1901: Beginning with the White Sox

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I have decided to begin a historical simulation starting in 1901 with the first year of the American League and the first year of my beloved White Sox being a major league franchise. The OOTP developmental engine is on, so players may not develop as they really did, and I am playing as GM only. Also, I can be fired, so if I do a poor job, it is possible that I could end up as general manager of a different franchise eventually.

My owner's name is Dustin Hagler. It will be interesting to see how he compares to the Sox real-life owner at the time, Charles Comiskey. Hagler is tolerant, charitable, hands-off, and wants to make a profit while playing .500 ball. For the 1901 season, he wants a winning record with an improvement at shortstop by 1902 and a play-off (which would mean the World Series at this point) appearance by 1903.

The team is managed by Clark Griffith, who is also one of its pitchers. I wish that OOTP supported player-managers properly, but I guess they are really just two guys that have the same name in this simulation. Clark likes a lot of hit and runs, but he does not like steals, which is interesting since that is one of the things that the real life 1901 White Sox were known for.

Let's meet the team

Lineup
RF Fielder Jones
LF Herm McFarland
3B Fred "Dutch" Hartman
CF Dummy Hoy
2B Sam "Sandow" Mertes
1B Frank "Bald Eagle" Isbell
C Billy Sullivan, Sr
SS Frank Shugart

A few notes on the lineup
-Fielder Jones is a better defensive center fielder than Dummy Hoy, who might be a liability in center
-Sandow can play second, first, or left field
-Shugart is 34 and looks like he is on the downside of this career. His potential ratings are a lot higher than his current ones.
-Hoy, like Shugart, is nearing the end of his career. He is 38 years old. Unlike Shugart, he still projects to be a really good hitter this year (60 contact and 70 eye on 20/80 scale)

Pitching Staff
SP1 Roy "Boy Wonder" Patterson
SP2 Clark "The Old Fox" Griffith
SP3 Jack "Big Jack" Katoll
SP4 Nixey Callahan
Stopper Zaza Harvey
RP Jack McAleese
RP John "Buckshot" Skopec

A few notes on the pitchers
-All four starters have excellent control and movement. They should be my strength.
-Harvey is a two-way players who would probably be an even better corner outfielder rather than a stopper. At 22-years old, he should be a big part of my future.
-Katoll and Callahan are also two-way players, but they are less intriguing. Callahan at least has versatility in that he can play all of the outfield positions and third base.

Free Agent Pool
There are a ton of excellent free agents at the start of my game, which is good because my team lacks depth. I am making offers to the following.

SP Nick Altrock- minor league contract with a major league option
CF Jake Gettman- minor league contract with a major league option
SP Highball Wilson- non-guaranteed major league contract
2B Ed "Batty" Abbaticchio- non-guaranteed major league contract
CF/RF Harry Blake- non-guaranteed major league contract
C Tom Hess- non-guaranteed major league contract

My hope is that these guys give me some depth in case of injuries.

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The top 100 prospects list has been published, and it is a whose who in early twentieth century baseball history. The top prospect is Eddie Plank, LHP from the Philadelphia A's. Of course, the real life Planck won 305 games and is in the Hall of Fame.

Meanwhile, my top prospect, Zaza Harvey, is the tenth best prospect in baseball. He's a decent pitcher with good movement, although he might have some control problems. As a hitter, he should hit for a high average, but he won't walk much. He's an average left fielder, but he has speed to burn and should be a great base stealer.

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All of the free agents signed with me. Griffith only wants to use one of them. Highball Wilson will be pitching in middle relief.

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The National League started a week earlier than the American League. The Cardinals and Reds both got off to 6-1 starts.

Jack Beckley, 1B, Cin- reached his 200th high
Billy Shindle, 3B, Bos, NL- announced his retirement

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The Cleveland Blues come into the series with good position players but very weak pitching. They are led by CF Ollie Pickering, who is a good contact hitter and a great base stealer. Their best pitcher is Earl "Crossfire" Moore, a 23-year old whose best years are still ahead of him.

Game 1: L 1-5
Shugart made 2 errors, and we managed just 1 run despite Moore's 7 walks.

Game 2: W 5-3
Hoy was 2-for-2 with 2 walks and a 2 run double. Griffith wen the distance striking out 6.

Game 3: L 0-6
20-year old Jack Bracker pitched a four-hitter for the Blues

Game 4: L 0-2
34-year old veteran Gus Wheying pitched a two-hitter for the Blues

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The Tigers come into the series at 3-1 after a series with the Milwaukee Brewers. CF Jimmy Barrett comes into the series hitting .357 through 4 games, and SP Joe "Little Joe" Yeager has already pitched on shutout.

Game 1: W 11-5
We knocked out 17 hits with Mertes picking up 3 RBI against Joey Yeager. Patterson picked up the win going all 9 innings.

Game 2: W 4-3 (12 innings)
Griffith pitched all 12 innings, and Mertes had a walk-off single in the bottom of the 12th.

Game 3: L 4-5 (12 innings)
The Tigers won on an RBI single by Sport McAllister off of Jack Katoll. Clark Griffith still hasn't used a relief pitcher this season.

Game 4: W 6-5
Mertes was 2/4 with 4 RBI and a triple. Fred Hartman drove in the winning run with and RBI single in the 7th. Katoll started for the second day in a row (!) and again went the distance. This time he won.

Record: 4-4; 5th place; 3 GB of Cleveland

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The Brewers, who will later become the St Louis Browns and then the Baltimore Orioles, are 1-7 so far and are tied for last place with the Washington Senators. They are 6 games back of first place Cleveland. Their hitting star has been centerfielder Davy "Kangaroo" Jones, who is hitting .343 with a triple. Their pitching star is Pete Dowling, who is 0-2 with a 3.38 ERA. While they haven't hit well, they are tied for third for the fewest runs allowed so far this season.

Game 1: L 1-2
Errors did us in. Neither of the 2 Detroit runs were earned against Roy Patterson. Pink Hawley went the distance for Detroit.

Game 2: W 7-3
Herm McFarland tripled and homered, and Clark Griffith got the win.

Game 3: L 3-5
Sullivan and Hartman had three hits each, but it wasn't enough to get the win.

Game 4: W 4-3
Katoll was the winning pitcher. Highball Wilson was the first relief pitcher used this season, and he earned the save.

Record 6-6
3GB of Cleveland

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We are going to play at first place Cleveland for four games. They are red hot at 9-3. Jack McCarthy is hitting .422 for them while Jack Bracken has a 0.67 ERA.They have scored the third most runs and have allowed the fewest runs in the league.

Game 1: W 10-4
After a rainout, this was game one of a double header on 5/8. Frank Isbell was 2 for 3 with 4 RBI to lead our offense. Roy Patterson went the distance and is 2-2.

Game 2: W 7-2
Isbell had another 3 hits, and Clark Griffith's win made him 4-0.

Game 3: L 3-6
Nixey Callhan is now 0-3 and gave up 6 runs in 8 innings. His 4.50 ERA is terrible for the deadball era. Bill Bradley was 4-for-4 for Cleveland.

Game 4: W 7-1
Sam Mertes hit his fourth triple, and Big Jack Katoll's win made him 3-2.

Record: 9-7
Fourth place behind Boston and 2 1/2 GB.

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The Tigers are 8-8 and are sixth in both runs scored and runs allowed. Sport McAllister is their leading hitter at .375 and Harry Lochhead's 1.95 ERA is the best on their pitching staff.

Game 1: L 0-6
"Little Joe" Yeager shut us out, and we made six errors.

Game 2: W 10-7
Clark Griffith was injured and had to be replaced in the third inning, but he won't miss nay time. Nick Altrock got his first win and Highball Wilson got his second save. Billy Sullivan was 3-for-4 with 2 triples.

Game 3: W 8-3
Callahan had his best start of the year and got his first win. He pitched a complete game and allowed 2 runs.

Game 4: L 2-4
Jake Gettman had three hits, but everybody else sturggled to hit off of Joe Cronin.

Record: 11-9
2 GB of Cleveland

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The Brewers were 6-14 coming into the series and were 7 games back. They were sixth in both runs scored and runs allowed. Their top hitter was Davy "Kangaroo" Jones, who was hitting .325. Their to pitcher was Pete Dowling, who was 1-2 with a 1.65 ERA.

Game 1: W 3-2
Clark Griffith was the winning pitcher to bring his record to 5-0. Both runs against him were unearned, and he pitched a complete game.

Game 2: W 2-0
Roy Patterson pitched an 8-hit shutout. he is 3-3 with a 2.60 ERA.

Game 3: W 4-3
We were trailing 3-2 in the seventh inning when Fred Hartman hit a two-run double to give us the lead. Nixey Callahan was the winning pitcher and is 2-3 with a 3.64 ERA.

Game 4: L 10-17
On the bright side, Frank Shugart was 4-5 with a double, and we had a 10-7 lead in the eight. On the downside, Jack Katoll and Highball Wilson combined to allow 1 run in the 8th inning and 9 in the 9th to blow it. Wilson ended up taking the loss, his first, and it was also his first blown save of the year. This one was disappointing.

Record: 14-10
1 GB of Boston (tied with Detroit for second place)

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The Athletics came into the series 2 1/2 GB with a 12-11 record. Nap Lajoie led them in hitting at .374, and Wiley Piatt's ERA of 2.65 led the pitching staff. They were dead last in runs scored but were third in runs allowed in the American League.

Game 1: L 1-4
Sam Mertes was the only Sox player to have two hits against Eddie Plank.

Game 2: L 4-6
Fielder Jones and Fred Hartman were both 3-5, but Roy Patterson allowed 6 runs with 5 being earned to take the loss.

Game 3: L 6-8
Stub Smith hit a two-run double off of Nixey Callahan in the seventh inning to beat us.

Game 4: L 2-11
Big Jack Katoll allowed 7 earned runs in 7.2 IP to fall to 3-4.

This series was a disaster.

Record 14-14
4 GB of Boston.

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I'm going to try short-handing some of this. I want this to be more of a chronology for those doing historical simulations and to be less of a time-consuming write-up. I think those are better for the dynasty reports forum.

Orioles Record: 13-14 6 GB
Leading hitter: "Turkey Mike" Donlin .400
Leading Pitcher: Joe "Iron Man" McGinnity 2.63 ERA
Donlin also has 3 HR and 32 RBI, which lead the team.
Team is first in the AL in runs scored
Sixth in runs allowed

Game 1: W 5-1
Clark Griffith pitched out of a bases loaded jam in the 8th to move to 6-0 on the season.

Game 2: L 2-3
Steve Brodie hit a run scoring triple in the ninth to give Roy "Boy Wonder" Patterson the loss (3-6).

Game 3: L 5-12
Callahan allowed 6 runs in the first six innings, and McAleese allowed the rest in a game that was a complete disaster.

Game 4: W 4-0
Jack Katoll fired a 6-hit shutout, was injured on the last pitch, and is now out for the next two weeks. Of course he is.

Record: 16-16
4 1/2 GB of Boston

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Due to Katoll's injury, John Skopec will be our new fourth starter.

This is a four-game series with the first day featuring a double header.

Boston's record: 20-11
First Place
Leading Hitter: Chick Stahl .370
Leading Pitcher: Cy Young 1.80
2nd in runs scored
1st in runs allowed

Game 1: L 1-8
Roy Patterson took the loss to fall to 3-7. Chick Stahl was 3-3 with 2 RBI and 2 Runs scored for Boston.

Game 2: L 1-7
Boston swept the double header behind a complete game by Cy Young. Clark Griffith's first loss made him 6-1.

Game 3: L 4-6
Sandow Mertes was 3-4 for us, but it wasn't enough.

Game 4: L 6-11
Boston swept us. Skopec allowed 9 runs in 3 innings in his first start. It was a disaster.

16-21 8 1/2 GB of Boston

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The above was our stats so far this season before the series with Washington.

Washington was 14-21 and 10 GB of first.
They came in to the series in fifth in runs scored and seventh in runs against.
Their leading hitter was Pop Foster at .358.
Their leading pitcher was Casey Patten at 2.89.

Game 1: W 3-2
Clark Griffith pitched all nine innings and Dummy Hoy chipped in three hits.

Game 2: W 3-1
Sandow Mertes was 3-for-4 and Roy Patterson wen the distance.

Game 3: L 9-15
Nixey Callahan allowed 9 runs and didn't get through the third inning. Highball Wilson was injured while pitching and will be day-to-day for the next four days.

Game 4: W 10-6
Frank Shugart set the American League record for triples with 2. Skopec allowed 6 runs in 9 innings, so he and Callahan need to pitch a lot better.

Record: 19-21
7 1/2 GB of Boston

I might have to do something if the third and fourth starters don't turn it around soon. Their ERAs are 5.99 and 10.66 while pitching in the dead-ball era.

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The White Sox 1901 schedule was weird. After hosting Washington, we went to Washington for four games in five days.

Game 1: W 6-4
Clark Griffith not only went the distance to improve to 8-1, but he also led the team with two hits.

Game 2: L 2-3 (12 innings)
Sam Dungan had a game-ending single for Washington. Roy Patterson pitched all 12 innings for us. I'm not sure why manager Griffith never pinch-hit for him.

Game 3: W 9-4
Frank Isbell was 3-for-5 with a double to lead the offense. Nixey Callahan allowed 4 runs in 9 innings, but only 2 were earned.

Game 4: L 3-4
For the second time in the series, we were beaten in a walk-off. This time Joe Quinn had a walk-off single off of John Skopec to beat us. Skopec is now 1-2 with a 7.17, but this was by far his best start of the year to date.

Record: 21-23
8 1/2 GB of Boston

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Game 1: Won 4-3
Hartman was 2-for-4 with 2 runs scored. Griffith was the winner and is 9-1.

Game 2: Won 8-3
Fielder Jones had 3 hits Roy Patterson improved his record to 5-8.

Game 3: Won 5-2
Sam Mertes had 3 hits and a triple, but also had two errors. Nixie Callahan allowed just 1 earned run in 9 IP.

Game 4: Lost 13-5
John McGraw tagged us for 3 hits in 5 at bats. John Skopec allowed 8 earned runs in 4.1 IP to take the loss.

Record: 24-24
5 1/2 GB of Boston

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Boston is in first place. They have scored the third most runs and have allowed the fewest in the league. They lead the league in batting average, defensive efficiency, and zone rating.

Boston's top hitter: Chick Stahl .346
Boston's top pitcher: Cy Young 1.85

Game 1: W 5-3
After Boston cut the lead to 4-3, Herm McFarland hit his third home run in the seventh inning. He had 4 hits in the game. Clark Griffith was the winning pitcher and is 10-1.

Game 2: L 10-1
Cy Young was great and Roy Patterson was not. We also made 6 errors to Boston's 0.

Jack Katoll came off the IL before Game 3.

Game 3: L 3-5
Dummy Hoy had all 3 RBI, but Katoll allowed 5 to score.

Game 4: W 7-3
Chick Stahl was 4-4 with a homer for Boston, but Billy Sullivan was the only one of our starters to not get a hit as we pounded George Cuppy for 7 runs, 4 of which were earned.

Record: 26-26
Fifth place
5 1/2 GB of Boston

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Philadelphia's record: 29-22 second place 2.5 GB of Boston
Team leaders
-Nap Lajoie .369 batting average
-Socks Seybold 8 homers (leads the AL)
-Sock Seybold 50 RBI (leads the AL)
-Bill Bernhard 2.80 ERA
-Bill Bernhard and Chick Fraser 8 wins
-Wiley Piatt 45 strikeouts

Game 1 L 12-8
Dummy Hoy had 3 hits for us in the loss and is hitting .346. Clark Griffith didn't make it through the sixth and earned his second loss.

Game 2 W 3-1
Nobody had more than 1 hit, but Hoy and Sam Mertes each scored and drove in a run. Roy Patterson did not allow an earned run in 9 innings pitched to lower his ERA to 2.83.

Game 3 L 4-3
We were leading 3-2 into the bottom of the seventh behind Jack Katoll. Then Fraser and Dave Fultz hit back to back singles, and Lave Cross sent them home with a triple. The loss makes Big Jack 4-6 this year.

Game 4 W 7-6
Frank Shugart was 3 for 5 with 3 RBI to bring his average to .239 and his RBI total to 23. Highball Wilson was the starter and was terrible. It's a good thing we hit well behind him. Highball went the distance, but all of the runs were earned. He is 1-1 with a 7.27 ERA.

Record: 28-28
Fifth place
6.5 GB of Boston

Team Leaders
-AVG: Dummy Hoy .335
-HR: Herm McFarland 4
-RBI: Dummy Hoy and Frank Isbell 33
-ERA: Clark Griffith 2.31
-W: Clark Griffith 10
-K: Roy Patterson 56

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One thing that I have noticed is that manager Clark Griffith has decided to make Highball Wilson the fourth starter and make Nixey Callahan the stopper. This makes no sense at all since Callahan is a much better pitcher, and Griffith almost never uses the bullpen. So at the start of this series, I switched it back. I'm the GM. He works for me. If he hadn't allowed that, I would have fired him. I also told him to always start the highest rested pitcher. I need Griffith and Patterson on the mound as much as possible.

Cleveland's Record: 30-28
4th place
5 GB of Boston
Leaders
-AVG Ollie Pickering .319
-HR several guys with 2
-RBI Bill Bradley 31
-ERA Earl Moore 2.67
-W Earl Moore 12
-K Earl Moore 47
7th in runs scored
3rd in runs against

Game 1 L 2-1
Sam Mertes had our only two hits against Joe Bracken. Griffith picked up his third loss.

Game 2 W 8-5
Frank Shugart was 2 for 4 with a HR and a triple. Patterson pitched all nine innings but wasn't spectacular.

Game 3 L 7-1
Cleveland beat Jack Katoll's head in. Big Jack is 4-7 with a 3.75 ERA. We don't have enough offense for him to pitch like this.

Record 29-30
5th place
7 GB of Boston
Leaders:
-AVG- Hoy .327
-HR- McFarland and Shugart 4
-RBI- Hoy and Isbell 33
-ERA- Griffith 2.21
-W- Griffith 10
-K- Patterson 60
8th in runs scored
5th in runs against

After the series, I told Griffith that I wanted the team stealing a lot more bases. They can't hit, and they have a ton of speed. Use it!