GTS-1962 Los Angeles Dodgers 5 Round Recap

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The 1962 Dodgers have been disappointed with their season thus far, but they have a lot to be hopeful for going into the future. Two of their three losses have come to top 3 teams with a 6-5 loss to the first place Mets in round 3 and an 8-7 loss against the 3rd place Cardinals in round 5.  A 6-2 loss in Cincinnati was disheartening, but with an 8-6 win at Chicago and a 6-3 defeat of the 1954 Indians the Dodgers have not given up yet despite a current standing of 10th place.  During their 1962 season fielding issues may have plagued them, but as the only team that has yet to give up an error so far, their defense is playing top notch ball.  Throw in a league leading 9 RBI’s by Ron Fairly and you have a team that can make a decent run in the remaining 11 rounds of the season.  They will be tested though as they battle the 1975 Pirates and the 1946 Red Sox at home before going on the road to take on the 1961 New York Yankees.

 

GTS-1961 New York Yankees 5 Round Recap

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4 seems to be the Yankees lucky number as they scored exactly 4 runs in 4 of their games and doubled that number in their other affair. A 4-5 loss to the 1984 Tigers on opening day gave way to 3 straight victories: a 4-1 win over the 1975 Athletics, a 4-3 win against the 1975 Reds, and an 8-7 win in Philadelphia.  In round 5, a discouraging 4-5 loss in Pittsburgh knocked them out of playoff position and into where they currently stand in 5th place.  With Mantle and Maris both leading the charge with .350+ batting averages, the biggest surprise has been Bob Cerv coming off of the bench with a team leading 3 home runs on only 9 at bats!  The pitching staff has accorded itself decently as well.  The 1961 Bronx Bombers will look to regain a top 4 position against the 1903 Pirates, the 1969 Orioles, and the 1962 Dodgers in their next 3 matches.

GTS-1954 Cleveland Indians 5 Round Recap

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The Indians looked to be headed for disaster as they matched the Cubs loss for loss through the first 3 games of the season. With a 1-0 loss in Boston to the 1946 Red Sox, a 3-2 loss on the road to the 1909 Pirates, and a 6-3 loss against the 1962 Dodgers, the ’54 Indians were staring down the tunnel to a long season.  In round 4 they got their first victory, a 6-3 battle with the last place 1965 Twins proved nothing, but, in their next game, a 2-1 upset of the first place 1986 Mets had everyone take notice of their potential and have put them into 11th place currently.  While the hitting for the Indians has been only average throughout the first 5 games, a combined team ERA of 2.14 on the mound has slowed down most of the offenses they have faced thus far.  Indians fans pray that that momentum can remain as they head into interleague play against the 1991 Pirates, and 2 home games against the 2001 Seattle Mariners and 1906 Chicago Cubs.

GTS-1946 Boston Red Sox 5 Round Recap

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Like the Cardinals, the Reds Sox found themselves in close 1 and 2 run games throughout the first 5 rounds of the season. A 1-0 shutout of the 1954 Indians, a 5 to 4  win at home versus the 1962 Giants, a 2-0 shutout loss in Seattle against the 2001 Mariners, a 5-3 win against the 1909 Pirates, and a 9-8 loss in Detroit against the 1984 Tigers have landed Boston at 3-2 and currently in 7th place.  A lack of consistency both with the bats and on the mound have kept the Red Sox from arriving into the upper echelon of teams.  Boston is in feast or famine mode with 2 players, Johnny Pesky and Dom DiMaggio both batting .429 and 45% of the rest of the team, including Hall of Famer Ted Williams, batting .200 or lower.  Their next 3 rounds see them face off against the 2013 Pirates, the 1962 Dodgers, and the big bats of the 2nd place 1969 Orioles.

GTS-1942 St. Louis Cardinals 5 Round Recap

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With 31% of the season now completed, my pick to win it all goes to the 3rd place 1942 St. Louis Cardinals who’s only loss came in round 4 to the first place 1986 Mets 7 to 5 in extra innings.  Their victories included a 3-1 win against the 2001 Mariners, a 4-3 win over the 1975 Reds, a 9-7 defeat of the 1962 Giants, and another 1 run 8-7 win versus the 1962 Dodgers.  Johnny Hopp is batting .500 and currently leads the league with 11 hits at the plate while ace starter, Mort Cooper, leads the league with 14 strikeouts in 2 games pitched.  With their next 3 contests all at home, it is conceivable that the Cards could take over first place after defeating the 1990 Pirates, 1984 Tigers, and the 1976 Phillies.

GTS-1909 Pittsburgh Pirates 5 Round Recap

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Precariously hanging onto the 4th and final playoff spot thanks to a +8 run differential are the 1909 Pittsburgh Pirates.  After starting out the season strong with a dominating 12 to 2 destruction of their cross state rival 1976 Phillies, the Pirates had single run wins over the 1954 Indians in round 2, 3 to 2, and a close nail biter 5-4 win against the 1961 Yankees in round 5. Back to back 5-3 losses in Oakland in round 3 and in Boston for round 4 have given the Buccos a 3-2 season record through 5 games.  Centerfielder Tommy Leach leads the team with 8 hits, 6 runs and 6 RBI’s sporting a .470 batting average while the team’s superstar shortstop Honus Wagner, who has more stolen bases than hits, has struggled so far, batting a disappointing .111.  Above average pitching from starters Camnitz and Willis in front of a strong bullpen have kept the 1909 Bucs at the top of a crowded 4 team tie at 3-2.  In their next 3 contests, the 1909 Pirates take on the 1974 team of the same name in interleague play, then visit their turn of the century counterpart 1906 Cubs before taking on the 1962 Giants.

GTS-1906 Chicago Cubs 5 Round Recap

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After 5 games, the 1906 Chicago Cubs currently stand in 15th place.  With 3 straight losses to begin their season, an 8-6 loss against the 1962 Dodgers, a 3 to nothing shutout at home versus the 2001 Mariners and a 4-2 loss versus the last place 1965 Minnesota Twins, the cubbies surprised everyone with a 4-1 win on the road against the 1984 Tigers.  Sadly, the one victory was all they could manage in the first third of the season losing 7-3 in round five to the 1975 Oakland A’s.  Despite solid pitching from Mordecai Brown and Ed Reulbach, the team has had to contend with a weak output from their offense and a far and away league leading 10 errors defensively.  At the plate, Frank Schulte leads the team in RBI’s and runs with Johnny Kling going 8 for 20 and an impressive .400 average.  Next up for the team from the windy city is an away game against the “We Are Family” 1979 Pirates in interleague play, a return home against the 1909 Pirates, and then back on the road against the surging 1954 Cleveland Indians.

1993 World Series Replay Game 7

darren daulton

  • 1993 Philadelphia Phillies-8
  • 1993 Toronto Blue Jays-3

Oct 24th, 1993-Both teams changed up their rotation for the final game of the season. Philly decided to pitch Tommy Greene who rocked out 8 innings for a win in game 4 instead of scheduled starter Danny Jackson, and after a solid effort in relief earlier in the series, Toronto chose Al Leiter.  Again, Blue Jay starting pitching let them down as Leiter could not continue his great performance from game 4 and within 2 innings Todd Stotlemyre came into the game to stop the damage already inflicted after 2 home runs and 3 total runs in the first 2 innings by the Phillies.  Philly did not let Stottlemyre off of the hook either as he thew for 4 innings and gave up 3 runs himself.  Philadelphia never relented and piled on 2 more against Eichhorn for an 8 run day.  Tommy Greene had another great start and held Toronto to 3 total runs in 7 innings pitched with 13 strikeouts before Larry Anderson closed out the game.  With the bats, Darren Daulton is named player of the game going 2 for 4 with 2 homers 4 RBI’s and scoring 3 himself.  Philadelphia wins the series with 8 runs on 7 hits and 1 error while Toronto scored 3 runs on 5 hits with a single error.

Notes: Played at Soothing Meadows on 28 Oct 2018. There was no original game 7 as the Toronto Blue Jays closed out the series the previous day 4 games to 2.

1993 World Series Replay Game 6

Pat Hentgen

  • 1993 Philadelphia Phillies-2
  • 1993 Toronto Blue Jays-5

Oct 23rd, 1993-Had the series ended when Philly had a 3-1 game lead, the Blue Jays starting pitching would have largely been to blame, but after a solid start from Juan Guzman in game 5 and with Pat Hentgen tossing a decent 7 innings of 2 run ball in game 6 and earning player of the game distinction in the process, the Toronto Blue Jays have showed their never say die attitude. Although the Phillies got themselves an early 2 run lead in the 3rd, Toronto tied things up in the bottom of the 4th from a 2 RBI Roberto Alomar single, adding 3 more in the 6th by doubles from Paul Molitor and Ed Sprague.  Just like game 5, Philly could only muster 2 runs in the 3rd inning while giving up 5 throughout the game and are now watching their championship dreams fade away into the distance.  The Canadians tied up the series at 3-3 and force the Americans to rethink their strategy.  Whatever happens we can be certain that both teams will pull out all of their stops to bring home a championship tomorrow.  Philadelphia can credit themselves with only 2 runs on 8 hits and 1 error while giving up 5 on 8 hits and no errors to the Blue Jays.

Notes: Played at Soothing Meadows on 24 Oct 2018. In the original game 6, the Toronto Blue Jays won by the score of 8-6 thanks to a walk-off home run by Joe Carter. The Blue Jays won the series 4 games to 2.

1993 World Series Replay Game 5

john olerud

  • 1993 Toronto Blue Jays-5
  • 1993 Philadelphia Phillies-2

Oct 21st, 1993-Game 5 saw a revisit to the game 1 starters who never got the chance to strut their stuff as both teams combined for a World Series record of 29 runs. All the difference a few days makes as Juan Guzman pitched a solid 7 innings, surrendering only 2 runs on 5 hits before handing the ball to Ward who finished out the day with 2 innings of no hit ball.  His opposition, Curt Schilling, did not fare as well with all 5 of the Blue Jays runs being credited to him and surrendering 12 hits.  Toronto got their spark in the early rounds with 2 runs in each of the 3rd and 4th innings and a little insurance off of a Fernandez RBI double in the 6th that drove Schilling into the dugout and gave the Phillies their 2nd loss of the series.  Toronto claws their way back into the series with their best pitching performance of the championship coming at the time they needed it the most, but it is first baseman John Olerud who went 4 for 5 with 2 doubles, 2 runs, and an RBI who gets the game ball.  Blue Jays get 5 runs on 13 hits with 1 error.  Philadelphia managed only 2 off of 5 hits and 1 error.

Notes: Played at Soothing Meadows on 21 Oct 2018. In the original game 5, the Toronto Blue Jays won by the score of 2-0.