Impossible Dream???

[bigpapi]

May 22,23,24 v Cleveland Indians (26-19)

May 22-Tony Conigliaro went 4-5 with 2 RBI, and George Brett hit a 2 run triple as Boston beat up on Cleveland 8-2. (28-15)
W-Gary Nolan (4-3) L-Steve Hargan (3-5)

May 23-Gorman Thomas hit a 3 run HR, and Vern Ruhle pitched a complete game, scattering 8 hits, allowing 1 run, while walking none and striking out 5 as the Red Sox beat the Indians 6-1. (29-15)
W-Vern Ruhle (5-1) L-Jerry Koosman (5-2)

May 24-John Lowenstein hit a 2 run HR, and Charles Lemay pitched 8 innings allowing just 2 unearned runs, as Cleveland avoided the sweep, beating Boston 4-3. (29-16)
W-Charles Lemay (3-5) L-Fergie Jenkins (7-3) S-Bob Terlecki (4)

May 25,26,27 v Oakland Athletics (18-33)

May 25-Willie McCovey hit his 1st HR of the year, a 2 run shot, and Rico Petrocelli added a solo HR as Boston beat Oakland 5-3. (30-16)
W-Gene Garber (5-2) L-Chuck Dobson (0-4) S-Mickey Scott (3)

May 26-Frank Fernandez went 3-5 with 3 RBI, and Danny Fife pitched 6 solid innings as Oakland beat Boston 8-2. (30-17)
W-Danny Fife (3-3) L-Roger Moret (5-4)

May 27-Billy Grabarkewitz hit a solo HR off Bob Gebhard in the bottom of the 10th inning to give Boston a 6-5 win over the A's. Tony Conigliaro drove in a pair of runs and Gene Garber pitched 2 shutout innings to win his 6th of the year. (31-17)
W-Gene Garber (6-2) L-Bob Gebhard (2-3)

MLB Milestones:

Willie McCovey of the Boston Red Sox scored his 1000th run

Ending May and into June for the Sox is a 3 game set in Baltimore against the 1st place Orioles followed by 3 games at home against the KC Royals. In between series will be end of the month stats and League Standings!

[bigpapi]

Complete Team Batting Stats Through May 31-(team leaders in bold)

1975 Batting             Team    G   AVG    AB    H  2B  3B  HR   BB    K   SB  CS    R  RBI   SLG   OBP
Brett, George             BOS   52  .306   216   66  21   9   9   19   15    2   3   40   51  .611  .364
Conigliaro, Tony          BOS   50  .312   215   67  10   1  13   21   41    0   0   40   48  .549  .370
Smith, Reggie             BOS   50  .250   208   52  19   1   7   40   35    0   2   41   30  .452  .369
Simmons, Ted              BOS   47  .286   185   53  11   3   2   34   10    0   0   38   20  .411  .396
Evans, Dwight             BOS   48  .303   185   56  12   0  12   38   27    0   0   36   40  .562  .420
Harrah, Toby              BOS   47  .235   183   43   4   0   7   22   24    5   5   26   29  .372  .318
Conigliaro, Billy         BOS   41  .311   164   51  11   0   4   11   36    0   0   28   23  .451  .363
Petrocelli, Rico          BOS   38  .307   137   42   6   1  10   15   23    0   0   21   26  .584  .375
Grabarkewitz, Billy       BOS   37  .300   130   39   4   2   7   24   21    1   3   23   25  .523  .404
Thomas, Gorman            BOS   31  .160   106   17   6   0   2   22   18    1   1   13   12  .274  .303
Brock, Lou                BOS   14  .289    45   13   2   0   2    3   11    7   0   13   10  .467  .333
McCovey, Willie           BOS   10  .219    32    7   2   1   1    7    3    0   0    9    4  .438  .375
Fisk, Carlton             BOS    6  .263    19    5   0   0   0    6    4    0   0    2    4  .263  .423
Sutherland, Gary          BOS    1  .500     4    2   0   0   0    0    1    0   0    0    2  .500  .500
Scott, Mickey             BOS   21  .000     1    0   0   0   0    0    0    0   0    0    0  .000  .000

Complete Team Pitching Stats Through May 31-(team leaders in bold)

1975 Pitching            Team     IP   ERA    G  GS   W   L  SV    K   BB   R/9
Quisenberry, Dan          BOS    1.0  0.00    1   0   0   0   0    0    0  0.00
Scott, Mickey             BOS   22.0  1.64   21   0   1   2   4   12    5  8.59
Garber, Gene              BOS   27.0  2.33   22   0   6   2   0   26    5  9.67
Foucault, Steve           BOS   18.2  2.41   17   0   1   0   1   14    7  8.68
Guidry, Ron               BOS   26.0  2.77    4   4   2   0   0   19    9 14.19
Nolan, Gary               BOS   77.2  2.90   11  11   5   3   0   51   29 12.28
Jenkins, Fergie           BOS  101.2  3.28   13  13   8   3   0   96   10  8.94
Ruhle, Vern               BOS   74.2  3.86   11  11   6   1   0   36   18 13.98
Moret, Roger              BOS   85.0  4.87   13  13   6   4   0   62   20 12.60
Mingori, Steve            BOS   11.1  5.56   13   0   0   0   0    8    6 19.06
Lyle, Sparky              BOS   24.2  6.57   22   0   0   3   7   22   12 17.15
Rau, Doug                 BOS    5.1 11.81    4   0   0   1   0    4    4 18.56
Brett, Ken                BOS    6.0 16.50    4   0   0   0   0    5    5 22.50

Draft Preview is next!

[bigpapi]

Below are the top 3 three players, peak wise at each position and the top 5 starting and relieving pitchers:

C-
Tony Pena 62/90
Alex Trevino 58/72
Tom Wieghaus 52/71

Very weak catching class this year outside of Pena, who has the chance to be very special. Pena hit .367 as a senior and threw out 80% of the base stealing attempts against him.

1B-
Steve Balboni 50/88
Willie Upshaw 50/85
Greg Brock 51/81

Pretty solid group of 1B this year. Balboni is a monster, he can hit the ball a ton, but can he hit for enough average to counter it? He hit .403 10-35 as senior. Upshaw hit .347 10-29, but is expected to hit for a higher average and less power than Balboni.

2B-
Lou Whitaker 60/91
Johnny Ray 54/81
Glenn Hubbard 50/76

Whitaker should be one of the first few picks, and with good reason as he put up a line of .462/.588/.748 9-35 as a senior. Also an excellent fielder as he committed only 2 errors in 30 games.

3B-
Tim Wallach 58/91
Carney Lansford 55/91
Bob Horner 53/82

Wallach hit .393 11-36 as senior, and Lansford .409 11-31 as these two head a strong class of 3B.

SS-
Onix Concepcion 48/84
Harry Chappas 47/74
Ed Jurak 45/73

Very weak class headed by Concepcion who hit .333 1-18, but that's about it.

LF-
Tony Brewer 51/93
Mark Funderburg 51/78
Kirk Gibson 56/77

Brewer is the star of the left field group, hitting .388 3-36, but Gibson, who hit 44 homeruns in his high school career could surprise.

CF-
Brett Butler 69/90
Bob Skube 58/80
Jesus Figueroa 56/80

Butler, who hit .403 3-36 with 6 steals as a senior is the cream of the crop and should be a top ten pick.

RF-
Clint Hurdle 52/86
Jose Moreno 50/82
Myron White 50/77

Average class of right fielders is lead by Hurdle, who hit .276 2-33 after hitting .393 6-25 as a junior as some feel he was injured most of his last season.

Starting Pitchers-
Bob Ojeda 58/91
Tom Candiotti 60/90
Luis Leal 49/90
Dave Stewart 64/87
Mike Chris 48/88

Lots of choices here as there are plenty of starters whose peak ends above 85. Candiotti is an interesting prospect as he throws the knuckleball does so very sucessfully, putting up a line of 5-2 1.46 as a senior. He allowed just 49 hits in 80.1 innings, walking 16 and striking out 88. He should be a top 5 pick.

Relief Pitchers-
Don Welchel 48/92
Doug Jones 60/88
Craig Lefferts 49/85
Jesse Orosco 60/84
Dave Schmidt 53/83

Doug Jones is probably the best prospect here, although he can't throw 90. He fools hitters with deadly offspeed stuff, putting up a line of 5-2 2.76 as a senior. In 29 innings, he allowed 31 hits, but walked just 2 while striking out 38.

[bigpapi]

May 28,29,30 at Baltimore Orioles (33-18)

May 28-The Conigliaro brothers ruled today as both Tony and Billy hit 3 run homeruns, as Boston pounded out 12 runs and 16 hits en route to a 12-2 win over the Orioles. (32-17)
W-Vern Ruhle (6-1) L-Paul Mitchell (7-3)

May 29-Tony C continues his hot hitting, going 2-5 with 2 HR and 5 RBI, and Reggie Smith went 3-5 with 4 runs scored as Boston blasted the Orioles for a 2nd straight day, today 10-1. (33-17)
W-Fergie Jenkins (8-3) L-Claude Osteen (1-2)

May 30-3 different Sox drove in runs and Roger Moret had his best start of the year, going 8 shutout innings, allowing 6 hits and 1 walk while striking out 8 as Boston completed the sweep of the Orioles, winning 3-1. (34-17)
W-Roger Moret (6-4) L-Dave Roberts (10-2) S-Mickey Scott (4)

May 31,June 1, 2 v Kansas City Royals (20-34)

May 31-Rico Petrocelli hit a 2 run HR and Billy Grabarkewitz added a solo shot helping Gary Nolan who pitched 7 innings of 1 run ball as Boston beat the Royals 5-1. (35-17)
W-Gary Nolan (5-3) L-Dave McNally (5-8)

June 1-In an emergency start, Ken Brett went 7 innings, allowing just 1 run on 4 hits while walking none and striking out 4 and Ted Simmons hit a solo HR, just his 3rd of the year as Boston got past KC 6-3. (36-17)
W-Ken Brett (1-0) L-Mel Behney (2-5) S-Mickey Scott (5)

June 2-George Brett hit a 3 run HR, his 10th of the year, and Billy Conigliaro added a pair of RBI as Fergie Jenkins pitched his 2nd straight complete game as Boston completed the sweep of the Royals, winning their 7th straight, 5-3. (37-17)
W-Fergie Jenkins (9-3) L-Ken Holtzman (2-6)

MLB Milestones:

Dick Allen of the Philadelphia Phillies hit his 300th career HR in style as he blasted a grand slam off Bill Landis in a 14-5 win over the Chicago Cubs.

MLB Injuries:

Skip James of the Pittsburgh Pirates will miss the rest of the year as he tore a ligament in his right wrist while taking a normal swing this week. James was hitting .307 9-36 so far on the year for the Pirates. The 25 year old hit .292 11-62 in his first full season a year ago and will be replaced by former starter Rimp Lanier.

The Pirates also lost 3B Art Howe until the end of July as Howe dislocated his hip sliding into 2nd base. Howe, who had just signed a long term deal with the Pirates this offseason, was hitting a league leading .390 on the year to go along with 7 HR and 30 RBI. In his first full year as a starter a year ago, Howe hit .295 7-75. He will be replaced in the lineup by rookie Enos Cabell until his return.

Montreal will be without the services of 1B Mike Jorgensen until August at the earliest as he suffered a broken forearm suffered while being hit by a pitch. Jorgensen was hitting .242 6-24 in a down year this year after hitting .266 24-76 in his first season with the Expos after coming over in a trade with the New York Mets.

Boston has lost SP Vern Ruhle until September as Ruhle is suffering from shoulder tendonitis and the team has decided to shut him down until he feels better. Ruhle was 6-1 3.86 on the year in 11 starts, covering 74.2 innings. In lieu of replacing him in the rotation, Boston will go with the same 4 man rotation they had so much luck with a year ago.

Up next is the 1975 Amateur Draft!

[bigpapi]

1975 Amateur Draft

1) Houston--Brett Butler (OF)
2) Oakland--Dave Stieb (SP)
3) Kansas City--Dave Stewart (SP)
4) Baltimore--Mike Boddicker (SP)
5) Cleveland--Tom Candiotti (SP)
6) Minnesota--Mark Funderburk (LF)
7) San Diego--Tony Pena (C)
8) Milwaukee--Bob Ojeda (SP)
9) Montreal--Tim Wallach (3B)
10) Pittsburgh--Don Robinson (SP)
11) Chicago (NL)--Lou Whitaker (2B)
12) Los Angeles--Doug Jones (RP)
13) St. Louis--Steve Trout (SP)
14) Texas--Tom Henke (RP)
15) Philadephia--Bud Black (SP)
16) California--Carney Lansford (3B)
17) Detroit--Jerry Ujdur (SP)
18) New York (AL)--Bill Landrum (RP)
19) Atlanta--Tony Brizzolara (SP)
20) Cincinnati-Frank Pastore (SP)
21) New York (NL)--Jesse Orosco (RP)
22) Chicago (AL)--Victor Cruz (RP)
23) San Fransisco-Tony Brewer (LF)
24) Boston--Lee Smith (RP) (60/78) 3-0 1.41 as a senior. in 12 games, covering 6 starts, he pitched 32 innings, allowing just 19 hits and 8 walks while striking out 51 and allowed batters to hit just .141 off him. Was also a perfect 24 for 24 in save chances throughout H.S.

Other Sox Picks:

2nd Round (48th overall)--Kirk Gibson (LF) (56/77) Had a monster High School career, but Sox scouts feel he was underrated by most other teams. Hit .424 13-36 as senior with a 36/16 BB/K ratio and 7 steals in just 35 games. I think he will really surprise people.

3rd Round (72nd overall)--Dan Gladden (LF) (53/77) .351 3-21 as a senior. More of a contact type guy, never hitting below .302 in H.S. Can also swipe a base as he was 26 for 36 in his 4 years.

4th Round (96th overall)--Steve Fireovid (RP) (48/79) 2-1 1.83 as a senior in a season limited to 7 starts due to various nagging injuries. In 34 innings, he allowed 28 hits , but walked just 5 while striking out 30. Allowed just 1 homerun over his final 68 innings his last two years.

5th Round (120th overall)--Tim Flannery (2B) (49/72) .319 0-17 as a senior. Has never had much power, hitting just 2 homeruns in high school, both as a junior. Does have a good eye, posting a 26/15 BB/K ratio. Doesn't project to much other than a back up middle infielder.

6th Round (144 overall)--Rickey Keeton (RP) (46/76) 2-0 1.74 in 8 games as a senior. Allowed 28 hits and just 4 walks over 33 innings, while striking out 25. Started one game in his high school career and pitched a 5 hit shutout in that appearance. Strictly a project.

Apparantely, the schedule makes hate us and want us to fail as up next for the Red Sox is a 3 game series in Baltimore against the Orioles, followed by 3 days off, followed by 27 straight road games without a day off, the following 3 are against the Chicago White Sox.

[Overbay17]

Gulp! What a schedule! Well, you can win through!

(BTW, is 1933 dead in the water?)

[bigpapi]

Overbay: I don't think 1933 is dead in the water, but as I got away from this dynasty, the urge to "see it through" and see where some of the players I started with will end up got too large. I have played almost 10 full seasons of PbP (single pitch mode) and you get attached to the "players" after that long, so we'll see what happens.

As far as this season goes, it is tight right now, but I don't expect it to last. My fear is next year and the year after as salaries explode. I can hardly imagine what Reggie Smith will ask for at the end of the '76 season when he becomes a FA and looking for his last big contract. Will I be able to keep everyone? It's unlikely, so big changes could be coming.

[bigpapi]

June 3,4,5 at Baltimore Orioles (35-22)

June 3-George Brett had 2 hits, including his 10th triple of the year already, and scored a run in support of Roger Moret who had his 2nd straight solid start, scattering 10 singles over 7 innings as Boston beat Baltimore 4-3. (38-17)
W-Roger Moret (7-4) L-Dave Roberts (10-4) S-Mickey Scott (6)

June 4-A 0-0 game entering the bottom of the 8th turned into a 1-0 Orioles lead as Larry Bowa drove in a run with a single. However in the top of the 9th, Boston exploded for 4 runs off a tiring Wayne Garland, capped by a monster HR by George Brett as Boston beat the Orioles 4-1. (39-17)
W-Gary Nolan (6-3) L-Wayne Garland (7-4) S-Mickey Scott (7)

June 5-Manny Sanguillen went 2-4 with a pair of RBI and Larry Bowa had 3 hits and 2 runs scored as the Orioles avoided the sweep, beating Boston 5-4. (39-18)
W-Paul Mitchell (8-3) L-Ken Brett (1-1) S-Frank Bertaina (2)

June 9,10,11 at Chicago White Sox (32-28)

June 9-Dwight Evans hit a 5th inning, 3 run HR and Fergie Jenkins pitched 8 innings of 1 run ball, striking out 9 as Boston beat Chicago 4-1. (40-18)
W-Fergie Jenkins (10-3) L-Jim O'Toole (2-6) S-Mickey Scott (8)

June 10-Reggie Smith had a career day, going 4-5 with 3 HR, 10 RBI and 4 runs scored and Ted Simmons went 5-6 as Boston pounded out 23 hits and 20 runs, thrashing the White Sox 20-4. (41-18) Boxscore below:
W-Ron Guidry (3-0) L-Gary Peters (4-6)

Boston Red Sox at Chicago White Sox
June 10, 1975

                     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 +  R  H  E
       Red Sox (BOS) 9 5 0 1 0 0 1 0 4   20 23  0
     White Sox (CHW) 0 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 0    4 15  0

BOSTON               ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
R. Smith (1B)         5  4  0  4  3 10  1  0    .275
T. Simmons (C)        7  5  0  3  1  1  0  0    .305
T. Conigliaro (DH)    6  2  0  0  0  1  1  0    .307
D. Evans (RF)         5  0  2  1  0  1  0  0    .290
G. Brett (3B)         6  4  1  2  0  1  0  0    .324
B. Conigliaro (LF)    4  1  2  2  0  0  0  0    .306
G. Thomas (CF)        3  2  3  4  0  2  0  0    .177
B. Grabarkewitz (SS)  5  2  1  2  1  4  0  0    .301
G. Sutherland (2B)    6  3  0  2  0  0  0  0    .360
TOTALS               47 23  9 20  5 20  2  0

   2B:  G. Brett (24), T. Conigliaro (13), G. Thomas 2 (8)
   HR:  B. Grabarkewitz (8), R. Smith 3 (10), T. Simmons (5)
   HBP:  R. Smith
   GIDP:  T. Conigliaro

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
       R. Guidry  6.0  9  3  1  3  3  3 124   3.09
         S. Lyle  1.0  2  0  0  1  1  1  13   7.07
  D. Quisenberry  2.0  4  1  0  0  0  0  30   2.08
          TOTALS  9.0 15  4  1  4  4  4 167

CHICAGO              ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
J. Kennedy (SS)       4  1  1  0  0  0  0  0    .264
C. Nash (1B)          4  2  1  0  0  0  1  0    .343
C. May (LF)           3  1  2  0  0  1  0  0    .344
B. Melton (3B)        5  0  0  0  0  0  1  0    .255
W. Williams (RF)      5  3  0  2  0  0  0  0    .362
K. Hottman (DH)       5  4  0  1  1  2  1  0    .293
A. Bravo (CF)         5  2  0  1  0  0  0  0    .262
J. Edwards (C)        5  0  0  0  0  1  1  0    .230
R. Hermoso (2B)       4  2  0  0  0  0  0  0    .252
TOTALS               40 15  4  4  1  4  4  0

   2B:  W. Williams (17), K. Hottman (12)
   HR:  K. Hottman (8)
   GIDP:  J. Edwards, A. Bravo

         CHICAGO   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
       G. Peters  0.1  4  2  1  7  7  0  36   6.72
        D. Lazar  1.1  5  3  2  7  7  0  44  20.25
       B. Howard  2.1  5  3  1  1  1  1  67   4.57
       P. Borbon  2.1  4  0  0  1  1  1  40   1.14
     J. Magnuson  1.2  1  0  0  0  0  0  21   4.98
       R. Nelson  0.2  4  1  1  4  4  0  27   3.80
     M. Caldwell  0.1  0  0  0  0  0  0   2   3.57
          TOTALS  9.0 23  9  5 20 20  2 237

     WP: R. Guidry (3-0)
     LP: G. Peters (4-6)

     Temperature: 70F
     Wind: 12 MPH (in from right)
     Attendance: 44,492
     Time: 3:58

June 11-Boston completed the sweep of the struggling White Sox, as Gorman Thomas continues to see his average creep up, from .136 to .179 over the last few weeks as he hits a tie breaking grand slam in the 7th inning to give Boston a 6-2 win. (42-18)
W-Roger Moret (8-4) L-Pedro Borbon (2-1)

MLB Milestones:

A memorable year for Dick Allen just got more memorable. Already hitting his 300th HR and driving in his 1000th RBI this year, he has now also scored his 1000th run.

Bobby Bonds of the San Fransisco Giants hit his 300th career HR at the young age of 29.

MLB Retirements:

40 year old Bob Allison retired after being let go by the New York Mets yesterday. Allison played 17 years for multiple teams including Minnesota (1958-1968), Oakland (1969-1971), Houston (1972-73), and New York (1974-75). He retires with a .253 batting average to go along with 336 HR and 1159 RBI in 2123 games. He hit at least 20 homeruns 8 times and 19 another two times. His best year came in 1964, when for the Twins, he hit .287 32-86 along with 27 doubles and 10 steals. He was the 1959 Rookie of the Year when he hit .261 30-85 with 9 triples and was a 3 time All-Star (1959,1963,64).

MLB Contract News:

The Chicago Cubs and 3B Mike Schmidt have come to terms on a deal that will pay the 25 year old $500,000 a year for the next 3 seasons. Schmidt is hitting .248 18-51 on the year. Last year was a career year for the young Schmidt as he hit .271 44-131 to go along with 144 walks, 18 intentional. For his career, he has 124 HR and 359 RBI in just 482 games.

The Boston Red Sox have signed SP Roger Moret to a 4 year contract worth $285,000 per year. Moret had said all along that he was willing to give Boston a "hometown discount", and he followed through on that promise signing a below market deal for a 25 year old lefthander who is still getting better. Moret is 8-4 4.64 on the year, but his last 3 starts, he has gone 3-0 pitching 22 innings, allowing just 5 runs while walking only 2 and striking out 17.

MLB Injuries:

The Chicago White Sox will be without P Gary Peters for the remainder of the season as he is suffering from severe elbow tendonitis and will be shut down until the '76 season. Peters had gone 4-6 6.72 this year as he has struggled with this injury most of the season. The injury may actually benefit the White Sox as this injury forces them to put Mike Caldwell, who is just two seasons removed from a 21 win year.

Next for the Sox is 3 games in California against the Angels, followed by a cross country trip to New York to face the Yankees.

[bigpapi]

June 12,13,14 at California Angels (30-36)

June 12-Andy Messersmith pitched 7 2/3 innings of shutout ball, allowing 5 hits and 3 walks while striking out 6 and Chris Coletta had 3 hits and 2 RBI as the Angels beat Boston 5-1. (44-19)
W-Andy Messersmith (4-6) L-Gary Nolan (6-4)

June 13-Ted Simmons went 3-5 with a HR and 5 RBI and Tony Conigliaro hit a 3 run HR, his 15th of the year as Boston hammered the Angels 11-1. (45-19)
W-Ken Brett (2-1) L-Clyde Wright (0-1)

June 14-Gorman Thomas hit a 3 run HR and Ted Simmons went 4-5 with 2 RBI as Boston beat up on California again, today winning 8-2. (46-19)
W-Fergie Jenkins (11-3) L-Catfish Hunter (8-7)

June 15,16,17 at New York Yankees (38-28)

June 15-Reggie Smith went 3-6 with a pair of homeruns, including the 300th of his star career and drove in 3 runs and George Brett hit a 2 run HR as Dan Quisenberry picked up his 1st major league win, pitching 2 innings of scoreless relief as Boston beat New York 10-6. (47-19)
W-Dan Quisenberry (1-0) L-Ron Klimkowski (0-5)

June 16-Reggie Smith hit an RBI single off Rick Sawyer in the top of the 15th inning as Boston outlasted the Yankees 3-2. The Red Sox bullpen pitched 6 scoreless innings and Gene Garber and Mickey Scott each went 3 shutout innings, with Scott picking up the win. (48-19)
W-Mickey Scott (2-2) L-Rick Sawyer (2-1)

June 17-Joe Pepitone hit his first HR in almost a year, and Thurmon Munson hit a HR and drove in 3 runs in support of Mel Stottlemyre pitched 8 innings of 1 run ball, allowing 6 hits and 4 walks while striking out 2 as New York avoided the sweep, beating Boston 6-1. (48-20)
W-Mel Stottlemyre (8-3) L-Gary Nolan (6-5)

MLB Injuries:

Ken Rudolph of the Cleveland Indians will miss the rest of the season and part of next year as he tore a ligament in his right knee in a home plate collision this week. Rudolph was hitting just .276 0-16 this year for the Indians, but was in the lineup for his defense, not committing an error this year and committed just 2 in 138 games a year ago.

John Young of the New York Yankees will miss the next two weeks with a torn muscle in his elbow. Young had a surprise, breakout season a year ago, hitting .298 17-105 and was hitting .302 8-37 this year at the time of injury. Veteran Joe Pepitone will step in for Young while injured.

The Baltimore Orioles suffered a bad blow this week as team leader and C Manny Sanguillen will miss the next 8 weeks with a broken ankle, also suffered in a collision at home plate. Sanguillen was hitting .335 4-39 this year in a very consistent career that sees Sanguillen hitting .321 in 1060 career games.

Bob Watson of the Oakland Athletics will be out until September with a broken elbow. Watson, in his first year with Oakland and in the AL was hitting .312 10-48, to go along with 21 doubles and a 35/31 BB/K ratio.

MLB Milestones:

Don Drysdale retired this week after the Cubs released him after 2 starts. Drysdale pitched his entire career before 1975 with the LA Dodgers, a career that started in 1956. He finishes up with a career mark of 291-220. His 291 wins puts him 10th All-Time. In 706 games, Drysdale pitched 4,642 innings, allowing 4,196 hits, walking 1,290 while striking out 3,508 (2nd overall, just one behind Walter Johnson). He made 12 All-Star teams (1959,1961,62,63,64,65,68,69,1970,71,72,73) and won one Cy Young (1962 after going 25-9 2.83 for the Dodgers.

The White Sox waived OF Roberto Clemente, and the 40 year old Clemente promptly retired. Clemente played in the majors for 20 season that covered time with Pittsburgh (1955-1968), Seattle/Milwaukee (1969-1971), St. Louis (1971-1972), Philadephia (1973-1974), Chicago (AL) (1975). He retires with a career average of .310 recording 3,295 hits, good for 8th all-time. He also hit 268 homeruns, 1,546 RBI (20th all time), 546 doubles and 169 triples. Clemente won 6 Gold Gloves (1961,62,63,64,65,66), made 9 All-Star Teams (1960,61,62,63,64,65,66,68,1971), and won the MVP in 1966 after hitting .317 29-119 with 31 doubles and 11 triples to go along with 202 hits for the Pirates.

Next for the Sox is 3 games in Minnesota against the last place Twins followed by a trip back to the Bronx to play the Yankees again!

[bigpapi]

June 18,19,20 at Minnesota Twins (24-42)

June 18-Tony Conigliaro hit a grand slam in a 5 run 6th inning, giving Boston a 6-3 win over Minnesota. Fergie Jenkins pitched 7 innings, striking out 7 in the win. (47-20)
W-Fergie Jenkins (12-3) L-Dave Boswell (2-10)

June 19-George Brett hit a grand slam and Tony C. hit a 2 run HR, his 17th of the year as Boston beat up on the Twins, winning 8-3. (48-20)
W-Ron Guidry (4-0) L-Dean Chance (4-6)

June 20-Adolpho Phillips and Lyman Bostock had 3 hits and 2 RBI as the Twins avoided the sweep, beating Boston 9-4. (48-21)
W-Jim McAndrew (3-8) L-Mike Flanagan (0-1) S-Eddie Bane (1)

June 21,22,23 at New York Yankees (41-31)

June 21-Bobby Grich and Joe Pepitone each hit 3 run homeruns, as the Yankees came from behind to beat Boston 8-7. (48-22)
W-Don Gullett (2-1) L-Steve Mingori (0-1) S-Greg Thayer (13)

June 22-Tony Conigliaro homered and drove in 4 and Gary Nolan pitched 7 innings of shutout ball as Boston beat the Yankees 6-1. (49-22)
W-Gary Nolan (7-5) L-Mel Stottlemyre (8-4)

June 23-Toby Harrah had a 2 run single, and Billy Conigliaro added 2 hits and an RBI as Boston beat New York 5-4. (50-22)
W-Sparky Lyle (1-3) L-Ed Sprague (1-7) S-Mickey Scott (9)

MLB Retirements:

Dick Ellsworth retired after 17 big league seasons. Ellsworth spent time with Chicago (NL) (1958-1966) and Philadelphia (1967-1974). He finished his career with a mark of 157-168 with a 3.69 ERA. He pitched 2763.2 innings, allowing 2,812 hits, walking 758, and striking out 1,605. His best season came in 1963 when he went 22-10 with a 2.11 ERA. In 290 innings, he allowed just 223 hits, walking 75 and striking out 185. Ellsworth was a two time All-Star (1964-65).

MLB Injuries:

The San Fransisco Giants have suffered a major blow as they lose Juan Marichal for the rest of the year with a bad elbow. The 37 year old Marichal had struggled this year, going 9-6 4.36 ERA after going 15-9 4.20 a year ago. Marichal has a career line of 287-147 with a 3.18 ERA. The Giants will move Dick Bosman into the rotation for the remainder of the year.

Up next for the Sox is 3 games in Minnesota against the Twins followed by a 3 game set in Texas against the Rangers.

[bigpapi]

June 24,25,26 at Minnesota Twins (26-46)

June 24-Rookie Rick Dempsey hit a 2 run HR, and Bucky Guth added a 2 run double as the Twins beat Boston 7-5. (50-23)
W-Jim McAndrew (4-8) L-Ron Guidry (4-1) S-Tom Hall (3)

June 25-Bucky Guth had a double and 3 RBI, Rick Dempsey had a 2 run single and Jim Merritt pitched 7 2/3 innings of solid ball as Minnesota beat Boston again, today 7-4. (50-24)
W-Jim Merritt (7-5) L-Ken Brett (2-2)

June 26-Dave Goltz pitched a complete game shutout, allowing just 5 hits and 1 walk, while striking out 4 and throwing 144 pitches as Minnesota swept the Red Sox, winning 5-0. Van Kelly and Tony Oliva each drove in a pair of runs in the win. (50-25)
W-Dave Goltz (2-6) L-Gary Nolan (7-6)

June 27,28,29 at Texas Rangers (36-42)

June 27-Gorman Thomas hit a 2 run HR and Ted Simmons added a solo shot in support of Roger Moret, who threw a complete game, allowing 5 hits and 1 run, walking 3 while striking out 4 as Boston snapped their 3 game losing streak, winning 5-1. (51-25)
W-Roger Moret (9-4) L-J.R. Richard (7-8)

June 28-Jimmy Wynn hit a 2 out, three run HR off Fergie Jenkins in the bottom of the 8th inning, and Charlie Hudson shut the Sox down in the 9th to give Texas a 4-3 come from behind victory over Boston. (51-26)
W-Charlie Hudson (3-4) L-Fergie Jenkins (12-4)

June 29-Mike Cubbage had 3 hits and 3 RBI, and Al Gallagher added 2 hits and 2 RBI as Texas took two of three from Boston, winning 9-4. (51-27)
W-Jim Maloney (5-9) L-Ron Guidry (4-2) S-Joe Coleman (2)

MLB Trade News:

Baltimore sends P Jeff Rineer (48/84), Allan Ramirez (48/83), Pete Koegel (64/74)
Kansas City sends OF Jose Cardenal (85)
I like this trade from the Orioles point of view. Three players that are years away for Cardenal, who gives them depth to catch Boston.

MLB Milestones:

Jimmy Wynn of the Texas Rangers scored his 1000th run

MLB Injury News:

Mel Stottlemyre of the New York Yankees will miss the rest of the year after suffering a broken hip in a collision down the first base line. He had a line of 8-4 4.45 on the year, which is way down from last year when he posted a mark of 20-9 3.66 in 265.1 innings. Veteran Al Downing will take Stottlemyre's place in the rotation for the rest of the year.

Ending June and into July for the struggling Sox is 3 games in Kansas City against the Royals followed by the last 3 before the All-Star break in New York against the Yankees. Prior to that will be up to date team batting and pitching stats as well as League Standings.

[bigpapi]

Complete Team Batting Stats Through June 30-(team leaders in bold)

1975 Batting             Team    G   AVG    AB    H  2B  3B  HR   BB    K   SB  CS    R  RBI   SLG   OBP
Smith, Reggie             BOS   76  .271   329   89  25   3  12   52   50    1   3   63   51  .474  .370
Brett, George             BOS   79  .315   321  101  32  11  13   41   23    4   5   59   68  .604  .397
Conigliaro, Tony          BOS   69  .310   300   93  17   1  18   28   51    0   0   50   66  .553  .369
Simmons, Ted              BOS   71  .318   286   91  16   4  10   53   12    0   0   65   38  .507  .423
Evans, Dwight             BOS   72  .260   277   72  15   1  13   57   45    0   0   48   46  .462  .387
Harrah, Toby              BOS   64  .258   248   64   8   0  10   32   31    7   6   34   46  .411  .345
Conigliaro, Billy         BOS   56  .283   223   63  14   0   4   18   49    0   0   34   28  .399  .341
Grabarkewitz, Billy       BOS   57  .307   202   62   4   3  10   35   30    3   4   36   41  .505  .413
Petrocelli, Rico          BOS   54  .254   197   50   6   2  11   18   34    0   0   26   29  .472  .317
Thomas, Gorman            BOS   57  .173   197   34  11   0   5   43   34    2   4   26   27  .305  .321
Brock, Lou                BOS   25  .310    87   27   3   1   4    9   23   11   3   21   18  .506  .375
McCovey, Willie           BOS   18  .180    61   11   3   1   1   11   12    0   0   12    6  .311  .315
Sutherland, Gary          BOS    8  .273    33    9   1   0   0    1    3    0   0    5    3  .303  .294
Fisk, Carlton             BOS    9  .258    31    8   1   0   0    8    6    0   0    2    5  .290  .400
Scott, Mickey             BOS   28  .000     1    0   0   0   0    0    0    0   0    0    0  .000  .000

Complete Team Pitching Stats Through June 30-(team leaders in bold)

1975 Pitching            Team     IP   ERA    G  GS   W   L  SV    K   BB   R/9
Scott, Mickey             BOS   30.2  1.17   28   0   2   2   9   14    7  8.22
Garber, Gene              BOS   34.2  1.82   26   0   6   2   0   31    6  8.83
Foucault, Steve           BOS   20.2  2.18   18   0   1   0   1   16    7  8.71
Jenkins, Fergie           BOS  148.0  3.22   19  19  12   4   0  138   13  9.24
Nolan, Gary               BOS  116.0  3.49   17  17   7   7   0   70   39 13.03
Ruhle, Vern               BOS   74.2  3.86   11  11   6   1   0   36   18 13.98
Moret, Roger              BOS  117.0  4.08   17  17   9   4   0   82   25 11.85
Guidry, Ron               BOS   57.1  4.40    9   9   4   2   0   45   22 15.54
Mingori, Steve            BOS   20.1  4.43   20   0   0   1   0   12    8 16.38
Quisenberry, Dan          BOS   13.2  5.27   13   0   1   0   0    3    3 18.44
Lyle, Sparky              BOS   37.2  5.73   35   0   1   3   7   29   13 15.53
Brett, Ken                BOS   30.1  6.23    8   4   2   2   0   19    9 12.16
Flanagan, Mike            BOS    6.0  7.50    1   1   0   1   0    5    1 13.50
Rau, Doug                 BOS   12.0  9.75    6   1   0   1   0    8    6 17.25

[bigpapi]

Complete League Standings Through June 30-

[PotatoOfCouch13]

Always nice to see a Red Sox dynasty!

Great job so far, as it seems that you had a comfortable lead until those last 10 games. I'm sure you'll be back in the World Series by season's end though.

You mentioned a while back that Bobby Bonds had 300 HR at age 29. Does he have a shot, in your opinion, at the Babe's record?

[bigpapi]

Potato: I think all those games on the road finally caught up on us towards the end, and it's not the Babe's record anymore. Willie Mays ended his career with 767 HR's. If he can stay healthy I think he has a shot. Others with a chance I think include Darrell Evans (279 at age 28), Dave Kingman (179 at age 26), George Foster (210 at age 26), and Steve Garvey (204 at age 26).