Webrian's Dick Howser Challenge

[so49as]

Game 102 – August 2
1 – Boston
6 – Royals

WP – Bret Saberhagen (11-8)
LP – Oil Can Boyd (14-5)

Boyd is one of Boston's top starters, but we strung together a string of hits in the 4th and 5th innings. Orta and Cooper doubled, and both had 2 RBI's on the day. Orta added a solo home run in the 8th.

Saberhagen gave up 7 hits and 1 run with 5 K's in a rain-shortened 6.1 innings. McClure, Farr and Holland shut down the Sox to end the game.



Game 103 – August 3
3 – Boston
2 – Royals

WP – Mike Carista (1-3)
LP – Larry Gura (1-6)

Got the tying and winning runs on base in the bottom of the 9th, but couldn't bring them in. Jim Rice hit the game winning home run in the top of the 9th.

Carista started the game with an ERA of 9.82 in 3 starts and we couldn't figure him out. Real life, he never made it out of AA.

Black left the game with a blister on his pitching hand, and will miss a start.



Game 104 – August 4
4 – Boston
3 – Royals

WP – Bob Ojeda (8-10)
LP – Mark Gubicza (8-9)
SV – Steve Crawford (18)

Boston chipped away at Gubicza in the first half of the game and we couldn't chip back away.

3 errors (White, Wathan, Concepcion) led to 3 unearned runs.


-
Wade Boggs went 5-12 against us this series and his average ticked over .400 for a few at bats. He leads the AL in average at .398. Brett is second at .350.


-
My record 48-55; 5th; 3.5 games behind Minnesota
Real Life: 55-47; 2nd; 4 games behind California

[so49as]

Game 105 – August 5
1 – Detroit
4 – Royals

WP – Charlie Leibrandt (12-8)
LP – Jack Morris (11-8)

Leibrandt gave up a run in the first but struck out 9 the rest of the way for the complete game win.

Frank White had the game winning RBI on a Sac Fly, and Sundberg singled in the insurance runs. Cooper went 3-4 with a run and an RBI.

Leibrandt leads the team in wins and quality starts (17 - 77%). His 8 losses come from having the team's poorest run support at just 3.4 runs per game.



Game 106 – August 6
0 – Detroit
4 – Royals

WP – Danny Jackson (5-3)
LP – Dan Petry (12-9)

All but Frank White got a hit today, and even he scored a run and collected an RBI. Brett was 3-4 with 2 RBI's.

Danny Jackson walked 3 in the first, but scattered 4 hits along the way to his first career shutout.

My 3-4-5 hitters versus right handed starters are Brett (.353, 20 HR, 70 RBI) Cooper (.338, 1, 16 in 18 games as a Royal) and Jorge Orta (.308, 5, 24). Versus lefties, McRae DH's from the #5 spot (.311, 3, 19).



Game 107 – August 7
0 – Detroit
2 – Royals

WP – Bret Saberhagen (12-8)
LP – Walt Terrell (17-5)

Willie Wilson had 4 hits including his 14th triple of the year. He scored on a Dave Collins single immediately afterwards. Cooper added a solo home run in the 8th for an insurance run.

Saberhagen struck out 5 and walked none for his complete game shutout of the week, his second of the year.



Game 108 – August 8
7 – Detroit
8 – Royals

WP – Dan Quisenberry (2-4)
LP – Willie Hernandez (1-3)

Lots of excitement to make up for the last 3 games. No complete game, but a 4-game sweep of the now third place (formerly first) Tigers.

Gura made the spot start in place of Bud Black, who is still nursing a blister on his pitching hand. It didn't go as well for Gura as his stint replacing Jackson in the rotation. 6 runs in the first 4 innings, including giving up 2 home runs to Chet Lemon. He pitched a clean 5th and was replaced by Steve Farr, who threw 3 innings, giving up 1 run.

Jorge Orta led off with the score 7-3 in the bottom of the eighth. He Cowens, and Frank White singled to load the bases. Sheridan, running for Orta scored when Sundberg hit into a 3-6-1 double play. I thought that might have snuffed the rally, but Darryl Motley, pinch hitting for Onix Concepcion hit a 2-run home run. Willie Hernandez got Dave Collins to ground out to end the inning.

Quisenberry tossed a quick 9th. Cecil Cooper singled as the meat in a flyout sandwich (Brett and McRae). With a runner on first and two outs, I wasn't holding much hope, but Cowens walked, and then Frank White doubled them both in for the come back victory.

Cooper, Orta and White collected 3 hits each. Orta, White and Motley had 2 RBI's each. Cooper and Owens each scored twice. Cooper extended his hit streak to 14 games.



-
Next up, 3 at home against the Blue Jays, who are tied for first with the Yankees.

In the real life series against Detroit, games 2 and 3 were rained out. A double header was played on the 8th, which the Royals swept. The other rained out game was squeezed into an off day on the 19th of August. The Royals won.

-
My record 52-55; 3rd; 2.5 games behind Minnesota
Real Life: 57-46; 2nd; 3.5 games behind California

54 games remain on the schedule. Plenty of time to catch the Twins and push over 500 for the first time since April 17th.

The Twins are 2 games over 500, and we play them 6 more times, 3 at home and 3 away.

We are 13-7 since the All-Star Break.

[webrian]

That was a long time coming!

But that Detroit series was vintage 1985 Royals, even if the 1985 Royals didn't have Cecil Fielder, Dave Collins or Jerry Royster. The bad luck with run production Charlie Liebrandt is experiencing mirrors what he went through in the actual 1985 season.

The adjustments you've had to make are paying off handsomely now.

Like the Royals of those days, your team is finding its mojo after the All-Star break. It's so nice to see Jackson and Saberhagen pitch back-to-back shutouts over the Tigers. It's even nicer to see how Steve Farr picked up Larry Gura and the offense rallied for a walk-off win.

That's the kind of thing that gets a winning streak started. Minnesota could be in big, big trouble now.

[so49as]

Game 108 – August 9
7 – Toronto
2 – Royals

WP – Dave Stieb (12-5)
LP – Mark Gubicza (8-10)

The only Royal highlight came from Pat Sheridan who had a pinch-hit, run scoring double. He came around to score.




Game 109 – August 10
4 – Toronto
3 – Royals

WP – Steve Trout (3-2)
LP – Charlie Leibrandt (12-9)

We just couldn't scratch enough. Mulliniks had 2 RBI's and a solo home run. Wilson scored a run and had 2 RBI's. Leibrandt gave up 4 in 7.1 innings.



Game 110 – August 11
8 – Toronto
2 – Royals

WP – Bruce Kison (6-8)
LP – Danny Jackson (5-4)

7 Royal hitters had hits, but we left 12 on base. Cooper launched a solo shot in the 3rd. The first 6 Toronto hitters reached base and 3 scored. I let McClure pitch to a righty and Garth Iorg collected an RBI double.

I'm rooting for Detroit in the AL East.




-
Dave Kingman hit his 400th home run against Seattle.

Swept, but only lost 1 game to the Twins.
-
My record 52-58; 4th; 3.5 games behind Minnesota
Real Life: 59-49; 2nd; 3.5 games behind California

[so49as]

Game 111 – August 12
4 – Royals
5 – Boston

WP – Oil Can Boyd (15-5)
LP – Bret Saberhagen (12-9)
SV – Steve Crawford (16)

Motored to a 4 run lead by stringing together a solo home run, a few hits, a double steal by Brett and Cooper, and a passed ball. 13 hits altogether with Wilson, Brett, Orta, Sundberg, and Royster getting multiples.

But in the bottom of the 5th, the Red Sox strung together 5 singles and a double to come within 1 run. And in the bottom of the 6th, with 1 out and runners on 2nd and 3rd, Saberhagen uncorked first a wild pitch to tie the game, and then balked in the winning run.




Game 112 – August 13
6 – Royals
7 – Boston

WP – Mark Clear (4-1)
LP – Bud Black (8-9)

Bud didn't have his good stuff until the 4th inning and by that time, we were down 6-1 thanks to a 3-run homer by Tony Armas, and a 2-run shot by Dwight Evans. It was our turn to claw back tying the game in the 7th on a 3-run Jorge Orta home run. He went 2-4 with 4 RBI's total.

But with 107 pitches going into the 9th with a runner on first, I kept Black in to face lefties Steve Lyons and Rich Gedman. Lyons sacrificed Rice over, and Gedman singled.

I was saving Quisenberry for a save, but hindsight tells me there's no reason to save him if the game is on the line. Steve Farr got Damaso Garcia to ground out, but Jody Reed singled in the winning run.




Game 113 – August 14
3 – Royals
6 – Boston

WP – Bob Ojeda (9-10)
LP – Al Holland (2-3)
SV – Steve Crawford (17)

Cooper and McRae knocked in 3 runs in the first two innings and Wilson scored twice. But 4 singles and a George Brett error let the Red Sox tie it up in the bottom of the third.

In the bottom of the 7th, I brought in Al Holland to face a string of tough lefties, and in 7 pitches we were down by three. Boggs and Jim Rice singled. And then Gedman launched a line drive home run out to centerfield. Holland finished the inning not allowing another run, but giving up singles to lefties Mike Easler and Steve Lyons.



-
Wade Boggs hit safely in all 3 games to extend his hitting streak to 19 games. He pushed his average from .399 to .408.

Lost 6 in a row now. Questioning my choice of knocking out a few games before work this morning. Haha.

-
My record 52-61; 5th; 5.5 games behind Minnesota
Real Life: 61-50; 2nd; 2.5 games behind California

[so49as]

Game 114 – August 16
6 – Royals
5 – Toronto
10 Innings

WP – Steve Farr (2-1)
LP – Dennis Lamp (4-3)
SV – Dan Quisenberry (21)

Quickly jumped out to a 3-run lead with a Jorge Orta home run in the first. But a George Brett error led to 2 runs in the 4th.

We were up 5-2 in the 7th, but the Blue Jays tied it up with 2 runs in the 7th and 1 in the 8th.

Farr managed hold them for the rest of the 8th and the ninth. Then in the top of the 10th with 2 outs, Collins, who's been running a bit of a cold streak, doubled. Brett walked, and a double steal put them at 2nd and 3rd. The Blue Jays intentionally walked Cooper to load the bases, and Orta knocked in Collins with a single. Quisenberry allowed a single but otherwise he held fast for his 21st save.

Orta finished the game 3-5 with 4 RBI's and 2 runs scored.



Game 115 – August 17
0 – Royals
6 – Toronto

WP – Doyle Alexander (15-3)
LP – Bret Saberhagen (12-10)

2 errors by Frank White, and one by Jim Sundberg led to 4 unearned runs. Doyle Alexander gave up only 3 hits in 8 innings.



Game 116 – August 18
9 – Royals
10 – Toronto

WP – Jim Acker (3-2)
LP – Al Holland (2-4)
SV – Dennis Lamp (24)

Everything I tried in the 7th inning failed. 12 Toronto batters came to the plate and 8 scored. We led 6-2 and Steve Farr started the inning against righties Barfield and Bell – Bell singled. Bob McClure came into face Willie Upshaw and Lloyd Moseby, but after a month of shutting down the lefties, Upshaw homered and Moseby singled. 6 more reached base capped off by a Jessie Barfield bases-loaded triple.

McClure's Royal's ERA doubled from 2.08 to 4.15. Holland's went from 2.06 to 3.12.

We did make a little go of it in the 8th when Dave Collins fired a bases-loaded double to get us within 1. But we could manage nothing more.



-
Glad to see the end of the Toronto in the regular season. 1-11. Yikes. Remove them from my schedule and I'm at .500.

The Jays have 6 players with at least 15 home runs. There's not a quiet point in the lineup. Cecil Fielder DH'd in the last game and batted 9th.

I have 2 guys with at least 15 home runs and one of them is in AAA. Steve Balboni. Brett leads the team with 20. Frank White, 13.

-
My record 53-63; 5th; 7 games behind Minnesota
Real Life: 63-51; 2nd; 2.5 games behind California

[so49as]

Game 117 – August 20
4 – Royals
5 – Chicago

WP – Britt Burns (15-7)
LP – Mark Gubicza (8-11)
SV – Bob James (25)

We traded single run innings with Chicago putting up fence posts for the first 4 innings. Frank White hit a solo shot in the 2nd, his 14th. McRae went 2-4 with a solo HR in the 8th. But other than that, nothing completely clicked today.

McClure seems to have lost his shine, or is running through a cold spurt. I brought him in to pitch to Harold Baines and Baines put the first pitch into the right field Comiskey bleachers.



Game 118 – August 21
9 – Royals
0 – Chicago

WP – Charlie Leibrandt (13-9)
LP – Floyd Bannister (7-15)

Leibrandt scattered 7 White Sox hits, and 4 Chicago errors led to 6 unearned runs.

The bottom 3 of the lineup (Cowens, Royster, Wathan) went 6-14 with 7 RBI's. Royster hit his first Royal home run in the first, a 2-run shot. Cowens and Cooper tripled, and 7 of our 10 hits were for extra bases. 21 total bases for the game.

Brett went 0-5, so I think I'll give him a day off.



Game 119 – August 22
4 – Royals
2 – Chicago

WP – Bret Saberhagen (13-10)
LP – Bob James (3-5)
SV – Dan Quisenberry (22)

Forgot to give Brett his day off, but he went 2-4, with his 21st home run, and he scored the game-tying run.

Saberhagen rolled giving up 2 runs, both unearned on a Jerry Royster error. He struck out 8 against 1 walk, and has struck out 118 this year against 19 walks. Rich Dotson pitched just as well, giving up only 1 run (Brett's homer) through 8 innings. The White Sox closer Bob James blew his 5th save of the year.

Brett reached first to lead off the 9th on a Daryl Boston error. Cooper struck out, but Orta doubled to put runners on 2nd and 3rd. The Sox pitched to White rather than walking the bases loaded for a double play, and he flyed out to deep right field and Brett scored. Sundberg drove in the lead run on a single, with Orta scoring from second, and Jim went to second on the throw. Cowens then capped off the comeback with a double, driving Sundberg in from 2nd.



-
A good series win after the last few against the AL East.

The West now sports 3 teams at or above 500 – Chicago, Texas, and Minnesota.

We have a double header against Milwaukee after our next series against Texas. David Cone hasn't excelled at AAA Omaha, but he's an option to start. I'll be using Gura more in the bullpen with McClure running cold. Scott Bankhead is also an option.

Bankhead (AA) – 9-8, 3.91 ERA; 3.32 FIP
Cone (AA) – 2-1, 3.00 ERA; 3.70 FIP
Cone (AAA) – 3-6, 5.43 ERA; 5.75 FIP
Gura (ML) – 1-4, 3.99 ERA; 4.74 FIP as a starter

I think I'm leaning towards Bankhead. He would not be the first player from the '84 Olympic team to reach the majors.

Will Clark (.167, 4 HR, 14 RBI in 59 starts) – San Francisco
Mike Dunne (1-4, 2 SV, 6.42 ERA in 21 AAA games) – Just promoted to the Seattle rotation
Barry Larkin (.225, 2 RBI, in 10 starts) – Cincinnati
Oddibe McDowell (.239, 12, 56, 26 SB in 100 starts) – Texas
Mark McGwire (1-4 with 3 strikeouts) – Oakland, but now back in AAA
Cory Snyder (.324, 3, 12 in 4 starts/52 games) – Cleveland
Bill Swift (3-1, 1 save, 4.91 ERA in 28 relief appearances) – Seattle

-
My record 55-64; 5th; 5 games behind Minnesota and Texas
Real Life: 66-52; 2nd; 1.5 games behind California

[so49as]

Game 120 – August 23
3 – Texas
1 – Royals
11 Innings

WP – Greg Minton (1-0)
LP – Dan Quisenberry (2-5)

Bud Black and Frank Tanana dueled most of the game until Cecil Cooper hit a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth to send the game into extra innings.

Tried to get Quisenberry to close out the 11th inning, but Pete O'Brien homered, then Gary Ward walked, stole a base, and scored on a Cliff Johnson single.



Game 121 – August 24
6 – Texas
0 – Royals

WP – Dave Stewart (2-3)
LP – Danny Jackson (5-5)

Dave Stewart, he of a 6.94 ERA, and who had failed to get out of the 3rd inning in his last 2 starts, gave up only 2 hits, no walks, and no strikeouts. I apparently kept hitting them where they were.

Jackson gave up all 6 runs on 3 hits, and was aided by 3 Royal errors, Sundberg, Royster, and Cooper.




Game 122 – August 25
5 – Texas
3 – Royals
14 Innings

WP – Jose Guzman (4-4)
LP – Al Holland (2-5)

The highlight of this game might have been Al Holland's 3 pitch inning in the 13th. (Screenshot coming). Farr pitched 4 and a third innings without giving up a run. Holland went 3 innings, but gave up the final 2 runs in the top of the 14th.

Gary Ward went 4-6 with 2 home runs. Brett went 0-5, but I'm not going to sit him for a rest game.



Game 123 – August 26
12 – Texas
2 – Royals

WP – Mike Mason (7-10)
LP – Charlie Leibrandt (13-10)
SV – Jose Guzman (1)

Can't get the computer to crash when I *want* it to.

Texas rolled up an 8 run 6th inning. 2 Royster errors and then 2 Leibrandt walks to load the bases. McClure came in for Oddibe McDowell who promptly 2-2 fastball over the right field wall for a grand slam.

McClure's ERA sits at 5.59 and has given up 6 runs and 3 home runs in 9.2 innings.



-
I promoted both David Cone and Scott Bankhead. Bankhead gets the start on the doubleheader. Cone will supply innings for a taxed bullpen.

To make room for both pitchers, I optioned Greg Pryor to AAA. I'd used him in 4 games in July and August.

I also designated Bob McClure for assignment. If he clears, I might bring him back for September callups, but my confidence is low in him.

-
My record 55-68; 5th; 9 games behind Texas
Real Life: 68-54; 2nd; 1.5 games behind California

[so49as]

Holland's 3-pitch inning.

[so49as]

Game 124 – August 27
6 – Royals
5 – Milwaukee

WP – Bret Saberhagen (14-10)
LP – Derek Diaz (1-1)
SV – Dan Quisenberry (23)

Everything rolled except for 1 bad inning. Saberhagen gave up 5 in the 6th and the Brewers held the lead for a couple innings. But we tied in the 7th when Brett scored on a Frank White single. And we took the lead back in the 8th on a Pat Sheridan solo home run, his 4th of the year.

Brett went 2-2 with a 2-run homer in the 1st. He scored 3 runs and walked 3 times.



Game 125 – August 27
8 – Royals
4 – Milwaukee

WP – Scott Bankhead (1-0)
LP – Moose Haas (9-11)

Bankhead was good, not great during his first Major League start, but the offense rolled and a perfect start wasn't necessary. Bankhead walked 3 and gave up 8 hits, but held the Brewers to 2 runs. His first ML strikeout was against Andre Dawson in the first. That's still his only strikeout.

David Cone was a bit worse, but with the 6-run lead, it didn't matter too much. In an inning and a third, he gave up 3 hits and walked 4. Farr came in and finished the game.

Jerry Royster led the offensive charge going 3-4 with 5 RBI's. He hit a 3-run homer off Daniel Scarpetta in the 7th. Those 5 RBI's are the most by a Royal in a game this season.




Game 126 – August 28
2 – Royals
15 – Milwaukee

WP – Ray Burris (8-12)
LP – Bud Black (8-10)
SV – Tim Crews (1) – 4 inning save

Here's one that got away from me. Black gave up 8 earned runs in 5 innings. I should have pulled him sooner. David Cone picked up 2 strikeouts in his inning of work. Jerry Royster again, made 2 errors.



Game 127 – August 29
2 – Royals
1 – Milwaukee

WP – Al Holland (3-5)
LP – Bryan Clutterbuck (6-4)
SV – Dan Quisenberry (24)

The Brewers took a 1-0 lead in the first and Chris Bosio was in top form for 5 innings. But pitching on 3 days rest, the rookie bowed out after 5. Frank White snuck a Derek Diaz pitch out over the left field wall for his 15th home run of the year.

In the top of the 9th, Brett and Cooper hit back to back doubles, Brett scoring on Cooper's.

Danny Jackson's back tightened up on him and he only lasted 3 and a third innings. He should be able to pitch through the injury.



-
3 out of 4 is good, but all games matter now. Texas is 5 games over 500 now, and along with Minnesota, might be pulling away from the rest of the pack.

The game gives me a 0.1% chance of making the playoffs.

-
My record 58-69; 5th; 8 games behind Texas
Real Life: 69-55; 2nd; 1.5 games behind California

[webrian]

Those series against Toronto and Boston were an ambush. At the time you had momentum and needed a bit more, you had a 6-game losing streak, then later lost 4 in a row to Texas, the team you needed to beat.

It's a helpless feeling when the pitching's inconsistent and exhausted and the hitting just isn't quite there. Toronto is very good. The Blue Jays were probably the best team in all of baseball in 1985, in real life, and OOTP makes them even stronger. The system has no way of figuring in the 1985 Royals' strengths because they got so much done on grit, luck and a legendary performance from George Brett. In fact, the Royals had more talent in 1988 and 1989 than in 1985, but not enough to catch the runaway Oakland Athletics.

You're coming up on the stretch of games where the real-life Royals played their best baseball: a 13-2 binge in early September against Chicago, Milwaukee, California and Oakland. Then again, the real-life Royals went 7-5 against Toronto in the regular season.

Texas and Minnesota aren't that good. They are houses built on stilts and could collapse anytime. If you can scratch and claw your way to .500, you might find yourself in better shape than you think.

Fingers crossed!

[so49as]

There was a fair amount of desperation and despondency felt over the last few series.

Should probably finish the regular season by this weekend, and I will probably continue on into '86 regardless of the outcome.

[so49as]

Game 128 – August 30
3 – Royals
2 – Texas

WP – Larry Gura (2-6)
LP – Dickie Noles (7-2)
SV – Dan Quisenberry (25)
12 Innings

We jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the 3rd when George Brett hit his 23rd home run, a 2-run shot against Frank Tanana. But the tough Rangers chipped away with runs in the 4th and 5th.

Gubicza went 9 innings (115 pitches) giving up 5 hits and 3 walks and those 2 runs. Larry Gura pitched 2 scoreless innings.

In the 12th, we took advantage of a Mike Stanley (the catcher, playing third base) error, and 2 walks. Pat Sheridan who ran for Hal McRae in the 11th, walked in John Wathan.

Quisenberry got 3 ground outs for his 25th save.

Brett needs a day off, but not against Texas. At 60% rest, he went 3-6 to go along with his home run. Willie Wilson went 4-5 with a walk.



Game 129 – August 31
5 – Royals
4 – Texas

WP – Scott Bankhead (2-0)
LP – Dave Schmidt (6-4)
SV – Al Holland (3)

We scored 2 in the fifth to take a 2-1 lead. Jerry Royster scored on a Dave Collins double, who subsequently scored on a George Brett single.

Leibrandt pitched OK, 6.1 innings, 4 walks, 3 K's, 4 runs. He gave up 3 runs in the bottom of the 7th against a Jim Anderson double and a Wayne Tolleson single. But we turned it around in the top of the 8th. With 2 outs and Frank White on 2nd, Dave Schmidt, the Rangers closer, Royster singled, Wilson doubled, and Dave Collins tripled. He finished with 3 RBI's on a double and triple.

Quisenberry was unavailable after pitching the last two games, so Al Holland came in and collected a 6-out save.

Royster committed his 21st error at short for the Royals, but started 2 double plays.





Game 130 – September 1
0 – Royals
1 – Texas

WP – Joe Price (10-9)
LP – Bret Saberhagen (14-11)
SV – Jeff Russell (1)

So close...

In the fifth, rookie Kelly Gruber tripled in Gary Ward. Joe Price scattered 8 hits and struck out 5 in 8.1 innings. Saberhagen gave up 5 hits and Ward's run, striking out 6.

In the 9th with one out , Brett singled. I considered pinch running for him, but Biancalana, my only backup infielder, had already entered the game as a defensive replacement at short stop. The Cooper struck out.

So with 2 outs, McRae walked, and then Frank White grounded weakly towards the firstbaseman, but Pete O'Brien flubbed the throw. Not enough for Brett to advance though.

But alas, with the bases loaded, Al Cowens struck out swinging.

-
Took the series, but only gained a game on the Rangers.

Most of my minor leagues are still playing so I've only promoted 3 players. Lefties Mike Jones and Tony Ferreira, and Steve Balboni. Balboni is riding a hot streak and his hitting .284 with 11 HR's and 30 RBI's in 43 games. The lefties only look to see action against lefties, or in a blowout.

Israel Sanchez was the August pitcher of the Month in the Florida State League. The Fort Myers closer was 3-1 with a 2.24 ERA. He struck out 31 in 24 innings. He had 8 saves, and then started on August 30th, throwing 8 scoreless innings on 145 pitches for his 7th win of the season. He's saved 29 games this year. But he's allowed 22 home runs in 84 innings.

Mike MacFarlane won the Northwest League Player of the Month. He hit .341 with 9 home runs in August.

And Linton Dyer won the Gulf Coast League Batter of the Month. He hit .359 with 9 home runs and 25 RBI's. The right fielder is hitting .333 with 10 home runs on the season.



-
My record 60-70; 5th; 7 games behind Texas
Real Life: 69-58; 2nd; 2.5 games behind California

A below 500 record looms.

[so49as]

Game 131 – September 2
5 – Chicago
3 – Royals

WP – Danny Darwin (3-2)
LP – Bud Black (8-11)
SV – Bob James (26)

Danny Darwin must not have much stamina because right after giving up his first hit in the 6th inning, the Chicago manager pulled him. He was pitching on 3 days rest.

The White Sox rolled to a 3-0 lead before Sundberg was able to get to reliever Gene Nelson for his 6th home run of the year, a 2-run dinger.

Holland gave up 2 insurance runs in the 9th, and we couldn't come back. Brett had the night off, but I brought him in to pinch hit in the 9th. He hit an RBI double, but not enough.




Game 132 – September 3
4 – Chicago
7 – Royals

WP – Danny Jackson (6-5)
LP – Randy St. Claire (1-1)
SV – Dan Quisenberry (26)

I actually felt the season slipping away in the 4th inning. The White Sox had jumped out to a 4-1 lead and I was losing faith. But we turned it around and tied it in the 4th, with the highlight being a Jorge Orta single that drove in Brett and Cooper. We then scratched some insurance in the 6th and 7th. Frank White hit his 16th homer in the 6th, and we added 2 on a couple RBI singles.





Game 133 – September 4
4 – Chicago
3 – Royals

WP – Britt Burns (16-7)
LP – Dan Quisenberry (2-6)
SV – Bob James (27)

So close. Possible cardiac events. We could not touch Burns, and Gubicza held the Sox for 6 innings, until they chipped up 3 runs in the 7th.

But we scrapped together and tied it up in the 8th. Motley homered; Royster and Orta (pinch-hitting) and Wilson doubled back to back to back for 3 runs.

Nobody else I'd want in the 9th, but they got to Quisenberry. Tim Hulett scored from second on a Steve Christmas single for a 4-3 lead.

In the ninth, Cooper struck out looking. McRae singled, but Bob James got White and Motley without too much trouble.

-
Danny Jackson continues to suffer from his stiff back, but it doesn't appear to affect his pitching. I'll probably just be more careful with his pitch count.

The Brewers were eliminated from the AL East race, we host Milwaukee for 3 this weekend.

Lost the series, and now it starts to feel hopeless. This was the series where the real life Royals caught fire. Might shuffle the lineup. Try something different.

-
My record 61-72; 5th; 7.5 games behind Texas
Real Life: 72-58; 2nd; 1.5 games behind California

[so49as]

Game 134 – September 6
0 – Milwaukee
6 – Royals

WP – Bret Saberhagen (15-11)
LP – Moose Haas (9-13)

Saberhagen came out in top form, giving up 6 hits and striking out 4.

We held a tight 2-0 lead into the 8th when we rolled and piled on 4. White singled, then Sundberg and Royster walked to load the bases. Collins walked in a run; then after a couple outs, Brett singled in 1 and Cooper doubled in 2 more.

A nice comfortable win.




Game 135 – September 7
5 – Milwaukee
2 – Royals

WP – Ray Burris (9-12)
LP – Bud Black (8-12)
SV – Rollie Fingers (13)

Scare in the top of the ninth. Down by 2, I brought in Quisenberry to hold the deficit. He did give up a run, but also left the game with tightness in his back. Fortunately, he won't miss any more time than the third of an inning in this game.

Black gave up 4 in 7 innings, 11 hits, 2 walks and no strikeouts. Yikes. Nothing spectacular from the offense other than a few hits and a Dave Collins solo home run.

Cecil Cooper extended his current hitting streak to 20 games.



Game 136 – September 8
3 – Milwaukee
5 – Royals
5 and a half innings

WP – Charlie Leibrandt (14-10)
LP – Chris Bosio (5-3)

The umps called the game after the Brewers batted in the 6th. I'll take it!

Leibrandt was OK. Good enough for a win and a quality start, but if the offense had come in stale, we would have lost.

But Cooper extended his hitting streak to 21 games. Collins and Cowens doubled, and Cowens also hit his 6th home run in the 2nd. He finished with 3 RBI's.



-
Another series win, but we only gained a half game on Texas.

The Rangers are tops in the AL West in the power rankings, but everyone is bunched.

89.6 – Rangers
89.0 – White Sox
86.4 – Royals
85.7 – Twins
85.1 – Mariners

-
My record 63-73; 5th; 7 games behind Texas
Real Life: 77-58; 1st; 1.5 games ahead of California - First time in 1st place all season?

The real Royals swept the Brewers in a 5-game series, making up a few rainouts from earlier in the year.

[so49as]

I might be a touch delusional but I still think I can win the division.

I have a perfect split on the 26 games remaining, with 13 at home and on the road.

The teams remaining to play have a winning percentage of .435, the lowest of all 5 teams still in contention.

The Rangers opposing teams have a .438, which is probably the team I need to beat.

Mariners - .464 - I'll focus on one team at a time.

Two teams, the team I'm behind and the team I'm playing.

I only have 6 games remaining against the over 500 AL West teams, and that's just 6 against the Twins. All other games are against Seattle, California, and Oakland.

Dang. The three AL East juggernauts don't play any of my playoff obstacles.

[so49as]

Game 137 – September 9
2 – Royals
1 – California

WP – Mark Gubicza (9-11)
LP – Bob Kipper (6-10)
SV – Dan Quisenberry (27)

I don't intentionally walk many, but when Reggie Jackson comes up as the winning run and first base open, sorry Quiz, you're getting your 7th walk of the year....

McRae, Brett, and Collins all had multiple hits, Cooper with 3, as well as an RBI and a run.

Gubicza walked 6, but combined with 5 hits, they were all spaced out enough to not damage the game too much.

Cooper wore the collar and his hit streak ends at 21, the longest Royal streak of the season.



Game 138 – September 10
9 – Royals
3 – California

WP – Danny Jackson (7-5)
LP – Martin Kain (1-2)

Angel starter Jim Slaton exited the game at the end of the first and what followed was 3 middle relievers of questionable talent, and 22 hits, 17 of them singles.

Sheridan and White had 4; Cooper, Royster, and Wilson had 3; Sundberg had 2. Wilson, Sundberg and Royster had 2 RBI's. Sheridan had 3 runs.

Jackson went 7, but had more walks than K's. Steve Farr finished the game with 3 K's in 2 innings.



Game 139 – September 11
9 – Royals
4 – California

WP – Bret Saberhagen (16-11)
LP – Kirk McCaskill (14-13)

McCaskill is the ace of the Angels, but we chased him in the 5th. He wasn't helped by two errors by Dick Schofield and Doug DeCinces.

We rang up 14 hits to go with the 9 runs. Wilson, Orta, Sundberg, and Collins had multi-hit games. Sundberg scored 3.

David Cone pitched the 9th and walked 2, gave up 2 hits, allowed 1 run, and struck out 1. Hasn't been the best of debuts for Cone.



-
Tom Seaver (Orioles) recorded his 300th win against the Red Sox.

Toronto starting third baseman Rance Mulliniks will miss about 5 weeks with a sprained ankle. That might keep him out of the playoffs.

And Toronto starter Jimmy Key is also gone until next spring. He was 9-4 with a 3.17 ERA.

Having himself a sneaky good September is Jim Sundberg. In 8 starts, he's hitting .387 with 1 HR and 5 RBI's. He has 6 extra base hits with 4 doubles and a triple to go along with his home run.

Brett hit his 40th double of the year on the 11th. It's his 3rd time getting 40, and his career high is 45 coming back in '75. His 11 stolen bases are his most since '81.

-
My record 66-73; 5th; 5 games behind Texas
Real Life: 79-59; 1st; 2.5 games ahead of California

Still in 5th place, but Texas went 1-2 against Oakland, and we pick up 2 games, as did most everyone else.

[so49as]

At least 2 Royal teams will make the playoffs. The Fort Myers Royals grabbed the wild card spot in the Florida State League.

They are led by pitcher Israel Sanchez. Sanchez had 29 saves before being moved to the rotation, where he's 2-1 in 3 starts with 31 K's in 22.2 innings. His season ERA is 3.71.

For the batters two stand out. Brian Dorsett (acquired with Dave Collins) is hitting .303 with a .951 OPS, 29 HR's and 75 RBI's.

At first base, Jere Longenecker is hitting .309 with 33 HR's and 103 RBI's.


In the Northwest League, the Eugene Emeralds finished 46-24 and in first place.

Mike MacFarlane, our top catching prospect, hit .302 with 18 HR's and 63 RBI's. 3 others hit over .285. As a team, they hit .268 with a .734 OPS, all 2nd in the league.

Hector Barrios is the top pitcher, going 8-3 with a 3.23 ERA.

[webrian]

The margin for error is razor thin now, but the team's not giving up.

You're only 5 games out. The number of teams you have to leapfrog is a concern, but none of them are on solid footing. This is a division of shifting sands. It's chaotic. As Lord Baelish said on Game of Thrones, "Chaos is a ladder."

Just gotta keep on climbing.

What's interesting is the California Angels are also underperforming what they did in real life. They took KC to the wire in 1985, then rolled to the AL West title in 1986.

No matter what happens the rest of this season, you've really stayed after it. It looks like you've also set yourself up to do even better in 1986 and 1987 — which the real-life Royals didn't do quite so well.

The team might reward you with a big 1986.

[so49as]

Game 140 – September 13
2 – Royals
3 – Oakland
10 Innings

WP – Jay Howell (5-6)
LP – Al Holland (3-6)

2-2 in the 10th and Holland could not get out lefty Dwayne Murphy. With Dusty Baker on first, Murphy doubled to right and Baker chugged around to score.

Black pitched well, 7 and 2/3rds innings, striking out 5 and allowing 2 runs on 5 hits. The offense came in quiet against Chris Codiroli. 5 hits in 8 innings, all singles.





Game 141 – September 14
3 – Royals
2 – Oakland

WP – Charlie Leibrandt (15-10)
LP – Jim Clancy (3-4)
SV – Dan Quisenberry (28)

The heart of the Athletics lineup (2-5) of Mike Davis, Dusty Baker, Dwayne Murphy, and David Kingman, all have over 20 home runs, and 60 RBI's. Leibrandt was able to hold them to only 1 hit until the 9th inning when with 2 outs, Baker walked and Murphy hit a 2-run shot.

Hoping to squelch a 2-out rally, Quisenberry came in for the final out.

The offense was still relatively quiet, but tallied 3 runs in the 2nd on RBI doubles by White and Royster that sandwiched a Jim Sundberg RBI groundout.




Game 142 – September 15
4 – Royals
5 – Oakland
11 Innings

WP – Steve Ontiveros (3-1)
LP – Larry Gura (2-7)

Went into the 9th with a 3-1 lead and things unraveled. Quisenberry got Kingman to flyout, but Bruce Bochte singled. Quisenberry left the game.

Farr came in to face the bottom of the order, but singles by Carney Lansford, Mike Heath, and Alfredo Griffin plated Bochte and Lansford to tie the game.

In the top of the 10th, we had runners on 2nd and 3rd with no outs. Cooper flied out to left. I sent the runner, speedy Butch Davis, who was thrown out at home. Frank White flied out and the rally was snuffed.

Holland entered in the 10th and kept the A's at bay, striking out Baker and Murphy, and getting Kingman to pop out.

But he too had to leave the game with an injury.

In the top of the 11th, Wathan walked, and Motley and Collins singled to load the bases. Wilson struck out, and then Balboni skied it to right. Deep enough for Wathan to score.

My next best bullpen option was Larry Gura. Bochte singled, Lansford walked, Heath sacrificed them to 2nd and 3rd. Then, rather then walk the bases loaded I pitched to 9th place hitter Donnie Hill who tripled and plated Botche and Lansford for the winning run.

Both Holland and Quisenberry have back stiffness, which shouldn't affect their throwing. Although both will be unavailable for game 2 of the double header.



Game 143 – September 15
0 – Royals
1 – Oakland

WP – Robert Stocker (1-1)
LP – Scott Bankhead (2-1)
SV – Jay Howell (19)

10 hits, but no runs. No runs.

Loaded the bases in the 7th and couldn't score. Sundberg doubled to lead off the 9th, but we couldn't bring him in. Nothing worked.

The A's scored their run on 2 walks and 2 fielder's choices in the 4th. They didn't get their first hit until the bottom of the 6th, a Mike Davis single. Bankhead held them to 3 hits, but he walked 5. He's definitely earned consideration for a rotation spot next year.

-
One day up, the next back down again. 1-3 in the series and a doubleheader loss. We lost 2 games on Texas and our playoff percentage drops to 0.7%. We travel back to Kaufmann stadium to face the Mariners for 3 games.

Texas's magic number to eliminate us is 13. (If I did my math correctly)

-
My record 67-76; 5th; 7 games behind Texas
Real Life: 82-60; 1st; 2.5 games ahead of California