Baseball in Boston -- 1901 & Beyond

[OmahaBaseball]

The month of April is completed and the city of Boston has much to root for with both teams leading their respective leagues. In the American League, the Boston Americans (20-8) maintain a 3 game lead over the Baltimore Orioles. In the National League, the Boston Beaneaters (20-8) have a 2 game lead over the New York Giants and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

[OmahaBaseball]

Detroit Tigers 1st baseman Charlie Hickman is having a great sophomore season. For his efforts, Hickman was named the American League Batter of the Month for April 1902. On the month, he batted .368 (43 for 117) with 8 Doubles, 2 Triples, 3 Home Runs, 18 Runs, and 20 RBIs good for a slash line of .368/.379/.547; 170 OPS+ and 1.4 WAR.

[OmahaBaseball]

New York Giants outfielder Elmer Flick is by no means the biggest guy on the field, but he came up big this month. In being named the National League Batter of the Month, Flick had a .378 batting average (42 for 111) with 6 Doubles, 3 Triples, 24 Runs, 18 RBIs, and 20 Stolen bases in 24 attempts. A slash line of .378/.440/.486 generated a 171 OPS+ and 1.9 WAR for April 1902.

[OmahaBaseball]

There is no question that Baltimore Orioles ace Christy Mathewson is among the best in the game; his efforts in April 1902 back that up. On the month, Mathewson went 6-1 with a 2.62 ERA (122 ERA+) good for a 1.4 WAR to take home American League Pitcher of the Month honors.

[OmahaBaseball]

Pete Dowling is a fan favorite of the Beaneaters' fans for his colorful personality and winning ways. The southpaw gave the fans another reason to root for him, as Dowling took home National League Pitcher of the Month honors. In picking up the award, Dowling went 5-1 with a 1.18 ERA (269 ERA+) for 1.0 WAR.

[OmahaBaseball]

After a controversial beginning to his career (failed to sign after the Philadelphia Athletics drafted him, signed as free agent with the Tigers), Bob Ewing has seemingly settled in just fine. For his efforts (4-2 record, 1.33 ERA, 239 ERA+, 1.7 WAR), Ewing was named American League Rookie of the Month.

[OmahaBaseball]

The New York Giants hoped that picking 3rd overall in the recent draft would provide them with a top-quality player. Charlie Smith is quickly establishing that the team made the right choice. In earning April 1902 National League Rookie of the Month, Smith went 6-1 with a 2.30 ERA, 128 ERA+, and 0.8 WAR.

[OmahaBaseball]

A great way for the Boston Americans (20-8) to start off the season! Boston is getting solid hitting and finding a way to get on base (currently leading the American League in OBP, WAR, wOBA, Runs Scored, and Walks). Likewise, the Americans' starting rotation is dominating the opposition, as they currently lead the AL in ERA, Hits Allowed, Opponents AVG, and BABIP. Add in some great base running and solid defense, and they sit in 1st place.

[OmahaBaseball]

April 1902 batting stats for the Boston American players; filtered by AB. A few notable items that standout for me:

The transition to catcher for Frank Chance has been outstanding (.350/.420/.437; 1.5 WAR) and offseason acquisition Chick Stahl has settled into his outfield role and putting up nice batting stats (.340/.431/.440; 1.1 WAR). I am disappointed with the output I am getting from Jiggs Donahue at 1st base (.220/.276/.220; -0.2 WAR) and John Farrell at 2nd base (.233/.303/.267; 0.8 WAR). I need to find playing time for my 1st round draft pick Homer Smoot (.467/.556/.667; 0.6 WAR).

[OmahaBaseball]

I am very happy with the starting rotation. I figured that I would get strong pitching from Noodles Hahn (4-2, 1.67 ERA, 1.6 WAR) and Cy Young (4-3, 2.39 ERA, 1.1 WAR), but was concerned that the ratings hits to Jesse Tannehill would be too severe (6-1, 2.76, 0.7 WAR) and that Sam Leever (4-1, 2.58 ERA, 1.3 WAR) would not be much of an upgrade over Fred Klobedanz.

Thankfully Hahn and Young have performed, Tannehill is somehow getting wins despite talent impact, and Leever is off to a fine start for the team. The bullpen has been a little shaky, but given the time period, relievers are used so infrequently that I don't anticipate any major adverse impact.

[OmahaBaseball]

Pitcher Dick Cogan of the Eugene Lumberjacks (Boston's AA affiliate) was named the Pitcher of the Month after putting up a 4-0 record with 2 saves and a 0.57 ERA.

[OmahaBaseball]

Received word of a nice development update for Homer Smoot. With improvements to contact and eye ratings, good things appear to lay in store for Boston's rookie outfielder. The challenge now will be to find Smoot playing time in a crowded Americans outfield!

[OmahaBaseball]

Minetto Hornets (Philadelphia's AAA affiliate) pitcher Fred Klobedanz tossed the first no-hitter in minor-league history! The former Boston American starter, despite demotion to the minors, continues to pitch well when called upon. On the season, Klobedanz has a 4-0 record with a 2.20 ERA in 40.2 innings of work, good for a 144 ERA+ and 0.8 WAR.

[OmahaBaseball]

In an attempt to find the right cadence with my posts, I am switching from a series recap approach to a monthly recap. I will continue to spotlight game performance, players of the week, achievements, transactions, etc...

***Actually, the monthly recap was a terrible idea so moving forward will be game by game

[OmahaBaseball]

A nice month for the Boston Americans, with the team going 23-6 (.793%) to maintain its lead in the American League. Four (4) series sweeps and winning streaks of 7 games and 5 games (x2) put the team in solid position. An overall season record of 23-5 (.821%) at home is impressive, but it likely unstainable. A 6-4 record in the last 10 games may be a sign of things to come.

At the plate, the Americans rank at the top in Runs Scored, OBP, WAR, Runs Scored, and Walks, and rank 2nd in Batting Average, Slugging %, On-Base+Slugging, and wOBA. Not to be outdone, the starting rotation is locked in as they lead in ERA, Runs Allowed, Hits Allowed, Opponents AVG, and BAPIP.

In the field and on the bases, Boston leads in Stolen Bases, Base Running, Defensive Efficiency, and Zone Rating. While limited, there are a few areas where they did not excel: Home Runs, Bullpen ERA, and Home Runs Allowed.

[OmahaBaseball]

Boston player batting stats sorted by at-bats. Another nice hitting month for Frank Chance (.337/.395/.436; 15.4 Runs Created for a 153 wRC+), but it was Fred Clarke (.330/.397/.450; 19.3 Runs Created for a 157 wRC+) who put up the best slash line. Dave Brain (1.8 WAR) and Chick Stahl (16.4 Runs Created) also had a solid month at the plate. In contrast, Jiggs Donahue (.256/.277/.322; 8.0 Runs Created for a 76 wRC+) and Bill Lange (.246/.310/.305; 10.7 Runs Created for a 82 wRC+) struggled at the plate.

In the May 25th game against the Washington Senators, Fred Clarke tied an American League record by smacking 3 doubles during the win (4 for 4, 3 RBIs). During the month, there were several batters who received Player of the Game honors:

Dave Brain    (Season: #2 / Career: #2)
Frank Chance  (Season: #3 / Career: #4)
Jiggs Donahue (Season: #1 / Career: #1)
John Farrell  (Season: #1 / Career: #3)

[OmahaBaseball]

Much of the Americans' success is rooted in the outstanding starting pitching they have gotten from Noodles Hahn, Jesse Tannehill, Cy Young, and Sam Leever. While Hahn (6-2, 1.48 ERA, 1.6 WAR) continues to shine as the ace of the team, the welcomed solid performance from Tannehill (6-1, 1.80 ERA, 1.2 WAR) and Leever (5-2, 1.56 ERA, 1.0 WAR) has sure helped the team's fortunes. Though Young is starting to show his age, getting a 6-0 record and 1.4 WAR is something I will take at every opportunity possible.

I would note that during the May 8th loss to the Tigers, Sam Leever tied a Boston record with 8 walks during his rough outing (Game Score of 7). The pitching staff who earned Player of the Game honors during the month were:

Noodles Hahn    (Season: #10 / Career: #35) 
Jesse Tannehill (Season:  #9 / Career: #30) 
Sam Leever      (Season:  #8 / Career:  #8) 
Cy Young        (Season:  #6 / Career: #23)

[OmahaBaseball]

During the month, I triggered two (2) new in-game achievements for the Boston Americans:

The first achievement was Fred Clarke's 32 consecutive game on-base streak. Jesse Tannehill's 10 game winning streak unlocked the second achievement. While not new, I had repeat achievements of "Quality Outings" (Noodles Hahn, 10 game streak) and "Going Streaking" (Cy Young, 22 scoreless innings).

[OmahaBaseball]

Received word from lead scout Dave Radovanovic of the discovery of 2nd baseman Ernesto Urrutia. Hailing from Dominican Republic, Urrutia is projecting as a decent contact hitter with some speed. It will be fun to see how he develops.

[OmahaBaseball]

I submitted my All-Star ballot for the upcoming classic. I tried not to let my favoritism for the Boston Americans creep into my selections too much, but did end up voting for four (4) players from the team: Hahn, Chance, Clarke, and Stahl.