Satchel Paige's No-No vs 1942 Cards (Vault #1)

From the BoS Blog Vault - Originally Posted on May 10th, 2013: This post was from the early days of the Crazy 48's League in which Satchel Paige pitched a no-hitter against the 1942 St. Louis Cardinals. The Crazy 48's was the first project that got the Blog rolling, in which it would lead to me connecting with other APBA fans.


I took the last week off, the wife an I had a lot of important things to take care of, and I didn't want to get invested in APBA -- when I needed to have 100% focus elsewhere. Now that everything has been taken care of, I finished the last five games (of this batch of 24 games) during the night.

I forgot to mention it on the APBA Baseball Group, the other night, but it was mentioned on my Boys of Summer Facebook Page. On April 28th, Satchel Paige of the 1935 Crawfords no-hits the 1942 St.Louis Cardinals.

PAIGE NO-HITS MUSIAL & the 42' CARDINALS!

Satchel Paige of the 1935 Crawfords delivers the second no-hitter of the season. A few games ago, "Seattle Bill" James of the Boston Braves delivered the league's first-ever no-hitter. This is also now back-to-back record performances for Paige as well, after setting the strikeouts (single-game) record with 10 strikeouts, he now has delivered the league's second no-no. The amazing thing is that the 42' Cardinals have Hall of Fame outfielders Enos Slaughter & Stan Musial, plus Whitey Kurowski, Walker Cooper & Terry Moore.

                              R   H   E
1942 Cardinals     0    0    0
1935 Crawfords   4     6    2    F

St. Louis (3-2) / Pittsburgh (4-1)

WP- S.Paige (2-0)/ CG (2)/ SHO (1)
LP- M.Cooper (0-1)

The Remainder of Game #5's ("Crazy 48's)

                              R   H   E
1986 Mets            4    6    3
2007 Red Sox       6   11   0    F

New York (0-5) / Boston (2-3)

WP- Buchholz (1-0)
LP- R.Anderson (0-1)
SV- Papelbon (1)

INJURIES: Pedroia (BOS) - 6 Games.

Wally Backman (.412 AVG) collected 2 hits for the Mets, but seems to be the only one able do anything with the bat -- as the Mets remain winless. The Red Sox snap their 3-game skid, as David Ortiz went 3-for-4, with 2 doubles & 2 RBI's.

                            R   H   E
1975 Reds          4     7    0
1999 Rangers     2     3    1     F

Cincinnati (2-3) / Texas (3-2)

WP- Nolan (2-0)
LP- Helling (0-1)
SV- McEnaney (2)

Cesar Geronimo led the charge with a 2-for-3 performance, featuring his first HR of the season; lifting his batting average to .313. The Rangers' Todd Zeile became the fourth Ranger with at least 2 HR's for the season (hitting both solo shots in this game).

                           R   H   E
1998 Yankees    1    8    2
1976 Dodgers    3    4    1   F

New York (4-1) / Los Angeles (3-2)

WP- E.Sosa (1-0)
LP- Mendoza (0-1)
SV- Hough (3)

Davey Lopes comes into the ballgame in the bottom of the eighth (pinch-hitting for Sizemore) and hits a solo HR off of reliever Ramiro Mendoza; later in the inning, Reggie Smith would hit the go-ahead 2-run HR (his 2nd) that would seal the deal.

Maddux was in charge for Atlanta.

                        R   H   E
1998 Braves   4     9    1
1971 Giants    0     2    0     F

Atlanta (4-1) / San Francisco (3-2)

WP- Maddux (1-1)/ CG (1)/ SHO (1)
LP- G.Perry (0-1)

Greg Maddux's bid for a no-hitter was broken up in the bottom of the 7th by Bobby Bonds. Chipper Jones tied the record for 3 steals in a single ballgame.

                         R   H   E
1995 Indians   12  14   3
1980 Royals     5    5    0    F

Cleveland (1-4) / Kansas City (3-2)

WP- J.Tavarez (1-0)
LP- Quisenberry (0-1)

The Indians looked as if they were heading to a 0-5 start, after trailing 5-1, entering the top of the 7th. The Royals' suffered an injury to starting pitcher Dennis Leonard who was looking pretty good, his start next series will be bumped a game -- but the Royals bullpen imploded, especially Dan Quisenberry, who didn't look like himself, by walking 4 batters & allowing 4 hits & 5 runs in one inning of relief. Julian Tavarez earned the victory for the Tribe with 2 solid innings of relief.

                           R   H   E
1931 Athletics   3    6    1
1937 Giants      10  12   1    F

Philadelphia (3-2) / New York (3-2)

WP- Hubbell (1-1)
LP- Grove (0-2)

Lefty Grove got knocked out early again, as his record falls to 0-2 with a 5.73 ERA in two starts -- he has also allowed 9 hits & 5 walks in eleven innings of work, while striking out six. Mel Ott went 2-for-3, 2-run HR & 2 BB's.

                          R   H   E
1904 Giants      10  16   4
1971 Athletics   5     6   0    F

New York (3-2) / Oakland (1-4)

WP- McGinnity (2-0)
LP- Blue (0-2)

Vida Blue got rocked again, he has now allowed 12 ER's (9.82 ERA) & 6 walks in 11 innings of work. Billy Gilbert & Dan McGann each had 4 RBI for the Giants.

                         R   H   E
1968 Tigers     3     6    1
1981 Expos     2     5    1     F

Detroit (3-2) / Montreal (3-2)

WP-McLain (1-0)
LP- Gullickson (1-1)
SV- D.Patterson (1)

Bill Freehan hit HR #4 of the season, a 2-run HR at the top of the 6th off of Bill Gullickson that would be the difference-maker. Willie Horton added HR #3. Montreal's Tim Raines swiped his 7th bag.

George Caster (Browns)

                          R   H   E
1927 Yankees   0    4    0
1944 Browns     1    2    0    F

New York (1-4) / St. Louis (2-3)

WP- J.Kramer (1-0)
LP- Hoyt (0-1)
SV- Caster (1)

During the first round of the APBA Tournament of Champions, the Yankees swept these same Browns, 3-0 -- this time, the Browns turned the tables, as Milt Brynes' solo HR was the difference. The Yankees' team ERA is 6.80 after five games.

                            R   H   E
1971 Pirates       1     4    0
1985 Blue Jays  2     6    0    F

Pittsburgh (1-4) / Toronto (3-2)

WP- Stieb (1-0)
LP- Blass (1-1)
SV- Lamp (1)

The Blue Jays like to play close games, they are now 3-2 with a score differential of 1 run. George Bell's 2-run blast in the bottom of the fourth was the decisive factor.

                        R   H   E
1984 Tigers     8    8    1
1998 Padres    1    6    1    F

Detroit (5-0) / San Diego (2-3)

WP- J.Morris (2-0)
LP- K.Brown (0-2)

Kevin Brown & the Padres were in countrol, up 1-0, with 2 outs on the Tigers during the top of the 6th -- with Barbaro Garbey on first, Lance Parrish knocked in a 2-run HR to take the lead in which they never looked back. Tigers would score 6 runs in the top of the 8th as well, including a 2-run triple by Howard Johnson (who leads the Tigers with 7 RBI's). Greg Vaughn hit HR #4 of the season.

Medwick delivers clutch single against Yanks.

                           R   H   E
1937 Yankees    2    3    0
1934 Cardinals   3    8    1    F

New York (1-4) / St. Louis (3-2)

WP- Haines (1-0)
LP- I.Andrews (0-1)

Frankie Frisch tied the game with a RBI triple off of reliever Ivy Andrews, in which Joe Medwick followed that up with the go-ahead RBI single. Myril Hoag had 2 of the Yankees' three hits (including a 2-run double).

                         R   H   E
1977 Phillies    6    7    0
1993 Giants     1    2    2    F

Philadelphia (4-1) / San Francisco (3-2)

WP- Garber (1-0)
LP- Mi.Jackson (0-1)

INJURIES: Ro.Thompson (SF) - 5 Games.

Tim McCarver put the game further out of reach with his pinch-hit Grand Slam off of Mike Jackson, during the top of the ninth.

                          R   H   E
2002 Athletics   1    3    2
1983 Orioles     3    6    1     F

Oakland (1-4) / Baltimore (2-3)

WP- McGregor (1-1)
LP- Zito (0-2)
SV- Tp.Martinez (2)

INJURIES: T.Cruz (BAL) - 1 Game

Replacing the injured Todd Cruz, Gary Roenicke hit the deciding 2-run HR in the bottom of the fifth. Scott McGregor was spectacular, allowing only 2 hits & a ER in 8 innings (4 strikeouts).

Brown (Cubs) sets 'K' mark with 11.

                      R   H   E
1906 Cubs     9   12   0
1969 Mets    1     3    1     F

Chicago (4-1) / New York (2-3)

WP- Mo.Brown (2-0) / CG (2)
LP- Seaver (1-1)

Mordecai Brown breaks the single-game strikeout record held by Satchel Paige & Denny McLain, with the new mark of 11 strikeouts, as the Mets were no match for the Cubs. Chance & Steinfeldt each had 4 hits, while Steinfeldt also had 4 RBI.

                              R   H   E
1917 White Sox    3    7    1
1953 Dodgers       4    5    0     F

Chicago (1-4) / Brooklyn (2-3)

WP- Erskine (2-0)
LP- Cicotte (0-2)
SV- J.Hughes (1)

Carl Erskine pitched another good outing, as the bullpen also contributed by holding off the White Sox. Billy Cox smacked in a 2-run pinch-hit double, as the Dodgers score 3 in the bottom of the fifth. Chick Gandil had 2 RBI's for Chicago.

                             R   H   E
2001 Mariners     3   12   1
1962 Dodgers       2    8    2     F / 11 Inn

Seattle (3-2) / Los Angeles (1-4)

WP- R.Franklin (2-0)
LP- Roebuck (0-2)
SV- Sasaki (3)

Ichiro smacked in Carlos Guillen with a single, for the go-ahead run at the top of the 11th, as Kasahiro Sasaki comes in for his third save. The Mariners' bullpen has been phenomenal, allowing no runs in 21 innings of work.

                             R   H   E
1954 Indians        11  13  0
1925 Senators       1    6   1    F

Cleveland (2-3) / Washington (2-3)

WP- Lemon (1-1)
LP- Coveleski (0-2)

The Indians would go on and score 7 runs in the third off of Stan Coveleski, including a 3-run triple by Vic Wertz & RBI double by Indians' starting pitcher Bob Lemon. Bobby Avila hit his 2nd HR of the season.

                            R   H   E
1969 Orioles       5    8    0
1993 Phillies       3    5    2    F

Baltimore (3-2) / Philadelphia (1-4)

WP- Cuellar (1-1)
LP- Schilling (0-1)
SV- D.Hall (1)

Don Buford of the Orioles fell a triple short of the cycle, going 3-for-5, 2 RBI's, while scoring twice. Frank Robinson hit HR #2, while the Phillies' Lenny Dykstra smacked in his first of the season (2-run HR).

Back-to-Back complete games for Root.

                            R   H   E
1946 Red Sox     1    5    1
1929 Cubs           5   12   1    F

Boston (1-4) / Chicago (4-1)

WP- Root (2-0)/ CG (2)
LP- Ferriss (0-2)

After allowing a RBI double (to Dom DiMaggio) with no outs in the first, Charlie Root of the Cubs settled down and shut down the Red Sox with a complete game, allowing only 5 hits -- He also contributed to his cause with a 2-run HR in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Cubs' Rogers Hornsby went 4-for-5, 2 doubles, RBI & 2 runs. 

                          R   H   E
1912 Giants      3    4    1
1940 Reds        4    7    0     F

New York (3-2) / Cincinnati (2-3)

WP- Vander Meer (1-0)
LP- Wiltse (1-1)
SV- Beggs (1)

The Giants appeared to have this game under control, until Hooks Wiltse blown the good game that Christy Mathewson got started, allowing a 3-run HR to Frank McCormick -- The inning started with an error by Fred Snodgrass. Joe Beggs came into the game to get his first save in his first appearance of the season.

                          R   H   E
1912 Red Sox   0    5    0
1960 Pirates      5    8    1     F

Boston (3-2) / Pittsburgh (4-1)

WP- Friend (2-0)
LP- J.Wood (0-2)

Pirates snap the Red Sox' three-game winning streak, as Bob Friend pitched 7 scoreless innings, allowing only one walk & 4 hits. "Smokey" Joe Wood has yet to pitch to his potential, allowing 16 hits & 5 walks in 10 innings of work this season, with a 12.60 ERA.

                         R   H   E
1953 Yankees  0    3    0
1914 Braves     1    5    0    F

New York (2-3) / Boston (4-1)

WP- D.Rudolph (2-0)/ CG (1)/ SHO (1)
LP- W.Ford (0-2)

Dick Rudolph's excellent pitching (3 hits allowed) & Butch Schmidt's RBI single in the first inning was the difference in this one.


*** This concludes this week's BoS Blog Vault post. A few last words, I believe the "important things" that the wife and I had to take care, was us finalizing our bankruptcy, I can't believe that has already been 5 years ago. ***

3rd No-No of Crazy 48's Season (plus other highlights)

Carlton's No-No: League's 3rd  no-no this season.

Lefty Leads Off Series with a Bang

The 1977 Philadelphia Phillies, 2nd Place in the Ripken (Stripes III) Division, with a 15-13 record (trailing 1st Place - 1984 Detroit Tigers, 18-12) find themselves at Baltimore Memorial Stadium to play their division rival 1983 Baltimore Orioles (5th Place, 10-18), who are in the middle of a four game losing skid.

The pitching match-up was the Phillies' Steve Carlton against the Orioles' Scott McGregor; "Lefty" entered the game with a 4-2 record, 2.70 ERA with 35 K's & 21 walks allowed in 53.1 innings for Philadelphia... while McGregor sports a 1-4 record, 4.73 ERA, with more walks (15) than strikeouts (12) in 40 innings of work for the O's.

Both starting pitchers would not allow a hit through the first 3 innings, McGregor was more flawless in the first three than Carlton, by not allowing a single baserunner, while Carlton allowed three walks already.

A few times, the Phillies stranded solid baserunners in the 6th (runners on the corners), while Mike Schmidt with bases loaded in the 8th, could not deliver.

McGregor allowed his 1st hit to the leadoff hitter Bake McBride in the 4th Inning, but kept pitching solid, as the Phillies could not give Carlton any run support.

It became apparent by the 6th & 7th Inning that Steve Carlton was in solid shape to continue his no-hitter. The problem is Scott McGregor now advanced from a Grade B-Z to a Grade A-Z due to the fact that the Phillies were still scoreless as well, the game would go to extras.

Top of the 10th, with bases loaded, Mike Schmidt (this time) delivers with a long fly to left, in which Larry Bowa tagged up & scored...

It would be all that Carlton needed as he got Jim Nolan, Lenn Sakata & John Shelby to fly-out the side, to complete the no-hitter.

It is the 3rd No-Hitter in this project (Crazy 48's League), but the first in this league, in years, which started in early 2013, in which the league witnessed no-hitters in the first couple weeks of the league running.

(Click on either below)

• 35' Crawfords' Satchel Paige's No-Hitter vs. 1942 St.Louis Cardinals

• 1914 Braves' "Seattle Bill" James' No-No vs 1971 Athletics.

The game was Carlton's 4th complete game of the season & 3rd shutout in 8 starts, as he improves to 5-2 with a 2.27 ERA; He did allow 6 walks, with only 3 K's in the no-hitter though.

McGregor pitched 8 K's, allowing 8 hits & only one run through 10 innings.


Joltin' Joe Collins?!

The 1953 New York Yankees would go on to take their series with the 1971 Oakland Athletics, 3-1; They took the last 3 games, after their bullpen blown Game 1.

First baseman Joe Collins went 4-for-10 in the first 3 games, with 2 HR, 2 doubles & 8 RBI, drawing 2 walks, with 3 runs. The 53' Yankees' two RBI leaders are Collins with 32 & Billy Martin's 29 ribbies -- which is unusual considering the team is led by Mickey Mantle & Yogi Berra.

You may remember Joe Collins' early heroics in the Crazy 48's with this article... Wild One in Washington.

After a semi-sluggish season start, the 53' Yankees trail their 1953 World Series counterparts, the 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers, by one game, for 1st place; Dodgers are 20-10, while the Yankees are 20-12 in the Jackie Robinson (Stripes II) Division.

The Brooklyn Dodgers may be the hottest team in the entire Crazy 48's as they are current riding a hot 9-game winning streak, with a league-best scoring differential of 73 runs! This hot streak was also due to Duke Snider's bat waking up (after a slow start) & now has 9 HR & 33 RBI, while batting .315, with a .573 Slugging percentage & .394 On-Base Percentage (.967 OPS).

The rest of the Robinson Division is a pitiful group for the most part...

• 1969 New York Mets (14-16)
• 1954 Cleveland Indians (11-19)
• 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates (10-20)
• 1971 Oakland Athletics (10-22)

The 1969 New York Mets, recently have won 5 straight, and have shown life as of late, but have a tough road ahead of them if they want to capture those last few wild card slots, with only 18 games remaining in the season. The team that currently owns the last playoff spot on the Stripes side of the spectrum are the 1917 Chicago White Sox (of the Mathewson Division / Stripes I) at 18-12. 

We'll see if these Mets have an amazin' run left in them.

Fun with Side Projects

Hairston: One-Man Wrecking Machine.

Some of the action that transpired through my APBA projects this past weekend...

APBA 2K9 Project

For my blog followers, as you all know, my APBA 2K9 Project is the best cards of the players from each franchise between the 2009 & 2011 MLB Seasons; I thought about calling it the APBA 2K9-11 Project, but I didn't want people to read into 9-11 too much.

Scott Hairston has been gaining more & more playing time for the San Diego Padres, with players like Chris Denorfia & Will Venable struggling. The Pods also made him their new lead-off man entering their series with the tough Philadelphia Phillies, since their original lead-off man Everth Cabrera has struggled in that role.



That decision proved to be an excellent move, he went 2-for-4 in the 2nd game with a double; It was during the 3rd game that Hairston has officially made him a everyday starter...

Top of the 3rd, he added to the Padres lead with a RBI double... then in the 5th, he smacked a two-run homer off of Phillies starter J.A. Happ. During the top of the 7th, he led off the inning with a triple off of Chan Ho Park -- which led to a 3-run inning, giving the Padres a 7-3 lead at Citizens Bank Ballpark. It would be during the 8th inning that Scott Hairston would make a little history, smacking a single off of reliever Clay Condrey....

Scott Hairston hit for the CYCLE!

I have done this maybe 4-5 times tops, the last one came from Josh Gibson (for the 1935 Pittsburgh Crawfords) against the 1942 St. Louis Cardinals in my Crazy 48's Project. I have had more no-hitters in my APBA life than cycles, I have rolled close to 20 now, but of course, I do nothing but tons of solitaire projects... so of course, eventually a no-no will pop up; I have never thrown a no-no against an actual human opponent in the dice world, one on one... but back in high school one of my buddies did do it (against me) with Jim Abbott in our inaugural 1991 Season APBA league of 10 teams.

APBA Royalty: Cone put together back-to-back historic performances, back in the day.

In my brother Jared's APBA league, I did something amazing with David Cone, I pitched a no-hitter with Cone as a Royal... his next start, he went to extras & threw for 25 K's! We did a lot of unrealistic things in that league, like starting J-4 Francisco Cabrera, which he hit 27 HR's in 35 games, while my Braves started off 31-4 & Greg Maddux won every start through that point, with a ERA barely over 1.00... LOL! I definitely play with a more realistic approach to the projects now.

Anyways, back to the 2K9 Project....

I also played a double-header between the New York Yankees & Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays were in first entering this thing, but the Yankees would go ahead in both games during the 9th innings, as the Jays' pen keeps imploding -- this time (both games) with Jason Frasor (A-XYZ), giving up 6 earned runs (3 HRs) in 2 innings of work! The last one, being a three-run blast by Alex Rodriguez. These Yankees are loaded with power, for example Hideki Matsui (.879 OPS in 2009) has been hitting 7th in this lineup; The team currently has 15 home runs in 7 games, with 5 players with 2+ HRs each (A-Rod leads way with 3 HR) -- Nick Swisher bats 9th & has 2 HR & 8 RBI, while he is currently batting .364 (8-for-22)!

2K9 Beasts: The New York Yankees will be tough to beat, all year!

Back to the Padres-Phillies series -- Adrian Gonzalez (SD) hit his 4th & 5th HR, while he has 11 RBI for the season... Pedro Feliz (Phillies) went 5-for-7, 2 HR, 2B, SF & 7 RBI in his last 2 games, while filling in for injured Placido Polanco.

Crazy 48's Project - "Battle by the Bay"

The 1993 San Francisco Giants (11-17) & the 2002 Oakland Athletics (9-19) are at the bottom of the Jeter (Stripes IV) Division in the Stripes League; San Francisco all year long has been a streaky bunch plagued with injuries to players & currently hold a 7-game losing streak, while Oakland just has a hard time scoring runs.

The Crazy 48's League has 48 teams playing a 48-game season, with 4 divisions in each league, while the top seeded 8 teams (all division winners automatically clinch playoffs) in each league, go on to the playoffs. The remainder of the schedule will be down to division match-ups, so some of these division bottom-dwellers can start making up some ground now, with little room for mistakes.

Zito was in command for awhile until the wheels came off.

A day after I rolled a cycle with Hairston in the other project, Barry Zito for the "Moneyball" Athletics was pitching a no-no through 7 innings, although he did allow 4 walks in those inning, while Oakland had a 2-0 lead off of a two-run 2nd Inning double by Terrance Long. The wheels ended up coming off in the 8th inning as the Giants' #8 hitter Darren Lewis led the inning off with a double, followed by an RBI double by weak-hitting 2B (filling in for injured Robby Thompson); Royce Clayton, the 3rd hitter of the inning, smacked a RBI single to right, to tie the game, as Willie McGee collected a single. 4 consecutive hits off of Zito, after none allowed the 1st 7 innings, and he has yet to collect an out. The Giants would add a sac fly by Matt Williams, to give the Giants a 3-2 lead.... Todd Benzinger would hit a 9th Inning insurance HR during the top of the 9th, to help the Giants to an eventual victory.

For Benzinger (filling in for an injured Will Clark), it was actually his 1st HR in the season (29th game of season), which is pretty late considered the pop he has on his 1993 APBA card.

Injuries was the early focus in this series, as the series started off with Will Clark & Robby Thompson on the disabled list for the first two games in Oakland... while the Oakland Athletics were without Eric Chavez for the first 2 games as well.

With their Game 1 victory, the Giants snapped a 7-game losing streak, that seems to be the theme with this Giants team, untimely injuries & quite streaky. They started the season 3-0, then lost 6 straight, then won 6 straight & now they just got over a 7-game skid; These Giants have the potential to be one of the toughest teams, and then other days they just don't show up.

San Francisco would win Game 2, led again by the worst two bats in their lineup in Darren Lewis (2-for-4, 2 runs & SB) & Mike Benjamin (2-for-4, two-run double), as the Giants win 5-3.

Beck, one of the more solid closers in his day.

The series shifted across the bay to Candlestick Park, as Eric Chavez hits a home run in his very first at-bat from injury, for his 5th HR of the season, he is tied with Miguel Tejada for the team lead in RBI with 19 RBI. That would be all the highlights for Oakland though, as they lose 2-1, as the Giants once again score their runs late (7th & 8th innings) to steal another away from Oakland.

Oakland would be shutout in the last game, as Jim Deshaies pitched 7.1 innings of shutout ball, the Giants fared no better (with only 3 hits), as the Giants win 1-0; Rod Beck entered the series with only 4 saves for the season & would double his amount to 8, as he was called upon the entire series sweep of their bay rivals. Bill Swift logged the series opener victory in his start, and during his one inning of relief in Game 3, he logged another victory; Swift is 6-1 with a 2.74 ERA for the season.

The 2002 Athletics now have the worst record among all 48 teams of the Crazy 48's, with a 9-23 (.281 pct) record; The 1962 Los Angeles Dodgers (8-20/.286 pct) have a slightly better record. The Giants, meanwhile, are now 15-17 with some slight postseason hope, but are still a few games from the edge of the playoff bubble that is being controlled by teams that are consistently better, such as the 1953 New York Yankees (17-11) -- who still need to play their current series against the 1971 Oakland Athletics.

Philadelphia Teams Phail at Momentum

Crazy 48's Season Update

Two of the Three Crazy 48's Philadelphia franchises played this past week in key series, granted that the last few series for most playoff contenders will be key series. The 1931 Philadelphia Athletics are unfortunately not in playoff contention (at the moment) entering Game #29, but they are playing their 1st place division foes in the 1935 Pittsburgh Crawfords -- but any time a team needs to make serious ground, beating up on the 1st place team to better their chances, is definitely a place to start.

Meanwhile, the 1993 Philadelphia Phillies find themselves also facing an elite team in the 2001 Seattle Mariners. Some APBA elitists may scoff at myself labeling the 2001 M's an elite team, but they definitely are, this team fields an APBA grade 45 / fielding 1 easily! Plus an all Grade B rotation to go with a stellar bullpen (one of the absolute best bullpens ever in all of APBA) & a dangerous lineup.

The 1993 Philadelphia Phillies plan to make a run at the post-season.

We'll start with the...

2001 Mariners / 1993 Phillies series...

Both teams have excellent lineups & bullpens, so the starting pitchers will be on shorter leashes than usual. Both teams would be locked up in a 3-3 tie after 3 innings in Game 1, Mariners would break away with some big small hits by Mike Cameron & David Bell in the 5th, as Mariners walk away with the victory in Game 1 (of the 4-game series), winning 6-3. Both starting pitchers (Seattle's Freddy Garcia & Phil's Terry Mulholland) didn't make it to the 6th inning.

Bret Boone hit his 9th HR of the season in the first game, and would continue to be a monster in this series.

Game 2 featured the Mariners' Aaron Sele facing off against the Phillies' Tommy Greene. The Mariners' bats were quiet this game, collecting a grand total of 4 hits! Boone would not be a factor in only this game, only because he got injured sliding into second base during the top of the 1st & would not return for the remainder of the game; Mark McLemore would slide over from short to second, as Carlos Guillen filled in at shortstop. Kevin Stocker's two-run single (his 3rd hit of the game), plus Lenny Dykstra's two-run double during the bottom of the 6th off of reliever Ryan Franklin will prove to be the dagger in this one, as the Phillies win 5-2.

After hosting the first two games of the series, the Phillies now travel to Seattle, now playing under A.L. (post-DH rules).

Lenny Dykstra would continue his hot hitting with a two-run homer in the top of the 3rd, putting the Phillies up 3-1. The Phillies pile on a couple more runs in the 4th, with Wes Chamberlain (playing DH in Seattle) would smack a two-run triple to score in both Dave Hollins & Darren Daulton.

The Phillies at this point, seemed to be in complete control, even after a solo HR by John Olerud in the 4th, had Seattle trailing 5-2. Bret Boone would make it a ballgame though, hitting a two-run HR (in the 5th) off of starter Curt Schilling to make it only a 5-4 Philly lead.

Man on a Mission: Bret Boone has put together a solid season (.351 BA, 10 HR & 27 RBI in 32 games).

Bottom of the 6th, with a man on second, Al Martin would hit a two-out single to score in Mike Cameron -- tying the game up at 5-5.

This game would go to extras, with the Mariners' bullpen dominating from the late top-of-the-5th onward -- by only allowing one hit (a Darren Daulton single), while logging 9 strikeouts! The Mariners' lineup, meanwhile, would get their hits, but keep falling short in driving that go-ahead run.

Eventually, with Mike Cameron on first, David Bell would deliver a walk-off double off of Roger Mason in the bottom of the 12th, to win the ballgame, 6-5; Bret Boone went 5-for-6, with a HR, double, 3 singles, 2 RBI & 2 runs in this one.

The Phillies would win Game 5, although they once again flirted with late game disaster, by edging the Mariners, 5-3. Lenny Dykstra hit another homer (his 5th), while collecting a late single & stolen base as well. Pete Incaviglia, who has lost playing time of late, due to his struggles at the plate, went 2-for-4 with a HR & 3 RBI. Danny Jackson (Grade C) pitched 6 good innings, allowing only 4 hits & one earned run (he did allow 4 walks though, while collecting no K's). Mitch Williams collects his 7th Save of the season.

The Phillies would walk away with a 2-2 series split, remaining 4 games out of 1st, but Phillies fans have to wonder, how much that Game 3 choke (which could have resulted in a 3-1 series win) will come back to haunt them. The Phillies are currently just outside of that 8-team playoff bubble at 17-15, with a 19+ scoring differential, tied with the 1981 Montreal Expos; The 2001 Seattle Mariners & 1998 Atlanta Braves are tied in 1st in the (Bobby Cox) Division race at 21-11.

Next up for these two teams: The Mariners get a push-over series against the 1999 Texas Rangers (who have no pitching), while the Phillies will have to face off against the team they are tied with, in the 81' Expos. I do think the Phillies have the edge in this series, but I believe Montreal will get a win here.


1935 Pittsburgh Crawfords / 1931 Philadelphia Athletics

It's been quite some time since I continued this series, played Game 1 quite a ways back, although I have the stats logged, but I currently can't find the game sheet at the moment, but Crawfords did win. It probably ended with Satchel Paige dominating as usual, he started 8 games this season & completed ALL 8 games, while logging two shutouts (one no-hitter against the 1942 St. Louis Cardinals)...

Here is Satchel's stats, this season....

• 12 games, 8 GS, 8 CG, 2 SHO (including no-hitter).
• Perfect 8-0 record.
• 1.42 ERA (12 ER / 13 R)
• Only 36 hits & 6 walks allowed (.553 WHIP)
• 67 strikeouts
• 76 Innings Pitched
• 4 Saves (4-for-4 Save Opportunities)

Paige defeated Lefty Grove in Game 1, Grove struggled majority of season, but finally logged a win last series, and hung in there with Paige in Game 1 of this series, but Crawfords pull out the victory. Grove is now, 1-5, with a 3.47 ERA, after two strong starts of late.

Game 2 would be all about coming up clutch for the Crawfords -- in which they failed in this one. Four times in this game, they would have a runner in scoring position, with one out or less & they would come up empty each time. Crawfords only collected 7 hits in this one, one more than the Athletics though. The Athletics capitalized off their opportunities though, Mule Haas' RBI double & Jimmie Foxx would give the A's a 2-0 lead in the top of the 6th; Jimmy Dykes' RBI double in the 7th (after a lead-off Bing Miller triple) would give the A's a 3-0.

George Earnshaw's shutout bid would be spoiled by a 9th Inning homerun by the one-and-only Josh Gibson, his 6th HR (22 games played); Earnshaw collects 7 K's against the Crawfords. 

The Crawfords' Leroy Matlock who logged the loss in this one, actually was pitching a no-hitter through 5.1 innings, but would allow 6 hits for the remaining 3.2 innings though.

With the series tied 1-1 & new-found momentum, the Athletics take the series back home to Philadelphia, while the Crawfords will be sporting two APBA Grade D starting pitchers for Game 3 & Game 4 -- while Philly will be sporting a Grade B & C for the next two games.

Game 3 starts early with the Philadelphia A's up 3-0 after 3 innings. Max Bishop, who has played nothing like his card, enjoys his move to the 5th slot in the lineup, collecting two doubles in this game, while drawing a walk -- his two-out double made it 3-0 in the 3rd; Jimmy Dykes hit a two-run single in bottom of the 2nd to get things rolling.

Popeye Harris for the Crawfords, hits his 3rd HR of the season to give Pittsburgh some light. After the Athletics failed to get some runners in, during the bottom of the 5th, the Crawfords take advantage of the Athletics' failed opportunities, with a two-run 6th Inning double by Josh Gibson, to tie the ballgame at 3-3. Oscar Charleston continues the Crawfords' attack with an RBI single to give them the lead. 

X marks the spot, as Jimmie Foxx ties the game (4-4) late in the bottom of the 8th, with a lead-off homer off of reliever David Harvey. 

Top of the 10th, reliever David Harvey reaches first on an error by the Athletics' Dib Williams; Jimmy Crutchfield reaches on a walk, both on no outs. Popeye Harris would score in Harvey on a RBI single, Crutchfield advances to 3rd base. Josh Gibson's sac fly, scores in Crutchfield. These two runs would be enough, as Satchel Paige comes in for his 4th Save of the season.

For the Crazy 48's Season, starting pitchers can only come in for saves after a game's rest, so for starting pitchers in the first slot (aces), they can only come in (for one inning only) on the 3rd game of the series; Game 2 starters can come in for Game 4 bullpen sessions. 

It kind of helps these teams with small pitching staffs, especially a Negro League team like the Crawfords that ONLY have 6 total pitchers. Plus it gives these old teams, the old-school feel, starting aces like Lefty Grove of the Athletics are no strangers to Saves, Lefty logged 54 career saves, while actually leading the American League with 9 Saves in 1930.

Game 4 would be all about hitting for both teams, as they combined for 21 hits. Both starting pitchers were out of the game by the 6th Inning.

Statue of Cool Papa Bell outside of the Cardinals' ballpark.

The Crawfords would have a 6-2 lead after 5 innings, thanks to a two-run double by Cool Papa Bell; Bell also scored in previous innings twice, thanks to a bases on balls & triple -- finishing the game 2-for-3. Andrew Patterson also had two RBI on two hits, including a 2nd Inning triple. 

The Athletics would make a run at it, with three runs in the bottom of the 6th; Mule Haas had an RBI single, while Al Simmons followed with a two-run double. The Crawfords would end up holding on with a 7-5 victory, with Leroy Matlock coming in for his team-leading 5th Save.

The Crawfords would take the series, 3-1. Three of the games were close, with Philadelphia having a real shot at two of those other opportunities, so the script could have been flip-flopped and the last place Athletics could have gained some ground & with 4 more series against division rivals could have made a good jump start to a late playoff run, but it all may be too late.

Oh Canada!

Crazy 48's Season Update:

Bobby Cox Division action from the Stars League, as it's a series battle (4 games) between two Canadian teams -- the 1985 Toronto Blue Jays (15-13) & the 1981 Montreal Expos (14-14). Toronto enters the series in 3rd place, while the Expos are 5th; The top two teams in the division are the 2001 Seattle Mariners (20-9) & 1998 Atlanta Braves (21-11).

Both teams are going to have a tough time getting into playoff contention, Toronto has the best chances entering play this series, as the 1912 New York Giants (16-13) are holding onto that 8th spot, who are in 4th place in the Ruth Division.

The four-game series will take place in Montreal (under N.L. rules) for the 1st two games, and the last two games of the series will take place in Toronto (under A.L. rules).

For the Crazy 48's League, the road teams have to play to the home team's rules. All National League teams & all American League teams prior to 1973 -- pitchers bat; All A.L. teams from 1973 to current use the DH rule when at home.

We are currently playing the Games #29-32 series of the season, while all teams are scheduled for 48 games each; There are two leagues of 4 divisions each, each division has 6 teams, all adding up to a total of 48 teams.

Game 1 (at Montreal)

The 85' Jays' Ernie Whitt played huge role in Game 1.

The Toronto Blue Jays strike first with two solo home runs (George Bell & Ernie Whitt) during the top of the 2nd, an RBI single in the third by Willie Upshaw would make it 3-0 Jays.

The Montreal Expos would bounce back in the bottom of the third with Rodney Scott scoring on a Warren Cromartie sac fly, while Tim Raines, the runner on second would eventually score as well with a RBI single by Andre Dawson. Cromartie's RBI double in the 5th would tie the game at 3-3.

Ernie Whitt was the star of the game for Toronto going 4-for-4, with a HR, double, two singles & 2 RBI; His RBI double during the top of the 6th would be the difference maker. Tom Henke would come into the 9th & get his 6th Save.

Dave Stieb (2-3, 2.76 ERA) gets the win, allowing 5 hits, 4 walks & 3 earned runs in 8 effective innings, while striking out 4 batters.

Steve Rogers (2-5, 3.29 ERA) is on the losing end, allowing 4 earned runs, 2 walks & 8 hits through 6 innings, with only 1 K.

Game 2 (at Montreal)

Milner presents Hammer Time!

Toronto once again, gets off to another 3-0 start, this time in the first inning, as Damaso Garcia leads the game off with a solo shot to right... for Garcia that is actually his 4th HR already. With one out, George Bell steps to the plate after a Garth Iorg double; Bell would make Bill Gullickson pay with a two-run HR to deep center (6th HR of the season / team lead).

Just like last game, the Expos bounce back in the bottom of the 3rd, with back-to-back RBI doubles by John "The Hammer" Milner & Larry Parrish; Parrish would eventually get hurt on the field in the top of the 4th, when Lloyd Moseby (caught stealing third) slid into Parrish.

Tim Raines would steal his 4th base of the young series & would eventually get knocked in, by a Warren Cromartie single, tying the game at 3-3, during the bottom of the 6th; Raines, by the way, has 32 steals in 30 games for the season -- on pace for 51 steals for the Crazy 48's, while his 162-game MLB rate would be 173 steals!

This game would go to extras -- Warren Cromartie leads off the bottom of the 13th by drawing a walk off of Toronto reliever Gary Lavelle, two outs later, John Milner would hammer in the winning run, with a walk-off double! Milner would go 3-for-5, with 2 doubles, BB, 2 RBI & a run.

Bill "Spaceman" Lee (1-0) would record his 1st win of the season in relief, while striking out 3 Jays in 3 strong innings, allowing no runs & only two hits; Lavelle falls to 0-2 for the season.

Montreal evens series, with 4-3 victory.

Game 3 (at Toronto)

All Scott Sanderson in this one for the Expos, as he accomplished the first complete game of the season for the Montreal Expos' team -- a four-hit shutout! Jerry Manuel (starting instead of Chris Speier) collects two doubles (scoring once), while Tim Wallach collects 2 RBI.

Jimmy Key is the hard-luck loser (3-2, 4.03 ERA) with 7 innings of hard work, allowing 3 hits, 4 walks & two earned runs, while striking out only 2 Expos.

Game 4 (at Toronto)

Ray Burris (Grade B-Z) on the mound for Montreal, Jim Clancy (Grade C) on mound for Toronto. The game remains a 1-1 pitchers duel through 7 full innings. Gary Carter's bat finally sounds off in this one, by going 3-for-4, with a clutch two-run HR off of Dennis Lamp (credited with loss & is now 4-3 in relief).

Toronto, not only suffered a loss in the standings, but Ernie Whitt got injured & will miss the next 6 games -- including entire full crucial series against division rival 1998 Braves.

Montreal gets to take its new momentum against the 1993 Philadelphia Phillies; The Phillies are currently in a four-game series with the first-place 2001 Mariners (losing Game 1).


CURIOUS ABOUT THE STANDINGS? Here is the most recent posting (click below)...

• Recent CRAZY 48's STANDINGS

The Stars & Stripes All-Star Game

The Stars & Stripes Game (for the "Crazy 48's") is underway, an All-Star accumulation of talent from this season; All-Stars from all 48 teams are here in attendance.

Satchel Paige will start for the Stars, as he comes in with a 7-0 record at the All-Star Break for the 1935 Pittsburgh Crawfords (the lone Negro League team in the league); He pitched a no-hitter earlier this against the 1942 St. Louis Cardinals. Paige will face Buck O'Brien of the 1912 Boston Red Sox; O'Brien also comes in with a undefeated record of 7-0, with a league-best 1.11 ERA.

Top of the 2nd - Babe Ruth leads the inning off with a double off of O'Brien for the Stars' first hit of the game. Although Rafael Palmeiro would follow by hitting into a double-play, Hack Wilson would score the first run with a solo blast. STARS 1, STRIPES 0

Bottom of the 3rd - A lead-off double by Billy Martin; Frank Chance follows by striking out against Satchel Paige. "Shoeless Joe" Jackson would knock in the Stripes' first run with a RBI single. The Stars would go to the pen, and bring in Denny McLain to face George Brett; Brett hits into a fielder's choice, as the Stars get Jackson out at second. Barry Bonds would single off McLain, moving Brett up to third; Bonds steals on next pitch. With runners on 2nd & 3rd, Albert Belle smacks a home run to deep center, as the Stars take the lead with his three-run blast. Duke Snider would ground out for final out of the inning. STRIPES 4, STARS 1

Belle brought his big bat to the All-Star Game.

Bottom of the 4th - With Dizzy Dean now on the mound for the Stars, Miguel Tejada leads off by drawing a walk, Jorge Posada would do the same. With runners on 1st & 2nd and no outs, Billy Martin would hit into a force, as the Stars get the Stripes' runner (Posada) out at second. With runners on the corners, Frank Chance would collect an RBI on a sac fly, with Tejada tagging up.
STRIPES 5, STARS 1

Top of the 5th - With one out, Mark Koenig hits a triple (off of Early Wynn) into right field corner; Pete Rose drives him on the very next at-bat. Rogers Hornsby and Lou Gehrig were not able to do anything more for the Stars that inning. STRIPES 5, STARS 2

Bottom of the 5th - George Brett hits a lead-off double off of Christy Mathewson. Barry Bonds, already with a single & steal in the game, would send a homer over the center field fence, giving the Stripes a commanding, 7-2 lead. Albert Belle flies out for first out. Duke Snider would add to the Stars' misery with a home run of his own, a solo shot; Mathewson is replaced by Nelson Briles.
STRIPES 8, STARS 2

The remainder of the game would be uneventful, as both teams' pitching staffs kept the game scoreless from then on out.

Albert Belle of the 1995 Indians (1-for-3), would walk away with the game's MVP honors for his game-changing three-run homer during the bottom of the third. Bonds was a close second, going 2-for-3, with a HR, single & stolen base. Belle currently leads both leagues with 17 HR in 24 games.

STRIPES will have home-field advantage for the World Series, which is good news for the following teams in the STRIPES playoff hunt: 1906 Chicago Cubs, 1912 Boston Red Sox, 1917 Chicago White Sox, 1953 New York Yankees, 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers, 1984 Detroit Tigers, 1998 New York Yankees and 1998 San Diego Padres -- plus the 1977 Philadelphia Phillies and the 1995 Cleveland Indians who are sitting outside of the playoff bubble.

So it turns out that Albert may have helped his own team's causes, which can mean bonus for him -- The Indians have heated up as Albert has heated up.

It's all division match-ups from here on out, Cleveland's chances could get better if the 1917 Chicago White Sox, or one of the other teams start stumbling in the other divisions as well.

"The Stars & Stripes Game" Team Rosters (Crazy 48's)

The Crazy 48's is 28 games through its 48-game season, and have officially entered their All-Star Break. The official name of the league is known as the Stars & Stripes League, but over time during the project, I have often referred to it as the "Crazy 48's" (Due to being 48 teams & now a 48-game season); The league contains all of the teams from the two Greatest Teams of the Past sets I & II, plus 8 other teams that I own in APBA.

Like the Major League, the "Crazy 48's" is separated into two separate leagues - The Stars League and the Stripes League....

So this is why the All-Star Game is called the "Stars & Stripes Game". The winner will get home-field during the World Series; Stripes are the home team for this event.

Let's take a look at the teams and players, who were elected to this All-Star Game; Each team in each league had at least one representative, which made the All-Star picks a little interesting as the teams were finalized.

STARS LEAGUE All-Stars

STRIPES LEAGUE All-Stars

The 1927 New York Yankees, I believe have the most players representing them on the Stars side, with 3 players in Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig & Mark Koenig (all in the starting lineup). I made a rule that no one player can be duplicated, otherwise Lou Gehrig would have his 1937 self there as well.

The Stripes team has 3 teams representing 3 players:

• The 1953 New York Yankees with Billy Martin (starter), Yogi Berra & Hank Bauer. 
• The 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers with Duke Snider (starter), Jim Gilliam & Clem Labine.
• The 1906 Chicago Cubs with Frank Chance (starter), Harry Steinfeldt & Mordecai "Three-Finger" Brown.

The Stars Team has a tough lineup, from Hornsby through DiMaggio, the APBA cards are simply monster cards, while the Stripes Lineup has a few small ball-type bats. The Stars also have more A pitchers on the roster as well.

Both teams have some interesting players representing their teams as lone All-Stars. Wally Backman (86' Mets), Storm Davis (83' Orioles) and Jimmy Ripple (37' Giants) who are all playing for some bad-record teams -- Who would have guessed out of some of the stars on those teams, that these guys would be representing their ballclubs?

The Stars are favored over the Stripes, it's a good thing the Stripes are at home.

* * * The results of the game will be in the next post * * *

The Nutty Professor

So here is the continuation from the one of my last posts...

As I mentioned before, I have many APBA projects, that is no secret to all of you that follow my posts on this site. I am trying to get many of them or at least the biggest ones wrapped up, before doing any continuation with any of the others. It's kind of like when I was a kid, my mom used to always say, clean up your mess or pick up your toys before you move onto the next game (or project)...

So moms usually know best...

FINISHED

• All-Time Franchise League - A league involving the original 26 franchises with their all-time best players (BATS1); The season was a 64-game season, that I started in late 2004 and finished in early 2008. The All-Time Chicago Cubs won the World Series over the All-Time Detroit Tigers; The Tigers defeated the Yankees in the A.L. East in a tie-breaker (Game #65). The Tigers swept Oakland in the ALCS, in which the Cubs went 7 games with the Giants in a NLCS classic. So... CUBS WIN, CUBS WIN! (check it out) .

• Heritage Baseball League - The first season or I should say, season cut-short, ended with about 20 games. The league was BATS1 APBA cards with 2007 fringe relievers and some stars from that set, on 36 teams. The teams were old school team names or defunct team names of Baseball history or names that were similar. The Buffalo Bison went on to win a tournament to win the title. 

• The 2007 DETROIT TIGERS Season Replay - The Season and playoffs has actually been completed, I just have not relayed the news of the results to my followers yet. We left off, with the Boston Red Sox winning the first two games of the 2007 ALCS at home against the Tigers. The Tigers return to Comerica Park in hopes of making it a series; The Detroit Tigers came back & defeated the Los Angeles Angels in the ALDS to face Boston.

• The Amazing April Tournament (2014) - A March Madness single-game tournament involving 64 teams. The inaugural tournament's championship came down to the 1927 New York Yankees defeating the Cindarella - 1993 Philadelphia Phillies team.

• Mid-West Baseball League & Mid-West Winter League - I resigned from both leagues, to give my computer league (The Boys of Summer APBA Baseball League) more needed attention. I felt that my last season in the both leagues were filled with distractions, and that I couldn't fully commit to either one of those leagues, it was not fair to my friend, who commissioned both leagues as well -- not to mention the fact that the league has waiting lists with eager owners waiting to make it into these two great leagues. My Traverse City Crusaders (MWBL) were improving each year, after a complete fire sale entering my first year, while my Traverse City Tigers (MWWL) won their division a few years ago, in their debut season, for the 1988 retro season. My goal is to eventually return, but that is all up to the Commissioner and myself, when that time comes.

IN THE PROCESS

• Crazy 48's League - The Crazy 48's started in a strange way, I was in the middle of my "Tournament of Champions" tournament, which involves 64 teams in a March Madness-style bracket (but done with actual series, not single-games), involving the 60 GTOP teams provided in the GTOP I, II & III sets. I got plenty of the first round match-ups done, except for the games that involved the GTOP III set (that I have yet to purchase). Due to finances at the time & not being able to play those games yet, I decided that I would play the 40 GTOP teams that I did own, adding 8 other teams to the mix. The original name for the league was the Stars & Stripes League, which the individual leagues are still labeled as that, one Stars league & one Stripes league (in same sense as American & National). The "Crazy 48's" label came with the fact that it was a crazy, aggressive project by me & partially inspired by the Kill Bill movies ("Crazy 88's) , I made a schedule for about 156 games each for each team; The league was created in March 2013 and I would go on to play at least 24 games a week to about 30 games a week -- from March until October that year. I don't think I never played so many games in such a stretch, and I planned to continue that rate for about 3 years, my goal was to finish the league by the time I turned 40, in October 2016. Then I went to the Chicago World Series in Winter 2013, and then I was thinking about APBA BBW (Baseball for Windows) & then checked out the APBA Online League, and ended up starting & commissioning my own computer APBA Baseball League named The Boys of Summer APBA Baseball League. Then I joined two other computer leagues in the MWBL and MWWL. Safe to say, I ran into some time-eating projects that would eventually lead me to re-tinker the schedule to 48 games each -- The league is about to have its All-Star Game ("The Stars & Stripes Game") and then finish its last 20 games, involving all division match-ups to finish the season, which will make the divisions races even more interesting. The top 8 teams in each league move on to the playoffs, four division winners, and the next best 4 teams of each league. The division match-ups should spark new life into the league, and I should finish by the end of 2016 as originally planned (just with less games).

• The 2007 DETROIT TIGERS Season Replay - The Season and playoffs is actually over & completed, I just have not relayed the news of the results to the site yet. We left off, with the Boston Red Sox winning the first two games of the 2007 ALCS at home against the Tigers. The Tigers return to Comerica Park in hopes of making it a series; The Detroit Tigers came back & defeated the Los Angeles Angels in the ALDS to face Boston.

• The Amazing April Tournament (2015) - I was going to skip the tournament in 2015, due to my computer league obligations and my trip for the GMABT tournament in Jackson. Then on my two days off in mid-April, we lost internet, and I quickly started the tournament anyways. The tournament than got sidelined, but I have recently got the tourney down to the Sweet Sixteen.

• The Boys of Summer APBA Baseball League (Computer) - will always be "In the process", it's a league with 16 individual team owners (friends) that compete year after year for the BoS World Championship. It's a keepers league with year-to-year drafts, with rosters trimmed down each season to a degree with free agents -- The Annual Draft involves both rookies and free agents. We are about to wrap up our third season, and have had two World Championship teams in the South Shore Fighting Imps (Bill Gilliam) and the Fairgrove Tigers (Robert Mosher). This season has had the tightest playoff races in league history and are going down to the wire as we speak. 

• The BoS APBA Baseball League Statistical Database - An on-going project of logging all the league's all-time career statistics for players, pitchers, managers & team histories.

• The ALTERNATE 1993 BBW Project - It's a computer league in an alternate 1993 in which expansion stopped with the Mariners & Blue Jays, and where no Florida Marlins, Colorado Rockies & eventually no Arizona Diamondbacks or Tampa Bay Rays. The players from those "expansion teams" would be drafted year-after-year, and those players will serve their new teams during their actual stints with those "expansion teams". For the computer files, I also go with the rosters the seasons ended with, so that made Gary Sheffield a Marlin, in which there was no Marlins in the alternate world, making him a free agent for the draft. The Los Angeles Dodgers had the worst overall record in real-life 1992, which gave them the first overall pick in which they drafted Sheffield. Some other recognizable faces -- The Mets drafted Andres Galarraga, the Royals took Dante Bichette, Vinny Castilla is with the Angels, while the Phillies added Bryan Harvey to an all-ready tough bullpen. The season is at it's All-Star Break with big trades that took place -- Check out the latest (click here) .

• The 2015 TRANSACTION BBW League - A computer league that starts on opening day each season with the computer file APBA teams in place, with up-to-date actual MLB transactions, basically a replay with a twist. The 2014 Transaction (2013 MLB Season files, but 2014 final rosters) season ended with the Boston Red Sox winning it over the St. Louis Cardinals -- the same two teams that faced off against one another in the 2013 MLB World Series.

• WORLD SERIES Replays (BBW) - World Series replays, thanks to APBA's World Series disks of every World Series teams, involving teams from 1901, 1902, 1904 & 1994. Bought 11 disks for a deal on the site worth $60! -- Currently in the middle of the 1904 World Series.

SMALLER DEALS (in the Process)

With no time line destination

• I have a computer BATS2 Season going, about 12 games through, will eventually finish -- A one-shot deal to finish at around 162 games (no following seasons to be done).

FUTURE IDEAS 

• The DEBUT League  - Players play with their MLB teams that they made their MLB debuts with, I have done this in the past, with 2011 & doing it again with 1993. For example, my God, so many good relievers made their debuts with the Mets, think about that one -- Also could you imagine the Mets in the mid-1980s in a DEBUT LEAGUE format, with Dwight Gooden, Tom Seaver, Nolan Ryan, Mike Scott and Ron Darling in the rotation?

• The STATE of MIND League - Players placed in the states that they were born, and teams duke it out.

•  A possible World Baseball Classic tournament with players playing for their respective countries.

So many things to do, in so-little time, and its because of all these things that I feel like a nutty professor of sorts, when it comes to APBA.

Plenty of Shaking Going On

The 2007 Detroit Tigers have had plenty to celebrate.

The latest on all the projects of late...

2007 Detroit Tigers Season Replay
The 2007 Detroit Tigers Season Replay ended with a ridiculous run by my Tigers to not only make the playoffs by reaching win #94, but eliminating the Cleveland Indians in the process, as the Tigers won the A.L. Central.

Next: The Tigers will have to play a best-of-five with the Los Angeles Angels. L.A. has home-field advantage by winning 5 of 8 in the season series against each other. The Boston Red Sox, the #1 seed in the American League will host A.L. Wild Card New York Yankees in Games 1 & 2 (and Game 5, if necessary).

Nothing was effected through my interleague match-ups which means everything that did happen in the National League Playoffs will play out the same exact way, meaning the Colorado Rockies will be waiting for someone in the World Series.

Hail to the King: Kershaw has been dominant for the Kings.

The Boys of Summer APBA Baseball League
The BoS has just got through the midway point of the season, the All-Star Game will be delayed for after the season for plenty of reasons. The National League's Portland Microbrewers currently have the best overall record in the BoS at 63-35 (.643 winning pct) is on pace for 100+ wins for a third consecutive season, they are also trying to reach their third consecutive World Series -- hopefully with better luck, as the American League has won both World Series and All-Star Games up to this point.

The American League's best team is currently the Chicago Nine at 60-39, while their division rival Fairgrove Tigers, the defending World Champions have fell to third place at 48-51. The South Side Spartans, new to the BoS scene, are leading the A.L. East at 54-45, after a seven-game sweep of tough N.L. opponent Holland.

With the Holland Hitchhikers being swept by the Spartans recently, the Traverse City Panthers (57-42) currently sit alone on top of the N.L. East with a 4-game lead over Holland & a 5-game lead over the surprising Urbana Locomotives. Holland and Urbana are the two teams, now fighting for that N.L. Wild Card spot.

This season has been the year of the bullpen with numerous relievers on pace for 50+ Saves, including Holland's Greg Holland, Chicago's Dellin Betances & Traverse City's Wade Davis.

For the National League one starting pitcher stands out, as he is in the hunt for the pitching's version of the Triple Crown --- Clayton Kershaw. Kershaw is tied in wins (15) with T.C's Corey Kluber, while leading the league in ERA (1.46) and strikeouts (190) in 148.1 innings of work; Kershaw has been the one shining light coming out of down-and-out King Road.

Another team that is down-and-out is the league's inaugural World Champions -- the South Shore Fighting Imps; The Imps got long in the tooth with vets such as Joe Mauer, David Wright, Curtis Granderson and A.J. Pierzynski -- and are in definite need for an injection of youth, they are in the sweepstakes to bring in one of the big headling prospects in either Kris Bryant, Carlos Correa, Kyle Schwarber, Noah Syndergaard, Addison Russell or plenty of others...

The league didn't have as much parity as expected, nor did it offensively. Possibly the worst season in offense in this league's brief history, has only 4 qualified batting title contenders, batting over .300 in both leagues combined. Traverse City's Josh Harrison leads the bunch with a .316 batting average, followed by Jose Abreu (who leads A.L.) with .313; Holland's Eric Hosmer (.303) and Swatara's Victor Martinez (.302) are the others.

Making it look easy: Abreu seeking the crown.

Meanwhile, rookie Jose Abreu (of the Corktown Tamales) is competing for the A.L. Triple Crown, A.L. Rookie-of-the-Year Award and A.L. Most Valuable Player of the Year Award. Abreu leads the A.L. in all three of the Triple Crown categories -- Batting .313 batting average (as mentioned above), while leading the league with 28 home runs and 63 RBI.

Christy Mathewson

CRAZY 48's LEAGUE PROJECT
The league in which 48 great teams (for most part) are divided up into two leagues, eight divisions (four divisions per league; The league is at its All-Star Break after 28 games per team, 20 games (all division matchups) remain for the teams.

The All-Star Rosters will be announced soon.

You can check out the League Leaders for each league below...

• Crazy 48's

The 2015 TRANSACTION LEAGUE

Some of the transactions that will reshape the 2015 race.

For those that don't know, I also have a annual league in which I update the trades in real-life to the previous APBA Season released (in which 2015 updates will be done to the 2014 APBA file), basically a replay with a twist.

I have plenty to catch-up on in that league. Last year, the Boston Red Sox defeated the St. Louis Cardinals (2014 Transaction League with 2013 results).

The Pirates teams were fun to play in the World Series Replays.

My WORLD SERIES REPLAYS Projects

Currently playing the 1904 World Series -- Yes, I am aware that the 1904 World Series never happened, but what if it did?

Here are the results from the previous seasons in a section I call the Replay Booth



There is more news on other things not reported yet, but this will do for now.