To Rule in Kansas City

[Overbay17]

I did think it a bit odd that the team was doing so well. I figured the pitching had a lot to do with it, plus apparently a good fielding catcher is a major plus.

Still was very surprised to see the team faring so well against Oakland this year.

Go Royals!

[Imgran]

That kinda ignores the statistical analysis that shows that there really isn't that much difference to be gained by organizing the lineup and pen. It might have given you one or two games but then again it might not. And I'm not convinced that the order of the rotation, other than the last spot, matters at all. Managers make probably their most obvious material contribution to winning in how they handle the bullpen So far yours has been pretty good.

Double-sweep! Of the hated Athletics! (and who said KC would have no rivals?). Might be a good time to check in on Kauffman.

[PotatoOfCouch13]

Man, I'm gonna have to go out and jump on the Royals bandwagon. 6 straight from Oakland? Your boys must be flying pretty high right now. Keep up the great work! Lemon for President in '72!

[Coach Owens]

I think my guy should take all the credit!

[Imgran]

Isn't your guy slumping obscenely?

[CatKnight]

Overbay17: I ran 20 sims with minimal interference and no watching to see how the team might fare in May. The average was 14-14 (most 17-11, least 8-20). I'm going to PbP/watch another month and if I continue shattering expectations I'm going to wonder if something's wrong with PbP/GM mode. I hope not...

Ingram: I think the jury is still out on the effect of lineup selection. From what I read I think it might be worth 2 or 3 games a year. Either way, it's undeniable the AI doesn't always make the best choices on who to start. For example it ignores slumps/non-performing players for too long, and even if a bench player is qualified for a position, the AI doesn't tend to substitute them unless that position is their primary. (IE a utility infielder who's primary position is SS will tend to only come in for the shortstop.)

Yes, Kauffman must be ecstatic now. We'll have to check in on him soon.

PotatoofCouch: The players are also really happy. Hopefully youth and exuberance won't lead to trouble. (hehhehheh)

Coach Owens: You...do.

Ingram: Thompson is batting .160/.288/.240, 8 H, 1 2B, 1 HR, 8 R, 7 RBI. His relatively high OBP is due to 6 walks and 3 HBPs.

Oliver is now batting .206/.317/.412, 7 H, 1 2B, 2 HR, 4 R, 7 RBI with 6 BB.

I wonder who my starter at 1B is right now....
*******

May 1, 1970

Standings

American League East
Team            W    L    GB
Baltimore       19    8   --
Washington      16   11    3
NY Yankees      16   12    3.5
Boston          12   13    6   
Cleveland       11   19    9.5
Detroit         11   19    9.5

American League West
Team            W    L    GB
KANSAS CITY     19    8   --
Chi WSox        16   14    4.5
Oakland         12   12    5.5
LA Angels       13   17    7.5
Minnesota       11   16    8   
Seattle         10   17    9

National League East
Team            W    L    GB
Chi Cubs        15    9   --
St. Louis       14   10    1 
Pittsburgh      13   12    2.5
NY Mets         11   16    5.5
Philadelphia     9   18    7.5
Montreal        10   20    8

National League West
Team            W    L    GB
LA Dodgers      20    7   --
San Francisco   15   10    4
Cincinnati      16   11    4  
Houston         16   11    4
Atlanta         10   17   10  
San Diego        8   16   10.5

*******

American League Leaders
Average: Leo Cardenas (MIN) .368, Del Unser (WAS) .364
HR: Frank Robinson (BAL) 10, Reggie Jackson (OAK) 10
RBI: Reggie Jackson (OAK) 32, Graig Nettles (MIN) 25
Steals: Dave Nelson (CLE) 11, Ron LeFlore (NYY) 10

Wins: Paul Splittorff (KC) 5, Mel Stottlemyre (NYY) 5
ERA: Mel Stottlemyre (NYY) 1.57, Jim Palmer (BAL) 2.11
Strikeouts: Bert Blyleven (KC) 39, Luis Tiant (CLE) 35
Saves: Gene Rounsaville (CHW) 7, Three tied with 4

National League Leaders
Average: Don Kessinger (CHC) .398, Many Sanguillen (PIT) .391
HR: Dick Allen (PHI) 8, Jimmy Wynn (HOU) 7
RBI: Willie Stargell (PIT) 26, Two tied with 24
Steals: Bobby Bonds (SF) 9, Two tied with 8

Wins: Don Drysdale (LAD) 5, Claude Osteen (LAD) 5
ERA: Tony Cloninger (CIN) 2.13, Fergie Jenkins (CHC) 2.20
Strikeouts: Jim Maloney (CIN) 53, Tom Seaver (NYM) 49
Saves: Gary Lavelle (SF) 6, Jim Brewer (LAD) 4

Kansas City Royals Leaders
Average: Jerry Grote .340 (5th Tied)
HR: Jim Ray Hart 5
RBI: Jim Ray Hart 23 (5th Tied)
Steals: Pat Kelly 4 (5th Tied)

Wins: Paul Splittorff 5 (1st Tied)
ERA: Paul Splittorff 3.23 (9th)
Strikeouts: Bert Blyleven 39 (1st)
Saves: Rollie Fingers 4 (2nd Tied)
*******

Fun Little Fact:

Career Home Run Leaders through April 30, 1971

1.  Babe Ruth (1914-35)          714
2.  Willie Mays (1951-)          665 (ACTIVE)
3.  Hank Aaron (1954-)           568 (ACTIVE)
4.  Mickey Mantle (1951-68)      536
5.  Jimmie Foxx (1925-45)        534
6.  Ernie Banks (1953-)          533 (ACTIVE)

* Mays is about three years (49 HR) away. He's rated an 85 and aged 39. Maybe.
* Aaron is closer to seven years (148 HR) away. He's a 90 and aged 37. A serious injury kept him out most of last year. He's going to have trouble.
* Banks is about 9 or 10 years (181 HR) away. He's an 83 aged 40. He should easily pass Mantle and Foxx this year, but that'll probably be it.

[CatKnight]

May 1971

As we entered May I sat down with Bob to go over our roster so far.

At catcher, Jerry Grote (.340 1-19 0) is out for another 10 days or so. Ellie Rodriguez (.353 0-1 1) has done well taking over. When Grote's healthy Dennis Paepke (0 for 1) will return to Omaha.

Bob Oliver (.206 2-7 0) has the reluctant nod at first over Will Thompson (.160 1-7 0) who returns to Omaha rather than languish on the bench, Mike Fiore (0 for 2) takes his place.

Chico Salmon (.321 2-11 0), Dave Concepcion (.333 1-12 1) and Jim Ray Hart (.280 5-23 0) are pretty well entrenched through the infield. Mike Andrews (.103 0-3 0) is as good as he's going to get, so he might as well sit on the bench until he comes out of his slump. Since Rich Severson (.125 0-1 0) supposedly has room for improvement, he'll get his chance - in Omaha. Frank Duffy will take his slot on the bench.

Pat Kelly (.304 1-16 4) and Jose Cardenal (.324 4-21 3) are reliable players. Lou Piniella (.218 0-10 0) is struggling, but there's no one to really give his position to. I'm afraid of Scott Northey's glove (.556 0-1 0) and Joe Keough's bat (.077 0-0 0). In fact, Keough will go down to Omaha while we let Fred Rico take his place.

Our rotation is currently Blyleven (4-2 3.75), Paul Splittorff (5-1 3.23), Jim Rooker (3-0 3.91) and Al Fitzmorris (2-2 3.91). Monty Montgomery (1-1 9.00) will continue as the spot starter. This probably won't change much until Butler and Bunker return in late June/early July.

Rollie Fingers (1-1 1.23 4 SV) continues to be our closer, while Ken Wright (1-0 1.80) takes over the setup role. Jim York (0-0 5.14 1 SV) is in surprisingly dangerous waters this year, but we'll give him a shot at short relief with Mike Hedlund (1-0 0.00). Jerry Cram (0-1 3.60) and Dick Drago (0-0 5.79 1 SV) can try to hold the middle/long relief spots.
*******

Bowie Kuhn, Joe Cronin and Chub Feeney (representing the owners) met with Marv Miller and Donald Fehr (for the MLBPA) to set forward their agendas:

We are more or less suggesting that we formalize the status quo: Yes, there's a reserve clause. No, we don't use it. If we don't want a player, we release him. If we can't agree on a reasonable contract, we part ways. Arbitrators usually help with the more uncertain/inexperienced players (say 2-3 years in the Majors.)

They want a formal removal of all reserve clauses. They also want to formalize the arbitration system to kick in after three years of Major League experience. Further, they want to restrict certain GM activities, such as promotions/demotions and trades, for more experienced players. "This is the only way to ensure a level base for negotiations," Miller said. "And to prevent retaliatory measures such as occured with Curt Flood."

Bowie retorted there was no way they would allow the player's association to dictate who could and couldn't be on a team's 25-man roster. I think they're going to have a long summer.
*******

Kansas City (19-8) (1st, +4.5g) at Oakland (12-12) (3rd, -5.5g)

1: Concepcion errored in the fifth answering for five Oakland runs and the lead. We struggled back with solid relief pitching (especially by Mike Hedlund), and Scott Northey's PH RBI single gave us the lead for good. Concepcion went 3 for 5, 2 RBI. Andrews 3 for 5, 2 doubles. Royals 10-8
WP: York (1-0), SV: Hedlund (1)

2: Splittorff squandred a 5-0 lead giving up 2 walks, a single, 2 doubles, a homer and wild pitch in the sixth inning to tie it. York and Wright tried to stem the bleeding but couldn.t. Our winning streak snaps at 9. Athletics 9-5
LP: York (1-1), HR: Oliver (3)

3: Two homers with a single between dooms us and Jim Rooker in the seventh. Our offense sputters despite two homers of our own. Athletics 6-2
LP: Rooker (3-1), HR: Cardenal (5), Piniella (1)
*******

Well, I suppose we couldn't be lucky forever. At least we've given Oakland something to think about for the rest of the season.
*******

Baltimore (22-8) (1st, +5g) at Kansas City (20-10) (1st, +2.5g)

4: And just like that the tide begins to turn. Jim Palmer and Al Fitzmorris are fantastic, Pat Kelly takes the lead on a solo shot in the third. Baltimore ties it. In the tenth, with Ken Wright pitching and two outs, they get two walks and a single. Orioles 2-1 (10)
LP: Wright (1-1), HR: Kelly (2)

5: Despite continual struggles Blyleven holds on through 8 innings, and Wright once more has trouble in the ninth. Jim Hart hits a three-run blast, while Rodriguez goes 3 for 5 with 2 doubles and Salmon 2 for 5 with 2 RBI. Royals 7-4
WP: Blyleven (5-2), HR: Hart (6)

6: Splittorff goes 7.2 IP giving up 3 ER. By that point we'd already scored four, led by Jose Cardenal (3 for 4, 2 doubles, 1 run, 1 RBI) and a general solid performance by our offense. Royals 4-3
WP: Splittorff (6-1), SV: Wright (1)
*******

Al Fitzmorris (2-2 3.50 1 CG) is out! While driving home from Thursday's game his wrist started bothering him. He reported to the trainer, who found a hairline fracture. He'll miss about a month while it heals.

Monty Montgomery will take the 4 slot, while Aurelio Lopez (1-2 2.10 1 SV in Omaha) gets the nod to come up and be spot starter. If Montgomery struggles as badly as he did last game, I might have to go shopping.

The Commissioner's office announced that we've signed a $72m contract with NBC to televise games. Well, more money is always good. In fact, there seems to be a lot of interest in US due to our amazing start. They'll cover our game on the 15th at Baltimore and June 13th at Seattle with more to be named as the season progresses.
*******

Kansas City (22-11) (1st, +3g) at Oakland (16-14) (3rd, -4.5g)

7: Leading 3-2 due to a strong performance by Ellie Rodriguez (2 for 4, 2 RBI), Jim York relieves in the eight but has no control giving up two runs. Athletics 4-3
LP: York (1-2)

8: Montgomery disintegrates in the second giving up 8 runs...but only 1 is earned as Piniella's losing a ball in the California sun proves lethal. Drago and Cram take over pitching, but even they give up runs as Oakland gets its revenge in style. Athletics 12-1
LP: Montgomery (1-2)

9: Blyleven prevents a complete slide into chaos with a complete game. Concepcion surprises everyone with his second homer, while Cardenal hits a 2 RBI single for the win. Royals 5-2
WP: Blyleven (6-2) (CG), HR: Concepcion (2)
*******

"YEAH! That's what I'm talking about!" Reggie Jackson told the Oakland press. Despite losing the last game he seemed to still be enjoying Saturday's slaughter. "They ain't nothing!" he barked at the reporters. Meanwhile, the White Sox have won 13 of 14 and are hot on our heels.

Perhaps hoping to goad us into another winning streak, the Kansas City Star ran his interview on Page 1, titled "OAKLAND: WE AIN'T NOTHING"

Jerry Grote was waiting for us in Kansas City ready to play. Though Ellie is doing remarkably (.392/.475/.471), Bob still thinks Jerry's better at controlling the game so he gets the nod. Dennis Paepke returns to Omaha.
*******

Boston (17-16) (4th, -7.5g) at Kansas City (23-13) (1st, +1g)

10: Splittorff gave up 3 runs (all unearned) as we nickeled and dimed our way past the Sox. Grote went 3/4 in his return scoring 2 runs, Fiore 2/3 filling in for Oliver and Hart 2/4 with a double and RBI. Royals 4-3
WP: York (2-2), SV: Fingers (5), HR: Kelly (3)

11: Ugh. Boston ace Carl Morton held us to four hits, and there's nothing you can do if your offense doesn't score. Boston's Reggie Smith went 4 for 4 with 3 runs, a triple and homer as Rooker continues to struggle. Red Sox 4-0
LP: Rooker (3-2)

12: Not a pretty game. Montgomery loses it in the 8th letting Boston score 3 and tie it at 5. Setup pitcher Fred Wenz did even worse, loading the bases for Jim Ray Hart who hit a grand slam to right-center. Royals 9-5
WP: Wright (2-1), HR: Hart (7)
*******

We took a day off before heading to Baltimore, who has built a commanding lead in the AL East. Ewing wants to meet on Monday the 17th. I hope it's congratulatory, and not wondering why we've drifted back towards Earth this month.

Cincinnati's apparently having trouble with their LF, Alex Johnson. Johnson's hitting well (.352/.401/.547) but his fielding is horrendous. He had this trouble last year in Kansas City when the Reds traded him to us, and we traded him right back at the deadline. I never really noticed, but Reds manager Sparky Anderson says (and Bob Lemon agrees) that Johnson's fielding problems are due to his lack of hustle...and he's completely unreceptive to guidance on the subject. "I'm paid to hit," he once told Jim Ray Hart. "They don't pay me enough to run around too." Anderson's fined and suspended him twice now.
*******

Team          W    L    GB
KANSAS CITY  25   14    --
Oakland      21   16     3
Chicago      22   18     3.5
Los Angeles  22   20     4.5
Minnesota    15   22     9
Seattle      14   25    11

AL East: Baltimore (29-10), New York (-6.5g), Washington (-8g)
NL East: Chicago (20-14), St. Louis (-1g), Pittsburgh (-3.5g)
NL West: Los Angeles (24-13), Cincinnati (-1.5g), San Francisco (-2g)

Team Leaders:

AVG: Jose Cardenal (.333) (8th-T)
HR:  Jim Ray Hart (7)
RBI: Jim Ray Hart (34) (4th)
SB:  Pat Kelly (7) (8th)

W:   Bert Blyleven, Paul Splittorff (6) (2nd-T)
ERA: Paul Splittorff (3.36)
K:   Bert Blyleven (57) (1st)
SV:  Rollie Fingers (5) (2nd-T)

*******

COMMENTS: Back to 10.34, at least for now. I can't say for sure (far too small a sample size)....but I think the team plays abnormally well when I'm watching. At the least, things seem to be going differently now that I'm just simming again.

[Overbay17]

Wow, that start puts you in a pretty good position for 72 wins anyways, no matter what happens, hopefully the Royals can pull it out though, and give the A's something to think about!

[PotatoOfCouch13]

Of course, if he fades from first, Kauffman will have his questions anyway. Talk about "d***ed if you do..."

Keep this up, though, and you'll be on easy street for the rest of your days. A championship in 3 seasons? Absolutely could happen. Go Royals!

[AthleticsFan2k8]

Ok if you wanna signup for my dynasty, here's mine


Name: Tony Aganus
Birth Date: 11/15/1952
Age: 19
College: None
Team: Oakland Athletics
Birth Place: Manila, Phillippines

Position: 2B
Batting Hand: Right
Throwing Hand: Right
Height: 6'0
Weight: 180 LBs

And yeah do we accept female players to signup?

[CatKnight]

Overbay17: Through May 30 we're still in first...but the race is tightening up a little. We're playing about .500 ball. One good streak and we're in trouble....we'll see.

PotatoofCouch13: Indeed. It's going to be a long summer though.

AthleticsFan2k8: First the easy part: No women will enter baseball before 2020 at the earliest. That's 49 years. Before the advent of first generation cybernetics in the late 2010s women have too much trouble competing on a Major League level.

I'm not really accepting general signups. Owens was an exception because he's tried diligently to get in one of my games for several game years. Even then he let me choose the position to cover a team weakness. Similarly I did add my own player this year, but I chose a starting pitcher on a team that needed one desperately. Adding players changes the game balance, and so I want to make sure any changes promote weaker teams rather than help stronger ones.

If you really want a character, looking through the records I could add someone to Seattle, Detroit, Cleveland, Montreal or San Diego. Those are the teams that could use a boost. If interested let me know what team, and I'll use your character to plug a weakness. If you really wanted to be a 2B then I'd choose Seattle or Cleveland.
*******

Late May 1971


Ewing Kauffman came out of his office, red-faced and beaming to greet me. "Chuck, I'll admit I had my doubts, but your work this year has been outstanding." He crushed my hand in his grip. "Outstanding!" He nodded to his secretary, told her he'd be out for an hour, then grabbed my elbow. "Let's take a walk."

Marion Laboratories stands about ten miles south of the city and there really isn't much around it. Workers either bring their lunch or eat in one of their smallish cafeterias. As we walked, talking about general pleasantries, my stomach growled.

"There's a deli about a mile up the road," he said. "I wish I could be more elaborate, but I'm expecting an important report and don't want to be away for long." He nodded to the parking lot.

Nothing more until we arrived at the deli, a small restaurant with a row of stools in front of a bar and four booths. We took one and ordered drinks: He took coffee, I opted for pop.

"Chuck, I thought you should know we received congratulations from the City Council on Friday thanking us for bringing a 'vibrant' attraction. I don't need to tell you my business partners are pleased. Pleased and amazed, as am I. How much do you credit Bob Lemon for our performance?"

"Bob's a great manager," I said. "He and his staff are good at motivating the players. We haven't had any serious issues since the start of the season. The players, themselves, deserve a lot of credit as well of course since they're the ones making this happen."

"Of course, of course." He leaned back and considered. "So we can expect this performance to continue?"

I lifted my head, considered, then slowly shook it. "I hope so, I'm sure...but I think we were lucky a few games. We can't hit and pitch like this forever. You know what regression to the mean is?" Kauffman nodded. He was a scientist. He could make numbers sing and dance if he chose. "I think we played above our level in April. Maybe we can keep doing it, but we're already heading back down to Earth - .500 ball since the 1st."

"Against some very strong teams - Baltimore and Oakland." He nodded. "Maybe we can do better once the schedule lightens up."

I winced and drank my soda to cover it. By the time our schedule lightened up significantly we'd be in our 60-days-60-games madness.

"We'll do our best, sir."

Kauffman smiled. "That's all I ask."
*******

Kansas City (25-14) (1st, +3g) at Baltimore (29-10) (1st, +6.5g)

14: Piniella hit 2 triples for 1 RBI. Blyleven pitched another complete game allowing only four hits and getting ten strikeouts. We took the lead early when Salmon scored on a sacrifice fly, then Piniella's first triple followed by him coming home on a wild pitch. Royals 5-2
WP: Blyleven (7-2) (CG)

15: This time it was Splittorff with the complete game and 9 strikeouts. We survived despite allowing three errors. Kelly went 2/4 (two doubles) and an RBI to lead our offense. Royals 4-1
WP: Splittorff (7-1) (CG)

16: Rooker didn't get out of the first inning. He gave up 7 runs, all earned, as the Oriole offense avenged themselves in style. Piniella went 3 for 4 with an RBI, the only bright spot in our day. Orioles 10-2
LP: Rooker (3-3)
*******

Scott Northey apparently talked to Lemon after the game today. His fielding this year (all 16 innings) has been impeccable and he'd like a shot at starting. As it stands Cardenal's in his way, but Scott asked about practicing in left field...Lou Piniella's position.

Piniella's doing better than he was (.248/.289/.346), but with Kelly and Cardenal both doing well left field would be Northey's best chance. Bob agreed to give him a shot. I think Lou's safe, at least for this year.

Meanwhile in Cleveland the Indians continue to make a mockery of themselves. While playing Washington, Senator Ken McMullen hit a routine pop up to shallow left-center. SS Zoilo Versalles, CF Richie Scheinblum, and LF Lee Maye all run for it...and collide stunning all three. The ball drops for an inside the park homer and Washington wins 8-4.

After two days off (Oakland closes the gap, having won 8 in a row) we're off to Seattle.
*******

Kansas City (27-15) (1st, +1g) at Seattle (16-26) (6th, -11g)

19: Montgomery is frightening, but manages to go 7 IP giving up 3 ER (and 11 H!) York blows it in the ninth on a single, bunt hit and triple. A disappointing game where no one did all that well. Pilots 5-4
LP: York (2-3)

20: Blyleven pitched his third straight complete game as our offense rumbled into spiteful life helped by Jerry Grote's second homer. Royals 4-2
WP: Blyleven (8-2), HR: Grote (2)

21: Splittorff and Seattle's Eric Mattingly (62/76!) battled for 8 innings giving up a run apiece before yielding to relievers. Our chance came in the ninth on a sacrifice fly bringing Salmon home to tie it. In the ninth we put runners on second and third with no outs, but Kelly struck out, Cardenal grounded tagging the runner at HOME, and Salmon flied out. In the bottom of the tenth a double and single killed us. York again. Grr. Pilots 2-1 (10)
LP: York (2-4)
*******

Defeated by the bloody PILOTS. We're in first only because Oakland also stumbled. We now get to play the Tigers who have lost 10 straight.
*******

Detroit (14-37) (6th, -21g) at Kansas City (28-17) (1st, +1g)

22: Detroit's problem is, apparently, their pitching. Rooker has another iffy day but it's nothing compared to the Tigers. Kelly and Cardenal form the perfect 3-4 team as Kelly goes 4/5 with 4 runs and an RBI, and Cardenal goes 4/5 with 2 runs and 5 RBI. Royals 10-5
WP: Rooker (4-3), HR: Cardenal (6), Hart (8), Kelly (4)

23: Closer, but Montgomery also puts together a credible, if unspectacular performance. Piniella goes 2 for 3 with 2 RBI. Northey starts in CF for Cardenal taking some pressure off Lou. Royals 5-4
WP: York (3-4)

24: It couldn't last. Mickey Lolich simply pitched a little better holding us to a 2 RBI double by Fred Rico. Tigers 3-2
LP: Blyleven (8-3)
*******

A little better. In a way I'm just as happy: 12 games in a row was a lot for the Tigers to have to bear. I just wish they didn't snap their streak playing us.
*******

Minnesota (23-25) (5th, -7g) at Kansas City (30-18) (1st, +2g)

25: Milt Pappas and Paul Splittorff had another late inning battle, and again we lost in extra innings. We tied the game at 1 in the fourth on a Jerry Grote triple..and that was it. Jim York once more pitched the tenth and once more lost it. I growled at Lemon for awhile, who's moved York down to short relief and Hedlund to setup. Twins 2-1 (10)
LP: York (3-5)

26: I suppose I can't blame York if our offense refuses to show up. A 1st inning RBI single by Cardenal scores Jerry Grote, and once more our offense stalls. Rooker actually put in a very solid performance, but it wasn't enough. Twins 3-1
LP: Hedlund (1-1)

27: Both offenses roared back to life. Montgomery only pitched 6.1 IP, but this was better than Minnesota's Jim Perry and he still managed 10 strikeouts. Jim Ray Hart and Mike Fiore (filling in for the ailing Oliver) both had three hits. Royals 7-6
WP: Wright (3-1), SV: Fingers (6)
*******

[CatKnight]

Atlanta abruptly released 3B Clete Boyer (77) [34] (.360 1-7 0). Since losing his position to Darrell Evans in the last two years Boyer's been increasingly critical of Brave ownership citing 'silly rules and mismanagement.' I thought about going after him for trade bait, but when I ran the idea past Ewing he told me that we didn't need to insert such a disruptive influence into our clubhouse for even a day. Cleveland picked him up the next day.

And now Jerry Grote's hurt again. This time a ball spiked his foot and he's going to miss another two weeks! I'm starting to wonder if he's a hypochondriac. Rodriguez once more will lead the club with Paepke backing him up.
*******

Kansas City (31-20) (1st, +3g) at Boston (23-28) (4th, -14g)

28: Blyleven put together another shaky performance lasting just 5 innings and giving up 4 runs. Ken Wright limped for an inning, but Jim York returned to his old form and pitched 3 innings of shutout ball. We won despite giving up 16 hits because we had 12 of our own...and 11 walks. Royals 9-6
WP: Blyleven (9-3), SV: York (2), HR: Cardenal (7), Fiore (1)

29: Another offense melee as the Sox get 19 hits, 6 walks and we 17 hits and one. Splittorff went down after 3 innings, and Wright gave up 5 runs in 1.2 IP. Fiore led a losing effort going 4 for 5 with 2 runs, 4 RBI, double, homer. Red Sox 12-9
LP: Wright (3-2), HR: Fiore (2)

30: 24 more hits and 8 walks between us, but it was Jim Ray Hart's fumbled throw and Ellie Rodriguez's passed ball in the tenth that proved fatal. A loss we didn't really deserve until then, especially not Lou Piniella (4/4 2 RBI) or even Jim Rooker (7 IP 3 ER). Red Sox 5-4 (10)
LP: Fingers (1-2)

[XyankeefanX]

Ouch! You guys must be barely holding on to first.

[rockiesfan4ever]

You guys really play 60 games in 60 days. Ouch

[CatKnight]

XyankeefanX: Barely. Unfortunately I think this is our true level of play. Either 'watching' shifts odds in your favor in PbP, or I was just really lucky in April.

rockiesfan4ever: Yes, ouch. I may override the AI and rest all my guys a little before the marathon begins. We'll see.
*******

May 31, 1970

Standings

American League East
Team            W    L    GB
Baltimore       39   15   --
New York        34   20    5
Washington      31   23    8
Boston          25   29   14
Detroit         19   41   23
Cleveland       16   38   23

American League West
Team            W    L    GB
KANSAS CITY     32   22   --
Oakland         28   23    2.5
Chicago         29   25    3
Minnesota       26   28    6
Los Angeles     25   29    7   
Seattle         20   31   10.5

National League East
Team            W    L    GB
Chicago         29   22   --
St. Louis       28   23    1 
New York        26   28    4.5
Pittsburgh      23   31    7.5
Philadelphia    21   30    8
Montreal        18   36   12.5

National League West
Team            W    L    GB
Los Angeles     35   19   --
Cincinnati      33   24    3.5
Houston         32   25    4.5
San Francisco   30   24    5
Atlanta         25   26    8.5
San Diego       21   33   14

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American League Leaders
Average: Tony Oliva (MIN) .364, Del Unser (WAS) .363
HR: Frank Robinson (BAL) 21, Reggie Jackson (OAK) 17
RBI: Reggie Jackson (OAK) 60, Frank Robinson (BAL) 53
Steals: Ron LeFlore (NYY) 21, Dave Nelson (CLE) 15

Wins: Bert Blyleven (KC) 9, Five tied with 8
ERA: Jim Palmer (BAL) 2.09, Mel Stottlemyre (NYY) 2.65
Strikeouts: Bert Blyleven (KC) 83, Mickey Lolich (DET) 72
Saves: Gene Rounsaville (CHW) 9, Ron Klimkowski (NYY) 8

National League Leaders
Average: Johnny Bench (CIN) .390, Don Kessinger (CHC) .374
HR: Johnny Bench (CIN) 18, Two tied with 13
RBI: Johnny Bench (CIN) 67, Two tied with 48
Steals: Joe Morgan (HOU) 16, Amos Otis (NYM) 16

Wins: Don Drysdale (LAD) 9, Gary Nolan (CIN) 8
ERA: Don Sutton (LAD) 2.16, Fergie Jenkins (CHC) 2.43
Strikeouts: Steve Carlton (STL) 82, Jim Maloney (CIN) 81
Saves: Jim Brewer (LAD) 8, Two tied with 7

Kansas City Royals Leaders
Average: Jose Cardenal .341 (5th)
HR: Jim Ray Hart 8
RBI: Jose Cardenal 42 (6th Tied)
Steals: Pat Kelly 10 (4th Tied)

Wins: Bert Blyleven 9 (1st)
ERA: Paul Splittorff 3.08 (9th)
Strikeouts: Bert Blyleven 83 (1st)
Saves: Rollie Fingers 6 (4th Tied)
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Trades
SEA to LAD: LF Tommy Harper (83) [30] (.253 4-12 11)
LAD to SEA: Two Minor Leaguers (2xRP)

Unfortunately a step in the right direction, though Harper was one of their better players. Seattle really needs another good starter or two, not relievers.
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Major Injuries
DET - CF Joe Pepitone (87) [30] (.358 5-20 1) for 3 months
CLE - SP Rich Hand (78/89) [22] (0-2 6.17 1 SV) for 2 months
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Milestones
1B Willie McCovey (SF): 1,000 RBIs (93) [33] (.300 11-37 0)
LF Frank Robinson (BAL): 2,500 hits (93) [35] (.296 21-53 1)
LF Frank Robinson (BAL): 500 HR
3B Ron Santo (CHC): 300 HR (94) [31] (.294 10-38 0)
SP Camilo Pascual (WAS): 200 wins (83) [37] (5-2 3.45 1 CG)
LF Frank Howard (WAS): 1,000 RBIs (93) [34] (.324 12-42 1)
C Joe Torre (STL): 22g Hitting Streak (89) [30] (.315 7-32 0)
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Notable Retirements

RP Turk Farrell retired from the Philadelphia Phillies at age 37 after 15 seasons
He didn't pitch in 1971. Lifetime he finishes 106-110 3.48 41 CG 82 SV
Farrell played for the Phillies (56-61), Dodgers (61), Colts/Astros (62-67) then back to the Phils (67-70)
He was an All Star in 1958, 62, 64 and 65