The NL kept its lineup while the AL expanded. The Reds fell from the top spot, as the Dodgers returned to the top of the NL West with 98 victories. The Reds were second with 88. Houston went 81-81 to finish third, followed by San Francisco, San Diego, and finally Atlanta with 101 losses. Philadelphia won the East again with 101 wins, with Pittsburgh just behind at 96 victories. St. Louis was 3rd, Chicago 4th, Montreal 5th and the Mets last. The Dodgers then beat the Phillies in the NLCS.
Dave Parker won the batting title with a .338 average, just ahead of teammate Rennie Stennett at .336. However, Stennett played just 114 games before going down with a leg injury (which helped cost Pittsburgh the division) and was never the same player again. George Foster had a monster year with 52 HR, 149 RBI,led in slugging and OPS, and won the MVP. Parker had 44 doubles, Garry Templeton 18 triples, Frank Taveras led in steals with 70. Jeff Burroughs was second in homers with 41, Greg Luzinski third with 39. Luzinski had 130 RBI. Reggie Smith, playing in the pitchers' park of Dodger Stadium, led in on-base, was second in OPS, and had a small lead on Foster for OPS+.
Steve Carlton led in wins with 23, followed by Tom Seaver with 21. Bob Forsch, John Candelaria, Tommy John, and Rick Reuschel each won 20. Candelaria led in ERA with a 2.34 mark, followed by Seaver at 2.58. Phil Niekro had 262 strikeouts, followed by J.R. Richard at 214. Niekro led in innings, starts, and complete games. Rollie Fingers led in saves with 35, followed by Bruce Sutter at 31. Carlton won the Cy Young.
Win Shares leaders, NL, 1977:
Players, Mike Schmidt (Philadelphia) and Dave Parker (Pittsburgh) 33, George Foster (Cincinnati) 32, Greg Luzinski (Philadelphia) and Joe Morgan (Cincinnati) 30 (Bull's were all offensive, I bet), Reggie Smith (Los Angeles) 29, George Hendrick (San Diego) and Ted Simmons (St. Louis) 28, Gary Carter (Montreal) and Gene Tenace (San Diego) 25, Jose Cruz (Houston), Davey Lopes (Los Angeles), Dave Winfield (San Diego) and Keith Hernandez and Garry Templeton (St. Louis) 24, Ken Griffey and Pete Rose (Cincinnati) and Cesar Cedeno and Bob Watson (Houston) 23, Jeff Burroughs (Atlanta) and Johnny Bench (Cincinnati) 22.
For pitchers, it was Bruce Sutter (Chicago) 27, Rick Reuschel (Chicago), John Candelaria and Goose Gossage (Pitsburgh) and Steve Carlton (Philadelphia) 26, Tom Seaver (New York/Cincinnati) 25, J.R. Richard (Houston) and Steve Rogers (Montreal) 21, Phil Niekro (Atlanta) and Ed Halicki (San Francisco) 20, Burt Hooton and Tommy John (Los Angeles) 19, Gary Lavelle (San Francisco) 18.
WARP3, players: Foster 9.1, Schmidt 8.7, Smith 8.2, Parker 8.0, Morgan 7.5, Carter 6.7, Simmons 6.5, Bench 6.3, Dave Concepcion (Cincinnati), Lopes, and Tenace 5.9, Watson 5.2, Cedeno, Joe Ferguson (Los Angeles) and Lenny Randle (New York) 5.1, Hendrick and Rennie Stennett (Pittsburgh) 5.0, Phil Garner (Pittsburgh) 4.9, Winfield and Dusty Baker (Los Angeles) 4.8.
WARP3, pitchers: Reuschel 9.2, Niekro 8.5, Gossage 8.1, Carlton 8.0, Richard 7.1, Sutter 7.0, Halicki 6.9, Candelaria 6.8, Lavelle and Seaver 5.7, Hooton 5.2, Rogers and John 5.0, Rollie Fingers (San Diego) 4.7.
WAR leaders from Fangraphs: position players; Schmidt 9.6, Foster 9.3, Parker 8.1, Smith 6.8, Morgan 6.2, Simmons 6.0, Carter 5.7, Hendrick 5.5, Bench and Luzinski 5.3, Lopes and Watson 5.2, Cruz and Tenace 5.0, Cedeno and Ferguson 4.9, Cey and Griffey 4.7.
Pitchers, Rogers 7.6, Reuschel 7.1, Seaver 6.5, Niekro 6.4, Carlton and Sutter 5.4, Hooton 5.1, John 5.0, Richard 4.9, Bonham 4.7, Koosman 4.6, Gossage and Rau 4.3, Reuss 4.2.
Actual award voting:
MVP (top 15) : | Season Results
Rk Name Team 1st Place Points Max Points Share|AB H HR BA OPS SB| W-L IP ERA WHIP SO SV
+--+----------------+----+-----+------+------+--------+---+-----+-----+---+--+
1 George Foster CIN 15 291 336 0.87 | 615 197 52 .320 1.013 6
2 Greg Luzinski PHI 9 255 336 0.76 | 554 171 39 .309 .988 3
3 Dave Parker PIT 0 156 336 0.46 | 637 215 21 .338 .927 17
4 Reggie Smith LAD 0 112 336 0.33 | 488 150 32 .307 1.003 7
5 Steve Carlton PHI 0 100 336 0.30 | 97 26 3 .268 .684 0| 23-10 283 2.64 1.124 198
6 Steve Garvey LAD 0 98 336 0.29 | 646 192 33 .297 .834 9
7 Bruce Sutter CHC 0 68 336 0.20 | 20 3 0 .150 .377 0| 7-3 107 1.34 0.857 129 31
8 Ron Cey LAD 0 60 336 0.18 | 564 136 30 .241 .797 3
9 Ted Simmons STL 0 58 336 0.17 | 516 164 21 .318 .908 2
10 Mike Schmidt PHI 0 48 336 0.14 | 544 149 38 .274 .967 15
11 Bill Robinson PIT 0 34 336 0.10 | 507 154 26 .304 .862 12
12 Tommy John LAD 0 33 336 0.10 | 79 14 1 .177 .433 0| 20-7 220 2.78 1.248 123
13 Garry Templeton STL 0 20 336 0.06 | 621 200 8 .322 .786 28
14 Rollie Fingers SDP 0 17 336 0.05 | 20 1 0 .050 .100 0| 8-9 132 2.99 1.202 113 35
15 Pete Rose CIN 0 15 336 0.04 | 655 204 9 .311 .809 16
Foster by a fairly small margin over Luzinski. Parker ran a strong third, and the rest were also-rans.
Cy Young: | Season Results
Rk Name Team 1st Place Points Max Points Share| W-L IP ERA WHIP SO SV
+--+----------------+----+-----+------+------+-----+------+---+-----+-----+---+--+
1 Steve Carlton PHI 17 104 120 0.87 | 23-10 283 2.64 1.124 198
2 Tommy John LAD 3 54 120 0.45 | 20-7 220 2.78 1.248 123
3 Rick Reuschel CHC 1 18 120 0.15 | 20-10 252 2.79 1.218 166 1
3 Tom Seaver TOT 2 18 120 0.15 |+21-6 261 2.58 1.014 196
5 John Candelaria PIT 1 17 120 0.14 | 20-5 231 2.34 1.071 133
6 Bruce Sutter CHC 0 5 120 0.04 | 7-3 107 1.34 0.857 129 31
Carlton followed by a full comeback season by Tommy John from the surgery that now bears his name. Sutter and Gossage got little attention from their terrific years in relief.
Rookie: | Season Results
Rk Name Team 1st Place Points Max Points Share| AB H HR BA OPS SB| W-L IP ERA WHIP SO SV
+--+----------------+----+-----+------+---------+---+-----+-----+---+--+
1 Andre Dawson MON 10 10 24 0.42 | 525 148 19 .282 .800 21
2 Steve Henderson NYM 9 9 24 0.38 | 350 104 12 .297 .852 6
3 Gene Richards SDP 4 4 24 0.17 | 525 152 5 .290 .754 56
4 Floyd Bannister HOU 1 1 24 0.04 | 48 9 0 .188 .392 0| 8-9 143 4.04 1.444 112
Top player: George Foster. Foster had a year, with 52 HR and 149 RBI, that hadn't been seen in some years. He had by far the most impressive season.
#1 George Foster, #2 Mike Schmidt, #3 Dave Parker, #4 Reggie Smith, #5 Joe Morgan, #6 Ted Simmons.
Top pitcher: Rick Reuschel for a terrific year. He won 20, and was 2nd in ERA+ behind Candelaria, but Candy pitched for a much better team.
#1 Rick Reuschel, #2 Tom Seaver, #3 Bruce Sutter, #4 Steve Carlton, #5 Steve Rogers.
Top Rookie: with the benefit of hindsight, I'll choose Dawson.
Top manager: Tommy Lasorda was successful in his first year as skipper of the Dodgers.
24 October 2009
18 October 2009
1977 American League
New York's Yankees won their first World Series since 1962, and started a modern version of their dynasty. The Yanks first had to survive a dogfight in the East Division, besting Boston and Baltimore each by a mere 2.5 games in a race to the end. The Yankees won 100 games, the Red Sox and Orioles 97 each. The rest of the division was under .500, even with the presence of two expansions teams, as Toronto and Seattle entered the league. Detroit, Cleveland and Milwaukee were the also-rans, and Toronto brought up the rear in the East with 107 losses.
The West was won by Kansas City for the second straight year, as the Royals won 102 games. Texas was 2nd, eight back, while Chicago surged to 3rd after a disastrous season in 1976. Bill Veeck tried shorts, giveaways, and big hitters in their walk years to boost his team. It worked. Minnesota was 4th, California 5th, and Seattle edged Oakland, which looked like an expansion team after being riddled by free agency. Charlie Finley's high-handed tactics came back to haunt him.
Rod Carew led in average, on-base, OPS, and won the MVP as he hit .388, the highest average Ted Williams hit the same in 1957. No one had been higher since Williams' .406 in 1941. Second to Carew in average was teammate Lyman Bostock, all the way back at .336. Carew also led with 239 hits and 128 runs. He was even a surprising second in slugging. Jim Rice led in slugging, and in homers with 39, followed by Bobby Bonds and Graig Nettles at 37. Larry Hisle led in RBI with 119, followed closely by Bonds at 115 and Rice at 114. Hal McRae had 54 doubles and Carew 16 triples. Freddy Patek led in steals with 53, followed by Mitchell Page at 42.
Reliever Sparky Lyle won the Cy Young, while Frank Tanana led in ERA with a 2.54 mark, followed by Bert Blyleven at 2.72. Nolan Ryan led in strikeouts with 341; second was Dennis Leonard with 244. Dave Campbell led in saves with 31, followed by Lyle at 26 and Larrin LaGrow at 25. Dave Goltz, Dennis Leonard and Jim Palmer tied with 20 wins. Tanana had seven shutouts while Palmer and Ryan each had 22 complete games.
The Win Shares leaderboard looks like this:
Players: Rod Carew (Minnesota) 37, Ken Singleton (Baltimore) 36, Carlton Fisk (Boston) and Mitchell Page (Oakland) 30, George Brett (Kansas City) 29, Al Cowens (Kansas City), Lyman Bostock (Minnesota) and Reggie Jackson (New York) 27, Jim Rice (Boston) and Hal McRae (Kansas City) 26, Graig Nettles (New York), Mike Hargrove and Toby Harrah (Texas) 25, Al Bumbry (Baltimore), Carl Yastrzemski (Boston), Bobby Bonds (California) and Larry Hisle (Minnesota) 24, Chet Lemon (Chicago) and Ron LeFlore (Detroit) 23.
Pitchers: Jim Palmer (Baltimore) 29, Dennis Leonard (Kansas City) 24, Bill Campbell (Boston) 23, Nolan Ryan (California) and Dave Goltz (Minnesota) 22, Bert Blyleven (Texas) 21, Frank Tanana (California) and Sparky Lyle (New York) 20, Dennis Eckersley (Cleveland), Dave Rozema (Detroit) and Ron Guidry (New York) 18.
WARP3 leaders, players: Carew 9.4, Singleton 9.0, Brett and Page 8.5, Fisk 8.2, Jim Sundberg (who was not much of a hitter, but a marvelous defensive catcher) 7.8, Nettles 7.0, Hargrove 6.7, Bump Wills (Texas) and Willie Randolph (New York) 6.5, Harrah, Bostock, and Bert Campaneris (Texas) 6.3, Don Money (Milwaukee) 5.9, Hisle 5.8, Andre Thornton (Cleveland) 5.7, Bonds and Jackson 5.6, Rice, Lemon, and Thurman Munson (New York) 5.5.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Tanana 7.5, Ryan 6.9, Campbell and Palmer 6.5, Eckersley 6.0, Leonard 5.7, Rozema 5.6, Wayne Garland (Cleveland) 5.0, Jerry Garvin (Toronto) 4.9, Blyleven and Larrin LaGrow (Chicago) 4.7.
WAR from Fangraphs, position players: Carew 8.6, Fisk 7.7, Brett 7.2, Page 6.3, Hargrove 5.8, Harrah and Singleton 5.7, Nettles 5.5, Bostock, Cowens, and Lemon 5.2, Bonds, Rice, and Yastrzemski 5.1, Jackson and Money 5.0, Sundberg and Wills 4.8.
Pitchers: Leonard 8.7, Ryan 6.8, Goltz 6.7, Tanana 6.0, Guidry and Perry 5.8, Blyleven and Palmer 5.4, Eckersley 4.7, Blue 4.6, Splittorff 4.4, Flanagan 4.3, Garland 4.2, Lemanczyk 4.0.
The actual voting results:
MVP (at least 10 points only):
Finish Name Team First-place Votes Total points
1 Rod Carew MIN 12 273
2 Al Cowens KCR 4 217
3 Ken Singleton BAL 3 200
4 Jim Rice BOS 1 163
5 Graig Nettles NYY 2 112
6 Sparky Lyle NYY 1 79
7 Thurman Munson NYY 1 70
8 Carlton Fisk BOS 1 67
8 Reggie Jackson NYY 1 67
10 Bill Campbell BOS 0 65
11 Mickey Rivers NYY 0 59
12 Larry Hisle MIN 1 54
13 George Brett KCR 0 51
14 Richie Zisk CHW 0 34
15 Jim Sundberg TEX 0 30
16 Bobby Bonds CAL 0 28
17 Carl Yastrzemski BOS 1 25
18 Ron Guidry NYY 0 11
The voting was much like 2003, as a player from an also-ran team won a split decision when no one from the top team stood out. The Series champ Yankees had six players listed here, but none higher than 5th.
Cy Young:
Place Name Team First-place votes Points
1 Sparky Lyle NYY 9 56
2 Jim Palmer BAL 6 48
3 Nolan Ryan CAL 6 46
4 Dennis Leonard KCR 5 45
5 Bill Campbell BOS 1 25
6 Dave Goltz MIN 1 19
7 Ron Guidry NYY 0 5
8 Dave Rozema DET 0 4
9 Frank Tanana CAL 0 3
The voters assuaged their non-winner MVP guilt by going for Yankees reliever Lyle. Lyle wasn't even the best reliever in the league, although he had a good year.
Rookie:
Place Name Team First-place votes Points
1 Eddie Murray BAL 12 12
2 Mitchell Page OAK 9 9
3 Bump Wills TEX 4 4
4 Dave Rozema DET 2 2
Top player: Rod Carew, in his best year. Fisk and Singleton were also terrific, but Carew was the best. The .388 average lost its place in folklore when George Brett hit .390 three years later, but it was a terrific season for the Panamanian.
#1 Rod Carew, #2 Ken Singleton, #3 Carlton Fisk, #4 George Brett, #5 Mitchell Page, #6 Lyman Bostock.
Top pitcher: Dennis Leonard had a terrific year leading the Royals staff. It's a close race, but I'll go with him.
#1 Dennis Leonard, #2 Nolan Ryan, #3 Jim Palmer, #4 Frank Tanana, #5 Ron Guidry.
Top rookie: Mitchell Page had a great year, although Eddie Murray would have the Hall of Fame career.
Top manager: Credit Billy Martin here, managing a real team without a big star through a tough pennant race.
The West was won by Kansas City for the second straight year, as the Royals won 102 games. Texas was 2nd, eight back, while Chicago surged to 3rd after a disastrous season in 1976. Bill Veeck tried shorts, giveaways, and big hitters in their walk years to boost his team. It worked. Minnesota was 4th, California 5th, and Seattle edged Oakland, which looked like an expansion team after being riddled by free agency. Charlie Finley's high-handed tactics came back to haunt him.
Rod Carew led in average, on-base, OPS, and won the MVP as he hit .388, the highest average Ted Williams hit the same in 1957. No one had been higher since Williams' .406 in 1941. Second to Carew in average was teammate Lyman Bostock, all the way back at .336. Carew also led with 239 hits and 128 runs. He was even a surprising second in slugging. Jim Rice led in slugging, and in homers with 39, followed by Bobby Bonds and Graig Nettles at 37. Larry Hisle led in RBI with 119, followed closely by Bonds at 115 and Rice at 114. Hal McRae had 54 doubles and Carew 16 triples. Freddy Patek led in steals with 53, followed by Mitchell Page at 42.
Reliever Sparky Lyle won the Cy Young, while Frank Tanana led in ERA with a 2.54 mark, followed by Bert Blyleven at 2.72. Nolan Ryan led in strikeouts with 341; second was Dennis Leonard with 244. Dave Campbell led in saves with 31, followed by Lyle at 26 and Larrin LaGrow at 25. Dave Goltz, Dennis Leonard and Jim Palmer tied with 20 wins. Tanana had seven shutouts while Palmer and Ryan each had 22 complete games.
The Win Shares leaderboard looks like this:
Players: Rod Carew (Minnesota) 37, Ken Singleton (Baltimore) 36, Carlton Fisk (Boston) and Mitchell Page (Oakland) 30, George Brett (Kansas City) 29, Al Cowens (Kansas City), Lyman Bostock (Minnesota) and Reggie Jackson (New York) 27, Jim Rice (Boston) and Hal McRae (Kansas City) 26, Graig Nettles (New York), Mike Hargrove and Toby Harrah (Texas) 25, Al Bumbry (Baltimore), Carl Yastrzemski (Boston), Bobby Bonds (California) and Larry Hisle (Minnesota) 24, Chet Lemon (Chicago) and Ron LeFlore (Detroit) 23.
Pitchers: Jim Palmer (Baltimore) 29, Dennis Leonard (Kansas City) 24, Bill Campbell (Boston) 23, Nolan Ryan (California) and Dave Goltz (Minnesota) 22, Bert Blyleven (Texas) 21, Frank Tanana (California) and Sparky Lyle (New York) 20, Dennis Eckersley (Cleveland), Dave Rozema (Detroit) and Ron Guidry (New York) 18.
WARP3 leaders, players: Carew 9.4, Singleton 9.0, Brett and Page 8.5, Fisk 8.2, Jim Sundberg (who was not much of a hitter, but a marvelous defensive catcher) 7.8, Nettles 7.0, Hargrove 6.7, Bump Wills (Texas) and Willie Randolph (New York) 6.5, Harrah, Bostock, and Bert Campaneris (Texas) 6.3, Don Money (Milwaukee) 5.9, Hisle 5.8, Andre Thornton (Cleveland) 5.7, Bonds and Jackson 5.6, Rice, Lemon, and Thurman Munson (New York) 5.5.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Tanana 7.5, Ryan 6.9, Campbell and Palmer 6.5, Eckersley 6.0, Leonard 5.7, Rozema 5.6, Wayne Garland (Cleveland) 5.0, Jerry Garvin (Toronto) 4.9, Blyleven and Larrin LaGrow (Chicago) 4.7.
WAR from Fangraphs, position players: Carew 8.6, Fisk 7.7, Brett 7.2, Page 6.3, Hargrove 5.8, Harrah and Singleton 5.7, Nettles 5.5, Bostock, Cowens, and Lemon 5.2, Bonds, Rice, and Yastrzemski 5.1, Jackson and Money 5.0, Sundberg and Wills 4.8.
Pitchers: Leonard 8.7, Ryan 6.8, Goltz 6.7, Tanana 6.0, Guidry and Perry 5.8, Blyleven and Palmer 5.4, Eckersley 4.7, Blue 4.6, Splittorff 4.4, Flanagan 4.3, Garland 4.2, Lemanczyk 4.0.
The actual voting results:
MVP (at least 10 points only):
Finish Name Team First-place Votes Total points
1 Rod Carew MIN 12 273
2 Al Cowens KCR 4 217
3 Ken Singleton BAL 3 200
4 Jim Rice BOS 1 163
5 Graig Nettles NYY 2 112
6 Sparky Lyle NYY 1 79
7 Thurman Munson NYY 1 70
8 Carlton Fisk BOS 1 67
8 Reggie Jackson NYY 1 67
10 Bill Campbell BOS 0 65
11 Mickey Rivers NYY 0 59
12 Larry Hisle MIN 1 54
13 George Brett KCR 0 51
14 Richie Zisk CHW 0 34
15 Jim Sundberg TEX 0 30
16 Bobby Bonds CAL 0 28
17 Carl Yastrzemski BOS 1 25
18 Ron Guidry NYY 0 11
The voting was much like 2003, as a player from an also-ran team won a split decision when no one from the top team stood out. The Series champ Yankees had six players listed here, but none higher than 5th.
Cy Young:
Place Name Team First-place votes Points
1 Sparky Lyle NYY 9 56
2 Jim Palmer BAL 6 48
3 Nolan Ryan CAL 6 46
4 Dennis Leonard KCR 5 45
5 Bill Campbell BOS 1 25
6 Dave Goltz MIN 1 19
7 Ron Guidry NYY 0 5
8 Dave Rozema DET 0 4
9 Frank Tanana CAL 0 3
The voters assuaged their non-winner MVP guilt by going for Yankees reliever Lyle. Lyle wasn't even the best reliever in the league, although he had a good year.
Rookie:
Place Name Team First-place votes Points
1 Eddie Murray BAL 12 12
2 Mitchell Page OAK 9 9
3 Bump Wills TEX 4 4
4 Dave Rozema DET 2 2
Top player: Rod Carew, in his best year. Fisk and Singleton were also terrific, but Carew was the best. The .388 average lost its place in folklore when George Brett hit .390 three years later, but it was a terrific season for the Panamanian.
#1 Rod Carew, #2 Ken Singleton, #3 Carlton Fisk, #4 George Brett, #5 Mitchell Page, #6 Lyman Bostock.
Top pitcher: Dennis Leonard had a terrific year leading the Royals staff. It's a close race, but I'll go with him.
#1 Dennis Leonard, #2 Nolan Ryan, #3 Jim Palmer, #4 Frank Tanana, #5 Ron Guidry.
Top rookie: Mitchell Page had a great year, although Eddie Murray would have the Hall of Fame career.
Top manager: Credit Billy Martin here, managing a real team without a big star through a tough pennant race.
13 October 2009
1976 National League
Cincinnati repeated as World Series champs by going undefeated in the postseason, and Joe Morgan repeated as MVP. Philadelphia made the postseason for the first time since 1950, taking the East Division title. Neither division race was especially close. The Reds won 102 games and led the Dodgers by 10 at the end. The rest of the division was under .500, with Houston, San Francisco, San Diego, and Atlanta trailing behind. The Phillies beat out the Pirates by 9 games, 101 wins to 92, with New York 3rd at 86 wins. Chicago and St. Louis trailed, and Montreal lost 107 games.
Morgan led in OPS by a large margin, leading in both on-base and slugging. Bill Madlock won the batting title by three points over Ken Griffey (Senior) .339 to .336. Garry Maddox was third at .330. Mike Schmidt led in homers with 38 to Dave Kingman's 37, while George Foster led in RBI with 121 to Morgan's 111. Pete Rose scored 130 runs and had 215 hits and 42 doubles, and Davey Lopes led in steals with 63 to Morgan's 60.
Randy Jones led in wins with 22 and took the Cy Young Award. Don Sutton and Jerry Koosman won 21, while J.R. Richard and Steve Carlton won 20 apiece. John Denny led in ERA at 2.52 to Doug Rau's 2.57, Tom Seaver in strikeouts with 235, and Rawly Eastwick in saves with 26. Jones had 25 complete games.
Win Shares leaderboard:
Players; Joe Morgan (Cincinnati) 37, Mike Schmidt (Philadelphia) 35, Bob Watson (Houston) 31, Pete Rose (Cincinnati) and Cesar Cedeno (Houston) 30, Ron Cey (Los Angeles) 27, Garry Maddox (Philadelphia) and Steve Garvey (Los Angeles) 26, Bill Madlock (Chicago), George Foster and Ken Griffey (Cincinnati) and Dave Winfield (San Diego) 25, Richie Zisk (Pittsburgh) and Gary Mathews (San Francisco) 24, Rick Monday (Chicago), Dave Concepcion (Cincinnati), Greg Luzinski (Philadelphia), and Dave Parker (Pittsburgh) 23, Jose Cruz (Houston) and Al Oliver (Pittsburgh) 22.
Pitchers; Phil Niekro (Atlanta), Doug Rau (Los Angeles), Randy Jones (San Diego) and John Montefusco (San Francisco) 21 each, Charlie Hough and Don Sutton (Los Angeles), Jerry Koosman and Tom Seaver (New York) and Jim Barr (San Francisco) 20 each, Ray Burris and Rick Reuschel (Chicago) 19, Jon Matlack (New York), Steve Carlton (Philadelphia) and John Denny (St. Louis) 18.
WARP3 leaders, players: Morgan 11.3, Schmidt 11.2, Concepcion 9.4, Rose 8.8, Foster 8.5, Cedeno 7.1, Maddox 6.7, Bench and Griffey 6.6, Watson 6.3, Cesar Geronimo (Cincinnati) 6.2, Garvey 5.8, Zisk 5.7, Cey 5.6, Winfield 5.4, Oliver 5.3, Cruz 5.2.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Montefusco 8.3, Niekro 7.8, Barr, Burris, and Jones 7.1, Messersmith 6.9, Koosman and Reuschel 6.2, Seaver 6.1, Woodie Fryman (Montreal) 5.8, Dick Ruthven (Philadelphia) 5.6, Rau 5.4, Matlack 5.0, Hough 4.7.
WAR leaders from Fangraphs: Position players; Morgan 10.1, Schmidt 8.9, Rose 8.1, Cey and Foster 6.9, Maddox 6.8, Cedeno 5.9, Bench and Madlock 5.3, Concepcion, Garvey, Winfield, and Zisk 5.2, Griffey 4.7, Monday 4.4, Buckner and Simmons 4.3, Parker 4.2.
Pitchers: Seaver 6.9, Montefusco 6.0, Carlton and Reuschel 5.5, Rogers 5.4, Koosman 5.0, Niekro 4.7, Jones 4.6, Matlack 4.5, Barr 4.4, Ruthven 4.2, Halicki, Messersmith, and Zachry 4.0.
Award voting:
MVP (top 15);
Place Name Team 1st place Points
1 Joe Morgan CIN 19 311
2 George Foster CIN 5 221
3 Mike Schmidt PHI 0 179
4 Pete Rose CIN 0 131
5 Garry Maddox PHI 0 98
6 Steve Garvey LAD 0 51
6 Bill Madlock CHC 0 51
8 Ken Griffey Sr. CIN 0 49
8 Greg Luzinski PHI 0 49
10 Randy Jones SDP 0 48
11 Bob Watson HOU 0 38
12 Al Oliver PIT 0 30
13 Rawly Eastwick CIN 0 26
14 Jerry Koosman NYM 0 20
15 Steve Carlton PHI 0 16
Cy Young;
Place Name Team 1st Place Points
1 Randy Jones SDP 15 96
2 Jerry Koosman NYM 7 69
3 Don Sutton LAD 1 25
4 Steve Carlton PHI 0 11
5 Rawly Eastwick CIN 0 6
6 Jon Matlack NYM 1 5
7 J.R. Richard HOU 0 2
8 Tom Seaver NYM 0 1
Rookie;
Place Name Team Points
1 Butch Metzger SDP 11
1 Pat Zachry CIN 11
3 Hector Cruz STL 2
Top player: Joe Morgan. It's pretty clear that Morgan is again the best player in the league, and his team won 108 games besides. An easy pick. Schmidt is a clear 2nd.
#1 Joe Morgan, #2 Mike Schmidt, #3 Pete Rose, #4 Cesar Cedeno, #5 Garry Maddox, #6 George Foster.
Top pitcher: Randy Jones. In DIPS, Jones is lousy in Ks of course. But he does well in the other two categories as he walked very few and kept the ball in the park. He also was working with a lousy team behind him, save Winfield. Well, Johnny Grubb was OK.
#1 Randy Jones, #2 John Montefusco, #3 Steve Carlton, #4 Tom Seaver, #5 Jerry Koosman.
Top rookie: Pat Zachry. Call me a homer, but I'll go for the Reds' guy. It was a thin group.
Top manager: Danny Ozark, for finally getting the Phillies to the endgame.
Morgan led in OPS by a large margin, leading in both on-base and slugging. Bill Madlock won the batting title by three points over Ken Griffey (Senior) .339 to .336. Garry Maddox was third at .330. Mike Schmidt led in homers with 38 to Dave Kingman's 37, while George Foster led in RBI with 121 to Morgan's 111. Pete Rose scored 130 runs and had 215 hits and 42 doubles, and Davey Lopes led in steals with 63 to Morgan's 60.
Randy Jones led in wins with 22 and took the Cy Young Award. Don Sutton and Jerry Koosman won 21, while J.R. Richard and Steve Carlton won 20 apiece. John Denny led in ERA at 2.52 to Doug Rau's 2.57, Tom Seaver in strikeouts with 235, and Rawly Eastwick in saves with 26. Jones had 25 complete games.
Win Shares leaderboard:
Players; Joe Morgan (Cincinnati) 37, Mike Schmidt (Philadelphia) 35, Bob Watson (Houston) 31, Pete Rose (Cincinnati) and Cesar Cedeno (Houston) 30, Ron Cey (Los Angeles) 27, Garry Maddox (Philadelphia) and Steve Garvey (Los Angeles) 26, Bill Madlock (Chicago), George Foster and Ken Griffey (Cincinnati) and Dave Winfield (San Diego) 25, Richie Zisk (Pittsburgh) and Gary Mathews (San Francisco) 24, Rick Monday (Chicago), Dave Concepcion (Cincinnati), Greg Luzinski (Philadelphia), and Dave Parker (Pittsburgh) 23, Jose Cruz (Houston) and Al Oliver (Pittsburgh) 22.
Pitchers; Phil Niekro (Atlanta), Doug Rau (Los Angeles), Randy Jones (San Diego) and John Montefusco (San Francisco) 21 each, Charlie Hough and Don Sutton (Los Angeles), Jerry Koosman and Tom Seaver (New York) and Jim Barr (San Francisco) 20 each, Ray Burris and Rick Reuschel (Chicago) 19, Jon Matlack (New York), Steve Carlton (Philadelphia) and John Denny (St. Louis) 18.
WARP3 leaders, players: Morgan 11.3, Schmidt 11.2, Concepcion 9.4, Rose 8.8, Foster 8.5, Cedeno 7.1, Maddox 6.7, Bench and Griffey 6.6, Watson 6.3, Cesar Geronimo (Cincinnati) 6.2, Garvey 5.8, Zisk 5.7, Cey 5.6, Winfield 5.4, Oliver 5.3, Cruz 5.2.
WARP3 leaders, pitchers: Montefusco 8.3, Niekro 7.8, Barr, Burris, and Jones 7.1, Messersmith 6.9, Koosman and Reuschel 6.2, Seaver 6.1, Woodie Fryman (Montreal) 5.8, Dick Ruthven (Philadelphia) 5.6, Rau 5.4, Matlack 5.0, Hough 4.7.
WAR leaders from Fangraphs: Position players; Morgan 10.1, Schmidt 8.9, Rose 8.1, Cey and Foster 6.9, Maddox 6.8, Cedeno 5.9, Bench and Madlock 5.3, Concepcion, Garvey, Winfield, and Zisk 5.2, Griffey 4.7, Monday 4.4, Buckner and Simmons 4.3, Parker 4.2.
Pitchers: Seaver 6.9, Montefusco 6.0, Carlton and Reuschel 5.5, Rogers 5.4, Koosman 5.0, Niekro 4.7, Jones 4.6, Matlack 4.5, Barr 4.4, Ruthven 4.2, Halicki, Messersmith, and Zachry 4.0.
Award voting:
MVP (top 15);
Place Name Team 1st place Points
1 Joe Morgan CIN 19 311
2 George Foster CIN 5 221
3 Mike Schmidt PHI 0 179
4 Pete Rose CIN 0 131
5 Garry Maddox PHI 0 98
6 Steve Garvey LAD 0 51
6 Bill Madlock CHC 0 51
8 Ken Griffey Sr. CIN 0 49
8 Greg Luzinski PHI 0 49
10 Randy Jones SDP 0 48
11 Bob Watson HOU 0 38
12 Al Oliver PIT 0 30
13 Rawly Eastwick CIN 0 26
14 Jerry Koosman NYM 0 20
15 Steve Carlton PHI 0 16
Cy Young;
Place Name Team 1st Place Points
1 Randy Jones SDP 15 96
2 Jerry Koosman NYM 7 69
3 Don Sutton LAD 1 25
4 Steve Carlton PHI 0 11
5 Rawly Eastwick CIN 0 6
6 Jon Matlack NYM 1 5
7 J.R. Richard HOU 0 2
8 Tom Seaver NYM 0 1
Rookie;
Place Name Team Points
1 Butch Metzger SDP 11
1 Pat Zachry CIN 11
3 Hector Cruz STL 2
Top player: Joe Morgan. It's pretty clear that Morgan is again the best player in the league, and his team won 108 games besides. An easy pick. Schmidt is a clear 2nd.
#1 Joe Morgan, #2 Mike Schmidt, #3 Pete Rose, #4 Cesar Cedeno, #5 Garry Maddox, #6 George Foster.
Top pitcher: Randy Jones. In DIPS, Jones is lousy in Ks of course. But he does well in the other two categories as he walked very few and kept the ball in the park. He also was working with a lousy team behind him, save Winfield. Well, Johnny Grubb was OK.
#1 Randy Jones, #2 John Montefusco, #3 Steve Carlton, #4 Tom Seaver, #5 Jerry Koosman.
Top rookie: Pat Zachry. Call me a homer, but I'll go for the Reds' guy. It was a thin group.
Top manager: Danny Ozark, for finally getting the Phillies to the endgame.
03 October 2009
1976 American League
The Yankees won the pennant for the first time in 12 years, their longest drought since the dynasty began in 1921. The free agent era dawned, after an arbitrator ruled in the offseason that clubs could renew contracts for one season only, not in perpetuity. This led the A's stars to play out their option years en masse, and set off the preseason trade of Reggie Jackson and Ken Holtzman to Baltimore for Don Baylor and Mike Torrez. The Yankees then picked Holtzman up at midseason in a huge 10-player trade.
New York won 97 and outdistanced Baltimore by 10.5 games in the East, with Boston 3rd, Cleveland 4th, then Detroit and Milwaukee. The Royals broke the A's stranglehold in the West by a 2.5 game margin. Minnesota was 3rd, California and Texas tied for 4th. Chicago lost 97 games and were sold to Bill Veeck, his last team ownership. Veeck still made for an interesting story, and zany promotions.
George Brett won the batting title in a tight three-way race with Hal McRae and Rod Carew that ended in some controversy tinged with charges or racism, that Caucasian Brett was favored over his teammate, African-American McRae. Brett batted .333, McRae .332, and Carew .331 is an insanely tight race. McRae led the league in on-base and OPS. Jackson led in slugging, with Graig Nettles leading in homers with 32, and Lee May in RBI with 109 just ahead of Thurman Munson at 105. Roy White scored 104 runs, Amos Otis had 40 doubles, and Brett 14 triples. Bill North led in steals with 75. Jackson edged McRae in OPS+.
Jim Palmer led in wins with 22, one more than Luis Tiant, as Wayne Garland also won 20 and a big free agent payday. Rookie Mark (The Bird) Fidrych led in ERA by 0.01 over Vida Blue, 2.33 to 2.34. Nolan Ryan led in strikeouts with 327 and Sparky Lyle in saves with 23 to Dave LaRoche's 21. Fidrych led with 24 complete games, Ryan with 7 shutouts.
Win Shares leaderboard:
Players; George Brett (Kansas City) 33, Bobby Grich (Baltimore) 31, Rod Carew (Minnesota) 30, Graig Nettles (New York) 28, Ron LeFlore and Rusty Staub (Detroit), Hal McRae (Kansas City) and Mickey Rivers and Roy White (New York) 26 each, Reggie Jackson (Baltimore) and Amos Otis (Kansas City) 25, Ken Singleton (Baltimore), Rico Carty (Cleveland), Thurman Munson (New York), Sal Bando (Oakland), Mike Hargrove and Toby Harrah (Texas) 24, Mark Belanger (Baltimore) 23, Fred Lynn (Boston) and Gene Tenace (Oakland) 22.
Pitchers; Jim Palmer (Baltimore), Frank Tanana (California) and Mark Fidrych (Detroit) 27 each, Vida Blue (Oakland) 25, Luis Tiant (Boston) 22, Wayne Garland (Baltimore), Bert Blyleven (Minnesota/Texas) and Mike Torrez (Oakland) 20, Nolan Ryan (California), John Hiller (Detroit), Bill Campbell (Minnesota), Rollie Fingers (Oakland) and Gaylord Perry (Texas) 17.
WARP3 leaders, players: Brett 10.8, Nettles 9.7, Grich 8.1, White 7.8, McRae 7.0, Carew and Jackson 6.8, Munson and Phil Garner (Oakland) 6.7, Rivers 6.6, Carlton Fisk (Boston) 6.4, LeFlore 6.0, Carty 5.7, Otis and Willie Randolph (New York) 5.4, Lynn 5.3, Bando and Harrah 5.2, Tenace, Freddie Patek (Kansas City) and Mark Belanger (Baltimore) 5.1.
WARP 3 leaders, pitchers: Tanana 9.7, Fidrych 9.0, Palmer 8.1, Blue 7.1, Bill Travers (Milwaukee) 5.4, Tiant 5.2, Torrez 5.1, Perry 5.0, Blyleven and Gary Ross (California) 4.8, Hiller 4.6, Ryan 4.5, Garland 4.2, Ken Brett (Chicago) 4.0, Fingers 3.9.
WAR leaders from Fangraphs: position players; Nettles 8.4, Brett 7.2, Carew 6.6, Grich 6.0, Belanger 5.9, Rivers 5.7, Bando and White 5.4, Jackson 5.1, Munson and Randolph 4.8, McRae 4.7, Fisk 4.4, Chambliss, LeFlore, and Harrah 4.3, Campaneris 4.2, Lynn and Tenace 4.1.
Pitchers: Blue 7.4, Blyleven 7.1, Tanana 6.1, Perry 5.5, Ryan 5.4, Fidrych 5.1, Slaton and Tiant 4.7, Leonard 4.5, Eckersley and Jenkins 4.4, Fitzmorris 4.3, Hunter 4.1, Wise 3.9, Brett, Goltz, Palmer, and Roberts 3.7.
Award Voting:
MVP (top 20);
Place Name Team 1st Place Points
1 Thurman Munson NYY 18 304
2 George Brett KCR 2 217
3 Mickey Rivers NYY 1 179
4 Hal McRae KCR 0 99
5 Rod Carew MIN 1 71
5 Chris Chambliss NYY 0 71
7 Amos Otis KCR 1 58
8 Bill Campbell MIN 0 56
9 Lee May BAL 0 51
10 Jim Palmer BAL 0 47
11 Mark Fidrych DET 1 41
12 Joe Rudi OAK 0 35
13 Sal Bando OAK 0 31
14 Carl Yastrzemski BOS 0 26
15 Frank Tanana CAL 0 19
16 Reggie Jackson BAL 0 17
16 Graig Nettles NYY 0 17
18 Gene Tenace OAK 0 13
19 Rollie Fingers OAK 0 12
20 Vida Blue OAK 0 10
Cy Young (top 7);
Place Name Team 1st place Points
1 Jim Palmer BAL 19 108
2 Mark Fidrych DET 5 51
3 Frank Tanana CAL 0 18
4 Ed Figueroa NYY 0 12
5 Luis Tiant BOS 0 10
6 Vida Blue OAK 0 8
7 Bill Campbell MIN 0 7
Rookie:
Place Name Team Points
1 Mark Fidrych DET 22 22
2 Butch Wynegar MIN 2 2
Top player; George Brett, now the best player in the league. McRae was a better hitter, but Brett added good defense. Nettles, not Munson, was the top force on the Yankees.
#1 George Brett, #2 Graig Nettles, #3 Bobby Grich, #4 Rod Carew, #5 Hal McRae, #6 Thurman Munson.
Top pitcher; Mark Fidrych. A rookie for a bad team, The Bird was the biggest thing to hit baseball in years. Fans flocked to see the kooky kid, he was on TV all the time, and this before ESPN, and he was great! He may never have been destined for a Hall of Fame career, with a low strikeout rate, but he was amazing.
#1 Mark Fidrych, #2 Frank Tanana, #3 Jim Palmer, #4 Vida Blue, #5 Luis Tiant.
Top rookie: Mark Fidrych. He was not a good bet to last long with that K rate, but he was something to watch. And he was very good in 1976.
Top manager: Billy Martin got the Yankees their first win since 1964.
New York won 97 and outdistanced Baltimore by 10.5 games in the East, with Boston 3rd, Cleveland 4th, then Detroit and Milwaukee. The Royals broke the A's stranglehold in the West by a 2.5 game margin. Minnesota was 3rd, California and Texas tied for 4th. Chicago lost 97 games and were sold to Bill Veeck, his last team ownership. Veeck still made for an interesting story, and zany promotions.
George Brett won the batting title in a tight three-way race with Hal McRae and Rod Carew that ended in some controversy tinged with charges or racism, that Caucasian Brett was favored over his teammate, African-American McRae. Brett batted .333, McRae .332, and Carew .331 is an insanely tight race. McRae led the league in on-base and OPS. Jackson led in slugging, with Graig Nettles leading in homers with 32, and Lee May in RBI with 109 just ahead of Thurman Munson at 105. Roy White scored 104 runs, Amos Otis had 40 doubles, and Brett 14 triples. Bill North led in steals with 75. Jackson edged McRae in OPS+.
Jim Palmer led in wins with 22, one more than Luis Tiant, as Wayne Garland also won 20 and a big free agent payday. Rookie Mark (The Bird) Fidrych led in ERA by 0.01 over Vida Blue, 2.33 to 2.34. Nolan Ryan led in strikeouts with 327 and Sparky Lyle in saves with 23 to Dave LaRoche's 21. Fidrych led with 24 complete games, Ryan with 7 shutouts.
Win Shares leaderboard:
Players; George Brett (Kansas City) 33, Bobby Grich (Baltimore) 31, Rod Carew (Minnesota) 30, Graig Nettles (New York) 28, Ron LeFlore and Rusty Staub (Detroit), Hal McRae (Kansas City) and Mickey Rivers and Roy White (New York) 26 each, Reggie Jackson (Baltimore) and Amos Otis (Kansas City) 25, Ken Singleton (Baltimore), Rico Carty (Cleveland), Thurman Munson (New York), Sal Bando (Oakland), Mike Hargrove and Toby Harrah (Texas) 24, Mark Belanger (Baltimore) 23, Fred Lynn (Boston) and Gene Tenace (Oakland) 22.
Pitchers; Jim Palmer (Baltimore), Frank Tanana (California) and Mark Fidrych (Detroit) 27 each, Vida Blue (Oakland) 25, Luis Tiant (Boston) 22, Wayne Garland (Baltimore), Bert Blyleven (Minnesota/Texas) and Mike Torrez (Oakland) 20, Nolan Ryan (California), John Hiller (Detroit), Bill Campbell (Minnesota), Rollie Fingers (Oakland) and Gaylord Perry (Texas) 17.
WARP3 leaders, players: Brett 10.8, Nettles 9.7, Grich 8.1, White 7.8, McRae 7.0, Carew and Jackson 6.8, Munson and Phil Garner (Oakland) 6.7, Rivers 6.6, Carlton Fisk (Boston) 6.4, LeFlore 6.0, Carty 5.7, Otis and Willie Randolph (New York) 5.4, Lynn 5.3, Bando and Harrah 5.2, Tenace, Freddie Patek (Kansas City) and Mark Belanger (Baltimore) 5.1.
WARP 3 leaders, pitchers: Tanana 9.7, Fidrych 9.0, Palmer 8.1, Blue 7.1, Bill Travers (Milwaukee) 5.4, Tiant 5.2, Torrez 5.1, Perry 5.0, Blyleven and Gary Ross (California) 4.8, Hiller 4.6, Ryan 4.5, Garland 4.2, Ken Brett (Chicago) 4.0, Fingers 3.9.
WAR leaders from Fangraphs: position players; Nettles 8.4, Brett 7.2, Carew 6.6, Grich 6.0, Belanger 5.9, Rivers 5.7, Bando and White 5.4, Jackson 5.1, Munson and Randolph 4.8, McRae 4.7, Fisk 4.4, Chambliss, LeFlore, and Harrah 4.3, Campaneris 4.2, Lynn and Tenace 4.1.
Pitchers: Blue 7.4, Blyleven 7.1, Tanana 6.1, Perry 5.5, Ryan 5.4, Fidrych 5.1, Slaton and Tiant 4.7, Leonard 4.5, Eckersley and Jenkins 4.4, Fitzmorris 4.3, Hunter 4.1, Wise 3.9, Brett, Goltz, Palmer, and Roberts 3.7.
Award Voting:
MVP (top 20);
Place Name Team 1st Place Points
1 Thurman Munson NYY 18 304
2 George Brett KCR 2 217
3 Mickey Rivers NYY 1 179
4 Hal McRae KCR 0 99
5 Rod Carew MIN 1 71
5 Chris Chambliss NYY 0 71
7 Amos Otis KCR 1 58
8 Bill Campbell MIN 0 56
9 Lee May BAL 0 51
10 Jim Palmer BAL 0 47
11 Mark Fidrych DET 1 41
12 Joe Rudi OAK 0 35
13 Sal Bando OAK 0 31
14 Carl Yastrzemski BOS 0 26
15 Frank Tanana CAL 0 19
16 Reggie Jackson BAL 0 17
16 Graig Nettles NYY 0 17
18 Gene Tenace OAK 0 13
19 Rollie Fingers OAK 0 12
20 Vida Blue OAK 0 10
Cy Young (top 7);
Place Name Team 1st place Points
1 Jim Palmer BAL 19 108
2 Mark Fidrych DET 5 51
3 Frank Tanana CAL 0 18
4 Ed Figueroa NYY 0 12
5 Luis Tiant BOS 0 10
6 Vida Blue OAK 0 8
7 Bill Campbell MIN 0 7
Rookie:
Place Name Team Points
1 Mark Fidrych DET 22 22
2 Butch Wynegar MIN 2 2
Top player; George Brett, now the best player in the league. McRae was a better hitter, but Brett added good defense. Nettles, not Munson, was the top force on the Yankees.
#1 George Brett, #2 Graig Nettles, #3 Bobby Grich, #4 Rod Carew, #5 Hal McRae, #6 Thurman Munson.
Top pitcher; Mark Fidrych. A rookie for a bad team, The Bird was the biggest thing to hit baseball in years. Fans flocked to see the kooky kid, he was on TV all the time, and this before ESPN, and he was great! He may never have been destined for a Hall of Fame career, with a low strikeout rate, but he was amazing.
#1 Mark Fidrych, #2 Frank Tanana, #3 Jim Palmer, #4 Vida Blue, #5 Luis Tiant.
Top rookie: Mark Fidrych. He was not a good bet to last long with that K rate, but he was something to watch. And he was very good in 1976.
Top manager: Billy Martin got the Yankees their first win since 1964.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)