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JerryShoe · 12-21-2022, 09:08 PM

1968 Yankees

The Plan
Held and Rojas were traded due to low usage, receiving professional utility infielder Dick Schofield in return. I looked for a catcher but nothing worthwhile was out there, so will make do with another year of a Grote/Gibbs platoon. Addressing the roster and lineup, I decided not to let the outfield work itself out, since it didn’t in 1967, and gave left and center to the excellent gloves of White and Stanley and right to the potent bat of Howard. Mantle and Howard will bat 3-4 and supply the power. Mota won’t have enough PAs to take a full-time outfield spot but he and Northrup can be a platoon of substitutes or take any OF slot if White and Stanley are again found wanting or Mantle shows his age and Howard must move to first. Maris will support in his final year. The keystone combo and top of the order will be Campy and Clarke, and Campy must come back to prior levels. Rookie Sal Bando (traded for Dietz in ‘66-‘67 offseason) may take third from Boyer with some batting average to make up for Boyer’s glove, their power expected to be about the same. The rotation would be the same, but for rookie Stan Bahnsen added to it and Perry (low IP) and Blass (high ERA) going to the bullpen, with the remaining cast members Hoerner, Womack and Mikkelsen already strong and maybe Hamilton will rebound.

What Happened to the Plan
Clarke ran well (17 steals) but still didn’t hit (.214), so got moved down to eighth in the order, then was replaced by Schofield until Rojas returned in a July trade, who then lost the job to Schofield in September. Grote and Gibbs returned to ’66 form and Grote returned to the #2 slot vs. lefties, while White enjoyed a decent year and led off vs. southpaws. Northrup took over for Stanley by the end of the year. Bando did win the hot corner spot and hit fifth until May when he and Mantle, who was hitting .200 but with power, switched slots in the order. Later in the year, Mantle got up to only the .230s but his OB hit .400 and they returned to their original lineup slots. Downing was injured in May, not returning until August, and Blass’ 2.30 ERA in 16 relief innings showed enough to take his place. Bahnsen starred but the rest of the rotation turned in only workmanlike work. The bullpen was strong once again, especially after a May trade for Hoyt Wilhelm.

The Results
Success! A pennant in the fourth season, well ahead of schedule. This had less to do with my baseball wisdom and more to the lack of same from the AI GMs. For the ’69 Royal and ’62 Met projects, I’ll make trading harder and peruse the forums for advice on better trade AI (I used 4 25s). Anyway, this team moved past Baltimore and Detroit in June and kept them both at bay for the rest of the year, ending with a 95-67 record. Mantle’s leading 126 BBs meant a .400 OB (2nd). Howard came in 2nd in the power categories, HRs (36) and RBI (116). Campaneris again led in the speed sections (77 steals and 12 triples) but moved down in the order vs. LHs. Bahnsen became the staff ace with a 14-9 mark and 2.73 ERA, but the rest of the rotation turned in only workmanlike work. Hoerner led the relief corps, aided by Diego Segui, Wilhelm and Womack. Hamilton and Perry both disappointed.

SS-LF Campaneris also 92 RS (4th) White .370 OB, .762 OPS, 98 BB (5th)
LF- C White Grote .282, .362 OB
1B Mantle also 21 HRs
LF Howard also .487 SA (4th), 15 SF (1st)
3B Bando 11 3Bs (5th), .711 OPS
CF Stanley 10 HRs
C -SS Campaneris Gibbs .269
2B Clarke, Rojas (.250 overall) and Schofield (.221)

Maris and Mota barely played and barely hit. Stanley again ended up a CF late-innng defensive replacement, with Northrup (.708 OPS) going to RF and Howard to 1B. Clark was just a pinch-runner by the end of the year.

S1 Bahnsen:
S2 Blass 3 ShO (5th)
S3 Wilson 15-7
S4 Stottlemyre: 3.27
S5 Peterson: 3.47
RP Hoerner 0.87
RP Segui 1.97
RP Wilhelm 2.06
RP Womack 3.00

In ending with this season, I didn’t participate in the 1969 expansion draft and figure out a protected list. I wouldn’t have had to worry about Mantle, who OOTP would retire (in real life he didn’t announce it until the spring so he could lend his name to the player action going on at the time; Kansas City and Seattle had to be talked out of selecting him) or Bobby Murcer being on the military list. For the heck of it, here’s my 15:

Catchers Grote
Infielders Bando Campaneris Howard
Outfielders Northrup Piniella Stanley White
Pitchers Bahnsen Blass Hoerner Perry
Peterson Stottlemyre Wilhelm

I’m sure one of Clarke, Downing, Gibbs or Segui would have been taken in the first round and I would have protected the other three; if none of them were, I would have kept Clarke exposed.

On deck, the 1968 postseason.

12-21-2022, 09:08 PM	#12
JerryShoe Minors (Double A) Join Date: Aug 2021 Posts: 122	1968 Yankees The Plan Held and Rojas were traded due to low usage, receiving professional utility infielder Dick Schofield in return. I looked for a catcher but nothing worthwhile was out there, so will make do with another year of a Grote/Gibbs platoon. Addressing the roster and lineup, I decided not to let the outfield work itself out, since it didn’t in 1967, and gave left and center to the excellent gloves of White and Stanley and right to the potent bat of Howard. Mantle and Howard will bat 3-4 and supply the power. Mota won’t have enough PAs to take a full-time outfield spot but he and Northrup can be a platoon of substitutes or take any OF slot if White and Stanley are again found wanting or Mantle shows his age and Howard must move to first. Maris will support in his final year. The keystone combo and top of the order will be Campy and Clarke, and Campy must come back to prior levels. Rookie Sal Bando (traded for Dietz in ‘66-‘67 offseason) may take third from Boyer with some batting average to make up for Boyer’s glove, their power expected to be about the same. The rotation would be the same, but for rookie Stan Bahnsen added to it and Perry (low IP) and Blass (high ERA) going to the bullpen, with the remaining cast members Hoerner, Womack and Mikkelsen already strong and maybe Hamilton will rebound. What Happened to the Plan Clarke ran well (17 steals) but still didn’t hit (.214), so got moved down to eighth in the order, then was replaced by Schofield until Rojas returned in a July trade, who then lost the job to Schofield in September. Grote and Gibbs returned to ’66 form and Grote returned to the #2 slot vs. lefties, while White enjoyed a decent year and led off vs. southpaws. Northrup took over for Stanley by the end of the year. Bando did win the hot corner spot and hit fifth until May when he and Mantle, who was hitting .200 but with power, switched slots in the order. Later in the year, Mantle got up to only the .230s but his OB hit .400 and they returned to their original lineup slots. Downing was injured in May, not returning until August, and Blass’ 2.30 ERA in 16 relief innings showed enough to take his place. Bahnsen starred but the rest of the rotation turned in only workmanlike work. The bullpen was strong once again, especially after a May trade for Hoyt Wilhelm. The Results Success! A pennant in the fourth season, well ahead of schedule. This had less to do with my baseball wisdom and more to the lack of same from the AI GMs. For the ’69 Royal and ’62 Met projects, I’ll make trading harder and peruse the forums for advice on better trade AI (I used 4 25s). Anyway, this team moved past Baltimore and Detroit in June and kept them both at bay for the rest of the year, ending with a 95-67 record. Mantle’s leading 126 BBs meant a .400 OB (2nd). Howard came in 2nd in the power categories, HRs (36) and RBI (116). Campaneris again led in the speed sections (77 steals and 12 triples) but moved down in the order vs. LHs. Bahnsen became the staff ace with a 14-9 mark and 2.73 ERA, but the rest of the rotation turned in only workmanlike work. Hoerner led the relief corps, aided by Diego Segui, Wilhelm and Womack. Hamilton and Perry both disappointed. SS-LF Campaneris also 92 RS (4th) White .370 OB, .762 OPS, 98 BB (5th) LF- C White Grote .282, .362 OB 1B Mantle also 21 HRs LF Howard also .487 SA (4th), 15 SF (1st) 3B Bando 11 3Bs (5th), .711 OPS CF Stanley 10 HRs C -SS Campaneris Gibbs .269 2B Clarke, Rojas (.250 overall) and Schofield (.221) Maris and Mota barely played and barely hit. Stanley again ended up a CF late-innng defensive replacement, with Northrup (.708 OPS) going to RF and Howard to 1B. Clark was just a pinch-runner by the end of the year. S1 Bahnsen: S2 Blass 3 ShO (5th) S3 Wilson 15-7 S4 Stottlemyre: 3.27 S5 Peterson: 3.47 RP Hoerner 0.87 RP Segui 1.97 RP Wilhelm 2.06 RP Womack 3.00 In ending with this season, I didn’t participate in the 1969 expansion draft and figure out a protected list. I wouldn’t have had to worry about Mantle, who OOTP would retire (in real life he didn’t announce it until the spring so he could lend his name to the player action going on at the time; Kansas City and Seattle had to be talked out of selecting him) or Bobby Murcer being on the military list. For the heck of it, here’s my 15: Catchers Grote Infielders Bando Campaneris Howard Outfielders Northrup Piniella Stanley White Pitchers Bahnsen Blass Hoerner Perry Peterson Stottlemyre Wilhelm I’m sure one of Clarke, Downing, Gibbs or Segui would have been taken in the first round and I would have protected the other three; if none of them were, I would have kept Clarke exposed. On deck, the 1968 postseason.