The Bucs Start Here - A Pirates Do-Over

[luckymann]

I'll need to get used to looking at this from a neutral, third-person perspective and please excuse me in advance if I occasionally forget myself and slip in the odd royal "we" here and there - old habits die hard.

The Bucs go 10-8 in ST with just a couple minor niggles coming out of it.

Probably best if I just give you some screenshots of their lineups and depth charts to let you know how Dutchie is attacking things.







As always, the S+ page is available HERE.


Don't let my non-partisan tone throughout fool you, I'll be rooting for the boys with plenty of gusto off-screen.

[luckymann]

A nice early outing for the Cubs OF.

[luckymann]

Both the Bucs and Tigers lose key members of their staff and offseason signings to rotator cuff tears. Unfortunately for Wilbur, he had retired IRL in 1926 so gets no cover here.

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

John is usually a bit of a slow starter who gets better as the season progresses. Not so this year, as he's already knocked 6 into the seats and looks set for another solid year.

[luckymann]

Satchel has wasted no time making his presence felt in the bigs.

[luckymann]

A 10-7 April for the Bucs, with everything seemingly humming along OK. They are yet to swipe a base, which is interesting.




Despite Babe going homerless for the first 15 games, the Yankees get out of the blocks quickly, winning their first 9 and are already 5 games clear at a sturdy 15-4.




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[luckymann]

The boys cop a roughing-up from Freddy Leach and the Cubs. Ray Kremer just doesn't seem cut out for the top flight, with his ERA currently at 33.75.

[luckymann]

This is a bit of an odd one. Wattie Holm runs a hit streak of 43 games in the 1925 AAA season - leaving him tied with Walter Holke for the AAA record - before being called up after rosters are expanded. He spends all of 1926 at the A's parent club before being sent down last week. He then extends his streak another couple games before being held hitless today.

[luckymann]

Plenty of power on offer so far this season and none moreso than Chick Hafey of the Phillies, who takes his total to an MLB-leading 13 with this onslaught. Shame about the result, however, as Jesse Hubbard runs out of gas and the Cubs pinch it with 5 in the 9th.

[luckymann]

... another milestone for the Sultan.

By this point IRL he had roughly 360, which leaves him about 17% behind. I still regard 600 as his most likely endpoint, 650 tops, and still believe Gehrig will catch and overtake him.

[luckymann]

Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, Buffalo's Win Ballou throws the first perfect game - actually, the first no-no of any sort - in AAA history.

[luckymann]

Not having his best year by any stretch and his prime has probably come and gone, but he's still got plenty to offer and this is an astute move by the BoSox.

[luckymann]

A nice 4-for-5 MLB debut for Little Poison after he gets the call-up from AAA to join big brother.

[luckymann]

As you'd expect from this champion bunch of blokes, the Bucs seem to be responding well to Honus's leadership, posting a sterling 21-9 May. Beck remains dominant, slashing 331/360/713 with 15 HR and 49 RBI, while Paul Waner is looking good again and Bob Fothergill looks a handy pickup. Willie Foster seems to have gone to the next level and wins the monthly pitching award for his 8-0 / 1.88 performance and sits at 11-2 / 2.17 overall. Their +95 run diff speaks volumes for how well things are going.




Ruth wakes up after a slow start and Gehrig is his usual awesome self, but the Yanks are still struggling to put it all together and only have a slight lead over the Tigers in the AL, while the Bucs have made a bit of a break for it already.




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[luckymann]

Not exactly a profusion of no-nos over recent seasons, so it's nice when they do happen. Doubly so when it's one of the NeLers and triply so when it's one of the lesser-knowns like Ping.

[luckymann]

Jim Bottomley continues on his merry way.

[luckymann]

A month of two halves for the Bucs as they put together a string of good performances early to consolidate their lead, but then lose their way in the second half to come back to the pack a bit. In the end, they finish with a 13-12 June to sit at 44-28 overall.




While the bats continue to do well, I am worried that John Beckwith is a bit isolated as the club's only true source of power (19 of the team's 47 HR are his; Pie Traynor is next with 6). This is not only due to the loss of Ken Williams, but also through Curt Walker (260/364/380; 2 HR / 33 RBI / 94 OPS+ / 1.7 WAR) having come back to earth after his otherworldly 1926 campaign. Cobb returns, but Fothergill then goes down and will miss about a month.




Dave Brown is forced onto the IL for a stint with a sore elbow and that just throws the staff off-balance a bit. Foster, in particular, struggles with an 0-5 month after his star turn in May. Still, they lead the division in most stat cats and Streeter is looking better after a wonky first month.




So the Bucs' lead is now 4 from the Cards, with the Cubs close by as well. Across in the Junior Circuit, the Yanks are still on top, albeit narrowly, from the Tigers and A's. The BoSox have recovered after a dreadful start to the year and are now within reach as well, just 7 1/2 GB.




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[luckymann]

Down in AAA, the Scranton Miners have been putting on quite the show - a 16-game win streak and 44-11 overall record has them well on the way to their 4th straight postseason appearance.

You'll notice Marty Dihigo back down there, hopefully we'll see him back up in the bigs before too long.




That said, the Bucs' Wilkes-Barre boys are close enough to keep them honest and travelling very well indeed at 39-16. Lefty O'Doul is carving it up and may be that second big bat the parent team is looking for to offer Beck some protection in the lineup.

[luckymann]

Injuries have meant it may have taken longer than expected, but Ty Cobb finally gets hit number 4000, the first to reach that mark and perhaps the only one who ever will. A singular achievement indeed by a singular player. He has now played more games for the Pirates than Tigers, and needs just 25 more hits for 2000 as a Pirate. The current manager is still the club's all-time hit leader with 2116. Will Ty hang around to break that? He's a FA at year-end.










A couple days later, he racks up another milestone.