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Princeps-Hispanico · 11-08-2023, 09:43 PM

1954 was when the NABL started to become very popular, all the players started getting baseball cards, not just the all-stars and the stadiums were getting filled up as well. Here's the standings

The Pittsburgh Arsenal had the best record going 87-61 and the SF Fire had the worst record going 53-97, which is quite surprising regarding that they won the championship last year. The Fire has most of its players from last year, but they haven't been performing as well. Phil Petrozza boasts a WAR of 8.5 which is .2 higher than last year.

Matt Yarkosky is the batting champion in the Stripes League, finishing the season with a .355 average. Lex Schuurman was crowned the batting champion in the stars league and had a .356 average. Now let's talk about Lex Schuurman for a little bit. He was born in the Netherlands, went to the University of Virginia, and was the 2nd pick in the 1951 draft. He was picked by the Philadelphia Liberty. 4 days after he got drafted he got suspended a few games for a fight. What a way to start your career... Anyway by 1952 he was the star 1B for the Philadelphia Liberty and in his 1st year his batting average was .346 got 183 hits, 24 home runs and had a WAR of 6.3. He was the ROTY, was an All-Star, and won the Sapphire Stick at 1B. I definitely think that if he stays with the Liberty he is going to be the most celebrated player in Philadelphia. As of 1954 he is 24 years old and has a very bright future with no signs of slowing down. In 1954 he won the Triple Crown, the 3rd player ever to do so. Jonathan del Carpio getting the Triple Crown in 1949 and Jose Duran in 1950. Alright we might talk about Lex Schuurman later but for now, let's talk about other players. Vinny Roldan hit 3 HR's against the Boston Pilgrims on June 6th. The Knights won 12-3 with Roldan responsible for 8 runs. Roy Galligan hit 3 HR's against New Orleans on July 11th. The Kings won 10-6. 2 players hit for the cycle Steve McCauley and Cody Moring. McCauley on September 24th and Moring on September 29th. 3 pitchers pitched a no-hitter. Brian Tock, Vitenka Pariysky, and Jon Matheson. Tock and Pariysky pitched a no-hitter for Philadelphia and Matheson for Pittsburgh. Jon Matheson and David Rogers both collected 20 wins. 7 players had a hitting streak over 20 games, but one player stuck out to me, Kevon James. He had a streak of 35, which is the highest hitting streak so far. The tale of Kevon James is kind of mysterious. He was virtually unknown before the 1954 season but after it, everyone knew who he was. James didn't come from a college or the MLB or any other major league. He was discovered from a scouting discovery in November of 1953 and come opening day he was on the starting lineup of the Omaha Cyclones. By the end of 1954 he led the league in doubles with 42, was 6th in hits with 176, was 2nd with RBIs with 94, and he had the 4th best average with .342. Dave White of the Pittsburgh Arsenal led the league in HR's with 39 and had 119 RBIs. Here is the top 20 players according to OSA:

and here's the top 20 pitchers:

If I were to talk about every shut-out, 4-4 game we'd be here for a while so I'm not going to be talking about stuff like that.
The top picks in the 1954 draft were:
1: Seth Nolan from the University of Montana was drafted by the New York Knights
2: Kevon Curtis from Northern Illinois University was drafted by the Memphis Lions
3: Chris Jenkins from Quinnipiac University was drafted by the Portland Stags
4: John Morrison from California State University, Sacramento was drafted by the Colorado Kings
5: Kymani Coffee from Robert Morris University was drafted by the San Antonio Phantoms
Major Injuries this year were:
Aaron Conner, Torn Rotator Cuff, out for 10 months
Brian Tock,Torn ulnar collateral ligament, out for 14 months
Kelly Baker, Bone Chips, out for 8 months
Jonathan del Carpio, Ruptured achilles tendon, out for 7 months
Joe Geffrard, Ruptured ulnar collateral ligament, out for 12 months
Before we move onto the playoffs we need to talk about the All-Star game.

On July 20th, 1954 the Rising Stars game was played and kicked off the All-Star break. The Stars League Rising Stars won by a convincing 7-1 game at the Polo Grounds (The NY Knights play there). Dave Bridgewater was the POTG. I have no clue why he is still in it. He has been selected for the game every year since 1949, and was selected in the 1st rookie draft. Since 1948 he has been bouncing around Chicago's minor league system. Just give up on Bridgewater guys...

2 days later on July 22nd, 1954 the Stripes blew out the stars 11-4. To start off the game Bill Grimm was the SP for the Stars. Let's just say that his appearance did not go well. His All-Star game ERA was 45.00 (His Regular season ERA was around 3.70). I feel like I couldn't give a summary on how bad he pitched so might as well pull up the game log and read it to you.

Batting: RHB Joe Seigler 0-0: Called Strike
0-1: Swinging Strike
0-2: SINGLE
Batting: RHB Matt Yarkosky 0-0: Ball
1-0: Ball
2-0: Foul Ball
2-1: Ball
3-1: Base on balls
Alright 2 on no outs, we're behind but if Josh Wright grounds into a double play there will be 2 outs runner on 3rd, let's see what happens
Batting: RHB Josh Wright 0-0: Ball
Ok we're off to a not as good start considering that Grimm walked the last guy up, but I still have hope
1-0: 3-RUN HOME RUN 506 FT.
No way. All Grimm had to do was not to give up a home run. That was the worst thing that he could've done in that moment. Score? 3-0 Stripes ahead
Batting: LHB Chris Waldman 0-0: Fly-out
Alright! We're starting to get somewhere. I mean 2 outs to go but hopefully Grimm is done giving up walks and home runs.
Batting: RHB Matt Garland 0-0: Ball
1-0: Ball
I don't blame Grimm for being careful and throwing 2 balls. Matt Garland is one of the best players in the league. If anyone was going to hit a home run, it was going to be him.
2-0: Called Strike
2-1: Ball
3-1: Base on Balls
2nd guy he has walked so far but let's hope he can get the next guy out.
Batting: SHB Sean Hale 0-0: Called Strike
0-1: Foul Ball
Hale is already behind 0-2, if Grimm can throw a strike or if Hale hits the ball weakly we'll have 2 outs. Last year Hale got 150 hits and 7 home runs. He is more of a contact hitter and doesn't usually hit balls into the stands. The odds are in our favor, it's time to redeem yourself Grimm, if you can get through Hale and Moring, another pitcher can take over and we'll hopefully take back the lead.
0-2: 2-RUN HOME RUN 377 FT.
Unbelievable. Stripes lead 5-0 in the 1st inning with only 1 out. I'm done. That's it. They blew the ball game in the 1st inning. I know that coming back from a 5 run deficit isn't impossible, and with the right amount of luck can be done over an inning or 2. Alright maybe I'm not done. Let's see how well the Stars hitters hit.

3 up, 3 down.
Alright. It's not the end of the world. Let's see how they do in the 2nd

3 up, 3 down.
In conclusion the Stripes win the All-Star game 11-4. Unbelievable. They lost in a Stars League ballpark in front of a sell-out crowd of 55,000.
They really made a mockery of the Stars League

If you couldn't tell I'm a Stars League person, not a Stripes League person. The Stars league is my favorite league out of the two. Anyway, I've seen enough let's just move on to the postseason.

11-08-2023, 09:43 PM	#5
Princeps-Hispanico Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Jul 2021 Location: Mid-Atlantic Posts: 26	1954 NABL Regular Season 1954 was when the NABL started to become very popular, all the players started getting baseball cards, not just the all-stars and the stadiums were getting filled up as well. Here's the standings The Pittsburgh Arsenal had the best record going 87-61 and the SF Fire had the worst record going 53-97, which is quite surprising regarding that they won the championship last year. The Fire has most of its players from last year, but they haven't been performing as well. Phil Petrozza boasts a WAR of 8.5 which is .2 higher than last year. Matt Yarkosky is the batting champion in the Stripes League, finishing the season with a .355 average. Lex Schuurman was crowned the batting champion in the stars league and had a .356 average. Now let's talk about Lex Schuurman for a little bit. He was born in the Netherlands, went to the University of Virginia, and was the 2nd pick in the 1951 draft. He was picked by the Philadelphia Liberty. 4 days after he got drafted he got suspended a few games for a fight. What a way to start your career... Anyway by 1952 he was the star 1B for the Philadelphia Liberty and in his 1st year his batting average was .346 got 183 hits, 24 home runs and had a WAR of 6.3. He was the ROTY, was an All-Star, and won the Sapphire Stick at 1B. I definitely think that if he stays with the Liberty he is going to be the most celebrated player in Philadelphia. As of 1954 he is 24 years old and has a very bright future with no signs of slowing down. In 1954 he won the Triple Crown, the 3rd player ever to do so. Jonathan del Carpio getting the Triple Crown in 1949 and Jose Duran in 1950. Alright we might talk about Lex Schuurman later but for now, let's talk about other players. Vinny Roldan hit 3 HR's against the Boston Pilgrims on June 6th. The Knights won 12-3 with Roldan responsible for 8 runs. Roy Galligan hit 3 HR's against New Orleans on July 11th. The Kings won 10-6. 2 players hit for the cycle Steve McCauley and Cody Moring. McCauley on September 24th and Moring on September 29th. 3 pitchers pitched a no-hitter. Brian Tock, Vitenka Pariysky, and Jon Matheson. Tock and Pariysky pitched a no-hitter for Philadelphia and Matheson for Pittsburgh. Jon Matheson and David Rogers both collected 20 wins. 7 players had a hitting streak over 20 games, but one player stuck out to me, Kevon James. He had a streak of 35, which is the highest hitting streak so far. The tale of Kevon James is kind of mysterious. He was virtually unknown before the 1954 season but after it, everyone knew who he was. James didn't come from a college or the MLB or any other major league. He was discovered from a scouting discovery in November of 1953 and come opening day he was on the starting lineup of the Omaha Cyclones. By the end of 1954 he led the league in doubles with 42, was 6th in hits with 176, was 2nd with RBIs with 94, and he had the 4th best average with .342. Dave White of the Pittsburgh Arsenal led the league in HR's with 39 and had 119 RBIs. Here is the top 20 players according to OSA: and here's the top 20 pitchers: If I were to talk about every shut-out, 4-4 game we'd be here for a while so I'm not going to be talking about stuff like that. The top picks in the 1954 draft were: 1: Seth Nolan from the University of Montana was drafted by the New York Knights 2: Kevon Curtis from Northern Illinois University was drafted by the Memphis Lions 3: Chris Jenkins from Quinnipiac University was drafted by the Portland Stags 4: John Morrison from California State University, Sacramento was drafted by the Colorado Kings 5: Kymani Coffee from Robert Morris University was drafted by the San Antonio Phantoms Major Injuries this year were: Aaron Conner, Torn Rotator Cuff, out for 10 months Brian Tock,Torn ulnar collateral ligament, out for 14 months Kelly Baker, Bone Chips, out for 8 months Jonathan del Carpio, Ruptured achilles tendon, out for 7 months Joe Geffrard, Ruptured ulnar collateral ligament, out for 12 months Before we move onto the playoffs we need to talk about the All-Star game. On July 20th, 1954 the Rising Stars game was played and kicked off the All-Star break. The Stars League Rising Stars won by a convincing 7-1 game at the Polo Grounds (The NY Knights play there). Dave Bridgewater was the POTG. I have no clue why he is still in it. He has been selected for the game every year since 1949, and was selected in the 1st rookie draft. Since 1948 he has been bouncing around Chicago's minor league system. Just give up on Bridgewater guys... 2 days later on July 22nd, 1954 the Stripes blew out the stars 11-4. To start off the game Bill Grimm was the SP for the Stars. Let's just say that his appearance did not go well. His All-Star game ERA was 45.00 (His Regular season ERA was around 3.70). I feel like I couldn't give a summary on how bad he pitched so might as well pull up the game log and read it to you. Batting: RHB Joe Seigler 0-0: Called Strike 0-1: Swinging Strike 0-2: SINGLE Batting: RHB Matt Yarkosky 0-0: Ball 1-0: Ball 2-0: Foul Ball 2-1: Ball 3-1: Base on balls Alright 2 on no outs, we're behind but if Josh Wright grounds into a double play there will be 2 outs runner on 3rd, let's see what happens Batting: RHB Josh Wright 0-0: Ball Ok we're off to a not as good start considering that Grimm walked the last guy up, but I still have hope 1-0: 3-RUN HOME RUN 506 FT. No way. All Grimm had to do was not to give up a home run. That was the worst thing that he could've done in that moment. Score? 3-0 Stripes ahead Batting: LHB Chris Waldman 0-0: Fly-out Alright! We're starting to get somewhere. I mean 2 outs to go but hopefully Grimm is done giving up walks and home runs. Batting: RHB Matt Garland 0-0: Ball 1-0: Ball I don't blame Grimm for being careful and throwing 2 balls. Matt Garland is one of the best players in the league. If anyone was going to hit a home run, it was going to be him. 2-0: Called Strike 2-1: Ball 3-1: Base on Balls 2nd guy he has walked so far but let's hope he can get the next guy out. Batting: SHB Sean Hale 0-0: Called Strike 0-1: Foul Ball Hale is already behind 0-2, if Grimm can throw a strike or if Hale hits the ball weakly we'll have 2 outs. Last year Hale got 150 hits and 7 home runs. He is more of a contact hitter and doesn't usually hit balls into the stands. The odds are in our favor, it's time to redeem yourself Grimm, if you can get through Hale and Moring, another pitcher can take over and we'll hopefully take back the lead. 0-2: 2-RUN HOME RUN 377 FT. Unbelievable. Stripes lead 5-0 in the 1st inning with only 1 out. I'm done. That's it. They blew the ball game in the 1st inning. I know that coming back from a 5 run deficit isn't impossible, and with the right amount of luck can be done over an inning or 2. Alright maybe I'm not done. Let's see how well the Stars hitters hit. 3 up, 3 down. Alright. It's not the end of the world. Let's see how they do in the 2nd 3 up, 3 down. In conclusion the Stripes win the All-Star game 11-4. Unbelievable. They lost in a Stars League ballpark in front of a sell-out crowd of 55,000. They really made a mockery of the Stars League If you couldn't tell I'm a Stars League person, not a Stripes League person. The Stars league is my favorite league out of the two. Anyway, I've seen enough let's just move on to the postseason. Last edited by Princeps-Hispanico; 11-08-2023 at 09:45 PM.