Cardinal Rule: A Fictional Historical 1901 Replay

[Afino]

18th day of the month, 18th win in a row for the Cardinals.

This wasn't close from the start as St. Louis rolled 9-1. Montalvo FINALLY allowed a run, but it didn't mean much after a balanced Cardinals attack dispatched Boston pitching. Willie Keith had 3 RBI's and St. Louis pounded out 5 doubles.

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[Afino]

It's over.

I knew Jorge Velasco (starting for the first time in almost two weeks) starting today was going to kill me and it did. He gave up 5 runs in the first four innings, and a late St. Louis rally fell short in a 5-4 loss to Boston

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Friday, July 19th, 1901

Detroit Tigers: D. Chacón was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: shoulder inflammation. He's expected to miss about 2-3 weeks.

Boston Beaneaters: J. Martínez was injured while throwing the ball. The Diagnosis: elbow tendinitis. He's expected to miss about 2-3 weeks.

[Afino]

During the 18-game winning streak........

- Scored 86 runs
- Allowed 41 runs
- Pitched 5 shutouts,
- Montalvo had 3 of them, pitched 6 times, 6-0, with an 0.31 ERA.
- 4 of those shutouts in a 6-game span (wins 12, 13, 15, 16)
- Victims: Brooklyn 6 times, Boston 4 times, NYG 4 times, Philly 4 times
- NL lead went from 9 games to 16.5

[Afino]

Back on the winning track today, as the Cardinals were almost on the wrong side of a comeback. They hung on 5-4 as Boston tried to rally against Pacheco in the 9th.

St. Louis stayed out of Piper's Pit this time and got to the Boston pitcher to the tune of 6 BB and 4 ER. He took the loss and moved to 9-11. Pacheco is now 21-2!


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Saturday, July 20th, 1901

Chicago White Sox: D. Holroyd was injured while throwing the ball. The Diagnosis: elbow inflammation. He's expected to miss about 3 weeks.

[Afino]

5-4 games seem to be the theme lately.

St. Louis played their third straight 5-4 game, winning this one over the Reds. This was all come from behind as well as Cincy got 4 quick runs on O'Herlihy in the first two innings, but shoddy Cincy defense let the Cardinals back into the game.

John Burt had two hits, including a triple.

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Sunday, July 21st, 1901

New York Giants: J. Ramírez pitches a 1-hit shutout against the Chicago Orphans with 7 strikeouts and 1 BB allowed!

[Afino]

And a firing!

Last place Boston ****cans their manager.

[Afino]

.

[Afino]

Well, here's the one you've all been waiting for.


#14 - John Burt - LF

From: Phoenix, AZ
Height/Weight: 6'3/170
Age: 28 (DOB: 7/30/1872)
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
Salary: $28,098
Big League Service Time: 4 years, 89 Days
Popularity: Extremely Popular

Speed: 100/100
Steal: 82/100

LF Rating: 88
CF Rating: 52
SS Rating: 92 (arm: 45)

Acquired: Inaugural draft, Round 1, Pick 1, 1st OVERALL by St. Louis

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The #1 pick in the inaugural draft, Burt hasn't been a disappointment. He basically has no weakness. Tall, lanky, and only 170 pounds, but can kill the ball with huge power to right field.

He's still only 28 years old, so he's going to be a mainstay at the 3 hole for the rest of his career in St. Louis

- Complete five-tool player. Women love him, men want to BE him.
- Leader on and off the field (100/100 Leader Ability)
- Smart (100/100 Intelligence)


1901 Season stats with NL Leaderboard:

Avg: .350 (1st)
OBP: .395 (1st)
SLG: .531 (1st)
OPS: .926 (1st)
RC/27: 7.27 (1st)
VORP: 36.8 (1st)
Hits: 126 (1st)
Triples: 14 (1st)
HR: 6 (T-4th)
RBI: 64 (2nd)
Runs: 80 (1st)
SB: 27 (8th)
XBH: 39 (1st)
Total Bases: 191 (1st)


MLB Comparable: Carlos Beltran on 'roids.

[Afino]

Jorge Montalvo didn't have his best game, but with the power of his bat, he didn't need to.

Montalvo went 3 for 4 with 5 RBI's to cover for a 10 hit, 3 run outing, as the Cardinals took down Chicago 8-3. He picked up two on a single in the 2nd, two on a single in the 5th, and one on a double in the 7th.

He now has 14 RBI on the season, which for a pitcher is awesome!

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Monday, July 22nd, 1901

RF R. O'Keefe of the Philadelphia Athletics honored: Wins the MLB AL Player of the Week Award.

3B D. Bailey of the Cincinnati Reds honored: Wins the MLB NL Player of the Week Award.

Baltimore Orioles: W. Hill goes 2-5 against the Milwaukee Brewers, extending his hitting streak to 20 games!

[Afino]

I made a tactical error, and it cost today.

After the Cardinals tied it at 4 in the 8th, I sent that horrible, horrible Jorge Velasco back out there for the 9th inning, and sure enough, he gave up the winning run in the top of the 9th on a Roberson triple and Reynolds sac fly. Cardinals lose 5-4.

Cesar Duarte had 3 RBI's for the good guys.

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[Afino]

St. Louis Post

July 24th, 1901


EXTRA! EXTRA!

Montalvo Traded To Philly; GM Afino States Budget Concerns

St. Louis - In the midst of a spectacular 1901 season where nothing seems to be going wrong, the St. Louis Cardinals have traded SP Jorge Montalvo and three minor leaguers to the Philadelphia Phillies for minor league SP Ron Taylor, and 1st and 2nd round picks in the 1902 draft.

In his press conference, GM Afino simply stated, to the surprise of everyone in the face of a 62-22 start to the Cardinals season, that budgetary concerns drove this deal and that Montalvo was actually the perfect sell-high trade candidate.

"We had to make this tough decision based on our recent budget projections that still had us making a loss this baseball year" said GM Afino in this afternoon's press conference. "Jorge's production has been nothing short of spectacular, but we also feel he was the perfect sell-high candidate, being a 37-year old starting pitcher who was playing far beyond his capabilities. Also, shipping him to Philadelphia, a non-contender, we hope that will not come back to bite us."

Also headed to Philadelphia are minor leaguers James Thompson (a CF who was caught in a numbers game in the outfield and has spent the year hitting .360 in AAA), Dan Brown (defensive infielder), and Richard Scott (shortstop who was not happy with his playing time in A ball).

However, the key to this trade is Philadelphia minor leaguer Ron Taylor. Only 20 years old, he has a 10-9 record in AAA with a 2.10 ERA. He is projected by the Cardinals scouting department as Angelo Pacheco-lite, with nasty stuff and good control. He may not be a franchise builder, but he may be a good start to one. Also in the trade are 1st and 2nd round picks, which will be in the top 3. Why Philadelphia parted with them with no chance to contend this season, we'll never know. All we know is they'll be trying hard to make sure that pick is as low as possible.

What's next for St. Louis?

Taylor will be plugged into the St. Louis rotation and will make his first start Friday at home against Pittsburgh.

[Afino]

Angelo Pacheco.

What more can be said about this guy??

Today in St. Louis, he fired a 7-hit shutout, striking out 14 Orphans batters in a 4-0 win over Chicago. He was always in control, and got out of a bases-loaded jam in the 7th with the game still in question.

Orlando Ortiz provided the offense with a 2-run double.

Off day tomorrow, then Pittsburgh at home next.

[Afino]

St. Louis got to Pittsburgh starting pitcher Eddie Oregel early and often in an 8-2 win over the Pirates.

Cardinals got the production they needed out of the top of the order, and therefore easily won the game. Orlando Ortiz had 4 RBI's, giving him a league-leading 81 on the year.

Steve O'Herlihy had an easy go of it, going the distance allowing only 4 hits.

Ron Taylor makes his Cardinals debut tomorrow.


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Friday, July 26th, 1901

Cincinnati Reds: M. Carrión pitches a 6-hit shutout against the Chicago Orphans with 2 strikeouts and 2 BB allowed!

Thursday, July 25th, 1901

Baltimore Orioles: W. Hill goes 0-3 against the Cleveland Blues, ending his hitting streak at 21 games.

Friday, July 26th, 1901

Boston Beaneaters: M. Piper was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: strained forearm. He's expected to miss about 2 weeks.

Cleveland Blues: J. Stewart was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: twisted ankle. He's expected to miss about 1-2 weeks.

Thursday, July 25th, 1901

Chicago White Sox: J. Rivas was injured while throwing the ball. The Diagnosis: oblique strain. He's expected to miss about 2-3 weeks.

Cleveland Blues: D. Vaughn was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: strained hamstring. He's expected to miss about 2-3 weeks. The Boston Americans traded 26-year old center fielder F. Moody and 18-year old minor league left fielder J. Forrest to the Boston Beaneaters, getting 28-year old first baseman C. Williams in return.

[Afino]

Who needs Jorge Montalvo???

Ron Taylor's first start was nothing short of GREAT SUCCESS, as he fired a 3-hit shutout in a 10-0 win over the Pirates. Pacheco-lite, indeed, as we also struck out 6.

Johnny Burt and Quinn Allison both had 3 RBI's, and even Taylor had an RBI as St. Louis took advantage of bad pitching and bad defense by Pittsburgh.

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Saturday, July 27th, 1901

Philadelphia Athletics: R. O'Keefe goes 1-4 against the Cleveland Blues, extending his hitting streak to 20 games!

St. Louis Cardinals: R. Taylor pitches a 3-hit shutout against the Pittsburgh Pirates with 6 strikeouts and 1 BB allowed!

Philadelphia Athletics: L. Avery was injured while stealing a base. The Diagnosis: knee tendinitis. He's expected to miss about 2 weeks.


The Chicago White Sox traded 28-year old center fielder P. Ellis to the Pittsburgh Pirates, getting 37-year old starting pitcher D. Lowe and 23-year old minor league starting pitcher S. Watson in return.

[Afino]

Today in St. Louis, Quinn Allison singled home the winning run in the 8th inning as Angelo Pacheco picked up his 23rd win of the season in a 3-1 win over the Pirates.

Pacheco struck out 12 Pirates batters for his 7th 10-strikeout game of the 1901 season as he outdueled Antonio Sandoval.

In an odd scheduling quirk, St. Louis is off for the next 3 days and don't play again until the 1st, where they hit the road against Chicago.

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Monday, July 29th, 1901

LF K. Sime of the Philadelphia Athletics honored: Wins the MLB AL Player of the Week Award.

LF J. Burt of the St. Louis Cardinals honored: Wins the MLB NL Player of the Week Award.

Sunday, July 28th, 1901

Washington Senators: S. Bullock hits for the CYCLE, going 4-5 against the Milwaukee Brewers, with 2 RBI and 2 runs scored.

Monday, July 29th, 1901

Cleveland Blues: M. Warner was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: strained abdominal muscle. He's expected to miss about 2-3 weeks.

Philadelphia Athletics: J. Castillo was injured while stealing a base. The Diagnosis: groin tightness. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 4 days.

Sunday, July 28th, 1901

Cincinnati Reds: C. Germán was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: sprained ankle. He's expected to miss about 6 weeks. The Chicago White Sox traded 28-year old center fielder P. Ellis to the Pittsburgh Pirates, getting 37-year old starting pitcher D. Lowe and 23-year old minor league starting pitcher S. Watson in return. The Chicago Orphans traded 24-year old starting pitcher T. Taylor to the Washington Senators, getting 21-year old minor league center fielder M. McDonald in return. The Philadelphia Phillies traded 25-year old starting pitcher R. Nelson to the Boston Americans, getting 23-year old minor league left fielder R. Rodríguez in return.

[Afino]

Burt wins again!

[Afino]

Pulling away some more.

[Afino]

As of 8/1/01

[Afino]

As of 8/1/01.

Look at all the red!

[Afino]

I haven't done these yet, but I figured I should.

Team stats as of 8/1/01