Cobb had two hits and is now hitting .418, including .480 this month!


Los Angeles 5, Las Vegas 0. Dave Boswell (13-13) and Gary Lavelle combined for a three-hit shutout and the Lightning put 16 men on base against Ted Trent (6-15) en route to a victory that moves them within a game and a half of San Antonio for the division.

[G-Force]

September 13, 2022

Eastern League North

Memphis 5, Chicago 3 (11 innings). ERA leader Eppa Rixey allowed three runs (two earned) over eight innings of work, but watched Stan Musial hit a walkoff two-run shot in the 11th inning off Bob Howry as the Hitmen lost the only game on the docket today. Dave Burba threw 3 2/3 innings of scoreless, hitless relief for the Sounds, allowing only one walk. The Sounds have played 13 games above .500 since June 1st, but an 18-35 start to the season has proven insurmountable.

[G-Force]

September 14, 2022

Eastern League North

Charlotte 3, New York 2. Nick Strincevich (7-12, 4.83) outlasted David Palmer (10-7, 3.26) and was backed by a two-run homer from Trea Turner (12) as Charlotte upended the division leading Heroes. Wally Joyner had two hits for Charlotte and has hit .329 with an .875 OPS since being acquired in the controversial deal that also brought Bob Feller to Charlotte from Louisville.


Boston 3, Alabama 2 (11 innings). Boston's Satchel Paige (11-8, 3.76) and Alabama's Noodles Hahn (10-8, 4.41) dueled, each allowing one run over seven innings. But this one would be decided in extras, as Al Rosen hit a walkoff RBI single off Earl Moore to give the Riders the victory and close the gap on New York. Sam Crawford played, and has said he will play through the biceps strain that took him out of the game early two days ago. He had two hits and continues to lead the Eastern League in batting at .351 and extended his hitting streak to 26 games.



Chicago 5, St. Louis 3. Ben Sheets won his 15th, allowing three runs over eight innings as the Hitmen stay in the hunt. Chicago scored three runs in the top of the ninth as the Steamers bullpen wasted Tom Glavine's strong effort (7 IP, 2 R, 5 Ks).

Western League South

San Antonio 4, Sacramento 3. Jim Bunning earned his 16th win for the Stallions and Greg Holland earned his 34th save as San Antonio held off a late attack by the Stingers. Ed Delahanty had three hits and Jason Giambi hit his 18th homer for the Stallions. Jack Clark hit his 10th in the loss for Sacramento.


Los Angeles 6, Seattle 1. A.J. Burnett threw a complete game, striking out 9 to earn his 15th win of the season and help the Lightning keep pace with San Antonio. Willie Mays hit his 17th homer of the season for Los Angeles, who got to Felix Hernandez for five runs. Hernandez, a disappointment so far in his ABL career, has gone 2-1 with a 2.77 ERA since Seattle acquired him from Columbus in August despite his lackluster effort here.

• Denver clinched the Western League North division with a 7-3 win over Omaha.
• New Orleans' Gary Sheffield hit his 27th homer of the season to give him the Western League lead. Omaha's Jim Wynn has 26.
  

[JaBurns]

Cobb is tearing it up, hope he hits .400 but not too much over, .3996 would do it for me.

[G-Force]

Originally Posted by JaBurns

Cobb is tearing it up, hope he hits .400 but not too much over, .3996 would do it for me.

Yeah, it’s been fun to watch. Best of all is that it is not like the league is tearing it up offensively. Lou Boudreau is second and he’s hitting 323. Cobb has just been that good.

GH

[G-Force]

September 15, 2022

Eastern League North

New York 8, Charlotte 3. Every New York starter had a hit in a 15-hit attack that saw the Heroes cruise past the Cougars, who saw John Thomson (9-12) unable to make it out of the fifth inning. Bill Wight improved to 14-10 for New York.


Alabama 5, Boston 0. Ron Darling (12-11, 4.48) threw a complete game three-hitter to shut down the Riders as Alabama cruised. The Slammers got three hits, including a homer, from Albert Pujols, whose down season has been a big reason for Alabama's struggles.



Chicago 4, St. Louis 3. Mickey Mantle broke a 3-3 tie in the 8th with his ABL-leading 33rd homer as Chicago kept up its pursuit of New York. St. Louis got four hits from rookie Don Mattingly, traded last month by Chicago to the Steamers for Jose Cardenal - who has hit .368 in 14 games for the Hitmen since the trade and is third in the Eastern League batting race at .333.

Western League South

Sacramento 7, San Antonio 5. Ken Henderson hit a grand slam in the bottom of the first, his 18th, and Sacramento held off a San Antonio rally. Big free agent pickup Dave Henderson hit his 14th for the Stingers. He's batting only .227. Mr. Consistency Ed Delahanty had two hits and is now batting .313 for the Stallions. He's fourth in ABL history with a .326 average.


Los Angeles 6, Seattle 2. The Lightning hit three homers and got a complete game from Kevin Appier for his first win since coming to L.A. in a deadline deal with Seattle, for whom he went 9-9 with a 2.84 ERA. Bill Dietrich took his 17th loss as the Lightning moved within a half game of first.

• Ty Cobb went 2-for-4 and is batting .416.
  

[G-Force]

September 16, 2022

Eastern League North

Charlotte 11, New York 9 (12 innings). A rough one to lose for New York here, as the Heroes led 8-6 going into the bottom of the 8th before an RBI single from Adolfo Phillips (one of five hits on the day) and an RBI triple from Ken Williams tied the game. New York took the lead in the 11th on an RBI single from Arky Vaughan, but Phillips struck another RBI single to tie it in the bottom half before Jim Gentile hit a two-out, two-run homer off Dave Smith in the bottom of the 12th for the walkoff win for the Cougars.


Boston 2, Alabama 1 (13 innings). Wally Backman's RBI single in the bottom of the 13th scored Rick Wilkins to give Boston a dramatic victory and close the gap in the North to two games. Kirk McCaskill (11-7, 3.48) threw 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball and Ugueth Urbina, Cy Falkenberg and winner Andy Cooper combined for 6 1/3 innings of 3-hit shutout relief. Jack Morris threw seven innings of one-run ball for Alabama.


St. Louis 5, Chicago 2. Bill Salkeld's second homer of the season was a three-run shot in the bottom of the eighth off Keith Foulke to hand Chicago a rough loss they can ill afford at this point. Mickey Mantle hit his ABL-leading 34th homer in the defeat.

Western League South

San Antonio 7, Sacramento 5. Morgan Ensberg drove in three runs and every San Antonio starter had a hit as the Stallions scored seven runs without a homer in knocking off the Stingers. Jake Arrieta wasn't great, but lasted long enough to earn his 14th win of the season. Milt May went 4-for-4 in the loss for Sacramento.


Los Angeles 10, Seattle 7. Andy Pafko hit his 11th homer and drove in five runs to lift the Lightning past the Grinders and keep them on San Antonio's heels. Ken Sanders allowed six hits and four runs in 1 1/3 innings of relief for Seattle. Greg Harris won his 14th for the Lightning.

• Ty Cobb went 1-for-4 in Denver's 8-3 loss to Omaha. He's now batting .415
• Jim Wynn hit his 27th homer of the season in the win for Omaha, tying him with Gary Sheffield for the Western League lead.
• Defending ABL champion Orlando used a five-run eighth to top Columbus 5-4 and earn their second straight Eastern League South division crown.
  

[G-Force]

September 17, 2022

Eastern League North

New York 2, Alabama 0. Brandon Morrow threw eight shutout innings and Dan Plesac notched his 36th save as the Heroes picked up a huge win as they hope to take advantage of Boston and Chicago knocking each other around for the next three days. Larry Walker picked up RBI number 104 to lead the Eastern League. Morrow, a free agent after the season, has gone 2-2 with a 1.84 ERA since being acquired in August from New Orleans.


Chicago 10, Boston 7. In the opener of a three-game set that will likely eliminate one if not both teams from contention, Mickey Mantle delivered a walkoff three-run homer - his league-leading 35th - giving him 104 RBI to tie Larry Walker for the league lead. Jose Cardenal had four more hits and has hit .385 since coming over from St. Louis at the deadline.

Western League South

Las Vegas 4, San Antonio 1. Vern Olsen (3-2, 2.74) outdueled Roy Oswalt (14-10, 3.93) and got help from Ryan Braun, who hit a 2-run shot - his 11th. Braun has been a huge disappointment since joining Vegas as a free agent. Signing a four-year deal, Braun has hit .211 with 11 homers and 38 RBI this season.


Portland 10, Los Angeles 2. Portland hit five homers in the opening game of a doubleheader, battering Dave Boswell (13-14, 4.17). Jackie Robinson drove in four to push him past 100 and give him the Western League RBI lead. Bill Madlock also had four hits for the Robins.



Portland 11, Los Angeles 3. Things didn't get any better in the nightcap for the Lightning, who fail to take advantage of San Antonio's loss and an opportunity to take over first place. CC Sabathia (12-14, 3.22) has pitched in some hard luck this season, but that wasn't the issue here. He allowed 11 hits and 10 runs (six earned) over 4 1/3. John Smoltz (12-10, 4.00) went the distance for the Robins. Shoeless Joe Jackson went 4-for-7 in the doubleheader and has hit .346 since July 1st, seeming to be developing in his third season into the player the Robins expected when they made him their top pick in the 2019 draft.

• Ty Cobb went 2-for-5 in Denver's 5-3 win at Sacramento to keep his average at .415. He's got 8 games left in what's been a remarkable season. If he gets 30 more ABs, he'd only need three hits to reach the milestone! He also is 5 stolen bases away from tying his record (67), and is two RBI away from his first 100 RBI season.
  
• The Eastern League batting race has tightened up, as Boston's Sam Crawford now leads Memphis' Al Bridwell by only five points (.346 to .341).
  

[G-Force]

September 18, 2022

Eastern League North

Alabama 7, New York 4. The Heroes blew a 3-0 lead, allowing four runs in the 7th and 3 more in the 8th as the Slammers got homers from Bobby Murcer (13) in the 7th and Claudell Washington (19) in the 8th to hand New York a disappointing defeat. Larry Walker drove in RBI number 105 for New York, tying him for the ABL lead.


Boston 6, Chicago 5. A pair of Tony Kubek errors hurt Chicago, leading to five unearned runs off Eppa Rixey (12-6, 2.49) and Boston got four shutout innings of relief after Al Downing (13-9, 4.69) battled his way through five. Mickey Mantle had four hits and drove in his 105th, tying Larry Walker for the lead. Rixey still leads the ABL in ERA.

Western League South

San Antonio 12, Las Vegas 2. The Stallions unloaded on Ted Trent (6-16, 5.47) and got eight strong innings from Smoky Joe Wood, mired in the midst of a horrible season personally (10-15, 6.17). Wood is only two years removed from winning the Western League Outstanding Pitcher award, and San Antonio hopes he's got at least one more big start in him as they fight down the stretch.


Los Angeles 3, Portland 1. Willie Mays hit his 18th homer, a 3-run shot off Van Mungo (11-13, 3.69) and A.J. Burnett (16-9, 4.07) allowed one hit over 8 1/3 as the Lightning stay on San Antonio's heels. Jackie Robinson drove in Portland's lone run, giving him 105 RBI, which leads the Western League and is tied for the ABL lead with Mantle and Walker.

• Denver's Ty Cobb went 0-for-3 in a 2-1 loss to Sacramento. He's now batting .413.
• New Orleans' Gary Sheffield hit his 28th homer to take over the Western League lead in the Knights' 4-1 loss to Seattle.
  

[G-Force]

September 19, 2022

Eastern League North

New York 8, Alabama 5. The Heroes get a big win heading into a three-game set with Boston. Larry Hisle's two-out walkoff grand slam countered rookie Judy Johnson's cycle, the fifth in ABL history. The shot, Hisle's 16th of the season, gave Lindy McDaniel his 11th win. Noodles Hahn (10-8, 4.29) saw his 7 innings of one-run ball for Alabama go to waste. Larry Walker drove in two to take over the RBI lead at 107.

Boston 5, Chicago 3. The Riders all but eliminated the Hitmen, whose tragic number sits at 1. But Boston stayed within two games of New York, who they host starting tomorrow for a three game set. Eddie Murray went 3-for-3 and smacked his 11th homer in the win for Boston. Satchel Paige (12-8, 3.80) topped Ben Sheets (15-12, 3.58) and Chicago's Mickey Mantle drove in his 106th.

Western League South

Las Vegas 2, San Antonio 1. Jack Quinn (11-11, 3.13) went toe-to-toe with Jim Bunning (16-11, 3.72) over seven innings of one-run ball and his Vegas bullpen outlasted Bunning's Stallions, as a Bill Mazeroski RBI single in the top of the ninth proved the game-winner.

Los Angeles 12, Portland 1. The Lightning pull even in the division race with a drubbing of the Robins in Portland, let by Joe Adcock's pair of homers and 5 RBI. Kevin Appier improved to 2-2 with L.A. after throwing seven shutout innings.

• Denver's Ty Cobb went 3-for-5 and is now batting .414 and his .400 season is virtually assured at this point. But Cobb has been adamant he doesn't want to be rested despite Denver's having clinched the division.
• Boston's Sam Crawford now leads the Eastern League batting race .344-.337 over Memphis' Al Bridwell.
• San Antonio's Ed Delahanty has reached the 100 RBI plateau for the third time, the first player in ABL history to do so.
• The St. Louis Steamers topped Orlando 7-4, winning their 80th game and ensuring a .500 season in their first year in existence.
  

[G-Force]

September 20, 2022

Eastern League North

Boston 4, New York 3 (13 innings). New York broke a 2-2 tie in the top of the 9th when Chief Wilson hit his 20th off Larry Christensen. But Boston answered in the bottom half when Tim Teufel took Dan Plesac deep for his 7th of the season to tie the game. That's how it would stay until Ivey Wingo hit a two-out single to plate Eddie Murray with the game winner to pull Boston to within a game of New York for the division lead despite batting leader Sam Crawford going 0-for-6. He still leads the league at .341. Murray had three hits and is now batting .391 in September as Boston makes its playoff push.

Orlando 7, Chicago 6. The Hitmen are eliminated from playoff contention with this loss, which saw the Orcas get homers from Kenny Lofton and Bill White. Sad Sam Jones allowed five runs over seven innings for Chicago, who despite their fourth winning season in five years will miss the postseason.

Western League South

San Antonio 11, Seattle 3. The Stallions mashed five homers in a rout of the Grinders. Jimmy Ryan (20), Joe Gordon (19), Ted Simmons (12), Jason Giambi (19) and Elmer Flick (6) all went yard to support Jose Rosado (14-11, 4.43). Rookie Dan Brouthers hit his 10th for Seattle.

Omaha 3, Los Angeles 2. Jimmy Wynn hit his 28th homer to tie him for the league lead and Wally Judnich hit an RBI single in the 9th to break a 2-2 tie as Los Angeles fell a game back of San Antonio. Red Faber went the distance for Omaha and improved to 13-12 with a 3.38 ERA. The only blemish was a 2-run shot by Hack Wilson, his 20th.

• Ty Cobb went 0-for-3 in a 2-1 Denver win over Phoenix and is now batting .412.