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November 1, 1958

Eastern League: Monarchs, Chiefs Start Off Strong





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The Braeland City Monarchs got off to their best start in 10 years, winning 17 games in October and squeezing past the Downie Chiefs on the last day of the month to take over first place. They achieved that through solid play on both sides of the ball and strong defense, but there is still plenty of room for improvement. They are waiting on a number of players to find their groove. They will need that if they hope to continue their success.

Third-year starter LHP Charlie Honeysett (42/62 – 2nd-round pick, 1953-54) and sophomore stopper RHP Ramón González (77/77 – 2nd-round pick, 1957-58) are off to impressive starts and offer hope that they can soon form the nucleus of a solid pitching staff.

Notable Performers

• 34-year old 1B Dean Witherden (.361/.460/.528, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 14 BB, 168 OPS+, 1.0 WAR)
• 28-year old RF Aidan Trembath (.282/.347/.482, 5 HR, 16 RBI, 9 BB, 123 OPS+, 0.5 WAR)

Rotation

• 22-year old LHP Charlie Honeysett (4-1, 1.79 ERA, 40.1 IP, 1.12 WHIP, 3.13 FIP, 217 ERA+)
• 26-year old RHP Dara Eaddy (4-1, 1.80 ERA, 35.0 IP, 1.23 WHIP, 3.51 FIP, 215 ERA+)

Bullpen

• 23-year old RHP Ramón González (1-1, 7 SV, 1.53 ERA, 17.2 IP, 0.91 WHIP, 3.90 FIP, 253 ERA+)

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The Downie Chiefs got off their best start in nine years and held onto top spot in the East for longer than any other team in October until dropping their final three games and falling a half-game back of the Monarchs.

Their early success is due to a surprisingly strong pitching staff, led by sophomore LHP Lucas Franklin (47/47 – 2nd-round pick, 1954-55) and 5-year veteran LHP Quinn Merrifield (46/46 – 2nd-round pick, 1952-53) in the rotation and LHP Ronald Leggett (40/40 – waiver claim from Brunswick, 1956) in the bullpen. Leggett, who spent 6 seasons in the minors before being promoted to the majors this season, won Rookie of the Month honors in October.

But some of Downie’s early success may not be sustainable. While they were a pedestrian 8-7 at home, then went 8-1 on the road, went 4-0 in extra-inning games and went 6-1 in one-run games.

Notable Performers

• 28-year old 2B José Olivarez (.306/.351/.486, 4 HR, 9 RBI, 5 BB, 136 OPS+, 0.8 WAR)
• 23-year old rookie LF/CF Jon Berose (.298/.340/.415, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 5 BB, 114 OPS+, 0.6 WAR)
• 27-year old 3B Freddie Ogburn (.333/.370/.549, 2 HR, 12 RBI, 3 BB, 158 ERA+, 0.6 WAR)

Rotation

• 27-year old LHP Lucas Franklin (2-2, 2.31 ERA, 39.0 IP, 1.26 WHIP, 3.41 FIP, 154 ERA+)
• 27-year old LHP Quinn Merrifield (1-1, 2.94 ERA, 33.2 IP, 1.25 WHIP, 2.84 FIP, 121 ERA+)

Bullpen

• 24-year old stopper RHP Frank Greggs (3-0, 5 SV, 2.84 ERA, 25.1 IP, 1.07 WHIP, 3.31 FIP, 125 ERA+)
• 27-year old rookie LHP Ronald Leggett (2-1, 1 SV, 0.96 ERA, 18.2 IP, 0.80 WHIP, 3.55 FIP, 368 ERA+)

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The Wellington Athletics occupied first place the first week of the season with a 6-1 record (like Downie) but a 4-game losing streak dropped them back and they having been playing catch up since then. The Athletics have been solid on both sides of the ball, especially on offense. But they are still waiting for their defending Babe Ruth Award winner, 31-year old LF Matthew Floyd (.270/.356/.393, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 10 BB, 4 SB, 115 ERA+, 0.4 WAR), to break out of an uncharacteristically slow start. They will also need more consistency from the backend of their rotation to keep up in the East.

Notable Performers

• 26-year old CF Greg Yates (.333/.390/.500, 2 HR, 14 RBI, 8 BB, 154 OPS+, 1.5 WAR)
• 23-year old RF Wan-hua Gu (.316/.356/.561, 5 HR, 18 RBI, 6 BB, 160 OPS+, 1.4 WAR)
• 32-year old 1B Carlos Camasura (.329/.421/.563, 2 HR, 12 RBI, 13 BB, 154 OPS+, 0.6 WAR)
• 30-year old C Declan Bugbie (.286/.295/.506, 4 HR, 19 RBI, 1 BB, 126 ERA+, 0.7 WAR)

Rotation

• 31-year old RHP Mhelter Pilapil (3-2, 2.55 ERA, 35.1 IP, 1.30 WHIP, 4.27 FIP, 127 ERA+)
• 27-yearold RHP Mike Murray (1-2, 2.41 ERA, 41.0 IP, 1.10 WHIP, 3.87 FIP, 134 ERA+)

Bullpen

• 25-year old stopper RHP Christian Wiley (2-0, 6 SV, 0.40 ERA, 22.2 IP, 0.79 WHIP, 2.40 FIP, 815 ERA+)

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The Brunswick Legends started off slow, going 1-6 and mired near the basement until a 6-game winning streak in the third week of the month pulled them back into relevancy.

Their lineup has been doing most of the heavy lifting, led by their clean-up hitter and two-time all-star, 1B Jay Mitchell (56/56 – 11th overall pick, 1951-52). But their pitching staff, while not terrible, will need to step up as a whole. They cannot continue to rely on their ageless wonder, 41-year old RHP Pi-ao Quian (46/46), forever.

Notable Performers

• 28-year old 1B Jay Mitchell (.346/.432/.716, 7 RBI, 18 RBI, 12 BB, 208 OPS+, 1.1 WAR)
• 24-year old CF Yae-hyang Lee (.379/.423/.632, 3 HR, 21 RBI, 6 BB, 184 OPS+, 1.6 WAR)
• 30-year old 2B Harley Truman (.299/.361/.644, 7 HR, 22 RBI, 8 BB, 168 OPS+, 1.4 WAR)

Rotation

• 41-year old RHP Pi-ao Quian (2-2, 2.59 ERA, 31.1 IP, 0.93 WHIP, 3.60 FIP, 148 ERA+)

Bullpen

• 33-year old RHP Byron Ollson (1-3, 1 SV, 3.31 ERA, 16.1 IP, 1.47 WHIP, 3.77 FIP, 116 ERA+)

Player of the Week Awards:

October 20 – 2B Harley Truman (.455, 10 H, 3 HR, 12 RBI)
October 27 – CF Tae-hyang Lee (.520, 13 H, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 6 R)

Milestone Watch

October 20 – RHP Pi-ao Quian earned his record-setting 253rd career win against the Stratford Barons by pitching the Legends to a 4-3 victory in Stratford. The game was tied 3-3 heading into the top of the 9th where PH Ismael García (.467/.500/.867, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 266 OPS+, 0.4 WAR) led off and smacked a solo home run down the rightfield line. Quian made the lead hold up, shutting down the Barons in the bottom of the 9th. Quian went 9.0 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 1 HR, 104 PI, GS: 65. Quian held sole position in career wins until the 31st, when Wolseley Unions’ starter Aaron Saunderson won his 253rd as well.

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After winning the Eastern League Pennant last season with 96 victories, the Queensland Eagles found themselves near the bottom of the standings in October. At one point, they sat at 4-10 before recovering somewhat to finish the month in 5th place. Surprisingly, the pitching has been the culprit, something that has long been the calling card for this club. Last year’s Satchel Paige Award winner, 31-year old RHP Stiofan Micklethwait (1-4, 4.71 ERA, 36.1 IP, 1.27 WHIP, 3.64 FIP, 74 ERA+), is off to particularly slow start, but he is not alone. The entire staff has been underwhelming in the early going.

Notable Performers

• 32-year old 1B Rod Dennis (.385/.477/.692, 7 HR, 20 HR, 15 BB, 226 OPS+, 1.6 WAR)
• 25-year old 2B Dennis Purcell (.256/.350/.453, 4 HR, 15 RBI, 12 BB, 125 OPS+, 0.9 WAR)

Rotation

• 35-year old RHP Jeremy Albury (2-1, 3.57 ERA, 22.2 IP, 1.15 WHIP, 3.32 FIP, 98 ERA+)
• 32-year old RHP Logan Belsey (3-2, 3.81 ERA, 52.0 IP, 1.13 WHIP, 3.35 FIP, 92 ERA+)

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Projected to be a playoff contender this season, the Cobourg Redlegs have in fact have been chronically inconsistent, something that is not new to this outfit. The rotation has been doing its part, but the offense and bullpen have struggled. 30-year old 1B Juan Gonzáles (.163/.214/.380, 6 HR, 16 RBI, 6 BB, 61 OPS+, -0.2 WAR), after being acquired from the Balmoral Giants in the offseason and after lighting up Spring Training, has been awful and getting worse as the month progressed. The Redlegs need him and the majority of the lineup to get hot come November if they want to get back into the thick of things. Cobourg currently has four starters batting below .200. That’s not going to cut it.

Notable Performers

• 26-year old SS Douglas Jones (.329/.406/.400, 1 HR, 5 HR, 8 BB, 123 OPS+, 1.0 WAR)
• 32-year old LF Raymond Williams (.247/.344/.457, 4 HR, 16 RBI, 11 BB, 119 OPS+, 0.4 WAR)

Rotation

• 30-year old LHP Bill Budd (3-2, 1.98 ERA, 50.0 IP, 1.08 WHIP, 2.38 FIP, 186 ERA+)
• 22-year old RHP Lester Bell (1-3, 2.72 ERA, 36.1 IP, 1.07 WHIP, 2.87 FIP, 135 ERA+)
• 24-year old LHP Lachlan Lloyd (2-1, 2.45 ERA, 36.2 IP, 1.06 WHIP, 3.60 FIP, 150 ERA+)

Player of the Week Awards:

October 13 – CF Raymond Williams (.474, 9 H, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 12 R)

Noteworthy:

October 26 – CF Raymond Williams started off the month strong, hitting two home runs on Opening Day and another six days later to tie Stuart Bentham for most career home runs at 333. But Williams quickly went cold at the plate and has hit just one home run in the last 17 games. But that fourth one was historic, nonetheless.

In a game against the Queensland Eagles, Raymond Williams launched a one-out solo home run against RHP Logan Belsey out to the rightfield bleachers in the top of the third inning to become the United Leagues’ new home run king with 334. That made the score 3-0. Cobourg went on to win, 9-2. Williams line was 1 for 3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K.



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The Stratford Barons have qualified for the playoffs in five of the previous six seasons and looked to continue that success early in the month when they were just two games back of first and enjoying a 4-game winning streak. But the Barons then lost the next 8 games which saw them tumble almost all the way to the basement. Stratford have yet to recover. But its still early and the Barons appear strong enough to bet their bearings. Curiously, the stats indicate their offense is suspect, but they have a number of players in the lineup who doing well at the plate even if they have been streaky at times.

Notable Performers

• 29-year old 3B Walter Beauvais (.351/.383/.494, 1 HR, 8 HR, 4 BB, 144 OPS+, 1.1 WAR)
• 27-year old SS Callum Spalton (.304/.345/.481, 3 HR, 11 RBI, 5 BB, 129 OPS+, 1.2 WAR)
• 30-year old 2B Matthew Channing (.271/.347/.494, 4 HR, 9 RBI, 8 BB, 133 OPS+, 0.7 WAR)
• 27-year old LF Don North (.287/.367/.450, 3 HR, 10 RBI, 9 BB, 128 OPS+, 0.5 WAR)

Rotation

• 30-year old LHP Robin Wadsworth (2-3, 2.25 ERA, 40.0 IP, 1.18 WHIP, 2.56 FIP, 156 ERA+)
• 32-year old RHP Bill Wolf (2-1, 2.06 ERA, 35.0 IP, 1.29 WHIP, 3.77 FIP, 170 ERA+)
• 34-year old RHP Stephan Tindall (2-2, 2.53 ERA, 32.0 IP, 1.47 WHIP, 3.61 FIP, 138 ERA+)

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The Embro Suns started the season with six straight losses and things haven’t improved much since then. They are off to their worst start in their 22-year existence (they started 8-19 in October 1948). And there is plenty of blame to go around as they are wanting in all departments. They went just 3-12 on the road in October and the schedule will not be kind to them, as they will have a whopping 23 road games in November, mostly against Western League teams.

Help may be on the way soon, as they have 23-year old CF Rob Puckeridge (44/61 – 2nd round pick, 1957-58), who continues to tear up Triple-A. Scouts feel the Australian native is ready to start in the majors. They also have 24-year old LF Craig Townson (49/61 – 3rd round pick, 1957-58) who was just promoted to Triple-A. He has started off strong as well and could find his way to the majors before too long.

Notable Performers

• 27-year old LF Ron Bell (.263/.333/.579, 3 HR, 10 HR, 4 BB, 147 OPS+, 0.4 WAR)

Rotation

• 26-year old RHP Ivan Gordam (0-1, 3.38 ERA, 13.1 IP, 1.12 WHIP, 4.43 FIP, 105 ERA+)

Bullpen

• 27-year old RHP Rob Gladstone (1-0, 1 SV, 1.80 ERA, 15.0 IP, 1.00 WHIP, 2.08 FIP, 196 ERA+)

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