1910 Season Summary
Code:
TEAM W L PCT GB RS RA OPS ERA
Waterloo 92 58 .613 -- 583 493 .651 2.32
Geneva 84 66 .595 8 595 475 .637 2.01
Penn Yan 75 75 .500 17 587 621 .621 2.75
Seneca Falls 70 80 .467 22 558 573 .622 2.77
Canandaigua 65 85 .433 27 575 653 .613 3.01
Watkins Glen 64 86 .427 28 563 646 .637 3.12
For the first time in its history, the Finger Lakes League crowned a repeat champion. The
Waterloo Finches won a tremendous Seneca Cup Series over regular-season runner up Geneva in seven games, five of which were decided by a single run.
LF
Fernando Molina (.376/.429/.441) slashed a record-setting 212 hits, stole 72 bases, scored 98 times, and was a deserving
Outstanding Hitter Award winner for the second time. The rest of the Finches' attack wasn't as potent as it had been in '09; RF
Duane Blackburn hit .263, C
Al Williams .279. Injuries dogged 1B
Matt Parkhill and CF
Paul O'Connor all season long.
Billy Edgar won 22 games with a 2.12 ERA to pace the Waterloo staff, while
Ernesto Santos (18-8, 2.20) and reliever
Dan Sawyer (10-3, 7 saves) provided first-class support.
The Finches' success overshadowed the strange slide of
"Electric Billy" Patrick. His Stuff fading inexplicably, Patrick was sent to Lyons of the Seneca League. There, he pitched well out of the bullpen, striking out 14 men in 10 innings. However, on July 2, the Finches released him. As 1910 ended, Patrick had yet to find a team willing to sign him.
According to Pythagoras,
Geneva was six games better than Waterloo.
Casey Ladner (22-16, 1.92, 213 K) continued to mow down Finger Lakes League hitters, and took home his first
Outstanding Pitcher award.
Raul Alonso, the league's best wingman, went 17-17 with 202 Ks, and
Ben Jones (14-4, 165 K in 21 starts) was the league's
Rookie of the Year.
Kent Allen and
Paul Oliver teamed up for 15 saves to give the Green Sox the league's best bullpen.
Geneva fans, too, had a mystery to ponder during the 1910 season.
Nick Myers went 8-7 with a 1.83 ERA, working both as a starter and in relief. In early June, Myers fired three straight shutouts. On September 13, as the Seneca Cup Series approached, the Green Sox released him.
At age 28, Myers appeared to be at the height of his powers. Rumors of illness, criminal activity, and a love affair gone wrong quickly began to swirl about. The real reason for Myers' sudden departure may never be known...
Less mysterious were the performances of LF
Alan Carpenter (.287-4-72, 14 triples) and 3B
Tony Powell (.296, 65 RBI). Exciting CF
Don Stone emerged on the scene, hitting .316 in 225 AB and stealing 28 bases, all before his 20th birthday.
Ageless
Hayden Williams, 41, won 16 games with a 2.49 ERA for resurgent
Penn Yan, who cheered the long-awaited debut of LHP
Patrick Davis (10-8, 87 K/160 IP), the #1 overall pick in the 1908 draft.
Another rookie, 23-year-old 1B
Jim Stewart, bashed 11 home runs to set a new record. 2B
Nick Wells hit only .246, but his 140 walks gave him an OBP of .415, and he scored 98 runs. LF
Ronald Brady (.293-1-74) turned in another good season, if not as spectacular as his 113-RBI breakout of '09. Outfielder
Gerald Tanner arrived in a midseason trade with Watkins Glen and hit .317 with 52 RBI as a Brawler. Tanner's arrival softened the blow of RF
Neil Byers' fractured kneecap, which held him to 33 games.
Ryan Hill delighted his fans by bouncing back with a terrific .349 season for
Seneca Falls; he set new career highs in home runs with 5 and in RBI with 74. Hill shifted to right to make room for new acquisition
Donnie Oliver, who was acquired from Watkins Glen in a blockbuster April deal that sent
Robby Ward to the Bucks. Oliver hit .273 with the Sheepdogs, who also picked up prize prospect SS
Geoffrey Veeck in a separate trade with Watkins Glen. Highly touted 21-year-old southpaw
Eric Groves went 7-10, but posted a fine 2.81 ERA.
Canandaigua climbed one spot to fifth, as
Joe Norris (20-14, 2.51, 173 K) rebounded from the nightmare that was 1909. The Ice Cats acquired RHP
Roger Hopkins from Seneca Falls for a trio of prospects, but Hopkins (9-16, 3.55) tore a triceps muscle in August and might not return until late in the 1911 season.
Veteran LF
Claudio Navarro hit .287 and walked 90 times for the 'Cats, setting the table for 6'7" 1B
Mal Chase (.288-3-55), an exciting 23-year-old rookie.
Watkins Glen's season might have been wrecked on the June day when RF
Mike Young tore his groin. He was on his way to a typical Mike Young season, hitting .316 at the time of his injury. At age 38, will Young be able to return from an injury of this magnitude, or will his fine career be over?
Michael Watkins (17-15, 2.71) proved he still had plenty of stuff at age 37, but
Edward Daybell (8-21) and well-traveled
Will Kirk (9-22) were less effective.
Robby Ward hit .283 with 89 walks for his new club.
Seneca League Highlights
The
Palmyra Prophets defeated defending champion Montour Falls to win the 1910 Seneca League title. Palmyra, the Canandaigua affiliate, rode the strong right arm of
Jimmy "Punk" Johnson (16-6) to the championship. Johnson, a product of Marcus Whitman High School, was Canandaigua's first round choice in the 1919 rookie draft.
Johnson won a duel of aces with Montour Falls'
Garland Taylor, who somehow managed to lose five of his fifteen decisions despite an ERA of 0.72. Taylor, an 18-year-old Louisiana country boy whose nickname "Redeye" alludes to his habit of consuming huge plates full of biscuits and gravy before each start, should provide Watkins Glen fans with plenty of enjoyment when he arrives there.