NL 1979 End of June Report

Come on, little Cobra...

June is over in my 1979 APBA tabletop replay, and it's that time when the pretenders have had their day and begin to fade away--just ask my 1965 Yankees or my 1986 Brewers, who were both in first place at this point only to fade into the middle of the pack by season's end. 

For those of you not familiar with this project, I am replaying 1979 for the second time. The first time, it was basic game all the way, right out of the box with the (then) current set of cards. Now, lo these 40 years later, I am playing it again with the newest reissue of the cards, and using all the bells and whistles including my Orsino Board. But enough blather...on to the standings!

"Everybody chill. I got this!"

PIT   51-22  ----  (best 1-run 15-6, best x-inn 8-1, tie least times shutout 3, tie best June 18-7)
MON 40-33  11  (tie least times shutout 3)
CHI  38-35   13  (tie best June 18-7)
NYM 39-37  13.5 (end June on a 9-game losing streak.)
STL  37-39  15.5
PHI  35-42  18   (worst x-inn 2-7)

LAD  44-35  ----
CIN   40-38   3.5
SFG  36-42   7.5
HOU 36-46   9.5  (worst 1-run 6-16, most times shutout 12)
SDP  35-45   9.5  (worst June 8-19)
ATL  31-48  13

So, can the last place team in the west get closer to first place than the second place team in the east? Stay tuned. 

The first time I replayed '79, The Pirates led at the end of June then, too, but by only 3.5 over Philly. (The currently last-place Quakers long for those simpler days.) Cincy led the west by a big 7.5 game margin over Houston. 

Atlanta fans support group.

PITCHING and DEFENSE
The Buccos have given up the least runs (263), the least homers (41) and notched the most saves (24). The Cubbies have collected the most shutouts (10). The Cardinals have turned the most DP's (102) and made the fewest errors along with the Dodgers (41). The Pods have the most complete games (31), but have also made the most errors (70). Atlanta is a veritable record-book of dubious achievements with the most runs against (449, that's 54 more than anyone else), least complete games (8), least DP's turned (35) while giving up the most homers (86). To round things out, the Giants have the least saves, with 7.

"Where's the beef? Ou est le boeuf?"

HITTING
The homer-happy Dodgers (107) have plated the most runs (398) but have the least doubles (107). Pittsburgh has the least caught stealing (11) the least GIDP's (45), the most walk-off hits (6) and the most grand slams (4). Houston has stolen the most bases (85) but also been caught the most (34), and they have the most triples (33), but the fewest homers (24). St. Louis and Chicago have stolen the least bases (32). The Cards have the most doubles (160). Montreal, despite having only been blanked 3 times, are surprisingly last in runs scored (301), two fewer than SD. Which brings us to Atlanta, who check in with the least triples (11), and the most GIDP's (78). As in the AL, the NL is lagging behind its actual pace in grand slams, with just 11 league-wide, which puts them on pace to fall far short of the actual final total of 31. Every NL team has at least 1 walk-off, with the Dodgers and Padres having just the one apiece. "There are so many other things to do in SoCal!" they explain.

LEADERS (with first replay leader in parenthesis, where available. Certain restrictions and conditions apply. Must accept delivery by July 1. May cause headaches and constipation. Ask your doctor about Numberall.)

Canny right-hander or Nesferatu?

WINS: Kison-pit 11-3, 4 tied with 10. (Seaver 13-1)

Richard-hou has 145 K's (Richard 139)

How about "loser"? Does "loser" work for you?

LOSSES: Shirley-sd 4-11, Matula-atl 4-10 Matula losin' games in the A-T-L.

CG: Carlton-phi 10, Perry-sd 10  

SAVES: Tekulve-pit 21, Castillo-la 15, Lockwood-ny 15, Sutter-chi 15, Littell-stl 14, Sambito-hou 14 (Littell 13)

Horner attacks the post-game spread.

HR: Horner-atl 24, Clark-sf 20, Schmidt-phi 20, W.Robinson-pit 19, Winfield-sd 18 (Stargell 32) Mike Schmidt suffered through a terrible June this time, with just 2 HR and 7 rbi for the entire month. 

RBI: Horner-atl 73, Clark-sf 67, Parker-pit 59, Matthews-atl 58, W.Robinson-pit 58 (Stargell 68)

Winfield's rookie card.

RUNS: Parker-pit 58, Winfield-sd 56, North-sf 55, Madlock-pit 55  (Lopes 60)

2B: Parker-pit 37, Hernandez-stl 36, Youngblood-ny 25  Those top two on pace for around 80 doubles. Wild! 

Templeton and his skipper discuss three baggers and Victorian poetry.

3B: Templeton-stl 10, Taveras-ny 8

STEALS: Moreno-pit 26, North-sf 22, Cedeno-hou 20, Lopes-la 20 (North 33)

GIDP: Montanez-ny 13, Garvey-la 11, Hendrick-stl 11, Ontiveros-chi 11

Keep your eye on that grounder, Pepe! Keep your eye...oh crap. 

ERRORS: Frias-atl 17, 2 tied with 15

If you missed the AL report, just hit "older post." It's right below this one.

See you after the all-star game, July 17 at the beautiful and luxurious Kingdome!

1979 AL End Of June Report

He's not "cranked", he's just gone cuckoo!

As those of you have been following along know, I am re-replaying the 1979 baseball season with the APBA tabletop game. I played it the first time with my very first set, purchased in 1980, no tweaks, no options, just straight out of the box--and with 20-man teams! This time, I am using the newest reissue of the cards, my Orsino Board (which is listed just under the blog header among the stand-alone pages), error randomizer, trades, full rosters, and advanced pitching and fielding options. (I don't use the "playing it safe" base running option. Keep running, fatty!)

What follows are the standings and leaders as of the end of June, as well as notes in parenthesis about who the leaders were the first time around, in categories that I wrote down at the time. Here we go!

The Orioles rode a 22-8 June to creep within a game and a half of the Brewers, while the Angels smoked every pitching staff they encountered, as well as beating back the Rangers and Royals in head-to-head competition. However, the Rangers, like the Orioles, remain just a length and a half out. 

MIL  53-26  ----    (tie least times shutout 1) 
BAL  53-29   1.5  (best June 22-8. 44-15 since May 1.)
DET  43-35   9.5  (best 1-run record 15-6)
BOS  41-36  11    
NYY 40-39  13
CLE  30-47  22
TOR  29-53  25.5

CAL  49-31  ----
TEX  47-32   1.5  (most shutouts 11, best x-inn record 8-0)
KCR  42-37   6.5  (tie least times shutout 1)
MIN  40-38   8
CWS  36-42  12  (worst x-inn record 1-5)
SEA  36-42   21.5
OAK  24-57  25.5  (worst June 4-24, least shutouts 0, most times shutout 15)

(The first go-round, the Brewers led then, too, and by the same margin of a game and a half, but Boston was in second. Baltimore was 6 under .500. No AL team was more improved in the reissue than the Orioles. Minnesota led the west by 3.5 over Chicago, of all teams!)

Pitching and Defense.
Milwaukee has surrendered the least runs, 313. NY and Texas have given up 314. Oakland has coughed up 528 runs, 39 more than next worst Seattle. The Yankees have given up the least homers with 62; Seattle the most with 102. The Angels lead with 34 complete games to lead that category by 7. Detroit and Seattle have only 16 distance efforts. Texas and Minnesota lead with 22 saves each. Seattle is a distant last with just 5. The White Sox kick the ball the most (defense really was that team's bugaboo) with 76 errors. Clean-fielding team is KC with just 50 gaffes. The Yanks have turned the most DP's with 102; the Orioles the least with just 52. 

Offense
The Angels are a powerhouse, leading the loop with a gaudy 476 tallies. Oakland is last by a whopping 56 runs, at 269 runs scored. Surprisingly, the Blue Jays lead in doubles with 164; the A's are last with 88. Triples honors go to KC with their jackrabbits and fake turf, with 36. Boston has just 12. Baltimore leads the league with 122 round trippers; Minnesota is the 98-pound weakling with only 52. The Royals lead in both steals (111) and caughts (27). Boston lags with just 20 thefts. They join Toronto with just 10 caughts. Boston has grounded into 18 more DP's than anybody else, with 93; Texas gets doubled up the least, with 59. The exciting Tigers have walked it off 7 times, 5 of them in June. Toronto has no walk-offs at all. No team has more than 2 grand slams. Almost half the teams don't even have one. There have been 11 grand slams league-wide; they'll have to pick up the pace to match the actual league total of 50. 

Leader Board

"Like my pornstache?"

WINS: Flanagan-bal 14-2, Caldwell-mil 14-3, Frost-cal 12-4, Travers-mil 10-1, D.Martinez-bal 10-5, Ryan-cal 10-6 (Frost 14-3)

"Drub me!"

LOSSES: Huffman-tor 1-11, Gale-kc 4-11

"I complete me."

CG: John-ny 10, Wise-cle 10

Ryan-cal has 136 K's. He led with 124 the first time.

SHO: 6 tied with 3

"I wear a cape under my uniform! Wanna see?"

SAVES: Marshall-min 22, Kern-tex 19, Castro-mil 17, Hrabosky-kc 17, Lopez-det 16, Stanhouse-bal 16 (Marshall 17. Not sure why I had so many fewer saves the first time.)

"Watch me go from torrid to tepid!"

HR: Lynn-bos 31, Thomas-mil 27, Singleton-bal 26, Grich-cal 24, Jackson-ny 23 (Singleton 27) Fred Lynn, after absolutely terrifying pitchers in April, has slowly cooled, turning in a pedestrian 5 HR and 16 rbi in June. He is hitting .344. At this point the first time, he was at a gaudy .390. 

"I dreamed I was way out in front in my Maidenform bra!" 

RBI: Grich-cal 76, Singleton-bal 74, Lynn-bos 73, Baylor-cal 71, Thomas-mil 70 (Summers 81) Ha! Champ Summers! I didn't do trades the first time, so he was a Tiger from opening day. I'd forgotten he did this well, though. This time, he had 6 HR and 11 rbi for the Reds and has 8 HR and 20 rbi for the Tigers for a total of 14 HR and 31 rbi, a mere 50 off his former pace! :-P

RUNS: Lynn-bos 70, Baylor-cal 66, Murray-bal 64, Gamble-tex 63,Thomas-mil 61 (Lynn 79)

Every girl's crazy bout a sharp-dressed man!

2B: Lemon-chi 28, Rice, bos 28, Jackson-min 26, Bosetti-tor 25, Cooper-mil 25

3B: Bannister-chi 8, Molitor-mil 8, Whitaker-det 8

The car with the stuffed rabbit is just out of the frame.

STEALS: Wilson-kc 47, Leflore-det 41, Dilone-oak 27 (Cruz-sea 40)

"I meant to do that."

GIDP: Ford-cal 21, Hobson-bos 17, Randolph-ny 15 

"I got blistahs on my fingahs!"

ERRORS: Remy-bos 17, 4 tied with 15. Remy is a 2b-8, so this is surprising. 

JUNE HIGHLIGHTS
June 1: Brewers beat KC 21-7 with a 24-hit barrage. 40 hits total in the game.
June 9: Chambliss (ny) hits for the cycle at KC.
June 14: Baylor and Grich both hit 3 homers for the Angels in a 14-4 win at Toronto.
June 14: Juan Beniquez (ny) charges the mound and beats the shit out of Paul Hartzell (min) who had just grazed his uniform sleeve with a change-up. Easy there, Juan!
June 16: Cowens (kc) hits 3 homers in a win at Milwaukee.
June 19: Roy Smalley (min), snoozing along until then, goes 6-for-6 with 14 total bases, 5 runs scored, and 7 rbi as Twins belt out 21 hits in a 16-10 donnybrook win at Milwaukee. 
June 19: Not to be outdone, George Brett (kc) also goes 6-for-6 as KC goes berserk with 26 hits and a ten-run second inning in an absurd 18-0 win at Oakland. George winds up June hitting .316.
June 23: Jim Rice (bos) and Balor Moore (tor) beat the living daylights out of each other in a disagreement over which way the toilet roll should be placed. "Over!" BIFF! POW! "Under!!!" SMACK! Now, boys...
June 24: Guidry (ny) fans 13 Indians in a 6-2 win at the Stadium. The baker's dozen ties Rich Wortham's May 20th performance for the most K's in a game in the AL so far.

Easssyyyy, Juan!

 
Hope you enjoyed! NL soon!

Book Review : "When The Game Changed"

When the Game Changed: An Oral History of Baseball's True Golden Age: 1969--1979 by George Castle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book a lot. Like a lot of older fans, I've gone from knowing pretty much all the players on all the teams in my youth, to being mystified as to who the 75 relievers on every team might be. This book concentrates on an era (1969-1979) well familiar to me, and beloved. From the stars of the era, to free agency, to the characters, to ten cent beer night and disco demolition, it's all stuff I love.

The layout of the book is very readable, with chapters punctuated with long boxed-off quotes from the participants such as Fergie Jenkins, Dusty Baker and Brooks Robinson among many many others. While the material was pleasantly familiar, I did learn a fair bit of stuff I hadn't known before. Who knew Dave KIngman could wrangle a 33-gallon beer keg? (4 other players together couldn't budge it.) or that John Candelaria enjoyed a 250 dollar hot dog in the dugout (including the fine.)

If you like baseball and like this era or want to know how the sport became what it is today, this book is for you.

View all my reviews

1979 NL End of May Report

He wants a Clark bar.

Despite a slight hiccup at month's end, the Pirates continue to disco their way several steps ahead of the eastern pack, while the Dodgers got it together with a 17-11 month to put at least a little daylight between themselves and their western pursuers. 

As noted in the preface to the AL report, I am re-replaying '79, it having been my first replay with the then-new cards and no tweaks. Now it's new cards, new boards, full rosters, trades, the works. Okay, let's get to the standings:

PIT    33-15  ---     LAD  29-23  ---
NY    29-21  5        SD     27-26  2.5
MON 26-21  6.5    SFG   26-26  3
STL   25-25  9       CIN    23-26  4.5
PHI    23-27  11     HOU  23-31  7
CHC  20-28  13     ATL    18-33  10.5

By comparison, in my original replay, the eventual east champion Phillies were on top by smidgen over STL and PIT with NY and MON 5th and 6th with dismal starts. Torrid Cincinnati started off 35-11 and enjoyed an 8.5 game lead in the west over HOU and LA.

Leaders, with original leaders in parenthesis:

Feed meee!

Wins: Kison-pit 9-1, Seaver-cin 8-1, Sutton-la 7-2, Niekro-atl 7-5, Perry-sd 7-5  (Seaver 9-1)

Losses: Denny-stl 2-7, Krukow-chi 2-7, Matula-atl 2-7, Shirley-sd 3-7

CG: Carlton-phi 8, Perry-sd 8, LaCoss-cin 7 

SHO: Blue-sf 3, Vukovich-stl 3

Saves: Lockwood-ny 15, Tekulve-pit 13, Littell-stl 9, Sambito-hou 9, Sosa-mon 9 (Littell 8)

He's Mike Schmidt and you're not.

HR: Schmidt-phi 18, Clark-sf 17, Horner-atl 14, Stargell-pit 14 (Stargell 19)

RBI: Clark-sf 51, Horner-atl 49, Schmidt-phi 49, Parker-pit 43, Briggs-sd 41, Garvey-la 41 (Foster 45)

Runs: Clark-sf 42, Winfield-sd 42, Garvey-la 40, Rose-phi 40 (Lopes 39)

2B: Hernandez-stl 26, Parker-pit 24, Winfield-sd 18, Taveras-ny 17

3B: Taveras-ny 7, Briggs-sd 6, Cabell-hou 6

Steals: Cedeno-hou 18, Lopes-la 14, Moreno-pit 14, North-sf 13, Smith-sd 11 (North 22)

GIDP: Buckner-chi 9, Cabell-hou 9, Hendrick-stl 9, Montanez-ny 9

Errors: Foli-pit 11, Frias-atl 11, Landestoy-hou 11

Ream capsules:

"Boy, hit a couple dingers and everybody loses their minds!"

Bucco Blatherings: The Pirates opened up a big lead in the east when they started out 31-10, but when they lost 5 of 7 to close out May, the pack caught up just a bit. "If you prick us, do we not bleed?" they opine. Bruce Kison did finally lose one after starting 9-0, but he's still on a huge roll. Bucs pitchers have surrendered a league-low 180 runs. The Pirates don't beat themselves--they have grounded into the least DP's with 25, and have only been cut down stealing 5 measly times, also an NL low. Phil Garner has crossed the plate 38 times. Dave "The Cobra" Parker leads in rbi with 43, followed by Stargell and Bill Robinson with 35 each to form a fearsome trio in the middle of the order. I would be remiss if I did not mention that Dale Berra had a two homer game before becoming invisible again. "Man that was some good coke!" he blurted to scribes after his feat.

Mets-elaneous: Whoa, Mets! They stunk like they should, the first time around, but this time they are--gasp!--contending, despite a run differential of minus 11. It's the bullpen, stupid! Skip Lockwood (4-1, 15 saves), and his pals Glynn and Allen have saved the team time and again. The relievers are a combined 13-6. Add to that the fact that the Metropolitans are a nifty 13-4 in 1-run games. Craig Swan (5-4) is really their only legit starting pitcher, though Tom Hausman somehow has managed a 5-0 log. Pete Falcone (1-5) seems to be the only Met in any kind of contact with reality. Though the team has slugged only 29 homers, they have gone doubles nutty with a crazy 109 already, led by Montanez with 16. (Montanez may be one reason they are over-achieving. I didn't do trades the first time, so they didn't have him at all. Moreover, he did most of his hitting in the final two months with Texas; here, the Mets are reaping the benefits.) Handsome young star Lee Mazzilli has just 4 homers, 3 of them in the season's early days, but has knocked in 39 runs and scored 36. The trade for Frank Taveras has worked out well, with Frank spraying gap hits all over the place. Can they keep this up? We'll see. What a story, if they can.

Expo-sitions: The Expos were the most disappointing team in my original replay, but are doing quite a lot better this time around despite a lackluster 13-14 mark in May. Larry Parrish boasts 15 doubles, 11 HR and 33 rbi. Ellis Valentine has chipped in with 32 rbi. Grizzled vet Tony Perez has scraped together just 7 rbi all season and has lost some of his playing time to Tony Solaita. The defense has been solid with a league-low 26 errors. 

Try .357!

Cardinal Numbers: The Cardinals have been a bit of an enigma so far. Vukovich is the ace with 6-2, 5 cg and 3 shutouts, but most of that came in April. Keith Hernandez got hot in the latter part of May to up his average to a gaudy .357 but his 29 runs and 28 rbi are merely good, not great, even though both marks lead the team. One thing the Redbirds do excellently is spray gap hits. They have an insane 120 doubles already. Homers are hard to come by, though. They have just 23, led by Simmons with 8. No one else has more than 3. The Cards don't run yet, either. Just 22 bags. That will change in the upcoming decade! Meanwhile here they sit at .500.

Phil My Prescription: After a stunningly inept 6-16 April showing (and last place), the Quakers revamped the line-up and righted the ship in May, going 17-11. Lefty Carlton, who started the season 0-5, is up to 5-6 now and rolling. Tug McGraw was yanked from the closer's role and Ron Reed (5 saves) installed. Mike Schmidt strikes fear into opposing hurlers, and despite being intentionally walked with frequency, he still has 18 HR, 49 rbi. "Bull" Luzinski was about to lose his LF gig when he finally started hitting. Despite just a pair of homers, Greg has 15 doubles and 2 triples to go with 21 rbi. Considering his slow start, that'll do. Gary Maddox, moved from second to fifth in the order, has 36 ribbies and great hair. Pete Rose moved from lead-off to third and seems to be always on base in front of Schmidt. So...will the real Phillies please stand up?

Baby Bear's Porridge: Your Impartial Goddess is ever the lady, and so it tells you something that when I manage these Cubs I am given to fits of shouting "Score you dumb fuckers, score!" Ahem. The Cubbies have tallied just 174 runs, 32 fewer than anyone else. It's too bad, cos they are stingy with giving runs up allowing only 197. Dave Kingman bears some of the blame for the dearth of scoring at Wrigley, with 10 bombs and 27 rbi. Both marks lead the squad, but are pretty far below what was expected at this point. On the pitching rubber, Bruce Sutter does have 8 saves, but has not always been effective, as his 1-5 record would suggest. 

Psst, chica....ask Tommy what he thinks about Dave Kingman.

So L.A.: The Dodgers rode a 17-11 May into first place in the west. Don Sutton is 7-2 and rookie Sutcliffe righted the ship and is now 6-4 after a 1-3 start. The Dodgers lead the NL with 275 runs scored and 68 bombs. They have grounded into very few DPs with just 29. If they could beat San Diego (1-6), they'd be flying high. LA has basically a one-man, one-inning bullpen in Bobby Castillo (7 saves.) After his cameo appearances, there isn't much help down there. A good time was had in Atlanta May 15-16 when the Dodgers crushed the Braves twice, 15-2 and 20-1, with a grand total of 41 hits. "We're so glad Atlanta is in the west!" they chirped, waving a map of the USA. 

Pod fans are excited!

Pod People: Its the Dan Briggs show! 11 HR, 27 runs, a whopping 41 rbi, errorless play in RF every ding dong day! Whee! In my first replay, he was a total non-factor. His card isn't that great. But he gets the rolls like crazy, and seems to always come to bat with 2 men on because of Hargrove, Tenace and Winfield hitting ahead of him. Look, peasant. It's Dan Briggs's world and we're just living in it! His heroics combined with Winfield's, have lifted the Pods to second place even though only 5 different Padres have a homer. The Pods, in their monkeyshit brown uni's, boast a pair of aces in Gaylord Perry (7-5, 8 cg, 2 sho) and Randy Jones (6-3). Lastly, the team has avoided injuries so far. We shall see if they can hang in with the Dodgers, their personal punching bag.

Giants Gibberish: Stoppit, Jack Clark! The Giants right fielder capped off a crazy May with 3 HR, 2 doubles, a single, and 17 total bases in a 16-5 demolition of the Dodgers on the 29th. He knocked in a gaudy 30 runs during the month to up his total to a league-high 51. Can nothing stop him? Meanwhile, local head case Mike Ivie has slugged 10 bombs and knocked in 37, all the while not throwing the ball any more than he has to. Darrell Evans has pitched in with 20 xbh's. So what if no one has won more than 4 games except Vida Blue (6-4)? So what if the bullpen has just 4 saves? "Mediocrity is good enough for us!" crowed skipper Joe Altobelli. 

Forget that and strap on your gear!

Rhineland Rambles: The sleepy stupid gimpy old-goat Reds staggered to a 13-15 month, completely forgetting whatever it was they did right in taking the NL flag in the first replay. George Foster has just 9 xbh's. Joe Morgan's gout keeps acting up, or something--or he changed his name to Junior Kennedy. He's been mostly MIA. Dan Driessen has 10 HR and 32 rbi to lead the team, but he is Dan Driessen and surely can't keep this up. Reserve flyhawk Champ Summers belted 6 HRs and was sold off to Detroit. Sheesh. Oh, and Johnny Bench prefers to sit and watch Vic Correll catch while J.B. paints stuff with Krylon. Their top three starters are 16-6; the other two 2-9, and the bullpen has only 4 saves, though the team leads the loop in shutouts with 6. 

Cosmic Astros: Poor JR Richard. He pitched 9 innings of no-hit shutout ball and got nothing. He was pinch hit for in the bottom of the 9th but a golden opportunity to score went a-glimmering and the game didn't end until Rafael Landestoy brought home the winner with a suicide squeeze in the 12th inning. That was on May 11th. Then on the 25th, he fanned 14 Padres but lost anyway. Nevertheless, the Spacemen put their horrid 6-17 April behind them and compiled a 17-14 May. Homers are scarce as hen's teeth, with just 13, 6 of them by Bob Watson. They've stolen 59 bases but been caught 27 times. Still, they are only 7 games out with 4 months to go. They could still get in this thing. "First we pass Atlanta, then we take Berlin!" shouted a confused Astro supporter.

"The rest of y'all need to stop blowing chunks."

Braves B.S.: You look at the bats the Braves have and think hmm, they'll score a lot! But no. They sit 11th in the loop with just 206 runs scored, and 306 given up. That last figure is 52 worse than the next most terrible club (SF). Bob Horner is a young star with 14 blasts and 49 rbi. Sarge Matthews has 31 runs and 37 rbi. But Dale Murphy isn't quite there yet with 6 HR and 19 rbi, and there isn't much after that unless you mean Barry Bonnell with his 9 HR and 21 rbi. The Braves turn the fewest DPs of any team (a measly 23) and they have only one decent starter, Phil Niekro (7-5). The staff has a microscopic 4 complete games. It will be a long season down south. 

Hope you enjoyed. On to June!

1979 Replay AL End of May Report

Hey fans. My friend Mike ("Get Mikey to try it!!") has convinced me that there is interest in this blog, so here we go. I am re-replaying the 1979 season. It was my first replay, with the then-current set of cards and I played it straight out of the box, no advanced stuff, no tweaks. Also, I used a 1980 schedule. Lo these nearly 40 years later, I am playing it again, but this time with the newest reissue of the cards, the newest boards, advanced options, and my Orsino Board (see top right.) I am curious to see how differently it may come out! Okay, on to AL end of May report, including standings, leaders, team capsules and some info about the original replay at the same point.

Why is this man smiling?

May was a great month for the Orioles and Brewers, not so great for the Twins or Yankees. Standings:

MIL  36-16  ---     TEX  32-18  ---
BAL  31-21  5      KCR  30-21  2.5
BOS  29-20  5.5   CAL  29-22  3.5
NYY  29-22  6.5   MIN  25-25  7
DET  25-24  9.5    CHI  21-28  10.5
CLE  18-31  16.5  OAK  20-32  13
TOR  13-39  23     SEA  17-36  16.5

In my original replay at May's end, the Red Sox led the east at 30-16, 1.5 over the Brewers and 2.5 over NY. The Orioles were 5th, 20-28, 11 games out. Out west, the Royals were 30-16, 3.5 up on MIN and 4.5 up on TEX and CHI. 

Leaders (with original replay leader in [parenthesis)

"Cos I'm better than you, it's the things that I do whoa whoa"

Wins: Caldwell-mil 10-1, Flanagan-bal 10-1, Frost-cal 8-3, Stanley-bos 8-3 (Frost, Splittorff 10-1)

Losses: Huffman-tor 0-8, Buskey-tor 1-8 

CG: John-ny and Wise-cle 7 

Saves: Marshall-min 15, Hrabosky-kc 14, Kern-tex 13, Gossage-ny 12, Lopez-det 11, Castro-mil 10 (Marshall 9) Not sure why I have way more saves this time.

HR: Lynn-bos 26, Singleton-bal 18, Jackson-ny 15, Thomas-mil 15 (Jackson, Lynn, Singleton 17 each)

RBI: Lynn-bos 57, Singleton-bal 53, Washington-chi 43, Brett-kc 42, Thomas-mil 42 (Lynn and Summers 57)

Runs: Lynn-bos 48, Baylor-cal 45, Gamble-tex 41 (Lynn 55)

2B: Lemon-chi 19, Cooper-mil 17, Rice-bos 17 

3B: Brett-kc 6, Molitor-mil 5, Wilson-kc 5

things go better with coke!

Steals: Wilson-kc 31, Leflore-det 27, Dilone-oak 23, Henderson-oak 20 (Cruz 31)

Errors: Cruz-sea 11, Griffin-tor 11 

GIDP: Ford-cal 17, Hobson-bos 11, 3 tied with 10

Team reports:

Beertown Babble: The Brew Crew turned in a fine 21-8 mark in May despite several injuries which shelved the likes of Larry Hisle and Ben Oglivie. Mike "Mister Warmth" Caldwell (10-1) and Jim Slaton (7-3) have given the Brewers a nice right-left combo at the top of their rotation which has yeilded a stingy 192 runs so far, second best in the loop. The Milwaukee club loves to face Toronto, drubbing the third-year Jays 7 times in 8 games. 

Bird Doo: Following a lackluster 9-14 April, the birds exploded, going 22-7 in May and charging to the top of the heap in runs scored with 303, averaging a staggering 7.24 runs a game in May. "Somebody stop me!" they say. Lee May (4 rbi all season) landed on the DH junk heap in favor of Pat Kelly (12 HR, 32 rbi), Terry Crowley (11 runs, 8 rbi splitting time between Lonesome Junction and Baltimore) and Benny Ayala. Lefty hurler Mike Flanagan has gone 10-1 to lead the staff. Inconsistent museum piece Jim Palmer is a humble 2-4, but did win his last start. On the 25th at Detroit, light-hitting Mark Belanger slugged a 2-run inside the park home run!

Hub Hubbub: The Red Sox led the league in runs at the end of April, riding Fred Lynn's insane 19 HR, 39 rbi and .437 ba. Fred had a good but less crazy May, settling in at 26, 57 and .371 by month's end but the team fell all the way to 9th in runs. Lynn isn't getting enough help. Yaz is second on the club with 11 dingers, then Hobson with 8. Rice has just 7 but has 17 doubles and 36 rbi. Fisk has yet to get untracked with just 13 rbi despite staying healthy so far except for a rag arm. Human monument George Scott was felled by an urban renewal project and has been out since mid-month. Jerry Remy also missed time but is back. The Brohamer/Wolfe/Papi replacements weren't nearly the same.

Bronx Cheer: If only the Yanks could keep Ron Guidry (4-2) on the bump! He has been great when he's been able to go out there, but keeps having nagging injuries. Tommy John has 7 CG but is a modest 6-5. Looie Tiant (4-2) recently found himself the victim of an exploding cigar and will miss time. Goose Gossage (12 saves) nails down what can be nailed down but the Yanks were just 14-15 in the month. Reggie Jackson has 15 HR, 28 runs and 30 rbi, but is hitting just .253. Chris Chambliss has been the straw that stirs the Yankee drink, with 11 2B, 3 3B, 10 HR, 28 runs and a team-high 35 rbi. Injuries to him, Munson, Spencer, and Rivers have left the Bronx Bombers a little thin, but Chambliss and Rivers are due back to start June.

Tiger Tales: Detroit is one game above .500 despite a minus-41 run differential. "Too bad we can't get anyone out!" Jack Morris got some Blue Jays out at Toronto on the 28th with a no-hitter! Jack won 6-zip. He's 6-3. Retread Jack Billingham is a surprising 6-1 but it gets thin after that except for closer Aurelio Lopez (11 saves.) The offense has been a real group effort, led by John Wockenfuss (10 HR 24 rbi) and Alan Trammell (akso with 24 rbi.) The ballclub picked up journeyman flyhawk Champ Summers from the Reds on the 25th. he hit 6 HR for Cincy as a reserve, and has belted 2 homers since arriving in the Motor City. Skipper Les Moss likes his power potential.

Tribe Wampum: The Indians don't hit or pitch, and are ordinary defensively, therefore their 6th place standing is about right. Thunder Thornton started out hot but has sagged lately, coming up with 13 HR and 37 rbi altogether. Bobby Bonds, the big off-season acquisition, has just 5 HR, 26 runs, 24 rbi and 14 thefts. The Indians did please the home fans by turning 5 DP's against the Yankees on the 25th, but naturally they lost 2-0 anyway. The Memorial Day doubleheader between the two clubs on the 27th was played in 45 degree rain. Nice!

He made Aunt Bee so proud!

Jay Walking: Toronto followed up a nightmarish 3-19 April with an ordinarily awful 10-20 in May. Whee! The Jays' "attack" is the most anemic in the AL with just 194 runs scored, and a run differential of minus-111. Otto Velez (11 2B, 11 HR, 33 runs, 32 rbi) does what he can, and creaky old Rico Carty has chipped in with 30 rbi, but John Mayberry--beset with injuries in April--has just 5 HR and 16 ribbies. The pitching staff has been a real crapshoot. Short on talent to begin with, they have lost 5 different pitchers to injury already. Phil Huffman has been glowingly healthy, but awful at 0-8. Closer Tom Buskey is 1-8 (ouch!) with just 2 saves. In a recent game, he came in to protect a two-run lead, gave up immediate back to back homers and departed. It hasn't been pretty. However, on the 21st at home against Cleveland, big John Mayberry hit for the cycle.

Waltz Across Texas: The Rangers staff is downright miserly when it comes to giving up runs, with 9 shutouts and a league low (by 26) runs given up of 166. Every starter except Steve Comer (2-7) has been stellar, even the hallucinating Dock Ellis (6-2). Doc Medich came in from long relief to make a start and combined with ace closer Jim Kern (13 saves) for, you guessed it, a shutout. However, it hasn't been just pitching that has the Rangers atop the west. On the 19th they pounded out 24 hits in an 11-1 romp at Seattle. Big-hair Oscar Gamble has been the every day DH and has responded with 13 HR, 41 runs and 35 rbi. Buddy Bell has chipped in with 34 rbi. Ee-haw, they're riding high, hoss!

Royal Tidings: This is not your father's Royals pitching staff. They are striclty average and yet Gura is 6-3 and Splittorff is 7-2, not to mention the crazed "Mad Hungarian" Al Hrabosky with 14 saves already. It can't last, but this team may hit enough to make up for it. George Brett has 14-6-10 xbh's with 36 runs, 42 rbi and ,325. The club has stolen 78 bases in 96 tries, 16 more steals than runner-up Oakland, and 19 more attempts. On the 15th, Pete LaCock, son of game show emcee Peter Marshall, blasted a 2-run inside the park homer at Seattle as part of an 11-0 laugher. 

"Hi! Watch me ruin your chance at being remembered!"

Angel Food: In Anaheim, starters have to pitch until they drop, because the bullpen can't be trusted except for Mark Clear (6 saves.) As a result, Halo hurlers have notched a league-best 25 complete games. Frost is 8-3, Ryan a pedestrian 5-5 though he has 82 K's. The Angel bats are crazy good, though. They bombed 6 homers at the Kingdome (do I sense a pattern here) on the 31st in a 12-1 win. They swept that 3-game set by a combined tally of 29-5. Don Baylor has 13 HR and 36 rbi to go with a whopping 45 runs scored. Carney Lansford tops the team with 38 rbi, but Grich, Ford and Downing all have 33 or more rbi as well. Young Dickie Thon, finding himself at shortstop due to injuries to the first two Angel shortstops, broke up a no-hit bid with 2 out in the home 8th on the 20th. "I think I'll go on to have an injury-marred, frustrating career," he opined to reporters after the game. 

Evil Twins: Jerry Koosman breezed his way to a no-hitter against the Blue Jays at Toronto on May 2nd, winning 11-0. That's the end of the good news for the Twinkies in May. After sprinting out to a 20-10 start, the Minnesotans sagged to 5-15 after that. Ken "It is the will of Landru" Landreaux and Roy Smalley, counted on to provide offense, largely fizzled in the month. The Twins lack power, with only 28 bombs so far, with nobody having more than 6. They don't run, either, with just 11 bags in 21 tries. Here's a weird tidbit: the Twins won it all in my original replay!

Pale Hosed: Rich Wortham, the poor man's Ross Baumgarten, fanned a gaudy 13 Angels on the 20th and was just 4 outs away from no-hit fame when bratty-ass Dickie Thon had to go and ruin it. But Rich won the game anyway, 6-0. The White Sox are a shocking 6-1 against powerful California, but 1-6 against Texas and 1-5 against weak sister Oakland. The Chisox have no bullpen, with their 7 saves spread among 4 no-name relievers. On the other side of the ball, Chet Lemon boasts 37 runs and 33 rbi, while Claudell Washington checks in with 15 doubles, 8 homers, and 43 rbi. The Sox hope that their hole at catcher is now filled with the acquisition of veteran Milt May from Detroit. 

All A's: The double dose of speed at the top of the A's order--rookie Rickey Henderson with 20 steals and unheralded Miguel Dilone with 23--both decided to run with scissors and now a new plan must be drawn up. (And yes I know Henderson did not start the year with the team but I don't go by that.) Tony Armas (11 HR, 29 runs, 33 rbi) has been the big gun for Oakland. Weird stat: Jim Essian has 5 HR and just 6 rbi. "I don't want to overtax myself," he explained. The team was actually not-horrible in May, going 13-16. "So what if we've scored 196 runs and given up 334?" they ask. 

"Wanna see me throw one away?"

Kingdome Dumbfuckery: Here they are, ladies and germs, the league's punching bag. The M's have given up 339 runs, more even than Oakland or Toronto. Mike Parrott (5-4) is okay but after that, ay yi yi. Add to that the fact that their pitchers seem to be made of glass. I even had to give minor league veteran Roy Branch 5 starts. He went 1-3. The team has only 4 saves, all by Shane Rawley. At the plate, Willie Horton has slowed since his torrid April, and checks in with still respectable numbers: 11 HR, 31 rbi. Rupe Jones got hot in May and soared to 39 rbi. "Staring at my bat helps a lot," he told assembled scribes. Second sacker Julio Cruz kicked two ground balls on the last day of the month to surge into the league lead in errors. Larry "Devil" Milbourne is right behind him with 10, despite being shelved with a sprained glove. 

NL report soon.