The Bucs Start Here - A Pirates Do-Over

[luckymann]

As the fallout from the Black Sox scandal rolled on inexorably to its crescendo, the baseball season almost seemed to play a supporting role. A shame, really, as two keenly-fought pennant races unfolded, with the Indians narrowly getting past the beleaguered and stripped bare White Sox for their first AL Pennant and the Robins seeing off the Giants for their second senior circuit title. The Tribe would prevail in the WS for their first Championship.

AL CHAMPIONS: Cleveland Indians (98-56)
NL CHAMPIONS: Brooklyn Robins (93-61)
WORLD SERIES: Indians 5, Robins 2

Top Ten Lists (courtesy of thisgreatgame.com)

NL Hitters

1. ROGERS HORNSBY, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: .370 average, 96 runs, 218 hits, 44 doubles, 20 triples, 9 home runs, 94 RBIs, .431 on-base percentage, .559 slugging percentage.
• The Rajah shifted into superstar mode and won his first of six straight batting titles.

2. ROSS YOUNGS, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .351 average, 92 runs, 204 hits, 27 doubles, 14 triples, 6 home runs, 78 RBIs, 75 walks.
• At age 23, the Shiner, Texas native shined as he cut into a star groove, finishing second behind Hornsby in the NL batting race.

3. EDD ROUSH, CINCINNATI

• Key Numbers: .339 average, 196 hits, 16 triples, 90 RBIs, 36 stolen bases.
• Typically gruff when awakened to start a season, perhaps the most refreshing aspect of Roush’s campaign for the Reds, beyond the numbers, was that he actually reported to Spring Training on time.

4. CY WILLIAMS, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: .325 average, 192 runs, 36 doubles, 10 triples, 15 home runs, 72 RBIs.
• Aided by 12 home runs hit at Baker Bowl alone, Williams would try and become the NL’s answer to Babe Ruth—though his 15 total clouts wouldn’t even represent a third of Ruth’s total.

5. ZACK WHEAT, BROOKLYN

• Key Numbers: .328 average, 89 runs, 191 hits, 13 triples, 9 home runs, 73 RBIs.
• Wheat warmed up with the weather, hitting .371 over his final 97 games after struggling with a .258 mark through the first 51.

6. HI MYERS, BROOKLYN

• Key Numbers: .304 average, 83 runs, 177 hits, 36 doubles, 22 triples, 80 RBIs.
• For the second straight year, Myers led the NL in triples; his 22 still remains the Dodgers’ modern (post-1900) record.

7. IRISH MEUSEL, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: .309 average, 27 doubles, 8 triples, 14 home runs, 69 RBIs.
• Like Cy Williams above, Meusel’s home run total was lifted thanks to Baker Bowl; 12 of his 14 were hit at the Phillies’ ballyard.

8. GEORGE BURNS, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .287 average, 115 runs, 181 hits, 35 doubles, 9 triples, 6 home runs, 76 walks, 22 stolen bases.
• At age 30, Burns’ speed began to elude him—he stole 22 bags after nabbing 40 in each of his previous three years—but it didn’t keep him from leading the NL in runs for the fifth and last time.

9. JACK FOURNIER, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: .306 average, 33 doubles, 14 triples, 12 hit-by-pitches, 26 stolen bases.
• Rogers Hornsby got support in the lineup from Fournier, all but missing in action from the majors over the previous three years because of his suspect defense.

10. DAVE ROBERTSON, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: .300 average, 29 doubles, 11 triples,10 home runs, 75 RBIs.
• In his one full season at Chicago, Robertson returned to form after the Great War interrupted his career.

AL Hitters

1. BABE RUTH, BOSTON

• Key Numbers: .376 average, 158 runs, 172 hits, 36 doubles, 9 triples, 54 home runs, 135 RBIs, 150 walks, .532 on-base percentage, .847 slugging percentage.
• Ruth in 1920 was, as George Will would later say, like Mt. Everest in Kansas.

2. GEORGE SISLER, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: 154 games, .407 average, 631 at-bats, 137 runs, 257 hits, 49 doubles, 18 triples, 19 home runs, 122 RBIs, 42 stolen bases.
• Astonishingly, Sisler collected more total bases (399) than Ruth (388).

3. TRIS SPEAKER, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: .388 average, 137 runs, 214 hits, 50 doubles, 11 triples, 8 home runs, 107 RBIs, 97 walks.
• Like Sisler with the Browns, Speaker was a primary reason the Indians became one of the first two teams (along with the Browns) to hit over .300 in the 20th century.

4. JOE JACKSON, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: .382 average, 105 runs, 218 hits, 42 doubles, 20 triples, 12 home runs, 121 RBIs.
• Shoeless Joe appeared to ramp up with the advent of the live-ball era; because of the Black Sox Scandal, we’ll never know how much better he would have been.

5. EDDIE COLLINS, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: .372 average, 117 runs, 224 hits, 38 doubles, 13 triples, 76 RBIs, 69 walks.
• Not part of the Black Sox’ game-fixing cabal, Collins’ career would roll on; his .372 average in 1920 would be a personal best.

6. HAPPY FELSCH, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: .338 average, 188 hits, 40 doubles, 15 triples, 14 home runs, 115 RBIs.
• Like Joe Jackson above, Felsch would also rob himself of a furtive baseball future—but unlike Jackson, he still had the bulk of his career to show off.

7. BABY DOLL JACOBSON, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: 154 games, .355 average, 97 runs, 216 hits, 34 doubles, 14 triples, 9 home runs, 122 RBIs.
• The end of the Deadball Era certainly suited Jacobson, who had been lucky to hit over .250 before the ball came to life.

8. ELMER SMITH, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: .316 average, 37 doubles, 10 triples, 12 home runs, 103 RBIs.
• In the best year of an otherwise common career, Smith hit two grand slams in the season to go along with the one belted in the World Series—the first ever in Fall Classic competition.

9. SAM RICE, WASHINGTON

• Key Numbers: .338 average, 211 hits, 29 doubles, 9 triples, 80 RBIs, 63 stolen bases.
• Rice would set a Senators record by hitting safely in 29 consecutive games; he would reset the mark to 31 games in 1924. (Heinie Manush would top that with 33 in 1933, and that remains the franchise high.)

10. BOBBY VEACH, DETROIT

• Key Numbers: 154 games, .307 average, 92 runs, 188 hits, 39 doubles, 15 triples, 11 home runs, 113 RBIs.
• With Ty Cobb “slumping” to a .334 average due to a knee injury, Veach briefly took over as the biggest everyday threat in the Tigers’ lineup.

NL Pitchers

1. BURLEIGH GRIMES, BROOKLYN

• Key Numbers: 2.22 ERA, 23 wins, 11 losses, .676 win percentage, 303.2 innings.
• How grand (fathered) it is to be exempted from the spitball ban; after successfully lobbying for baseball to allow established spitballers to keep throwing the wet stuff, Grimes slobbered his way to a spot among the game’s pitching elite.

2. WILBUR COOPER, PITTSBURGH

• Key Numbers: 2.39 ERA, 24 wins, 15 losses, 37 starts, 327 innings.
• The Pirates’ all-time leader in wins, Cooper reached a career pinnacle with 24.

3. PETE ALEXANDER, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 1.91 ERA, 27 wins, 14 losses, 40 starts, 33 complete games, 363.1 innings, 173 strikeouts.
• Pitching like the pre-war workhorse, Alexander won his first 11 games while racking up an unprecedented sixth straight sub-2.00 ERA campaign.

4. BABE ADAMS, PITTSBURGH

• Key Numbers: 2.16 ERA, 17 wins, 13 losses, 8 shutouts, 263 innings, 18 walks.
• The vintage stage of Adams’ career hit a peak by walking just 0.61 batters per nine innings—a modern record which would hold until Carlos Silva beat it in 2005.

5. FRED TONEY, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 2.65 ERA, 21 wins, 11 losses, 37 starts, 278.1 innings.
• The veteran right-hander finished strong—but only after he chewed out (and nearly beat up) Giants catcher Frank Synder when the latter dared to criticize him.

6. DOLF LUQUE, CINCINNATI

• Key Numbers: 2.51 ERA, 13 wins, 9 losses.
• After continuing to bounce back-and-forth between the rotation and bullpen to begin the season, the Cuban native finally found a foothold as a starter that would make him a mainstay for the Reds throughout the 1920s.

7. JESSE BARNES, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 2.64 ERA, 20 wins, 15 losses, 292.2 innings.
• Barnes was one of three Giants hurlers to win 20 games—and barely, earning his 20th with four innings of hitless relief in his final appearance of the season.

8. ART NEHF, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 3.08 ERA, 21 wins, 12 losses, 280.2 innings.
• The third of the Giants’ 20-game winners, the southpaw reached the milestone for the first time and first of two consecutive seasons.

9. AL MAMAUX, BROOKLYN

• Key Numbers: 2.69 ERA, 12 wins, 8 losses.
• One-time young workhorse for the Pirates got a second wind, quietly contributing to the Robins’ NL pennant effort.

10. RAY FISHER, CINCINNATI

• Key Numbers: 2.73 ERA, 10 wins, 11 losses.
• Though he was 0-6 with a 4.28 ERA against the NL’s top two teams (Brooklyn and New York), Fisher cleaned up against the rest of the circuit in what would be his last of 10 big league seasons as he tired of the constant travel.

AL Pitchers

1. STAN COVELESKI, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: 2.49 ERA, 24 wins, 14 losses, 315 innings, 133 strikeouts.
• Though his won-loss record paled in comparison to Jim Bagby (#2 below), Coveleski proved tougher on opposing batters—and also got a bit less run support (5.0 per starts to Bagby’s 6.3).

2. JIM BAGBY, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: 2.89 ERA, 31 wins, 12 losses, .721 win percentage, 48 appearances, 39 starts, 30 complete games, 339.2 innings.
• A record 17 pitchers won 20 games in 1920, and rising above them all was Bagby—one of 13 hurlers since 1900 to win 30.

3. BOB SHAWKEY, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 2.45 ERA, 20 wins, 13 losses, 267.2 innings.
• Shawkey won 11 straight games early on and posted the highest ERA by a league leader since 1899.

4. URBAN SHOCKER, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: 2.71 ERA, 20 wins, 10 losses, 5 saves, 245.2 innings.
• Shocker was a rarity for the 1920s: A good player stolen from, not by, the Yankees. They’d eventually get him back anyway.

5. RED FABER, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 2.99 ERA, 23 wins, 13 losses, 39 starts, 319 innings.
• One of four White Sox pitchers to win at least 20 games—a major league first—Faber’s 2.99 ERA was the lowest among the quartet.

6. EDDIE ROMMEL, PHILADELPHIA

• Key Numbers: 2.85 ERA, 7 wins, 7 losses, 34 appearances, 12 starts.
• One of the game’s first knuckleballers, the 22-year-old rookie was fortunate enough to garner a .500 record on a team that finished 48-106.

7. CARL MAYS, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 3.06 ERA, 26 wins, 11 losses, 6 shutouts, 312 innings.
• The irascible—and vilified, after one of his pitches killed the Indians’ Ray Chapman—Mays showed no slacking off after the tragedy, going 7-2 with a 2.07 ERA.

8. EDDIE CICOTTE, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 3.26 ERA, 21 wins, 10 losses, 303.1 innings.
• Before being ruined by scandal, Cicotte would see his success muted by the abolishment of the shineball he thrived on.

9. DICKIE KERR, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 3.37 ERA, 21 wins, 9 losses, 5 saves, 253.2 innings.
• One of the “clean” Sox, Kerr completed his lone 20-win campaign and led the AL in saves in what would be his second of only three full seasons at the big-league level.

10. JACK QUINN, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 3.20 ERA, 18 wins, 10 losses, 253.1 innings.
• Being grandfathered as an exempted spitballer helped Quinn become one of the AL’s more efficient pitchers—and allowed him to pitch until he was nearly 50.

[luckymann]

We make a couple of strategic FA signings:

P Reggie Richter: 3 years, $7500

With our rotation not getting any younger and Drucke off a poor and injury-affected 1919, I just feel we need some more firepower in the pen and all-time saves leader Richter is a great pickup in this regard.

1B Eddie Murphy: 1 year, $2500

A pretty cheap utility to transition us until the time Traynor is ready, Eddie plays 1B / 2B / 3B and the corner OF slots well and is a good contact hitter without much pop.

The off-season market settles down a bit this year, but there are still plenty of notable moves:

• SS Dave Bancroft: Phillies, 7 years / $54300 (extension)
• OF Harry Hooper: Red Sox, 5 years / $49000 (extension)
• P Hippo Vaughn: Athletics, 6 years / $46800
• 1B Wally Pipp: Giants, 6 years / $43400
• OF Shoeless Joe Jackson: Senators, 5 years / $38500 (re-sign)
• P Larry Cheney: Cardinals, 5 years / $34300
• 3B Milt Stock: Giants, 3 years / $21800
• P Roy Hitt: Athletics, 3 years / $18600 (extension)
• OF Jack Smith: Yankees, 4 years / $14360 (extension)
• P Jim Bagby: Browns, 3 years / $11100
• OF Tim Hendryx: Giants, 4 years / $10500 (extension)
• OF Ken Williams: Yankees, 2 years / $10020 (extension)
• 3B Jim Doyle: Cubs, 1 year / $7200
• 1B Ben Taylor: White Sox, 1 year / $7200
• P Jose Acosta: Robins, 3 years / $6580
• P Fred Perry: Cardinals, 3 years / $6200
• P Red Hoff: Cardinals, 3 year / $5640

• C Ernie Krueger from Tigers to Senators for P Hal Carlson and C John Cason
• C Val Picinich from Phillies to Cubs for P Lou Schettler
• 3B Buck Weaver from Red Sox to Braves for P Roy Mitchell and SS Chick Galloway
• 2B Jim Viox from Cubs to Phillies for OF Sammy Vick and OF Buzz Murphy

ALL TRANSACTIONS

12-6 for Spring Training with Carey and Groh each picking up a niggle, but both should be right to go.

The Browns are tipped to run away with the junior circuit, while we are again selected to top the NL by just a couple games from the Cardinals.

I have to say, I don’t see it that way. After a sustained run of success, we are on the cusp of a necessary transition and I’ll be happy if we can get some good developmental form from our young guys and stay injury-free and competitive. But there’s no doubt changes are afoot for our franchise over the next couple seasons as we try to keep pace with some of these other teams that are coming up fast.

FULL PRESEASON PREDICTIONS

[luckymann]

Our team page can be accessed HERE. Here’s the annual summary.

Our Opening Day lineups will look like this:

Catchers

• C Frank Snyder (R)
• Ted Easterly (L)

Ted in his age-35 season has lost a few steps, and O’Farrell will almost certainly get a look-in. For now, Snyder takes over the everyday reins.

Infielders

• 1B Oscar Charleston (L)
• 2B Heinie Groh (R)
• 3B Frank Baker (L)
• SS Dick Lundy (S)

• Eddie Murphy (L)
• Hod Ford (R)
• Bernie Friberg (R)
• Oliver Marcell (R)
• Ernie Johnson (L)

Huge concerns about Marcell’s apparent regression, to the point that he has for now lost the everyday 3B spot and will have to win it back. Groh’s continued defensive slippage is another real worry. This squad is only a key injury or two away from serious problems, especially in the infield.

Outfielders

• LF Elmer Smith (L)
• CF Max Carey (S)
• RF Ty Cobb (L)

• Carson Bigbee (L)
• Smoky Joe Wood (R)

All eyes on Traynor’s development and I just hope we can stay healthy long enough to get him adept at 2B. In the end, circumstances may not afford us the time necessary. O’Doul is still a few seasons away and I’m looking forward to seeing how he handles AAA. Mueller is another one who may see some action.

Rotation

1. RHP Walter Johnson
2. LHP Wilbur Cooper
3. LHP Harry Krause
4. LHP Lefty Williams

If Williams holds his own he’ll probably be moved up to SP3 with an eye toward the future. Mays, Mamaux, Reuther, and a few others can be deployed as and if needed.

Bullpen

• RHP Louis Drucke
• RHP Al Mamaux
• LHP Dutch Reuther
• RHP Reggie Richter

[luckymann]

After an early stumble, we rattle off 7 straight wins en route to a 10-6 start to the season.




All the same, I’m finding myself distracted by my dissatisfaction with our mix. A brief injury stint for Lundy and Groh’s slow start each intensify those feelings until, unable to hold off any longer, I make the following move as the month draws to a close:

TRADE 1 OF 5 (04/27/20)

2B Heinie Groh and 1B Tommy Vereker traded to Cleveland for IF Wally Gerber.

It’s our thinness at SS causing me the consternation, and Wally covers that nicely. The price is a slight dip in offensive prowess, but I’m OK with that, especially seeing as Heinie wasn’t setting the world on fire and had lost his starting spot to Bernie Friberg. He’ll retain that role for now and Wally will be a swing utility backup across 2B / 3B / SS.

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[luckymann]

Elmer Smith is out of contract at the end of the year, and we start talking about his future. He is stubborn in his request for a long, expensive deal and I just don't think he is worth it going forward. So I go looking for alternatives.

After a few dead ends I throw a line out for a player I have admired from afar since he joined the league, not really thinking we'd have any luck. So I am surprised when we end up getting a counteroffer that is incredibly reasonable, one which I do not hesitate to accept.

TRADE 2 OF 5 (05/01/20)

OF Elmer Smith and P Luther Farrell traded to New York (AL) for OF Ken Williams.

There's always a trade-off within every trade, and this one is no different. For a bigger and more consistent bat we lose some defensive flexibility, with Ken strictly a LF option whereas Elmer played both corners. He is also 2 years older than Elmer, although that makes him still only 29. But that bat of his, combined with our depth in the deep, makes these more than acceptable in my mind. Elmer always threatened to break out and was runner-up in the NL last season with 10 HR, but never fully delivered on that promise, and never consistently enough for my liking.

As I've been saying, it is evolve and improve or die right now, and this trade certainly puts a bit more oomph into our offence.

At least I hope it does.

[luckymann]

He needs 6 to become the outright HR King, but even if he does make it I doubt he'll hold the throne for long, not with HJ and the Babe in the league. The all-time list looks like this now:

[luckymann]

Everything rolling along AOK to this point, with the lads putting together a 17-10 record for May and seeming to have gelled really nicely after our little period of flux.





Even in this early part of the season it is looking like another exciting stretch run is ahead of us in both divisions with plenty of teams well and truly in the mix this year.



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[luckymann]

Most unearned runs allowed (single season)

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Home runs allowed per 9 innings (career)

[luckymann]

Max Carey is having one of his best years yet, including this fantastic achievement.

[luckymann]

Surprisingly smooth sailing to this point as we consolidate our position with a solid 19-9 sectional.





The bats have run hot from the get-go and our 296 team BA leads the league. Carey continues to fire on all cylinders and Cobb is relishing being back in action, while pretty much every starter is at the top of their game so far. Traynor gets called up after we lose a couple players to short-term injuries and he handles himself OK.



Our pitching hasn't been quite so restful. While Johnson and Cooper (who wins this month's award) have been sensational, we have to turn Williams and Krause out of the rotation into the pen for Reuther and Mamaux. Train (14-3 / 2.33) is having a banner year.



The Williams-Smith trade seems to have been a good one for all involved. Ken has slashed 341/409/530 for us and belted 5 dingers with 38 ribbies, while Elmer seems to have settled in nicely to life in the Big Apple, going 333/425/547 with 9 HR, 41 RBI and nearly 2 WAR. And yet, despite that and the presence of Ruth, Meusel, and a strong rotation led by Waite Hoyt, the Bombers find themselves a fair way off the pace to this point. Same goes for the Cards in our division. Hornsby is flirting with 400 and Frisch going gangbusters, yet they sit at 31-39 and one spot out of the cellar.



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[luckymann]

Most RBIs over a 5 year span

[luckymann]

After his extended IL stint and some rehab at Beaumont, Andrew "Rube" Foster belatedly joins his fellow NeL stars with 200 wins.

[luckymann]

I’m the first to admit I went into this season with fairly tempered expectations. I felt we were lucky to win the Pennant last year and had played well below our capabilities throughout. With the group getting a bit older and Cobb’s injury and Train’s drop in performance last season, I honestly believed we were destined for the dreaded “pivot” en route to a comprehensive rebuild, sooner rather than later. Indeed, even though both involved players who cannot be considered “young” in baseball terms, the Williams and Gerber acquisitions were done with this in mind, to try and keep us as competitive as possible during this transitional phase.

Well, the lads have obviously pooh-poohed that idea with their efforts to this point. And so, despite struggling a bit this month to finish with a very streaky 15-15 record for the period, we once again find ourselves right in the thick of things heading into the pointy end of the campaign. Suddenly, a tilt at another Championship is well and truly on the cards.



And so, on the eve of the trade deadline, I make the following moves to try and press home the advantage:

TRADE 3 & 4 OF 5 (07/30/20)

1B Eddie Murphy and P Lefty Williams traded to St. Louis (NL) for P Jose Leblanc.

2B Hod Ford and P Sad Sam Jones traded to Cleveland for UT Lloyd Christenbury.

While Johnson and Cooper (who makes it B2B Pitching Awards in July) continue to excel, the bottom half of our rotation remains problematic. We have a few options at SP4, none of whom seem up to a more prominent role. The hope is that Jose plugs that gap. Murphy was going to enter the FA market at season’s end, so his loss now at least nets us something in return. I would have preferred to trade Krause rather than Williams, but only his inclusion would seal the deal.

Our offence has been superb this year, so the addition of Christenbury is more of a fallback-slash-depth move. Lloyd plays decent enough 2B / SS as well as all three OF slots, and projects as a marked improvement offensively over young Ford, although we’ve sacrificed some years between the two.

The very next day, in the last game of the month, Train experiences back spasms. Thankfully he seems AOK and won’t miss any time, but it is a stark reminder how thin the ice on which we tread.




After a long lean period (their sole NL Pennant came in 1905 when they lost the WS to Detroit), the Reds look like they've finally got a competitive squad. They trail is by 5.5 games, with the Braves, Phillies and Cards bunched behind them and well within reach. In the AL, the Browns and Sens look set to duke it out, with the Red Sox and Yankees needing to get a move on if they want to join in on the action. Still plenty of time, but there's no doubt their moves in August need to be upward.



One of the real surprise packets this year has been Elmer Ponder of the Browns, who becomes the season's first 20-game winner and is on pace for 30.

The hotly-anticipated longball fireworks haven't really eventuated as yet. HJ leads the Babe by 18 to 14 in the AL, while Cincy's Dobie Moore heads the NL with 12. HRs are up slightly across the league, but it has to this point been fairly evenly spread among the playing group rather than concentrated on a few.

Injuries continue to play a part, with the NeL players hit particularly hard this season. The Braves lose Bombin Pedroso for the year to elbow surgery, Joe Williams' recovery has been a slow one, while Cards rookie Andy Cooper is called up, does well enough to win the award in July, then goes down for a month to a strained oblique. Sens Legacy Tom Zachary is another casualty, with his season ended prematurely by shoulder inflammation.

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... bites the dust with a season-ending injury.

[luckymann]

2500 hits for Tris "Spoke" Speaker.

He currently sits in 4th on the all-time list behind Crawford (2957), Cobb (2934) and Lajoie (2723).

Spoke is an absolute WARmonger. He has the most of any position player in the game's history (120-odd, as measured by OOTP), and trails only the Train, who has roughly 6 more than him at the time of posting. Both are currently in their age-32 season, so it will be fascinating to see who can set this mark for those who follow to try and catch.

[luckymann]

An odd old month indeed.

We begin strongly, grinding out wins like you need to in this part of the season and seemingly pulling away from the pack and headed for a comfortable stretch run. But then we go to St. Louis and drop 4 straight to the Cards and that changes everything, pulling us back to just 5 ahead of the Phillies when they come to the ‘Burgh for a 3-gamer.

A rainout means a double-header the next day, with the early game a marquee matchup between Train and Pete Alexander, arguably the two best pitchers in the NL this year. Walter gets us a handy 3-1 win and then Cooper pitches a gem in the late game, shutting them out on 4 hits in a 2-0 win that certainly settles the nerves. Leblanc, yet to lose since coming across, then goes the distance in the final game to close out a key sweep. Crisis averted, but only briefly, as we proceed to get swept at home by the Braves. Then we unconvincingly win our final two games of this odd old month against the Jints to put our W-L for the sectional at a scratchy 16-12.





All of that notwithstanding, our offensive output continues to be strong throughout the group.



Wilbur Cooper, having a career year, wins his third straight monthly award.



Fortunately, none of the group chasing us makes a decisive move, but all still loom ready to pounce should we trip up. Still neck-and-neck between the Sens and Browns as the AL seems destined for yet another grandstand finish.



Heavy Johnson continues his one-man war on American League pitching. Not only does he look likely to extend his own single-season HR record (he has 26 vs last-season's record-setting 27), he is flirting with hitting 400 and looks an outside chance to break the WAR mark as well (currently held by Honus Wagner with 12.22, HJ has 9.0 to this point). A beast.

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[luckymann]

Highest % of Hits as HR (minimum 200 Hits)

[luckymann]

Isolated power

[luckymann]

... for the boys in brown.