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04-01-2025, 01:25 PM
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#561 |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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TWIWBL 74.4: Cum Posey Division
Code:
Team W/L Pct GB San Francisco Sea Lions 63-36 .636 -- Miami Cuban Giants 48-51 .485 15 Portland Sea Dogs 46-54 .460 17.5 Los Angeles Angels 45-53 .459 15.5 Chicago American Giants 45-54 .455 18 Cum Posey Division | 23 July In what may be a preliminary move to more significant changes, the American Giants moved Joe Lake into the starting rotation, sending last season's ace Tricky Nichols to the bullpen. The also moved AJ Minter out of the closers role, replacing him with Akinori Otsuka. For now, however, both Nichols and Minter stay with the WBL club. Frank Thomas had himself a day, hitting 2 homeruns and going 5-for-5, but it wasn't enough as the American Giants fell to Detroit, 8-6. #Los Angeles Angels With Mark Ellis out for about a month, the Angels recalled Jay Bell from AAA. Bell will see some time at SS, with Bobby Grich returning fulltime to his 2B spot. Elmer Smith replaced Pud Galvin at the end of the Angels' rotation for the time being. Smith has been struggling at the plate, so his time in the OF will probably be reduced, but Los Angeles does still plan to use have him hit on the days he pitches. Mike Trout went deep twice, but it wasn't enough as the Angels fell to Cleveland, 7-5. Kal Daniels and Ron Hassey each hit 2 out and the Angels' bullpen held on as Los Angeles topped Cleveland, 11-8. Then they battered the Spiders, 14-3, as Ichiro Suzuki had 5 hits, Hassey 4, and Daniels drove in 6. #Miami Cuban Giants José Canseco went deep twice, but Miami fell to Baltimore, 5-3. #Portland Sea Dogs Tom Zachary will miss over a week and, with Scott Terry's fate still unknown, is hurt enough to warrant a trip to the DL. Art Fowler was recalled to take Zachary's spot in the bullpen. The news on Terry wasn't good: he'll be out for 9 months (Tommy John surgery) and the Sea Dogs recalled Heath Hembree from AAA. #San Francisco Sea Lions Turkey Stearnes went deep twice and Eddie Plank fanned 10 in 7+ innings, improving to 15-4 on the year in a 6-4 victory over the New York Black Yankees. And then it was Bobby Bonds' turn, as he hit his 27th and 28th homer of the year in another win over New York, this one by a margin of 7-4 as Bump Hadley won his 15th of the year.
__________________
Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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04-02-2025, 11:54 AM
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#562 |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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Code:
Team W/L Pct GB Brooklyn Royal Giants 55-41 .573 -- Homestead Grays 53-44 .546 2.5 New York Gothams 50-50 .500 7 Philadelphia Stars 48-51 .485 8.5 Ottawa Mounties 47-51 .480 9 Effa Manley Division | 23 July Moose Haas was returned to AAA with Bartolo Colón being recalled to the Grays' bullpen. Cliff Lee will miss up to a couple weeks with a stiff back, earning the lefty hurler a trip to the DL. Hal Carlson was recalled. Josh Gibson bust out of a mini-slump in a big way, going deep twice and driving in 5, bringing him over 100 RBI's on the season. But Pops Stargell was the star, following an RBI double from Gibson with a walkoff 3-run shot in the bottom of the 9th in an 11-9 win over Kansas City. #New York Gothams Johnny Callison hit 2 out, but it wasn't enough as the Gothams fell to Houston, 8-3. Different day, same story: Buster Posey had 2 homers in a 7-4 loss to Brooklyn. #Philadelphia Stars Aaron Judge hit 2 out and Charles Rogan was a single short of the cycle as the Stars beat Birmingham, 9-7. Despite some struggles, Hardie Henderson improved to 12-7 on the year, with Bob Howry picking up his 14th save. Chase Utley had himself a day: 2 homers, 4 runs, and 5 hits in a 12-5 win over Birmingham. Judge and Rico Carty also went deep as Steve Carlton evened his record at 9-9. Utley did it again later in the week with 2 more homers, but this time the Stars fell to Ottawa, 9-5.
__________________
Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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04-03-2025, 11:53 AM
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#563 |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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TWIWBL 74.6: Marvin Miller Division
Code:
Team W/L Pct GB Kansas City Monarchs 52-48 .5220 -- Indianapolis ABC's 50-50 .500 2 Houston Colt 45s 49-50 .495 2.5 Birmingham Black Barons 45-54 .455 6.5 Wandering House of David 44-54 .449 7 Marvin Miller Division | 23 July Charlie Morton was named to the final spot of the Black Barons' rotation. Morton's first start was a bit of a disaster, a 12-5 loss to Philadelphia where the only bright spot was Richie Sexson's 2 homeruns. #Houston Colt 45's Tony Gwynn homered twice and Craig Biggio provided a walk-off dinger as Houston edged Indianapolis, 9-8. Later in the series, Jeff Bagwell matched Gwynn with his 25th and 26th of the season, leading the Colt 45's to a 9-3 win over the ABC's. #Indianapolis ABC's Eppa Rixey replaced The Only Nolan in the ABC's extended rotation. George Foster homered twice as the ABC's topped Kansas City 10-1. Barry Larkin, Bob Bescher, and Luis Padrón also went deep, with Padrón improving to 14-3 with another fine outing on the mound. Johnny Cueto improved to 11-5 with a 4-hit shutout of Houston, fanning 7 in the complete game victory. Oscar Charleston and Ed Charles went deep in the 3-0 win. #Wandering House of David Mark McGwire hit out 2, giving him 7 in 13 games, as the House of David topped Birmingham 8-6.
__________________
Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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07-14-2025, 04:51 PM
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#564 |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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{ After a bit of a break, I'm going to handle this thread a bit differently. If any of you are following along, update by update, those will continue to show up at https://wbl.dmlco.com/wp/ , but I'm going to make one post per game-week here, pulling from those posts. }
TWIWBL 75: Year 2, Week 18 #AWARDS Josh Gibson of the Homestead Grays hit .409 last week–which barely moved his overall batting average of .408. That, along with 5 homers and 12 RBIs earned him the NL Player of the Week Award. In the AL, one of the surprising cogs in the Detroit Wolverines‘ machine, Juan Beníquez, earned the Award, hitting .423 with 3 homers. #PERFORMANCE Your leading performers at bat and on the mound are available at https://wbl.dmlco.com/wp/2025/07/03/...ear-2-week-18/. Steals and Speed Seemed a good time to check in on some oddities in running the bases. Let’s start with some players who perhaps should be running a bit less, led by the New York Gothams‘ recently acquired Don Buford, who has 21 steals, but has been caught 20 times. Houston’s Craig Biggio has been even worse, with only 10 steals in 26 attempts. Chicago‘s Eddie Collins has been gunned down 23 times, but has 45 swipes: not a great success rate, but far ahead of Buford and Biggio. San Francisco’s Rickey Henderson has been caught the most times in the league, but with 73 steals against 25 caught stealings, his success rate remains decent. On the other end of the scale, Indianapolis’ Bob Bescher has only been caught 10 times in 53 attempts; Kansas City’s Ozzie Smith is doing even better, with an 84% success rate (42 for 50 so far); and the Black Yankees’ Eric Davis has gone 37 for 42. Ottawa‘s Carlos Beltrán has been thrown out only once in 26 tries but, interestingly, nobody with at least 5 steals has a perfect record on the basepaths. #TEAM OF THE WEEK We take a closer look at the Birmingham Black Barons here. Birmingham was a bit of an expert’s favorite last season, selling hard at the all star break, and then making great moves in late August to slide into the playoffs. They were pretty active in the off-season, and while the jury is out on some of the moves, the Black Barons’ front office has earned some benefit of the doubt. That said, they are 7.5 games behind, and struggling a bit for sure, and it’s not clear that trading away a an all-star arm in Jim Whitney was the right move at the midseason break. THE OFFENSE It’s a bit weird. The Black Barons have a ton of power, with over 250 homers, second in the NL in that department. But that’s about it. They struggle to get on base, struggle to hit singles and doubles, and, at the end of the day, are only meh at what matters for an offense, scoring runs. What’s Going Right Hank Aaron continues to position himself right on the edge of superstar level, leading the team in OPS (.953), homeruns (39), and RBIs (77). Behind Aaron, Eddie Mathews continues to be an offensive force despite struggling to hit over .230. Newly acquired Ryan Braun is a monster at the plate given Birmingham a truly impressive top 3 in the lineup.. While not at the same level as those three, Jim Pagliaroni is among the better offensive backstops in the league and Albert Belle, brought in during the offseason to hit for power, has done exactly that. A shade of last year: Richie Sexson was brought in over the all star break as a throw-in to the Braun trade. Sexson has 4 homeruns in his first 10 games with Birmingham. Gene Tenace is demanding more playing time now that he’s back from injury, with an OBP over .400 and SLG over .500 in pretty limited action. What’s Not Going Right Even with 31 homers, Curtis Granderson is somewhat exemplary of what’s wrong with Birmingham’s offense overall: he’s hitting under .200 despite all those homeruns, with only 7 other extra base hits. Likewise, fan favorite JP Arencibia keeps hitting them out–12 dingers in 127 PAs–but doing little else at the plate. Despite being given every opportunity to lock down the 1B job, Adrián González is not doing much. He’s performing better than last year, but an OPS under .800 is rough from a 1B in this league. Similarly, despite Troy Tulowitzki‘s recent improvement, neither he nor Herman Long have been able to hold onto the SS job for long. Cupid Childs is flashy, leading the team with 28 homers and the same number of steals. But closer examination reveals some weaknesses, with his OPS hovering barely over .700 and 19 caught stealings reducing the impact of those stolen bases. THE PITCHING The offense is better than last year, but the record is worse: an indication that not all is great on the mound for Birmingham. What’s Going Right Harley Young has moved into the closer role, and the first-time all-star has continued his dominance, with 6 saves, 6 holds, and an ERA under 3.00. Alejandro Peña and Greg Maddux are both pitching better than their raw numbers might suggest. While both have losing records and ERA’s around 5.00, their WHIPs remain solid. What’s Not Going Right Even the above has caveats: Peña and Maddux have surrendered 68 homeruns combined, which is nearly unfathomable. Juan Rincón has 12 saves, but has been pretty awful, losing his closer role and perhaps in danger of a trip to AAA–an ERA around 8.50 will do that. While Bruce Chen has been better of late, he still sports an ERA near 6.00, and he and Rincón are both surrendering dingers at a Peña and Maddux like rate. Nobody else has stood up in the rotation, with John Malarkey and Lefty Gomez being thoroughly meh to date. #DIVISIONAL NOTES We have our usual detailed highlights for each of the divisions Bill James Division Cum Posey Division Effa Manley Division Marvin Miller Division
__________________
Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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08-11-2025, 01:39 PM
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#565 |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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WBL Year 2, Week 76
As always, full updates published at https://wbl.dmlco.com/
August 5th TWIWBL 76.1 has all the news of the week. Here are some highlights. We enter the dog days … In addition to the natural clarification of the playoff races, August has 2 very important dates: 8/17 is the trading deadline and 8/23 marks the day rosters can be expanded. #Awards #July Awards All hail Homestead‘s Josh Gibson, who hit .487 with 11 homeruns and 36 RBIs in July to win the NL Batter of the Month. For good measure, Gibson added 19 walks, giving him an OBP for the month approaching .600 (.598). Los Angeles‘ Kal Daniels continues to deliver on his talent, hitting .371 with 12 homers and 30 RBI’s to take home the AL Batter of the Month. Don Drysedale was in what could most generously be called a funk until July hit, with some even calling for Brooklyn‘s ace to be moved to the bullpen. Instead, he went 5-0 in the month with a 1.81 ERA to take home the NL Pitcher of the Month Award. Memphis‘ Stubby Overmire was named the AL Pitcher of the Month, going 3-0 with a 1.36 ERA in the year, finding some of the form that led to his ERA crown last year. Drysedale’s teammate John Briggs just keeps proving his doubters wrong. The 21 year old CF took home the July Rookie of the Month Award in the NL, hitting .366 for the month with 8 homeruns, 17 RBI’s, and 20 runs scored. Another CF–Detroit‘s budding superstar Turkey Stearnes–took home the honors in the AL, hitting .337 with 9 homeruns and 25 RBI’s in the month. For once, there wasn’t much controversy with the awards. Gibson, whose 1.651 OPS led the league for the month, was a clear choice, meaning Houston‘s Jeff Bagwell–second at 1.375–could understand the decision not going his way. Birmingham‘s Hank Aaron, and Cleveland‘s Lance Berkman and Ron Blomberg each had 13 homers on the month, with Blomberg driving in a ridiculous 39 runners. But Daniels had the higher OPS, and certainly was a defensible choice. Drysedale was the only hurler with 5 wins in July, and Overmire and he were 1-2 in ERA. So, overall, solid selections across the board. #Weekly Awards Stearnes’ hot streak also earned him the AL Player of the Week Award, as he hit .500 with 5 homers in the first week of August. In the NL, a .536 average with 3 homers earned Brooklyn’s Jackie Robinson the Player of the Week Award in the NL. #Team Spotlight This week, it's the division leading Cleveland Spiders. Full writeup here. The Spiders don’t lead the league in anything, but they are also top 6 or 7 in everything. Add some very bright lights–Tris Speaker, Ron Blomberg, and Lance Berkman especially–and you have a hard team to beat. The question is if they can maintain it–they also feel like a team that could be broken by the wrong injury. THE OFFENSE It’s a bit uneven, but there is plenty of firepower here. #What’s Going Right It really all revolves around the big 3, with Tris Speaker, Ron Blomberg, and Lance Berkman each sporting an OPS over 1.000. Speaker leads in all the slash stats, while Blomberg has 41 homers and 117 RBIs. Berkman has chipped in with 38 dingers and 95 RBIs, more than enough to lead most teams. Ed Bailey, brought in via trade during the all star break, remains a top end offensive catcher, slashing 258/344/617. Evan Longoria, who struggled most of last season, has seized the 3B role, and is one of 5 batters with over 20 homers (3 more–Arky Vaughan, Larry Doby, and Chuck Knoblauch–are in double digits). Johnny Bates has 41 SB, despite some struggles otherwise offensively. #What’s Not Going Right C Louis Santop, an all star and media darling last season, is slashing 207/252/375. He’s only 20 and remains the franchise’s future behind the plate, but the drop in impact is noticeable. This, of course, was the primary motivation for the decision to bring in Ed Bailey. John Ellis and Chuck Knoblauch–both key players last season–are struggling to push their OPS over .700 this season. THE PITCHING It’s … solid. There is a lot of talent here, but not a lot of star power, something that could prove an obstacle in the postseason. #What’s Going Right Bill Steen (10-6, 5.02) and Cy Young (10-6, 5.16) both hold identical records, and seem very dependable in a eat up some innings and get the ball to the bullpen sort of way. Young clearly has the talent to do more than that, but has yet to put it together. Speaking of talent … Bob Feller (7-3, 4.82) keeps flashing it, averaging nearly 12 strikeouts per 9 innings and forcing himself into the starting rotation. Terry Adams (20 saves) is excellent at closer, and Cory Gearrin (3-0, 2.41) is one of the better setup arms in the league. Al Smith (1.88 in 11 appearances) has had a very impressive start to his career, and is a potential impact left handed arm in the pen. #What’s Not Going Right Of the starters, only Feller has an ERA under 5.00, and that’s only over 6 starts. Yordano Ventura (5-6, 5.59) and Pat Malone (5-8, 5.45) have each struggled to find their form. Ron Reed continues to not live up to his billing, although he seems to have stabilized as of late. #DIVISIONAL NOTES TWIWBL notes for each division at Bill James Division Cum Posey Division Effa Manley Division Marvin Miller Division
__________________
Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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09-02-2025, 01:59 PM
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#566 |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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WBL Year 2, Week 77
Full servings of tea at https://wbl.dmlco.com/wp/
August 12th https://wbl.dmlco.com/wp/2025/08/27/...ear-2-week-20/ for the full weekly rundown, some highlights: The trading deadline is only a week away, so that becomes a bit of the focus for both this week and next. For more info than anyone else wants about what each team hopes for from the trade deadline, a full rundown is here. #Awards Ottawa‘s Gary Carter had 6 homeruns and a .450 average last week, earning him the National League Player of the Week honors while over in the AL, Player of the Week accolades went to Los Angeles‘ Kal Daniels. Daniels, who is having a borderline MVP candidate season, went 14-for-25 on the week, raising his overall batting average to .353. #Game of the Week So so close to the no no. Pitching on short rest, Indianapolis‘ Johnny Cueto delivered 5 hitless innings in a start against Ottawa … then Clay Carroll added 2 more, and Rob Murphy another. Which meant Rob Dibble came in for the bottom of the 9th with the ABC’s leading 7-0 and throwing a combined no-hitter. Dibble got Roberto Alomar to groundout, Larry Walker to whiff … and then gave up a long fly ball to Gary Carter that just barely cleared the outfield fence, ruining the shutout and the no-no. IND 7 (Carroll 1-2) @ OTT 1 (Radbourn 11-10) HRs: IND – Dunn (33), Charleston (30), Votto (26); OTT – Carter (44). Box Score Team Spotlight Full details on the surprising Brooklyn Royal Giants here. Nobody, and I mean nobody, would have predicted a double digit lead in the Effa Manley Division for Brooklyn this season. But here we are. The Royal Giants’ success is a product of a great pitching staff and just enough offense, anchored by a few breakout performances. And there is room for improvement: not only can they hold onto their division, this is a team that could impress in the postseason. THE OFFENSE It's not a great offense, but it has some true high points, and seems to have just enough to keep the runs coming. #What's Going Right First, the breakout: Mike Piazza has exploded, leading the team in almost all offensive categories, with a 307/338/677 slash line, 42 homeruns and 98 RBIs. For a catcher not named Gibson, that's great output, and it's a fantastic return after Piazza's struggle last season. Almost as surprising has been the excellence of Ron Cey at the hot corner, whose 963 OPS is third on the team, behind Piazza and the true heartbeat of the Royal Giants, Jackie Robinson. Robinson leads the team in OBP, has 32 steals, and is involved in almost every key rally for the team while moving between 1B and 2B. Robinson and Beals Becker provide a good bit of speed, with each having over 30 steals at decent success rates. John Briggs faced a lot of doubters heading into this season, but he's performed excellently in CF. Dan Brouthers has an OPS of .960 in part-time duty at 1B and, honestly, keeps wondering why the Royal Giants won't just commit to him long term. 8 players have at least 20 homeruns (Piazza, Duke Snider, Becker, Cey, Robinson, Pedro Guerrero, Briggs, and Roy White). #What's Not Going Right Pedro Guerrero was brought in to add punch to the offense, and while he's picked it up of late (one of the points of possible improvement mentioned above), his 784 OPS still leaves a lot to be desired. Duke Snider is doing Duke Snider things, which means a lot of power--his 30 homers are second on the team--but not a lot else. SS has been a challenge all year, with neither Dick Bertell nor Germany Smith proving a solution. Vern Stephens' overall numbers aren't great, but he's slashing 317/328/633 since coming to Brooklyn over the all-star break. Ray Dandridge remains a 21 year old who struggles with WBL pitching, but his future remains bright in spite of his current sub .700 OPS. Overall, the team needs to get on base a bit more: only Cey, Robinson, Briggs, and Brouthers have OBPs over .350. THE PITCHING This is easily the strength of the team, and it's only gotten better for Brooklyn over the season, as Fernando Valenzuela's emergence has given them an excellent rotation, front to back, complemented by a very strong bullpen. #What's Going Right The Big Three for Brooklyn are as impressive as nearly any in the league, led by the brilliant Smokey Joe Williams and the surprising Orel Hershiser. Williams' record isn't great at 10-9, but he and Hershiser both sport sub 4.00 ERA's with excellent secondary numbers. The third of the group is Don Drysedale, who was struggling mightily over most of the first half of the season, but has shaved 1.5 runs off his ERA since the start of July. Five consecutive wins in there have improved his record to 10-5. Valenzuela's emergence has been quite spectacular, and the lefty is now firmly entrenched in the rotation. Eric Gagne could be the best closer in the WBL, with 25 saves and a 2.52 ERA, and Trevor Hildenberger has been fantastic as his setup. #What's Not Going Right Sandy Koufax keeps lingering on the edge of brilliance, but he lost his place in the rotation to Valenzuela and while he's been solid out of the bullpen, it still feels like his eventual role is as a starter. That's about it: Burleigh Grimes, Terry Forster, and Dave Von Ohlen have all been mediocre, but that's certainly better than not going right. #Divisional Notes TWIWBL's for each division at Bill James Division Cum Posey Division Effa Manley Division No idea what happened to the Marvin Miller Division writeup. Sometimes things get lost ...
__________________
Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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09-23-2025, 02:44 PM
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#567 | ||||||||
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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WBL Year 78: Year 2, Week 21
All the deets here.
August 19 #Awards Homestead‘s Andy Van Slyke hit .500 with 7 homeruns over the past week, earning him the NL Batter of the Week Award. Over in the AL, it’s a familiar name, as Detroit‘s Ty Cobb rode a .556 average and 8 RBIs to the AL Player of the Week Award. #Team Performance Very little has changed. San Francisco still dominates the league, with 80 wins, a .650 winning percentage, and a 21 game lead in the Cum Posey Division. The Sea Lions have a decent chance at clinching the division before the end of August. Cleveland still leads the New York Black Yankees in the Bill James Division, now by 3 games, with both teams exceedingly likely to make the postseason. The surprising Brooklyn Royal Giants lead Homestead by 9.5 games in the Effa Manley Division, with Philadelphia still within touch. And then there is the Marvin Miller Division, where last-place Birmingham is only 3.5 games behind first place Kansas City, with everything to play for over the last month-plus of the season. TEAM SPOTLIGHT This Week, it's the Houston Colt 45's, read the whole thing here. Houston is just an odd team right now. Solid starting pitching, good speed, a strong ability to get on base ... but very little power, a horrendous bullpen, and some very unsettled positions, at least at present. THE OFFENSE The most important thing is how young this team is. Only Jorge Posada (36) and Jim O'Rourke (29) are on the far side of the magic age of 27, and and George Brett and Jim Wynn (23), Carlos Correa (22), and Pete Hill (19) are well under it. #What's Going Right Jeff Bagwell, Carlos Correa, and Tony Gwynn all have OPS over .900, although Gwynn's has fallen since an earlier flirtation with a .400 BA. Bagwell looks to be on the very edge of stardom, but it is Correa, who is slashing 326/404/553, who may be the biggest surprise. Jim Wynn has 27 HRs, second on the team to Bagwell's 28. Jim O'Rourke has bounced back from a disappointing first season, slashing 258/362/500 in a super-utility role. Mention must be made of Paul Goldschmidt, who has 8 homers in under 100 PAs, making the most of his limited chances. #What's Not Going Right Jorge Posada struggles offensively, with an OPS under .750. Not horrific for a backstop, but not good. Pete Hill continue to show power, but his .765 OPS won't cut it in a WBL OF. BUT, Hill is 19, so you could also see this as part of what's going right. George Brett and Craig Biggio both continue to show flashes of great talent, along with long periods of low production. But with the departure of HR Johnson, the team seems committed to each of them for the future. Andrés Galarraga bounced down from an excellent first season, earning himself a trip to AAA. THE PITCHING A real challenge: there are some truly top end performances here in Ramsey and Clemens, and then a lot of potential. And lets not even discuss the bullpen. Some of the same comments as with the position players: Oswalt is the aged veteran of the crew at 27, so this is a very young staff (and that doesn't even account for teenage phenom Leon Day at AAA). #What's Going Right Toad Ramsey is putting together one of the best seasons in WBL history, sitting at 13-9 with a a3.19 ERA and 217 strikeouts. The knuckleballer has been absolutely dominant, with a 6.6 WAR on the mound so far. Roger Clemens has been excellent, matching Ramsey in wins with a very impressive 3.60 ERA of his own. Andrew Chafin has been excellent in the bullpen, as have (in very limited action so far) Jim Kern and Roberto Osuna (Kern is a special surprise, after being torched last season). Ice Box Chamberlain seems to have recovered from injury, posting a 3.41 ERA over his 7 starts. #What's Not Going Right Roy Oswalt and Stephen Strasbourg are just frustrating, mixing good outings with horrible one, with both of them posting ERA's over 6.00. The bullpen has been quite poor, especially since Tug McGraw--fairly effective as a closer--hit the DL. John Franco and Chafin are the only arms left from the start of the year, with Brad Lidge, Kent Tekulve, and Billy Wagner all having moved back to AAA (and, in Tekulve's case, out of the system entirely). DIVISION NOTES Bill James Division Cum Posey Division Effa Manley Division Marvin Miller Division And, finally THE TRADES. Full writeup, with some commentary on who fleeced whom, is here. Over 50 players and almost 20 draft picks changed hands in the frenzy. Some highlights ... Hoyt There it Is! Quote:
It's an odd trade for New York, as it's not clear that Hoyt (Wilhelm) adds more to their bottom line of wins more than Hoyt (Waite). Chicago probably wins this one, just on the SP > RP evaluation. Orta should have a WBL career, but is not enough to balance the deal. Now & Later Quote:
Konerko and Otsuka being on the wrong side of 30 makes this acceptable, and Chicago probably got peak value for them in a long-term starter and the talent of Turner. Birmingham is thrilled, as this addresses two of their most pressing needs for a playoff push: 1B and bullpen help. The Wolverines Commit Quote:
I mean ... Detroit loves this for the immediate future. The key here is whether Yde, and especially Drake, ever amount to anything. This does remove any question about the infield of the future for the Black Barons, with Eddie Murray, Miller Huggins, Cal Ripken, Jr. and Manny Machado all but assured of starting roles. Stars and Sea Dogs move a lot of Bodies Quote:
Abreau for Palmiero is a wash. Of the rest, it's sort of a classic now/later proposition. Fregosi and Melancon step directly into key roles for the Stars, but Hawkins, and especially Stieb, do look like excellent long term prospects. The Black Barons Upgrade Quote:
Grich is a huge pickup for the Black Barons--an all star caliber who can get on base and play both middle infield positions is exactly what the doctor ordered in Birmingham. They gave up a lot--Tenace is excellent, some think Willis will eventually be a number one starter, and of course, the #1 pick is a lot. But it seems Birmingham is convinced they have a shot in the playoffs this year, and you can't fault the ambition. First Round Picks On the Move, or Freeman at Last, Freeman at Last Quote:
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One of the more promising talents in the WBL may have found a home, as Los Angeles sent a 1st Round Pick, closer Joe Nathan, and Wally Joyner to San Francisco for Freddie Freeman and minor league SS Eddie Miller. Both of these make some sense, as both Freeman and Averill were totally blocked where they were (Freeman by Jimmie Foxx and others, Averill by Willie McGee and Cool Papa Bell). Freeman should immediately see playing time in LA, while Averill looks to be in the mix for next season. The Black Yankees Find their SS of the Future? Quote:
It's a lot to give up, for sure. But Johnson is only 25, and an established WBL performer who will solve the Black Yankees' long term needs at either 2B or SS. Lyle is solid, and fills a very strong need for Houston, but the rest of what they gave up was future potential, which is cheap for a team whose goal is to win now.
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Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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10-03-2025, 05:55 PM
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#568 |
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All Star Reserve
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TWIWBL 79! WBL Year 2, Week 22
August 27th
The overview of the week is here. Lots of things are coming into focus as we head into September--we have pennant races, award races, all of that. Even with 2 of the divisions well decided, only half of the overall playoff spots are decided. #Awards The House of David's Ernie Banks hit .483 with a half-dozen homeruns, taking home the NL Player of the Week Award. Another stellar week from Detroit's Ty Cobb netted him another AL Player of the Week Award, his 4th of the season. Cobb hit .500 with 6 homeruns over the week. #The Wild Card Situation The Wildcards are all up for grabs, as 8 teams in the NL are within 4 games of making the postseason that way. It's more settled in the AL, with Miami leading Los Angeles for the 2nd wildcard spot by 4 games. TEAM SPOTLIGHT We turn to everyone's favorite team to hate, The New York Black Yankees. The Black Yankees are permanently in a win-now mentality, and this year is no different. They have a frighteningly good offense, but can struggle a lot on the mound, especially in the middle innings. THE OFFENSE The Black Yankees can rake. They are, of course, led by the irresistible Babe Ruth, but there really isn't an easy out in the group (and, due to a slight slump from Ruth and a surge from him, Lou Gehrig has actually overtaken the Babe in many of the key offensive measures). They are second in the league in homeruns, six everyday players have SLG over .500, six have OBP's over .350. They just have the ability to score a ton of runs. #What's Going Right Babe Ruth doing Babe Ruth things. The Bambino has an OPS of 1.118, 57 homeruns, 133 RBI, and 117 runs scored. His performance is even more remarkable when you consider that his BA has hovered around .275 most of the year--that's a lot of walks and a lot of power. Lou Gehrig continues his role as Babe Jr, trailing the Bambino by about 50 points of OPS. The Black Yankees have four players with over 40 homers: Ruth, Gehrig with 48, Mickey Mantle with 44, and Mike Schmidt with 40. Eric Davis, who still struggles to play everyday, joins that group, giving New York 5 players with OPS over .900. #What's Not Going Right The quintet featured above have struck out over 800 times between them, led by Mantle's 179, but both Ruth and Gehrig are well north of 150 as well. More meh than not going right, veteran Rogers Hornsby, brought in to solve the struggles for the Black Yankees at 2B, has been fine, but is hitting at a slightly lower level than he did for Portland. Derek Jeter continues to be the weakest point in the lineup. But a SS with an OPS over .725 and solid defense is certainly nothing to be overly concerned with (and, the acquisition of HR Johnson at the trading break gives New York a young player to eventually take over from Hornsby or Jeter down the road). THE PITCHING The pitching isn't bad, but it isn't great. The back end of the rotation and the middle of the bullpen are especially concerning. #What's Going Right Andy Pettitte has been a great acquisition, sitting at 15-8 with a decent ERA. Ron Guidry continues to pitch better than his surface numbers, but there are whispers that he is beginning to decline. Guidry continues to strike 'em out at a prodigious rate, but his record sits at only 8-7. Goose Gossage has seized the closer role, with 15 saves and a WHIP barely over 1.00. Hoyt Wilhelm, an expensive purchase at the trading break, has started well, perhaps offering a solve to the middle innings for New York. #What's Not Going Right The most likely candidate for the 3rd starter spot in the postseason is Dave Righetti who (a) makes it 3 lefties in a row behind Pettitte and Guidry, and (b) was injured for much of the summer. Tony Brizzolara, Herm Wehmeier, and (based on minor league performance) Roy Evans have all shown initial promise to fill the back end of the rotation. They've all flamed out, and Red Ruffing has fared no better. Aroldis Chapman lost the closer role to Gossage, despite amassing 18 saves. He has adopted well to an earlier role from the pen, so perhaps this is in the wrong section? But his initial performance was very rough. DIVISION NOTES Bill James Division Cum Posey Division Effa Manley Division Marvin Miller Division
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Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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10-21-2025, 02:03 PM
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#569 |
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All Star Reserve
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TWIWBL 80! WBL Year 2, Week 23
September 2nd
Full TWIBL here. #August Awards Brooklyn's emerging stud Fernando Valenzuela went 5- 1 in August, earning the NL Rookie of the Month for August; in the AL, San Francsico's rookie superstar Turkey Stearnes hit .389 with 10 homers and 24 RBI's during the month, taking home the AL Award. Valenzuela was eclipsed by Indianapolis' Luis Padrón for the overall monthly award. Padrón went 5-0 in the month with a 3.09 ERA as he solidified his status as the best hurler in the WBL this season, winning the NL Pitcher of the Month for August. The AL Pitcher of the Month went to Andy Pettitte of the New York Black Yankees, who rode a 5-1 record to the Award. Ernie Banks of the House of David had a torrid August, slugging 14--FOURTEEN--homeruns and hitting .370 as he was named the Batter of the Month in the AL. Over in the NL, the Batter of the Month Award went to Detroit's Ty Cobb, who hit .452 in August, reclaiming a shot at a .400 average for the season. #Weekly Awards Stearnes hit .435 with 4 homers over the final week of August, earning the rookie CF the AL Player of the Week while Brooklyn's 3B Ron Cey hit .455 with 5 homers, earning him the NL Player of the Week Award. Playoff Watch Here is where we are. In the American League, The San Francisco Sea Lions are going to win the Cum Posey Division, and either the Cleveland Spiders or New York Black Yankees are going to win the Bill James Division (right now, the Spiders hold a 1.5 game edge). Whoever loses the Bill James will take one Wild Card spot, and either Detroit (8 gams back in the Bill James) or Miami (1.5 games behind Detroit) will take the other. TEAM SPOTLIGHT Full overview of the Wandering House of David here. While theoretically based in Chicago, the House of David travel the backroads of the country with a portable stadium used for their home games. It's a life. On the field, it's an example of how important upper end performance is to a team, and how painful it can be when it falls off. While they are still within 2 games of the final NL Wild Card spot, it's been a disappointing year for the House of David. The offense has been decent enough--and there are some clear positive indications for next year--but the pitching has been a struggle. Overall, a lot can be placed at the feet of Pete Browning and Jack Taylor, superstars last year who have failed to deliver this season. THE OFFENSE It's a good offense. The BA and OBP are perhaps a little low, but there's enough power to compensate, and ultimately, this ain't the issue with the team. #What's Going Right Ernie Banks has exploded into superstardom, with a 1.031 OPS and 117 RBI's heading into September. Banks is 3rd in the league in homers with 54, and is clearly the dominant cog in the House of David offense, and perhaps the dominant offensive SS in the league. Richie Hebner, not projected as a starter, also has an OPS over 1.000, and has edged into an everyday role, slashing 296/387/636 in just under 300 PAs. The House of David as found 2 standout 1Bs this year in Anthony Rizzo and Mark McGwire. McGwire has played in just under 40 games, but is managing to maintain an OPS around .950 with a BA barely over .200: that's a lot of walks and a lot of homeruns (17 of each in 140 PAs). Rizzo is slashing 276/389/581. Ryne Sandberg continues to deliver at 2B, with 35 homers and a .930 OPS. Ron Santo, has been mired in a slump recently, but still has an OPS around .850. George Stone, George Gore, and Jim Edmonds all cluster around an .800 OPS in the OF, with Gore the most effective of the 3, taking most of the CF time from Edmonds. Sammy Sosa has 37 homers, 2nd on the team. #What's Not Going Right Pete Browning has been hurt, limiting his availability to about 75 games. More importantly, when healthy, last year's superstar has struggled, with an OPS under .750. Sammy Sosa's 37 homeruns are part of a .750 OPS as the immensely talented OF struggles constantly to put good wood on the ball. Combine this with the above and the OF picture is just horribly confused. Gore, Stone, Edmonds, Sosa, and Browning (and the supernova debut of Tony Conigliaro) all result in none of the OF spots having a clear claimant. Elrod Hendricks has been ... not terrible, but not at all good. 22 homeruns is nice from a catcher, but a sub .700 OPS is not. Frank Chance--given every, um, chance, to supplant Hendricks--has an even lower OPS, although he has shown a decent ability to get on base. THE PITCHING The House of David entered the season concerned about how they would fill out the rotation behind Jack Taylor. Now they're worried about all of the staff, including Taylor. It's not pretty. #What's Going Right Bob Rush, who leads the team in wins with 10, has been quite solid, and CC Sabathia has pitched far better than his 5-11 record would indicate. Youngster Kyle Peterson has been a revelation, with a 3.51 ERA and 1.13 WHIP over 11 starts. Veteran lefty Jimmy Key has done well out of the pen. But well in this context is an ERA just over 5.00 and a WHIP hovering in the 1.20 range. So ... not great. Having traded away or demoted all of their closers, Karl Spooner has quite unexpectedly stepped into the spotlight and pitched quite well at the end of games. #What's Not Going Right Taylor has been awful for much of the year, with an ERA well over 6.00 most of the season. Now, it must be said, he's pitched significantly better of late, winning his last 5 decisions and dropping his ERA by roughly a run. They've run a lot of arms through the rotation, with Frank Sullivan, Kerry Wood, Ferguson Jenkins, and Rick Reuschel all getting at least 5 starts. Of those, only Reuschel has been passable. PREVIEWING THE GOLD GLOVES An early look at the leading fielders is up here. We have twice as many as last year, due to the creation of the National League. All the deets are at that link. The best bets for potential repeat winners are Baltimore's Paul Blair in CF, Brooklyn's Roy White in LF, and Jack Taylor of the House of David on the mound. TWIWBL Notes for Each Division More detail than anyone else could care about: Bill James Division Cum Posey Division Effa Manley Division Marvin Miller Division
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Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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11-13-2025, 02:13 PM
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#570 |
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All Star Reserve
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Posts: 923
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TWIWBL 81.1: Year 2, Week 24
September 9th
Full TWIWBL is here. This week we have more playoff updates, and a look at the best rookies so far this year. #Awards Freddie Freeman is immediately showing he belongs at this level for Los Angeles, with the recent acquisition earning the AL Player of the Week Award, hitting .579 for the week with 4 homeruns. Over in the NL, Brooklyn's Duke Snider took home the Player of the Week with a .600 (!) average and 5 homers. With 3 weeks left in the season, here's how we sit heading down the homestretch. #AL The San Francisco Sea Lions have clinched the Cum Posey Division. The New York Black Yankees have taken a 1 game lead over the Cleveland Spiders in the Bill James Division. Both of these teams will make the postseason, with the 3rd place team in the Bill James, the Detroit Wolverines, leading the Miami Cuban Giants by 4.5 games for the final AL playoff spot. So, barring some real drama, the only race here is between the Spiders and the Black Yankees for playoff seeding. #NL The Effa Manley is a bit of a mirror of the Cum Posey, with the Brooklyn Royal Giants playing out the string, riding a 15.5 game lead over second place Philadelphia, with the Stars currently the highest ranked Wild Card team as well. And then it gets messy. Houston has surged in front of the Kansas City Monarchs, with the Colt 45's leading the Marvin Miller Division by 2.5 games now. However, 3 more teams (Indianapolis, Homestead, and the House of David) are within 2.5 games of the final Wild Card spot, with Birmingham and the New York Gothams only 4 games back. All of that means that only the Ottawa Mounties (5.5 games off the Wild Card, but having 5 teams in the way) have really given up on the season. #Injuries A huge one: Chicago's Frank Thomas is out for 8-9 months with a knee injury. The Big Hurt is expected to make a full recovery, but this really will impact the American Giants' offseason plans, as they will need a 1B for the first half of next season. TEAM SPOTLIGHT: NEW YORK GOTHAMS This week, we take a closer look at the disappointing New York Gothams. Full writeup is here. This team really should be better than this. But if you really look at the talent on the roster, their struggles make sense. HOME PAGE | ROSTER | POSITIONAL STRENGTH | LEADERS This is what happens when you struggle to hit with mediocre pitching. While a monstrous close to the season could maybe possibly see the Gothams edging into the playoffs, really, this year is toast for them. THE OFFENSE There are a few very high end highlights, and a couple feel-good stories. But ... it needs to get better across the board. #What's Going Right Willie Mays is a spectacular talent: power, speed, defense, and at 24, coming into his prime. He leads the Gothams in homeruns, RBI, R, and (for batting qualifiers) OPS. Buster Posey's raw numbers trail Mays, but he's a catcher, and an OPS over .900 from a solid backstop is remarkable. He's backed up by Dick Dietz, who may be the best offensively performing backup catcher in the league. Last years AAA MVP, Benny Kauff, has stepped right into a WBL role, sitting 2nd on the team in most offensive rates. Will Clark has emerged as an excellent 1B, with an OPS around .950. Larry Doyle has exploded this year, outpacing even Mays with most of his rate stats. Doyle is 35, so he may not be a long-term solve there, but he's been a revelation. 3B has been an issue for the Gothams all year, but it feels like Jim Ray Hart may have claimed it moving forward. #What's Not Going Right The rest of the lineup is essentially a mess. LF and SS are weak, and the people that have been run through those, plus 2B and 3B before the emergence of Doyle and Hart, have been ridiculously bad. Jo-Jo Moore, Terry Turner, Pete Runnels, Eugenio Suárez, George Van Haltren, Ryan Zimmerman, Steve Kemp, Carl Furillo ... none of them could stick with the WBL club. THE PITCHING There was such potential here. You have the rotation anchored by Christy Mathewson, Gaylord Perry, and Don Sutton, and one of the best bullpens in the league, led by Brian Wilson, but also featuring Mike Norris. It didn't work out: Mathewson has been shockingly mediocre, Perry and Sutton merely good, Norris is showing signs of age, and Wilson spent a fair bit of time on the DL. #What's Going Right Brian Wilson is excellent, a true shutdown closer at the end of the bullpen, and he looks fully recovered from his earlier injury. Mike Norris, while not as incandescent as last year, has been excellent behind Wilson. Gaylord Perry has excellent peripheral numbers despite a mediocre win/loss record and ERA. #What's Not Going Right Mathewson hasn't been outright bad, and, as always, he chews up innings. But a 7-14 record and an ERA in the mid 5.00's is not what the Gothams expect from him. The back end of the rotation has been a mess, with Rube Waddell, Carl Hubbell, and others all sort of stumbling through their opportunities. The much traveled Kent Tekulve has done well with the Gothams, but is insisting on pursuing free agency, so his signing ends up not mattering much for the team overall. #ROOKIE PREVIEW A position-by-position review of the rookies is here. Only 6 players are officially full time (that is, they qualify for the batting stats): IF Jimmie Foxx, OFs Turkey Stearnes, John Briggs, Adam Dunn, and Ichiro Suzuki, and everywhere playing Charles Rogan. That group probably forms the core of the shortlist for the final Rookie of the Year Award: if you're able to hold down a fulltime starting spot as a rookie in the WBL ... Honestly, though, this is Turkey Stearnes' world. 22 Years old, a 1.134 OPS with 47 HR and 115 RBIs will do that, DIVISION NOTES Bill James Division Cum Posey Division Effa Manley Division Marvin Miller Division
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Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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12-18-2025, 02:50 PM
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#571 |
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All Star Reserve
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TWIWBL 82.1: Year 2, Week 25
September 17th
Full TWIWBL at the usual spot. We have 2 weeks left in the season, so a ton of focus on the playoff races feels appropriate. #Awards The House of David's Anthony Rizzo hit 4 homeruns and hit .429, earning himself the NL Player of the Week Award. Over in the AL, it was a familiar name--Babe Ruth of the New York Black Yankees--earning the Award. Ruth hit .526 with 6 homeruns and 11 RBIs as New York pushes towards the playoffs. #Team Performance #AL The San Francisco Sea Lions have clinched the Cum Posey Division, and either the Cleveland Spiders or the Black Yankees will win the Bill James Division (currently the 2 teams are locked in a dead heat for the top spot), with the other team taking 1 of the 2 Wild Card slots. The Detroit Wolverines lead the Miami Cuban Giants by 1.5 games for the final playoff spot. This week offers the Black Yankees a huge opportunity, as they host both Detroit and Cleveland: a strong week from New York could settle a lot of questions. #NL Brooklyn has clinched the Effa Manley Division, and all else is chaos. Philadelphia is (a) 15 games behind the Royal Giants and (b) leading the Wild Card race by 2.5 games. The Houston Colt 45's have put their best baseball on the field when it matters, and are currently leading the Marvin Miller Division by 4.5 games, putting them in good position to claim their first postseason appearance. Behind them, Indianapolis and Kansas City are tied with identical 74-76 records, with the House of David 1.5 games behind them. But the worst team in the NL--the Ottawa Mounties--are only 4.5 games out of the Wild Card. Now, climbing over 6 teams is hard, but anything is possible. With that many teams still engaged, all of the matchups this week have meaning, but Houston visiting Indianapolis to start the week will certainly grab some attention. Team Spotlight: Memphis Red Sox There is a ton of offensive talent here, but it falls off drastically, and suffers from a lot of positional overlap. Add in downright poor pitching, and you have the worst team in the Bill James Division. HOME PAGE | ROSTER | POSITIONAL STRENGTH | LEADERS It's not clear where Memphis goes, but it certainly looks like trading some of their positional depth for some pitching should be on the table. THE OFFENSE It's a top heavy team, with some true standout talent. #What's Going Right Ted Williams is an elite talent, and while his 298/412/619 slash line doesn't move him into the absolute top tier, at 22 there is quite some room for improvement. Manny Ramírez has stepped up dramatically from last year, leading the team with 42 HRs and 2nd behind Williams in RBI. Ramírez' OPS has hovered around 1.000 all season, powered by a SLG in the mid .600's. David Ortiz has essentially displaced Bill White at 1B, slashing 286/370/680 in just over 300 PAs. Gabby Hartnett is an excellent offensive C, posting an OPS in the mid 800's with 37 HRs and his backup, Billy Bryan, has been even better offensively, with 14 HRs in 140 PA's. For a 20 year old, Dobie Moore's debut has to be considered a success, slashing 291/352/427 while playing across the IF. #What's Not Going Right OF Mookie Betts and 3B Wade Boggs have been fine, but the Red Sox need more if they are going to compete. Nobody getting a ton of playing time has really been awful offensively, although only Iván De Jesús' defensive flexibility has kept him in the league. The positional distribution remains unsolved: Ortiz, White, and Travis Shaw all seem to be reasonable WBL alternatives at 1B, and the leading young talent (Hack Wilson and Lefty O'Doul) play the same positions as Reggie Smith, Betts, Ramírez, and Williams. THE PITCHING When your best pitcher is a middling middle reliever (Tommy de la Cruz, whose 6.20 ERA belies some very good supporting numbers), you're in trouble. #What's Going Right That is a little unfair to Stubby Overmire, who leads the team with 11 wins and looks like an excellent #2 or #3 rotation starter being asked to be a #1. Andrew Miller's been solid out of the bullpen with a 7-8 record, 3 saves, and 11 holds while leading the WBL in appearances. #What's Not Going Right Everything else. David Bush, Len Barker, and Jon Lester have all failed to impress, with Bush (8-8, 6.82) being the best of a bad lot. Some of the other hurlers given opportunities, especially Eddie Cicotte and Nixey Callahan, have been unbelievably bad. THE FARM SYSTEM TOP PROSPECTS | MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEM There is some help, as Memphis has a middle-of-the-road farm system, with some strong talent that is blocked at the WBL level (all the more trade fodder for some pitching). OFs Dwight Evans, Hack Wilson, Willie Crawford, Roy Thomas, Lefty O'Doul, and Carl Yastrzemski all look to have high ceilings. On the IF, it's a bit more sparse, with Candy Jim Taylor and Joe Cunningham leading the way. There is also some potential on the mound. Sadie McMahon remains well regarded despite his struggles, and he, Jim Kaat, Josh Beckett, and Nathan Eovaldi should all be given some long looks in the Spring. WHAT'S NEEDED A re-distribution of the talent, using some of the excess to bring some arms to town. Storylines to Watch Key Questions from Spring Training
Divisional Notes Bill James Division Cum Posey Division Effa Manley Division Marvin Miller Division
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01-04-2026, 12:00 AM
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#572 |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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TWIWBL 83: Year 2, Week 26
September 23rd
THE FINAL WEEK OF THE SEASON! We have some of the normal stuff, including our final team review, and then the details of the pennant race. Full TWIWBL here. #Awards Houston's Jim O'Rourke continues a great recovery from a disappointing performance last season with a National League Player of the Week Award. O'Rourke hit .550 in the penultimate week of the season as the Colt 45's try to clinch their first Marvin Miller Division title. In the AL, the often-overlooked Lou Gehrig picked up the Award with the Black Yankee's 1B hitting .400 with 6 homeruns. #Team Performance #AL The Black Yankees had a good week in the Bill James Division, moving from a virtual tie with Cleveland into a 1.5 game lead. The Detroit Wolverines, however, have picked a bad time to struggle, and they now hold only a half-game lead over Miami for the final Wild Card spot. It's an interesting final week on the schedule: the Black Yankees visit San Francisco in a likely playoff series preview, and then close out the year against the much-improved of late Baltimore Black Sox. Cleveland probably has the easiest schedule, hosting the lowly Memphis Red Sox, and then ending the year at Miami, who play Detroit before that series with the Spiders. Miami not only has their future in their own hands, they also could decide the Black Yankees / Spiders race. #NL With 96 victories in the Effa Manley Division, the Brooklyn Royal Giants have an outside shot at 100 and, with a 5 game lead, Philadelphia looks to have locked up a Wild Card spot. Houston has a clear path to the Marvin Miller Division crown on paper, with a 4 game lead and series left against the New York Gothams and the Wandering House of David. The final Wild Card spot is likely to come down to the final series of the year, with Kansas City hosting Indianapolis, although the House of David are technically still in the race. SPOTLIGHT ON THE KANSAS CITY MONARCHS An interesting team, and an unusual one in that the Monarchs have a great staff, and frustrating offense in a league dominated by the inverse. HOME PAGE | ROSTER | POSITIONAL STRENGTH | LEADERS It's been a good year for Kansas City: they are in the playoff hunt, and seem well positioned for the future, especially if they can address a highly imbalanced offense. THE OFFENSE There's just a little too much mediocrity here--a lot of players that are solid pieces, but may not be strong enough for lead roles in this league. #What's Going Right The offense revolves around 2 players: Albert Pujols and Stan Musial. Pujols has moved into the elite category this world, with the 22 year old maintaining an OPS over 1.000 with 40 homers and 113 RBIs, all of which lead the team. Musial is a more complicated case: a .900+ OPS is excellent, but 12 homers is just disappointing from Musial's level of talent. His eye is still excellent, and 59 doubles makes his SLG impressive ... but Musial has better seasons in him. Smokey Joe Wood has an OPS of .887 in about 135 PA's, making him one of the few 2-way players that actually contributes on both sides. Ted Simmons remains one of the better hitting catchers in the league, with an OPS in the mid .800s. Boog Powell is solid at 1B, drawing walks and adding a bit of power. This team has a ridiculous amount of speed, led by Ozzie Smith's 59 SB, but Willie McGee, Frankie Frisch, and Musial each have over 30 steals, and rookie Cool Papa Bell has 15 in only 36 games. Bell struggled initially, but his roughly 80 points of additional OPS has moved him ahead of McGee in the CF pecking order. #What's Not Going Right Smith, for all his speed and his gold glove level defense, has an OPS well under .700. The value is still there, for sure, but if the Wizard of Oz could contribute just a little more offensively, it could be significant for KC. Robinson Canó hits barely more than Ozzie, without the rest of the positives, making 2B a pretty sizable weakness for the Monarchs. There's nothing wrong with Ducky Medwick or Dale Murphy, but there's little right as well. Each has power, but not a lot else--if either of them could take a big step forward, the Monarchs could find their 3rd dangerous bat. THE PITCHING This is a fantastic staff, top to bottom, with enough depth that some of these arms are likely to be dealt in the offseason as Kansas City tries to gain more offense. #What's Going Right A. Rube Foster has emerged as a legitimate ace, at or near the top of the league in WHIP, BABIP, and most other advanced anlytics for starting pitchers. Foster started the year in the bullpen, but has now made 23 starts and should exceed 200 IP. Smokey Joe Wood is a great #2, and both José Rijo (he of the first WBL perfect game) and Frank Castillo are far above average behind the top 2 starters. Throw in youngsters Matt Morris and Adam Wainwright--both of whom have been quite impressive in a handful of starts--and you have a very deep crop of starters. Craig Kimbrel continues to dominate since being moved into the closer role and Eddie Guardad0, Lee Smith, and the surprising Mike Kume are absolutely lights out in front of him: Kimbrel's 1.14 WHIP is the worst of that group, as is his 3.48 ERA. #What's Not Going Right Luke Hamlin and Jeff Pfeffer--last year's #1 and closer respectively--have essentially pitched their way to the bottom of the staff. Hamlin has lost his spot in the rotation, and Pfeffer is essentially a mop-up arm at this point. Bob Gibson continues to struggle to adapt to the WBL despite his eye-popping stuff. But to give you a sense of how strong the staff is, those 3 (plus the newly acquired Joe Beggs) are the only hurlers with ERAs over 5.00. THE FARM SYSTEM TOP PROSPECTS | MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEM It's a good system, with some help available across the board. Cool Papa Bell and Wade Johnston are highly rated in the OF and Sam Mongin (impressive in his first few games) will force himself into the conversation on the IF as soon as next season. Carlos Baerga, Dink Mothel, Dave Cash, Kolton Wong, or Keston Hiura should provide some options at 2B if the organization gives up on Canó. Baerga may be the best of that group, but at 18 is probably still a few years away. On the mound, Hilton Smith, Bill Singer, Gene Garber, Joe Blong, and Jack Quinn should all have WBL careers, with Smith probably having the highest ceiling of the group. WHAT'S NEEDED Offense. Upgrades could be had everywhere except C and wherever Pujols or Musial end up. Storylines to Watch Key Questions from Spring Training
THE FINAL WEEK There is a riveting, not at all excessive, day by day update on the final week of the season. Read all about it here. Here's how it all ended. #Sunday The final day of the season leaves both final Wild Card spots up for grabs: in the AL, Miami has a 1 game lead over Detroit and in the NL, Kansas City has the edge over both Indianapolis and the House of David. Miami was unable to clinch it: Larry Doby became the 2nd player in WBL history (and the first in the AL) to hit 4 homeruns in a game, driving in 7 as Cleveland topped the Cuban Giants, 13-7. That leaves Miami's fate in the hands of Detroit later in the day. Detroit used a mix of the old reliable--2 homeruns from Al Kaline and 1 from Ty Cobb--and the newly acquired (a strong start from Connie Johnson and key innings from Steve Howe and Troy Percival) to beat Memphis, 8-4. And so, we finish in a dead heat. Miami Cuban Giants 80-82 -- Detroit Wolverines 80-82 -- AL Wild Card Eppa Rixey combined with 4 relievers (including an important 1.2 innings from Doc Mitchell), leading the ABC's to a 7-3 win over Kansas City, meaning Indianapolis and the Monarchs finish with identical 79-83 records. The only question is if the House of David will join them in a 3-way tie for the final playoff spot. Nope. The House of David tried valiantly, and even outhit Houston, 10-8, but they fell to the Colt 45's, 10-9 in a game that saw Tony Gwynn rap out 3 hits, reaching 200 on the season. Richie Hebner, Ryne Sandberg, and Anthony Rizzo each had 2 hits, but they didn't get enough support as the House of David season ends, falling just short of the postseason. #Monday So, two playoff games, winner makes the postseason. #AL First up, we have Miami visiting Detroit. The Cuban Giants will turn to Hugh McQuillan who, despite being roughed up in his last start, has been solid for Miami. If he struggles early, look for Jim Whitney to try to give the team some innings on short rest. For Detroit, Pete Conway will take the mound, also on a pretty short leash. Ty Cobb may be almost universally disliked, but his baseball talent cannot be denied: he launched a 3 run homer in the top of the first and a grand slam in the 2nd, helping Detroit to a 9-0 lead after 2 innings. Conway, meanwhile, had allowed a single run on 3 hits through 5, and left after 6 with the score 13-2. Miami scored 3 in the 9th, but fell well short, 14-5. In the end, a just result, as Detroit really feels like the better team. Still, the Cuban Giants went from being the worst team in the league to being this close to the playoffs: a good year for them. Cobb finished with 2 homers and 7 RBIs, and Al Kaline, Charlie Gehringer, Ernie Lombardi, and Hank Greenberg each also went deep. There was some bad news on Greenberg, who will be out of action for a few days with a leg injury. #NL Indianapolis would turn to Doc White while Kansas City gave the start to young Matt Morris. Kansas City took an early lead on Albert Pujols' second homerun of the game, pulling ahead 6-3 after 3 innings, with the ABC's runs coming on longballs from George Foster and Chris Sabo. Morris was OK--not great, but not bad--until Tommy Helms singled and scored on a double from Barry Larkin in the top of the 4th. A Bob Bescher walk put runners on the corner, and fetched Frank Castillo from the bullpen. The move backfired as Sabo and Oscar Charleston singled and, after a couple of outs, Johnny Bench brought home 2 with a single of his own, giving Indianapolis an 8-7 lead. Foster followed with his 2nd dinger of the game, extending the lead to 10-7 and chasing Castillo. His successor, Bob Shawkey, gave upa solo shot to Helms and when all of the dust settled, the ABC's had scored 8 and were up 11-7. The ABC's coasted from there, riding additional homeruns by Ed Charles and Sabo to a 15-8 win, powering Indianapolis into the postseason. Sabo drove in 5 and Foster 4, with each of them notching 3 hits on the day. Kansas City had ridden its pitching staff all year; here their arms betrayed them, surrendering 14 hits and 15 runs. DIVISION REPORTS The usual news and notes Bill James Division Cum Posey Division Effa Manley Division Marvin Miller Division
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Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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01-13-2026, 06:04 PM
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#573 | ||
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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TWIWBL 84.1: Year 2, Week 27 - THE WILD CARD ROUND
October 1st
THE REGULAR SEASON IZ DONE! Nice feeling of accomplishment, for sure. In the AL, we have the top overall seed, San Francisco, playing Detroit and the Bill James Division rivals, Cleveland and the New York Black Yankees facing off. My prediction was Quote:
Over in the NL, it's Brooklyn v Indianapolis and two surprise teams, Houston and Philadelphia. Here's how I saw it at the time: Quote:
Then we have 4 posts, one for each series. Check them out for game-by-game results: NL Wild Card: Philadelphia Stars v Houston Colt 45's AL Wild Card: Cleveland Spiders v New York Black Yankees AL Wild Card: Detroit Wolverines v San Francisco Sea Lions NL Wild Card: Indianapolis ABCs v Brooklyn Royal Giants Results coming next post! Oh, yeah, we also had a spate of retirees. Sad to see them go and all that, but a bunch are moving into coaching, so we'll see what happens there.
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Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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01-22-2026, 03:27 AM
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#574 |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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TWIWBL 85.1: The Year 2 League Championships
October 13th
There is absolutely nothing to report this week outside of the League Championships. No retirements, no coaching changes. So, we’ll use the opportunity to look at the major awards from the minor leagues. After that, 4 posts: a preview for each league, and then the League Championship series themselves. #AAA #MVP Jack Hannifin of the Las Vegas Aces rode 63 homeruns and 126 RBIs to the AAA MVP. Hannifin is hoping to follow in the footsteps of last year's winner, Benny Kauff, in parlaying the award into a WBL job and--given how bad the Angels were this year--he will certainly get a Spring Training invite. Jim Gentile of Queens (Brooklyn) and Jung Ho Kang of Norfolk (Philadelphia) came in 2nd and 3rd in the voting, with Kang clearly establishing himself as a AAA force looking for a chance in the WBL. #Pitcher of the Year Just what Brooklyn needs: more pitching. 21 year old Dick Redding went 14-7 with a 3.46 ERA for Queens, edging out Mark Baldwin (Baltimore) for the award. Redding's teammate, John Denny, came in 3rd. #AA Cy Williams (the House of David) barely edged out Lorenzo Cain (Houston) for the MVP award in AA. Williams hit .306 with 44 homeruns and 107 RBIs on the year. Eric MacKenzie of Hudson Valley (New York Black Yankees) came in 3rd. Just what Brooklyn needs: more pitching. 22 year old Art Johnson went 10-4 with a 3.45 ERA for Jersey City, winning by a large margin over Jack Kralick (Philadelphia). Johnson's teammate, Doc Newton, came in 3rd. #A Odúbel Herrera, who had an impressive late season callup for Philadelphia, was named the A MVP, outdistancing Staten Islands' Danny Walton (the New York Black Yankees) and Oakland's Jules Thomas (San Francisco). Herrera hit .358 on the year for Roanoke. Clayton Kershaw--perhaps the best starting prospect in the game right now--took home the Pitcher of the year for Durham (Homestead). Kershaw went 10-4 with a 2.21 ERA, and given the state of pitching for the Grays, is sure to get a long look in Spring Training, despite being 19 years old. Carlos Rodón of the Staten Island Yankees came in second, with Larry Dierker of the Bingo Long Traveling All Stars (House of David), finished 3rd. The Championship Previews AL Full Preview. It’s hard to make any prediction other than San Francisco. And, honestly, it’s hard to see Cleveland putting up much resistance, Sea Lions in 5. But note, we had the same opinion of the matchup with Detroit. So. NL Full Preview. The teams are decent mirrors of each other, with Brooklyn being a smidge better across the board. So let's guess at Brooklyn in 6. You can check out how the NL Championship went here and how the AL went right here. Next up, The Whirled Series!
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Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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01-27-2026, 07:02 PM
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#575 |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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The year 2 whirled series!
October 22nd
The WHIRLED SERIES is here! We have a very small note beforehand: #Miami Cuban Giants RP Sandy Consuegra announced his retirement. Consuegra had periods of effectiveness during both seasons, but also had enough miserable outings to end his career with an ERA over 7.00 over roughly 80 games. At age 37, the writing was on the wall, and he retires with a 5-12 record and 4 saves, and a 1.2 WAR, which you have to imagine is largely from just being willing to chew up innings. With that out of the way, we have a detailed preview of the Whirled Series. From the AL, we have the San Francisco Sea Lions, who finished with the best record in the WBL and 103 wins. They'll face the Brooklyn Royal Giants, who led the NL with 99 regular season wins. Here's the end of the preview article: #Overall So, it comes down to a question of whether Brooklyn's edge on the mound can suppress San Francisco's superior firepower. It's not clear they can, and while the teams should be quite close, San Francisco won more in the regular season and should prevail here. But Brooklyn has a shot, and should certainly make it difficult. Let's say San Francisco in 6, with 5 of them being close games. Here's game reports on the first 2 games, in San Francisco. And the final 3 games, in Brooklyn. It was a great series: extra inning games, and a series-winning, walk off homerun. And that gives it away, so congratulations to Brooklyn! A surprise winner, unseating the most dominant regular season team, and joining Baltimore on the list of WBL Champions!
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Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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02-26-2026, 01:32 PM
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#576 | |
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All Star Reserve
Join Date: May 2020
Posts: 923
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Year 2 Wrap Up & Awards & The LIke
This is a bit of a long one, as it covers all of the end of year info for the WBL. There will be links to the longer entries on the website if anyone wants to dive deeper.
#A Note on Parity It's only been 2 years, but the parity in the league so far is encouraging. Only 2 teams--the Cleveland Spiders and the Detroit Wolverines--have made the playoffs each season. 3 of the worst teams last year (Kansas City, Miami, and Philadelphia) were in the playoff hunt (and, in the Stars' case, made it), leaving Memphis, Ottawa, and Los Angeles as the teams without a true sniff of the postseason either year. #Too. Much. Offense. More data here, but essentially OOTP lost its mind on offense this year. Quote:
Total Bases: 492, Ty Cobb (DET). Obliterates Babe Ruth‘s mark of 457 in 1921. Doubles: 72, Ty Cobb (DET). Earl Webb had 67 in 1931. And, of course, Ruth tied Barry Bonds‘ 2001 homerun record of 73. So that’s not horrible: Ty Cobb had a stunning year, and I can’t be made at Cobb and Ruth peppering the record book (nor, honestly, at Josh Gibson‘s .400 average, a WBL record). But we have to do better next year at adjusting the base league down a bit. #Position Reviews Did a post for each position, sorting them into the gaming buckets (kids these days and all that). I'll link to each one, and only list the S-Tier performances. Catcher. S-Tier: Gary Carter (OTT) & Josh Gibson (HOM). First Base. S-Tier: None. Lots of great performances, but nobody edged into that top level. Second Base. S-Tier: Roberto Alomar (OTT) & Joe Morgan (IND). Shortstop. S-Tier: Ernie Banks (HOD). Third Base. S-Tier: Ron Cey (BRK) & Albert Pujols (KAN). Left Field. S-Tier: Kal Daniels (LAA), Frank Robinson (BAL), Babe Ruth (NYY). Center Field. S-Tier: Oscar Charleston (IND), Tris Speaker (CLE), Turkey Stearnes (SFS), Mike Trout (LAA). Right Field. S-Tier: Aaron Judge (PHI). DH. S-Tier: Ty Cobb (DET) & Lou Gehrig (NYY). Starters. S-Tier: A. Rube Foster (KAN), Luis Padron (IND), & Toad Ramsey (HOU). Relievers. S-Tier: Eddie Guardado (KAN) & Lee Smith (HOD/KAN). Closers. S-Tier: Rod Beck (SFS) & Eric Gagne (BRK). All of that coalesces into the rainbow monstrosity tables of the Teams of the Year. Just a glance shows the differences in the leagues: you want offense, look at the AL, you want pitching, the NL. That's a generality, and like all such, not fully accurate: the NL actually has more S Tier bats, but the AL is overall more top heavy offensively. San Francisco, predictably, leads the way with 12 selections while the rivalry between the Black Yankees and Cleveland continues, with the Bill James Division heavyweights having 8 each. Here are the Year II Teams of the Year (there are a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Team of the Year at the link): Code:
Pos American League National League
C Ed Bailey (36, DET/CLE) Josh Gibson (21, HOM)
1B Jim Thome (28, MCG) Paul Konerko (34, CAG/BBB)
2B Eddie Collins (28, CAG) Roberto Alomar (24, OTT)
SS Arky Vaughan (27, CLE) Ernie Banks (25, HOD)
3B Evan Longoria (24, CLE) Ron Cey (27, BRK)
LF Babe Ruth (25, NYY) Jim Wynn (23, HOU)
CF Turkey Stearnes (22, SFS) Oscar Charleston (21, IND)
RF Mickey Mantle (22, NYY) Aaron Judge (27, PHI)
DH Ty Cobb (21, DET) Willie Stargell (31, HOM)
SP Lefty Grove (27, SFS) Luis Padrón (22, IND)
José Méndez (23, MCG) Toad Ramsey (23, HOU)
Jim Whitney (24, BBB/MCG) A. Rube Foster (24, KCM)
RP Ken Howell (24, SFS) Lee Smith (34, HOD/KCM)
Andrew Miller (23, MEM) Eddie Guardado (26, KCM)
Rod Beck (24, SFS) Eric Gagne (27, BRK)
Detailed rundown of the finalists here--and as always, sorting through OOTP's defensive impacts can be complicated. But I'm happy with the results: Code:
Pos American League National League C Iván Rodríguez (MCG) Elrod Hendricks (HOD) 1B Hank Greenberg (DET) Joey Votto (IND) 2B Miller Huggins (BAL) Chase Utley (PHI) SS Arky Vaughan (CLE) Ozzie Smith (KCM) 3B Buddy Bell (POR) Ron Cey (BRK) LF Johnny Bates (CLE) Roy White (BRK) CF Paul Blair (BAL) Willie Davis (PHI) RF Ichiro Suzuki (LAA) Roberto Clemente (HOM) P Bert Blyleven (POR) Bob Rush (HOD) And here are the end of season recognitions. That post has top 3 for each, plus some discussion. The Silver Sticks. The guideline here is the best offensive performance at each position, with a slightly relaxed PA requirement and combining LF and RF. Players qualify for their team at season’s end, much to Paul Konerko‘s delight. Code:
Pos American League National League C Ed Bailey (DET/CLE) Josh Gibson (HOM) 1B Frank Thomas (CAG) Paul Konerko (CAG/BBB) 2B Rogers Hornsby (NYY) Roberto Alomar (OTT) 3B Evan Longoria (CLE) Ron Cey (BRK) SS Cal Ripken, Jr (BAL) Ernie Banks (HOD) OF Babe Ruth (NYY) Larry Walker (OTT) CF Turkey Stearnes (SFS) Oscar Charleston (IND) OF Kal Daniels (LAA) Aaron Judge (PHI) DH Ty Cobb (DET) Willie Stargell (HOM) AL: Turkey Stearnes (CF, SFS, 22) / NL: Charles Rogan (P/OF, PHI, 27). All Rounder Award. This one is given to the player whose offense was most well-rounded–walks, power, speed, all of it. AL: Ty Cobb (DET) / NL: Roberto Alomar (OTT). Phineas Flint Award. This goes to the best reliever in each league–not necessarily a closer, but often. AL: Rod Beck (SFS) / NL: Eric Gagne (BRK). Brock Rutherford Award. This goes to the dominant pitcher in each league, usually a starter. AL: Lefty Grove (SFS) / NL: Luis Padron (IND). Mel Trench Award. And, the biggie, the MVP. A slight prejudice towards batters here, but it’s possible for a pitcher to enter the building. AL: Ty Cobb (DET) / Josh Gibson (HOM).
__________________
Year II of the WBL on the Forums STARTS HERE. Baseball The Way It Never Was https://wbl.dmlco.com/ i9s: Curated, Bespoke MLE's for NeL Players. https://www.i9s.org/ |
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