[rockford]

Standings after nine seasons of play (pennants and championships in parentheses):


GB

-- 1902 Pirates .576 (5-4)
54 1937 Yankees.538 (2-1)
54 1976 Reds .538 (1-1)
71 1972 Pirates .525 (2-2)
101 1906 Cubs .504
103 1951 Giants .502 (1-0)
104 2017 Indians .501 (1-0)
112 1933 Yankees .496 (1-0)
117 1986 Mets .492 (1-0)
118 1955 Yankees .491 (1-1)
129 2019 Twins .483
131 2019 Nationals .482 (1-0)
132 2017 Astros .481 (1-0)
135 1971 Pirates .479
158 1909 A’s .462 (1-0)
176 1951 Yankees .449

Two things became apparent in the last three seasons: the dominance of the 1902 Pirates, and the relative parity of the rest of the pool.


The Pirates won two championships while nearly doubling their lead to an insurmountable 54 games heading into the final season. Jesse Tannehill’s streak of Pitcher of the Year awards ended at six, but he followed the interruption by capturing two more trophies with campaigns of 19-9, 2.11 ERA and 24-5, 2.38 ERA.



The 1937 Yankees and the 1976 Reds remain deadlocked in second place, with the 1972 Pirates 17 games behind them, still (theoretically) within striking distance of second. The Reds have been fueled by two more MVP seasons from Joe Morgan (.287, 27 HR and .323, 35 HR). The Yankees benefited from an MVP turn by Lou Gehrig (.350, 42 HR). The Pirates got two Pitcher of the Year performances from Bob Moose (15-14, 2.81 ERA and 17-15, 2.72 ERA ).


While the top four teams are secure, six others go into the final season with reasonable opportunities to finish in the top half, and have at least some chance of advancing to the Semifinals.