Hurkman's Baseball-An Interactive Journey Throughout the Century - Page 11

lewis31lewis52 · 07-30-2006, 05:04 PM

I see Feldbush is finally back for the playoffs.

Time for me to win another WS MVP!

Splitter24 · 07-30-2006, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lewis31lewis52

I see Feldbush is finally back for the playoffs.

Time for me to win another WS MVP!

Actually, it's time for Stuart Adamson to win some hardware other than Gold Gloves for all of the excellent play he's given the Giants since being traded.

nomar363 · 07-30-2006, 07:44 PM

I'm not feeling so good about Washington's chances in the World Series....

dureseam · 07-30-2006, 08:56 PM

Thank God I wasnt picked by the Yankees

lewis31lewis52 · 07-30-2006, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Splitter24

Actually, it's time for Stuart Adamson to win some hardware other than Gold Gloves for all of the excellent play he's given the Giants since being traded.

Very true. I guess I could let you win one. But that's all.

Hurkman · 07-30-2006, 09:03 PM

Prospect/Star Watch

Dieter Kahle, CF-Chicago Cubs

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
  
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR  RBI   R   BB HP SF    K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1902   113  406  110   8  2  1   39  51   30  2  4   94  3  3 .271 .321 .308 .629 CHN
1903   112  376   98  23  3  4   49  40   42  2  3  117  4  1 .261 .336 .370 .705 CHN
1904   144  549  119  24  2  3   73  50   47  4  2  176  5  2 .217 .282 .284 .567 CHN
1905   141  511  153  29  4  5   78  64   61  1  2  107  3  2 .299 .374 .401 .775 CHN
1906   135  478  151  27  6  3   75  67   69  0  2   89  3  0 .316 .401 .416 .817 CHN
1907   147  522  197  37  3  4   89  62   73  3  7  104  5  0 .377 .451 .483 .934 CHN
1908   148  536  183  40  1  2   61  61   64  1  6  109  6  0 .341 .409 .431 .840 CHN
1909   145  517  179  38  2  2   64  76   79  4  2  121  9  1 .346 .435 .439 .874 CHN
1910   148  525  186  36  6  4   72  67   69  1  2  112  4  7 .354 .429 .469 .897 CHN
1911   151  535  178  41  1  5   83  70   83  3  3  111  4  0 .333 .423 .441 .864 CHN
1912   147  540  184  43  6  4   65  81   80  4  3  120  2  3 .341 .427 .465 .892 CHN
1913   144  519  171  40  4  3   87  76   77  1  6   83  2  4 .329 .413 .439 .852 CHN
1914   143  510  165  27  0  3   83  67   81  2  5  101  3  3 .324 .415 .394 .809 CHN
1915   146  511  175  36  2  4   82  60   74  4  2  110  7  4 .342 .428 .444 .872 CHN
1916   136  443  123  25  0  2   53  45   72  0  3   79  1  2 .278 .376 .348 .724 CHN
Total 2100 7478 2372 474 42 49 1053 937 1001 32 52 1633 61 32 .317 .398 .411 .809

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 70/67/16/52/29
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 56/48/16/52/28
					  -14 -19       -1

Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):         62/69/7/60/34
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 48/47/7/60/34
				       -14 -22

There have been very few people as influential on the game of baseball as Dieter Kahle, but it looks like this is the beginning of the end for the once great player. Kahle's average dropped below .300 for the season for the first time since 1905, and while he did lead the Cubs in batting average, Chicago finished with one of its worst records ever. Most people are trying to convince him to retire this offseason, rather than risk tarnishing his legacy.

Clive Woodstock, 1B/RF-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats  
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B  HR RBI   R  BB  HP SF    K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1903   140  524  136  30  0   4  57  66  42   9  5  131  3  1 .260 .322 .340 .662  SLN
1904   139  515  113  28  1   4  63  40  40   6  8  118  2  1 .219 .279 .301 .580  SLN
1905   147  548  159  26  1   6  64  50  44   8  7  105  1  0 .290 .348 .374 .722  SLN
1906   151  570  146  19  0   7  67  54  47  12  6  124  0  0 .256 .323 .326 .649  SLN
1907   147  532  124  18  0   5  57  47  44   5  8  122  1  0 .233 .294 .295 .589  SLN
1908   145  531  109  18  0  12  70  43  36   9  6  143  1  0 .205 .265 .307 .572  SLN
1909   145  534  133  24  0   8  79  56  59  16  8  127  0  0 .249 .337 .339 .676  SLN
1910   145  513  120  12  0   7  82  45  71  10  4  132  1  0 .234 .336 .298 .634  SLN
1911   147  527  145  25  2  16 103  67  77  15  7  112  0  0 .275 .379 .421 .800  SLN
1912   145  517  124  25  0  15  76  56  75  11  4  133  1  0 .240 .346 .375 .721  SLN
1913   142  506  111  18  1  14  55  66  64  11  2  126  0  0 .219 .319 .342 .661  SLN
1914   110  365   68   7  2   8  40  31  42   9  5   96  0  2 .186 .283 .282 .565  SLN
1915    64  134   30   6  1   2  15  13  15   3  0   33  0  0 .224 .316 .328 .644  SLN
1916    26   59   16   4  0   1   6   8   4   1  0   11  0  0 .271 .328 .390 .718  SLN
Total 1793 6375 1534 260  8 109 834 642 660 125 70 1513 10  4 .241 .321 .335 .656 

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 40/36/62/32/39
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 40/36/58/31/38
						  -4 -1 -1
 
Total Talent Ratings (JUly 1916): 	  47/40/68/38/41
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 47/40/60/38/41
					       -8

Speaking of knowing when it's time to retire, Clive Woodstock should have gotten the message this year from the Cardinals. He started just 12 games all year, and was used sparringly when he did not start. The Cardinals are trying to be as nice as possible when it comes to bringing up the end of his career, but there comes a time when you just have to let a player know he's not good enough any more. That time has long since passed for Woodstock.

Stuart Adamson, CF-New York Giants

Code:

Career Batting Stats 

Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B  HR RBI   R  BB HP SF    K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams  
1904   105  352   89   6  3   1  15  44  19  2  1   97  46  10 .253 .294 .295 .590  SLN
1905   141  553  129  12  8   2  52  60  29  3  2  157  44  10 .233 .274 .295 .569  SLN
1906   144  564  139  14  3   4  44  66  47  3  3  148  57  12 .246 .306 .303 .610  SLN
1907   145  518  124  15  3   2  49  56  44  4  4  130  60  12 .239 .302 .292 .593  SLN
1908   149  549  151  15  6  14  66  70  55  3  2  156  60  22 .275 .343 .401 .744  SLN
1909    89  159   37   4  3   2  12  24  28  1  1   59  15   5 .233 .349 .333 .683  SLN
1910   144  503  131  22  2   9  51  71  79  1  2  144  56  13 .260 .361 .366 .726 SLN NYG
1911   132  482  138  23  6  14  85  78  81  3  4  151  55  20 .286 .389 .446 .836  NYG
1912   150  533  160  26  6  15  98 106 109  8  8  149  82  10 .300 .421 .456 .877  NYG
1913   149  532  163  23 12  10  71 110 102  4  6  144  77  22 .306 .418 .451 .869  NYG
1914   150  563  153  20 11  14  83 103 110  4  8  172  90  15 .272 .390 .421 .811  NYG
1915   134  493  146  18  7  13  80 100  89  3  7  137  62  15 .296 .402 .440 .842  NYG
1916   148  572  156  18  8  12  73 110  93  1  2  150  77  17 .273 .374 .395 .769  NYG
Total 1780 6373 1716 216 78 112 779 998 885 40 50 1794 781 183 .269 .359 .380 .740

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 86/74/71/71/39
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 83/74/69/69/37
					    -3	  -2 -2 -2
					   
Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):  	  90/81/75/77/40
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 90/81/75/77/40

Stuart didn't have his best season, but he played well when it mattered the most, and he's got the Giants into their third straight World Series. Best of all, he doesn't have to worry about facing Sandford Freshlam during the series, meaning he should put up numbers similar to what he's done this season in a hope that it will be enough to win another championship.

Don Ayers, 2B-Cleveland Indians

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF    K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams  
1905    52   84   24   3  1  0  14  10  10  0  0   26   2   2 .286 .362 .345 .707  CLE
1906    62   98   21   4  1  0  11  10   9  2  0   25   3   4 .214 .294 .276 .569  CLE
1907    59   81   18   2  0  0   8  13  10  0  3   21   1   2 .222 .298 .247 .545  CLE
1908   104  343   83  12  5  1  31  30  29  2  3   82   8  11 .242 .302 .315 .617  CLE
1909   142  540  140  28 10  1  58  66  59  6  2  126  21   7 .259 .338 .354 .691  CLE
1910   146  549  141  18  5  5  89  82  89  4  3  140  18   7 .257 .363 .335 .698  CLE
1911   144  546  172  25  8  3 106  85  66  6  4  111  25  13 .315 .392 .407 .799  CLE
1912   147  535  155  27  2  6  74  89  86  6  6  122  15  12 .290 .390 .381 .772  CLE
1913   147  524  155  23  7  5  71  72  71  5  6   97  20  14 .296 .381 .395 .776  CLE
1914   141  542  157  22  5  6  80  89  81  3  7  119  13  17 .290 .381 .382 .763  CLE
1915   148  543  142  20  4  6  60  81  79  9  0  109  17  13 .262 .365 .346 .711  CLE
1916   146  527  133  15  8  5  71  72  91  5  1  107  18  28 .252 .367 .340 .707  CLE
Total 1438 4912 1341 199 56 38 673 699 680 48 35 1085 161 130 .273 .365 .360 .724

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 74/67/41/66/65
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 74/61/41/61/61
					       -6    -5 -5

Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):  	  80/65/50/75/70
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 80/65/50/62/70
						 -13

Once again, Don Ayers was not able to come through when the Indians needed him. With little help other than Ed Konetchy in the lineup, the pressure is squarely on Ayers' shoulders, and he has not responded well. His numbers are down for the fourth straight season, and right now, they show no signs of improving. It certainly looks like Ayers and the Indians' window for winning a World Series has shut.

Sandford Freshlam, SP-Washington Senators

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year    G  GS  W  L SV   ERA     IP   HA   R   ER  HR  BB    K  CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1906    6   0  0  1  1 11.57    7.0   10   9    9   1   7    0   0   0 2.43 .310  WSH
1907    1   0  0  0  0  0.00    2.0    1   0    0   0   0    1   0   0 0.50 .167  WSH
1908			PITCHED IN A BALL		       	 
1909			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1910			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1911			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1912   34  34 17 14  0  3.52  288.2  242 137  113  25 114  287  27   5 1.23 .287  WSH
1913   42  42 18 20  0  3.64  353.1  294 157  143  45  84  326  35   3 1.07 .269  WSH
1914   41  41 17 17  0  2.62  356.2  267 111  104  31  53  353  32   4 0.90 .260  WSH
1915   40  40 24 11  0  2.24  353.0  250 107   88  32  44  348  33   5 0.83 .246  WSH
1916   30  30 22  4  0  1.87  264.1  175  68   55  18  24  243  22   3 0.75 .227  WSH
Total 194 187 98 67  1  2.84 1625.0 1239 589  512 152 326 1558 149  20 0.96 .259

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement):  94/99/64
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement):  90/99/48
					   -4   -16
					  
Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):          95/164/57
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	      	  95/164/44
						-13

What was a great season for Sandford and Washington turned tragic in August when he was lost for the season with a shoulder injury. Washington still made it to the World Series, but without Sandford, their hopes are slim. He's going to be cheering them on as much as he can though, because he knew that this team could make it this far one day.

Ludwig Van Cleef, SP-New York Giants

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
 
Year    G  GS   W  L SV  ERA     IP  HA   R  ER HR  BB    K  CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1907    1   0   0  0  0 0.00    3.1   0   0   0  0   3    2   0   0 0.90 .000  NYG 
1908			PITCHED IN AA BALL			
1909			PITCHED IN AAA BALL
1910    1   0   0  0  0 0.00    1.0   0   0   0  0   0    0   0   0 0.00 .000  NYG
1911   17   2   0  5  5 8.10   30.0  30  27  27  4  29   19   0   0 1.97 .277  NYG
1912   31  12  11  6  7 1.96  133.1  78  32  29  2  55  145  11   2 1.00 .244  NYG
1913   40  40  25 11  0 2.54  339.2 230 105  96 13 119  387  30   9 1.03 .273  NYG
1914   42  42  27  5  0 1.95  368.2 228  83  80 12  81  397  26   7 0.84 .247  NYG
1915   41  41  31  8  0 1.65  359.0 204  79  66 14  56  423  35  16 0.72 .237  NYG
1916   41  41  30  4  0 1.55  360.1 217  72  62 13  38  408  27   8 0.71 .241  NYG
Total 214 178 124 39 12 2.03 1595.1 987 398 360 58 381 1781 129  42 0.86 .249

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 102/98/86
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 102/98/84
						 -2

Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):  	  103/135/88
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 103/135/88

It was just another year at the ballpark for Van Cleef. He won thirty games for the second straight season, and helped get the Giants to another World Series. The only shame about it is the fact that he won't get to go up against Sandford Freshlam, denying fans of a matchup between the two best pitchers in all of baseball.

Christian Gray, SS-St. Louis Browns

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K  SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1908    5   11   0   0  0  0   0   0   1  0  0   6   0  1 .000 .083 .000 .083  SLA
1909    5   12   2   0  0  0   2   3   4  0  0   3   2  0 .167 .375 .167 .542  SLA
1910   30   91  10   1  0  0   9   9   5  1  0  31   6  2 .110 .165 .121 .286  SLA
1911  138  533 117  13  8  4  53  72  43  1  1 165  46  9 .220 .279 .296 .575  SLA
1912  146  587 179  26  6  6  65  94  50  4  0 156  78 16 .305 .363 .400 .764  SLA
1913  147  555 199  21  8  4  75 100  61  4  3 101  68 21 .359 .424 .447 .871  SLA
1914  139  521 136  11  4  2  62  73  59  5  4 103  65 17 .261 .340 .309 .649  SLA
1915  153  626 157  21  5  2  46  95  63  4  5 127  74 20 .251 .321 .310 .631  SLA
1916  147  591 174  22  4  2  48  76  51  9  4  92  71 13 .294 .357 .355 .713  SLA
Total 910 3527 974 115 35 20 360 522 337 28 17 784 410 99 .276 .343 .346 .688

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 68/46/31/43/29
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 68/46/31/44/29
						     +1
					  
Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):         74/40/22/63/22
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 74/40/22/63/22

As St. Louis inched closer and closer to Washington in the standings, it seemed like Christian's play was rising to the occasion as well. He finished the year coming very close to batting .300 again, and his 71 stolen bases was more than enough to lead the American League. He's helped get the Browns in a good position to be competitive every year, now all he has to do is help push them past being competitive and into being consistent winners.

Fletcher Parslofski, LF-Philadelphia Phillies

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1909    2    3   0  0  0  0   0   0   1  0  0   2  0  0 .000 .250 .000 .250 PHI
1910    0    0   0  0  0  0   0   0   0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000 PHI
1911   17   22   3  1  0  0   1   3   8  0  0   4  0  0 .136 .367 .182 .548 PHI
1912   38   53  11  3  0  0   9   2   9  0  0   8  0  0 .208 .323 .264 .587 PHI
1913  116  373 103 13  5  8  40  51  66  2  0  50  2  1 .276 .388 .402 .790 PHI
1914  145  496 117 22  3  6  62  59 101  2  6  60  5  0 .236 .364 .329 .692 PHI
1915  147  502 135 27  2  9  56  64  99  1  3  74  1  1 .269 .388 .384 .773 PHI
1916  142  486 143 26  3  7  55  69 106  3  0  51  3  0 .294 .424 .403 .827 PHI
Total 607 1935 512 92 13 30 223 248 390  8  9 249 11  2 .265 .389 .372 .761

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 77/81/47/93/82
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 75/83/47/92/83
					    -2 +2    -1 +1

Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):  	  79/78/50/99/75
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 79/78/50/99/75

While Fletcher ended up dropping below .300 for the season in batting, he did help the Phillies finish in third place in the National League, and his 106 walks were the second most in Phillies' history. If he can keep up with these statistics year in and year out, then the Phillies have themselves one of the most solid left fielders in the National League.

Michael Feldbush, 2B-New York Giants

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1910   97  241  53  13  3  2  28  25  21  3  1  82  15   8 .220 .289 .324 .613 NYG
1911  103  266  68  14  4  2  30  43  52  4  1  61  14  10 .256 .384 .361 .745 NYG
1912  147  532 139  20  6  4  67  80  89  2  5 123  42  20 .261 .366 .344 .710 NYG
1913  149  565 170  40  6  4  49 104  85  2  2 103  43  16 .301 .393 .414 .807 NYG
1914  150  569 138  19  6  4  61  81  87  8  3 107  47  18 .243 .349 .318 .667 NYG
1915  146  510 155  24 10  8  86  87 102  9  4  97  40  19 .304 .426 .437 .863 NYG
1916  145  547 155  25  5  5  81  98  93  4  4  97  41  21 .283 .389 .375 .764 NYG
Total 937 3230 878 155 40 29 402 518 529 32 20 670 242 112 .272 .378 .372 .749

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 88/61/50/72/64
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 87/61/52/72/63
					    -1	  +2    -1

Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):  	  90/55/54/80/71
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 90/55/54/80/71

It took some time this year, but Michael Feldbush found what made him one of the best young players in the National League again this season. He hit over .320 in the second half of the season to raise his average up considerably, and he scored almost 100 runs for the second time in his career. Simply put, it was another solid performance from one of the bright young stars in the game, and he's already looking for his third World Series title.

Killian Ditty, 3B-Boston Braves

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G  AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI  R BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1911    2   0   0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000  PHI
1912    1   1   0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000  PHI
1913   13  31  12  4  0  0   7  6  6  0  0   8  0  0 .387 .486 .516 1.003 PHI BSN
1914   23  70  19  3  0  0   6  5  7  0  0  16  0  0 .271 .338 .314 .652  BSN
1915   93 314  84 18  1  5  52 34 33  3  4  68  2  0 .268 .339 .379 .718  BSN
1916   51 138  20  2  0  0  10 12 25  4  1  40  0  1 .145 .292 .159 .451  BSN
Total 183 554 135 27  1  5  75 57 71  7  5 132  2  1 .244 .334 .323 .657

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 48/75/47/38/56
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 51/79/50/38/56
					    +3 +4 +3
					 
Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):  	   90/109/49/67/55
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  90/109/49/67/55

Boston fans may just have to realize that Killian Ditty is not a major league ready player just yet. He struck out this year twice as often as he had a hit, and his playing time dropped considerably. Maybe Philadelphia was smart when they traded him to the Braves, but what Boston needs to do now is see how he plays down at Class AAA ball next season, at least to see how much of his confidence he has left.

Shamus O'Brien, SP-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 

Year   G  GS  W  L SV  ERA    IP  HA   R  ER HR  BB   K CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1912   12  0  1  1  0 3.95  13.2  12   6   6  3   9  10  0   0 1.54 .243  SLN
1913   31  0  2  3  0 3.02  44.2  38  16  15  6  11  25  0   0 1.10 .237  SLN
1914   26 11  8  5  3 2.98  90.2  82  31  30  9  38  71  2   0 1.32 .292  SLN
1915   35 35  9 13  0 2.98 256.2 181  95  85 21  86 205  5   1 1.04 .235  SLN
1916   17 17  3 12  0 3.99 137.2 118  69  61  9  64  97 13   1 1.32 .275  SLN
Total 121 63 23 34  3 3.26 543.1 431 217 197 48 208 408 20   2 1.18 .256

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 56/51/49
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 56/51/49


Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):         74/71/76
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 74/71/59

Somehow, Shamus still found a way to insult the Cardinals from the injured list, claiming that he wouldn't have gotten hurt had St. Louis "known how to treat me." He was upset when they placed him on the trading block at the end of July to see if anyone would take him, despite his being injured. No one did, and now the Cardinals are stuck with an angry, injured pitcher that wants nothing to do with their team.

Jamee Gray, SS-Boston Braves

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1913   11   41   7  1  0  1   4   3   0  0  0  15  0  0 .171 .171 .268 .439 BSN
1914  145  538 128 21  1  2  69  50  39 10  5 137  1  0 .238 .299 .292 .591 BSN
1915  143  530 148 22  5 11  74  62  67  4  5 120  2  0 .279 .361 .402 .763 BSN
1916  144  538 135 23  2 15  66  72  69  7  2 160  2  0 .251 .343 .385 .727 BSN
Total 443 1647 418 67  8 29 213 187 175 21 12 432  5  0 .254 .331 .357 .688

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 80/62/89/47/44
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 80/66/92/51/46
					      +4  +3 +4 +2	
					 
Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):  	   87/65/100/55/44
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  87/65/100/55/44

Jamee's batting average may not have been that great this year, but his 15 home runs were enough to lead all of baseball, essentially signaling his arrival onto the stage as one of the game's fastest rising players. Boston had a season that was far below expectations, and it will be up to young Jamee to make sure that it doesn't happen again. It may be too much pressure to put on a young player, but the Braves are desperate.

Justin Williamson, SP-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year   G GS  W  L SV  ERA   IP   HA   R  ER HR  BB   K CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams
1914			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1915  22  7  3  9  3 4.60  74.1  65  43  38 14  43  59  1   0 1.45 .251  SLN
1916  41 41 12 11  0 2.81 294.2 199 105  92 23 108 300  2   0 1.04 .239  SLN
Total 63 48 15 20  3 3.17 369.0 264 148 130 37 151 359  3   0 1.12 .242

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 86/55/77
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 87/56/74
					  +1 +1 -3	

Total Talent Ratings (July 1916):         100/85/66
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 100/85/66

Justin's first year as a full time starter showed that he is ready to pitch on the big league level. His 12 wins tied him for second on the team, and his 300 strikeouts placed him second in all of baseball, behind only Ludwig Van Cleef. For once, the Cardinals have something to smile about from one of their young prospects, now they have to make sure that they don't mess this one up as well.

Cristobal Torriente, 3B/RF-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year   G AB  H 2B 3B HR RBI R BB HP SF  K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1915  11 19  5  0  0  0   1 1  2  0  0  5  2  0 .263 .333 .263 .596 SLN
1916  19 68 13  2  0  1   7 3  3  0  0 23  0  0 .191 .225 .265 .490 SLN
Total 30 87 18  2  0  1   8 4  5  0  0 28  2  0 .207 .250 .264 .514

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 49/57/25/29/45
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 50/59/25/30/47
					    +1 +2    +1 +2
					 
Total Talent Ratings (July 1916): 	   76/55/77/71/40
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  76/55/77/71/40

Cristobal was again called up in September for St. Louis, and this time it looks like he may be up for good. He's still not ready to start every day, but he is showing signs of improvement, and that right now is enough for the Cardinals. Give it a few more years, and then maybe he'll be the player St. Louis wants him to be.

Peter Bernard, C/3B-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year G AB H 2B 3B HR RBI R BB HP SF K SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS Teams
			PLAYED IN A BALL

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 32/38/19/22/43
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 33/40/19/22/45
					    +1 +2       +2

Total Talent Ratings (July 1916): 	   101/50/95/63/38
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  101/50/95/63/38

Peter spent the entire season with St. Louis' Class A team. He recovered nicely from his injury at the start of the season, and finished up hitting .251 with ten home runs in his first season in the minor leagues. It's now just a matter of St. Louis playing the waiting game, which is clearly something they do not like doing, if past prospects are any indictation.

Hurkman · 07-31-2006, 12:04 AM

World Series Matchup-1916

American League Champions-Washington Senators (89-65)

Overall Batting Avg.- .237
Overall ERA- 2.59

Leading Batters
Cy Williams-RF: .272, 6 HR, 61 RBI
John Kelleher-2B: .288, 2 HR, 60 RBI
Benny Kauff-CF: .261, 6 HR, 51 RBI, 48 SB

Leading Pitchers
Sandford Freshlam: 22-4, 264.1 IP, 1.87 ERA, 243 K (Out for World Series)
Reb Russell: 21-12, 346 IP, 2.71 ERA, 129 K
Jim Shaw: 15-15, 279.1 IP, 3.00 ERA, 147 K

National League Champions-New York Giants (93-61)

Overall Batting Avg.- .255
Overall ERA- 3.14

Leading Batters
Vic Saier-1B: .283, 9 HR, 104 RBI, 46 SB
Stuart Adamson-CF: .273, 12 HR, 73 RBI, 77 SB
Michael Feldbush-2B: .283, 5 HR, 81 RBI, 41 SB

Leading Pitchers
Ludwig Van Cleef: 30-4, 360.1 IP, 1.55 ERA, 408 K
Dave Davenport: 19-18, 351.1 IP, 2.72 ERA, 183 K (Out for World Series)
Glenn Liebhardt: 12-14, 232.1 IP, 3.68 ERA, 86 K

Analysis and Prediction
This World Series should have been about a matchup between the two best pitchers in baseball. Instead, Sandford Freshlam is hurt and will miss the series, placing any hope that Washington had of possibly shocking the two time defending champions in serious doubt.

Compared to Washington, New York's offense is worlds better in every category. Vic Saier, Stuart Adamson, Michael Feldbush and Bill O'Hara provide a heart that any team would love to have, and they alone are capable of winning the series.

The only way Washington can even think about winning is if their entire team catches fire at the same time. They would have the edge in pitching if Freshlam were healthy, but instead, the honor of facing Van Cleef now goes to Reb Russell, and no one knows how ready for this he is. The Senators may get one shocking win early in the series, but it seems unlikely that they can defeat the New York Giants when Van Cleef could pitch in three games.

Prediction: Giants in 5

Hurkman · 07-31-2006, 12:58 AM

1916 World Series

Game 1-10/8/1916: Senators-1 Giants-2

The first game of the World Series went exactly as expected for the two time defending champions. Washington refused to go down without a fight, however, as starter Red Russell pitched inning for inning against Ludwig Van Cleef, who most believe is the best pitcher in the majors today.

Russell ended up with five strikeouts and allowed only five hits, but gave up a run in the seventh when Vic Saier doubled down the right field line to score Michael Feldbush and put the Giants up 1-0. Surprisingly, Van Cleef could not hold the lead, as Harry Spratt doubled to lead off the eigth, followed up by a Bill Rariden bunt single and Howie Shanks sacrifice fly that tied the game at 1-1.

Both pitchers held their opponents scoreless headed into the bottom of the ninth, and that is where New York's post season experience started to shine. Dick Egan took a five pitch walk to lead off the inning, and after Stuart Adamson flew out to center, Michael Feldbush hit a shot into the gap in left-center field. Benny Kauff's throw to the plate was late, and Egan scored the winning run. Van Cleef was excellent once again, striking out seven and allowing just six hits in a winning effort.

W: Ludwig Van Cleef L: Reb Russell

Game 2-10/9/1916: Senators-10 Giants-3

There would be no tightly contested pitchers' matchup in Game 2, as Washington came out swinging, knocking Christy Mathewson around and delivering the first loss in the World Series for the Giants.

The Senators broke the game open in the fourth, following three scoreless innings by both teams. They strung together five hits, and Cy Williams, Joe Judge and John Kelleher drove in three runs to give Washington its first ever lead in a World Series game. Kelleher would finish the day with three runs batted in, with the other two coming on a double in the sixth and a single in the ninth. Pop Foster assisted the cause for Washington as well, driving in three runners on a bases loaded double in the eighth that put the game out of reach.

Twenty-three year old Guy Morton was superb on the mound for the Senators, striking out seven and allowing just four hits and one run in seven and one-thirds inning of work. Reliever Jack Lively allowed two meaningless runs in the bottom of the ninth on a Stuart Adamson single, but the damage was done, and when the final out was recorded, the series was tied.

W: Guy Morton L: Christy Mathewson

Game 3-10/11/1916: Giants-1 Senators-5

World Series baseball came to Washington, D.C. for the first time in league history, and the home team made sure that everyone went home with a smile following Game Three. Both veteran pitcher Glenn Liebhardt for New York and Biff Schlitzer, Washington's usual go to man in the bullpen, started off strong, pitching shut out ball into the fourth inning.

Washington again struck first on the Giants, this time on a Benny Kauff sacrifice fly that scored Howie Shanks. Schlitzer shut New York down, and Washington struck again in the seventh, where, with two men on base, Cy Williams launched a three run home run over the right field fence to make it a 4-0 game. Things turned ugly following the home run, as the next batter, Benny Kauff, was hit by a pitched ball. Kauff believed it to be intentional and charged the mound, tackling Liebhardt and driving him to the ground. When the fight was broken up, both pitcher and hitter were removed from the game, and play continued. Joe Judge deposited the first pitch from new pitcher Tom Fisher down the right field line for a double, scoring replacement runner Denny Sullivan to make the score 5-0.

Schlitzer allowed just an eighth inning Stuart Adamson RBI single the rest of the way, and finished off a complete game, six strikeout effort by fanning Dick Cotter for the final out, putting Washington up two games to one heading into the all important rematch with Ludwig Van Cleef in Game Four.

W: Biff Schlitzer L: Glenn Liebhardt

Game 4-10/12/1916: Giants-3 Senators-7

Ludwig Van Cleef's return to the mound in Game Four was supposed to help tie the series for the Giants. Instead, it placed them into a deeper hole, one that seemed unlikely to be climbed out of any time soon.

Washington struck early and often against the best pitcher in baseball, scoring five times in the bottom of the first inning, four of them on a grand slam home run by Harry Spratt, the first in World Series history. From that point on, Reb Russell made the Giants look like they were in shock, allowing just three runs in a complete game, eleven strike out performance. Benny Kauff finished off the damage in the fifth, when he hit the second home run of the day off of Van Cleef to make it 7-1 in favor of the Senators. New York would get two more on a Heinie Groh home run and Vern Duncan single, but it was again too little, too late. The Giants were in shock, and Washington was just one win away from turning the baseball world upside down.

W: Reb Russell L: Ludwig Van Cleef

Game 5-10/13/1916: Giants-1 Senators-5

Once again, the story in Game Five was the Washington offense being able to jump on the struggling New York pitching as early as possible, and this time, it was for the World Series championship.

The Senators again scored first, this time in the bottom of the second on a Bill Rariden single that plated Joe Judge. New York starter Christy Mathewson was better this time out, but when Cy Williams smacked his second home run of the series in the third, most people could tell that this would not be New York's year. Washington added another run in the seventh on a Harry Spratt single, and when New York finally scored off of Guy Morton in the eighth, Pop Foster responded with a two run home run in the bottom of the inning.

Morton was removed from the game in favor of Erskine Mayer in that eighth, and he went the rest of the way, retiring the Giants in the top of the eighth, and then in order in the ninth to clinch the series. When Dick Cotter's pop up landed inside catcher Bill Rariden's glove for the final out, the nation's capitol was launched into celebration, because, for the first time in their history, the Washington Senators were winners and champions of baseball.

W: Guy Morton L: Christy Mathewson S: Erskine Mayer

Series MVP: Guy Morton- 2-0, 14.2 IP, 14 K, 0.61 ERA

1916 World Series Champions: Washington Senators
First Championship

nomar363 · 07-31-2006, 09:39 AM

First World Series!!!!!!!

Guess they didn't need Freshlam after all! Maybe next year he can play in his first Series.

metsgeek · 07-31-2006, 01:51 PM

Will the New York Yankees suffer "The Curse of the Rajah??"

Hurkman · 07-31-2006, 02:49 PM

End of the Year Awards

Rookie of the Year
American League ROY: Frank Miller, SP (CHA)- This award easily would have gone to Rogers Hornsby if he hadn't been traded to the Reds, so instead, it goes to a solid pitcher from the White Sox. Before he was traded to the White Sox, Miller played for the Senators, and was instrumental in helping get them to a World Series title this year, despite not being there to enjoy it. He pitched very well for the White Sox as well, giving them hope that they may have solidified a weak pitching staff with his arrival. For the season with his two teams, Miller went 20-10 in 305 innings pitched, striking out 98 and compiling an ERA of 2.63.

National League ROY: Rogers Hornsby, 2B (CIN)- There was some dispute when it came to awarding Hornsby anything this season, considering he spent half the year with the Yankees in the American League. However, his contributions to both the Yankees and Reds, when looked at together, were to significant to ignore, and so the Rookie of the Year was rightfully awarded to Rogers. In between both the Reds and Yankees, Hornsby was excellent, especially for such a young player. He batted .336 with 10 home runs and 90 runs batted in for the season. He also scored 99 times and stole 19 bases. His arrival in Cincinnati could have him in a World Series very soon, while the Yankees are still considered foolish for trading away such a good young player.

Most Valuable Pitcher
American League MVP: Walter Johnson, SP (PHA)- Before he was injured, Sandford Freshlam was considered a runaway to win this award for the second straight season and despite his injury, there were those who thought he was still worthy of the award, considering all he did for Washington in 1916. Instead, Walter Johnson adds his third MVP award to his list of accomplishments, and it was well deserved. The Athletics may have struggled this year, but Johnson was still his usual self, going 24-15 with a microscopic 2.11 ERA and 242 strikeouts in 359 innings pitched. He and Freshlam should be competing for this award for years to come, and it will be fun to see who can out pitch the other year after year.

National League MVP: Ludwig Van Cleef, SP (NYG)- This award could have been given out at the mid-point of the season and no one would have complained. Ludwig Van Cleef has not only become the most feared pitcher of this era, but he may just be the most feared pitcher of all time. He was shown to be mortal in the World Series, finally losing a playoff game, but other than that, he was simply untouchable for the majority of the 1916 season. During the year, he won 30 games for the second straight season while only losing four. He struck out 408 batters in 360.1 innings, and his 1.55 ERA led both leagues by a wide margin. While the Giants could not capture a third straight World Series, with Van Cleef in the fold, they should always be close to winning another.

Most Valuable Batter
American League MVB: Ed Konetchy, 1B (CLE)- Without Ty Cobb in Cleveland, fans were looking for both Konetchy and Don Ayers to raise their level of play. While Ayers has not been able to, Konetchy did so with flying colors in 1916, and he deservedly took home the Most Valuable Batter award. Konetchy hit .324, first in the American League, and added two home runs, 72 runs batted in and 29 stolen bases as well. The Indians certainly were not a good team in 1916, but without Ed Konetchy, they would have been much, much worse.

National League MVB: Rogers Hornsby, 2B (CIN)- There is very little else about Hornsby that needs to be said, all things considered. Cincinnati's age cost them a chance at the World Series this year, but now with Hornsby starting for possibly the next decade and a half to two decades at second base, there is nothing to fear. Once again, Hornsby batted a major league leading .336 with 10 home runs, 90 runs batted in, 99 runs scored and 19 stolen bases in 1916. With his first full season in Cincinnati now approaching, it will be interesting to see how Rogers handles playing for a perennial World Series contender.

Gold Glove Award Winners
American League
Pitcher: Lynn Brenton (NYY)
Catcher: Bill Rariden (WSH)
First Base: Ed Konetchy (CLE)
Second Base: Don Ayers (CLE)
Third Base: Gus Getz (PHA)
Shortstop: Donie Bush (NYY)
Leftfield: Ward Miller (DET)
Centerfield: Tilly Walker (DET)
Rightfield: Harry Heilmann (CHA)

National League
Pitcher: Les Backman (CHN)
Catcher: Dick Cotter (NYG)
First Base: Stuffy McInnis (CHN)
Second Base: Eddie Collins (CHN)
Third Base: Del Paddock (BRO)
Shortstop: Jamee Gray (BSN)
Leftfield: Fletcher Parslofski (PHI)
Centerfield: Stuart Adamson (NYG)
Rightfield: Braggo Roth (CIN)

Top 5 Leaderboard
TOP 5 in BATTING AVG :
.336 Rogers Hornsby( NYY CIN)
.326 Billy Southworth(PIT)
.324 Ed Konetchy(CLE)
.321 Bill O'Hara(NYG)
.319 George Sisler(NYY)

TOP 5 in HOMERUNS :
15 Jamee Gray(BSN)
12 Stuart Adamson(NYG)
11 Dutch Zwilling(CHA)
10 Rogers Hornsby( NYY CIN)
9 Vic Saier(NYG)

TOP 5 in RBI :
104 Vic Saier(NYG)
90 Rogers Hornsby( NYY CIN)
89 Ty Cobb(NYY)
89 Dutch Zwilling(CHA)
86 Heinie Groh(NYG)

TOP 5 in ERA :
1.55 Ludwig Van Cleef(NYG)
1.83 Hippo Vaughn(PHI)
1.87 Sandford Freshlam(WSH)
2.11 Walter Johnson(PHA)
2.11 Bill Otey(CIN)

TOP 5 in WINS :
30 Ludwig Van Cleef(NYG)
24 Walter Johnson(PHA)
22 Sandford Freshlam(WSH)
22 Johnny Lush(CLE)
21 Reb Russell(WSH)

TOP 5 in SAVES :
19 Biff Schlitzer(WSH)
16 Lefty Webb(CHA)
14 Erv Lange(CLE)
12 Harley Young(BRO)
10 Ed Klepfer(CHN)

Hurkman · 08-03-2006, 06:08 PM

February 1, 1917

News

Once again, there is very little actual baseball news coming through this winter, as most teams have stood pat with their managers, and no major players have decided to retire. However, the conflict in Europe has shown no signs of actually slowing, and it seems more likely than not that America will be involved in the conflict very soon.

No one is quite sure about how baseball will be effected by the war, and there are still those who hold out hope that American involvement will not be necessary, but at this point, nothing is certain. Baseball will go on, however, and continue to give Americans something to think about besides to bloodshed in Europe.

Rookie Watch
After the last few draft classes were filled with talented players, this year's seems a little light. It may be possible that some of the best young players have gone across the ocean to fight for the British in Europe, or it could just be that this is a weak year. That being said, there are still a few players who are seen as major league ready, including one who could bypass the minor leagues all together.

Deke Taggart, 2B

Deke is another player who seems to be leading the way to a more offensively driven game of baseball. With players such as Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby and Stuart Adamson all able to hit for average and power, Taggart learned at a young age how to do both as well. His smooth swing invokes images of Nap Lajoie, another great second baseman. He can already knock the ball to any part of the park, while his power stroke could be one of the best that the game has ever seen. However, the St. Louis Cardinals have the first overall selection, and looking at their previous experience with top draft picks, Taggart may want to find his way out of town before he feels the Cardinals' Curse as well.

Current Ratings (Contact/Gap/Power/Eye/Avoid K): 46/70/38/35/33
Total Talent Ratings: 100/76/93/57/58

Machiavelli999 · 08-10-2006, 05:06 PM

Where did you go? Is this thing still going?

Hurkman · 08-10-2006, 06:43 PM

Sorry for the delay, I went out to Canton for the NFL Hall of Fame inductions this past weekend, and then had my wisdom teeth taken out, so I've been laid out for the last two days. I'm feeling better now, so expect an update by the end of tonight.

Hurkman · 08-10-2006, 07:15 PM

Draft Results

With such a thin amount of talent in this year's amateur draft, it seemed as if the first overall pick would be quite easy to decide upon, and it was. Once again, the St. Louis Cardinals selected first, and they chose the young second baseman Deke Taggart first overall. St. Louis has had less than a stellar record with many of their draft choices throughout their history, but many believe that Taggart can buck that trend and become the star that so many others have failed to become. That being said, the Cardinals believe he is ready to play in the major leagues today and have placed him on their team. Despite cries from fans saying that it is too soon, the Cardinals think that they are right once again, although it seems as if history may be against them.

Round One Results
St. Louis (N) pick: 2B Deke Taggart
Boston (N) pick: 1B Joe Harris
Detroit pick: P Hod Eller
Boston (A) pick: CF Baby Doll Jacobson
Chicago (A) pick: P Elmer Ponder
Chicago (N) pick: P Urban Shocker
New York (A) pick: LF Fred Nicholson
Philadelphia (A) pick: RF Sam Rice
Cleveland pick: P Leon Cadore
Brooklyn pick: P Marv Goodwin
Pittsburgh pick: 3B Tony Boeckel
Philadelphia (N) pick: P Hal Carlson
St. Louis (A) pick: P Burleigh Grimes
Cincinnati pick: P Allen Sothoron
Washington pick: P Howard Ehmke
New York (N) pick: P Mike Regan

Season Preview

American League

Washington Senators
From laughingstock of the league to World Series champions in just one season, the Washington Senators have proven that it may only be a matter of time before any team can win themselves a championship. Now, all they have to do is prove that what they accomplished last season was simply not blind luck, and that they are a force to behold in the American League. Once again, their main strength is on the pitching mound, as Sandford Freshlam returns from his shoulder injury and leads a solid group of young pitchers, all of whom have the potential to win 20 or more games. What is even more surprising is that Sandford, at age 29, is now the oldest starting pitcher in the rotation, and he has clearly emerged as the most feared pitcher on the Junior Circut. Washington's batting order still needs work, although Cy Williams, Joe Judge and Benny Kauff do make a good core. All in all, Washington should be able to make another run at the American League pennant, as long as their pitching stays healthy.

St. Louis Browns
With a tremendous push at the end of last season, the St. Louis Browns proved that they belong at the top of the American League. Although they could not catch the Senators, they did show more heart than any other team in baseball, and should be feared this season as well. Like Washington, none of their starting pitchers are over the age of 30, and their ace "Smokey" Joe Wood is only 27. Their offense is also seen as better than Washington's as well, with Christian Gray being the picture of a pure leadoff hitter. Edd Roush, Jack Fournier and Zach Wheat all had off seasons last year, but it is unlikely that they will all struggle again, meaning that the Browns have a very good chance at getting back to another World Series. Right now, it seems as if the two best teams in the American League are St. Louis and Washington, and they should be involved in a great pennant race all season, with no clear winner until the very end.

Philadelphia Athletics
With that all being said, you still can not count out the Philadelphia Athletics. Despite trading their best bat in Tris Speaker to Boston, they still have defending Most Valuable Pitcher Walter Johnson and a host of other good arms that can at least push them into a surprise pennant contender. While there is no way true way to replace Speaker's bat in the Athletics' lineup, first round draft pick Sam Rice will do his best, along with a well aged Moose McCormick, Buck Herzog and Del Gainer. Without Speaker, it will be a challenge for Philadelphia to get to the World Series, but if all their pieces come together, it may just be possible one more time.

National League

New York Giants
The biggest shock of all last season was having the two time defending World Series champion Giants fall to the Washington Senators so easily in the World Series. Manager John McGraw took what he saw during that series into account, and has come up with what he believes to be a sure fire way for the Giants to win yet another championship. That plan, of course, starts with the best pitcher in baseball, Ludwig Van Cleef, who is coming off of back to back 30 win seasons, and may just be the best pitcher in baseball history. Yet, behind him, the pitching staff is still weak, which was the main weakness that Washington was able to exploit during the World Series last year. However, there are very few teams in baseball that can match the batting order of the Giants. Only the best pitchers in the game can go up against Heinie Groh, Stuart Adamson, Michael Feldbush, Vic Saier and Ray Chapman without giving up a run. Their lineup is explosive and can score almost at will, and that is what McGraw is hoping will carry this team to another World Series appearance. However, this year may be their toughest challenge yet.

Cincinnati Reds
The Reds started out very strong last season, only to fade away in the hot summer heat. However, before they completely wilted, they were able to add quite possibly the best young bat in baseball by trading for Rogers Hornsby of the New York Yankees. Hornsby went on to win both the Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Batter awards in 1916, and provides the Reds with a solid bat in the middle of their lineup that they were missing for a time last year. The rest of their offense is beginning to age, but Jack Lapp, Solly Hofman and Braggo Roth all can contribute to scoring runs and with Noodles Hahn still pitching strong at age 37, the Reds are still a contender. However, their number two pitcher Dutch Leonard will miss the first three months of the season with a back injury, so it will be up to a rather hodge podge cast of pitchers to get the wins that Leonard would have gotten. If they can do that, then the Reds may just upend the Giants this season.

Philadelphia Phillies
Believe it or not, but the Phillies seem to have finally crawled out of the pit that is the bottom of the National League and are ready to become contenders once again. Their pitching staff, led by Hippo Vaughn, Harry Moran and youngster Bernie Boland, has quietly become one of the more solid in the NL, and leftfielder Fletcher Parslofski is next to impossible to strike out and has become the leader in the clubhouse. The Phillies do have a shaky offense other than Parslofski, but the key elements are there to make them a contender. Bobby Vaughn has become a rock at second base both offensively and defensively and Ossie Vitt is a pleasant surprise at catcher as well. This team may still be a year or two away from seriously challenging again for a pennant, but if either the Reds or Giants falter, it could be a very surprising Phillies team who heads to the World Series in 1917.

Hurkman · 08-10-2006, 11:31 PM

Star/Prospect Watch

Dieter Kahle, CF-Chicago Cubs

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
  
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR  RBI   R   BB HP SF    K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1902   113  406  110   8  2  1   39  51   30  2  4   94  3  3 .271 .321 .308 .629 CHN
1903   112  376   98  23  3  4   49  40   42  2  3  117  4  1 .261 .336 .370 .705 CHN
1904   144  549  119  24  2  3   73  50   47  4  2  176  5  2 .217 .282 .284 .567 CHN
1905   141  511  153  29  4  5   78  64   61  1  2  107  3  2 .299 .374 .401 .775 CHN
1906   135  478  151  27  6  3   75  67   69  0  2   89  3  0 .316 .401 .416 .817 CHN
1907   147  522  197  37  3  4   89  62   73  3  7  104  5  0 .377 .451 .483 .934 CHN
1908   148  536  183  40  1  2   61  61   64  1  6  109  6  0 .341 .409 .431 .840 CHN
1909   145  517  179  38  2  2   64  76   79  4  2  121  9  1 .346 .435 .439 .874 CHN
1910   148  525  186  36  6  4   72  67   69  1  2  112  4  7 .354 .429 .469 .897 CHN
1911   151  535  178  41  1  5   83  70   83  3  3  111  4  0 .333 .423 .441 .864 CHN
1912   147  540  184  43  6  4   65  81   80  4  3  120  2  3 .341 .427 .465 .892 CHN
1913   144  519  171  40  4  3   87  76   77  1  6   83  2  4 .329 .413 .439 .852 CHN
1914   143  510  165  27  0  3   83  67   81  2  5  101  3  3 .324 .415 .394 .809 CHN
1915   146  511  175  36  2  4   82  60   74  4  2  110  7  4 .342 .428 .444 .872 CHN
1916   136  443  123  25  0  2   53  45   72  0  3   79  1  2 .278 .376 .348 .724 CHN
Total 2100 7478 2372 474 42 49 1053 937 1001 32 52 1633 61 32 .317 .398 .411 .809

Current Ratings: 56/48/16/52/28

Total Talent Ratings: 48/47/7/60/34

At age 35, it looks like Dieter's career may just be coming to a close. He's won just about every individual award possible, but he's never gotten to a World Series. With the team in Chicago looking like it does right now, it doesn't seem likely that he ever will. That's about the only negative thing that someone could point out about his otherwise spotless career.

Clive Woodstock, 1B/RF-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats  
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B  HR RBI   R  BB  HP SF    K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1903   140  524  136  30  0   4  57  66  42   9  5  131  3  1 .260 .322 .340 .662  SLN
1904   139  515  113  28  1   4  63  40  40   6  8  118  2  1 .219 .279 .301 .580  SLN
1905   147  548  159  26  1   6  64  50  44   8  7  105  1  0 .290 .348 .374 .722  SLN
1906   151  570  146  19  0   7  67  54  47  12  6  124  0  0 .256 .323 .326 .649  SLN
1907   147  532  124  18  0   5  57  47  44   5  8  122  1  0 .233 .294 .295 .589  SLN
1908   145  531  109  18  0  12  70  43  36   9  6  143  1  0 .205 .265 .307 .572  SLN
1909   145  534  133  24  0   8  79  56  59  16  8  127  0  0 .249 .337 .339 .676  SLN
1910   145  513  120  12  0   7  82  45  71  10  4  132  1  0 .234 .336 .298 .634  SLN
1911   147  527  145  25  2  16 103  67  77  15  7  112  0  0 .275 .379 .421 .800  SLN
1912   145  517  124  25  0  15  76  56  75  11  4  133  1  0 .240 .346 .375 .721  SLN
1913   142  506  111  18  1  14  55  66  64  11  2  126  0  0 .219 .319 .342 .661  SLN
1914   110  365   68   7  2   8  40  31  42   9  5   96  0  2 .186 .283 .282 .565  SLN
1915    64  134   30   6  1   2  15  13  15   3  0   33  0  0 .224 .316 .328 .644  SLN
1916    26   59   16   4  0   1   6   8   4   1  0   11  0  0 .271 .328 .390 .718  SLN
Total 1793 6375 1534 260  8 109 834 642 660 125 70 1513 10  4 .241 .321 .335 .656

Current Ratings: 40/36/58/30/37

Total Talent Ratings: 47/40/60/38/41

What is it going to take for Clive Woodstock to see that he isn't wanted in St. Louis anymore? He's been playing less and less for the past three seasons, and while it appears as if the Cardinals refuse to release him, Woodstock refuses to go away, too. It's becoming an ugly scene, but for now, Clive has accepted his backup role, and it looks like St. Louis will keep him until there is nothing left for him to do.

Stuart Adamson, CF-New York Giants

Code:

Career Batting Stats 

Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B  HR RBI   R  BB HP SF    K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams  
1904   105  352   89   6  3   1  15  44  19  2  1   97  46  10 .253 .294 .295 .590  SLN
1905   141  553  129  12  8   2  52  60  29  3  2  157  44  10 .233 .274 .295 .569  SLN
1906   144  564  139  14  3   4  44  66  47  3  3  148  57  12 .246 .306 .303 .610  SLN
1907   145  518  124  15  3   2  49  56  44  4  4  130  60  12 .239 .302 .292 .593  SLN
1908   149  549  151  15  6  14  66  70  55  3  2  156  60  22 .275 .343 .401 .744  SLN
1909    89  159   37   4  3   2  12  24  28  1  1   59  15   5 .233 .349 .333 .683  SLN
1910   144  503  131  22  2   9  51  71  79  1  2  144  56  13 .260 .361 .366 .726 SLN NYG
1911   132  482  138  23  6  14  85  78  81  3  4  151  55  20 .286 .389 .446 .836  NYG
1912   150  533  160  26  6  15  98 106 109  8  8  149  82  10 .300 .421 .456 .877  NYG
1913   149  532  163  23 12  10  71 110 102  4  6  144  77  22 .306 .418 .451 .869  NYG
1914   150  563  153  20 11  14  83 103 110  4  8  172  90  15 .272 .390 .421 .811  NYG
1915   134  493  146  18  7  13  80 100  89  3  7  137  62  15 .296 .402 .440 .842  NYG
1916   148  572  156  18  8  12  73 110  93  1  2  150  77  17 .273 .374 .395 .769  NYG
Total 1780 6373 1716 216 78 112 779 998 885 40 50 1794 781 183 .269 .359 .380 .740

Current Ratings: 83/74/69/69/37

Total Talent Ratings: 90/81/75/77/40

It was another solid year in New York last season for Adamson, but in the end, it was not a successful one, as the Giants lost the World Series to Washington. Stuart was said to have taken the loss very seriously, and has appeared to have a new mindset coming into this season. It remains to be seen whether or not he can lead the Giants again, but there are very few who doubt him.

Don Ayers, 2B-Cleveland Indians

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF    K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams  
1905    52   84   24   3  1  0  14  10  10  0  0   26   2   2 .286 .362 .345 .707  CLE
1906    62   98   21   4  1  0  11  10   9  2  0   25   3   4 .214 .294 .276 .569  CLE
1907    59   81   18   2  0  0   8  13  10  0  3   21   1   2 .222 .298 .247 .545  CLE
1908   104  343   83  12  5  1  31  30  29  2  3   82   8  11 .242 .302 .315 .617  CLE
1909   142  540  140  28 10  1  58  66  59  6  2  126  21   7 .259 .338 .354 .691  CLE
1910   146  549  141  18  5  5  89  82  89  4  3  140  18   7 .257 .363 .335 .698  CLE
1911   144  546  172  25  8  3 106  85  66  6  4  111  25  13 .315 .392 .407 .799  CLE
1912   147  535  155  27  2  6  74  89  86  6  6  122  15  12 .290 .390 .381 .772  CLE
1913   147  524  155  23  7  5  71  72  71  5  6   97  20  14 .296 .381 .395 .776  CLE
1914   141  542  157  22  5  6  80  89  81  3  7  119  13  17 .290 .381 .382 .763  CLE
1915   148  543  142  20  4  6  60  81  79  9  0  109  17  13 .262 .365 .346 .711  CLE
1916   146  527  133  15  8  5  71  72  91  5  1  107  18  28 .252 .367 .340 .707  CLE
Total 1438 4912 1341 199 56 38 673 699 680 48 35 1085 161 130 .273 .365 .360 .724

Current Ratings: 74/61/41/61/61

Total Talent Ratings: 80/65/50/62/70

While Ayers and the Indians did show some signs of improvement at the end of last season, it looks like Cleveland's second baseman will never be able to fully fill the shoes of Ty Cobb. Indian fans may have forgiven him for this, but Ayers still has doubts in his own mind that he was never as good as he could have been. The only way to remove those doubts is to finally win a World Series for the Indians.

Sandford Freshlam, SP-Washington Senators

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year    G  GS  W  L SV   ERA     IP   HA   R   ER  HR  BB    K  CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1906    6   0  0  1  1 11.57    7.0   10   9    9   1   7    0   0   0 2.43 .310  WSH
1907    1   0  0  0  0  0.00    2.0    1   0    0   0   0    1   0   0 0.50 .167  WSH
1908			PITCHED IN A BALL		       	 
1909			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1910			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1911			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1912   34  34 17 14  0  3.52  288.2  242 137  113  25 114  287  27   5 1.23 .287  WSH
1913   42  42 18 20  0  3.64  353.1  294 157  143  45  84  326  35   3 1.07 .269  WSH
1914   41  41 17 17  0  2.62  356.2  267 111  104  31  53  353  32   4 0.90 .260  WSH
1915   40  40 24 11  0  2.24  353.0  250 107   88  32  44  348  33   5 0.83 .246  WSH
1916   30  30 22  4  0  1.87  264.1  175  68   55  18  24  243  22   3 0.75 .227  WSH
Total 194 187 98 67  1  2.84 1625.0 1239 589  512 152 326 1558 149  20 0.96 .259

Current Ratings: 90/99/48

Total Talent Ratings: 95/164/44

Washington finally finished a season above .500 and won the World Series, but it only figures that Sandford would be hurt and miss the playoffs. He took his injury in stride, however, saying that he did all he could in 1916 for the team, and they needed to prove to others that they could win without him. Now that they have, it appears as if the enigmatic man may just be ready for his best season yet. If that's the case, opposing teams had better be on their guard.

Ludwig Van Cleef, SP-New York Giants

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year    G  GS   W  L SV  ERA     IP  HA   R  ER HR  BB    K  CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1907    1   0   0  0  0 0.00    3.1   0   0   0  0   3    2   0   0 0.90 .000  NYG 
1908			PITCHED IN AA BALL			
1909			PITCHED IN AAA BALL
1910    1   0   0  0  0 0.00    1.0   0   0   0  0   0    0   0   0 0.00 .000  NYG
1911   17   2   0  5  5 8.10   30.0  30  27  27  4  29   19   0   0 1.97 .277  NYG
1912   31  12  11  6  7 1.96  133.1  78  32  29  2  55  145  11   2 1.00 .244  NYG
1913   40  40  25 11  0 2.54  339.2 230 105  96 13 119  387  30   9 1.03 .273  NYG
1914   42  42  27  5  0 1.95  368.2 228  83  80 12  81  397  26   7 0.84 .247  NYG
1915   41  41  31  8  0 1.65  359.0 204  79  66 14  56  423  35  16 0.72 .237  NYG
1916   41  41  30  4  0 1.55  360.1 217  72  62 13  38  408  27   8 0.71 .241  NYG
Total 214 178 124 39 12 2.03 1595.1 987 398 360 58 381 1781 129  42 0.86 .249

Current Ratings: 102/98/84

Total Talent Ratings: 103/135/88

The only thing that didn't go right for Van Cleef last season was that he finally lost a World Series game, and in turn, the Giants lost the World Series. After consecutive 30 win seasons, however, it is hard to blame Van Cleef for anything short of getting New York to three straight World Series, and that seems to be all that is happening. The Giants are still favored to win the National League pennant again, and Ludwig is the main reason why. The Giants would be in serious trouble if anything happened to him, however.

Christian Gray, SS-St. Louis Browns

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K  SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1908    5   11   0   0  0  0   0   0   1  0  0   6   0  1 .000 .083 .000 .083  SLA
1909    5   12   2   0  0  0   2   3   4  0  0   3   2  0 .167 .375 .167 .542  SLA
1910   30   91  10   1  0  0   9   9   5  1  0  31   6  2 .110 .165 .121 .286  SLA
1911  138  533 117  13  8  4  53  72  43  1  1 165  46  9 .220 .279 .296 .575  SLA
1912  146  587 179  26  6  6  65  94  50  4  0 156  78 16 .305 .363 .400 .764  SLA
1913  147  555 199  21  8  4  75 100  61  4  3 101  68 21 .359 .424 .447 .871  SLA
1914  139  521 136  11  4  2  62  73  59  5  4 103  65 17 .261 .340 .309 .649  SLA
1915  153  626 157  21  5  2  46  95  63  4  5 127  74 20 .251 .321 .310 .631  SLA
1916  147  591 174  22  4  2  48  76  51  9  4  92  71 13 .294 .357 .355 .713  SLA
Total 910 3527 974 115 35 20 360 522 337 28 17 784 410 99 .276 .343 .346 .688

Current Ratings: 68/46/31/44/29

Total Talent Ratings: 74/40/22/63/22

Christian has become the biggest base stealing threat in the American League, and is the main reason why St. Louis has become a yearly contender for the AL pennant as well. He returned to form last season after two poor years, and as long as he can hit around .300 once again, the Browns should be in great shape when it comes to the postseason. However, if he struggles, then the Browns have little to no chance of success.

Fletcher Parslofski, LF-Philadelphia Phillies

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1909    2    3   0  0  0  0   0   0   1  0  0   2  0  0 .000 .250 .000 .250 PHI
1910    0    0   0  0  0  0   0   0   0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000 PHI
1911   17   22   3  1  0  0   1   3   8  0  0   4  0  0 .136 .367 .182 .548 PHI
1912   38   53  11  3  0  0   9   2   9  0  0   8  0  0 .208 .323 .264 .587 PHI
1913  116  373 103 13  5  8  40  51  66  2  0  50  2  1 .276 .388 .402 .790 PHI
1914  145  496 117 22  3  6  62  59 101  2  6  60  5  0 .236 .364 .329 .692 PHI
1915  147  502 135 27  2  9  56  64  99  1  3  74  1  1 .269 .388 .384 .773 PHI
1916  142  486 143 26  3  7  55  69 106  3  0  51  3  0 .294 .424 .403 .827 PHI
Total 607 1935 512 92 13 30 223 248 390  8  9 249 11  2 .265 .389 .372 .761

Current Ratings: 75/83/47/92/83

Total Talent Ratings: 79/78/50/99/75

Fletcher has become everything that the Phillies expected him to be when they drafted him back in 1909. His batter's eye is one of the tops in the game, while his hitting has finally come around too. Add to that some solid fielding, and you have the main reason why some people are talking about the Phillies making a return to the postseason for the first time since 1903.

Michael Feldbush, 2B-New York Giants

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1910   97  241  53  13  3  2  28  25  21  3  1  82  15   8 .220 .289 .324 .613 NYG
1911  103  266  68  14  4  2  30  43  52  4  1  61  14  10 .256 .384 .361 .745 NYG
1912  147  532 139  20  6  4  67  80  89  2  5 123  42  20 .261 .366 .344 .710 NYG
1913  149  565 170  40  6  4  49 104  85  2  2 103  43  16 .301 .393 .414 .807 NYG
1914  150  569 138  19  6  4  61  81  87  8  3 107  47  18 .243 .349 .318 .667 NYG
1915  146  510 155  24 10  8  86  87 102  9  4  97  40  19 .304 .426 .437 .863 NYG
1916  145  547 155  25  5  5  81  98  93  4  4  97  41  21 .283 .389 .375 .764 NYG
Total 937 3230 878 155 40 29 402 518 529 32 20 670 242 112 .272 .378 .372 .749

Current Ratings: 82/61/52/72/63

Total Talent Ratings: 90/55/54/80/71

It was a tale of two half seasons for Michael Feldbush last year. The first half of the season was a disaster, while the second half seemed more like what New York fans were used to seeing from their young star. For the Giants to have a good season this year, it will take more than a half season of solid play by Feldbush, especially considering that Rogers Hornsby is now manning second base for the Reds.

Killian Ditty, 3B-Boston Braves

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G  AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI  R BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1911    2   0   0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000  PHI
1912    1   1   0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000  PHI
1913   13  31  12  4  0  0   7  6  6  0  0   8  0  0 .387 .486 .516 1.003 PHI BSN
1914   23  70  19  3  0  0   6  5  7  0  0  16  0  0 .271 .338 .314 .652  BSN
1915   93 314  84 18  1  5  52 34 33  3  4  68  2  0 .268 .339 .379 .718  BSN
1916   51 138  20  2  0  0  10 12 25  4  1  40  0  1 .145 .292 .159 .451  BSN
Total 183 554 135 27  1  5  75 57 71  7  5 132  2  1 .244 .334 .323 .657

Current Ratings: 52/85/50/39/56

Total Talent Ratings: 90/109/49/67/55

It still seems like the Braves have no idea what to do with Killian Ditty. He's not starting for them anymore, but he's not down in Class AAA ball where he should be. Instead, he's spending the start of the season on the bench, where all that seems to be getting done is a loss of potential. What is it going to take for this young man to realize what he is wasting?

Shamus O'Brien, SP-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 

Year   G  GS  W  L SV  ERA    IP  HA   R  ER HR  BB   K CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1912   12  0  1  1  0 3.95  13.2  12   6   6  3   9  10  0   0 1.54 .243  SLN
1913   31  0  2  3  0 3.02  44.2  38  16  15  6  11  25  0   0 1.10 .237  SLN
1914   26 11  8  5  3 2.98  90.2  82  31  30  9  38  71  2   0 1.32 .292  SLN
1915   35 35  9 13  0 2.98 256.2 181  95  85 21  86 205  5   1 1.04 .235  SLN
1916   17 17  3 12  0 3.99 137.2 118  69  61  9  64  97 13   1 1.32 .275  SLN
Total 121 63 23 34  3 3.26 543.1 431 217 197 48 208 408 20   2 1.18 .256

Current Ratings: 56/51/49

Total Talent Ratings: 74/71/59

After a horrible season was ended by injury last year for Shamus, it didn't seem like it could have gotten any worse. Well, almost a year later, it has. Shamus will still miss the first three months of the season with the same shoulder injury, and when he does return, it appears that the Cardinals will be sending him to their Class AAA club rather than back to the major league level. It seems like this is another case of wasted talent by the St. Louis organization.

Jamee Gray, SS-Boston Braves

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1913   11   41   7  1  0  1   4   3   0  0  0  15  0  0 .171 .171 .268 .439 BSN
1914  145  538 128 21  1  2  69  50  39 10  5 137  1  0 .238 .299 .292 .591 BSN
1915  143  530 148 22  5 11  74  62  67  4  5 120  2  0 .279 .361 .402 .763 BSN
1916  144  538 135 23  2 15  66  72  69  7  2 160  2  0 .251 .343 .385 .727 BSN
Total 443 1647 418 67  8 29 213 187 175 21 12 432  5  0 .254 .331 .357 .688

Current Ratings: 80/66/92/51/46

Total Talent Ratings: 87/65/100/55/44

Jamee and the rest of the Braves had an off year in 1916, but it looks like things may be heading in the right direction this year. Gray has apparently spent the entire winter working on his swing, and has shown up this year with the most incredible ability to knock the ball out of the park like no one has ever seen before. Not only that, but he's managed to do it without having to give up much of his regular swing as well. If he can find success, then he might just become the greatest long ball hitter of all time.

Justin Williamson, SP-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year   G GS  W  L SV  ERA   IP   HA   R  ER HR  BB   K CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams
1914			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1915  22  7  3  9  3 4.60  74.1  65  43  38 14  43  59  1   0 1.45 .251  SLN
1916  41 41 12 11  0 2.81 294.2 199 105  92 23 108 300  2   0 1.04 .239  SLN
Total 63 48 15 20  3 3.17 369.0 264 148 130 37 151 359  3   0 1.12 .242

Current Ratings: 90/56/77

Total Talent Ratings: 100/85/66

Where Shamus O'Brien has failed, Justin Williamson has shined for the Cardinals. He truly looks ready to take the National League by storm this year, and while the Cardinals will not be winning many games, Justin will be keeping them in many more than in previous years. If only a few more of their prospects could pan out like this, then the Cardinals may just become a good team.

Cristobal Torriente, 3B/RF-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year   G AB  H 2B 3B HR RBI R BB HP SF  K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1915  11 19  5  0  0  0   1 1  2  0  0  5  2  0 .263 .333 .263 .596 SLN
1916  19 68 13  2  0  1   7 3  3  0  0 23  0  0 .191 .225 .265 .490 SLN
Total 30 87 18  2  0  1   8 4  5  0  0 28  2  0 .207 .250 .264 .514

Current Ratings: 50/59/25/31/47

Total Talent Ratings: 76/55/77/71/40

While it would appear that the Cardinals were going to make Torriente their right fielder of the future, for now, he is stuck on the bench as St. Louis has decided to carry five right fielders on their roster to start the season. While this makes little to no sense to most people, all that Cardinals fans have to do is remember that they are the Cardinals, and stupid plans seem to be common for the worst team in baseball.

Peter Bernard, C/3B-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year G AB H 2B 3B HR RBI R BB HP SF K SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS Teams
			PLAYED IN A BALL

Current Ratings: 33/40/19/22/45

Total Talent Ratings: 101/50/95/63/38

Of all the prospects that St. Louis has, it seems like the only one they are not rushing is Peter Bernard. He is starting the 1917 season down with the Class A ballclub again, and most people within the Cardinals organization are saying that he will remain there until he is ready to play for the Cardinals themselves. This is yet another questionable choice, but it seems like St. Louis is full of those, and most people believe that this may be the right one, so they are letting it go for now.

Hurkman · 08-11-2006, 03:18 PM

July 1, 1917

Four teams locked in tight race in American League. Red Sox holding on to slim lead.

Despite the United States entering the Great War just days before the start of the baseball season, this year has had some memorable stories that have been able to keep people's minds off the fighting and on to more peaceful matters.

The American League has seemed to have its share of pennant races in the past, and this year is no different, with four teams just three and a half games apart from each other. The Boston Red Sox seem to have made the most of getting Tris Speaker from Philadelphia, as they have jumped to the lead halfway through the season. Speaker leads the team in batting, runs batted in, runs scored, home runs and stolen bases and is the main reason why Boston has turned around a team that finished seventh in the American League last year. Their pitching has also been a surprise, with Jeff Tesreau, Ed Karger and Dick Robertson each winning 10 or more games so far this year. This fast start certainly has Red Sox fans thinking about the World Series in October.

However, Boston still has to hold off four other teams that could very well take their spot at the top in just a moment's notice. St. Louis is once again making itself known with a tremendous offensive lineup that features a resurgent Christian Gray. Detroit's pitching is the best in the American League, with both Nap Rucker and George McQuillan having excellent seasons. The defending World Series champion Washington Senators have withstood a poor start to the season by Sandford Freshlam and now look to be climbing back into the race. In Philadelphia, Walter Johnson has already won 15 games, and has the Athletics thinking about a summer charge. It will take a large effort for Boston to make it to the World Series, but with Tris Speaker leading the way, anything is possible.

Code:

American League Standings 

Team             W  L   PCT   GB  Pyt.Rec Diff  Home   Away   XInn  1Run  M#  Streak Last10 
Boston (A)       43 29 .597    -  40-32   3     20-16  23-13  5-3   16-8  67  W6     7-3 
St. Louis (A)    43 31 .581  1.0  44-30  -1     18-17  25-14  7-4    9-13  -  L1     8-2 
Detroit          42 32 .568  2.0  43-31  -1     22-15  20-17  7-6   14-11  -  W1     5-5 
Washington       39 32 .549  3.5  38-33   1     17-18  22-14  4-3   13-12  -  W1     4-6 
Philadelphia (A) 36 34 .514  6.0  37-33  -1     20-14  16-20  1-3   11-15  -  L1     5-5 
Cleveland        32 42 .432 12.0  28-46   4     16-21  16-21  2-7   19-11  -  W1     4-6 
Chicago (A)      30 45 .400 14.5  29-46   1     16-25  14-20  3-4   14-19  -  L1     3-7 
New York (A)     26 46 .361 17.0  29-43  -3     12-24  14-22  3-2   10-17  -  L3     4-6

New York riding wave of good hitting, solid pitching to National League lead once again.

In the National League, it appears as if a power surge of hitting has taken over where there once were dominant pitchers. Yet, despite the tremendous number of homeruns being hit, the New York Giants still have the time tested way of getting to the top of the league. Ludwig Van Cleef is still dominating opposing batters, having won 14 games thus far, and the Giants have also gotten help from first year pitcher Mike Regan and surprising starter Hugh Bedient. Their offense is once again one of the best in all of baseball, with Stuart Adamson having a career year, leading the team in batting average, home runs, runs scored and stolen bases. The rest of the batting order is doing quite well too, and the Giants look to be in prime position for another trip to the World Series.

The one team that looks to be standing in their way would be the Pittsburgh Pirates, who have had surprising seasons from aged pitchers Chief Bender and Art Fromme to currently have a hold on second place in the National League. Aside from their pitching, the Pirates are generating runs once again, with young George Burns and Tillie Shafer playing some of their best ball yet alongside older stars like Birdie Cree, Bris Lord and Heinie Zimmerman. While the Pirates may not have many individual stars, as a team, they are playing very well, and could be enough to push the Giants out of first place come October.

Code:

National League Standings 
 
Team             W  L   PCT   GB  Pyt.Rec Diff  Home   Away   XInn  1Run  M#  Streak Last10 
New York (N)     49 22 .690    -  47-24   2     25-10  24-12  6-2   18-13 66  W3     7-3 
Pittsburgh       44 26 .629  4.5  40-30   4     17-17  27-9   4-2   19-12  -  W5     7-3 
Boston (N)       40 32 .556  9.5  34-38   6     19-16  21-16  8-1   23-7   -  W1     5-5 
Philadelphia (N) 34 39 .466 16.0  33-40   1     16-20  18-19  5-3   15-16  -  L1     4-6 
St. Louis (N)    34 39 .466 16.0  33-40   1     19-20  15-19  5-9   18-19  -  L1     5-5 
Cincinnati       33 42 .440 18.0  39-36  -6     20-21  13-21  5-7   13-21  -  L5     3-7 
Brooklyn         29 42 .408 20.0  33-38  -4     11-26  18-16  1-6    9-21  -  L3     4-6 
Chicago (N)      27 48 .360 24.0  29-46  -2     11-22  16-26  3-7   12-18  -  W1     6-4

Players of the Month
American League
April
Batter of the Month: Benny Kauff (WSH)- .443, 2 HR, 13 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Nap Rucker (DET)- 45 IP, 5-0, 1.00 ERA

May
Batter of the Month: Hal Chase (BSA)- .324. 0 HR, 23 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Reb Russell (WSH)- 70 IP, 6-2, 1.93 ERA

June
Batter of the Month: Sam Rice (PHA)- .462, 0 HR, 9 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Walter Johnson (PHA)- 72 IP, 7-1, 1.38 ERA

National League
April
Batter of the Month: Stuart Adamson (NYG)- .391, 1 HR, 9 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Dave Davenport (NYG)- 45 IP, 5-0, 0.80 ERA

May
Batter of the Month: Enos Kirkpatrick (BSN)- .330, 0 HR, 18 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Ludwig Van Cleef (NYG)- 63 IP, 5-1, 1.00 ERA

June
Batter of the Month: Stuart Adamson (NYG)- .343, 2 HR, 13 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Lou Schettler (CHN)- 54.2 IP, 4-0, 1.15 ERA

Hurkman · 08-11-2006, 04:23 PM

Star/Prospect Watch

Dieter Kahle, CF-Chicago Cubs

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
  
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR  RBI   R   BB HP SF    K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1902   113  406  110   8  2  1   39  51   30  2  4   94  3  3 .271 .321 .308 .629 CHN
1903   112  376   98  23  3  4   49  40   42  2  3  117  4  1 .261 .336 .370 .705 CHN
1904   144  549  119  24  2  3   73  50   47  4  2  176  5  2 .217 .282 .284 .567 CHN
1905   141  511  153  29  4  5   78  64   61  1  2  107  3  2 .299 .374 .401 .775 CHN
1906   135  478  151  27  6  3   75  67   69  0  2   89  3  0 .316 .401 .416 .817 CHN
1907   147  522  197  37  3  4   89  62   73  3  7  104  5  0 .377 .451 .483 .934 CHN
1908   148  536  183  40  1  2   61  61   64  1  6  109  6  0 .341 .409 .431 .840 CHN
1909   145  517  179  38  2  2   64  76   79  4  2  121  9  1 .346 .435 .439 .874 CHN
1910   148  525  186  36  6  4   72  67   69  1  2  112  4  7 .354 .429 .469 .897 CHN
1911   151  535  178  41  1  5   83  70   83  3  3  111  4  0 .333 .423 .441 .864 CHN
1912   147  540  184  43  6  4   65  81   80  4  3  120  2  3 .341 .427 .465 .892 CHN
1913   144  519  171  40  4  3   87  76   77  1  6   83  2  4 .329 .413 .439 .852 CHN
1914   143  510  165  27  0  3   83  67   81  2  5  101  3  3 .324 .415 .394 .809 CHN
1915   146  511  175  36  2  4   82  60   74  4  2  110  7  4 .342 .428 .444 .872 CHN
1916   136  443  123  25  0  2   53  45   72  0  3   79  1  2 .278 .376 .348 .724 CHN
1917    51  166   35   3  0  1   18  10   22  1  0   51  1  1 .211 .307 .247 .554 CHN
Total 2151 7644 2407 477 42 50 1071 947 1023 33 52 1684 62 33 .315 .396 .408 .804

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 56/48/16/52/28
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 56/48/16/52/28

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):     48/47/7/60/34
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 48/47/7/60/34

The end is just about here for Dieter in Chicago. He is putting up the worst numbers of his career, and age has taken away much of the talent from his once mighty game. The Cubs seem unwilling to release him, mostly because they can not fathom the idea of seeing their best player in the uniform of another team. At the end of the season, it seems like Kahle will call it a career.

Clive Woodstock, 1B/RF-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats  
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B  HR RBI   R  BB  HP SF    K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1903   140  524  136  30  0   4  57  66  42   9  5  131  3  1 .260 .322 .340 .662  SLN
1904   139  515  113  28  1   4  63  40  40   6  8  118  2  1 .219 .279 .301 .580  SLN
1905   147  548  159  26  1   6  64  50  44   8  7  105  1  0 .290 .348 .374 .722  SLN
1906   151  570  146  19  0   7  67  54  47  12  6  124  0  0 .256 .323 .326 .649  SLN
1907   147  532  124  18  0   5  57  47  44   5  8  122  1  0 .233 .294 .295 .589  SLN
1908   145  531  109  18  0  12  70  43  36   9  6  143  1  0 .205 .265 .307 .572  SLN
1909   145  534  133  24  0   8  79  56  59  16  8  127  0  0 .249 .337 .339 .676  SLN
1910   145  513  120  12  0   7  82  45  71  10  4  132  1  0 .234 .336 .298 .634  SLN
1911   147  527  145  25  2  16 103  67  77  15  7  112  0  0 .275 .379 .421 .800  SLN
1912   145  517  124  25  0  15  76  56  75  11  4  133  1  0 .240 .346 .375 .721  SLN
1913   142  506  111  18  1  14  55  66  64  11  2  126  0  0 .219 .319 .342 .661  SLN
1914   110  365   68   7  2   8  40  31  42   9  5   96  0  2 .186 .283 .282 .565  SLN
1915    64  134   30   6  1   2  15  13  15   3  0   33  0  0 .224 .316 .328 .644  SLN
1916    26   59   16   4  0   1   6   8   4   1  0   11  0  0 .271 .328 .390 .718  SLN
1917    13   37    7   2  1   1   2   5   3   1  0   10  0  0 .189 .268 .378 .647  SLN
Total 1806 6412 1541 262  9 110 836 647 663 126 70 1523 10  4 .240 .320 .335 .656

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 40/36/58/30/37
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 40/36/53/31/35
					          -5 +1 -2
 
Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917): 	  47/40/60/38/41
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 47/40/48/38/27
					      -12   -14

While most people are waiting for Dieter Kahle to retire with dignity, others are just waiting for Clive Woodstock to retire. He has done nothing this season other than constantly remind St. Louis fans about what a waste of talent he was, and most can not wait until he is gone. Heopfully, they won't have to wait much longer than the end of this season.

Stuart Adamson, CF-New York Giants

Code:

Career Batting Stats 

Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B  HR RBI    R  BB HP SF    K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams  
1904   105  352   89   6  3   1  15   44  19  2  1   97  46  10 .253 .294 .295 .590  SLN
1905   141  553  129  12  8   2  52   60  29  3  2  157  44  10 .233 .274 .295 .569  SLN
1906   144  564  139  14  3   4  44   66  47  3  3  148  57  12 .246 .306 .303 .610  SLN
1907   145  518  124  15  3   2  49   56  44  4  4  130  60  12 .239 .302 .292 .593  SLN
1908   149  549  151  15  6  14  66   70  55  3  2  156  60  22 .275 .343 .401 .744  SLN
1909    89  159   37   4  3   2  12   24  28  1  1   59  15   5 .233 .349 .333 .683  SLN
1910   144  503  131  22  2   9  51   71  79  1  2  144  56  13 .260 .361 .366 .726 SLN NYG
1911   132  482  138  23  6  14  85   78  81  3  4  151  55  20 .286 .389 .446 .836  NYG
1912   150  533  160  26  6  15  98  106 109  8  8  149  82  10 .300 .421 .456 .877  NYG
1913   149  532  163  23 12  10  71  110 102  4  6  144  77  22 .306 .418 .451 .869  NYG
1914   150  563  153  20 11  14  83  103 110  4  8  172  90  15 .272 .390 .421 .811  NYG
1915   134  493  146  18  7  13  80  100  89  3  7  137  62  15 .296 .402 .440 .842  NYG
1916   148  572  156  18  8  12  73  110  93  1  2  150  77  17 .273 .374 .395 .769  NYG
1917    69  262   89  10  9   4  40   49  38  1  5   63  43   5 .340 .418 .492 .911  NYG
Total 1849 6635 1805 226 87 116 819 1047 923 41 55 1857 824 188 .272 .362 .385 .747

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 83/74/69/69/37
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 83/74/69/69/39
							+2
					   
Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):  	  90/81/75/77/40
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 90/81/75/77/40

Somehow, at age 33, Adamson is having the best year of his career. He is leading the National League in batting, runs scored and stolen bases, and is still the driving force behind New York's powerful offense. He also currently has a career high 17 game hitting streak, and is only four games away from setting a new Giants record. New York could very well be on their way to a fourth straight World Series if he can keep this performance up.

Don Ayers, 2B-Cleveland Indians

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF    K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams  
1905    52   84   24   3  1  0  14  10  10  0  0   26   2   2 .286 .362 .345 .707  CLE
1906    62   98   21   4  1  0  11  10   9  2  0   25   3   4 .214 .294 .276 .569  CLE
1907    59   81   18   2  0  0   8  13  10  0  3   21   1   2 .222 .298 .247 .545  CLE
1908   104  343   83  12  5  1  31  30  29  2  3   82   8  11 .242 .302 .315 .617  CLE
1909   142  540  140  28 10  1  58  66  59  6  2  126  21   7 .259 .338 .354 .691  CLE
1910   146  549  141  18  5  5  89  82  89  4  3  140  18   7 .257 .363 .335 .698  CLE
1911   144  546  172  25  8  3 106  85  66  6  4  111  25  13 .315 .392 .407 .799  CLE
1912   147  535  155  27  2  6  74  89  86  6  6  122  15  12 .290 .390 .381 .772  CLE
1913   147  524  155  23  7  5  71  72  71  5  6   97  20  14 .296 .381 .395 .776  CLE
1914   141  542  157  22  5  6  80  89  81  3  7  119  13  17 .290 .381 .382 .763  CLE
1915   148  543  142  20  4  6  60  81  79  9  0  109  17  13 .262 .365 .346 .711  CLE
1916   146  527  133  15  8  5  71  72  91  5  1  107  18  28 .252 .367 .340 .707  CLE
1917    70  246   56   6  1  0  27  25  32  2  4   48  11  10 .228 .317 .260 .577  CLE
Total 1508 5158 1397 205 57 38 700 724 712 50 39 1133 172 140 .271 .362 .355 .717

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 74/61/41/61/61
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 74/61/41/60/63
						     -1 +2	

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):  	  80/65/50/62/70
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 80/65/50/62/70

At the start of this season, it appeared as if Don Ayers may finally be able to shed the ghosts of the past few seasons and emerge as a talent once again. Now, it looks like it will be another disappointing year for the man who has yet to banish the spirit of Ty Cobb from the Indians. Cleveland is having another down year, and it is wearing off on Ayers, who has gone from fan favorite to being jeered once again. It will take quite a comeback for him to repair his image in Cleveland.

Sandford Freshlam, SP-Washington Senators

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year    G  GS   W  L SV   ERA     IP   HA   R   ER  HR  BB    K  CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1906    6   0   0  1  1 11.57    7.0   10   9    9   1   7    0   0   0 2.43 .310  WSH
1907    1   0   0  0  0  0.00    2.0    1   0    0   0   0    1   0   0 0.50 .167  WSH
1908			PITCHED IN A BALL		       	 
1909			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1910			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1911			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1912   34  34  17 14  0  3.52  288.2  242 137  113  25 114  287  27   5 1.23 .287  WSH
1913   42  42  18 20  0  3.64  353.1  294 157  143  45  84  326  35   3 1.07 .269  WSH
1914   41  41  17 17  0  2.62  356.2  267 111  104  31  53  353  32   4 0.90 .260  WSH
1915   40  40  24 11  0  2.24  353.0  250 107   88  32  44  348  33   5 0.83 .246  WSH
1916   30  30  22  4  0  1.87  264.1  175  68   55  18  24  243  22   3 0.75 .227  WSH
1917   19  19   9  9  0  2.91  164.0  137  60   53  13  12  133  14   1 0.91 .271  WSH
Total 213 206 107 76  1  2.84 1789.0 1376 649  565 165 338 1691 163  21 0.96 .260

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement):  90/99/48
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement):  90/99/42
						-6
					  
Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):      95/164/44
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	      	  95/164/44

A poor start to the season left some people thinking that Sandford had not fully recovered from his shoulder injury that he suffered at the end of 1916. Now, after some additional time off, it looks like the old "Saltpeter" is back and ready to mow batters down once again for Washington. It will take a superhuman effort on his part to help get the Senators back to the World Series, but if one pitcher can do it, it is him.

Ludwig Van Cleef, SP-New York Giants

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year    G  GS   W  L SV  ERA     IP   HA   R  ER HR  BB    K  CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1907    1   0   0  0  0 0.00    3.1    0   0   0  0   3    2   0   0 0.90 .000  NYG 
1908			PITCHED IN AA BALL			
1909			PITCHED IN AAA BALL
1910    1   0   0  0  0 0.00    1.0    0   0   0  0   0    0   0   0 0.00 .000  NYG
1911   17   2   0  5  5 8.10   30.0   30  27  27  4  29   19   0   0 1.97 .277  NYG
1912   31  12  11  6  7 1.96  133.1   78  32  29  2  55  145  11   2 1.00 .244  NYG
1913   40  40  25 11  0 2.54  339.2  230 105  96 13 119  387  30   9 1.03 .273  NYG
1914   42  42  27  5  0 1.95  368.2  228  83  80 12  81  397  26   7 0.84 .247  NYG
1915   41  41  31  8  0 1.65  359.0  204  79  66 14  56  423  35  16 0.72 .237  NYG
1916   41  41  30  4  0 1.55  360.1  217  72  62 13  38  408  27   8 0.71 .241  NYG
1917   19  19  14  4  0 1.84  166.0  106  37  34  5  17  173  16   5 0.74 .249  NYG
Total 233 197 138 43 12 2.01 1761.1 1093 435 394 63 398 1954 145  47 0.85 .249

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 102/98/84
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 101/98/86
					   -1    +2

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):  	  103/135/88
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 103/135/88

It looks like it will be another amazing season for Van Cleef and the Giants. Once again, he is on pace to win just about 30 games, and the Giants have the best record in baseball yet again. In just a few short years, Ludwig has gone from relative unknown to the best pitcher in baseball, and it doesn't look like he'll be giving that spot up any time soon.

Christian Gray, SS-St. Louis Browns

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB    H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1908    5   11    0   0  0  0   0   0   1  0  0   6   0   1 .000 .083 .000 .083  SLA
1909    5   12    2   0  0  0   2   3   4  0  0   3   2   0 .167 .375 .167 .542  SLA
1910   30   91   10   1  0  0   9   9   5  1  0  31   6   2 .110 .165 .121 .286  SLA
1911  138  533  117  13  8  4  53  72  43  1  1 165  46   9 .220 .279 .296 .575  SLA
1912  146  587  179  26  6  6  65  94  50  4  0 156  78  16 .305 .363 .400 .764  SLA
1913  147  555  199  21  8  4  75 100  61  4  3 101  68  21 .359 .424 .447 .871  SLA
1914  139  521  136  11  4  2  62  73  59  5  4 103  65  17 .261 .340 .309 .649  SLA
1915  153  626  157  21  5  2  46  95  63  4  5 127  74  20 .251 .321 .310 .631  SLA
1916  147  591  174  22  4  2  48  76  51  9  4  92  71  13 .294 .357 .355 .713  SLA
1917   71  287   90   7  1  2  35  40  21  1  3  46  42   8 .314 .359 .366 .725  SLA
Total 981 3814 1064 122 36 22 395 562 358 29 20 830 452 107 .279 .344 .347 .691

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 68/46/31/44/29
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 66/42/31/46/28
					    -2 -4    +2 -1
					  
Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):     74/40/22/63/22
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 74/40/22/63/22

Christian Gray is back in his old form, and he has become the leader for the Browns on offense. His .314 batting average leads the team, while he leads the league in stolen bases, and is second in runs scored. His speed and knack for hitting the baseball make him a fine leadoff man, and it appears as if the Browns will be quite successful as long as he plays well.

Fletcher Parslofski, LF-Philadelphia Phillies

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1909    2    3   0   0  0  0   0   0   1  0  0   2  0  0 .000 .250 .000 .250 PHI
1910    0    0   0   0  0  0   0   0   0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000 PHI
1911   17   22   3   1  0  0   1   3   8  0  0   4  0  0 .136 .367 .182 .548 PHI
1912   38   53  11   3  0  0   9   2   9  0  0   8  0  0 .208 .323 .264 .587 PHI
1913  116  373 103  13  5  8  40  51  66  2  0  50  2  1 .276 .388 .402 .790 PHI
1914  145  496 117  22  3  6  62  59 101  2  6  60  5  0 .236 .364 .329 .692 PHI
1915  147  502 135  27  2  9  56  64  99  1  3  74  1  1 .269 .388 .384 .773 PHI
1916  142  486 143  26  3  7  55  69 106  3  0  51  3  0 .294 .424 .403 .827 PHI
1917   68  227  59  12  1  5  27  25  58  1  2  23  2  0 .260 .410 .388 .797 PHI
Total 675 2162 571 104 14 35 250 273 448  9 11 272 13  2 .264 .391 .374 .765

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 75/83/47/92/83
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 77/83/50/91/83
					    +2    +3 -1

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):  	  79/78/50/99/75
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 79/78/50/99/75

Fletcher isn't having the best season in the world, but he is still playing well for the Phillies. His five homeruns are currently second in the National League, and he already has amassed an amazing 58 walks this season. Once again, his ability to take pitches at the plate is a sight to behold, and all he needs now is the rest of his team to start playing up to their potential to make the Phillies a World Series contender.

Michael Feldbush, 2B-New York Giants

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year     G   AB   H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1910    97  241  53  13  3  2  28  25  21  3  1  82  15   8 .220 .289 .324 .613 NYG
1911   103  266  68  14  4  2  30  43  52  4  1  61  14  10 .256 .384 .361 .745 NYG
1912   147  532 139  20  6  4  67  80  89  2  5 123  42  20 .261 .366 .344 .710 NYG
1913   149  565 170  40  6  4  49 104  85  2  2 103  43  16 .301 .393 .414 .807 NYG
1914   150  569 138  19  6  4  61  81  87  8  3 107  47  18 .243 .349 .318 .667 NYG
1915   146  510 155  24 10  8  86  87 102  9  4  97  40  19 .304 .426 .437 .863 NYG
1916   145  547 155  25  5  5  81  98  93  4  4  97  41  21 .283 .389 .375 .764 NYG
1917    67  238  67  12  5  2  31  39  43  3  1  40  17   8 .282 .396 .399 .796 NYG
Total 1004 3468 945 167 45 31 433 557 572 35 21 710 259 120 .272 .379 .373 .752

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 82/61/52/72/63
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 85/63/52/73/63
					    +3 +2   +1

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):  	  90/55/54/80/71
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 90/55/54/80/71

It is amazing to believe that Michael is still only 26 years old when you consider all that he has done in his career so far. This year is another solid season, as he is second on the Giants in most statistical categories. He started out the year slowly once again, but has now become a force to be reckoned with, and should be a key component in New York's race for a fourth consecutive National League pennant.

Killian Ditty, 3B-Boston Braves

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G  AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI  R BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1911    2   0   0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000  PHI
1912    1   1   0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000  PHI
1913   13  31  12  4  0  0   7  6  6  0  0   8  0  0 .387 .486 .516 1.003 PHI BSN
1914   23  70  19  3  0  0   6  5  7  0  0  16  0  0 .271 .338 .314 .652  BSN
1915   93 314  84 18  1  5  52 34 33  3  4  68  2  0 .268 .339 .379 .718  BSN
1916   51 138  20  2  0  0  10 12 25  4  1  40  0  1 .145 .292 .159 .451  BSN
1917   41 137  27  8  0  1  18 14 18  1  1  28  0  0 .197 .293 .277 .570  BSN
Total 224 691 162 35  1  6  93 71 89  8  6 160  2  1 .234 .326 .314 .640

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 52/85/50/39/56
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 55/90/50/40/54
					    +3 +5    +1 -2	

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):  	   90/109/49/67/55
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  90/109/49/67/55

Seriously now, what is it going to take for Boston to realize that Killian just isn't ready for the major leagues? All that has been accomplished in the past few seasons is damage to his self confidence and the Braves' chances of winning with him as a starter. Now, he's not even a starter any more, and it looks like the best place for him to go is either to Class AAA ball, or to another team.

Shamus O'Brien, SP-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 

Year   G  GS  W  L SV  ERA    IP  HA   R  ER HR  BB   K CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1912   12  0  1  1  0 3.95  13.2  12   6   6  3   9  10  0   0 1.54 .243  SLN
1913   31  0  2  3  0 3.02  44.2  38  16  15  6  11  25  0   0 1.10 .237  SLN
1914   26 11  8  5  3 2.98  90.2  82  31  30  9  38  71  2   0 1.32 .292  SLN
1915   35 35  9 13  0 2.98 256.2 181  95  85 21  86 205  5   1 1.04 .235  SLN
1916   17 17  3 12  0 3.99 137.2 118  69  61  9  64  97 13   1 1.32 .275  SLN
1917			PITCHED IN AAA BALL

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 56/51/49
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 56/51/49

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):     74/71/59
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 74/71/59

Shamus just finally returned from his injury, and has pitched well in Class AAA ball, winning one game while striking out 17 batters in two starts. He's not happy at all about playing down in the minor leagues, and is hoping that his performance so far will be enough to get him traded out of what he describes as a "St. Louis hell-hole."

Jamee Gray, SS-Boston Braves

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1913   11   41   7  1  0  1   4   3   0  0  0  15  0  0 .171 .171 .268 .439 BSN
1914  145  538 128 21  1  2  69  50  39 10  5 137  1  0 .238 .299 .292 .591 BSN
1915  143  530 148 22  5 11  74  62  67  4  5 120  2  0 .279 .361 .402 .763 BSN
1916  144  538 135 23  2 15  66  72  69  7  2 160  2  0 .251 .343 .385 .727 BSN
1917   64  235  54 18  0 10  29  36  34  3  0  52  0  0 .230 .335 .434 .769 BSN
Total 507 1882 472 85  8 39 242 223 209 24 12 484  5  0 .251 .331 .367 .698

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 80/66/92/51/46
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 81/66/92/51/46
					    +1
					 
Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):  	   87/65/100/55/44
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  87/65/100/55/44

If one were looking for the source of all the power output in the National League, you would have to look no further than Jamee Gray. His ten homeruns not only leads all of baseball, but is more than some teams have hit so far this season. However, his batting average has suffered, and he is currently suffering from a serious arm injury that could keep him out of action for about a month, but when he comes back, he will almost certainly be ready to knock the cover off of even more balls.

Justin Williamson, SP-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year   G GS  W  L SV  ERA   IP   HA   R  ER HR  BB   K CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams
1914			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1915  22  7  3  9  3 4.60  74.1  65  43  38 14  43  59  1   0 1.45 .251  SLN
1916  41 41 12 11  0 2.81 294.2 199 105  92 23 108 300  2   0 1.04 .239  SLN
1917  20 20  8  5  0 2.28 142.1  83  39  36  5  55 156  0   0 0.97 .232  SLN
Total 83 68 23 25  3 2.92 511.1 347 187 166 42 206 515  3   0 1.08 .239

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 90/56/77
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 96/63/76
					  +6 +7 -1

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917):     100/85/66
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 100/85/66

For once it looks as if the Cardinals didn't manage to mess up a potential superstar. Justin Williamson has done nothing but show more and more signs of improvement this season for the Cardinals. His 156 strikeouts is second only to Ludwig Van Cleef in all of baseball, and he is showing the signs of becoming a truly dominant pitcher. All that remains now is for St. Louis to follow suit, but that is easier said than done.

Cristobal Torriente, 3B/RF-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year   G  AB  H 2B 3B HR RBI R BB HP SF  K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1915  11  19  5  0  0  0   1 1  2  0  0  5  2  0 .263 .333 .263 .596 SLN
1916  19  68 13  2  0  1   7 3  3  0  0 23  0  0 .191 .225 .265 .490 SLN
1917   8  28  6  0  0  0   2 2  2  0  0  7  1  0 .214 .267 .214 .481 SLN
Total 38 115 24  2  0  1  10 6  7  0  0 35  3  0 .209 .254 .252 .506

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 50/59/25/31/47
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 52/59/28/32/46
					    +2    +3 +1 -1
					 
Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917): 	   76/55/77/71/40
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  76/55/96/71/40
					       +19

No one is quite sure what the Cardinals want to do with Cristobal. He is seeing very little time on the field for the Cardinals, yet they seem unwilling to send him down to Class AAA, where he would be starting and at least being given time to develop. Nothing is certain yet, but right now, it seems like St. Louis is ruining their rightfielder of the future.

Peter Bernard, C/3B-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year G AB H 2B 3B HR RBI R BB HP SF K SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS Teams
1916			PLAYED IN A BALL
1917			PLAYED IN A BALL

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 33/40/19/22/45
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 34/42/19/22/45
					    +1 +2

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917): 	   101/50/95/63/38
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	   84/50/79/63/38
					  -17   -16

Peter has been setting the bar very high in Class A ball so far this year, hitting over .300 with 15 homeruns. However, it seems like his confidence is waning due to the fact that the Cardinals have yet to promote him to even Class AA. Hopefully they get the message and don't ruin yet another prospect's chance to become a great player.

Deke Taggart, 2B-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year   G AB  H 2B 3B HR RBI R BB HP SF  K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1917  28 74 21  2  0  0   1 6  3  4  0 16  0  0 .284 .346 .311 .656 SLN
Total 28 74 21  2  0  0   1 6  3  4  0 16  0  0 .284 .346 .311 .656

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 46/70/38/35/33
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 56/72/47/37/51
					   +10 +2 +9 +2 +18	

Total Talent Ratings (Start of 1917): 	   100/76/93/57/58
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  100/76/93/57/58

Deke started the year for St. Louis right with the big club, and after one game at shortstop, was moved back to his natural position of second base. He has done well so far, and has shown very good signs of early development, despite not being able to drive in many runs due to the Cardinals lack of an offense. If he keeps up this level of play, there should be nothing but good news coming from the Cardinals about this young man.

Hurkman · 08-12-2006, 01:11 PM

October 5, 1917

Boston makes late season push, withstands efforts of three teams to win American League pennant.

The Great War in Europe has certainly captured the attention of almost everyone in the United States, but at least major league baseball has given people something else to think about during these most troubling times.

The American League had one of the best pennant races in recent history come down to the final two days of the season. Throughout the summer, Boston, St. Louis and Detroit all had a hold of first place for at least a single day. Washington's chances of winning back to back pennants was lost when Sandford Freshlam was lost for a month with a back injury. He returned late in the season, but it was too late to make an impact. St. Louis also faded down the stretch, leaving the pennant between the Red Sox and Tigers.

With the pennant on the line, Tris Speaker literally put Boston on his back, leading them to wins in eight of their last ten games while Detroit struggled without a star to guide them. Boston won the pennant, and Speaker had possibly his best year yet, hitting .327 with 9 home runs and 103 runs batted in, all tops for the Red Sox. Ed Karger won 24 games for Boston, and Tom Sheehan added 20 wins as well as Boston is headed to their first ever World Series.

Code:

American League Standings 

Team             W  L   PCT   GB  Pyt.Rec Diff  Home   Away   XInn  1Run  M#  Streak Last10 
Boston (A)       90 64 .584    -  84-70   6     47-30  43-34  12-4  33-12  *  W4     8-2 
Detroit          88 66 .571  2.0  91-63  -3     45-32  43-34   9-10 29-25  -  W3     5-5 
St. Louis (A)    85 69 .552  5.0  91-63  -6     43-34  42-35   9-8  17-31  -  L1     3-7 
Washington       85 69 .552  5.0  88-66  -3     37-40  48-29  11-8  27-25  -  L3     4-6 
Philadelphia (A) 80 74 .519 10.0  79-75   1     42-35  38-39   4-8  25-27  -  W1     5-5 
New York (A)     74 80 .481 16.0  78-76  -4     37-40  37-40   8-4  27-28  -  L1     7-3 
Cleveland        64 90 .416 26.0  58-96   6     28-49  36-41   6-12 29-27  -  L1     6-4 
Chicago (A)      50 104.325 40.0  47-107  3     24-53  26-51   7-12 25-37  -  L8     1-9

New York finishes with best record ever, dominates National League for fourth straight pennant.

In the National League this season, there were just two teams: the New York Giants and everybody else. This year, any doubts people had about the Giants falling flat after the World Series last season were quickly dispelled, and when the dust settled, New York had won 100 games for the first time in their history. Not only that, but they won the National League by an astounding 21 games over the Pittsburgh Pirates, making this year the most impressive pennant victory in team history.

Ludwig Van Cleef was again outstanding on the mound, winning 26 games and leading the National League in strikeouts once again. First year player Mike Regan became a nice surprise and an excellent compliment to Van Cleef, winning 20 games and picking up many of Ludwig's very good skills. The batting order was again led by the same group, as Stuart Adamson had a career year at age 32, leading the team in batting average, home runs, runs scored and stolen bases. He will certainly be a major candidate for the Most Valuable Batter award at the end of this season.

The rest of the team did well too, with Vic Saier still providing the runs batted in, leading the team for a third straight year with 97, as well as adding six home runs. Michael Feldbush showed his worth as well, driving in 76 runs, hitting six home runs, scoring 92 times and stealing 50 bases, all around his career best in those categories. Pitcher Dave Davenport also recovered from injury to win 19 games, giving the Giants a very potent pitching staff to go along with their powerful lineup. The Red Sox will have to be at the top of their game if they want to win the World Series against this Giants team.

Code:

National League Standings 
 
Team             W  L   PCT   GB  Pyt.Rec Diff  Home   Away   XInn  1Run  M#  Streak Last10 
New York (N)    100 54 .649    -  99-55   1     49-28  51-26  11-7  32-24  *  W3     9-1 
Pittsburgh       79 75 .513 21.0  80-74  -1     35-42  44-33   7-9  32-34  -  W3     6-4 
Boston (N)       78 76 .506 22.0  68-86  10     43-34  35-42  11-4  40-21  -  W2     6-4 
Cincinnati       75 79 .487 25.0  80-74  -5     37-40  38-39  12-10 30-35  -  W1     4-6 
Philadelphia (N) 75 79 .487 25.0  77-77  -2     32-45  43-34   9-7  28-31  -  L3     3-7 
Brooklyn         74 80 .481 26.0  75-79  -1     27-50  47-30   7-9  24-30  -  L2     6-4 
St. Louis (N)    71 83 .461 29.0  71-83   0     35-42  36-41  10-18 30-36  -  L2     1-9 
Chicago (N)      64 90 .416 36.0  64-90   0     31-46  33-44   8-11 25-30  -  L4     4-6

Players of the Month
American League
July
Batter of the Month: Frank Baker (NYY)- .358, 0 HR, 23 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Raleigh Aitchison (SLA)- 63.1 IP, 6-1, 1.71 ERA

August
Batter of the Month: Tris Speaker (BSA)- .340, 1 HR, 17 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: George LeClair (DET)- 44 IP, 5-0, 1.02 ERA

September
Batter of the Month: Joe Judge (WSH)- .364, 3 HR, 17 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Steve Melter (CLE)- 40.2 IP, 3-2, 1.11 ERA

National League
July
Batter of the Month: Ossie Vitt (PHN)- .365, 0 HR, 17 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Noodles Hahn (CIN)- 72 IP, 6-1, 1.25 ERA

August
Batter of the Month: Fletcher Parslofski (PHN)- .360, 0 HR, 16 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Hippo Vaughn (PHN)- 70 IP, 5-2, 1.54 ERA

September
Batter of the Month: Vic Saier (NYG)- .358, 1 HR, 25 RBI
Pitcher of the Month: Hippo Vaughn (PHN)- 57.2 IP, 5-2, 0.94 ERA

Hurkman · 08-13-2006, 05:54 PM

Star/Prospect Watch

Dieter Kahle, CF-Chicago Cubs

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
  
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR  RBI   R   BB HP SF    K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1902   113  406  110   8  2  1   39  51   30  2  4   94  3  3 .271 .321 .308 .629 CHN
1903   112  376   98  23  3  4   49  40   42  2  3  117  4  1 .261 .336 .370 .705 CHN
1904   144  549  119  24  2  3   73  50   47  4  2  176  5  2 .217 .282 .284 .567 CHN
1905   141  511  153  29  4  5   78  64   61  1  2  107  3  2 .299 .374 .401 .775 CHN
1906   135  478  151  27  6  3   75  67   69  0  2   89  3  0 .316 .401 .416 .817 CHN
1907   147  522  197  37  3  4   89  62   73  3  7  104  5  0 .377 .451 .483 .934 CHN
1908   148  536  183  40  1  2   61  61   64  1  6  109  6  0 .341 .409 .431 .840 CHN
1909   145  517  179  38  2  2   64  76   79  4  2  121  9  1 .346 .435 .439 .874 CHN
1910   148  525  186  36  6  4   72  67   69  1  2  112  4  7 .354 .429 .469 .897 CHN
1911   151  535  178  41  1  5   83  70   83  3  3  111  4  0 .333 .423 .441 .864 CHN
1912   147  540  184  43  6  4   65  81   80  4  3  120  2  3 .341 .427 .465 .892 CHN
1913   144  519  171  40  4  3   87  76   77  1  6   83  2  4 .329 .413 .439 .852 CHN
1914   143  510  165  27  0  3   83  67   81  2  5  101  3  3 .324 .415 .394 .809 CHN
1915   146  511  175  36  2  4   82  60   74  4  2  110  7  4 .342 .428 .444 .872 CHN
1916   136  443  123  25  0  2   53  45   72  0  3   79  1  2 .278 .376 .348 .724 CHN
1917   114  374   84   4  2  2   41  36   52  2  2  110  1  3 .225 .321 .262 .583 CHN
Total 2214 7852 2456 478 44 51 1094 973 1053 34 54 1743 62 35 .313 .394 .404 .798

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 56/48/16/52/28
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 51/47/16/52/29
					    -5 -1      +1

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):         48/47/7/60/34
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 48/38/7/60/34
					   -9

It's time for Dieter to pack things up and call it a career as a baseball player. His numbers dropped again this season to their lowest point since 1904, and he has lost his starting job in left field for the first time since Ty Cobb was drafted by the Cubs in 1906. He may try and stick around to get 2,500 hits, but that would be his only motivating factor. Either way, Kahle was one of the best players of his generation.

Clive Woodstock, 1B/RF-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats  
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B  HR RBI   R  BB  HP SF    K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1903   140  524  136  30  0   4  57  66  42   9  5  131  3  1 .260 .322 .340 .662  SLN
1904   139  515  113  28  1   4  63  40  40   6  8  118  2  1 .219 .279 .301 .580  SLN
1905   147  548  159  26  1   6  64  50  44   8  7  105  1  0 .290 .348 .374 .722  SLN
1906   151  570  146  19  0   7  67  54  47  12  6  124  0  0 .256 .323 .326 .649  SLN
1907   147  532  124  18  0   5  57  47  44   5  8  122  1  0 .233 .294 .295 .589  SLN
1908   145  531  109  18  0  12  70  43  36   9  6  143  1  0 .205 .265 .307 .572  SLN
1909   145  534  133  24  0   8  79  56  59  16  8  127  0  0 .249 .337 .339 .676  SLN
1910   145  513  120  12  0   7  82  45  71  10  4  132  1  0 .234 .336 .298 .634  SLN
1911   147  527  145  25  2  16 103  67  77  15  7  112  0  0 .275 .379 .421 .800  SLN
1912   145  517  124  25  0  15  76  56  75  11  4  133  1  0 .240 .346 .375 .721  SLN
1913   142  506  111  18  1  14  55  66  64  11  2  126  0  0 .219 .319 .342 .661  SLN
1914   110  365   68   7  2   8  40  31  42   9  5   96  0  2 .186 .283 .282 .565  SLN
1915    64  134   30   6  1   2  15  13  15   3  0   33  0  0 .224 .316 .328 .644  SLN
1916    26   59   16   4  0   1   6   8   4   1  0   11  0  0 .271 .328 .390 .718  SLN
1917    19   61   10   2  1   1   2   6   3   2  0   18  0  0 .164 .227 .279 .506  SLN
Total 1812 6436 1544 262  9 110 836 648 663 127 70 1531 10  4 .240 .320 .335 .655

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 40/36/53/31/35
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 39/36/53/30/32
					    -1       -1 -3 	
 
Total Talent Ratings (July 1917): 	  47/40/48/38/27
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 36/40/48/38/27
					-11

If Clive doesn't retire this winter, then the Cardinals may have to send him over to Europe for him to get the hint. He played in the fewest games of his career this year, and when he did play he was less than impressive. Whatever skills he had left at the start of the season are basically gone, and he is a shell of his former self.

Stuart Adamson, CF-New York Giants

Code:

Career Batting Stats 

Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B  HR RBI    R  BB HP SF    K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams  
1904   105  352   89   6  3   1  15   44  19  2  1   97  46  10 .253 .294 .295 .590  SLN
1905   141  553  129  12  8   2  52   60  29  3  2  157  44  10 .233 .274 .295 .569  SLN
1906   144  564  139  14  3   4  44   66  47  3  3  148  57  12 .246 .306 .303 .610  SLN
1907   145  518  124  15  3   2  49   56  44  4  4  130  60  12 .239 .302 .292 .593  SLN
1908   149  549  151  15  6  14  66   70  55  3  2  156  60  22 .275 .343 .401 .744  SLN
1909    89  159   37   4  3   2  12   24  28  1  1   59  15   5 .233 .349 .333 .683  SLN
1910   144  503  131  22  2   9  51   71  79  1  2  144  56  13 .260 .361 .366 .726 SLN NYG
1911   132  482  138  23  6  14  85   78  81  3  4  151  55  20 .286 .389 .446 .836  NYG
1912   150  533  160  26  6  15  98  106 109  8  8  149  82  10 .300 .421 .456 .877  NYG
1913   149  532  163  23 12  10  71  110 102  4  6  144  77  22 .306 .418 .451 .869  NYG
1914   150  563  153  20 11  14  83  103 110  4  8  172  90  15 .272 .390 .421 .811  NYG
1915   134  493  146  18  7  13  80  100  89  3  7  137  62  15 .296 .402 .440 .842  NYG
1916   148  572  156  18  8  12  73  110  93  1  2  150  77  17 .273 .374 .395 .769  NYG
1917   149  569  174  25 17   9  81   97  76  1  9  156  75  13 .306 .383 .457 .840  NYG
Total 1929 6942 1890 241 95 121 860 1095 961 41 59 1950 856 196 .272 .361 .387 .748

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 83/74/69/69/39
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 83/74/71/69/37
						 +2    -2
					   
Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):  	  90/81/75/77/40
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 90/81/75/77/40

At age 33, another good season was expected out of Stuart, but nothing like what he actually produced. When all was said and done, Adamson led the league in batting for the first time in his career while finishing second in home runs and runs batted in. His 75 stolen bases also led the league, and his play is a big reason why the Giants are in their fourth consecutive World Series. The only thing that Stuart hasn't won is a Most Valuable Batter award, and it looks like he may just get one this season.

Don Ayers, 2B-Cleveland Indians

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF    K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams  
1905    52   84   24   3  1  0  14  10  10  0  0   26   2   2 .286 .362 .345 .707  CLE
1906    62   98   21   4  1  0  11  10   9  2  0   25   3   4 .214 .294 .276 .569  CLE
1907    59   81   18   2  0  0   8  13  10  0  3   21   1   2 .222 .298 .247 .545  CLE
1908   104  343   83  12  5  1  31  30  29  2  3   82   8  11 .242 .302 .315 .617  CLE
1909   142  540  140  28 10  1  58  66  59  6  2  126  21   7 .259 .338 .354 .691  CLE
1910   146  549  141  18  5  5  89  82  89  4  3  140  18   7 .257 .363 .335 .698  CLE
1911   144  546  172  25  8  3 106  85  66  6  4  111  25  13 .315 .392 .407 .799  CLE
1912   147  535  155  27  2  6  74  89  86  6  6  122  15  12 .290 .390 .381 .772  CLE
1913   147  524  155  23  7  5  71  72  71  5  6   97  20  14 .296 .381 .395 .776  CLE
1914   141  542  157  22  5  6  80  89  81  3  7  119  13  17 .290 .381 .382 .763  CLE
1915   148  543  142  20  4  6  60  81  79  9  0  109  17  13 .262 .365 .346 .711  CLE
1916   146  527  133  15  8  5  71  72  91  5  1  107  18  28 .252 .367 .340 .707  CLE
1917   145  513  130  11  3  0  63  53  67  7  7  106  19  19 .253 .343 .287 .630  CLE
Total 1583 5425 1471 210 59 38 736 752 747 55 42 1191 180 149 .271 .363 .353 .715

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 74/61/41/60/63
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 74/59/41/59/62
					       -2    -1 -1	

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):  	  80/65/50/62/70
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 80/65/41/62/70
					      -9

It seems like Don may have just found the level of play that he is most comfortable with. The only problem is, that level isn't very high, especially in Cleveland, where fans are desperate for a title after five losses in the World Series. Ayers was unable to fulfill that dream this year, finishing another average season with an average team. He led the Indians in runs batted in, but did not hit a home run for the first time since 1907, and most of his other numbers are down as well. It looks like Ayers has hit the back side of his career, and despite what he accomplished so far, without a World Series, it will be considered a disappointment.

Sandford Freshlam, SP-Washington Senators

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year    G  GS   W  L SV   ERA     IP   HA   R   ER  HR  BB    K  CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1906    6   0   0  1  1 11.57    7.0   10   9    9   1   7    0   0   0 2.43 .310  WSH
1907    1   0   0  0  0  0.00    2.0    1   0    0   0   0    1   0   0 0.50 .167  WSH
1908			PITCHED IN A BALL		       	 
1909			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1910			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1911			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1912   34  34  17 14  0  3.52  288.2  242 137  113  25 114  287  27   5 1.23 .287  WSH
1913   42  42  18 20  0  3.64  353.1  294 157  143  45  84  326  35   3 1.07 .269  WSH
1914   41  41  17 17  0  2.62  356.2  267 111  104  31  53  353  32   4 0.90 .260  WSH
1915   40  40  24 11  0  2.24  353.0  250 107   88  32  44  348  33   5 0.83 .246  WSH
1916   30  30  22  4  0  1.87  264.1  175  68   55  18  24  243  22   3 0.75 .227  WSH
1917   33  33  17 15  0  2.94  281.1  249 111   92  26  28  221  26   1 0.98 .277  WSH
Total 227 220 115 82  1  2.85 1906.1 1488 700  604 178 354 1779 175  21 0.97 .262

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement):  90/99/42
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement):  90/99/42
					  
Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):          95/164/44
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	      	  95/164/44

After fully recovering from his shoulder injury that he suffered at the end of last season, Sandford looked to be back on track, only to be sidelined once again with an injury, this time to his lower back. Without him in the rotation, Washington was unable to repeat as American League champions, while this newest injury has left some people wondering if it's Freshlam's delivery that has caused his recent string of injuries.

Ludwig Van Cleef, SP-New York Giants

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year    G  GS   W  L SV  ERA     IP   HA   R  ER HR  BB    K  CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1907    1   0   0  0  0 0.00    3.1    0   0   0  0   3    2   0   0 0.90 .000  NYG 
1908			PITCHED IN AA BALL			
1909			PITCHED IN AAA BALL
1910    1   0   0  0  0 0.00    1.0    0   0   0  0   0    0   0   0 0.00 .000  NYG
1911   17   2   0  5  5 8.10   30.0   30  27  27  4  29   19   0   0 1.97 .277  NYG
1912   31  12  11  6  7 1.96  133.1   78  32  29  2  55  145  11   2 1.00 .244  NYG
1913   40  40  25 11  0 2.54  339.2  230 105  96 13 119  387  30   9 1.03 .273  NYG
1914   42  42  27  5  0 1.95  368.2  228  83  80 12  81  397  26   7 0.84 .247  NYG
1915   41  41  31  8  0 1.65  359.0  204  79  66 14  56  423  35  16 0.72 .237  NYG
1916   41  41  30  4  0 1.55  360.1  217  72  62 13  38  408  27   8 0.71 .241  NYG
1917   42  42  26 10  0 2.00  369.0  241  87  82 12  34  396  34  10 0.75 .254  NYG
Total 256 220 150 49 12 2.03 1964.1 1228 485 442 70 415 2177 163  52 0.84 .250

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 101/98/86
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 104/98/86
					   +3

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):  	  103/135/88
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 103/135/88

By his own account, Van Cleef had an off year, losing double digit games for the first time since 1913. However, he still won 26, second most in baseball, and led the major leagues in strikeouts once again. He is still considered the most dangerous pitcher in the majors today, and with him on the mound in the World Series again, the Giants have a very good chance of winning.

Christian Gray, SS-St. Louis Browns

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1908     5   11    0   0  0  0   0   0   1  0  0   6   0   1 .000 .083 .000 .083  SLA
1909     5   12    2   0  0  0   2   3   4  0  0   3   2   0 .167 .375 .167 .542  SLA
1910    30   91   10   1  0  0   9   9   5  1  0  31   6   2 .110 .165 .121 .286  SLA
1911   138  533  117  13  8  4  53  72  43  1  1 165  46   9 .220 .279 .296 .575  SLA
1912   146  587  179  26  6  6  65  94  50  4  0 156  78  16 .305 .363 .400 .764  SLA
1913   147  555  199  21  8  4  75 100  61  4  3 101  68  21 .359 .424 .447 .871  SLA
1914   139  521  136  11  4  2  62  73  59  5  4 103  65  17 .261 .340 .309 .649  SLA
1915   153  626  157  21  5  2  46  95  63  4  5 127  74  20 .251 .321 .310 .631  SLA
1916   147  591  174  22  4  2  48  76  51  9  4  92  71  13 .294 .357 .355 .713  SLA
1917   145  585  179  12  5  3  53  82  44  3  6  89  76  22 .306 .354 .359 .713  SLA
Total 1055 4112 1153 127 40 23 413 604 381 31 23 873 486 121 .280 .344 .348 .692

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 66/42/31/46/28
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 66/42/31/51/28
						     +5	
					  
Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):         74/40/22/63/22
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 74/40/22/63/22

Christian returned to the .300 plateau this season for the first time in three years, but it was not enough to get the Browns back to the World Series. His play slipped in August and September, and the Browns went with him. Although he was not able to get St. Louis into the postseason, he still led the major leagues in stolen bases and more than proved his worth as a leadoff hitter. With him in the lineup, the Browns have to be considered a threat to win everytime they play.

Fletcher Parslofski, LF-Philadelphia Phillies

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1909    2    3   0   0  0  0   0   0   1  0  0   2  0  0 .000 .250 .000 .250 PHI
1910    0    0   0   0  0  0   0   0   0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000 PHI
1911   17   22   3   1  0  0   1   3   8  0  0   4  0  0 .136 .367 .182 .548 PHI
1912   38   53  11   3  0  0   9   2   9  0  0   8  0  0 .208 .323 .264 .587 PHI
1913  116  373 103  13  5  8  40  51  66  2  0  50  2  1 .276 .388 .402 .790 PHI
1914  145  496 117  22  3  6  62  59 101  2  6  60  5  0 .236 .364 .329 .692 PHI
1915  147  502 135  27  2  9  56  64  99  1  3  74  1  1 .269 .388 .384 .773 PHI
1916  142  486 143  26  3  7  55  69 106  3  0  51  3  0 .294 .424 .403 .827 PHI
1917  145  501 136  32  1  9  59  60 103  1  6  53  2  1 .271 .393 .393 .786 PHI
Total 752 2436 648 124 14 39 282 308 493  9 15 302 13  3 .266 .389 .376 .766

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 77/83/50/91/83
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 76/83/50/91/83
					    -1

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):  	  79/78/50/99/75
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 79/78/50/99/75

When did the power surge decide to hit Fletcher? It appears as if his batting eye also can add to the amount of home runs that he can hit, as he finished tied for second in the National League in home runs this season. He also still managed over 100 walks and while his average did drop when he decided to swing for the fences, the added threat of power makes him an even better overall hitter for the future.

Michael Feldbush, 2B-New York Giants

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year     G   AB    H  2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K  SB  CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1910    97  241   53  13  3  2  28  25  21  3  1  82  15   8 .220 .289 .324 .613 NYG
1911   103  266   68  14  4  2  30  43  52  4  1  61  14  10 .256 .384 .361 .745 NYG
1912   147  532  139  20  6  4  67  80  89  2  5 123  42  20 .261 .366 .344 .710 NYG
1913   149  565  170  40  6  4  49 104  85  2  2 103  43  16 .301 .393 .414 .807 NYG
1914   150  569  138  19  6  4  61  81  87  8  3 107  47  18 .243 .349 .318 .667 NYG
1915   146  510  155  24 10  8  86  87 102  9  4  97  40  19 .304 .426 .437 .863 NYG
1916   145  547  155  25  5  5  81  98  93  4  4  97  41  21 .283 .389 .375 .764 NYG
1917   150  529  144  18  8  6  76  92  98  4  4  85  50  22 .272 .387 .371 .758 NYG
Total 1087 3759 1022 173 48 35 478 610 627 36 24 755 292 134 .272 .379 .371 .750

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 85/63/52/73/63
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 85/63/54/73/63
						  +2

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):  	  90/55/54/80/71
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 90/55/54/80/71

It seems like this may finally be the Michael Feldbush that is seen for the rest of his career. While he is not an upper level superstar, he is still an excellent ballplayer, with great hustle and a love for the game. His solid season helped get the Giants to another World Series, while he proved he hasn't lost a step yet, stealing a career high 50 bases. Most people consider the ages 27 and 28 to be the "prime" of a player's career, so it should be interesting to see what kind of numbers Michael puts up next season.

Killian Ditty, 3B-Boston Braves

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G  AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI  R  BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1911    2   0   0  0  0  0   0  0   0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000  PHI
1912    1   1   0  0  0  0   0  0   0  0  0   0  0  0 .000 .000 .000 .000  PHI
1913   13  31  12  4  0  0   7  6   6  0  0   8  0  0 .387 .486 .516 1.003 PHI BSN
1914   23  70  19  3  0  0   6  5   7  0  0  16  0  0 .271 .338 .314 .652  BSN
1915   93 314  84 18  1  5  52 34  33  3  4  68  2  0 .268 .339 .379 .718  BSN
1916   51 138  20  2  0  0  10 12  25  4  1  40  0  1 .145 .292 .159 .451  BSN
1917  106 354  80 23  2  4  40 41  39  1  2  85  0  0 .226 .303 .336 .639  BSN
Total 289 908 215 50  3  9 115 98 110  8  7 217  2  1 .237 .322 .328 .651

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 55/90/50/40/54
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 57/92/50/41/54
					    +2 +2    +1

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):  	   90/109/49/67/55
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  90/109/49/67/55

Rather than send Killian back down to the minor leagues, the Braves decided that the best thing they could do would be to have him play more often. While this idea made little sense to the fans watching the game, the Braves stuck by it and lived with the results. Ditty showed he can hit the ball the gaps, but he still strikes out far too often, and shows little patience at the plate. Boston fans are showing little patience with him, and it may just be a matter of time before he wears out his welcome in Beantown.

Shamus O'Brien, SP-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 

Year   G  GS  W  L SV  ERA    IP  HA   R  ER HR  BB   K CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams 
1912   12  0  1  1  0 3.95  13.2  12   6   6  3   9  10  0   0 1.54 .243  SLN
1913   31  0  2  3  0 3.02  44.2  38  16  15  6  11  25  0   0 1.10 .237  SLN
1914   26 11  8  5  3 2.98  90.2  82  31  30  9  38  71  2   0 1.32 .292  SLN
1915   35 35  9 13  0 2.98 256.2 181  95  85 21  86 205  5   1 1.04 .235  SLN
1916   17 17  3 12  0 3.99 137.2 118  69  61  9  64  97 13   1 1.32 .275  SLN
1917			PITCHED IN AAA BALL

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 56/51/49
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 56/51/49

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):         74/71/59
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 72/91/59
					-2 +20

Oh, is Shamus steamed at the Cardinals. Even after he recovered from his shoulder injury St. Louis kept him down at Class AAA for almost the entire season. He was called up in September for a brief period, but never pitched, and was sent right back down to Class AAA at the end of the regular season. It was said that Shamus gave Cardinals management quite the verbal tongue lashing the day he was sent back down, and it is unlikely that he will ever see a mound in St. Louis again.

Jamee Gray, SS-Boston Braves

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year    G   AB   H 2B 3B HR RBI   R  BB HP SF   K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1913   11   41   7  1  0  1   4   3   0  0  0  15  0  0 .171 .171 .268 .439 BSN
1914  145  538 128 21  1  2  69  50  39 10  5 137  1  0 .238 .299 .292 .591 BSN
1915  143  530 148 22  5 11  74  62  67  4  5 120  2  0 .279 .361 .402 .763 BSN
1916  144  538 135 23  2 15  66  72  69  7  2 160  2  0 .251 .343 .385 .727 BSN
1917  117  437 102 29  0 20  58  57  49  5  2 114  0  0 .233 .316 .437 .754 BSN
Total 560 2084 520 96  8 49 271 244 224 26 14 546  5  0 .250 .328 .374 .702

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 81/66/92/51/46
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 79/67/92/50/48
					   -2  +1    -1 +2
					 
Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):  	   87/65/100/55/44
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  87/65/100/49/44
						    -6

The new phase of baseball players is here, and it starts with Jamee Gray. This season, Gray shattered almost every power record in the game, hitting a Boston Braves record 20 home runs during the regular season. That number was more than six teams hit this season, and seems to be ushering in a new part of the game, where the longball will become more and more prominant. Of course, Gray still needs to work on his strikeouts and batting average, but as long as he keeps hitting the ball over the fence, all will be well.

Justin Williamson, SP-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Pitching Stats 
 
Year    G GS  W  L SV  ERA   IP   HA   R  ER HR  BB   K CG SHO WHIP BABIP Teams
1914			PITCHED IN AA BALL
1915   22  7  3  9  3 4.60  74.1  65  43  38 14  43  59  1   0 1.45 .251  SLN
1916   41 41 12 11  0 2.81 294.2 199 105  92 23 108 300  2   0 1.04 .239  SLN
1917   42 42 15 15  0 2.77 305.2 203 102  94 19 109 316  2   0 1.02 .243  SLN
Total 105 90 30 35  3 2.99 674.2 467 250 224 56 260 675  5   0 1.08 .242

Starting Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 96/63/76
Current Ratings (Stuff/Control/Movement): 96/78/74
					    +15 -2	

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917):         100/85/66
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	 100/85/66

Justin showed his youth and inexperience in the second half of the season, going 7-10 to finish with a .500 record for the season. That being said, there is still a limitless amount of talent in this young man. His 316 strikeouts were second in all of baseball, behind only Ludwig Van Cleef, and his improved control has some people even comparing him to the Giants ace. It will still be a long road before Williamson knows what his career holds, but if it stays like this, it should be an amazing journey.

Cristobal Torriente, 3B/RF-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year   G  AB  H 2B 3B HR RBI  R BB HP SF  K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams 
1915  11  19  5  0  0  0   1  1  2  0  0  5  2  0 .263 .333 .263 .596 SLN
1916  19  68 13  2  0  1   7  3  3  0  0 23  0  0 .191 .225 .265 .490 SLN
1917  35 116 26  4  0  0   6 12 13  2  0 26  4  0 .224 .313 .259 .572 SLN
Total 65 203 44  6  0  1  14 16 18  2  0 54  6  0 .217 .287 .261 .548

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 52/59/28/32/46
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 55/61/28/32/47
					    +3 +2       +1
					 
Total Talent Ratings (July 1917): 	   76/55/96/71/40
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  76/55/96/71/40

Cristobal is still being described as a "work in progress" by the Cardinals organization. He has shown some potential in the limited time that he has played, but at other times, he still looks like he is nowhere near ready to play in the majors. Something will have to be seen soon, because the Cardinals are counting on him to eventually take over in right field on a full time basis.

Peter Bernard, C/3B-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year G AB H 2B 3B HR RBI R BB HP SF K SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS Teams
1916			PLAYED IN A BALL
1917			PLAYED IN A BALL

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 34/42/19/22/45
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 35/44/19/23/46
					    +1 +2    +1 +1	

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917): 	    84/50/79/63/38
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	   84/50/79/63/38

Peter spent the entire year at Class A ball again, and was solid, hitting over 20 home runs for the team. However, he has shown little improvement on the field, and there are questions about his dedication to the Cardinals. He's going to have to step up soon, because St. Louis has invested a lot in his future, and can not afford to have another prized prospect bottom out.

Deke Taggart, 2B-St. Louis Cardinals

Code:

Career Batting Stats 
 
Year   G  AB  H 2B 3B HR RBI  R BB HP SF  K SB CS  AVG  OBP  SLG  OPS Teams
1917  96 322 94 18  0  3  28 25 29  7  1 55  0  0 .292 .362 .376 .738 SLN
Total 96 322 94 18  0  3  28 25 29  7  1 55  0  0 .292 .362 .376 .738

Starting Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 56/72/47/37/51
Current Ratings (Cont/Gap/Pow/Eye/Avoid K): 77/72/57/43/54
					   +21   +10 +6 +3

Total Talent Ratings (July 1917): 	   100/76/93/57/58
Total Talent Ratings (NOW):	     	  100/76/93/57/58

What a first season for Deke. He not only showed that he was ready for the major leagues, but that he is also ready to play full time at such a young age. He finished his rookie season with the best batting average on the Cardinals, and his three home runs was good for second as well. His hard nosed style of play out in the field has also drawn comparisons to Michael Feldbush, and for a first year player, that is about as good as it can get.

07-30-2006, 08:56 PM	#204 (permalink)
dureseam Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 40 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0x in 0 posts	Thank God I wasnt picked by the Yankees __________________ Go Red Sox Go Pats Go Celtics Go Bruins

07-31-2006, 12:58 AM	#208 (permalink)
Hurkman All Star Reserve Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 714 Thanks: 3 Thanked 7x in 7 posts	1916 World Series Game 1-10/8/1916: Senators-1 Giants-2 The first game of the World Series went exactly as expected for the two time defending champions. Washington refused to go down without a fight, however, as starter Red Russell pitched inning for inning against Ludwig Van Cleef, who most believe is the best pitcher in the majors today. Russell ended up with five strikeouts and allowed only five hits, but gave up a run in the seventh when Vic Saier doubled down the right field line to score Michael Feldbush and put the Giants up 1-0. Surprisingly, Van Cleef could not hold the lead, as Harry Spratt doubled to lead off the eigth, followed up by a Bill Rariden bunt single and Howie Shanks sacrifice fly that tied the game at 1-1. Both pitchers held their opponents scoreless headed into the bottom of the ninth, and that is where New York's post season experience started to shine. Dick Egan took a five pitch walk to lead off the inning, and after Stuart Adamson flew out to center, Michael Feldbush hit a shot into the gap in left-center field. Benny Kauff's throw to the plate was late, and Egan scored the winning run. Van Cleef was excellent once again, striking out seven and allowing just six hits in a winning effort. W: Ludwig Van Cleef L: Reb Russell Game 2-10/9/1916: Senators-10 Giants-3 There would be no tightly contested pitchers' matchup in Game 2, as Washington came out swinging, knocking Christy Mathewson around and delivering the first loss in the World Series for the Giants. The Senators broke the game open in the fourth, following three scoreless innings by both teams. They strung together five hits, and Cy Williams, Joe Judge and John Kelleher drove in three runs to give Washington its first ever lead in a World Series game. Kelleher would finish the day with three runs batted in, with the other two coming on a double in the sixth and a single in the ninth. Pop Foster assisted the cause for Washington as well, driving in three runners on a bases loaded double in the eighth that put the game out of reach. Twenty-three year old Guy Morton was superb on the mound for the Senators, striking out seven and allowing just four hits and one run in seven and one-thirds inning of work. Reliever Jack Lively allowed two meaningless runs in the bottom of the ninth on a Stuart Adamson single, but the damage was done, and when the final out was recorded, the series was tied. W: Guy Morton L: Christy Mathewson Game 3-10/11/1916: Giants-1 Senators-5 World Series baseball came to Washington, D.C. for the first time in league history, and the home team made sure that everyone went home with a smile following Game Three. Both veteran pitcher Glenn Liebhardt for New York and Biff Schlitzer, Washington's usual go to man in the bullpen, started off strong, pitching shut out ball into the fourth inning. Washington again struck first on the Giants, this time on a Benny Kauff sacrifice fly that scored Howie Shanks. Schlitzer shut New York down, and Washington struck again in the seventh, where, with two men on base, Cy Williams launched a three run home run over the right field fence to make it a 4-0 game. Things turned ugly following the home run, as the next batter, Benny Kauff, was hit by a pitched ball. Kauff believed it to be intentional and charged the mound, tackling Liebhardt and driving him to the ground. When the fight was broken up, both pitcher and hitter were removed from the game, and play continued. Joe Judge deposited the first pitch from new pitcher Tom Fisher down the right field line for a double, scoring replacement runner Denny Sullivan to make the score 5-0. Schlitzer allowed just an eighth inning Stuart Adamson RBI single the rest of the way, and finished off a complete game, six strikeout effort by fanning Dick Cotter for the final out, putting Washington up two games to one heading into the all important rematch with Ludwig Van Cleef in Game Four. W: Biff Schlitzer L: Glenn Liebhardt Game 4-10/12/1916: Giants-3 Senators-7 Ludwig Van Cleef's return to the mound in Game Four was supposed to help tie the series for the Giants. Instead, it placed them into a deeper hole, one that seemed unlikely to be climbed out of any time soon. Washington struck early and often against the best pitcher in baseball, scoring five times in the bottom of the first inning, four of them on a grand slam home run by Harry Spratt, the first in World Series history. From that point on, Reb Russell made the Giants look like they were in shock, allowing just three runs in a complete game, eleven strike out performance. Benny Kauff finished off the damage in the fifth, when he hit the second home run of the day off of Van Cleef to make it 7-1 in favor of the Senators. New York would get two more on a Heinie Groh home run and Vern Duncan single, but it was again too little, too late. The Giants were in shock, and Washington was just one win away from turning the baseball world upside down. W: Reb Russell L: Ludwig Van Cleef Game 5-10/13/1916: Giants-1 Senators-5 Once again, the story in Game Five was the Washington offense being able to jump on the struggling New York pitching as early as possible, and this time, it was for the World Series championship. The Senators again scored first, this time in the bottom of the second on a Bill Rariden single that plated Joe Judge. New York starter Christy Mathewson was better this time out, but when Cy Williams smacked his second home run of the series in the third, most people could tell that this would not be New York's year. Washington added another run in the seventh on a Harry Spratt single, and when New York finally scored off of Guy Morton in the eighth, Pop Foster responded with a two run home run in the bottom of the inning. Morton was removed from the game in favor of Erskine Mayer in that eighth, and he went the rest of the way, retiring the Giants in the top of the eighth, and then in order in the ninth to clinch the series. When Dick Cotter's pop up landed inside catcher Bill Rariden's glove for the final out, the nation's capitol was launched into celebration, because, for the first time in their history, the Washington Senators were winners and champions of baseball. W: Guy Morton L: Christy Mathewson S: Erskine Mayer Series MVP: Guy Morton- 2-0, 14.2 IP, 14 K, 0.61 ERA 1916 World Series Champions: Washington Senators First Championship Last edited by Hurkman; 08-03-2006 at 05:42 PM.

07-31-2006, 01:51 PM	#210 (permalink)
metsgeek Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Norwood, MA Posts: 5,450 Thanks: 3 Thanked 2x in 2 posts	Will the New York Yankees suffer "The Curse of the Rajah??" __________________ Commissioner - PBRL - Just finished 2009 109 seasons and still running strong!!!

08-11-2006, 03:18 PM	#217 (permalink)
Hurkman All Star Reserve Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 714 Thanks: 3 Thanked 7x in 7 posts	July 1, 1917 Four teams locked in tight race in American League. Red Sox holding on to slim lead. Despite the United States entering the Great War just days before the start of the baseball season, this year has had some memorable stories that have been able to keep people's minds off the fighting and on to more peaceful matters. The American League has seemed to have its share of pennant races in the past, and this year is no different, with four teams just three and a half games apart from each other. The Boston Red Sox seem to have made the most of getting Tris Speaker from Philadelphia, as they have jumped to the lead halfway through the season. Speaker leads the team in batting, runs batted in, runs scored, home runs and stolen bases and is the main reason why Boston has turned around a team that finished seventh in the American League last year. Their pitching has also been a surprise, with Jeff Tesreau, Ed Karger and Dick Robertson each winning 10 or more games so far this year. This fast start certainly has Red Sox fans thinking about the World Series in October. However, Boston still has to hold off four other teams that could very well take their spot at the top in just a moment's notice. St. Louis is once again making itself known with a tremendous offensive lineup that features a resurgent Christian Gray. Detroit's pitching is the best in the American League, with both Nap Rucker and George McQuillan having excellent seasons. The defending World Series champion Washington Senators have withstood a poor start to the season by Sandford Freshlam and now look to be climbing back into the race. In Philadelphia, Walter Johnson has already won 15 games, and has the Athletics thinking about a summer charge. It will take a large effort for Boston to make it to the World Series, but with Tris Speaker leading the way, anything is possible. Code: American League Standings Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run M# Streak Last10 Boston (A) 43 29 .597 - 40-32 3 20-16 23-13 5-3 16-8 67 W6 7-3 St. Louis (A) 43 31 .581 1.0 44-30 -1 18-17 25-14 7-4 9-13 - L1 8-2 Detroit 42 32 .568 2.0 43-31 -1 22-15 20-17 7-6 14-11 - W1 5-5 Washington 39 32 .549 3.5 38-33 1 17-18 22-14 4-3 13-12 - W1 4-6 Philadelphia (A) 36 34 .514 6.0 37-33 -1 20-14 16-20 1-3 11-15 - L1 5-5 Cleveland 32 42 .432 12.0 28-46 4 16-21 16-21 2-7 19-11 - W1 4-6 Chicago (A) 30 45 .400 14.5 29-46 1 16-25 14-20 3-4 14-19 - L1 3-7 New York (A) 26 46 .361 17.0 29-43 -3 12-24 14-22 3-2 10-17 - L3 4-6 New York riding wave of good hitting, solid pitching to National League lead once again. In the National League, it appears as if a power surge of hitting has taken over where there once were dominant pitchers. Yet, despite the tremendous number of homeruns being hit, the New York Giants still have the time tested way of getting to the top of the league. Ludwig Van Cleef is still dominating opposing batters, having won 14 games thus far, and the Giants have also gotten help from first year pitcher Mike Regan and surprising starter Hugh Bedient. Their offense is once again one of the best in all of baseball, with Stuart Adamson having a career year, leading the team in batting average, home runs, runs scored and stolen bases. The rest of the batting order is doing quite well too, and the Giants look to be in prime position for another trip to the World Series. The one team that looks to be standing in their way would be the Pittsburgh Pirates, who have had surprising seasons from aged pitchers Chief Bender and Art Fromme to currently have a hold on second place in the National League. Aside from their pitching, the Pirates are generating runs once again, with young George Burns and Tillie Shafer playing some of their best ball yet alongside older stars like Birdie Cree, Bris Lord and Heinie Zimmerman. While the Pirates may not have many individual stars, as a team, they are playing very well, and could be enough to push the Giants out of first place come October. Code: National League Standings Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run M# Streak Last10 New York (N) 49 22 .690 - 47-24 2 25-10 24-12 6-2 18-13 66 W3 7-3 Pittsburgh 44 26 .629 4.5 40-30 4 17-17 27-9 4-2 19-12 - W5 7-3 Boston (N) 40 32 .556 9.5 34-38 6 19-16 21-16 8-1 23-7 - W1 5-5 Philadelphia (N) 34 39 .466 16.0 33-40 1 16-20 18-19 5-3 15-16 - L1 4-6 St. Louis (N) 34 39 .466 16.0 33-40 1 19-20 15-19 5-9 18-19 - L1 5-5 Cincinnati 33 42 .440 18.0 39-36 -6 20-21 13-21 5-7 13-21 - L5 3-7 Brooklyn 29 42 .408 20.0 33-38 -4 11-26 18-16 1-6 9-21 - L3 4-6 Chicago (N) 27 48 .360 24.0 29-46 -2 11-22 16-26 3-7 12-18 - W1 6-4 Players of the Month American League April Batter of the Month: Benny Kauff (WSH)- .443, 2 HR, 13 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Nap Rucker (DET)- 45 IP, 5-0, 1.00 ERA May Batter of the Month: Hal Chase (BSA)- .324. 0 HR, 23 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Reb Russell (WSH)- 70 IP, 6-2, 1.93 ERA June Batter of the Month: Sam Rice (PHA)- .462, 0 HR, 9 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Walter Johnson (PHA)- 72 IP, 7-1, 1.38 ERA National League April Batter of the Month: Stuart Adamson (NYG)- .391, 1 HR, 9 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Dave Davenport (NYG)- 45 IP, 5-0, 0.80 ERA May Batter of the Month: Enos Kirkpatrick (BSN)- .330, 0 HR, 18 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Ludwig Van Cleef (NYG)- 63 IP, 5-1, 1.00 ERA June Batter of the Month: Stuart Adamson (NYG)- .343, 2 HR, 13 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Lou Schettler (CHN)- 54.2 IP, 4-0, 1.15 ERA

08-12-2006, 01:11 PM	#219 (permalink)
Hurkman All Star Reserve Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 714 Thanks: 3 Thanked 7x in 7 posts	October 5, 1917 Boston makes late season push, withstands efforts of three teams to win American League pennant. The Great War in Europe has certainly captured the attention of almost everyone in the United States, but at least major league baseball has given people something else to think about during these most troubling times. The American League had one of the best pennant races in recent history come down to the final two days of the season. Throughout the summer, Boston, St. Louis and Detroit all had a hold of first place for at least a single day. Washington's chances of winning back to back pennants was lost when Sandford Freshlam was lost for a month with a back injury. He returned late in the season, but it was too late to make an impact. St. Louis also faded down the stretch, leaving the pennant between the Red Sox and Tigers. With the pennant on the line, Tris Speaker literally put Boston on his back, leading them to wins in eight of their last ten games while Detroit struggled without a star to guide them. Boston won the pennant, and Speaker had possibly his best year yet, hitting .327 with 9 home runs and 103 runs batted in, all tops for the Red Sox. Ed Karger won 24 games for Boston, and Tom Sheehan added 20 wins as well as Boston is headed to their first ever World Series. Code: American League Standings Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run M# Streak Last10 Boston (A) 90 64 .584 - 84-70 6 47-30 43-34 12-4 33-12 * W4 8-2 Detroit 88 66 .571 2.0 91-63 -3 45-32 43-34 9-10 29-25 - W3 5-5 St. Louis (A) 85 69 .552 5.0 91-63 -6 43-34 42-35 9-8 17-31 - L1 3-7 Washington 85 69 .552 5.0 88-66 -3 37-40 48-29 11-8 27-25 - L3 4-6 Philadelphia (A) 80 74 .519 10.0 79-75 1 42-35 38-39 4-8 25-27 - W1 5-5 New York (A) 74 80 .481 16.0 78-76 -4 37-40 37-40 8-4 27-28 - L1 7-3 Cleveland 64 90 .416 26.0 58-96 6 28-49 36-41 6-12 29-27 - L1 6-4 Chicago (A) 50 104.325 40.0 47-107 3 24-53 26-51 7-12 25-37 - L8 1-9 New York finishes with best record ever, dominates National League for fourth straight pennant. In the National League this season, there were just two teams: the New York Giants and everybody else. This year, any doubts people had about the Giants falling flat after the World Series last season were quickly dispelled, and when the dust settled, New York had won 100 games for the first time in their history. Not only that, but they won the National League by an astounding 21 games over the Pittsburgh Pirates, making this year the most impressive pennant victory in team history. Ludwig Van Cleef was again outstanding on the mound, winning 26 games and leading the National League in strikeouts once again. First year player Mike Regan became a nice surprise and an excellent compliment to Van Cleef, winning 20 games and picking up many of Ludwig's very good skills. The batting order was again led by the same group, as Stuart Adamson had a career year at age 32, leading the team in batting average, home runs, runs scored and stolen bases. He will certainly be a major candidate for the Most Valuable Batter award at the end of this season. The rest of the team did well too, with Vic Saier still providing the runs batted in, leading the team for a third straight year with 97, as well as adding six home runs. Michael Feldbush showed his worth as well, driving in 76 runs, hitting six home runs, scoring 92 times and stealing 50 bases, all around his career best in those categories. Pitcher Dave Davenport also recovered from injury to win 19 games, giving the Giants a very potent pitching staff to go along with their powerful lineup. The Red Sox will have to be at the top of their game if they want to win the World Series against this Giants team. Code: National League Standings Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run M# Streak Last10 New York (N) 100 54 .649 - 99-55 1 49-28 51-26 11-7 32-24 * W3 9-1 Pittsburgh 79 75 .513 21.0 80-74 -1 35-42 44-33 7-9 32-34 - W3 6-4 Boston (N) 78 76 .506 22.0 68-86 10 43-34 35-42 11-4 40-21 - W2 6-4 Cincinnati 75 79 .487 25.0 80-74 -5 37-40 38-39 12-10 30-35 - W1 4-6 Philadelphia (N) 75 79 .487 25.0 77-77 -2 32-45 43-34 9-7 28-31 - L3 3-7 Brooklyn 74 80 .481 26.0 75-79 -1 27-50 47-30 7-9 24-30 - L2 6-4 St. Louis (N) 71 83 .461 29.0 71-83 0 35-42 36-41 10-18 30-36 - L2 1-9 Chicago (N) 64 90 .416 36.0 64-90 0 31-46 33-44 8-11 25-30 - L4 4-6 Players of the Month American League July Batter of the Month: Frank Baker (NYY)- .358, 0 HR, 23 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Raleigh Aitchison (SLA)- 63.1 IP, 6-1, 1.71 ERA August Batter of the Month: Tris Speaker (BSA)- .340, 1 HR, 17 RBI Pitcher of the Month: George LeClair (DET)- 44 IP, 5-0, 1.02 ERA September Batter of the Month: Joe Judge (WSH)- .364, 3 HR, 17 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Steve Melter (CLE)- 40.2 IP, 3-2, 1.11 ERA National League July Batter of the Month: Ossie Vitt (PHN)- .365, 0 HR, 17 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Noodles Hahn (CIN)- 72 IP, 6-1, 1.25 ERA August Batter of the Month: Fletcher Parslofski (PHN)- .360, 0 HR, 16 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Hippo Vaughn (PHN)- 70 IP, 5-2, 1.54 ERA September Batter of the Month: Vic Saier (NYG)- .358, 1 HR, 25 RBI Pitcher of the Month: Hippo Vaughn (PHN)- 57.2 IP, 5-2, 0.94 ERA Last edited by Hurkman; 08-13-2006 at 03:20 PM.

07-30-2006, 05:04 PM	#201 (permalink)
lewis31lewis52 All Star Reserve Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Central Michigan University Posts: 580 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0x in 0 posts	I see Feldbush is finally back for the playoffs. Time for me to win another WS MVP!

07-30-2006, 07:44 PM	#203 (permalink)
nomar363 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 91 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0x in 0 posts	I'm not feeling so good about Washington's chances in the World Series....

07-31-2006, 12:04 AM	#207 (permalink)
Hurkman All Star Reserve Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 714 Thanks: 3 Thanked 7x in 7 posts	World Series Matchup-1916 American League Champions-Washington Senators (89-65) Overall Batting Avg.- .237 Overall ERA- 2.59 Leading Batters Cy Williams-RF: .272, 6 HR, 61 RBI John Kelleher-2B: .288, 2 HR, 60 RBI Benny Kauff-CF: .261, 6 HR, 51 RBI, 48 SB Leading Pitchers Sandford Freshlam: 22-4, 264.1 IP, 1.87 ERA, 243 K (Out for World Series) Reb Russell: 21-12, 346 IP, 2.71 ERA, 129 K Jim Shaw: 15-15, 279.1 IP, 3.00 ERA, 147 K National League Champions-New York Giants (93-61) Overall Batting Avg.- .255 Overall ERA- 3.14 Leading Batters Vic Saier-1B: .283, 9 HR, 104 RBI, 46 SB Stuart Adamson-CF: .273, 12 HR, 73 RBI, 77 SB Michael Feldbush-2B: .283, 5 HR, 81 RBI, 41 SB Leading Pitchers Ludwig Van Cleef: 30-4, 360.1 IP, 1.55 ERA, 408 K Dave Davenport: 19-18, 351.1 IP, 2.72 ERA, 183 K (Out for World Series) Glenn Liebhardt: 12-14, 232.1 IP, 3.68 ERA, 86 K Analysis and Prediction This World Series should have been about a matchup between the two best pitchers in baseball. Instead, Sandford Freshlam is hurt and will miss the series, placing any hope that Washington had of possibly shocking the two time defending champions in serious doubt. Compared to Washington, New York's offense is worlds better in every category. Vic Saier, Stuart Adamson, Michael Feldbush and Bill O'Hara provide a heart that any team would love to have, and they alone are capable of winning the series. The only way Washington can even think about winning is if their entire team catches fire at the same time. They would have the edge in pitching if Freshlam were healthy, but instead, the honor of facing Van Cleef now goes to Reb Russell, and no one knows how ready for this he is. The Senators may get one shocking win early in the series, but it seems unlikely that they can defeat the New York Giants when Van Cleef could pitch in three games. Prediction: Giants in 5

07-31-2006, 09:39 AM	#209 (permalink)
nomar363 Minors (Single A) Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 91 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0x in 0 posts	First World Series!!!!!!! Guess they didn't need Freshlam after all! Maybe next year he can play in his first Series.

07-31-2006, 02:49 PM	#211 (permalink)
Hurkman All Star Reserve Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 714 Thanks: 3 Thanked 7x in 7 posts	End of the Year Awards Rookie of the Year American League ROY: Frank Miller, SP (CHA)- This award easily would have gone to Rogers Hornsby if he hadn't been traded to the Reds, so instead, it goes to a solid pitcher from the White Sox. Before he was traded to the White Sox, Miller played for the Senators, and was instrumental in helping get them to a World Series title this year, despite not being there to enjoy it. He pitched very well for the White Sox as well, giving them hope that they may have solidified a weak pitching staff with his arrival. For the season with his two teams, Miller went 20-10 in 305 innings pitched, striking out 98 and compiling an ERA of 2.63. National League ROY: Rogers Hornsby, 2B (CIN)- There was some dispute when it came to awarding Hornsby anything this season, considering he spent half the year with the Yankees in the American League. However, his contributions to both the Yankees and Reds, when looked at together, were to significant to ignore, and so the Rookie of the Year was rightfully awarded to Rogers. In between both the Reds and Yankees, Hornsby was excellent, especially for such a young player. He batted .336 with 10 home runs and 90 runs batted in for the season. He also scored 99 times and stole 19 bases. His arrival in Cincinnati could have him in a World Series very soon, while the Yankees are still considered foolish for trading away such a good young player. Most Valuable Pitcher American League MVP: Walter Johnson, SP (PHA)- Before he was injured, Sandford Freshlam was considered a runaway to win this award for the second straight season and despite his injury, there were those who thought he was still worthy of the award, considering all he did for Washington in 1916. Instead, Walter Johnson adds his third MVP award to his list of accomplishments, and it was well deserved. The Athletics may have struggled this year, but Johnson was still his usual self, going 24-15 with a microscopic 2.11 ERA and 242 strikeouts in 359 innings pitched. He and Freshlam should be competing for this award for years to come, and it will be fun to see who can out pitch the other year after year. National League MVP: Ludwig Van Cleef, SP (NYG)- This award could have been given out at the mid-point of the season and no one would have complained. Ludwig Van Cleef has not only become the most feared pitcher of this era, but he may just be the most feared pitcher of all time. He was shown to be mortal in the World Series, finally losing a playoff game, but other than that, he was simply untouchable for the majority of the 1916 season. During the year, he won 30 games for the second straight season while only losing four. He struck out 408 batters in 360.1 innings, and his 1.55 ERA led both leagues by a wide margin. While the Giants could not capture a third straight World Series, with Van Cleef in the fold, they should always be close to winning another. Most Valuable Batter American League MVB: Ed Konetchy, 1B (CLE)- Without Ty Cobb in Cleveland, fans were looking for both Konetchy and Don Ayers to raise their level of play. While Ayers has not been able to, Konetchy did so with flying colors in 1916, and he deservedly took home the Most Valuable Batter award. Konetchy hit .324, first in the American League, and added two home runs, 72 runs batted in and 29 stolen bases as well. The Indians certainly were not a good team in 1916, but without Ed Konetchy, they would have been much, much worse. National League MVB: Rogers Hornsby, 2B (CIN)- There is very little else about Hornsby that needs to be said, all things considered. Cincinnati's age cost them a chance at the World Series this year, but now with Hornsby starting for possibly the next decade and a half to two decades at second base, there is nothing to fear. Once again, Hornsby batted a major league leading .336 with 10 home runs, 90 runs batted in, 99 runs scored and 19 stolen bases in 1916. With his first full season in Cincinnati now approaching, it will be interesting to see how Rogers handles playing for a perennial World Series contender. Gold Glove Award Winners American League Pitcher: Lynn Brenton (NYY) Catcher: Bill Rariden (WSH) First Base: Ed Konetchy (CLE) Second Base: Don Ayers (CLE) Third Base: Gus Getz (PHA) Shortstop: Donie Bush (NYY) Leftfield: Ward Miller (DET) Centerfield: Tilly Walker (DET) Rightfield: Harry Heilmann (CHA) National League Pitcher: Les Backman (CHN) Catcher: Dick Cotter (NYG) First Base: Stuffy McInnis (CHN) Second Base: Eddie Collins (CHN) Third Base: Del Paddock (BRO) Shortstop: Jamee Gray (BSN) Leftfield: Fletcher Parslofski (PHI) Centerfield: Stuart Adamson (NYG) Rightfield: Braggo Roth (CIN) Top 5 Leaderboard TOP 5 in BATTING AVG : .336 Rogers Hornsby( NYY CIN) .326 Billy Southworth(PIT) .324 Ed Konetchy(CLE) .321 Bill O'Hara(NYG) .319 George Sisler(NYY) TOP 5 in HOMERUNS : 15 Jamee Gray(BSN) 12 Stuart Adamson(NYG) 11 Dutch Zwilling(CHA) 10 Rogers Hornsby( NYY CIN) 9 Vic Saier(NYG) TOP 5 in RBI : 104 Vic Saier(NYG) 90 Rogers Hornsby( NYY CIN) 89 Ty Cobb(NYY) 89 Dutch Zwilling(CHA) 86 Heinie Groh(NYG) TOP 5 in ERA : 1.55 Ludwig Van Cleef(NYG) 1.83 Hippo Vaughn(PHI) 1.87 Sandford Freshlam(WSH) 2.11 Walter Johnson(PHA) 2.11 Bill Otey(CIN) TOP 5 in WINS : 30 Ludwig Van Cleef(NYG) 24 Walter Johnson(PHA) 22 Sandford Freshlam(WSH) 22 Johnny Lush(CLE) 21 Reb Russell(WSH) TOP 5 in SAVES : 19 Biff Schlitzer(WSH) 16 Lefty Webb(CHA) 14 Erv Lange(CLE) 12 Harley Young(BRO) 10 Ed Klepfer(CHN)

08-03-2006, 06:08 PM	#212 (permalink)
Hurkman All Star Reserve Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 714 Thanks: 3 Thanked 7x in 7 posts	February 1, 1917 News Once again, there is very little actual baseball news coming through this winter, as most teams have stood pat with their managers, and no major players have decided to retire. However, the conflict in Europe has shown no signs of actually slowing, and it seems more likely than not that America will be involved in the conflict very soon. No one is quite sure about how baseball will be effected by the war, and there are still those who hold out hope that American involvement will not be necessary, but at this point, nothing is certain. Baseball will go on, however, and continue to give Americans something to think about besides to bloodshed in Europe. Rookie Watch After the last few draft classes were filled with talented players, this year's seems a little light. It may be possible that some of the best young players have gone across the ocean to fight for the British in Europe, or it could just be that this is a weak year. That being said, there are still a few players who are seen as major league ready, including one who could bypass the minor leagues all together. Deke Taggart, 2B Deke is another player who seems to be leading the way to a more offensively driven game of baseball. With players such as Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby and Stuart Adamson all able to hit for average and power, Taggart learned at a young age how to do both as well. His smooth swing invokes images of Nap Lajoie, another great second baseman. He can already knock the ball to any part of the park, while his power stroke could be one of the best that the game has ever seen. However, the St. Louis Cardinals have the first overall selection, and looking at their previous experience with top draft picks, Taggart may want to find his way out of town before he feels the Cardinals' Curse as well. Current Ratings (Contact/Gap/Power/Eye/Avoid K): 46/70/38/35/33 Total Talent Ratings: 100/76/93/57/58

08-10-2006, 05:06 PM	#213 (permalink)
Machiavelli999 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 27 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0x in 0 posts	Where did you go? Is this thing still going?

08-10-2006, 06:43 PM	#214 (permalink)
Hurkman All Star Reserve Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 714 Thanks: 3 Thanked 7x in 7 posts	Sorry for the delay, I went out to Canton for the NFL Hall of Fame inductions this past weekend, and then had my wisdom teeth taken out, so I've been laid out for the last two days. I'm feeling better now, so expect an update by the end of tonight.

08-10-2006, 07:15 PM	#215 (permalink)
Hurkman All Star Reserve Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 714 Thanks: 3 Thanked 7x in 7 posts	Draft Results With such a thin amount of talent in this year's amateur draft, it seemed as if the first overall pick would be quite easy to decide upon, and it was. Once again, the St. Louis Cardinals selected first, and they chose the young second baseman Deke Taggart first overall. St. Louis has had less than a stellar record with many of their draft choices throughout their history, but many believe that Taggart can buck that trend and become the star that so many others have failed to become. That being said, the Cardinals believe he is ready to play in the major leagues today and have placed him on their team. Despite cries from fans saying that it is too soon, the Cardinals think that they are right once again, although it seems as if history may be against them. Round One Results St. Louis (N) pick: 2B Deke Taggart Boston (N) pick: 1B Joe Harris Detroit pick: P Hod Eller Boston (A) pick: CF Baby Doll Jacobson Chicago (A) pick: P Elmer Ponder Chicago (N) pick: P Urban Shocker New York (A) pick: LF Fred Nicholson Philadelphia (A) pick: RF Sam Rice Cleveland pick: P Leon Cadore Brooklyn pick: P Marv Goodwin Pittsburgh pick: 3B Tony Boeckel Philadelphia (N) pick: P Hal Carlson St. Louis (A) pick: P Burleigh Grimes Cincinnati pick: P Allen Sothoron Washington pick: P Howard Ehmke New York (N) pick: P Mike Regan Season Preview American League Washington Senators From laughingstock of the league to World Series champions in just one season, the Washington Senators have proven that it may only be a matter of time before any team can win themselves a championship. Now, all they have to do is prove that what they accomplished last season was simply not blind luck, and that they are a force to behold in the American League. Once again, their main strength is on the pitching mound, as Sandford Freshlam returns from his shoulder injury and leads a solid group of young pitchers, all of whom have the potential to win 20 or more games. What is even more surprising is that Sandford, at age 29, is now the oldest starting pitcher in the rotation, and he has clearly emerged as the most feared pitcher on the Junior Circut. Washington's batting order still needs work, although Cy Williams, Joe Judge and Benny Kauff do make a good core. All in all, Washington should be able to make another run at the American League pennant, as long as their pitching stays healthy. St. Louis Browns With a tremendous push at the end of last season, the St. Louis Browns proved that they belong at the top of the American League. Although they could not catch the Senators, they did show more heart than any other team in baseball, and should be feared this season as well. Like Washington, none of their starting pitchers are over the age of 30, and their ace "Smokey" Joe Wood is only 27. Their offense is also seen as better than Washington's as well, with Christian Gray being the picture of a pure leadoff hitter. Edd Roush, Jack Fournier and Zach Wheat all had off seasons last year, but it is unlikely that they will all struggle again, meaning that the Browns have a very good chance at getting back to another World Series. Right now, it seems as if the two best teams in the American League are St. Louis and Washington, and they should be involved in a great pennant race all season, with no clear winner until the very end. Philadelphia Athletics With that all being said, you still can not count out the Philadelphia Athletics. Despite trading their best bat in Tris Speaker to Boston, they still have defending Most Valuable Pitcher Walter Johnson and a host of other good arms that can at least push them into a surprise pennant contender. While there is no way true way to replace Speaker's bat in the Athletics' lineup, first round draft pick Sam Rice will do his best, along with a well aged Moose McCormick, Buck Herzog and Del Gainer. Without Speaker, it will be a challenge for Philadelphia to get to the World Series, but if all their pieces come together, it may just be possible one more time. National League New York Giants The biggest shock of all last season was having the two time defending World Series champion Giants fall to the Washington Senators so easily in the World Series. Manager John McGraw took what he saw during that series into account, and has come up with what he believes to be a sure fire way for the Giants to win yet another championship. That plan, of course, starts with the best pitcher in baseball, Ludwig Van Cleef, who is coming off of back to back 30 win seasons, and may just be the best pitcher in baseball history. Yet, behind him, the pitching staff is still weak, which was the main weakness that Washington was able to exploit during the World Series last year. However, there are very few teams in baseball that can match the batting order of the Giants. Only the best pitchers in the game can go up against Heinie Groh, Stuart Adamson, Michael Feldbush, Vic Saier and Ray Chapman without giving up a run. Their lineup is explosive and can score almost at will, and that is what McGraw is hoping will carry this team to another World Series appearance. However, this year may be their toughest challenge yet. Cincinnati Reds The Reds started out very strong last season, only to fade away in the hot summer heat. However, before they completely wilted, they were able to add quite possibly the best young bat in baseball by trading for Rogers Hornsby of the New York Yankees. Hornsby went on to win both the Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Batter awards in 1916, and provides the Reds with a solid bat in the middle of their lineup that they were missing for a time last year. The rest of their offense is beginning to age, but Jack Lapp, Solly Hofman and Braggo Roth all can contribute to scoring runs and with Noodles Hahn still pitching strong at age 37, the Reds are still a contender. However, their number two pitcher Dutch Leonard will miss the first three months of the season with a back injury, so it will be up to a rather hodge podge cast of pitchers to get the wins that Leonard would have gotten. If they can do that, then the Reds may just upend the Giants this season. Philadelphia Phillies Believe it or not, but the Phillies seem to have finally crawled out of the pit that is the bottom of the National League and are ready to become contenders once again. Their pitching staff, led by Hippo Vaughn, Harry Moran and youngster Bernie Boland, has quietly become one of the more solid in the NL, and leftfielder Fletcher Parslofski is next to impossible to strike out and has become the leader in the clubhouse. The Phillies do have a shaky offense other than Parslofski, but the key elements are there to make them a contender. Bobby Vaughn has become a rock at second base both offensively and defensively and Ossie Vitt is a pleasant surprise at catcher as well. This team may still be a year or two away from seriously challenging again for a pennant, but if either the Reds or Giants falter, it could be a very surprising Phillies team who heads to the World Series in 1917.

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