The Bucs Start Here - A Pirates Do-Over

[luckymann]

A season that has arguably been our most consistent and least complicated reverses itself a bit in both of these regards down the stretch.

Once again, we look to be cruising with a 7-game win streak early in September. But then our form and luck turn somewhat against us and things become a bit of a struggle. Although neither are serious nor long-term, injuries to Train and Charlie come just at the least opportune moment. We give Walter a precautionary IL stint, but opt to try and nurse Oscar through his.

All the while our comfortable lead becomes decidedly less so as the Braves inch closer. Then Cobb and Marcell both pick up niggles. Again, nothing serious but certainly putting our depth to a stern test, and I’m suddenly thankful for my “umbrellas on a sunny day” philosophy of roster management.

A 4-day break toward the end of the month comes in very handy, but really it is a testament to the heart of this group that we steady and clinch our 6th straight NL Pennant and 11th overall with roughly a week to spare. We end the season with a 94-60 record.

This allows us to sit back and watch the AL race – which, and this is saying something – is perhaps the tightest we’ve seen. The Browns and Sens are never separated by more than a game down the stretch, with their results more often than not mirroring each other—loss for loss, win for win.

Entering the final week, the two sides are tied at 88-59. Sadly, for the neutrals at least, they are not scheduled to face each other again. That would have been some series.

It matters not, as they remain joined at the hip like the Bunker brothers for the remainder.

On the next-to-last day, the Sens lead by a half-game with their MN at 2. Both win tight affairs, meaning a Browns win the following day at home to the White Sox would force a tiebreaker. A 3-0 shutout win behind former Pirate farm player Jim Bagby keeps them alive and they go on to beat the Senators in Washington by 4 to 2 in a 10-inning game that has to be seen to be believed.



From what they’ve been put through these past few seasons, one can safely assume that the heart inside every Browns and Senators fan is twice as old as the rest of their body.

Here are the final stats for our group. Five of our regulars - Cobb, Charleston, Carey, Williams and Traynor - hit 300 or better, while Lundy misses that mark by just 3 points. Cooper is simply outstanding, winning 4 monthly awards and 29 games. A Waddell Medal would be a fitting end to his stellar campaign.







And here are the final standings, September awards and final leaders. Ty Cobb wins another batting title (his 8th, combined), while Heavy Johnson is king of the AL. He also extends his season record for HR to 30 and sets a new season record for SLG with 657, with Elmer Smith belting 19 in the time he is with the Yanks. His teammate the Babe has 17 and it seems that, for as long as he continues to be required for two-way duty, his offensive numbers will suffer a bit. That said, he slashes 378/499/648 while driving in a career-high 83 and scoring 94 - good for 7.6 batting WAR to go with the 4.0 he earns as a pitcher. Bob Meusel, the third member of their outfield, puts in arguably the best rookie season in history, driving in 126 runs with 15 HR and a BA of 342. One would think it only a matter of time before that franchise begins to dominate this league, as it did IRL.





In MiLB news, while the Austin Senators take the ALAAA easily, our farm club Wilkes-Barre stages a mighty late charge in the NLAAA, only to come up a game short behind the Syracuse Chiefs, who would go on to win the inaugural AAA World Series 3 games to 2.


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[luckymann]

Pittsburgh Pirates (94-60) v St. Louis Browns (93-62)

Best-of-nine, Pirates with the home-field advantage.

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ST. LOUIS BROWNS S+ PAGE

As I am sure you’re aware, this makes it three of the past four World Series in which these two teams meet. We know them as well as we know ourselves, it seems. Beating Joe Williams is still the key, but it is also as tough as ever. Spratt’s absence is a big one, no doubt, but the emergence of Elmer Ponder – who seemed to come out of nowhere – this season offsets that to a great deal, and gives them one of the best rotations in the game. They are strong everywhere, leading the AL in most offensive and pitching categories, and this should once again prove a massive challenge for our group.

[luckymann]

Game 1 in Pittsburgh, October 8th 1920
Walter Johnson (23-12, 3.07) v Elmer Ponder (29-10, 2.66)

Walter’s season was one of two halves, as he came out extremely strong but then – perhaps a sign of age –fell away quite a lot, going 5-5 down the stretch. So a cloud hangs over him here, especially against the red-hot Ponder who gets the nod because of Williams having to pitch in the tiebreaker. Elmer, according to our scouts, has some of the most pinpoint control they’ve seen, which means patience will be the name of the game here. There are rumours he has a little niggle as well, so we’ll have to see if that affects him in any way.

We go ahead in the 2nd on two hits and a Snyder SF and a Marcell RBI groundout doubles our lead. We waste a chance to go further ahead in the 4th when, after 2 errors by their 3B load the bases for us, we leave them that way. But we do add one in the next when Charleston triples and scores on a hit by Cobb.

Train gives up just a walk and a HBP thru 5 before his no-no bid is spoiled by a Sisler double in the 6th. A single to Mackey drives in their first run of the game. The lads hit back in the 7th as Williams plates one with a single and Lundy then Snyder do likewise to make it 6-1, chasing Ponder. Marcell greets his replacement with a long 2-run double to put us 7 clear and Train adds yet one more with a two-out single. In the process thereof, however, Williams is hurt and we’ll be sweating on word from the medical staff as to whether or not he’s done for the remainder.

Walter runs out of juice in the 8th so I go to the pen and Mamaux douses the threat. He gives us a scoreless 9th to close it out. Just the start we were after, Williams’ injury notwithstanding.

Pirates 9, Browns 1
BOX SCORE


Game 2 in Pittsburgh, October 9th 1920
Wilbur Cooper (29-10, 2.35) v Joe Williams (8-2, 1.85)
Pirates lead series 1-0

No doubt Wilbur was better last Series than previously, so we hope he’s got past those dark days. What a stunning year he has had and we need him to translate that into a strong showing here against the mighty Smoky Joe. No news on Williams but we fear the worst and Bigbee will start in LF in this one.

Things do not start well as he gives up a run on back-to-back doubles but we square it up in the home half with one on a Cobb groundout. It appears those dark days are still upon us as Cooper looks a completely different pitcher under playoff conditions and they tag him for 3 runs, with an error not helping matters.

Williams on the other hand, one of the best money pitchers the game has seen, is having no such difficulty as we have only one hit to our name thru 4. We make two more errors in the next inning and Cooper does well to keep his composure and not let them add to their lead. But the signs are not good here.

They pad their lead with one in the 7th and that is Wilbur done. What we saw tonight is the difference between a great regular season pitcher and a great pitcher, full stop, I’m afraid.
The lads rally for a run in the home half of that inning, singled in by Traynor. Then Carey makes it 5-3 with another RBI single.

In the 9th, we get the tying runs aboard with two out but Williams gets Charleston to harmlessly ground out and they take the win.

Browns 5, Pirates 3
BOX SCORE


Game 3 in Pittsburgh, October 10th 1920
Jose Leblanc (15-8, 3.41) v Urban Shocker (26-14, 2.83)
Series tied 1-1

Count went 8 and 3 for us after the trade but his losses were ugly and inconsistency is his main flaw. We are unlikely to have the luxury of a poor one from him tonight with Shocker up for them, who is one of the league’s most dependable hurlers as a rule. Williams will take no further part, a huge blow for us, but there’s nothing to be done about it so we just have to get on with things without him. Mid-season FA signing Amos Strunk, who spent the year at AAA, gets the call up. Mixing things up a bit in this one, with Baker in at 1B, Charlie to CF and Scoops to LF.

Charleston has been quiet so far but gets us going here when he triples in the 1st and scores on a Cobb single. We add a second in the next on a Traynor double and Leblanc singles him in. An infield hit to Carey and a Charleston walk load the bases for Cobb, who duly singles one in, then Snyder wipes them clean with a two-out double to make it 7-0. That ends Shocker’s night and makes my earlier statement seem foolish as all get-up. It happens.

After 6 strong one-hit innings, Leblanc loses his way in the 7th as they pound him for three extra base hits on the trot. When he gives up another hit and then walks them loaded, I hook him. Mamaux comes in and does superbly to allow just one of those to score. But we are looking very shaky.

Baker steadies the ship with a big solo moonshot in the home half and then Cobb all but ends it with a 2-run bomb in the 8th.
Mamaux retires all 8 he faces and we head to St. Louis up 2-1.

Pirates 10, Browns 3
BOX SCORE


Game 4 in St. Louis, October 12th 1920
Elmer Ponder (0-1, 11.37) v Walter Johnson (1-0, 1.17)
Pirates lead series 2-1
A win here would put us in a really strong position, so hopefully Train can keep things going from Game 1. Consistency has, after all, been Walter’s bugbear this year.

And he starts dreadfully here, giving up hits to the first three he faces and before we know it we are down by 4.

No-one has come out to play today, it seems, as Traynor throws one away and they add another run to their lead. Two more in the 4th renders this a no-contest and we eventually lose 7-2.

A forgettable game in every respect.

Browns 7, Pirates 2
BOX SCORE


Game 5 in St. Louis, October 13th 1920
Joe Williams (1-0, 2.00) v Wilbur Cooper (0-1, 3.86)
Series tied 2-2

It gets tricky for us here as we need Wilbur to somehow get himself over the hump and give us some chance of beating Williams. Charleston and Lundy simply must inject themselves into things, as both have been ineffectual to this point.

We get men on in each of the first three innings but can’t convert them into runs. Cooper starts strongly, retiring the first 11 he faces.

Still scoreless after 5, Charleston comes alive in the top 6th with a 2-run homer to put us in front.

We keep pushing but lack that key hit and it takes two errors in the 8th for us to pad our lead. We load the bases and Charlie comes through again for us, doubling in a pair to make it 5-0, but then leave two more in scoring position from none out to three.

Thankfully it doesn’t matter as Wilbur chases the ghosts away with a magnificent 3-hit shutout.

Pirates 5, Senators 0
BOX SCORE


Game 6 in St. Louis, October 14th 1920
Urban Shocker (0-1, 37.80) v Jose Leblanc (1-0, 4.50)
Pirates lead series 3-2

Obviously we’ve had no problems putting down good performances so far in this series. It is our lack of consistency that has handcuffed us to this point, and that part of our game will get a stern test today. No chance of us getting another shocker from Urban (sorry, been keeping that one in my pocket for a while now...) and as I mentioned Jose has struggled to string good form together. So we are primed for a fall today if we let it happen. The key is not to. Easterly in at catcher today to give Snyder a rest.

They open the scoring with one in the 2nd and we waste a Cobb triple in the 4th as our bats once again retreat into their shells.

A Lundy error in the 6th paves the way for them to add to their lead with an unearned run, but that sparks our offence to life as we respond with one on a Baker single. Another error in the 8th by Easterly gifts them another run and yet again we are our own worst enemy with a pretty dire performance as we go down meekly in the 9th, wasting an excellent effort by Leblanc.

Browns 3, Pirates 1
BOX SCORE


Game 7 in St. Louis, October 15h 1920
Earl Hamilton (6-10, 4.75) v Dutch Ruether (7-7, 2.95)
Series tied 3-3

Pitching depth becomes the key here as the focus turns to each side’s SP4. Ruether was good in patches, bad in others. His role today is to keep us close; Hamilton is a trickier proposition than his seasonal stats suggest, especially given we are a lesser side with bat in hand against southpaws.

We score first in this one, as a single in the 4th by Traynor brings one home and another comes in on a Wood groundout. An error by their 2B Collins gives us an extra out and we use it well as Carey singles one more in.

The tension is heightened by a half-hour rain delay following the 4th, and when the game resumes another Browns error gifts us another run to make it 4-0. Wood then singles one in and Ruether another, with one more thrown out at the plate.
We keep things ticking along nicely in the next as Charlie singles and Cobb triples him home, ending Hamilton’s game. An RBI single by Lundy puts us 8 in front and Traynor makes it 9 when he singles Lundy in with two out.

Ruether, with his knuckler working well, has only given up 3 hits to this point, but they get to him with a pair and I get the hook ready. It comes out in the 7th when he gives up singles to the first two he faces, with Richter getting the call and doing brilliantly to keep them from scoring.

We lose Traynor to injury in the 8th (they have also lost Tobin and Mackey in the course of this game, so it will be interesting to see how that affects the rest of the series) and Krause replaces Richter on the hill. He has been a liability all year and struggles again here before recovering to only concede one run. He gets into trouble again before Drucke comes in to lock it down.

Pirates 9, Browns 3
BOX SCORE


Game 8 in Pittsburgh, October 17th 1920
Walter Johnson (1-1, 4.61) v Joe Williams (1-1, 2.00)
Pirates lead series 4-3

Traynor’s injury is only serious enough to keep him out of the rest of the series, but he will be greatly missed. Ernie Johnson comes in to replace him in the squad, while Bernie Friberg will start in this game. Both of their guys under injury clouds are right to play.

The biggest question in the lead-up to this game was whether or not they’d deploy Williams and, in the end, they have decided to. This sets up a dream head-to-head with The Big Train. It makes little difference to our mindset, we always thought we would have to beat him one more time to get it done. For Walter to achieve this he will have to be greatly improved on his two previous starts.

Both of them wobble a bit early but use their game smarts to keep from any runs being conceded.

It remains scoreless until the home 5th, when a walk and a HBP put men aboard and Friberg singles one of them in to give us the lead.

Neither of these legendary warriors is at their best, but they keep going places mere mortals do not have to keep it at 1-0 thru 6 then 7 then 7 ½...

We get an insurance run in the 8th on a two-out single by Snyder. Then Baker gets a clutch 2-run single to make it 4-0. A double by Marcell adds yet another and I’ve seen few more poignant things than Smoky Joe Williams taking his leave of this game, apparently beaten.

You know they weren’t going down quietly, and McHenry leads off the 9th with a long double. Train gets Tobin to pop out to short and then Bassler is the second out, with the runner moving to third. A flyout to Carey in LF gets Train a much-deserved shutout and gets us our 6th Championship.

Pirates 5, Browns 0
BOX SCORE

PITTSBURGH WINS SERIES 5-3
SERIES MVP: Ty Cobb (Pittsburgh)





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[luckymann]

We exercise the options on Ken Willams’ and Frank Baker’s contracts, but not so Ted Easterly. Ted has been fantastic for us but we’ve plenty of coverage at his position now and he really struggled this year. Smoky Joe Wood doesn’t meet the vesting criteria for his contract, but we want to keep him for a few more years and offer him a 2+2 deal which he accepts a week or so later. Quite a few of our Wilkes-Barre group are up for FA and I offer MiLB extensions to those we’re interested in keeping. We'll need to top up in the market, after we see what we get in the Draft.

Plenty of blood on the walls after this season with the Red Sox (Jason Rohrbaugh), White Sox (Danny Cota), Tigers (John O’Brien), Cubs (Bill Shettsline) and Giants (Joe Weber) all going in new directions with their managers.

No retirees of note for once.

[luckymann]

AL 1920 HISTORY INDEX

NL 1920 HISTORY INDEX


AWARDS HISTORY


Heavy Johnson wins his 3rd WLM and Rajah his 2nd. Wilbur deservedly is the unanimous pick for the NL Waddell, with Dick Redding winning his first in the junior circuit. Bob Meusel is the AL RoY, while Boston's John Sullivan wins it in the NL.

Sim all green.

[luckymann]

I like winning, don't get me wrong, but this is as much about replicating the history of the game in new and interesting ways as it is about my own success with the Bucs. I know from personal experience threads like these tend to get a bit monotonous if the team being controlled by the author wins year-in, year-out.

Not too much wiggle-room at the moment for increasing the difficulty. Salaries don't really cause any grief just yet, so no point in cutting our budget, although that will undoubtedly happen down the track. I need the scouting where it is to keep track of the NeL players. Trading is already at the toughest combination.

All that really leaves me with is to self-impose further limits on my roster moves. So until further notice I am now only allowed to make 3 trades per calendar year, down from 5 previously. Additionally, I am permitted only 2 major-league FA purchases each season.

Let's see how that goes. With the Yanks on the way up and the Cards still expected to come into their own sooner rather than later, I may be able to flip these back in a few years. I hope so, for that will mean the league has become truly competitive.

[luckymann]

Held on 12/20/1920.

Just 3 Legacies this time around, but plenty of unassigned talent up for grabs as well.

These are the Legacy Players for the 1921 season:

Cincinnati Reds: Pete Donohue (18.8; 316)
Philadelphia Athletics: Bing Miller (29.5; 1361)
Washington Senators: Goose Goslin (66.4; 1361)

Ray Kolp (14.0; 255) was also eligible for the Reds, but Donohue’s higher WAR makes him the selection.

There are 137 rookies for this season, and the Draft will consist of 7 rounds.

The Draft order will be as follows (winning percentage from 1920 IRL season in brackets; bold indicates Legacy Pick in 1st Round):

Round 1

1. Washington Senators (447)
2. Philadelphia Athletics (312)
3. Cincinnati Reds (536)
4. Detroit Tigers (396)
5. Philadelphia Phillies (405)
6. Boston Braves (408)
7. Boston Red Sox (471)
8. St. Louis Cardinals (487; DICE ROLL)
9. Chicago Cubs (487; DICE ROLL)
10. St. Louis Browns (497)
11. Pittsburgh Pirates (513)
12. New York Giants (558)
13. Brooklyn Robins (604)
14. New York Yankees (617)
15. Chicago White Sox (623)
16. Cleveland Indians (636)

Rounds 2 thru 6

1. Philadelphia Athletics (312)
2. Detroit Tigers (396)
3. Philadelphia Phillies (405)
4. Boston Braves (408)
5. Washington Senators (447)
6. Boston Red Sox (471)
7. St. Louis Cardinals (487; DICE ROLL)
8. Chicago Cubs (487; DICE ROLL)
9. St. Louis Browns (497)
10. Pittsburgh Pirates (513)
11. Cincinnati Reds (536)
12. New York Giants (558)
13. Brooklyn Robins (604)
14. New York Yankees (617)
15. Chicago White Sox (623)
16. Cleveland Indians (636)


No Legacy for us and, with our position player group very much set up, we will be hunting pitchers this Draft. I know who my preferred guy is, fingers crossed he is still on the loose by the time our pick rolls around.

Here’s who we end up selecting:

1. P Sam Streeter, 20

• We get our man, a great-looking southpaw who will probably do a wee bit of tuning up at Wilkes-Barre before getting the call-up.

2. P Cliff Bell, 24

• Cliff was #5 on our wishlist, but those ahead of him got snapped up. No world-beater but will prove a handy fallback should the kaka collide with the cooling device.

3. P Garland Braxton, 20

• Were there any decent enough to consider, I would have preferred to take a position player with this pick. But there weren’t.

4. SS Frank Callaway, 22
5. C Astyanax Douglass, 23

• Purely AAA filler from this point on.

6. P Sarge Connally, 22
7. P Carl Holling, 24

• Scout’s picks.

FULL DRAFT LOG

[Brad K]

Nice to see a Pirates series win.

[luckymann]

Two pretty tight races as the Yanks see off the defending World Champion Indians by 4 games to lock down the franchise’s first AL Pennant and the Giants come from behind to overtake the Pirates and eventually take the NL by a similar margin. The upstarts push their more established rivals in the first-ever “Subway Series” (actually, more like “Polo Grounds Series”, given both played their games there) but come up short, as the Jints win it in 8.

AL CHAMPIONS: New York Yankees (98-55)
NL CHAMPIONS: New York Giants (94-59)
WORLD SERIES: Giants 5, Yankees 3

Top Ten Lists (courtesy of thisgreatgame.com)

NL Hitters

1. ROGERS HORNSBY, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: 154 games, .397 average, 131 runs, 235 hits, 44 doubles, 18 triples, 21 home runs, 126 RBIs, .458 on-base percentage, .639 slugging percentage.
• Hornsby slumped in the final weeks to miss becoming the NL’s first .400 hitter since 1899; he’d get a few more shots in later years.

2. FRANKIE FRISCH, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .341 average, 121 runs, 211 hits, 31 doubles, 17 triples, 8 home runs, 100 RBIs, 49 stolen bases.
• In a Giants lineup loaded with explosive performances, none was perhaps more nitro than Frisch in his first full season.

3. AUSTIN MCHENRY, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: .350 average, 201 hits, 37 doubles, 8 triples, 17 home runs, 102 RBIs.
• A breakout star, McHenry’s promising path to stardom would be cut tragically short a year later by a deadly brain tumor.

4. JACK FOURNIER, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: .343 average, 103 runs, 197 hits, 27 doubles, 9 triples, 16 home runs, 86 RBIs, 8 hit-by-pitches.
• Hornsby’s content Cardinals teammate was settling quite nicely into the live ball era, jumping his home run total from three the year before.

5. ROSS YOUNGS, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .327 average, 24 doubles, 16 triples, 102 RBIs, 70 walks, 21 stolen bases.
• The exciting Giants outfielder, never to be confused for a slugger even in live times, surpassed 100 RBIs for the only time in his career.

6. GEORGE KELLY, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .308 average, 95 runs, 181 hits, 42 doubles, 9 triples, 23 home runs, 122 RBIs.
• The home run total for the man nicknamed High Pockets was all that separated Rogers Hornsby (above) from a triple crown.

7. IRISH MEUSEL, PHILADELPHIA-NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .343 average, 96 runs, 201 hits, 33 doubles, 14 triples, 14 home runs, 87 RBIs.
• Though he accumulated better numbers in Philadelphia than New York (hitting .353 with 12 home runs in 84 games for the Phillies), Meusel was happy to trade stats for wins as the Giants sprung to a NL pennant.

8. DAVE BANCROFT, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .318 average, 121 runs, 193 runs, 26 doubles, 15 triples, 66 walks.
• One of the Giants’ many recent steals from the depths of the second division, Bancroft was beginning to equal his graceful defensive talent with that of his bat.

9. EDD ROUSH, CINCINNATI

• Key Numbers: 112 games, .352 average, 27 doubles, 12 triples, 71 RBIs, 19 stolen bases.
• A series of leg injuries curtailed Roush’s participation, but he still turned in a career-high batting average.

10. ZACK WHEAT, BROOKLYN

• Key Numbers: .320 average, 182 hits, 31 doubles, 10 triples, 14 home runs, 85 RBIs.
• All of this from the Brooklyn fan favorite who the Robins wanted to trade, because owner Charles Ebbets felt he’d been around “too long”; a contract dispute was behind it all.

AL Hitters

1. BABE RUTH, BOSTON

• Key Numbers: .376 average, 158 runs, 172 hits, 36 doubles, 9 triples, 54 home runs, 135 RBIs, 150 walks, .532 on-base percentage, .847 slugging percentage.
• The second chapter of the Bambino’s monster act showed that he was still a good 10 years ahead of everyone else.

2. HARRY HEILMANN, DETROIT

• Key Numbers: .394 average, 114 runs, 237 hits, 43 doubles, 14 triples, 19 home runs, 139 RBIs.
• Heilmann barely fell below .400, but he did outhit his tutor, first-year Tigers manager Ty Cobb, to become the AL’s first right-handed batting leader since 1905.

3. TY COBB, DETROIT

• Key Numbers: 128 games, .389 average, 124 runs, 197 hits, 37 doubles, 16 triples, 12 home runs, 101 RBIs, 22 stolen bases.
• Live-ball fever caught up to the Georgia Peach, whose home run totals entered double-digit territory for the first time—but it didn’t compromise his batting average, which placed him second in the AL behind Harry Heilmann.

4. GEORGE SISLER, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: .371 average, 125 runs, 216 hits, 38 doubles, 18 triples, 12 home runs, 104 RBIs, 35 stolen bases.
• A .371 average only comes off as okay when you have someone like Sisler hitting .407 the year before and .420 the year after.

5. KEN WILLIAMS, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: .347 average, 115 runs, 190 hits, 31 doubles, 24 home runs, 117 RBIs, 74 walks, 20 stolen bases.
• Playing in just his second full major league season at age 31, Williams late-bloomed into the emerging class of Babe Ruth wannabes—but a pretty good one at that.

6. BOB MEUSEL, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: .318 average, 104 runs, 190 hits, 40 doubles, 16 triples, 24 home runs, 135 RBIs, 88 strikeouts.
• Were it not for Ruth’s presence, sophomore Yankee star Meusel might have been considered the AL’s premier slugger.

7. BOBBY VEACH, DETROIT

• Key Numbers: .338 average, 110 runs, 207 hits, 43 doubles, 13 triples, 16 home runs, 128 RBIs.
• Veach joined Ty Cobb and Harry Heilmann to give the game one of its most potent outfields (combined average: .372).

8. TRIS SPEAKER, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: .362 average, 107 runs, 52 doubles, 14 triples, 75 RBIs, 68 walks.
• Spoke dangled with the .400 mark as he did numerous times throughout his career, hanging above it as late as July 9 before cooling off.

9. JACK TOBIN, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: .352 average, 671 at-bats, 132 runs, 236 hits, 31 doubles, 18 triples, 8 home runs.
• It’s hard to believe that Tobin’s 132 runs and 236 hits didn’t lead the league, but welcome to the live-ball era.

10. ELMER SMITH, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: .290 average, 98 runs, 28 doubles, 9 triples, 16 home runs, 85 RBIs, 56 walks.
• Smith set a career high in home runs a year before a trade to a devolving Red Sox team that left him fuming.

NL Pitchers

1. BURLEIGH GRIMES, BROOKLYN

• Key Numbers: 2.83 ERA, 22 wins, 13 losses, 302.1 innings, 30 complete games, 136 strikeouts, 28 caught stealing/picked off.
• In a year where the grandfathered spitballers ruled, Grimes was happily all wet while nabbing his long strikeout crown.

2. EPPA RIXEY, CINCINNATI

• Key Numbers: 2.78 ERA, 19 wins, 18 losses, 301 innings.
• A year after losing 22 at Philadelphia, the 6’5” Rixey was happy to skim over .500 with the Reds—allowing a NL record-low one home run over 300 innings.

3. BILL DOAK, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: 2.59 ERA, 15 wins, 6 losses.
• Doak soaked up the wet ball and won his second ERA title, seven years after his first.

4. WHITEY GLAZNER, PITTSBURGH

• Key Numbers: 2.77 ERA, 14 wins, 5 losses, .737 win percentage.
• A year of sole success for the 27-year-old rookie, who was 27-43 in four other big-league campaigns.

5. WILBUR COOPER, PITTSBURGH

• Key Numbers: 3.25 ERA, 22 wins, 14 losses, 38 starts, 327 innings, 27 grounded into double plays.
• On the other hand, Cooper continued to prove that he was the ace for the long term in Pittsburgh, ramping up to become the year’s busiest NL workhorse.

6. JOHNNY MORRISON, PITTSBURGH

• Key Numbers: 2.88 ERA, 9 wins, 7 losses, 3 shutouts.
• A Pittsburgh rookie like Glazner (above), Morrison differed in that he had a few more surprises in the years to come; he also likely became one of a handful of pitchers ever to lead a league in shutouts despite not throwing enough innings to qualify for an ERA title.

7. DOLF LUQUE, CINCINNATI

• Key Numbers: 3.38 ERA, 17 wins, 19 losses, 3 shutouts, 304 innings.
• There was no place like home for the Cuban-born Luque, who was 11-6 at then-spacious Crosley Field with a 2.59 ERA; he was 6-13 with a 4.50 mark on the road.

8. BABE ADAMS, PITTSBURGH

• Key Numbers: 2.64 ERA, 14 wins, 5 losses, .737 win percentage, 160 innings, 16 walks.
• A year away from turning 40, Adams turned in his last strong effort, leading the NL for the third straight season in opposing on-base percentage.

9. JOE OESCHGER, BOSTON

• Key Numbers: 3.52 ERA, 20 wins, 14 losses, 46 appearances, 299 innings, 97 walks, 15 hit-by-pitches.
• Historically grounded with awful teams, Oeschger soared toward fleeting success before crashing back to reality.

10. JESSE BARNES, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 3.10 ERA, 15 wins, 9 losses, 6 saves, 258.2 innings.
• Three Giants teammates won as many or more games than Barnes—but none of them were as efficient as he sported a decidedly lower ERA.

AL Pitchers

1. RED FABER, CHICAGO

• Key Numbers: 2.48 ERA, 25 wins, 15 losses, 32 complete games, 330.2 innings.
• The remnants of the post-Black Sox White Sox would had looked ever more tattered had it not been for Faber; the Chicago staff ERA was 5.78 without him.

2. CARL MAYS, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 3.05 ERA, 27 wins, 9 losses, .750 win percentage, 7 saves, 49 appearances, 336.2 innings.
• Only a hardened soul like Mays could channel all the anger aimed at him a year after fatally beaning Ray Chapman, and reign as baseball’s best non-spitballer.

3. WAITE HOYT, NEW YORK

• Key Numbers: 3.09 ERA, 19 wins, 13 losses, 282.1 innings.
• The 21-year-old breakout pitcher—a former Red Sock, of course—threw at his best when it mattered most; six of his 19 wins came against second-place Cleveland.

4. SAD SAM JONES, BOSTON

• Key Numbers: 3.22 ERA, 23 wins, 16 losses, 5 shutouts, 298.2 innings.
• Sad in name only, Jones was mostly happy on the road—where he was 15-3 as opposed to an 8-13 mark at Fenway Park.

5. STAN COVELESKI, CLEVELAND

• Key Numbers: 3.37 ERA, 23 wins, 13 losses, 40 starts, 315 innings.
• The Indians ace became only the second Cleveland pitcher (Addie Joss, 1905-08) to win 20-plus games in four consecutive seasons.

6. GEORGE MOGRIDGE, WASHINGTON

• Key Numbers: 3.00 ERA, 18 wins, 14 losses, 288 innings.
• With Walter Johnson struggling through a relative mid-career crisis, Mogridge developed as a temporary ace at Washington.

7. URBAN SHOCKER, ST. LOUIS

• Key Numbers: 3.55 ERA, 27 wins, 12 losses, 47 appearances, 326.2 innings.
• The spitballer set a still-standing Browns/Orioles season record for victories, with 14 of them coming in just the last two months alone.

8. BULLET JOE BUSH, BOSTON

• Key Numbers: 3.50 ERA, 16 wins, 9 losses.
• Like Sad Sam Jones (above), Bush committed the Red Sox sin of being too good; he’d be a Yankee in 1922.

9. WALTER JOHNSON, WASHINGTON

• Key Numbers: 3.51 ERA, 17 wins, 14 losses, 264 innings, 143 strikeouts.
• Rebounding from an injury-marred 8-10 campaign the year before, the Big Train posted his highest ERA yet—thank you, live ball—but did lead the AL in strikeouts for 10th time.

10. ERIC ERICKSON, WASHINGTON

• Key Numbers: 3.62 ERA, 8 wins, 10 losses.
• The majors’ second Swedish native (after Charlie Bold), Erickson never had a winning record over nine years in the bigs but makes the list because so few people managed to reach base against him relative to other AL pitchers.

[luckymann]

Originally Posted by Brad K

Nice to see a Pirates series win.

Too many of late, perhaps...

[luckymann]

... from the Retirement Class of '15 take their rightful places among the game's immortals.



Nap Lajoie




Honus Wagner




Eddie Plank

[luckymann]

Just the one FA signing for us:

P Ralph Comstock: 3 years, $7500

This proves most fortuitous as we lose Drucke in ST to a long-term injury and Mamaux has a serious dropoff in performance, to the point that he will be at AAA on OD.

The off-season market is a busy one:

• 2B Jim Viox: Reds, 5 years / $49500
• OF Elmer Smith: White Sox, 5 years / $43000
• 1B George Burns: Cubs, 5 years / $39500
• OF Braggo Roth: Tigers, 5 years / $38700
• OF Baby Doll Jacobson: Giants, 4 years / $32400 (extension)
• 2B Del Pratt: Phillies, 4 years / $30800
• P Erskine Mayer: Browns, 3 years / $15020
• P John Donaldson: Phillies, 3 years / $13420 (extension)
• OF Amos Strunk: Senators, 2 years / $11900
• OF Mike Menosky: Phillies, 3 years / $9780 (extension)
• SS Art Fletcher: White Sox, 1 year / $6700
• OF Ernie Walker: Browns, 2 years / $6320 (extension)
• P Les Backman: Senators, 3 year / $6180
• P Harry Suter: Robins, 1 year / $5900
• P Eddie Cicotte: Cubs, 1 year / $5700
• P Ray Collins: Senators, 2 years / $5280 (extension)
• 3B Dave Malarcher: Cardinals, 1 year / $5200 (extension)
• 3B Jim Doyle: Cubs, 1 year / $4900
• OF Casey Stengel: Robins, 1 year / $4820

• SS Chick Galloway and 1B Ivy Griffin from Red Sox to Indianss for P Stan Coveleski
• 1B Bob Jones from Reds to Phillies for P Alan Sothoron
• P Walter Anderson, 2B Marty Shay and C John Brock from White Sox to Cubs for 1B Rube Bressler
• 2B Jim Viox from Cubs to Phillies for OF Sammy Vick and OF Buzz Murphy
• OF Tillie Walker from the Tigers to the Cardinals for P Red Hoff and OF Babe Ellison
• P Jeff Tesreau and C Bubber Jonnard from the Giants to the Browns for P Bill Knowlton
• P Carl Zamloch and C Val Picinich from the Cubs to the Reds for P Fred Heimach

ALL TRANSACTIONS

A strong 14-4 for Spring Training and the lads look ready to go.

We are the experts’ tip in the NL but it will be close according to them. Same goes in the AL (of course), where the Red Sox are favoured ahead of a tightly bunched pack.

FULL PRESEASON PREDICTIONS

[luckymann]

Our team page can be accessed HERE. Here’s the annual summary.

Our Opening Day lineups will look like this:

Catchers

• C Frank Snyder (R)
• Bob O’Farrell (R)

Snyder has a breakout 1920 and O’Farrell should provide excellent backup duties here, with young Zack Taylor in the wings at AAA.

Infielders

• 1B Oscar Charleston (L)
• 2B Pie Traynor (R)
• 3B Oliver Marcell (R)
• SS Dick Lundy (S)

• Frank Baker (L)
• Possum Whitted (R)
• Lloyd Christenbury (L)
• Wally Gerber (R)
• Bernie Friberg (R)

While the talent throughout this group is undeniable, I have some concerns about our mix. We are – especially at shortstop – only a key injury away from losing our shape entirely, a situation worsened by a marked drop in Traynor’s defensive capabilities. So, if there’s a trade to be made, it will almost certainly be in this department.

Outfielders

• LF Ken Williams (L)
• CF Max Carey (S)
• RF Ty Cobb (L)

• Carson Bigbee (L)
• Smoky Joe Wood (R)

Williams’ health is the only main concern here – he is historically injury-prone, as we saw in last year’s Series. Quite a few of the infielders also play OF, which makes this a wee bit more tenable. Still, I'd hate to lose any of these three to long-term injuries.

Rotation

1. RHP Walter Johnson
2. LHP Wilbur Cooper
3. LHP Jose Leblanc
4. LHP Sam Streeter

Again, the frontline squad looks fantastic, with Streeter just projecting as a major talent, but our depth isn’t where I’d like it. So this will be another area where a trade may be necessary to bolster things. Mays looks all but gone after a couple serious injuries, which leaves only Krause, Ruether and draftee Cliff Bell as viable replacements.

Bullpen

• LHP Harry Krause
• LHP Dutch Reuther
• RHP Reggie Richter
• RHP Ralph Comstock

[luckymann]

Syracuse's Clint Thomas starts the 1921 AAA campaign with three bangs.



Amazingly, he does it again a week later...

[luckymann]

A huge loss for the Redbirds...

[luckymann]

A relatively uncomplicated start as the lads put together an 8-game win streak in the course of a 12-4 April.









S+ HOME

REPORTS HOME

PIRATES HOME

[luckymann]

The top 30 in this category currently stands thus:



Speaker should make 3k, Collins and Jackson might.

[luckymann]

A big loss for them. No injury limit protection for Elmer, unfortunately.

[luckymann]

... ridiculous.



His third 3-HR game of the season, taking his total to 17 in as many games.

Fantastic looking projecteds.



EDIT: Or perhaps not. This is what he did the next game against our AAA boys...



Unfortunately, further investigation has brought to my attention the fact that he is an NeL anomaly whose ratings weren't set correctly by me upon import. That's been sorted now, so I doubt this will continue. Fun while it lasted, though I am glad it happened in AAA.

[luckymann]

With it looking increasingly like Carey will not be here after this season - he wants way too much for way too long and won't budge an inch in either regard, in fact raising his demands during the negs - this is a key move for us.



Cobb is another interesting one for us. It is the last year of his contract next season, and it's an $8k player option. I wouldn't be surprised if he voids and chases some bigger FA money. Not sure at this point what my response to that would be, or whether I want to start talking about an extension just yet. Will play the waiting game and see how things look mid-season.

EDIT: couldn't help myself. had a look, his demands were more than reasonable, deal done...