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AMERICAN BASEBALL MAY RECAP

NORTHEAST U.S.A. (June 1, 1876) – Another year, and another May gone by. The A.P.B.L. has finished three and a half weeks of play, while the other two competitions are through with two and a half weeks of baseball. Here is a brief overview of the three as of the end of play on May 31st.

A.P.B.L. STANDINGS

COLONIAL – St. John’s had a 1-4 stretch during the middle of May, but they righted the ship and sit atop the standings with the league’s best Average & OPS. Niagara was held scoreless twice and their offense remains an issue, but on the whole they had a fine May. George Burroughs was excellent in his debut month for third-place Shamrock. Alleghany’s defense isn’t as good as it’s been in previous years, but they have the time & talent to fix that. Mass. Bay has been getting pounded in losses. Flour City has been VERY unlucky, and they were just 5-10 at home during the opening month.

METROPOLITAN – Knickerbocker feasted on the opposition at home during May, going 10-2 compared to 5-8 when acting the visitor. Excelsior is, of course, enjoying dominant pitching but they also lead the league in Runs (8.1 R/G). Kings Co. is hovering around .500 thanks to fine defense and an excellent month by Fred Bartholomew (.366, 24 RBI, 13 SB). American is fourth even though they have three men batting .350+ (Boyce, Burke, Kassabian), because the rest of their lineup has lagged and Simeon DiStefano suffered a serious loss of pitching form. Gotham is near .500, but twin worries are numerous lopsided losses and Royal Altman batting .268. Charles Whitehead aside, Orange’s offense has been nonexistent.

A.P.B.L. MONTHLY AWARDS

BATSMAN OF THE MONTH
James Burke (CF, AME) – .395, .919 OPS, 34 R, 51 H, 7 2B, 2 3B, 19 RBI, 9 BB, 29 SB, 1.4 WPA, 2.0 WAR

PITCHER OF THE MONTH
Thomas Smith (StJ) – 9-4, 2.55 ERA, 21 K, 116.1 IP, 12 CG, 1 SHO, 1.6 K/BB, 1.26 WHIP, 1.7 WAR, 3.6 rWAR

GREENHORN OF THE MONTH
Joseph Evans (LF, StJ) – .378, .925 OPS, 24 R, 45 H, 10 2B, 3 3B, 14 RBI, 5 BB, 7 SB, 1.6 WPA, 1.2 WAR

No surprise: the man who led the league in AVG, OBP, Hits, SB, & WAR during May took home B.o.t.M. That start makes Burke the favorite to take home Batsman of the Year trophy #4 in five years. St. John’s CF Rudolph Decker (.391, .944 OPS, 29 RBI, 23 SB, 2.0 WAR) arguably had a better month, but the Writers Pool thought otherwise.

Jim Creighton was the only man with 10+ Wins in May (10-4, 3.51 ERA, 41 K), but Smith earned P.o.t.M. for the fifth time thanks to a similar record, a superior ERA, and the fact that he went the distance in 12/13 outings. The most unfortunate pitcher: James Goodman, whose 1.64 ERA earned him a 6-8 record for Flour City.

Joseph Evans taking G.o.t.M. seems like the least surprising award win of the three, but Shamrock’s George Burroughs did lead Greenhorn P’s in Wins, ERA, K’s, IP, CG, & WAR. Still, there is a larger crop of Greenhorn batsmen this season – eleven v six P’s – and Evans leading them in AVG, OBP, SLG, OPS, Hits, 2B, TB, WPA, & WAR earned him the honors.

A.P.B.L. STATISTICAL LEADERS

Average: .395 by James Burke (CF, American)
OPS: .975 by George Kassabian (LF, American)
Home Runs: 2 by Hugh Harris (3B, Knickerbocker)
Runs Batted In: 31 by Eamonn Todd (3B, St. John’s) & Werner Verstegen (3B, Flour City)
Runs: 35 by Boyd Myers (CF, Excelsior) & Troy Oberst (LF, Excelsior)
Stolen Bases: 29 by James Burke
Batsman WPA: 2.6 by Peter Boyce (2B, American)
Batsman WAR: 2.0 by James Burke & Rudolph Decker (CF, St. John’s)

Wins: 10 by Jim Creighton (Excelsior)
ERA (50+ IP): 1.64 by James Goodman (Flour City)
Strikeouts: 66 by Elmer Seabold (Excelsior)
Complete Games: 12 by Thomas Smith (St. John’s)
WHIP (50+ IP): 1.15 by James Goodman
Pitcher WAR: 2.9 by Elmer Seabold
Pitcher rWAR: 3.6 by Thomas Smith

N.B.B.O. REGIONAL LEADERS

BROOKLYN: Atlantic at 13-4 (Eckford 1 GB; Star 4 GB; Cont’l 5 GB)
NEW YORK CITY: New York Athletic Club at 14-3 (Union 2 GB; Mercury 4 GB; Metro 6 GB)
UPSTATE N.Y.: Minuteman, Syracuse, Victory, & Utica at 10-7 (all other teams within 5 GB)
COASTAL: Newark at 14-3 (Quaker St. 1 GB; Pt. Jersey 2 GB; Trenton Utd. 6 GB)
INLAND: Susquehanna at 14-3 (Pioneer 1 GB; Lake Erie 3 GB; Merrimack 5 GB)
NEW ENGLAND: Portland at 14-3 (S.o.t.O. 2 GB; Green Mtn. & Quinnipiac 5 GB)

BROOKLYN – Atlantic’s offense, ranked #3 overall and led by SS Ben Gagliardi (.429, 18 RBI, 11 SB, 1.4 WAR), powered the team to an excellent May. Eckford is a game back thanks to their usual collection of stars and solid role players. Places #3-7 are 4-6 games back, with Marathon bringing up the rear at 5-12.

NEW YORK CITY – N.Y.A.C. is 14-3 but their Run Differential is only +24. Of course, it’s their incredible pitching that is bringing in the results and they’re 4-0 in one-run games. Union has the league’s best RD thanks to that 31-3 win, but they’re looking good on the whole. Mercury has great defense and they’re received excellent pitching from Greenhorn John Watson (6-2, 2.22 ERA, 6 K).

UPSTATE N.Y. – Upstate being a mess after May just feels right. Of the four teams tied for top spot Syracuse looks the best, as they have the highest RD (+51) and they’ve played 10/17 games away from home. Frontier’s best batsman, CF George Whaley, is struggling, so if/when he comes around they’ll be dangerous as well.

COASTAL – Newark has top spot thanks to a quality offense and incredible pitching from John Ratican (8-2, 1.04 ERA, 37 K). However, Quaker St. and their top-five attack, led by new RF William Wimple, is right behind them, and Pt. Jersey has adjusted extremely well to life without George Burroughs, with new #1 Charles King pitching well and Monroe Munson going 6-1 (2.43 ERA).

INLAND – Susquehanna’s record-breaking offense scored an astounding 12.2 RUNS PER GAME during May, making it a surprise they lost any games at all. It feels blatantly unfair that such an offense is backed up with William Hawk’s pitching (9-0, 1.57 ERA, 30 K). Still, Pioneer and Lake Erie are both playing excellently, with both teams’ attacks in the N.B.B.O.’s top ten overall.

NEW ENGLAND – Not surprisingly, Portland’s 14-3 mark has occurred thanks to the work of their two new five-star pitchers. However, James Dressen & Francis Molinari have also been backed up by the N.B.B.O.’s fifth-best defense. S.o.t.O. is two games back even though star 1B Jesse Craig is struggling (.288, .691 OPS), so expect an exciting two-way pennant chase at the very least.

N.B.B.O. MONTHLY AWARDS

BATSMEN OF THE MONTH
NYL: Chester Alexander (2B, SYR) – .417, .981 OPS, 34 R, 35 H, 6 XBH, 1 HR, 30 RBI, 7 BB, 2 SB, 1.4 WPA, 1.0 WAR
NEL: William Wimple (RF, QS) – .429, 1.107 OPS, 21 R, 33 H, 10 XBH, 1 HR, 17 RBI, 4 BB, 4 SB, 1.4 WPA, 1.2 WAR

PITCHERS OF THE MONTH
NYL: Edward Koch (UNI) – 7-2, 2.52 ERA, 7 K, 85.2 IP, 9 CG, 0.8 K/BB, 1.26 WHIP, 1.5 WAR, 2.9 rWAR
NEL: John Ratican (NEW) – 8-2, 1.04 ERA, 37 K, 86.1 IP, 8 CG, 1 SV, 18.5 K/BB, 0.88 WHIP, 3.0 WAR, 3.5 rWAR

GREENHORNS OF THE MONTH
NYL: John Hanson (3B, MIN) – .405, .983 OPS, 24 R, 30 H, 7 2B, 2 3B, 12 RBI, 3 BB, 1 SB, 1.0 WPA, 0.9 WAR
NEL: Ernest Taylor (1B, PIO) – .383, .955 OPS, 19 R, 23 H, 5 2B, 2 3B, 17 RBI, 4 BB, 1 SB, 0.9 WPA, 0.8 WAR

N.B.B.O. STATISTICAL LEADERS

Average: .468 by Julius Tierney (LF, Star)
OPS: 1.107 by William Wimple (RF, Quaker St.)
Home Runs: 2 by three different batsmen
Runs Batted In: 31 by David Bertolet (3B, Syracuse)
Runs: 34 by Chester Alexander (2B, Syracuse)
Stolen Bases: 16 by three different batsmen
Batsman WPA: 2.4 by Henry Nabors (SS, Victory)
Batsman WAR: 1.4 by Ben Gagliardi (SS, Atlantic) & Louis Murray (LF, Eckford)

Wins: 9 by William Hawk (Susquehanna)
ERA (50+ IP): 1.04 by John Ratican (Newark)
Strikeouts: 38 by Earl Quinn (Maryland)
Complete Games: 9 by Edward Koch (Union)
WHIP (50+ IP): 0.88 by John Ratican
Pitcher WAR: 3.0 by John Ratican
Pitcher rWAR: 3.7 by William Hawk

P.C.B.L. LEADERS

EAST: Keystone at 13-4 (Spartan 2 GB; Frankford, Pt. Richmond, & Queen Village 4 GB)
WEST: Philadelphia B.C.C. at 12-5 (Overbrook, Mercantile, & Germantown 3 GB)

EAST – For the first time in a long time, it looks as if the race for the East Philadelphia pennant is wide open. James Harris has been excellent as Frankford’s new LF, which means their offense has lost little after the departure of Joseph Evans. However, Spartan’s league-leading offensive attack and Keystone’s 6-0 record in one-run games have those two teams in the top two spots with Frankford tied for third.

WEST – P.B.C.C. started 4-3 but then ended May on an 8-2 run, and they already find themselves several games in front of the West Philadelphia competition. They don’t have the league’s best Run Differential (+33; SPA +44) so they’re not as dominant-looking as they were last year, but Robert Benson looks fantastic and their defense remains the league’s best. It’s too early to say the others are competing for second place, but P.B.C.C. again appears to be a level above everyone else.

P.C.B.L. MONTHLY AWARDS

BATSMAN OF THE MONTH
George Oman (RF, SCH) – .408, 1.030 OPS, 19 R, 31 H, 8 XBH, 1 HR, 13 RBI, 2 BB, 3 SB, 1.2 WPA, 1.0 WAR

PITCHER OF THE MONTH
Robert Benson (PBCC) – 8-2, 1.40 ERA, 14 K, 83.2 IP, 8 CG, 1.6 K/BB, 1.14 WHIP, 1.2 WAR, 1.8 rWAR

GREENHORN OF THE MONTH
George Oman (RF, SCH) – Philadelphia City Baseball League Batsman of the Month

P.C.B.L. STATISTICAL LEADERS

Average: .471 by Wallace Liston (C, Pt. Richmond)
OPS: 1.030 by George Oman (RF, Schuylkill)
Home Runs: 1 by 27 different batsmen
Runs Batted In: 24 by three different batsmen
Runs: 28 by James Harris (LF, Frankford)
Stolen Bases: 14 by Wilbur Woods (CF, Yorktown)
Batsman WPA: 2.6 by James Howard (RF, Frankford)
Batsman WAR: 1.3 by Sigmund Siemens (RF, Germantown)

Wins: 9 by James Kilgore (Spartan)
ERA (50+ IP): 1.40 by Robert Benson (P.B.C.C.)
Complete Games: 8 by Robert Benson
Strikeouts: 26 by Richard Sutherland (Germantown)
WHIP (150+ IP): 1.08 by Arthur Lipscomb (P.B.C.C.)
Pitcher WAR: 1.8 by Jonathan Clegg (Pt. Richmond)
Pitcher rWAR: 2.1 by Arthur Lipscomb