SimNation: Fictional world, real baseball

[Hendu Style]

Originally Posted by Tyke

Great season for both Kinsellas! And really good to see Buck back in the "Bigs", playing on a Champion team. [Wonder if we'll see him playing under his Dad before the end of his career????]

If the fates say yes, then sure! I'm at the mercy of the OOTP engine!

[Hendu Style]

May 11, 1955

Dear Dad,

Another great day at the ballpark this afternoon. I pitched my first complete game shutout since 1951 today, holding Fort Dodge to 3 hits in a 2-0 win over the Federals. So far, I'm 5-1 with a 1.78 ERA in 7 starts on the season. That's now one run allowed in my last 39.2 innings pitched.

I'll tell you what, having a great coach makes all the difference. Coach Reynolds really has us believing in ourselves, and we know we can repeat as Sim Series champs. I never knew how important a good coach was until last season when we won the title. Now I know why the Seals were doing so well when Coach Reynolds was in Santo Cielo. 4 straight Pioneer League titles and 2 championships in from 1950 to 1953 with him as the bench coach is no fluke.

We're 24-12 on the season, which is great, and 3.5 games out of first place. Granite Falls has won 4 straight and is 27-8 for the year, but has to cool off eventually, right?

Give mom my best. Little Sam says he wants to see his PaPa and Mammy. Hope you guys can see him soon! He's talking and everything!

Love,
Buck

Buck Kinsella and the Appaloosa Arrows would finish the season at 93-69, 15.0 games behind the Pioneer League champion Granite Falls T'jacks.. Kinsella earned his second career All-Star bid, going 15-14 with a 2.80 ERA in 215.2 innings pitched. The Dullsville Ducks went on to sweep Granite Falls in the Sim Series, on the strength of Glenn "Count" Casey's 32 homeruns and league-leading 116 RBI.

Maxx Kinsella continued to get passed over in the Irontown minor league organization, with his Ramblewood Black Pirates finishing the year with a mark of 33-35. It appeared he was destined for a career in the minors as a pitching coach.

[Hendu Style]

A pair of baseball's all-time greats were inducted into the SBL Hall of Fame in 1955.

Cal "Air" Thomas was a 14-time All-Star for both Sim City and Westwood, winning the league MVP award in 1938, 1939, 1941, and 1943. He was also a Tiberium Glove winner at catcher three times. His 3,175 career hits ranked behind Marty Storms and Sam Crowley for most all-time, and his 468 homeruns were second only to Crowley.

Milt Winford won 261 games and struck out 3,368 batters in his 20-year career with Freeport and Northgate. He pitched in 7 All-Star games and earned the Stormy Boyd Award on 3 occasions. His 3,368 strikeouts ranked fourth on the all-time list in 1955.

[Hendu Style]

Maxx Kinsella finally got a break in 1956. The longtime pitching coach in Rookie League ball was promoted to Irontown's Single-A affiliate in Lincoln with the Gunboats. The promotion meant a full season to work with his pitching staff... no more abbreviated seasons in the low minors.

Here's a blurb courtesy the Lincoln Journal Star's extensive online archive:

Lincoln Lands New Pitching Coach

January 17, 1956

LINCOLN -- The Gunboats are hoping the arrival of pitching coach Maxx Kinsella brings with it improvement in its pitching staff. Kinsella, a pitching instructor in the Irontown farm system, has been promoted from the Lintz League to oversee Lincoln's staff.

"A lot of it is luck, having the right mix of players on your roster," Kinsella conceded in a phone interview from his native Irontown. "But you also have to make the most of what you have on your team. Can I turn Joe Blow into Stormy Boyd? Probably not. But I can sure try, and hopefully make him a better pitcher."

Kinsella is the father of 2-time All-Star pitcher Buck Kinsella, a starter for the Appaloosa Arrows. The younger Kinsella says his father had a lot to do with his success.

"He's a great coach," Buck Kinsella said by phone from Tropico as the Arrows arrived for Spring Training. "He knows exactly what buttons to push to get the most out of you. I think he'll make a great big league coach some day."

For now, Maxx Kinsella will have to earn his stripes in Lincoln. He inherits a pitching staff that hasn't posted an ERA below 4.00 in five years.

"I'm up for the challenge and anxious to get going."

[Hendu Style]

Buck Kinsella's rollercoaster baseball career continued with a disappointing 1956 campaign, going just 12-14 with a 4.28 in 206 innings for Appaloosa as the Arrows finished second to eventual Sim Series champion Granite Falls.

While Kinsella struggled -- his lone highlight came in a late-season 3-hit shutout -- it seemed like the rest of the SBL was enjoying a pitching renaissance. Kinsella's Appaloosa teammate, Jack Jones, notched his second career pitching triple crown, going 26-9 with a 2.05 ERA, while striking out 317 batters. Meanwhile, J.P. Youngblood, a 24-year old pitching phenom for Arcopolis, struck out a record 371 batters during the '56 season.

Youngblood was the "new blood" in SimNation... flamethrowing pitchers who used brushback pitches to keep hitters off the plate. Pitchers owned the plate, and owned the game. But all of baseball was in for a brushback of its own, with pitchers and hitters thrown into a conflict that would change the game as we know it.

[Tyke]

Good luck to Maxx with the Gunboats - and I'll be intrigued to see how the "conflict" between pitchers and hitters turns out!

[Hendu Style]

Every once in a great while, heroes are called into action. November 1, 1956 was that day.

With a war brewing in Europe, Sim Nation was content to "sit this one out." S.N. was still mending its wounds from the Civil War that nearly ripped the nation to shreds. But Sims across the country lost that choice on a grim October 31st morning when news spread of a surprise attack on Twikii.

The tropical island territory was bombarded by Japanese bombers and fighters. 2,402 Sims lost their lives.

S.N. President Avery Cooper Simpson proclaimed October 31, 1956 "a date which will live in infamy." Apathy gave way to fury. Fury gave way to resolve. SimNation was thrust into what would become World War II. And baseball would be there to lend a helping hand.

[Hendu Style]

The War was on, and SimNation needed able-bodied Sims to bring the fight. S.N. enlisted the services of men between the age of 18 and 38 through conscription, or "the draft."

SimNation knew, though, that baseball was a part of the fabric of life at home, and Sims needed a sense of normalcy while soldiers fought overseas. S.N. and the SBL agreed to keep the game running as scheduled. As part of that agreement, 25 SBL players would need to volunteer their services each year. As it turned out, the SBL had no shortage of volunteers who wanted to join the fight.

Among those players sacrificing one year of their lives in 1956 were:

Wes Alexander: On the verge of 3,000 career strikeouts (41 shy at the age of 38), the Maxis City pitcher immediately volunteered to serve.

*Mark Loudoun: A two-time All-Star outfielder, Loudoun had a breakout season in 1946, batting .343 with 16 homeruns in 99 games. Sadly, Loudoun was the first casualty among SBL war veterans when his plane was shot down in Europe. He was 32 years old.

William Martin: Martin was just one year removed from an All-Star selection at first base for Sim City (.316, 14 HR, 98 RBI in 1955), but wasted no time enlisting.

*Doc McManus: An MVP second baseman for the Ducks in 1948, McManus was a 10-time All-Star for Dullsville and Fort Dodge. Doc quickly rose through the ranks in the S.N. Army, choosing to stay overseas after his initial year of service. He never played again, and was killed in action as a sergeant in 1959.

Mark Turner: A two-time All-Star pitcher for Atlantis, Turner won a career-high 19 games with 145 strikeouts the year before he enlisted.

* = Killed in Action

Other SBL players who bravely served SimNation and its cause for the 1957 season:
Walt Baldwin - 2B, Granite Falls
Mark Bass - SS, Bayouville
Gavin Bradley - 3B, Appaloosa
Terry Brown - P, Granite Falls
Tommy Burton - 2B, Northgate
Chris Cleaves - C, Dixie
Peter Donavich - 3B, Dullsville
Brian Gaines - SS, Rocklyn
Paul Gray - P, Lucky Palms
Andrew "Ape" Hill - P, Lucky Palms
Christian Johnson - 3B, Dixie
Danny Kemp - 1B, Freeport
Brent Knox - RF, Santo Cielo
Mark "Mule" Moore - 2B, Granite Falls
Joe Neal - SS, Westwood
Vaughn Phillips - SS, Appaloosa
John Richards - CF, Arcopolis
Keith Saunders - P, Atlantis
Peter Stuart - C, Lucky Palms
Dave Wilson - SS, Arcopolis

[Hendu Style]

As World War II raged on, father and son Maxx and Buck Kinsella restarted their correspondence. Buck had revealed his intentions of quitting baseball to serve his country in the War.

July 27, 1957

Dear Son,

Your mother just told me of your intentions to serve in the War. While I am proud of your sense of conviction, I am reluctant to give you my blessing. You have a young boy to think of, and your time with Sam is already limited as it is with you being away for the baseball season. A 6 year-old son needs time with his dad, and shouldn't be worried about him coming back from a war.

I leave the decision with you, as it should be. But please consider your family's wishes. SimNation would understand you wanting to be here with your wife and child.

I'll get off my high horse so we can talk about baseball. Things are really looking up here in Lincoln. We've got a six-game lead on Glendale for first place in Single-A ball. Our pitching staff has the lowest ERA in the league. Being able to coach a full season of baseball instead of just a shortened season has made all the difference for me as a coach, and for my pitching staff.

I'm keeping tabs on you in the box scores, and saw that you have won a couple of starts in a row. Pair that up with that shutout you tossed back in May, and I think you're due for a move up in the rotation. Keep it up, son.

Love,
Dad

[Hendu Style]

Just as Sam Crowley had redefined the game as a hitter in the 1930's & 40's, JP Youngblood was in rarified air as a pitcher in the late 50's. Pitching in the prime of his career, many believe Youngblood's 1957 season was the greatest in SimNational Baseball League history.

Youngblood broke his own single-season record by whiffing 400 batters in '57, while posting a 1.61 ERA. He also managed to win 22 games despite lackluster run support from an Arcopolis Rocket lineup that finish dead last in runs scored (535), batting average (.247), and on-base percentage (.298).

By the age of 25, Youngblood had won 68 games and struck out 1,141 hitters. He was on pace to shatter the league's career strikeout record and make his mark as the best pitcher of all-time.

The SBL almost saw an historic season from Jim Eckard. The Rocklyn centerfielder finished the '57 campaign with a .398 average, barely missing out on becoming the baseball's first member of the .400 club since the great Crowley in 1942.

On the team front, the Granite Falls T'jacks beat the Freeport Patriots in a thrilling 7-game Sim Series for their second straight championship and fourth overall.

[Hendu Style]

The first round of troops returned home to SimNation in the winter of 1958. Among those returning were 23 SBL players who had voluntarily enlisted. 25 more ballplayers eagerly lined up to take their place in Europe and in the Pacific theater.

Curtis Fields: Perhaps the most well-known player to enlist, Fields had won the league MVP Award and gone to the All-Star Game five times as a catcher when he joined the Navy. This was a tough blow for the Lucky Palms Aces, who had just acquired Fields from Santo Cielo in the offseason.

Ralph Giles: The Northgate outfielder was a 2-time winner of the Tiberium Glove in center, and was a 3-time All-Star selection. His best season came in 1953, when he belted 20 homeruns and drove in 86 runs while batting .250.

David Reeves: Reeves was an All-Star pitcher for Rocklyn in 1956 when he won a career-best 19 games.

Roberto Ybarra: An All-Star outfielder in 1957, Ybarra was just entering the prime of his career with Fort Dodge after hitting a career-high .288 while smacking 15 homeruns for the Federals.

Anthony Boucher - 1B, Ft. Dodge
John Brown - RF, Bayouville
Ramon Cabrera - 3B, Atlantis
John Charles - 1B, Maxis City
Anderson Crouteau - 3B, Irontown
Lyle Evans - P, Lunar Lake
Carlos Gutierrez - P, Santo Cielo
Jimmy Hiscock - RF, Dullsville
Alex Jones - P, Sim City
Clement Johnson - SS, Granite Falls
Dennis Luce - OF, Northgate
Quentin McCulley - P, Arcolopis
Michael Moore - P, Appaloosa
Tyler Nordin - 1B, Dixie
Don Parsons - OF, Seaside
Gerard Robinson - P, Santo Cielo
Todd Shaffer - P, Motor City
Vince Stimpson - P, Northgate
Brooks Trent - 2B, Irontown
Jeff Wilkins - OF, Santo Cielo

Buck Kinsella also joined up, enlisting in the S.N. Air Force. He wrote this letter, addressed to his son, only to be opened in the event of his death.

November 4, 1957

Dear Samuel,

Sometimes we have to do things that we would rather not do, or go places we'd rather not go. War in Europe took me away from you, and I hope you can understand why I had to go.

I could not live with myself knowing that my country needed my help and just sit idly by and not do anything. I am a Sim first, a father second, and a ballplayer third. I need to help my country to make sure you have a safe place to grow up when you're older. This world is full of bad men, and I need to keep those bad men from ruining what we've worked so hard to build.

Son, I'm so sorry I'll never get to see you grow up. I'll always be with you in spirit. Make me proud. Follow your heart. You're going to be a great man someday. You're a Kinsella.

Give your mom a big hug and a kiss for me. Tell your grampy that I'm sorry I didn't listen to him, and that I'm glad he was my dad.

Love with all my heart,
Dad

Buck Kinsella died in combat 9 months later on August 11, 1958. He was 32 years old. His son, my father, was just 7.

[Hendu Style]

Buck's team, the Appaloosa Arrows, paid tribute to their fallen soldier by wearing black armbands on their jerseys, with the word "Buck" inscribed. Amazingly, Appaloosa would go on to win the Pioneer League with a mark of 101-61, and beat the Dullsville Ducks in the Sim Series, 4 games to 3.

Buck's son, Sam, threw out the first pitch in Game 1 of the Series. A strike, I'm proud to report. It must run in the family.

That Series win concluded a memorable '58 season in the SBL. Arcolopolis Rockets ace JP Youngblood further established himself as one of the game's all-time greats by going 22-13 with a 1.56 ERA and 369 strikeouts. His K totals of 371, 400, and 369 from 1956-58 ranked as the top three in SBL history.

Rocklyn's Lee Dillard smashed 43 homeruns that season, tied for fifth-most in SBL history. Freeport catcher Mike Griffin led the Colonial League with 38 homeruns and 106 RBI. The hitters were finally starting to get some headlines again in baseball.

[Tyke]

"Buck Kinsella killed in combat"

Say it ain't so, Hendu!!

I guess some things are way more important, even, than the game we all love and we have to applaud - and be grateful for - the sacrifices made for all of us by people like Buck Kinsella.

[Hendu Style]

With casualties mounting, SBL players continued to enlist in the SimNation military. In an effort to encourage volunteerism, the league granted enlistees "free agency" once they returned home from World War II. They could sign with a team of their choosing, though there would be no bidding wars. A player's destination would not be determined by money. Baseball made this very clear, and protected the "reserve clause" fiercely. Team owners did not want players jumping from team to team. Players' rights were permanently linked to the teams that drafted and signed them.

Tom "Cookie" Coker - C, Northgate
"Cookie," as they called him, was the top catcher in baseball. He had already played in 4 All-Star Games by the age of 27 and had racked up 1,005 hits in six seasons in the bigs. But the 1955 Pioneer League MVP had grown tired of Northgate and wanted to play for a different team. Knowing the Knights would never trade him, he opted to enlist. He had a career's worth of incredible performances before enlisting, including hitting for the cycle with a five-hit day in a 28-0 (!) win over Lunar Lake, and tying a SBL record with 3 homeruns (all solo shots) against Rocklyn.

Melvin Barnes - SP, Northgate
A 29 year-old pitcher with a world of potential, Barnes went 17-10 with a 2.96 ERA in 1956 and was an All-Star the following season for Westwood. Barnes was then traded to the Knights from the Stars, and struggled to a 4-6 season. He wanted out of Northgate in the worst way and saw the War as his way out.

Greg Blair - 1B, Santo Cielo
Blair had been an All-Star first baseman for Santo Cielo and Sim City after being drafted with the #1 overall pick in 1946. Though many believed he enlisted so he could become a free agent, he insisted he felt compelled to serve his country at age 34.

Tex Sandstrom - P, Dixie
Tex was one of the most dynamic pitchers in baseball, yet he was woefully misused by the Dukes. A workhorse pitcher, Sandstrom was relegated to bullpen duty in Dixie. He went 17-4 with 235 strikeouts in 1955, but made just six starts. He was an ace pitcher in waiting. He would wait no more by serving in the War. He could choose his own team afterward and find a spot in a rotation.

Jackie Spears - 1B, Maxis City
The 1950 Pioneer League MVP was none-too-happy after being dealt by Granite Falls to Maxis City late in the 1958 season. He still managed to hit 30 homeruns that season, bringing his career total to 298. But he also knew at the age of 34 that he would soon need to play for a team in the Pioneer League so he could DH.

Eric Webb - 3B, Ft. Dodge
Webb was one of the top defensive players in the game, winning three Tiberium Gloves at third base with the Federals. His decision to enlist was purely for love of country and he immediately re-signed with Fort Dodge upon his return in 1960.


Nick Alexander - RF, Atlantis
Lincoln Bruno - P, Santo Cielo
Mark Crouse - RF, Dixie
Gustavo Cruz - P, Atlantis
Jim Dougan - P, Motor City
*Ernesto Felix - CF, Dixie
Leonard Ford - SS, Ft. Dodge
Matt Green - P, Atlantis
Jonathan Hansen - 2B, Ft. Dodge
Nick Heater - CF, Rocklyn
Joe Hudder - C, Northgate
Craig Kennedy - 3B, Dullsville
Carl Lowry - 1B, Westwood
Ken McFadyen - SS, Granite Falls
Wade McGee - LF, Atlantis
Pepe Munoz - P, Arcopolis
Jeff Pearce - P, Northgate
Terry Richmond - OF, Westwood
Larry Townend - P, Irontown
Rod Wood - 3B, Sim City

[Hendu Style]

One of the unexpected impacts of World War II on baseball was the art of negotiation between players and owners. The Reserve Clause gave all negotiating leverage to a team that drafted a player. But if a player were to enlist and fight in World War II, he would be granted the right to choose which team he played for upon his return to SimNation. The very threat of leaving for War, in fact, gave players a rare bargaining chip.

Take, for example, the case of Bill Bedford. The Irontown first baseman was coming off of his second straight MVP campaign, and had led the Black Sox to their first winning season (87-75) since 1950, and just their third winning season in the last 21 years. Attendance had nearly doubled at 1.3 million fans that season, and their end-of-year balance had spiked from a *loss* of $100,000 in 1955 to a *profit* of $1,000,000 in 1958. When the Irontown front office got wind of Bedford considering enlistment, they immediately came to their slugger with a salary increase to $100,700, making him baseball's first 100-thousand dollar player.

It made good fiscal sense for Irontown. Pay a guy an extra $40,000 a year (he had made $60,000 the year prior), keep a competitive team on the field, and get a solid reputation among players from around the league. This, of course, rubbed some owners the wrong way. Bayouville owner Tom Elkins felt that all players were lucky to be playing baseball, and should take whatever salary owners deemed appropriate. This was the prevailing wisdom among baseball, but players were finally beginning to see the light. Perhaps it was the owners who were lucky to have the players...

[Hendu Style]

Before the start of the 1959 season, Appaloosa paid the ultimate respect to one of its own. The Sim Series champions decided to change their name from "Arrows" to "Bucks" for the '59 campaign, in honor of Buck Kinsella. The move was met with universal praise from fans and players.

"He was the heart and soul of this team," Appaloosa pitcher Jack Johns told The Appaloosa Daily Gazette. "We figured this was the right way to show our appreciation for everything he did for this team and our country."

Armed with a new name, the Bucks set out to defend their title, but finished as the Pioneer League runner-up (94-68) to the surprising Fort Dodge Federals (101-61). The Feds wound up losing to the Caps of Sim City (105-57) in the Series, 4 games to 2.

In what was a markedly more offensive year in baseball -- the Colonial League's 3.92 ERA was its highest since 1940, and the Pioneer League's 4.13 ERA was the highest in history -- JP Youngblood and Johns continued to dominate SBL hitters.

Youngblood went 21-9 with a 1.60 ERA and 385 strikeouts in 303 innings for Arcopolis. His numbers are even more impressive when you look at the runners-up in the Colonial League's individual statistics. He was far and away the best in the league:

Strikeouts:
385 - JP Youngblood (ARC)
191 - Hook Jensen (FREE)
190 - Jacques Chauvin (SIM)

ERA:
1.60 - JP Youngblood (ARC)
2.65 - Hook Jensen (FREE)
2.75 - Milo Gulley (DIX)

Johns returned to form for Appaloosa after missing five months of the '58 season with a shoulder injury. He went 21-9 with a 2.12 ERA and 279 strikeouts.

Offensively, the SBL was finally coming alive again. Bill Bedford, SimNation's highest-paid athlete, was in MVP form with a .350/33/115 campaign for the Black Sox (83-79) while also stringing together a 20-game hit streak. Teammate Colin Reiss, playing his first full season in the SBL, belted 29 homeruns while batting .305 at the plate for the Sox.

Proving it's not all about the longball, Rocklyn's Jim Eckard recorded his fourth straight season with a .350+ batting average:

1956 - .352 (140 games)
1957 - .398 (119 games)
1958 - .393 (92 games)
1959 - .378 (138 games)

Eckard won his third batting title in four years, well on his way to a Hall of Fame career.

Pitchers no longer had the upper hand, effectively closing out the "Decade of the Pitcher" with more balance between those pitching the ball, and those hitting it.

[Hendu Style]

On October 15, 1959, Marty Storms became the 21st member of the Hall of Fame. Few had a more distinguished career than the former Rocklyn and Maxis City great.

Storms was a 15-time All-Star at first base for the Railers and Heroes in a 24-year career, setting all-time records in hits (3,442) and games played (3,099). He was the 1938 Pioneer League MVP (.362 average, 31 homeruns, 123 RBI) and the 1932 Rookie of the Year (.311 average, 29 homeruns, 98 RBI). At the time of his Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Storms ranked 2nd in career RBI (1,766), 3rd in runs (1,943), and 4th in homeruns (410).

[Tyke]

Love the gesture by Appaloosa in tribute to Buck Kinsella. Inspired idea, Hendu!!

[Tyler87898]

Really enjoyed reading this. Can't wait for more!

[Hendu Style]

More to come, folks! Thanks for reading!