The virtual 1969-76 Yankees, Red Sox, and Indians (Part 7: 1974-75)
In last week’s episode, our Red Sox surged to their second division title in three years, while our Yankees sagged to mediocrity, and our Indians slumped to the basement.
Yankees: Actual Red Sox: Actual Indians: Actual
Year W L Pos RS RA W L Pos RS RA W L Pos RS RA
1969 80 81 5 562 587 87 75 3 743 736 62 99 6 573 717
1970 93 69 2 680 612 87 75 3 786 722 76 86 5 649 675
1971 82 80 4 648 641 85 77 3 691 667 60 102 6 543 747
1972 79 76 4 557 527 85 70 2 640 620 72 84 5 472 519
1973 80 82 4 641 610 89 73 2 738 647 71 91 6 680 826
1974 89 73 2 671 623 84 78 3 696 661 77 85 4 662 694
Yankees: Virtual Red Sox: Virtual Indians: Virtual
Year W L Pos RS RA W L Pos RS RA W L Pos RS RA
1969 80 81 5 594 617 85 77 4 775 781 68 93 6 576 658
1970 95 67 2 677 599 89 73 3 781 706 82 80 4 706 680
1971 87 75 3 662 611 84 78 4 690 673 73 89 5 657 748
1972 82 73 3 590 545 89 66 1 627 579 82 74 4 558 534
1973 86 76 4 709 630 89 73 3 721 633 92 70 2 740 679
1974 80 82 3 679 717 98 64 1 734 582 71 91 6 639 714
With just two seasons left in our exercise, is there time for anyone to compete with our Bosox?
The 1974-75 offseason: Actual deals we will make
Oct. 22, 1974: The New York Yankees traded outfielder Bobby Murcer to the San Francisco Giants for outfielder Bobby Bonds.
Quite the curious Blockbuster:
… it would be incorrect to consider Bonds and Murcer as equal overall talents. Bonds had one weakness that Murcer didn’t, in that Bonds was highly strikeout prone. This flaw prevented Bonds from sustaining a high batting average; Murcer hit for a better average than Bonds in five of the six seasons from 1969 through 1974. But this was the only facet of the game in which Bonds wasn’t clearly superior.
In the 1969-74 period:
– Bonds outhomered Murcer 177 to 139.
– Bonds outstole Murcer 247 to 67.
– Bonds created 689 runs to Murcer’s 590.
– Bonds won three Gold Glove awards to Murcer’s one.
– Bonds earned 172 Win Shares to Murcer’s 166.
– Bonds’s cumulative WARP3 was 52.2 to Murcer’s 39.9.
– Bonds attracted 0.94 MVP vote shares to Murcer’s 0.66.The objective statistical record and the contemporary assessment of award voters are in firm agreement that Murcer was an excellent player, but Bonds was a better one.
Yet the Giants traded Bonds for Murcer, one for one, in October 1974. Exchanging a regular right fielder for another regular right fielder isn’t the same kind of trade as drawing from a surplus in one area in order to shore up another; instead this is a trade a team makes only if it believes it will come out ahead in performance at that one position alone. I believe it was Bill James who coined the phrase “challenge trade” to describe such a move; it amounts to a wager over which of two athletes will better perform a specific role. The Giants bet that Murcer’s future would be better than Bonds’s, despite the fact that Bonds had enjoyed a demonstrably better past. Yankees’ GM Gabe Paul was quick to take them up on the offer.
Our Yanks will say, “Yes, thank you!” with equal alacrity.
Oct. 24, 1974: The Boston Red Sox released infielder Dick McAuliffe.
Though our Red Sox still haven’t solved the riddle at second base, we’re confident McAuliffe isn’t going to be the answer.
Dec. 3, 1974: The New York Yankees traded infielder-catcher Bill Sudakis to the California Angels for pitcher Skip Lockwood.
Sudakis was useful in a utility role in 1974, and Lockwood is an unexciting mediocrity. But our bullpen was atrocious in ’74 and shoring it up has to be the priority.
Dec. 20, 1974: The New York Yankees released pitcher Sam McDowell.
He just didn’t get it done for us.
Dec. 31, 1974: The New York Yankees signed pitcher Catfish Hunter as a free agent.
And we, by the way, are the New York Yankees. We represent The Big Apple, and we’re getting damn sick and tired of watching the teams from Podunk burgs like Baltimore and Boston finish ahead of us. We’ll happily sign Catfish to the biggest contract in the history of the sport.
Feb. 13, 1975: The Cleveland Indians signed outfielder Ken Berry as a free agent.
The far opposite end of the free agent spectrum. Our Indians think the veteran Berry might provide some outfield depth.
Feb. 25, 1975: The Cleveland Indians traded pitcher Milt Wilcox to the Chicago Cubs for pitcher Dave LaRoche and outfielder Brock Davis.
An exchange of disappointments. Wilcox has washed out as a starter for our Indians, then continued to struggle when given an opportunity in the bullpen. LaRoche has had back-to-back rough years for the Cubs, but has been quite good in the past and isn’t yet 27 years old. We have to try something to improve our relief pitching.
April 1, 1975: The New York Yankees traded pitcher Fred Anyzeski, first baseman John Narron, outfielder-first baseman Ken Bennett, catcher Terry Quinn, and cash to the Chicago White Sox for catcher Ed Herrmann.
We don’t understand why White Sox GM Roland Hemond is willing to surrender a 28-year-old left-handed-batting catcher with good power for a bushel of minor league roster filler, but our Yankees will take him up on the offer. Though Herrmann obviously won’t dislodge Thurman Munson as our regular, we can make good use of him as a backup and as a DH.
The 1974-75 offseason: Actual deals we will not make
Dec. 1, 1974: The New York Yankees purchased first baseman-third baseman Bob Oliver from the Baltimore Orioles.
No interest, thanks.
Dec. 2, 1974: The Boston Red Sox traded outfielder Tommy Harper to the California Angels for infielder Bob Heise.
Our Bosox don’t have Harper, and aren’t interested in Heise.
Feb. 25, 1975: The Cleveland Indians traded catcher Dave Duncan and outfielder Al McGrew to the Baltimore Orioles for first baseman Boog Powell and pitcher Don Hood.
Duncan had a rough year in 1974, and while Powell isn’t what he used to be, he can still hit. However, our Indians don’t have room for Boog at first base or DH, so we’ll pass.
March 5, 1975: The Boston Red Sox signed outfielder Tony Conigliaro as a free agent.
Impressed as we are by Tony C.’s intrepid effort at forging a comeback, we have to realistic: he hasn’t played baseball in three-and-a-half years. We’ll offer him a chance in the minors if he’ll take it, but not a spot on the big league roster.
April 4, 1975: The Boston Red Sox traded infielder Mario Guerrero to the St. Louis Cardinals for a player to be named later. (On July 4, 1975, the Cardinals sent pitcher Jim Willoughby to the Red Sox, completing the deal.)
Since we didn’t acquire Heise, we’ve still got a spot for Guerrero on our bench.
April 4, 1975: The New York Yankees released pitcher Skip Lockwood.
The actual Yankees had a better bullpen than our version. While clearly he’s had a poor spring, we can’t afford to dump Lockwood, and he’ll open the season in a mop-up reliever/spot starter role.
The 1974-75 offseason: Deals we will invoke
Nov., 1974: The Boston Red Sox traded pitcher Dick Pole and cash to the Cleveland Indians for second baseman Jack Brohamer.
With the emergence of Duane Kuiper, Brohamer is surplus for our Indians. Our Red Sox have an opportunity for him at second base, and are willing to expend a young arm.
Nov., 1974: The New York Yankees traded pitchers Fritz Peterson and Fred Beene and infielder Fernando Gonzalez to the Boston Red Sox for pitcher Roger Moret and infielder Eddie Leon.
Though Moret is a pretty good young southpaw, our Red Sox can afford to part with him in order to add the right-hander Beene to the bullpen and get younger in the infield.
Nov., 1974: The New York Yankees signed outfielder Jim Lyttle as a free agent.
This journeyman might fill a spot on our Yankees’ bench.
Jan., 1975: The Boston Red Sox purchased infielder Buddy Hunter from the Pittsburgh Pirates.
As might this one for our Red Sox.
March 26, 1975: The Boston Red Sox released pitcher Bob Johnson.
This journeyman isn’t making our Opening Day roster.
March 29, 1975: The New York Yankees traded infielder Danny Cater to the St. Louis Cardinals for outfielder Danny Godby.
Actually it was Boston making this deal with the Cardinals. The 35-year-old Cater’s been a useful role player, but we don’t have a spot for him this year.
March, 1975: The New York Yankees released pitcher Steve Kline.
March, 1975: The Boston Red Sox released outfielder Leron Lee.
March, 1975: The Cleveland Indians sold outfielder-first baseman Tom McCraw to the Milwaukee Brewers.
No room for these guys.
The 1975 season: Actual deals we will make
June 13, 1975: The New York Yankees purchased shortstop Ed Brinkman from the Texas Rangers.
We’ll make room for the 33-year-old Eddie on our bench.
Aug. 21, 1975: The Boston Red Sox signed infielder Dick McAuliffe as a free agent.
A desperation move in response to a Rico Petrocelli injury. Like the actual Red Sox, we see not better option than to retrieve McAuliffe from retirement to fill in until the roster expands in September.
Aug. 26, 1975: The Cleveland Indians selected pitcher Bob Reynolds off waivers from the Detroit Tigers.
Also a response to an injury, this one afflicting Dick Tidrow.
Sep. 21, 1975: The Boston Red Sox traded a player to be named later and cash to the Chicago White Sox for first baseman Deron Johnson. (On Nov. 7, 1975, the Red Sox sent catcher Chuck Erickson to the White Sox, completing the deal.)
Our Red Sox passed on the veteran Johnson last September. But we’ve just sustained a season-ending injury to a certain young right-handed power hitter by the name of Rice, and there is no way we’re going into this season’s final week without a replacement bat.
The 1975 season: Actual deals we will not make
May 20, 1975: The Cleveland Indians traded pitchers Jim Perry and Dick Bosman to the Oakland Athletics for pitcher Blue Moon Odom and cash.
Don’t have Perry or Bosman, and don’t want Odom.
May 27, 1975: The Cleveland Indians traded infielder Luis Alvarado to the St. Louis Cardinals for a player to be named later. (On Sep. 30, 1975, the Cardinals sent first baseman-outfielder Doug Howard to the Indians, completing the deal.)
We’d rather keep Alvarado around.
June 7, 1975: The Cleveland Indians traded pitcher Blue Moon Odom and player to be named later to the Atlanta Braves for pitcher Roric Harrison. (One June 16, 1975, the Braves sent infielder Rob Belloir to the Indians, completing the deal.)
Don’t have Odom, and don’t want Harrison.
June 13, 1975: The Cleveland Indians traded pitcher Gaylord Perry to the Texas Rangers for pitchers Jim Bibby, Jackie Brown, and Rick Waits and $100,000 cash.
The flamboyant Brad Corbett has recently purchased the Rangers, and is eager to make a big splash. However, our Indians aren’t willing to play along. Though he’s 36, big Gaylord continues to throw hard, tirelessly, and effectively, a genuine ace.
June 23, 1975: The Boston Red Sox released catcher Tim McCarver.
We don’t see the point in dumping this still-productive veteran.
June 30, 1975: The Cleveland Indians signed infielder-catcher Bill Sudakis as a free agent.
We like Sudakis, but just don’t have a spot for him.
The 1975 season: Deals we will invoke
June 13, 1975: The New York Yankees released infielder Eddie Leon.
We’ll go with Brinkman instead.
June 14, 1975: The New York Yankees traded cash and a player to be named later to the California Angels for second baseman Denny Doyle. (On March 5, 1976, the Yankees sent pitcher Gerry Pirtle to the Angels, completing the deal.)
Actually it was the Red Sox cheaply picking up Doyle, a competent second baseman who’s been displaced in California by rookie Jerry Remy. Our Red Sox have Jack Brohamer on hand, so don’t see a need for Doyle, but our Yanks do.
June 15, 1975: The New York Yankees traded infielder Jim Mason to the Houston Astros for a player to be named later and cash. (On Jan. 8, 1976, the Astros sent pitcher Jim York to the Yankees, completing the deal.)
The reason our Yanks see a need for Doyle is that this guy, a capable gloveman who, surprisingly, hit well enough to claim the second base job over the course of 1974, isn’t hitting close to his weight this year.
June 20, 1975: The New York Yankees traded outfielder Jim Lyttle and cash to the Montreal Expos for outfielder Rich Coggins.
Actually the Yankees purchased Coggins from Montreal on this date. Since we know the Expos like Lyttle (whom they would actually purchase from the White Sox this summer), we’ll make it a trade instead.
The tumble has been swift and harsh for Coggins, who starred as a rookie in Baltimore just a season and a half ago. But he’s still just 24, and we think the Expos are likely giving up on him way too quickly.
July 21, 1975: The Cleveland Indians released outfielder Ken Berry.
Berry has filled a bench role, but we’re now ready to call up rookie Rick Manning.
1975 season results
Yankees
Following a disappointing 1974, we haven’t made a lot of changes, but the key changes are highly significant: stiffening the pitching staff with the addition of Catfish Hunter, and energizing the lineup with the addition of Bobby Bonds. We expect to contend.
1975 New York Yankees Won 87 Lost 73 Finished 3rd
Pos Player Age G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+
1B C. Chambliss* 26 150 562 66 171 38 4 9 75 29 50 .304 .334 .434 .768 118
2B D. Doyle* 31 89 310 45 93 19 2 4 36 14 10 .300 .320 .413 .733 108
SS R. Metzger# 27 127 450 52 108 9 7 2 29 37 39 .240 .287 .304 .591 69
3B B. Bell 23 153 553 66 151 20 4 10 62 52 72 .273 .329 .378 .707 101
RF-CF B. Bonds 29 145 529 93 143 26 3 32 90 89 137 .270 .375 .512 .888 151
CF E. Maddox 27 55 218 36 67 10 3 1 25 21 24 .307 .378 .394 .773 121
LF R. White# 31 148 556 81 161 32 5 12 62 72 50 .290 .369 .430 .799 127
C T. Munson 28 157 597 83 190 24 3 12 105 45 52 .318 .365 .429 .793 126
DH-OF J. Briggs* 31 104 304 50 72 9 2 9 43 75 48 .237 .385 .368 .753 116
2B S. Alomar# 31 60 196 24 46 7 2 1 17 9 24 .235 .262 .306 .568 62
DH-C E. Herrmann* 28 62 160 13 40 7 2 5 26 12 19 .250 .301 .413 .713 102
DH-OF O. Velez 24 52 130 21 27 6 1 4 15 38 32 .208 .382 .362 .744 113
CF R. Bladt 28 52 117 13 26 3 1 1 12 11 8 .222 .286 .291 .576 65
OF T. Whitfield* 22 50 120 13 31 3 1 1 14 5 26 .258 .299 .325 .624 78
2B-SS J. Mason* 24 39 112 9 17 2 1 1 9 11 25 .152 .222 .214 .437 25
D-1-C J. Ellis 26 50 118 9 26 4 1 2 14 5 15 .220 .256 .322 .578 64
DH R. Blomberg* 26 34 106 18 27 8 2 4 18 13 10 .255 .336 .481 .817 131
CF R. Coggins* 24 51 107 7 24 1 0 1 7 7 16 .224 .261 .262 .522 49
SS E. Brinkman 33 44 63 2 11 4 1 0 3 3 6 .175 .221 .270 .490 39
OF J. Lyttle* 29 16 32 3 7 2 0 0 3 2 7 .219 .265 .281 .546 56
SS E. Leon 28 11 23 1 3 1 0 0 2 1 6 .130 .148 .174 .322 -8
Others 40 4 8 1 0 0 1 4 5 .200 .273 .225 .498 43
Total 5403 709 1449 236 45 111 668 555 681 .268 .333 .390 .723 106
* Bats left
# Bats both
Pitcher Age G GS CG W L SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA ERA+
C. Hunter 29 39 39 30 23 14 0 328 248 107 94 25 83 177 2.58 144
D. Medich 26 38 37 15 16 16 0 272 271 115 106 25 72 132 3.51 106
R. May* 30 32 31 13 14 12 0 212 179 87 72 9 99 145 3.06 122
P. Dobson 33 33 30 7 11 14 0 208 205 105 94 21 83 129 4.07 91
R. Moret* 25 36 13 3 10 3 1 116 98 42 41 5 63 65 3.18 117
T. Martinez* 25 37 2 0 4 3 8 74 60 28 19 3 45 52 2.31 161
D. Segui 37 33 1 1 1 5 6 71 66 37 34 7 44 45 4.31 86
S. Lockwood 28 29 4 0 4 3 3 69 72 35 30 3 31 67 3.91 95
D. Pagan 25 26 2 0 4 2 3 59 62 24 23 2 28 42 3.51 106
Others 1 0 0 1 0 15 17 10 9 2 8 11 5.40 69
Total 160 69 87 73 21 1424 1278 590 522 102 556 865 3.30 113
* Throws left
We encounter several obstacles. Injuries cut down designated hitter Ron Blomberg and center fielder Elliott Maddox; we’re able to cope reasonably well at DH, but center field just becomes a scramble. The replacement of slumping second baseman Mason with newcomer Doyle works out splendidly, as the 31-year-old Doyle hits at a career-best clip.
But our best players come through as expected. Hunter is brilliant, and Bonds is wonderful. Doc Medich, Rudy May, and Pat Dobson provide an excellent rotation behind Hunter. Thurman Munson, Roy White, and Chris Chambliss all deliver strong years with the bat.
It’s a ball club that’s very good at scoring runs and especially good at preventing them, producing the best Yankee run differential since 1964, yielding a Pythagorean record of 95-65. Alas, we’re undermined by a disastrous eight-win underperformance against Pythag. We’re strong enough to contend, but instead we finish a distant third.
Red Sox
Looking to repeat our 1974 division title performance, we’ve imported Jack Brohamer and Fernando Gonzalez to attempt to address our persistent problem at second base. But our key additions are a pair of high-potential power-hitting rookies: center fielder Fred Lynn and left fielder/DH Jim Rice.
1975 Boston Red Sox Won 97 Lost 63 Finished 1st
Pos Player Age G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+
1B-LF C. Yastrzemski* 35 149 543 91 146 30 1 14 60 87 67 .269 .371 .405 .776 111
2B J. Brohamer* 25 92 326 31 87 9 1 6 32 24 23 .267 .314 .356 .669 82
SS R. Burleson 24 158 580 66 146 25 1 6 62 45 44 .252 .297 .329 .626 70
3B R. Petrocelli 32 115 402 31 96 15 1 7 59 41 66 .239 .308 .333 .642 75
RF D. Evans 23 128 412 61 113 24 6 13 56 47 60 .274 .349 .456 .805 118
CF F. Lynn* 23 145 528 103 175 47 7 21 105 62 90 .331 .397 .566 .963 160
LF-DH J. Rice 22 144 564 92 174 29 4 22 102 36 122 .309 .349 .491 .840 127
C C. Fisk 27 79 263 47 87 14 4 10 52 27 32 .331 .395 .529 .923 150
DH-RF R. Smith# 30 135 477 86 145 27 2 24 95 57 59 .304 .377 .520 .897 142
DH-1B C. Cooper* 25 106 305 49 95 17 6 14 44 19 33 .311 .351 .544 .896 141
C V. Correll 29 82 260 35 59 10 1 10 32 30 53 .227 .303 .388 .691 87
IF M. Guerrero 25 64 184 23 46 10 0 0 11 9 7 .250 .286 .304 .591 61
LF J. Beniquez 25 62 152 28 44 8 2 1 10 15 16 .289 .347 .388 .735 100
3B-2B F. Gonzalez 25 68 154 21 36 7 2 1 16 16 22 .234 .302 .325 .627 71
OF R. Miller* 27 77 108 21 21 2 1 0 15 21 20 .194 .321 .231 .552 53
C-1B T. McCarver* 33 59 80 11 24 4 1 1 10 14 10 .300 .404 .413 .817 123
C T. Blackwell# 22 30 66 8 13 2 1 0 3 10 7 .197 .304 .258 .561 54
2B B. Hunter 27 15 45 4 9 1 0 0 4 4 6 .200 .265 .222 .488 34
3B D. McAuliffe* 35 7 15 0 2 0 0 0 1 1 2 .133 .176 .133 .310 -14
1B-DH D. Johnson 36 3 10 2 6 0 0 1 3 2 0 .600 .667 .9001.567 323
Others 15 3 6 0 0 0 0 1 2 .400 .438 .400 .838 130
Total 5489 813 1530 281 41 151 772 568 741 .279 .344 .427 .771 109
* Bats left
# Bats both
Pitcher Age G GS CG W L SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA ERA+
L. Tiant 34 35 35 18 18 14 0 260 262 126 116 25 72 142 4.02 103
B. Lee* 28 41 34 17 17 9 1 260 274 123 114 20 69 78 3.95 105
L. McGlothen 25 35 34 9 16 11 0 239 241 116 110 27 87 146 4.14 100
M. Pattin 32 44 15 5 11 8 8 177 180 80 69 16 45 88 3.51 118
R. Cleveland 27 31 20 3 13 9 1 171 173 90 84 19 52 78 4.42 94
F. Peterson* 33 20 19 4 12 4 0 109 117 58 51 15 29 35 4.21 99
S. Lyle* 30 49 0 0 6 5 20 89 100 38 35 2 35 65 3.54 117
J. Burton* 25 26 1 0 1 1 2 42 45 22 13 4 15 32 2.79 149
F. Beene 32 13 0 0 1 0 2 31 45 29 26 3 16 13 7.55 55
C. Skok* 27 13 0 0 2 0 0 28 31 15 14 3 8 15 4.50 92
J. Wright 24 9 0 0 0 1 0 20 24 12 10 2 11 12 4.50 92
Others 2 0 0 1 0 11 14 11 4 1 8 3 3.27 127
Total 160 56 97 63 34 1437 1506 720 646 137 447 707 4.05 103
* Throws left
For the second straight year, catcher Carlton Fisk suffers a major injury: this time it’s a broken thumb, delaying his season debut until late June. That’s problem No. 1. The second issue is a general decline in effectiveness by our pitching staff; it’s still pretty good, but nothing close to the brilliant pitching performance we enjoyed in 1974.
But the good news is that our hitting is terrific. Once back in the lineup, Fisk is marvelous, as is DH/right fielder Reggie Smith. But most of the buzz is created by the rookies in the outfield, who finish one-two in the league’s Rookie of the Year balloting, with Lynn so electrifying that he captures the MVP award as well as the ROY.
And just as it doesn’t for the Yankees, Pythagorean fortune smiles upon us. We outperform our projection by seven wins, which provides plenty enough lift to win the AL East Division once again.
Indians
Looking to bounce back from our dismal 1974, we’ve installed Frank Robinson as manager, and also as backup designated hitter. Our primary DH will be Rico Carty, who hit a ton over the final weeks of ’74. Duane Kuiper is taking over at second base, and rookie Alan Ashby will become part of the catching mix.
Dick Tidrow will move from the starting rotation to the bullpen, where he’ll join newcomer Dave LaRoche. Rookie Jim Kern and import Dick Pole will get starting opportunities.
1975 Cleveland Indians Won 82 Lost 77 Finished 4th
Pos Player Age G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+
1B G. Scott 31 158 617 86 173 26 4 37 104 51 95 .280 .336 .515 .852 140
2B D. Kuiper* 25 130 520 59 135 15 1 1 31 43 40 .260 .324 .298 .622 78
SS F. Duffy 28 146 482 44 117 22 2 1 44 27 60 .243 .280 .303 .583 66
3B G. Nettles* 30 157 581 71 156 24 4 21 86 49 88 .269 .321 .432 .753 113
RF-LF C. Spikes 24 111 345 41 79 13 3 11 30 30 51 .229 .288 .380 .668 89
CF-RF G. Hendrick 25 145 561 82 145 21 2 24 81 40 78 .258 .302 .431 .733 107
LF O. Gamble* 25 121 348 60 91 16 3 15 42 53 39 .261 .360 .454 .815 131
C A. Ashby# 23 81 229 29 51 9 1 5 26 27 38 .223 .292 .336 .628 79
DH-LF R. Carty 35 118 383 57 118 19 1 18 60 45 31 .308 .378 .504 .882 150
OF J. Lowenstein* 28 91 265 37 64 5 1 12 30 28 28 .242 .310 .404 .714 102
CF R. Manning* 20 60 240 32 68 8 3 2 18 22 31 .283 .340 .367 .706 101
C D. Duncan 29 64 205 20 43 5 0 8 24 10 53 .210 .249 .351 .600 69
C R. Dempsey 25 53 145 18 40 8 0 1 11 20 15 .276 .355 .352 .707 102
DH F. Robinson 39 49 118 19 28 5 0 9 23 29 15 .237 .383 .508 .891 152
IF E. Crosby* 26 61 128 12 30 3 0 0 7 13 14 .234 .297 .258 .554 59
OF K. Berry 34 50 107 10 24 3 1 0 7 6 14 .224 .278 .271 .549 57
IF L. Alvarado 26 29 46 3 8 1 0 0 5 2 7 .174 .200 .196 .396 13
2B D. Nelson 31 14 40 4 7 1 0 2 5 3 5 .175 .244 .350 .594 68
Others 33 5 8 3 0 2 10 4 4 .242 .317 .515 .832 134
Total 5393 689 1385 207 26 169 644 502 706 .257 .318 .399 .717 103
* Bats left
# Bats both
Pitcher Age G GS CG W L SV IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA ERA+
G. Perry 36 37 37 25 18 17 0 306 272 129 110 29 71 236 3.24 116
J. Colborn 29 36 29 8 12 13 2 206 205 110 95 19 65 84 4.15 90
S. Bahnsen 30 33 28 4 11 12 0 167 161 92 80 13 79 84 4.31 87
L. Gura* 27 26 20 5 7 8 0 151 172 66 59 13 40 66 3.52 107
D. Pole 24 18 11 2 3 6 0 90 96 43 40 10 32 42 4.00 94
D. Eckersley 20 14 10 2 5 3 1 75 59 24 22 6 36 61 2.64 142
J. Kern 26 13 7 0 3 2 0 72 60 31 30 5 45 55 3.75 100
D. LaRoche* 27 61 0 0 5 3 17 82 61 26 20 5 57 94 2.20 171
D. Tidrow 28 37 0 0 6 3 5 69 65 27 24 5 31 38 3.13 120
G. Ryerson* 27 34 11 2 6 6 0 135 167 82 71 10 32 59 4.73 79
R. Sawyer 27 21 6 1 6 2 0 65 58 26 22 4 16 31 3.05 123
B. Reynolds 28 5 0 0 0 2 2 10 11 7 5 0 3 5 4.50 83
Others 0 0 0 0 1 11 8 4 4 0 4 7 3.27 115
Total 159 49 82 77 28 1439 1395 667 582 119 511 862 3.64 103
* Throws left
We suffer one disappointment, as right fielder Charlie Spikes, so productive as a rookie in ’74, finds it a whole lot more challenging this time around. The mid-season arrival of Rick Manning moves George Hendrick to right, and Spikes to the bench.
But that’s about it in terms of problems. Generally things go as planned. We get the power we expected from Carty, Hendrick, Graig Nettles, and Oscar Gamble, and especially from George Scott, who leads the league with a career-high 37 bombs. For the third straight year, we lead the league in team homers. Overall, while our offense isn’t great, it’s solid.
Our pitching is solid as well, getting a lift from LaRoche, who delightfully rediscovers his fastball, as well as a mid-season call-up, 20-year-old rookie right-hander Dennis Eckersley.
We’re meaningfully improved upon our 1974 edition. We aren’t a contender, as we had been in ’73, but we’re back over .500 and feeling new confidence.
Yankees: Actual Red Sox: Actual Indians: Actual
Year W L Pos RS RA W L Pos RS RA W L Pos RS RA
1969 80 81 5 562 587 87 75 3 743 736 62 99 6 573 717
1970 93 69 2 680 612 87 75 3 786 722 76 86 5 649 675
1971 82 80 4 648 641 85 77 3 691 667 60 102 6 543 747
1972 79 76 4 557 527 85 70 2 640 620 72 84 5 472 519
1973 80 82 4 641 610 89 73 2 738 647 71 91 6 680 826
1974 89 73 2 671 623 84 78 3 696 661 77 85 4 662 694
1975 83 77 3 681 588 95 65 1 796 709 79 80 4 688 703
Yankees: Virtual Red Sox: Virtual Indians: Virtual
Year W L Pos RS RA W L Pos RS RA W L Pos RS RA
1969 80 81 5 594 617 85 77 4 775 781 68 93 6 576 658
1970 95 67 2 677 599 89 73 3 781 706 82 80 4 706 680
1971 87 75 3 662 611 84 78 4 690 673 73 89 5 657 748
1972 82 73 3 590 545 89 66 1 627 579 82 74 4 558 534
1973 86 76 4 709 630 89 73 3 721 633 92 70 2 740 679
1974 80 82 3 679 717 98 64 1 734 582 71 91 6 639 714
1975 87 73 3 709 590 97 63 1 813 720 82 77 4 689 667
Next time
In our final installment, can anybody unseat our Bosox?
Playing the home version of this game and since you are in the breaking eggs mood-
What the heck, this team is hopelessly screwed anyway and will have to wait for Martinez, McGregor and Dempsey to develop to have a chance to compete around the turn of the decade. By the time it can compete, Hunter will be long gone anyway. So…
George fires Gabe Paul and Bill Virdon after not meeting expectations in 1974, suspension or not (I can’t recall). The Yankees are seen as a franchise in turmoil. This club is spinning it’s wheels going nowhere.
Hunter decides he’s been thru this turmoil in Oakland and decides to sign with San Diego.
For Munson, losing sucks, he is chirping louder and more often that he wants to be traded to Cleveland to be closer to his young family.
What would you do?
Oh right, you have Dempsey on the Indians!
Nice try, but you ignore human factors in your analysis of transactions. Drugs, ETOH, extra-marital relations, and abnormal psychology factored heavily in the mid-70’s AL East. Also, by omitting the Orioles you are excluding 1/3rd of the ‘70s AL East equation, probably the most important third.
Maybe the diappointing Indians need to go into rebuilding mode and send Nettles to the Yankees for the much younger Buddy Bell. Probably not, but I can hope anyway.
It’s nice to see that the Yankees stopped picking up retread relief pitchers and went with a promising rookie to close. But will Tippy Martinez get traded to baltimore in ‘76. Tune in next week…
…only if Charley Finley’s fire sale first ships Kenny Holtzman to Baltimore and 14 year old Hal Steinbrenner begs his dad to trade for Hal’s mostest fav pitcher EVER.
I attended a wedding at Canterbury Golf Club outside Cleveland in 1986. Talk then around the clubhouse bar was that Gabe Paul and Steinbrenner (both were or had been members) rigged the Nettles and Chambliss trades over drinks in anticipation of Gabe coming to NY in ‘76. BYW, Steinbrenner was “suspended” at the time for making illegal campaign contrbutions to Nixon(‘74). From baseball, but not from golf apparently. True or false, it makes sense, doesn’t it?
Item: Giants trade Bobby Bonds even up for Bobby Murcer.
Can’t imagine why Giants would trade a 5 star player even up for a 2 star player.
Maybe Murcer needed to get away from all the “temptations” of “Fun City” and focus on his family and his job instead of on the night life.
Maybe Steinbrenner wanted to rid himself of the “face” of Mike Burke’s franchise.
Maybe Murcer’s power diminished from all the Skoal he was doing evey night after the games.
I agree with nova9047 on several points:
First, even though I’m an Indians fan, it baffles me why you chose them for this exercise (besides the chuckle factor). The Orioles would have made a lot more sense.
Next, ignoring human factors. It’s more financial than human, but the Indians had major money problems and some (most?) of their offloading up-and-comers could be traced to this factor alone – even despite being run by the Moron twins, Phil Seghi and Gabe Paul.
Finally, it just seems common sense that the Nettles trade was made anticipating Paul coming to the Yankees. Shouldn’t sports have an “insider trading”-type rule? (Paul was already in NY for the Chambliss trade – he joined the Yanks in early ‘73, not ‘76).
“First, even though I’m an Indians fan, it baffles me why you chose them for this exercise (besides the chuckle factor). The Orioles would have made a lot more sense.”
No, they wouldn’t. Until the big mid-season Holtzman etc. trade in 1976 (which we haven’t even gotten to yet), the Orioles executed no major deals with either the Yankees, Red Sox, or Indians through this entire period. It was the latter three teams whose interactions were impactful, and might plausibly have gone quite differently.
“Next, ignoring human factors. It’s more financial than human, but the Indians had major money problems and some (most?) of their offloading up-and-comers could be traced to this factor alone – even despite being run by the Moron twins, Phil Seghi and Gabe Paul.”
I don’t believe this is true at all. This is prior to the free agent era; there was zero financial purpose for the Indians to offload young talent, which was exceptionally cheap in those days. Their sell-off of Gaylord Perry in 1975 was obviously financially motivated, but that’s really the only such deal they made in this period. The offloading of the young talent was simply a result of incompetence, or, as suggested above and agreed to by you, by corruption.
Ha! Got me there. Good points.