[tm1681]

IT’S TIME FOR “THE BABE” IN NEW YORK CITY
23-YEAR-OLD JOHNSON EXPECTED TO STAR FOR GOTHAM AFTER FIVE YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT

NEW YORK CITY (Mar. 22, 1869) – It was another frustrating season for Gotham BBC in 1868. After retooling their roster and adding St. John’s 1B Collin Henderson they were hoping to be neck-and-neck with Knickerbocker for the New York City championship, but instead Orange took the crown while Gotham finished in the top half of the standings without a pennant to show for it for the seventh time in nine years (NYC champs in 1861 & ’64).

The Gotham front office thinks their squad from last season can challenge for the New York City pennant this year, so the only expected regular added from another team was 1x Utica All-Star OF Charles Haynes. However, there is another player penciled into be a regular this year that many base ball observers are looking forward to seeing: new 1B Babe Johnson.

Johnson was brought into the Gotham setup as an 18-year-old just after the conclusion of the conclusion of the 1863 season, and he was already good enough with the bat that he was a frequent Pinch Hitter in 1864. He garnered roughly 75 more batting opportunities in the NBBO in 1865, and the plan was for Johnson to become the team’s regular 2B before the best 2B in the sport, Leslie Arnett, joined from Merrimack Mills ahead of the 1866 season. The presence of Arnett, now a 7x All-Star over eight NBBO seasons, meant Johnson had to learn a different position. With excellent hands and decent range but a weak arm, long-time Gotham manager John Pyle decided that 1B would be the position for Babe going forward, and after two years of work he has been deemed ready to become a regular batsman for Gotham.

Babe Johnson’s five years of development time with Gotham at their first-class facilities, and his skills have gone from incredibly promising to genuinely elite. Writers Pool members who have seen him have charted his development since 1863:

• BATTING CONTACT: 6/10 to 10+/10
• GAP POWER: 4/10 to 7/10 (POT 9.5/10)
• RAW POWER: 3/10 to 6.5/10 (POT 7.5/10)
• BATTING EYE: 3/10 to 8/10 (POT 10/10)
• SPEED: 6.5/10 to 7.5/10
• RANGE: IF 6/10, OF 5.5/10
• HANDS: IF 9/10, OF 8/10
• ARM: IF 4/10, OF 3/10
• DEFENSE: 1B 5.5/10 (POT 6/10), 2B 7/10, OF 4.5/10 (POT 6/10)

Babe’s increased selectiveness with the bat has made him a potential .375 hitter in the eyes of the Writers Pool, and they also think that if Johnson takes his place in the Gotham lineup without much of an adjustment period then a 1.000 OPS in his first season as a regular is not out of the realm of possibility.

While second base remains Johnson’s best position his fielding tools should make him a high-quality first baseman even though he is a bit short for the position at 5’7”, as Johnson’s soft hands should make him dependable at either spot in the left side of the infield.

Gotham should be highly competitive in the New York City Championship once again. They have top-five batsmen at three positions, none related below average, and their #1 is 7x 20-game winner Carl Bancroft. If Johnson can have a similar debut season a regular to that of Garfield Koonce with Kings County last year, then Gotham may be carried back to the Tucker Wheaton Cup on the shoulders of “The Babe”.