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CatKnight · 03-29-2015, 09:58 PM

NYY#23: Some day I'll do a Yankee dynasty just for you.

*******

April 1974

"We can't start the Cy Young winner in Pawtucket!" I told them. "Are you mad?"

Nick Robbins, my fledgling pitching coach, looked unhappy. "I know it's not popular..."

"Not popular!?"

"But I'm telling you he's not ready. Something's wrong. I can't tell you what, but..."

I opened my mouth to retort, but Johnson stepped in, quietly: "He's right, Jeff."

I flicked my gaze at him. "There's something about his delivery. He didn't do badly in the games themselves, but it looked stilted. As if he had to push himself to get it over the plate."

"I'm not saying he's done," Robbins jumped in. "Just that he needs some extra time in camp to work it out."

I grit my teeth, nodded at the trainer. "Is there anything wrong with him?"

Buddy LeRoux shook his head. "The normal soreness, but nothing mechanical."

(Note: In the middle of an incredible career, Palmer had one bad year: 1974. Unfortunately his ratings reflect that. Hopefully he'll bounce back.)

I drummed my nails. It'd been an odd Spring Training, with no less than eight different pitchers starting rather than the usual six. It'd worked out: We'd gone 17-7, which was tops in the Majors, but...

"Alright. Fine. Now, tell me about our injuries."

We had three: 2B Doug Griffin missed about five days with a back strain, but he was ready. His replacement, 2B Cesar Tovar, hurt his knee and would probably miss the first series against Milwaukee, but then he'd be back. In fact, I'd already decided to save a roster space for him and go north with 24 players. Reliever Dick Pole strained his oblique in the last exhibition game and would report to minors camp for extra conditioning.

We weren't the only ones with last minute surprise injuries: Cincinnati rookie SP Tom Carroll (age 21) was out for the year with a torn rotator cuff, while Tiger LF Gates Brown (34)(.236 12-50) broke his elbow and would miss four months. Compared to some of the other teams out there we'd been fortunate.

"Then this is who we go north with:"

BOSTON RED SOX
OPENING DAY ROSTER, 1974

MANAGER: Darrell Johnson (1st year)

STARTERS:
Dick Drago (28) (12-14 4.23 with Royals in 1973)
Bill Lee (27) (17-11 1 SV 2.75)
Roger Moret (24) (13-2 3 SV 3.17)
Luis Tiant (33) (20-13 3.34)
Rick Wise (28) (16-12 3.37 with Cardinals)
* A mix of veterans and newcomers. Drago converted from an RP during Spring Training. With Palmer in reserve this should be one of our strong points.

RELIEVERS:
Reggie Cleveland (25) (14-10 3.01 with Cardinals)
Rawly Eastwick (23) (Rookie)
Juan Marichal (36) (11-15 3.82 with Giants)
Bob Veale (38) (2-3 11 SV 3.47)
* Acquiring Eastwick should help, and we have plenty of relievers in reserve, but we aren't strong here. Marichal converted from SP during Spring Training. He's lost alot of his lustre and is on the tail end of his career.

CATCHERS:
Tim Blackwell (21) (Rookie)
Carlton Fisk (26) (.246 26-71)
* Thanks to my trades there are no reserves here. I'm counting on Fisk to stay healthy, because Blackwell simply isn't that good.

INFIELDERS:
Cecil Cooper (24) (.238 3-11)
Carl Yastrzemski (34) (.296 19-95)
Doug Griffin (26) (.255 1-33)
Cesar Tovar (33) (.268 1-21 with Phillies) - Injured 3 days
Terry Hughes (24) (.214 0-1 in 14 AB with Cardinals)
Rico Petrocelli (30) (.244 13-45)
Ken Reitz (22) (.235 6-42 with Cardinals)
Rick Burleson (22) (Rookie)
* Yaz is our team captain and projects to be our DH. Our starters should be Cooper, Griffin (Tovar when he returns), Burleson and Petrocelli. Burleson is a strong candidate for Rookie of the Year.

OUTFIELDERS:
Bernie Carbo (26) (.286 8-40 with Cardinals)
Tommy Harper (33) (.281 17-71)
Jim Rice (21) (Rookie)
Fred Lynn (22) (Rookie)
Rick Miller (25) (.261 6-43)
Dwight Evans (22) (.223 10-32)
* Our starters project to be Carbo, Miller and Evans. I'll be watching to see how many AB Rice and Lynn get - both project to be superstars and I don't want them ruined by sitting on the bench. We do have a spare outfielder if I need to bring them down.

PREDICTION:
BNN thinks we'll finish 76-86, in fourth place behind Baltimore, New York and Cleveland.

We'll see about that.

03-29-2015, 09:58 PM	#6
CatKnight All Star Starter Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Cleveland, OH Posts: 1,199	NYY#23: Some day I'll do a Yankee dynasty just for you. ***** April 1974** "We can't start the Cy Young winner in Pawtucket!" I told them. "Are you mad?" Nick Robbins, my fledgling pitching coach, looked unhappy. "I know it's not popular..." "Not popular!?" "But I'm telling you he's not ready. Something's wrong. I can't tell you what, but..." I opened my mouth to retort, but Johnson stepped in, quietly: "He's right, Jeff." I flicked my gaze at him. "There's something about his delivery. He didn't do badly in the games themselves, but it looked stilted. As if he had to push himself to get it over the plate." "I'm not saying he's done," Robbins jumped in. "Just that he needs some extra time in camp to work it out." I grit my teeth, nodded at the trainer. "Is there anything wrong with him?" Buddy LeRoux shook his head. "The normal soreness, but nothing mechanical." (Note: In the middle of an incredible career, Palmer had one bad year: 1974. Unfortunately his ratings reflect that. Hopefully he'll bounce back.) I drummed my nails. It'd been an odd Spring Training, with no less than eight different pitchers starting rather than the usual six. It'd worked out: We'd gone 17-7, which was tops in the Majors, but... "Alright. Fine. Now, tell me about our injuries." We had three: 2B Doug Griffin missed about five days with a back strain, but he was ready. His replacement, 2B Cesar Tovar, hurt his knee and would probably miss the first series against Milwaukee, but then he'd be back. In fact, I'd already decided to save a roster space for him and go north with 24 players. Reliever Dick Pole strained his oblique in the last exhibition game and would report to minors camp for extra conditioning. We weren't the only ones with last minute surprise injuries: Cincinnati rookie SP Tom Carroll (age 21) was out for the year with a torn rotator cuff, while Tiger LF Gates Brown (34)(.236 12-50) broke his elbow and would miss four months. Compared to some of the other teams out there we'd been fortunate. "Then this is who we go north with:" BOSTON RED SOX OPENING DAY ROSTER, 1974 MANAGER: Darrell Johnson (1st year) STARTERS: Dick Drago (28) (12-14 4.23 with Royals in 1973) Bill Lee (27) (17-11 1 SV 2.75) Roger Moret (24) (13-2 3 SV 3.17) Luis Tiant (33) (20-13 3.34) Rick Wise (28) (16-12 3.37 with Cardinals) * A mix of veterans and newcomers. Drago converted from an RP during Spring Training. With Palmer in reserve this should be one of our strong points. RELIEVERS: Reggie Cleveland (25) (14-10 3.01 with Cardinals) Rawly Eastwick (23) (Rookie) Juan Marichal (36) (11-15 3.82 with Giants) Bob Veale (38) (2-3 11 SV 3.47) * Acquiring Eastwick should help, and we have plenty of relievers in reserve, but we aren't strong here. Marichal converted from SP during Spring Training. He's lost alot of his lustre and is on the tail end of his career. CATCHERS: Tim Blackwell (21) (Rookie) Carlton Fisk (26) (.246 26-71) * Thanks to my trades there are no reserves here. I'm counting on Fisk to stay healthy, because Blackwell simply isn't that good. INFIELDERS: Cecil Cooper (24) (.238 3-11) Carl Yastrzemski (34) (.296 19-95) Doug Griffin (26) (.255 1-33) Cesar Tovar (33) (.268 1-21 with Phillies) - Injured 3 days Terry Hughes (24) (.214 0-1 in 14 AB with Cardinals) Rico Petrocelli (30) (.244 13-45) Ken Reitz (22) (.235 6-42 with Cardinals) Rick Burleson (22) (Rookie) * Yaz is our team captain and projects to be our DH. Our starters should be Cooper, Griffin (Tovar when he returns), Burleson and Petrocelli. Burleson is a strong candidate for Rookie of the Year. OUTFIELDERS: Bernie Carbo (26) (.286 8-40 with Cardinals) Tommy Harper (33) (.281 17-71) Jim Rice (21) (Rookie) Fred Lynn (22) (Rookie) Rick Miller (25) (.261 6-43) Dwight Evans (22) (.223 10-32) * Our starters project to be Carbo, Miller and Evans. I'll be watching to see how many AB Rice and Lynn get - both project to be superstars and I don't want them ruined by sitting on the bench. We do have a spare outfielder if I need to bring them down. PREDICTION: BNN thinks we'll finish 76-86, in fourth place behind Baltimore, New York and Cleveland. We'll see about that.