OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - All things Figment - from the pages of The Figment Sporting Journal

Jiggs McGee · 01-10-2022, 01:14 PM

August 5, 1940

DYNAMOS CHARGING HARD

With all due respect to author Samuel Clemens it is very easy to state that reports of the Detroit Dynamos demise were greatly exaggerated. Many, including several within the Dynamos organization, had counted the team out and pronounced this season a failure when the Dynamos had dropped 7 games behind front running Pittsburgh shortly after the all-star break. On the morning of July 15th after dropping 3 of their last 4 games including a pair to the Miners, there was talk in Detroit of being sellers as the trade deadline approached. Detroit did move a couple of underachieving players in Ed Stewart and Alf Pestilli but bigger moves involving some of their veteran pitchers, most notably Mike Murphy did not come. That proved to be very fortuitous as Detroit immediately caught fire and with 16 wins in their last 19 games the Dynamos have erased that 7 game deficit and now actually sit atop the Federal Association, although by a mere percentage point, over the Pittsburgh ballclub. Murphy has gone 3-1 over that span although the loss he suffered was at the hands of the Miners.

There is plenty of baseball left to be played and the Dynamos certainly have a lot of work ahead of them if they want to finally take the next step and win the Federal pennant after two straight seasons as the bridesmaid but they are by no means out of the race as the doom and gloom crowd in Detroit intimated just a few weeks ago.

AROUND THE LEAGUE

It seems a number of teams rarely get mentioned in This Week in Figment Baseball so a new column from Jiggs McGee will be a quick comment or two on each of the 16 clubs. Just whatever catches Jiggs eye:

BOSTON- Mixed results this week for the Minutemen. Things started poorly when Boston was run over by the runaway train that is the Detroit Dynamos, dropping 3 straight in the Motor City. Fortunately the New York Gothams were much more hospitable as Boston swept the Gothams to even out their week. Art Myers (13-7, 2.41) continued his impressive season with a 3-2 win on Friday. Saturday was a 10-3 laugher as 19 year old rookie infielder Buddy Schneider (.283,3,33) continues to shine, delivering his first career 4-hit game while also driving in 4. Pitching was the story again yesterday with John Edwards (13-7, 3.04) tossing a 3-hit shutout and 3B Mack Sutton (.291,21,55) taking his turn with a 4-hit game. Despite just breaking even this week the Minutemen are 16-7 since the all-star break, second in that regard behind only Detroit.

BROOKLYN- Not sure how long Brooklyn can continue to bat Walt Layton in the lead-off spot and hope to stay in contention. The 31 year old Layton is very good with the glove but has never been much of a hitter. Layton is batting just .216 this season with a .251 on base percentage. Meanwhile 23 year old Jim Lightbody is hitting .275 with a .378 on base percentage but has been benched since Tiny Tim Hopkins took over at first base. Lightbody, a natural second baseman, certainly is not the gloveman that Layton is, but you have to think the Kings would be much better off starting Lightbody at second and using Layton as a late inning defensive replacement. Despite my concerns about Layton the Kings are 14-8 since the all-star break, tied with the Cougars for the best mark in the CA.

CHIEFS- Dropping 2 of 3 at home to Pittsburgh to start the week hurt, but then proceeding to allow lowly Washington to also take two of three games over the weekend at Whitney Park certainly stung for the Chiefs. Next up is 3 games vs Detroit so things could get even worse for the club, which now sit 6.5 games out in the Fed. So far so good but there may be cause for concern with Andy Carter and Frank Davis in the same clubhouse. Both have a much less than stellar reputation for fitting in with a team.

COUGARS- The Cougars were my preseason pick in CA and starting to show why as they are on a 12-3 run. They were just at .500 (37-37) a week before the all-star break but a month later are 11 games over the break even point. One key reason for the resurgence of late has been veteran pitcher Milt Fritz (14-6, 2.45). The 30 year old was named CA pitcher of the month after going 6-1 with a 2.39 era in July.

CINCINNATI- I have a feeling Cannons will regret not picking up the phone and calling Boston back about Moxie Pidgeon offer. Maybe not quite as much as Gothams might regret not going after Pidgeon but it really feels like Cannons overachieved the first half of the season and will slide back towards the .500 mark. It will still be an extremely successful first season but I can't help but feel they missed the boat and could have turned Pidgeon into 2 or 3 very good young players to add to an already impressive young core. The Cannons were 46-26 on July 1 but limped into all-star break by getting swept in successive series by Sailors and Wolves before beating Cleveland twice just prior to the break. They have struggled ever since going 11-21 since the beginning of July.

CLEVELAND- The Foresters have dropped 9 of their last 11 as the fade to the bottom of the Continental Association continues. Even the very consistent Mel Carrol could not avoid the recent stumbles that have hit the Foresters. Carrol hit just .247 in July, the second worst month of his career, surpassing only the .245 he averaged in July of his rookie 1935 season. Last time he hit under .300 in any month was June of 1936 when he batted .276

DETROIT- Since getting swept in a 2-game series in Chicago to end June that prompted calls of wait until next year in Detroit the Dynamos have gone 21-9 including their current stretch of 16 wins in their last 19 games.

MONTREAL- It was another losing week (2-4) in Montreal but the Saints have to be thanking Brooklyn for the gift that was Eddie Hite. The 37 year old, waived by the Kings recently despite a 5-1, 1.99 start to the season, pitched 4 scoreless innings in his first two appearances with Montreal. Hite looked very good in a few starts for the Kings just prior to his release and perhaps warrants that opportunity in Montreal.

NY STARS- A doubleheader sweep of Philadelphia yesterday gave the surging Stars 10 wins in their last 12 games. Lou Robertson (7-2, 2.19) continues to shine, earning rookie of the month for the second time this season.

NY GOTHAMS- The 5-1 week just before the trade deadline gave some hope to Gothams fans, but successive 3-game sweeps at home courtesy of Philadelphia and Boston quickly took deflated last week's excitement. Despite the 0-6 showing there was some excitement as Walt Messer(.285,6,28) seemed to enjoy playing leftfield. Or maybe it was just playing every day. Regardless, the 22 year old former two-time National High School player of the year hit .368 with a homer and 3 RBI for the week, all starts in the outfield. He looked comfortable out there making the plays on what he could get to.

KEYSTONES- The Keystones are a very acceptable 6-6 on the road the past couple of weeks but if you want to point to one thing that has hurt them this season it remains their road record. At 22-30 they are the worst of the 5 contenders for the Fed title in winning away from home. On the flip side, their 37-14 home mark remains the best in either Association but Detroit (37-15) is closing fast.

SAILORS- It has been a streaky year for the Sailors. They started slow, going 7-12 to open the season but then got hot in early May riding a 20-9 stretch into June but shortly after that streak ended the Sailors proceeded to drop 10 of 12 games which left them back at .500. The club heated up again in July, winning 16 of 23 before collapsing against Brooklyn 8 days ago, blowing a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the 9th in a game the Kings would ultimately prevail in 12 innings by a 4-3 score. Counting that loss the Sailors are heading the wrong way again, losing five of their last 6 heading into an important week in which they have a pair with Toronto followed by 3 against Cincinnati, all at home.

PITTSBURGH- No slowing Lefty Allen (15-8, 2.78) down. Despite a couple of minor injuries this season Allen earned the Federal Association pitcher of the month for July. That marks the third time in his career the 26 year old has been so honoured.

ST LOUIS- The Pioneers played spoiler over the weekend by taking two of three from Pittsburgh to help drop the Miners out of first place (by mere percentage points). Friday was a bad showing, falling 9-3 but St Louis pitching came up big on the weekend. Jake Smith (3-7, 5.72) and reliever Russ Peeples combined on a 2-0 shutout Saturday in yet another morsel of proof that the Miners Charlie Stedman's (12-12, 3.90) career is filled with limited run support. Saturday Del Thomas (1-6, 5.30) notched his first win of the season in style, tossing a complete game 2-1 win over the great Lefty Allen (15-8, 2.78).

TORONTO- After much debate, upon the advice of medical staff, the Wolves decide to DL both Juan Pomales and Larry Vestal. Both injuries are DTD but the length of DTD status is a long period so there is hope that 2 weeks of rest may allow both players to return in full health in a more timely manner. Vestal's bat will certainly be missed but better to let him try and fully heal than the possibility of a nagging injury hampering him the rest of the season.

WASHINGTON- The Eagles have to be pleased with the progression of last year's second overall pick Wally Fuller. The 19 year old third baseman is hitting .320 with 13 homers in 84 games at the Class B level and also did not look out of place during a brief stint in A ball. At the big league level the Eagles pulled back into sole possession of 6th place with a 3-3 week that included taking two of three in Chicago from the Chiefs. Sunday's game was especially satisfying as Washington trailed 7-3 entering the 8th inning but rallied to tie before winning it 8-7 in 10 frames.

QUICK HITS

One late minor league trade was announced at the deadline. It saw the Philadelphia Keystones send AAA first baseman Sig Stofer to the Washington Eagles in exchange for a 22 year old AA shortstop by the name of Lee Scott. Originally a 4th round pick of the Chicago Cougars, Scott is ranked 140th on the latest OSA prospect list. Stofer, 23, was tied for the Union League in homers with 16 for Louisville. He has played briefly with the Keystones each of the last two seasons and there was some hope the Atlantic City native, nicknamed 'The Boardwalk Bopper' for his powerful uppercut of a swing, could somehow fill the giant hole left at first base when Rankin Kellogg was forced to retire, but Stofer hit just .149 in 154 at bats with the Keystones, although he did smack 6 homers. The Eagles hope their AAA hitting coach Mike Reed, who has had some success developing other players, can work his magic on Stofer.
OSA head scout Dan Barrell is very excited to see Sig Stofer end up in the Eagles system. The Boardwalk Bopper "was probably somewhat surplus for the Keystones," explains Barrell. "There needs to be someplace for (prize prospect Davey) Robicheaux to play, after all. It was a good pickup for the Eagles because he could give them the slugger they've never had."
From Percy Sutherland: Detroit's Red Johnson is doing his best Max Morris impersonation. The July Batter of the Month in the Fed hit .404/.526/.573 for the month and has his OPS+ up to 191. From 1920 - 1925, Max Morris had a 6 year run in which he had an OPS+ of more than 200 every season but one--he had some injuries in 1924 and finished with an OPS+ of just 175. Fred McCormick had an OPS+ of 201 last season, which is the best since Kellogg's incredible 1933 when he had an OPS+ of 223.
On Sunday Philadelphia 3B Hank Koblenz showed the Detroit fans just what they are missing after GM Martin sent him out of town in a deal in the 38 off-season. Koblenz went 2-4 with a 2-run homer and was named player of the game despite the Dynamo's coming back to win it 4-3 in the 9th on a Dale Robbins single. Koblenz is hitting 270 on the season with 22 home runs (3rd in the FA behind Pestilli and Barnett) with 63 RBI's. While the trade that sent Koblenz to Philadelphia netted the Dynamo's SP Frank Crawford who won the FA Allen Award last season, it does make fans wonder what could have been. A lineup with 1B Red Johnson, CF Sal Pestilli and 3B Hank Koblenz would have sent shivers down many pitchers backs. That would have been one heck of a 3-4-5 in the lineup
That was the long term plan in Detroit.
Perhaps a bit backwards-- the Chiefs traded two prospects and three draft picks and are excited about next season. This will be an interesting lineup to have in place from Opening Day. We've already begun talking to Bob Martin about next season--when he is recovered from his injuries, he should begin dusting off that second baseman's glove. Barnett will remain at third and second will be a mix of Martin, Carter, and Ducky Jordan.
Rookie shortstop Hank Grant, who was promoted by Montreal following the Frank Davis trade to the Chiefs, played more than planned in his first week in FABL as Jake Hughes got hurt for 2 days during the week. Grant hit .438 in 16 at bat, scoring 3 runs but also getting caught 3 times stealing bases.
The Keystones were 4-2 this week, sweeping the Gothams, but losing two out of three to the hard-charging Dynamos. The win of the week was the only one against Detroit, a 1-0, 11-inning classic. Both teams combined for 7 hits and the only run was plated on a 2-out single by Walt Potter in the top half of the inning. Jim Whiteley went 10 innings, allowing only two hits, for the win. Whiteley is hoping to turn the corner, as he has struggled mightily this year with ERAs consistently in the 4s and 5s every month this season and suffered through a 1-4 July with a 5.09 ERA. You can't help but think his 20-loss season affected him, though he pitched to his best ERA in four seasons last year at 4.20.
Maybe a sign of desperate times, but has there ever been so much fan interest in a .197 hitter? After following their 5-1 week with an 0-6 stinker, the Gothams introduced new RF Leon Drake. To say the fan reaction was positive would be an understatement. All the talk around Gothams Stadium is Drake, Drake, Drake. Tickets in the leftfield stands are selling like hotcakes anticipating Drake longballs dropping into their waiting hands. Certainly owner Leland Winthrop will be happy for the moment that his demands were followed. Now we'll see if Leon can turn his season around and reward his new fans. (In OOTP terms, our fan interest went from 89 to 95 with this transaction.)
Mark Stevens never made it to the majors but the long-time Fort Worth Cattlemen righthander pitched a no-hitter last week in the Lone Star Association. The 36 year old Houston native has spent 12 years in the Lone Star Association and is the league's all-time leader in wins with 141. It was just the 7th in the history of the loop but third this season. The first two were thrown by Bill Douglass of Waco. Douglass was a Lubbock State product who was taken in the 5th round by St Louis in 1933 but was dealt to the Wranglers last season.

KEYSTONES SET TO FACE MINERS IN KEY SERIES NEXT WEEK

The young Philadelphia Keystones have dominated their cross-state rivals from Pittsburgh this season, winning 8 of the 12 contests between the two Pennsylvania rivals. The Keystones will face another tough test next weekend when the Miners invade Broad Street Park for a 3-game set before doing it again the following weekend at Fitzpatrick Park. Perhaps the Federal Association lead is on the line, assuming the two don't beat up each other over the next two weeks and Detroit runs away with things.

The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 8/04/1940

Soviet Premier Molotov warned Moscow that the European "Imperialist war" might soon spread to the Western Hemisphere. Molotov feels it is just a matter of time before the question of redistribution of Dutch and Belgian colonies in the west "turns the war into a world conflagration."
The German port city of Hamburg is in ruins and thousands of tons of bombs have been dropped in Bremen, home of the famous Fockenwulf aircraft factory as the Royal Air Force steps up attacks aimed primarily at Nazi military objectives.
The Senate Military Affairs Committee voted against limiting the conscription bill to 1 million men. Refusal to restrict it means that 12.5 million American men in the 21-31 age group will be eligible for the military draft should the present version of the bill become law.
Following a Japanese decision to round up and expel many prominent British citizens in Tokio, London arrested a number of Japanese throughout the empire including in Canada and Australia, claiming it was not retaliatory but rather then culmination of a lengthy investigation into a widespread spy ring. It quickly developed into an international crisis.
Japanese warships have seized an American merchant vessel near Shanghai. The ship, which was forced to hug the shore due to a typhoon, was reported to have entered a Japanese 'blockade zone.'
In a harshly worded note Japan voiced extreme objections to the American decision to place an embargo on shipments of American aviation gasoline outside the Western Hemisphere. Japan had been a heavy purchaser of the fuel for her warfare in China.

01-10-2022, 01:14 PM	#328
Jiggs McGee All Star Reserve Join Date: Dec 2019 Posts: 677	August 5, 1940 August 5, 1940 DYNAMOS CHARGING HARD With all due respect to author Samuel Clemens it is very easy to state that reports of the Detroit Dynamos demise were greatly exaggerated. Many, including several within the Dynamos organization, had counted the team out and pronounced this season a failure when the Dynamos had dropped 7 games behind front running Pittsburgh shortly after the all-star break. On the morning of July 15th after dropping 3 of their last 4 games including a pair to the Miners, there was talk in Detroit of being sellers as the trade deadline approached. Detroit did move a couple of underachieving players in Ed Stewart and Alf Pestilli but bigger moves involving some of their veteran pitchers, most notably Mike Murphy did not come. That proved to be very fortuitous as Detroit immediately caught fire and with 16 wins in their last 19 games the Dynamos have erased that 7 game deficit and now actually sit atop the Federal Association, although by a mere percentage point, over the Pittsburgh ballclub. Murphy has gone 3-1 over that span although the loss he suffered was at the hands of the Miners. There is plenty of baseball left to be played and the Dynamos certainly have a lot of work ahead of them if they want to finally take the next step and win the Federal pennant after two straight seasons as the bridesmaid but they are by no means out of the race as the doom and gloom crowd in Detroit intimated just a few weeks ago. AROUND THE LEAGUE It seems a number of teams rarely get mentioned in This Week in Figment Baseball so a new column from Jiggs McGee will be a quick comment or two on each of the 16 clubs. Just whatever catches Jiggs eye: BOSTON- Mixed results this week for the Minutemen. Things started poorly when Boston was run over by the runaway train that is the Detroit Dynamos, dropping 3 straight in the Motor City. Fortunately the New York Gothams were much more hospitable as Boston swept the Gothams to even out their week. Art Myers (13-7, 2.41) continued his impressive season with a 3-2 win on Friday. Saturday was a 10-3 laugher as 19 year old rookie infielder Buddy Schneider (.283,3,33) continues to shine, delivering his first career 4-hit game while also driving in 4. Pitching was the story again yesterday with John Edwards (13-7, 3.04) tossing a 3-hit shutout and 3B Mack Sutton (.291,21,55) taking his turn with a 4-hit game. Despite just breaking even this week the Minutemen are 16-7 since the all-star break, second in that regard behind only Detroit. BROOKLYN- Not sure how long Brooklyn can continue to bat Walt Layton in the lead-off spot and hope to stay in contention. The 31 year old Layton is very good with the glove but has never been much of a hitter. Layton is batting just .216 this season with a .251 on base percentage. Meanwhile 23 year old Jim Lightbody is hitting .275 with a .378 on base percentage but has been benched since Tiny Tim Hopkins took over at first base. Lightbody, a natural second baseman, certainly is not the gloveman that Layton is, but you have to think the Kings would be much better off starting Lightbody at second and using Layton as a late inning defensive replacement. Despite my concerns about Layton the Kings are 14-8 since the all-star break, tied with the Cougars for the best mark in the CA. CHIEFS- Dropping 2 of 3 at home to Pittsburgh to start the week hurt, but then proceeding to allow lowly Washington to also take two of three games over the weekend at Whitney Park certainly stung for the Chiefs. Next up is 3 games vs Detroit so things could get even worse for the club, which now sit 6.5 games out in the Fed. So far so good but there may be cause for concern with Andy Carter and Frank Davis in the same clubhouse. Both have a much less than stellar reputation for fitting in with a team. COUGARS- The Cougars were my preseason pick in CA and starting to show why as they are on a 12-3 run. They were just at .500 (37-37) a week before the all-star break but a month later are 11 games over the break even point. One key reason for the resurgence of late has been veteran pitcher Milt Fritz (14-6, 2.45). The 30 year old was named CA pitcher of the month after going 6-1 with a 2.39 era in July. CINCINNATI- I have a feeling Cannons will regret not picking up the phone and calling Boston back about Moxie Pidgeon offer. Maybe not quite as much as Gothams might regret not going after Pidgeon but it really feels like Cannons overachieved the first half of the season and will slide back towards the .500 mark. It will still be an extremely successful first season but I can't help but feel they missed the boat and could have turned Pidgeon into 2 or 3 very good young players to add to an already impressive young core. The Cannons were 46-26 on July 1 but limped into all-star break by getting swept in successive series by Sailors and Wolves before beating Cleveland twice just prior to the break. They have struggled ever since going 11-21 since the beginning of July. CLEVELAND- The Foresters have dropped 9 of their last 11 as the fade to the bottom of the Continental Association continues. Even the very consistent Mel Carrol could not avoid the recent stumbles that have hit the Foresters. Carrol hit just .247 in July, the second worst month of his career, surpassing only the .245 he averaged in July of his rookie 1935 season. Last time he hit under .300 in any month was June of 1936 when he batted .276 DETROIT- Since getting swept in a 2-game series in Chicago to end June that prompted calls of wait until next year in Detroit the Dynamos have gone 21-9 including their current stretch of 16 wins in their last 19 games. MONTREAL- It was another losing week (2-4) in Montreal but the Saints have to be thanking Brooklyn for the gift that was Eddie Hite. The 37 year old, waived by the Kings recently despite a 5-1, 1.99 start to the season, pitched 4 scoreless innings in his first two appearances with Montreal. Hite looked very good in a few starts for the Kings just prior to his release and perhaps warrants that opportunity in Montreal. NY STARS- A doubleheader sweep of Philadelphia yesterday gave the surging Stars 10 wins in their last 12 games. Lou Robertson (7-2, 2.19) continues to shine, earning rookie of the month for the second time this season. NY GOTHAMS- The 5-1 week just before the trade deadline gave some hope to Gothams fans, but successive 3-game sweeps at home courtesy of Philadelphia and Boston quickly took deflated last week's excitement. Despite the 0-6 showing there was some excitement as Walt Messer(.285,6,28) seemed to enjoy playing leftfield. Or maybe it was just playing every day. Regardless, the 22 year old former two-time National High School player of the year hit .368 with a homer and 3 RBI for the week, all starts in the outfield. He looked comfortable out there making the plays on what he could get to. KEYSTONES- The Keystones are a very acceptable 6-6 on the road the past couple of weeks but if you want to point to one thing that has hurt them this season it remains their road record. At 22-30 they are the worst of the 5 contenders for the Fed title in winning away from home. On the flip side, their 37-14 home mark remains the best in either Association but Detroit (37-15) is closing fast. SAILORS- It has been a streaky year for the Sailors. They started slow, going 7-12 to open the season but then got hot in early May riding a 20-9 stretch into June but shortly after that streak ended the Sailors proceeded to drop 10 of 12 games which left them back at .500. The club heated up again in July, winning 16 of 23 before collapsing against Brooklyn 8 days ago, blowing a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the 9th in a game the Kings would ultimately prevail in 12 innings by a 4-3 score. Counting that loss the Sailors are heading the wrong way again, losing five of their last 6 heading into an important week in which they have a pair with Toronto followed by 3 against Cincinnati, all at home. PITTSBURGH- No slowing Lefty Allen (15-8, 2.78) down. Despite a couple of minor injuries this season Allen earned the Federal Association pitcher of the month for July. That marks the third time in his career the 26 year old has been so honoured. ST LOUIS- The Pioneers played spoiler over the weekend by taking two of three from Pittsburgh to help drop the Miners out of first place (by mere percentage points). Friday was a bad showing, falling 9-3 but St Louis pitching came up big on the weekend. Jake Smith (3-7, 5.72) and reliever Russ Peeples combined on a 2-0 shutout Saturday in yet another morsel of proof that the Miners Charlie Stedman's (12-12, 3.90) career is filled with limited run support. Saturday Del Thomas (1-6, 5.30) notched his first win of the season in style, tossing a complete game 2-1 win over the great Lefty Allen (15-8, 2.78). TORONTO- After much debate, upon the advice of medical staff, the Wolves decide to DL both Juan Pomales and Larry Vestal. Both injuries are DTD but the length of DTD status is a long period so there is hope that 2 weeks of rest may allow both players to return in full health in a more timely manner. Vestal's bat will certainly be missed but better to let him try and fully heal than the possibility of a nagging injury hampering him the rest of the season. WASHINGTON- The Eagles have to be pleased with the progression of last year's second overall pick Wally Fuller. The 19 year old third baseman is hitting .320 with 13 homers in 84 games at the Class B level and also did not look out of place during a brief stint in A ball. At the big league level the Eagles pulled back into sole possession of 6th place with a 3-3 week that included taking two of three in Chicago from the Chiefs. Sunday's game was especially satisfying as Washington trailed 7-3 entering the 8th inning but rallied to tie before winning it 8-7 in 10 frames. QUICK HITS One late minor league trade was announced at the deadline. It saw the Philadelphia Keystones send AAA first baseman Sig Stofer to the Washington Eagles in exchange for a 22 year old AA shortstop by the name of Lee Scott. Originally a 4th round pick of the Chicago Cougars, Scott is ranked 140th on the latest OSA prospect list. Stofer, 23, was tied for the Union League in homers with 16 for Louisville. He has played briefly with the Keystones each of the last two seasons and there was some hope the Atlantic City native, nicknamed 'The Boardwalk Bopper' for his powerful uppercut of a swing, could somehow fill the giant hole left at first base when Rankin Kellogg was forced to retire, but Stofer hit just .149 in 154 at bats with the Keystones, although he did smack 6 homers. The Eagles hope their AAA hitting coach Mike Reed, who has had some success developing other players, can work his magic on Stofer. OSA head scout Dan Barrell is very excited to see Sig Stofer end up in the Eagles system. The Boardwalk Bopper "was probably somewhat surplus for the Keystones," explains Barrell. "There needs to be someplace for (prize prospect Davey) Robicheaux to play, after all. It was a good pickup for the Eagles because he could give them the slugger they've never had." From Percy Sutherland: Detroit's Red Johnson is doing his best Max Morris impersonation. The July Batter of the Month in the Fed hit .404/.526/.573 for the month and has his OPS+ up to 191. From 1920 - 1925, Max Morris had a 6 year run in which he had an OPS+ of more than 200 every season but one--he had some injuries in 1924 and finished with an OPS+ of just 175. Fred McCormick had an OPS+ of 201 last season, which is the best since Kellogg's incredible 1933 when he had an OPS+ of 223. On Sunday Philadelphia 3B Hank Koblenz showed the Detroit fans just what they are missing after GM Martin sent him out of town in a deal in the 38 off-season. Koblenz went 2-4 with a 2-run homer and was named player of the game despite the Dynamo's coming back to win it 4-3 in the 9th on a Dale Robbins single. Koblenz is hitting 270 on the season with 22 home runs (3rd in the FA behind Pestilli and Barnett) with 63 RBI's. While the trade that sent Koblenz to Philadelphia netted the Dynamo's SP Frank Crawford who won the FA Allen Award last season, it does make fans wonder what could have been. A lineup with 1B Red Johnson, CF Sal Pestilli and 3B Hank Koblenz would have sent shivers down many pitchers backs. That would have been one heck of a 3-4-5 in the lineup That was the long term plan in Detroit. Perhaps a bit backwards-- the Chiefs traded two prospects and three draft picks and are excited about next season. This will be an interesting lineup to have in place from Opening Day. We've already begun talking to Bob Martin about next season--when he is recovered from his injuries, he should begin dusting off that second baseman's glove. Barnett will remain at third and second will be a mix of Martin, Carter, and Ducky Jordan. Rookie shortstop Hank Grant, who was promoted by Montreal following the Frank Davis trade to the Chiefs, played more than planned in his first week in FABL as Jake Hughes got hurt for 2 days during the week. Grant hit .438 in 16 at bat, scoring 3 runs but also getting caught 3 times stealing bases. The Keystones were 4-2 this week, sweeping the Gothams, but losing two out of three to the hard-charging Dynamos. The win of the week was the only one against Detroit, a 1-0, 11-inning classic. Both teams combined for 7 hits and the only run was plated on a 2-out single by Walt Potter in the top half of the inning. Jim Whiteley went 10 innings, allowing only two hits, for the win. Whiteley is hoping to turn the corner, as he has struggled mightily this year with ERAs consistently in the 4s and 5s every month this season and suffered through a 1-4 July with a 5.09 ERA. You can't help but think his 20-loss season affected him, though he pitched to his best ERA in four seasons last year at 4.20. Maybe a sign of desperate times, but has there ever been so much fan interest in a .197 hitter? After following their 5-1 week with an 0-6 stinker, the Gothams introduced new RF Leon Drake. To say the fan reaction was positive would be an understatement. All the talk around Gothams Stadium is Drake, Drake, Drake. Tickets in the leftfield stands are selling like hotcakes anticipating Drake longballs dropping into their waiting hands. Certainly owner Leland Winthrop will be happy for the moment that his demands were followed. Now we'll see if Leon can turn his season around and reward his new fans. (In OOTP terms, our fan interest went from 89 to 95 with this transaction.) Mark Stevens never made it to the majors but the long-time Fort Worth Cattlemen righthander pitched a no-hitter last week in the Lone Star Association. The 36 year old Houston native has spent 12 years in the Lone Star Association and is the league's all-time leader in wins with 141. It was just the 7th in the history of the loop but third this season. The first two were thrown by Bill Douglass of Waco. Douglass was a Lubbock State product who was taken in the 5th round by St Louis in 1933 but was dealt to the Wranglers last season. KEYSTONES SET TO FACE MINERS IN KEY SERIES NEXT WEEK The young Philadelphia Keystones have dominated their cross-state rivals from Pittsburgh this season, winning 8 of the 12 contests between the two Pennsylvania rivals. The Keystones will face another tough test next weekend when the Miners invade Broad Street Park for a 3-game set before doing it again the following weekend at Fitzpatrick Park. Perhaps the Federal Association lead is on the line, assuming the two don't beat up each other over the next two weeks and Detroit runs away with things. The Week That Was Current events from the week ending 8/04/1940 Soviet Premier Molotov warned Moscow that the European "Imperialist war" might soon spread to the Western Hemisphere. Molotov feels it is just a matter of time before the question of redistribution of Dutch and Belgian colonies in the west "turns the war into a world conflagration." The German port city of Hamburg is in ruins and thousands of tons of bombs have been dropped in Bremen, home of the famous Fockenwulf aircraft factory as the Royal Air Force steps up attacks aimed primarily at Nazi military objectives. The Senate Military Affairs Committee voted against limiting the conscription bill to 1 million men. Refusal to restrict it means that 12.5 million American men in the 21-31 age group will be eligible for the military draft should the present version of the bill become law. Following a Japanese decision to round up and expel many prominent British citizens in Tokio, London arrested a number of Japanese throughout the empire including in Canada and Australia, claiming it was not retaliatory but rather then culmination of a lengthy investigation into a widespread spy ring. It quickly developed into an international crisis. Japanese warships have seized an American merchant vessel near Shanghai. The ship, which was forced to hug the shore due to a typhoon, was reported to have entered a Japanese 'blockade zone.' In a harshly worded note Japan voiced extreme objections to the American decision to place an embargo on shipments of American aviation gasoline outside the Western Hemisphere. Japan had been a heavy purchaser of the fuel for her warfare in China. __________________ Lead Columnist of The Figment Sporting Journal The Scripture of Sports Last edited by Jiggs McGee; 01-10-2022 at 01:19 PM.