St. Louis Pioneers: Another FABL dynasty

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Pioneers owner Paul Long Jr has brought in yet another General Manager attempting to turn around a franchise while it's star, Max Morris, is still able to enjoy the game. Herb DeSpain will try to infuse the franchise with a combination of youth and veterans focusing on improving defense and building the pitching staff. "Every team in this league can hit," said DeSpain. "If you we can pitch efficiently and play defense then we can win."

The team DeSpain has decided to take north includes seven FABL rookies and six others with two years or less of major league service time. That's over half of the Pioneers 23 man roster. "I know Mr. Long wants to make the playoffs this year, he wants to make the playoffs every year," DeSpain added. "but the reality is this isn't something that will happen overnight. It will take some time."

Gone are veterans Bill Ellis, Joe Stanley, Don Duke, Art Charles, Eddie Hannah, Howard Crocker, Willie Funes, and Jake Cheeks. Some were demotes while others were given their outright release. OF Benny Rice remains but he will have to settle for a fourth outfield spot as the team brings in younger players.

Morris and veteran SS Roger Landry combined for 80 homers in 1929 and they return along with 2B Bob Marceaux and catchers Jack Clark and Les Dunbar. Breaking into the everyday lineup are outfielders Ollie Staples and Alex Ingram and third sacker Jim Quick. Ingram had an amazing season at Class B Charlotte last year with 103 extra base hits in just 140 games. He will hit either in front of or behind Morris. Staples(.346 BA, 107 RS) and Quick(.313 BA, 67 RS) will be joined on the big league roster by former Class A Oakland teammate Johnnie Morse(.360 BA, 115 RBI) who will man first base when Morris is roaming the outfield. Another rookie, infielder Carl Kaufman, will back up both middle infield positions.

The pitching staff will not rely as much on youngsters in the rotation but there are two rookies making their debut from the bullpen. Cal Montgomery and Jake Wallace are first timers while 22 year old Chris Chevrette will pitch in his second FABL season. The team will need all three of these youngsters to pitch well if they are to have a winning season. The rotation has some experience in Jimmie Clinch(10 yrs) and Rolla Puckett(7 yrs) and some youth with Marv Foster(27 yrs old) and Joe Marrett(26).

"This team will be fun to watch," DeSpain exclaimed as the interview was ending. "Sometimes they will be frustrating to watch but they should always be fun!"

In an effort to bolster the organization's pitching DeSpain selected college SP Tom Blalock with his first draft pick in St. Louis(4th overall in the 1929 draft). Blalock boast a 25-6 record and 2.20 ERA in three college seasons and will start his career in Class A Hartford. The 21 year old is hoping to make his Pioneers debut within the next two years expecting to join top pitching prospect Dutch Sheldon in the St. Louis rotation.

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After starting the first home stand of the season at 2-4 the Pioneers were at an early crossroads as they hosted one of the league favorites for the final three contest of the month. St. Louis was 5-8 and a good showing against a strong Detroit squad would go a long way in boosting the confidence of a young team. Although the home team did not play poorly they did manage to get themselves swept being outscored by a total of six runs. The Dynamos left just one game out of first while the Pioneers headed to Washington just a half game out of the cellar.

The One Constant
Max Morris is perhaps the most popular player in the history of the FABL. The league's all time leader in home runs(by over 200) still carries a big stick at the age of 35. Last season he led the league in homers, RBI, and walks and he isn't slowing down one bit early in 1930. The seven time FA Whitney Award winner finished April with a team best .444 average and nine homers to go with 18 runs batted in. He is on pace to hit 78 dingers and on May 1 is just 18 homers shy of 500.

The Disappointment
Veteran SS Roger Landry was suppose to be the compliment to Morris. After all Landry hit a career best 30 homers and knocked in 111. So far Landry has not seen the same success as his more free spirited team mate as he has struggled with a sub .200 average and just nine RBI for through the first month. Landry did suffer a sore shoulder late in the month but he'll be asked to play through that and hopefully it won't make his swing any worse than it currently is.

The Rookies
The Pioneers broke spring camp with seven rookies on the roster and through the first month(a 16 game April) there have been mixed results. Jim Quick has been better than advertised at the plate hitting .375 with six homers in his first 64 at bats. He was touted as a defensive whiz but so far he has more errors at third base than he has bases on balls(3-0). Outfielders Ollie Staples and Alex Ingraham started the year off slowly but each began to heat up as April came to a close. 1B Johnny Morse struggled finishing with an OB% under .290 but IF Carl Kaufman made the most of his chances hitting .440 with eight runs scored in just 25 at bats. On the mound Cal Montgomery(1.17 ERA, 7.2 IP) and Jake Wallace(0.00 ERA, 3 IP) pitched well in limited opportunities out of the bullpen.

The Downfall
Like most teams in the FABL the Pioneers will win or lose with pitching. Only fan favorite Jimmie Clinch finished the month with an ERA under 4.00 while the other three starters were 5.79 or above. The pitching was so bad that there has been talk of moving Montgomery to the rotation and possibly calling up 37 year old Bill Hathaway from AAA Oakland.

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The Pioneers continue to struggle at home throughout May posting a 5-11 record at Pioneer Field where attendance is down about 1000 fans per game which is a 15% drop. The squad has been much better on the road at 13-16, just three games under .500. They enter June 18-27 a full 14 games behind the Keystones.

Tuesday the 13th
While many consider Friday the 13th to be unlucky it will be Tuesday, May 13 that Pioneer fans will remember. St. Louis had won seven of it's first 11 games in May heading into a mid week tussle with the league leading Philadelphia Keystones. Wanting to prove that they could play with the big boys the visitors were playing aggressive baseball. In the top of the third rookie sensation Jim Quick rounded third on a single by teammate Ollie Staples and as he pulled up to cross the plate he felt a twinge in his hamstring and would have to leave the game. Later in the same contest another Pioneer rookie, SP Cal Montgomery, blew out his elbow while holding a 4-3 lead. St. Louis would end up losing the game but more important are the losses of two of its young leaders. Quick(.352, 9 HR, 22 RBI, 28 GMS) will miss at least a month. Montgomery(2-0, 1.57 ERA, 28.2 IP) is done for the season.

Hit Streak
27 year old rookie, infielder Carl Kaufman had a great start to his FABL career getting a hit in each of his first 22 games. During the hit streak Kaufman hit .368 with 19 runs scored and 11 RBI while striking out just five times. St. Louis skipper Tom Campbell had nothing but good things to say about Kaufman, "Carl has worked hard and he had a great camp and he carried that over into the regular season."

Finally Catching On
While rookies Quick and Kaufman were, well, quick to catch on to big league pitching; their fellow newcomers were not so lucky. Most of the Pioneer rookies struggled in April including OF Alex Ingraham who entered the game on April 26 hitting just .244 with an embarrassing .271 OB%. "I was worried about getting sent down but Skip said I was here for good," explained the 24 year old. That day Ingraham started his own hit streak that would last for 16 games. Entering June Ingraham had pushed his season numbers to .302 batting average and .395 OB%. He's on pace for 30+ doubles, 20+ triples, and 20+ homers.

Is the Great Max Morris Slowing Down?
It's not so much that Morris is slowing down as it is he just had a great start to the season. He hit nine homers in just 16 April games and set the bar high even for him. The month of May saw just five dingers from Mighty Mo but he's still on pace for 47 homers and 127 RBI. The count continues as he creeps up to the 500 homer mark as he now needs just 13 round trippers to be the first to hit that mark. He also needs just 53 more RBI to leap over Powell Slocum and Zebulon Banks to top that all time list.

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Throwing in the Towel
After a 9-20 June it is obvious to all around the FABL that the St. Louis Pioneers are just not ready to play with the big boys. They enter July with just 27 wins on pace for a lowly 56 victories, their worst such season in 15 years when they finished the 1915 season with just 56 wins. Pioneers manager Tom Campbell may feel the brunt of ownership's wrath before the season comes to an end. With the team losing at an alarming pace and relying so much on youth on the field. Rumors are that owner Paul Long jr and GM Herb DeSpain have already began to search for Campbell's replacement looking for someone that can relate to the younger generation of players and help more with development. The top teams in the Federal League are taking advantage of the Pioneers as Philadelphia, New York, and Detroit have won 75% of their contest.

Open Auditions
The Pioneers have been so bad on the bump that they are trying out anyone just about anyone that wants a shot at the FABL. Entering July they have already had 10 different players make starts as the rotation has been a revolving door. Some has been due to bad luck, as was the case with 24 year old Cal Montgomery, who posted a 1.71 ERA in his first three FABL starts before a season ending injury. Others have just been management grasping at straws such as calling up 37 year old Bill Hathaway who posted an ERA north of nine in his seven game stint in the rotation. Most of the pitching experiments have returned results closer to those of Hathaway more so than Montgomery.

Does Chemistry Matter?
Campbell has been fighting a poisonous locker room for most of this season so GM DeSpain has done all he can to bring in players to lead this young squad for the remainder of the season. Veterans Walter Simon and Frank Barnes were brought in for no other reason but to run the locker room. With the help of DeSpain, just ask veteran Bob Marceaux what happens when you're hitting .234 and complain about playing time, the clubhouse atmosphere has improved. "We were losing with Bob playing second base and I'm confident we can lose with him in AAA," DeSpain explained to reporters. "We just cannot have him poisoning these young guys with that kind of selfish attitude."

Home Woes Continue
It's a good thing no one is showing up to Pioneer home games this season as the pride of St. Louis is only 9-23 through June 30 at home. With just over 6,000 on average attending games at Pioneer Field the visiting teams are not intimidated at all by the home crowd and with a capacity of over 47,000 it seems as if the teams are playing to an empty stadium on most nights. What no one on the Pioneers management team can figure out is why do they play so much better on the road? 18-24 is nothing to brag about but its a lot better than the current home record.

Uncharted Territory
One bright spot on the team was the continued hot bat of Max Morris. A first inning homer on June 28 in Pittsburgh was the 499 career four bagger by the 35 year old legend. For the year he has 26 homers and a .365 average including 12 dingers in June alone. Morris is having fun this year without the pressure of a pennant race and he seems to be enjoying his time with the young hitters showing them the FABL ropes. He's become particularly close with rookie Alex Ingraham whom he has taken under his wing. Ingraham has responded to Morris' tutelage with 50+ RBI and 14 homers in half a rookie season.

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It's been over a decade since Max Morris forced his way out of Cleveland and into the St. Louis outfield and all these years later it's safe to say that Mighty Mo did know what he was talking about. "I told Mr. Marshall that he was making a mistake sending me to the mound." he explained years later. "I told him if he would let me hit full time that we could win a championship in Cleveland." Marshall relented early in the 1919 season after Morris had made just two starts as a pitcher. The Foresters only managed 56 wins and Morris was lost for the season to injury after 122 games. When Marshall told Morris of his intent to pitch him full time in 1920 the slugger threatened to retire and take all hope of bringing a championship to Cleveland with him. In stepped the Pioneers!

Fast forward to 1930 and Morris is indeed the most feared hitter in FABL history. He led the league in homers in 1920 while playing in just 97 games and more importantly he led St. Louis to a championship. 1921 was the year he showed everyone what he could do winning a triple crown with staggering numbers. He would go on to win three triple crowns in five years barely missing out on a fourth when he finished second in batting average in 1923. The Pioneers were up and down in the 1920s but at the end of the decade they have been way down finishing in near the bottom for three consecutive seasons. As the years rolled by his desire to stay in St. Louis was stronger got stronger than his desire to play for a winner. "I could have forced another trade," Max added. "but I like it here and my family likes it here and as long as Mr. Long will allow I will retire here."

As St. Louis struggles through their worst season of the Mighty Mo era it's Morris who is still changing the game and still setting the bar for all of those that will come after him. Earlier in the 1930 season he passed 1500 runs scored and 1500 RBI ensuring his place among the elite. July of 1930 reminded us that he is indeed a living legend.

On June 28 he hit a homer at Pittsburgh, it was the 499th homer of his great career. As the entire nation watched Morris went into a power slump and for eight long days the nation was disappointed. The ninth day looked like it would end the same when he stepped to the plate in the top of the eighth without a homer. After swinging and missing at the first pitch he got ahold of the second. Everyone in the park held their breath as it cleared the wall and then the place went crazy. Players from both teams met him at the plate to congratulate him on something no one had ever seen before, 500 home runs.

When the road trip was over Morris headed back to St. Louis with 2496 hits. After slapping two singles against Chicago on the 10th he entered the second game of the series needing just two more hits to reach 2500. The home crowd would not have to wait long as Morris lined a single past third base to move his total to 2499. Two innings later he would hit a can of corn that landed in front of the left fielder making him just the 19th player in baseball history to reach the 2500 hit mark.

Although it would take almost two weeks Morris was not done shining in July. On July 24th he became the all time leader in runs batted in with a three run homer off of Boston's Howdy Bowman passing the great Zebulan Banks. "I'm a part of history," said Bowman after the game. "Mo is doing things right now that may never be matched."

The money has been spent and the four players traded for Morris in 1919 have long been forgotten but Morris will remain in the hearts and minds of baseball fans forever.

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A break out, sort of
At 15-16 July was by far the best month of the season for the struggling Pioneers. The top two teams in the league proved most difficult for St. Louis as Philadelphia and Detroit each won three of four for the month. A late month slide verses the rest of the league took what was a 12-4 record to a 13-10 mark but still the best of a very bad year. Starting pitching was again the achilleas heel of the club with no starter posting an ERA below 5.21 for the month with the exception of Marv Forster who gave up just four earned runs in 15 July innings before being lost for the season due to injury.

Rookie Update
Despite the rough season the Pioneers have a lot to look forward to as the future is now, at least at the plate, for the storied franchise. Six rookies remain on the big league roster and all have impressed in their first taste of big league ball. Carl Kaufman continues to battle team mate Max Morris for the league batting title. Alex Ingraham and Jim Quick provide power while Ollie Staples covers a lot of ground in CF and has improved each month at the plate. Johnnie Morse has not played poorly but he's lost time to Dave Butterfield who has simply played better. The wildcard of the bunch is SS Jack Rogers who has a big league glove and big league power but has yet to figure out how to get on base enough to wrestle the job away from veteran Roger Landry full time.

Minors Looking Bleak
As bad as the season has been for the big league club it has been even worse for most of the Pioneers' minor league system. With the exception of AAA Oakland, who boast a veteran roster of ex-major leaguers, the farm system has produced a winning percentage under .300! There are a few standout prospects in the system but not enough to keep up with other clubs on the field. This dynamic has led to many Pioneers prospects to be frustrated with losing. A priority for the offseason will be to bolster the minors and lead those teams to at least be able to compete in their respective leagues.

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The Good

Max Morris was just about the only reason to buy a ticket to watch the Pioneers play in 1930. Mighty Mo continued to push his FABL career home run record to new heights breaking the 500 mark and finishing the season with 521. He also took over the top spot for career RBI with 1625. He once again put up monster numbers despite missing the final 14 games with an injury. The biggest question is how much longer will Morris continue to play, especially with St. Louis in a full rebuild?

I know you've heard this all season but the rookies did perform above expectations as a group and for the most part as individuals. OF Alex Ingraham was the best of the bunch finishing the season with 82 extra base hits and 118 RBI. The 24 year old had 38 doubles, 20 triples, and 24 homers showing off his speed and power with each hit. 27 year old Carl Kaufman beat out several veterans for the second base job and he battled for the batting title for most of the season before settling at .347 to finish the year. Kaufman would end his rookie season with a team best 202 hits. Ollie Staples struggled at the start of the 1930 season but finally came around in June and July to finish the year with a .298 batting average and 47 extra base hits including 17 triples. Jim Quick was limited to just 105 games due to injury but he managed to hit .290 and drive in 72 runs while great defense at the hot corner. Johnnie Morse didn't play poorly but his playing time was limited due to the hot bat of Dave Butterfield. SS Jack Rogers made his debut mid season when Landry went down with an injury and played so well in the field that he kept the starting job despite hitting just .240. He did manage to slap 10 homers and he looks to improve in all aspects next season. SP Cal Montgomery started off the season with a 1.57 ERA in 28 plus innings but an injury ended his rookie season before it really got started. The big club is expecting him back for the 1931 campaign.

The Bad
The Pioneers finished the 1930 season with just 62 victories, the worst such St. Louis record since 1914. They finished last in the FABL in home attendance, despite the presence of Mighty Mo, a full one million fans less than the Chicago Cougars. That is over three million empty seats over a 77 game home schedule. As far as money goes everything was down from last year.

Veteran SS Roger Landry struggled all season. Coming off a .298/.363/.539 slash in 1929 to .223/.269/.375 in 1930. His WAR dropped a full five wins, his horrible defense at SS and 3B playing a huge roll in that. The club has to decide if this is just a one year fluke or the start of a major decline. Will Landry be back with St. Louis at the start of the 1931 season?

The Ugly
The pitching was really bad. The St. Louis staff finished last or next to last in every major pitching category and in most cases it wasn't even close. Only veteran Hal Galvan(2.56) finished with an ERA under 4.50 among all pitchers with more than 30 innings pitched. Five different pitchers lost double digit games while the staff ERA was a miserable 5.87. That was bad enough for not just last in the Federal Association but last in all of the FABL, a full two and a half runs higher than the league leading Chicago Cougars(3.50)

The minors are UGLY! The bottom four levels of the Pioneers farm system combined for a .309 winning percentage. There just isn't a lot to look forward to coming up through the St. Louis system meaning this losing could become common for Pioneer fans. Things just might get worse before they get better, especially if Mighty Mo decides it's time to hang'em up for good. At least we have a high draft pick...in a draft that has been described as one of the weakest in years!

In closing
It's been a rough year from the front office of the Pioneers. It was fun to watch Max get his records and to see the rookies develop but the pounding the pitching staff and the minors in general took was very disheartening to say the least. All we can hope for in 1931 is that Max returns, Landry remembers how to play, the rookies continue to develop, and someone in a Pioneers uniform can get the other team out. Not asking for much!

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"We lost 92 games AND finished last in attendance last season WITH Max Morris playing." That was the reasoning given by St. Louis Pioneers GM Herb DeSpain when asked why he would do such a terrible thing to the Pioneers faithful fans. The fact is it had to be done. Morris, as great as he is, is on his last leg. Another injury cost him the final 10 games or so of the 1930 season. A season that saw a youth movement in St. Louis that the fans will eventually get behind, especially when, not if, they start winning games.

DeSpain tried his best to send Max to the Continental Association but the New York Gothams, coming off a championship loss, were willing to pay a price far above what anyone else was offering up. The Gothams sent five players 25 years old or younger, three of them in the top 100 prospect rankings, and three of them starting pitchers. As many as four of them could see time on the big club in 1931. The haul of youngsters catapulted the Pioneers from sixth to the top sport of the minor league system rankings and give them four of the top 20 minor league players just weeks before the armature draft is to take place.

Starting pitchers Jack Richardson and Ray Benson could very well both start the season with the big club. Pioneers veteran scout Charlie Kinsey sees both of these arms as mid rotation staples in the near future. Benson pitched at AAA last season while Richardson topped out at AA in 1931. Ben Curtin is a 25 year old starter that doesn't have anywhere near the talent of the other two but could fill in if the need arises.

Calvin Brown is a very talented hitter who scouts agree could be elite once it is all said and done. Brown hit well at B ball for New York in 1930 after so-so numbers in A ball during the 1929 season. The Pioneers will likely be more aggressive with him and start him in AA for the 1931 campaign.

The prize jewel of this trade for St. Louis is 21 year old, 1B Fred McCormick. McCormick is the fifth overall prospect and will be given every opportunity to win the starting job in the big leagues out of spring training. Scouts across the league agree that McCormick is a can't miss prospect.

Mighty Mo agreed that the trade will benefit all parties including himself, "I get to play for championships again, in front of packed houses!!"

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Phase two of the St. Louis Pioneers' rebuild has started as the team reported to spring training today. With the trade of superstar Max Morris to the New York Gothams shortly following the 1930 season it's crystal clear that it's a total rebuild. Several rookies made their FABL debut last season and most fared well. Another wave of rookies have flooded camp in 1931 with 16 of the team's top 30 prospects in attendance hoping to make the trip north. To put things in perspective, only five of the 43 players to receive an invite to big league camp are over 30 years old.

Catcher
Jack Clark(.307, 64 RS, 48 RBI) and Les Dunbar(.298, 22 XBH, 161 AB) combined to make a pretty solid catcher last season. Together they hit .304 with 52 doubles and more walks than strike outs. The would be happy with the same results at the position again this year but there are two youngsters looking for their shot. At least one will get it this season. 21 year old Clarence Howerton(.256, 30 XBH in AAA) spend 1930 in AAA but he's been given a chance to unseat one of the veterans this year. Gm Herb DeSpain said Howerton will get most of the starts the first three weeks of spring training and the team will evaluate things from there. Number one pick Jack Flint(.356, 8.2 WAR, 606 COL AB) will start the season at AAA but could be moved to AA if Howerton doesn't make the major league roster.

Infield
The infield is up for grabs but one thing is for sure...Jim Quick(.290, 72 RBI, 410 AB) will play somewhere, preferably third base. The rest of the infield is up for grabs. The team's number 2 prospect, SS Ray Russell(.276 in A), will be given much the same chance to make the club as Howerton. If the 22 year old shows enough in spring ball to make the club then he'll likely be the starter at short. St. Louis' top prospect, Fred McCormick(.256, 27 EBH, 385 AAA PA), came over in the Morris trade and he'll also be given a chance to start at first base but Bill Littlefield and Johnnie Morse will battle the rookie for a roster spot. Fred Miller(.331, 43 EBH in 465 AAA AB) will get a shot at third base and it will be McCormick and Miller who decide the fate of Carl Kaufman(.347, 94 RS). If Miller wins the job at third then Quick will play second bumping Kaufman to a bench role. If Russell fails win the SS job he'll likely go to AAA and veteran Roger Landry(.223, 79 RBI) will get the job. Rule 5 pickup Norm Hill is a longshot to make the team and likely will end up back with his old club before the season starts.

Outfield
Alex Ingraham(.324, 82 XBH, 118 RBI) is a lock in right field and newly acquired Emil Noble will man center. The 28 year old was acquired in the Indy league draft this past offseason and has been waiting at his shot at the majors for years. He brings a 65+ zone rating in 611 AAA games and 64 assist verses just 14 errors. If he couldn't hit a lick he'd still be worth playing but the past two seasons he has a .315 batting average in AAA while averaging 59 XBH and 114 RBI. He won't be asked to carry that kind of offensive load with the Pioneers but everyone would be happy if he did. Leftfield is a wildcard. The team has several options including last season's CF Ollie Staples(.298, 47 XBH, 84 RS), veteran Dave Butterfield, a few of their own prospects, and four rule 5 draftees. All four rule 5 guys hit well in A or AA last season and at least two should make the club in some capacity.

Starting Pitchers
The rotation is really wide open right now. Cal Montgomery(2-0, 1.57, 28.2 IP) looked great in his first 28+ innings before missing the rest of the season with torn flexor tendon in his pitching elbow. It's unsure if he'll ever be the same as before the injury but he's only 24 and will get every chance to return to form. 30 year old John Mahoney(12-12, 4.91) and 27 year old Marv Forster(8-11, 4.65) were the most consistent starters in 1930 but with the youth movement and a handful of prospects in camp it is unclear which way management will lean. Jack Richardson and Ray Benson are both came over with McCormick in the Morris trade and both are looking to secure rotation spots. Rick Walther is another rule 5 pickup that will be on the injured list into mid season but will have to be on the roster once he is healthy. Add in Pioneer prospects Chief Rogers and Brad Magnuson and it will be tough for returners Chris Chevrette, Jake Wallace, and Jimmy Clinch to make the squad.

Bullpen
38 year old Hal Galvan returns as the team's stopper. He posted 11 saves last year in 63+ innings and he is popular with the fans despite his lack of save opportunities. Galvan is the only guarantee to make the bullpen as the rest will be made up of failed starters.

As you can see Spring Training may be more exciting than the regular season for the Pioneers. There will be a lot of competition for quite a few roster positions and even playing time. The team hopes the prospects win out which would propel the rebuild forward a few steps.

[HerbD]

On the eve of the 1931 FABL baseball season the St. Louis Pioneers wonder if there are any hard core fans left out there. In the midst of an open rebuild the Pioneers finished last in attendance during the 1930 season drawing fewer than six thousand per game. Last season was the start of a tear down. Fans don't like rebuilds but in the minds of the St. Louis management "we lost with Max Morris, we can certainly lose without him." Morris as well as longtime infielder Roger Landry were shipped out of town for prospects. St. Louis jumped from middle of the pack to having the number one minor league system in the FABL. That doesn't include any of the rookies that played in the majors last year in phase one of the plan.

Heading into this season the Pioneers will have just one everyday player that has more than one season of big league experience and that is the platoon of Jack Clark and Les Dunbar at catcher. It should be known that prospect Clarence Howerton was given every opportunity to win that job in spring training as well. Howerton wasn't ready but second year General Manager Herb DeSpain thinks the lineup "is ready to break out...it's the pitching that needs the big league experience."

"We are going young...it's not a secret." stated DeSpain. "We sent some older guys down to give these younger guys a chance and they showed in spring training that they can hit."

It seems that the schedule makers at least have a sense of the dramatic with Morris and the Gothams set to play eight of their first eleven games against the Pioneers including a four game set in St. Louis to open up the season.



CATCHER


These two made a pretty good platoon last season but they both know their time is limited. If either Howerton or this year's first overall Jack Flint(straight to AAA) get hot during the season it could spell the end of their playing time. Clark hit .313 against righties in 1930 and he is the only hitter on the team over 29 years old. Dunbar hit .290 verses lefties and it only 27.

FIRST BASE
Fred McCormick was the big prize for trading away Morris. He struggled a little in AAA last season but it's sink or swim for the 21 year old. McCormick became the Pioneers top prospect after the trade and he's going straight to the big club to replace the legend he was traded for.

SECOND BASE


Carl Kaufman was a 27 year rookie last season and he surprised everyone around the league by battling for the batting title all the way through July. He stumbled in August hitting just .265 but bounced back in September hitting .379. He finished the season at .347, good enough for seventh in the Federal Association. Kaufman(.378 in spring training) holds on to his starting spot despite the fact the team gave prospect Fred Miller every chance to take it away from him.

THIRD BASE
Jim Quick's career started out fast last season as a 25 year old rookie. He was out of the gate in 1931 hitting .375 with six homers in April. Looking closely at his season it was a real roller coaster after that hot start. He was way down in August(.234) but was starting to rebound in September(.353) before a broken elbow ended his season. He finished with 19 homers and 72 RBI but the team would like to see him take a few more pitches this season. One of the reasons that Kaufman didn't lose his job to Miller is due to Quick's outstanding defensive abilities at the hot corner. Inserting Miller into the lineup would require shifting Quick to second where he is not as good with the glove.

SHORTSTOP


Ray Russell wasn't great in spring training but he showed enough to allow the Pioneers to trade Rip Landry and give the 22 year old prospect the keys to the St. Louis infield in just his second professional season. He may struggle at times at the plate and the field but scouts agree that Russell has the mindset to look past any bumps in the road to his eventual success. The fourth round pick from the 1929 draft makes the jump to the big leagues from class A where he hit .276 in 1930.

OUTFIELD


The Pioneers' outfield is a subject of great excitement and with good reason. Last season Alex Ingraham was the best player on the team not named Max Morris and Ollie Staples more than held his own. They were both 23 year old rookies in 1930 finding their way around big league pitching. Ingraham got better each month finishing with 82 extra base hits(38-20-24) and 118 RBI and had one more base on balls than he had strikeouts. He is without a doubt a budding superstar in the FABL. Staples started 1930 slowly but by the end of the season he was near .300 with 47 extra base hits of his own. His defense in center was steady but not spectacular. He'll be moving to left field to make room for another rookie. Emil Noble was snatched up from AAA Sacramento to play center field for the Pioneers. Noble has average over .300 with 60 extra base hits, 114 RBI, and 70 walks over the past two seasons. Did we mention his 10.8 zone rating and 21/2 assist/error ration?

BENCH
The bench will not have a lot of experience. Johnnie Morse returns for his sophomore season and hell be joined by the afore mentioned Miller and two Rule V OF in Dode Heinke and George Bond. The Pioneers took a long look at five different Rule V hitters but only these two made the big league cut.

ROTATION

Cal Montgomery had a great start to the 1930 season but he ended up on the injured list halfway through May for the rest of the season. At just 22 years old he showed enough to be tagged as the number one starter heading into this season and he did not disappoint posting a 2.63 ERA in four spring starts.


Ray Benson is also 24 years old and he is another piece of the Morris trade. He pitched well in 1930 after moving through three levels in 1929.


24 year old Brad Magnuson pitched well enough last season in AAA and this year in spring training to get the opportunity to be a part of the St. Louis rotation.



23 year old Chris Chevrette(1.17 spring ERA) and 27 year old Joe Shaffner(1.76 spring ERA) earned the last two rotation spots.

BULLPEN
The bullpen boast the most veteran group of players on the team. 38 year old Hal Galvan is a fan favorite and was maybe the best pitcher on the team last year for the entire season. John Mahoney(27), Jimmy Clinch(33), Joe Marrett(27), and Jack Holt(27) will move into the rotation to replace whoever struggles enough to warrant a change.


It will be a challenging year for the Pioneers. If we win 68 games and finish out of the basement as we are projected then I'd say that would be a good season. We are hoping for something more.

[HerbD]

Around the FABL expectations are low for the 1939 version of the St. Louis Pioneers. Everywhere except St. Louis that is. "We've finished above .500 for seven consecutive seasons and we don't plan to start losing now!" said owner George Sackeywhen asked about the changes in the Pioneers' roster over the past two seasons. "I trust our GM to do what is best for us in the long term and the short term," he continued. "We don't have the financial resources that most other teams in this league have to we have to do things a little differently." Pioneers GM Herb DeSpain declined to comment on the recent trades but did give us some insight on who made the opening day roster and why.

Catcher
With Jack Flint being traded this off season Heinie Zimmer entered camp as the clear number one behind the plate. He caught around 100 games last year and he performed well at the plate and behind it. He reached base almost 40% of the time and he cut down almost half of would be base stealers. He really had nothing to prove but he had a fine spring any way hitting over .300 and walking 13 times against zero strike outs. Dave Wade was brought over from Montreal in the rule V draft and actually had the inside track on the backup job but he didn't hit well and he didn't fit in well in the club house. Wade was sent back to Montreal leaving 24 year old Ed K. White as the backup to Zimmer.

First Base
No one would take a chance on Zip Sullivan during the 1937/1938 offseason. That's why I felt forced to trade Frank McCormick. I didn't want to make that trade but neither of these guys could play anywhere else. If only we had a spot in the batting order that allowed one guy to do nothing but hit every game! So McCormick gets shipped to Toronto and Sullivan is the new first baseman for the Pioneers. He didn't live up to what McCormick was doing for the Wolves but he put up solid numbers, played in every game, and led the Fed with 48 doubles. It was his job to lose and the competition in camp was far better than any of us thought it would be. 22 year old Jim Vaughn, our 2nd round pod pick in '38, can hit and he may be the reason we have to trade Zip in a couple of years. In the end Sullivan out performed an impressive rookie and Vaugh was sent to Oakland for another season.

Second Base
So you may have heard that Freddie Jones doesn't play here any more. We made that move because of a guy named Artie D'Alessandro. D'Alessandro hit .336 in 70 AA games last season and when he moved up to AAA he did even better. Freddie's a great player but he'll be 29 this April and he's been in decline since he won his Whitney. Freddie's gone and Artie lays an egg in spring training to the tune of 2-29. What do you do? Artie goes back to Oakland and another rookie, Tommy Wilson gets the job by default. Wilson didn't have a great spring either but he's a pretty good fielder all around the infield and he doesn't let the slumps bring him down too much.

Third Base
Tony King had the edge entering camp but he didn't hit at all while veteran Ray Russell(.353 BA) was killing the ball all spring. Russell is a liability at short but he's done very well at third base the past few seasons. Russell gets the job and King gets the train ticket out west. The hope inside the front office is that D'Alessandro finds his stroke in AAA by the time Russell has his first injury of the season. Then we bring up Artie to play second and move Wilson to third.

Shortstop
Ivan Cameron came over with Wilson in the Freddie Jones trade. In AA last season he committed just four errors in over 500 chances at short and he hit over .300. He was given every opportunity to win the starting job in the spring and he didn't disappoint. He bat was better than advertised and if he fields the ball the way he's capable of then he can hit .200 and still be an asset. I think he'll hold down the SS position in STL for a decade or more, unless I decide to trade him.

Right Field
Al Tucker forced Pioneers legend Alex Ingraham out of the lineup for the second half of the 1937 season and was primarily responsible for Ingraham's release prior to the 1938 campaign. Tucker responded by notching his first 100 RBI season in 1938 and was by far the biggest sure thing in the St. Louis lineup entering camp. He did manage to hit .400 in the spring just in case anyone thought he didn't deserve the job.

Center Field
An injury and slow start to the 1938 season saw Gail Gifford relegated to platooning with Les Hendrix where the two combined to hit about .290 and provide stellar defense. Gifford brought his stroke to camp with him while Hendrix appeared to leave his at home. Gifford will be the every day CF but Hendrix is just a phone call away.

Left Field
Several players were considered for the left field job including Hendrix. Incumbent Art Cascone had a good enough spring to hold on to the spot for another season. The 25 year old has a knack for getting on base and he's pretty good in the field earning himself the job.

Bench
Veteran Earl Michael will back up most of the infield. He still has a decent glove but his bat is up and down. Should he falter to start the season I could easily see a youngster getting the call to replace him. Hal Sharp made the team due to his bat and in spite of his inability to play the field. He'll be the first pinch hitter off the bench most games. OF John Woods can hit but he made the team mostly because he was out of options and Al Sears was not. The most interesting hitter on the squad may be rookie Henry Cox. Cox hit four homers in the spring and is known for his power. He'll start the year backing up 1B and all three OF spots.

Rotation
We traded away a lot of star players the past couple of seasons with the intent of adding pitching depth throughout the entire organization. We have six pitching prospects in the FABL Top 100 to start the 1939 season and none of them could make the opening day roster. We think we have accomplished that mission. The key to 1939 will be veteran Sam Sheppard who posted, as he put it, "a really crappy year" in 1938. Once the rock of the rotation Sheppard was banished to the bullpen where he finished with an ERA over five and he walked almost 100 batters. Sheppard was given extended work in spring training and he earned a rotation spot by giving up just three earned runs in 16 innings. We think the depth is so good that, for the first time, I've agreed to use a five man rotation to start the season. This will also allow us to use our starters in relief for the first time. Joining Sheppard in the rotation are Jake Smith, David Abalo, Dixie Lee, and Buddy Long. Of those four only Smith had a very good spring but all four were held back and given just two starts each to get ready for the season. Joining the starters in the bullpen will be Red Ross, Angel Padilla, George DeForest, Don Orr, Mel Leonard, and Otis Smith. We tried to trade Smith before the start of the season but had no takers therefor we were forced to keep him on the active roster. We were not ready to give up on him just yet but the leash will be short. Everyone else earned their spot and we actually had to send down some very good pitchers in order to make the cut deadline.

In AAA Looking to Make the Jump to STL
SP Ed Cornett
RP Doc Barker
RP Don Miller
RP Russ Peeples
RP Willie Montgomery
C Red Bryant
1B Jim Vaughn
IF Jim Quick
2B Artie D'Alessandro
3B Tony King
SS Ed Smock
OF Les Hendrix
OF Bill Craft

[HerbD]

Catching Up: 1939



It wasn't pretty but with a late run the St. Louis Pioneers posted a winning record for the eighth consecutive season. Sitting five games under .500 heading into September the Pioneers
went 21-14 and won five of their final six games to keep the winning season streak alive. It was the second season in a row that St. Louis had traded away a potential Hall of Famer in the
off season and still maintained their winning ways. This season it was 2B Freddie Jones who, coming off two non-Freddie Jones type seasons, was traded to the Chicago Cougars in the
CA. The year before it was 1B Fred McCormick, who has been outstanding in his first two seasons in Toronto including a CA Triple Crown in 1939, that was traded away due to perceived
depth at the position. Jones brought in a gaggle of prospects from Chicago that included IF Tommy Wilson(#54), P Danny Hern(#55), P Preacher Pietsch(#96), IF Ivan Cameron, and OF
Henry Cox.



25 year old Buddy Long, acquired in the McCormick trade, had a breakout season for the Pioneers posting 19 wins and a team best 3.34
ERA in 286 innings. Long finished his first two seasons in STL with a 33-20 record and a mid three ERA. After pitching in just 15 games in
1938 David Abalo managed to find the mound 25 times in 1939 despite six different recorded injuries. The oft injured right hander produced
15 wins and a respectable 3.57 ERA, the best of his career in a full season, despite the many trips to the trainer's room. After nine impressive
starts in AAA, 1939 first round pick Harry Sharp got the call to the big leagues but he was clearly over matched. Fan favorite and 1935 Allen
winner, Sam Sheppard, struggled with an ERA above five for the second consecutive season.



OF Al Tucker(.309, 17 HR, 112 RBI) produced his second consecutive 100 RBI season for STL while Zip Sullivan(.299, 94 BB) did his best
to replace McCormick at first. Catcher Heinie Zimmer continued to improve at the plate(team best 96 walks) and in the field(46% RTO).
Wilson and Cameron paid immediate dividends. Cameron started all but one game at short for the Pioneers and committed just 11 errors
while driving in 71 runs on offense, good for third best on the team. Wilson began the year at second base but moved to third when
fellow rookie Artie D'Alessandro was called up. Wilson also started 153 games although his were split pretty evenly between the two positions.

The 1939 Draft
St. Louis drafted a trio of talented 21 year old players with their first three picks of the 1939 Ammy draft. P Mal Bianco(#14) slid into the
number one prospect slot for the Pioneers the moment he signed his contract. He immediately went to B League where he struggled a bit
but was not overmatched. Second round pick Bob Johnston JR(#39) took his spot as the team's top hitting prospect upon signing. He spent
just six games in C ball before joining Bianco in the B league. St. Louis native Harry Sharp was passed on by every team in the FABL...twice.
When the regional round started the Pioneers quickly snapped him up and he became the team's number two prospect behind Bianco. After
being evaluated by the Pioneers' scouts it was decided that Sharp would begin his career in AAA where he posted a 3.01 ERA in 71 innings
while moving between the big club and Oakland.

[HerbD]

Catching Up: 1940



Well it finally happened. The roof fell in on the Pioneers during the 1940 season and they could never climb out of the rubble. St. Louis began the season losing six of their first seven
contest and things just never got better from there as they posted a losing record in each month. The results were ugly. 97 losses...third most in franchise history. A .370 winning
percentage...seventh worse in franchise history. A franchise that is celebrating it's 60th anniversary. They finished 35 games out of first place in the Fed and were never
more than an afterthought from the beginning of regular season play.



Nine different pitchers started on the mound for the Pioneers during the 1940 season and only three of
those nine started more than 17 games. Those three pitchers combined for a 26-48 record. Harry Sharp
led the team with 10 wins in his first full season but he gave up 20 homers and walked more than 100
batters. Buddy Long lost a team high 21 games while Ed Cornett went 8-10 after a late start to the season
due to offseason elbow surgery. Veteran Sam Sheppard provided support in both the rotation and
the bullpen but threw a career low 133 innings, the third consecutive season that he has recorded a
new career low. Russ Peeples was the most effective arm out of the pen for the length of the season and
rookie Danny Hern showed promise as he came up from Oakland for a cup of coffee.



26 year old Heinie Zimmer had a breakout season leading the Fed with 124 walks and a .452 OB% while scoring 90
runs in 586 plate appearances. Zimmer was the lone Pioneers All-Star representative which shows how good
his season was in relation to how bad the team's season was. Tommy WIlson's season at the plate was about
as bad as he was good in the field. In his sophomore season Wilson dropped 53 points on his batting
average from his rookie season but he was named the best fielding third baseman in the FED. Fellow
sophomore SS Ivan Cameron forgot how to hit and field causing him to be benched late in the season.
OF Al Tucker also suffered through a bad year at the plate. Coming off of two consecutive 100 RBI seasons
Tucker managed to post career low totals in just about every offensive category.

The 1940 Draft
St. Louis drafted college catcher Tucker Ness with the ninth pick in the draft. OSA rated Ness as the 55th best FABL
prospect at the end of the season. Ness was assigned to AAA Oakland after signing but he struggled at the plate
hitting just 200. The Pioneers second pick in the draft was college SS Frank McNeil. McNeil went to C ball to start
his career where he to struggled at the plate but shined in the field.

[HerbD]

Originally Posted by Jiggs McGee

ABALO CAREER IN DOUBT

April 26, 1941: St. Louis, Missouri

The bad news gets even worse for the St Louis Pioneers as they learned that pitcher David Abalo's career is likely over following his latest injury. For the second time in less than a year Abalo was forced to leave the mound with a serious shoulder injury. Many in the crowd could hear something pop in the top of the 5th inning against Chicago when the Pioneers lefthander unleashed a pitch to the Chiefs Hank Barnett. Abalo immediately walked off the mound, cradling his tender left arm. It was learned yesterday that the club doctor has advised the 27 year old his baseball days are over. The diagnosis is a torn rotator cuff and becomes just the latest in a series of injuries to St Louis pitchers.

Abalo suffered a similar should injury last July but had said he felt no pain or discomfort in his 4 spring appearances or his first start a little over a week ago. If this is indeed the end, and all indications are it is, Abalo leaves with a career mark of 87-59 over 8 seasons with the Pioneers. He had three consecutive 17 win campaigns starting in 1935 as a 21 year old but since 1938 he has been hampered by a series of injuries.

It was an improbable run for the native of Venezuela who got his start in North American baseball as a 16 year old when he attended an open tryout for the Lone Star Association prior to that league's inaugural season. It took him 4 years before he made his minor league debut and but was then immediately noticed by Pioneers scouts, who pushed for the team to acquire him from San Antonio of the Lone Star loop in 1933. After just over a year in the St Louis system Abalo made his FABL debut in May 1934, two months before his 21st birthday, beating Washington 5-3 with a complete game. He would go 8-8 that season. His best season might well have been 1935 when Abalo (17-12) combined with Sam Sheppard's (28-7) Allen Award winning season to carry the Pioneers to second place in the Federal Association, just two games back of the champion New York Gothams.

Lately the Pioneers organization has fallen on hard times with Sheppard's decline and injuries to Abalo being tabbed as a key reason for the struggles.

...

[HerbD]

Some would say that the downfall of the 1941 St. Louis Pioneers was the career ending injury of pitcher David Abalo on April 26th but I'd have to say it was an eight day stretch of games
five weeks later that sent them spiraling towards the second division. After winning the first game of a double header at home against Philly on June 8th the Pioneers were two games
above .500 and sitting in fourth. They would lose the night cap and their next three home games against Boston. Then another three losses in Pittsburgh put them on a seven game skid
and five games under .500 just two and a half games out of the Fed basement. The team never recovered finishing June and July combined 10 games under. By the time September
rolled around the team was bringing up some youngsters to get a look at the big leagues. It would mark the first time in 10 years that the franchise had suffered through consecutive losing
seasons.



While most of the youngsters that headed north with the Pioneers after spring training were clearly not ready for the big leagues that was
not the case for 24 year old Danny Hern. Hern won a team best 16 games and finished four games over .500 on a team that finished 24
games under. His season was so good he finished fifth in the Allen Award voting and even received a first place vote(not from St. Louis).
After a controversial start to the season in which he was sent to AAA Oakland, Buddy Long returned to the big league club and put in a solid
season winning 11 games and posting a 4.07 ERA. Ed Cornett returned to the club following a spring training injury and won eight games
with a 4.21 ERA. Most of the youngsters struggled including Harry Sharp, who took a step backwards from his 1940 season, and Mal
Bianco(the number two prospect in baseball).



Al Tucker knew he could still hit. He also knew that coming off of a horrible 1940 season he would have to prove it. Despite
hitting well in spring training the 28 year old would begin the 1941 season as the Pioneers' fourth out fielder. As the season wore
on and guys struggled Tucker finally broke into the starting lineup and for the rest of the season he proved time and again that he
belonged there. In just 78 starts and 408 plate appearances Tucker led St. Louis with 14 homers and was second on the team
with 71 runs batted in. Coming off an even worse season at the plate than Tucker was 3B Tommy Wilson who won his starting
spot due to his glove work at the hot corner. Wilson rewarded the club with a very good year with the bat raising his average
almost 70 points from 1940. The only St. Louis player to play in all 154 games, Wilson led the team in runs, hits, triples, RBI,
and total bases while committing just six errors in the field. Heinie Zimmer made his second consecutive All-Star game
and led the Fed in walks for the second straight season but he was inconsistent for most of the year. The team mirrored
Zimmer's performance struggling in June and July then crashing in September.

The 1941 Draft

The Pioneers went heavy on pitching taking high school arms with their first five picks. After all draft signings Buchanan has slotted
into the #4 spot on the OSA rankings with Long joining him in the top 100 at #95. LeLeon(#101), Hampton(#111), and Madison(a
disappointing #235) followed. By the end of the season St. Louis had fallen from #2 in the system rankings to #5 due to players
such as Sharp and Bianco losing prospect status due to major league service time accumulation.