Go Santo! Bring pride to our city!
Problemo?
Go Santo! Bring pride to our city!
Read More Dynasties!
Coach Owens: Yeah, 'cause the Pilots sure aren't! *runs*
*******
KANSAS CITY ROYALS
STATS THRU MAY 31, 1971
Code:1971 Batting Team G AVG AB H 2B 3B HR BB K SB CS R RBI SLG OBP Grote, Jerry KCR 38 .327 153 50 9 1 2 15 16 0 0 18 23 .438 .384 Rodriguez, Ellie KCR 22 .364 66 24 4 0 0 12 8 1 1 3 7 .424 .456 Paepke, Dennis KCR 2 .000 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 Oliver, Bob KCR 36 .220 100 22 4 0 3 11 21 0 0 13 13 .350 .289 Thompson, Will KCR 18 .160 50 8 1 0 1 6 13 0 0 8 7 .240 .288 Fiore, Mike KCR 13 .314 35 11 2 0 2 5 1 0 0 7 5 .543 .400 Concepcion, Dave KCR 54 .282 216 61 13 2 2 16 29 3 0 27 20 .389 .331 Hart, Jim Ray KCR 53 .251 187 47 10 1 8 20 28 0 0 29 41 .444 .330 Salmon, Chico KCR 53 .286 203 58 9 0 2 15 37 2 0 29 19 .360 .339 Andrews, Mike KCR 24 .180 50 9 3 0 0 10 9 0 0 7 5 .240 .328 Severson, Rich KCR 12 .125 8 1 1 0 0 5 1 0 0 3 1 .250 .462 Duffy, Frank KCR 7 .182 22 4 1 0 0 2 2 0 1 1 1 .227 .250 Cardenal, Jose KCR 54 .341 217 74 21 1 7 16 22 6 0 40 42 .544 .377 Kelly, Pat KCR 54 .284 208 59 15 2 4 37 37 10 1 47 22 .433 .392 Piniella, Lou KCR 52 .279 190 53 8 3 1 12 21 0 0 18 25 .368 .319 Northey, Scott KCR 21 .357 28 10 2 0 0 4 5 2 1 4 2 .429 .438 Keough, Joe KCR 12 .077 13 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 .077 .077 Rico, Fred KCR 7 .300 20 6 1 0 0 4 4 0 0 1 3 .350 .417
Catcher: Grote would impress more if he'd stop getting hurt so often. He's in danger of losing his starting role to Rodriguez. Paepke...will probably be traded this year, as there's really no home for him here.
First: Oliver's giving us his best...and it's not very. His decent power doesn't make up for his inability to consistently get on base. Thompson's an enigma: He's tearing up Omaha (1.000 OBP) and may come back in July. Fiore may be having a career year.
Infield: Looking at BA it's pretty obvious who the starters are: Concepcion, Hart and Salmon. Andrews hasn't come through at second, and as I said when going over the Opening Day roster: Severson's running out of time to impress.
Outfield: Piniella's really rebounded after an awful start, perhaps with the knowledge that Scott Northey wants his spot. Cardenal, Kelly, Piniella, Northey and even Rico are doing very well. If Northey can keep his glove under control (and not field in the .800s...) then Joe Keough may be expendable.
Starters: Fitzmorris is due back in a week. At that time our starting rotation will probably be Splittorff/Blyleven/Rooker/Fitz with Montgomery being the 5-man. Late this month Wally Bunker should return: At that point whoever's doing worse between Rooker and Fitz becomes the 5-man.Code:1971 Pitching Team IP ERA G GS W L SV K BB R/9 Splittorff, Paul KCR 99.1 3.08 14 14 7 1 0 65 31 10.42 Blyleven, Bert KCR 99.2 3.61 13 13 9 3 0 83 27 10.57 Rooker, Jim KCR 66.2 4.73 11 11 4 3 0 50 28 14.31 Fitzmorris, Al KCR 54.0 3.50 8 8 2 2 0 28 16 12.17 Montgomery, Monty KCR 38.2 5.59 7 7 1 2 0 32 15 16.29 Butler, Bill KCR 5.0 7.20 1 1 1 0 0 2 5 21.60 York, Jim KCR 34.1 5.50 22 0 3 5 2 34 12 14.42 Wright, Ken KCR 31.0 4.65 21 0 3 2 1 20 26 15.39 Fingers, Rollie KCR 9.0 1.00 10 0 1 2 6 6 4 8.00 Hedlund, Mike KCR 15.1 2.35 10 0 1 1 1 7 7 14.67 Cram, Jerry KCR 15.2 4.60 9 0 0 1 0 8 3 13.21 Drago, Dick KCR 17.2 4.58 7 0 0 0 1 9 10 14.77
Relievers: I'd almost rather use Fingers in setup or short relief rather than closing, but I think he'd have a fit. Therefore he stays as closer, Hedlund in setup. No one else is doing particularly well (or particularly horrid). The impulse to replace York is strong but probably premature, especially as I have only one reliever of note in Omaha and his ERA is over 3.
Lemon (and his DICE rating) say York can still get the job done, so we'll leave him in short relief a little while longer with Cram. Wright falls to middle relief, and Drago stays long.
* Unavailable on May 31:Code:Projected Lineup Bench Start Rotation Bullpen C Grote* C Rodriguez S1 Blyleven CL Fingers SS Concepcion 1B Fiore S2 Splittorff SU Hedlund RF Kelly IF Severson S3 Rooker SR York CF Cardenal IF Andrews S4 Fitzmorris* SR Cram 2B Salmon OF Rico MU Montgomery MR Wright 3B Hart OF Northey LR Drago LF Piniella 1B Oliver*
Grote will be back June 10. Until then Rodriguez will fill in, Paepke on the bench
Fitzmorris will return June 7. Until then Montgomery has his slot. Aurelio Lopez Mopup
Oliver will return June 2. Fiore fills his slot.
Retired Dynasties I'm Proud of
To Rule in Kansas City Part I and Part II (Kansas City Royals 1969-73, Hall of Fame)
Cardinal Sins (St. Louis Cardinals 1976-78) and it's sequel:
Diverting Destiny (Montreal Expos 1994)
Script for my Requiem (New Orleans Blues (fictional) 1954)
Vigilante
Well, you've been in first two months now, might as well try and go wire to wire!
Problemo?
I blame Martin for Will's struggles.
Read More Dynasties!
Coach Owens: Perhaps. *nods* He's doing well in Omaha. I figure another month or so and we can give him another go.
*******
1971 Amateur Draft
"Chuck? Chuck Finley! How are you?"
"I'm..fine." I looked at my phone, then returning it to my ear. "What can I do for you, uh.. Chuck?"
Marcie came in: Plain and thin, with brown hair curled around her shoulders. She held up a folder containing our scouting reports on Oakland's roster. I nodded and beckoned her over.
"Will you be traveling with your team to Seattle?"
"I..." I opened my drawer and pulled out a copy of our schedule. June 12-14. "I'm planning to, Charley. Why?"
"Then your team has a few days off. I was wondering if I could meet you and Kevin on the 15th. Kevin's already agreed to stay home when his team goes on the road that day."
"I...sure, Charley. What's this about?"
He paused. "Let's say I have a proposal for the future of the League, but I want a chance to talk to you two before Summer Meetings."
"But I'll be in Oakland on the 6th. We could talk then."
He chuckled. "But I won't be, Chuck. Plus, the A's don't see Seattle until after the All Star Break, so I want to get up there anyway. I'll see you then!"
*******
"Kevin Calahan."
"I understand we have a meeting on the 15th." I tapped my pencil on my copy of the A's roster.
"Chuck?" He sighed. "Yes, God knows what he wants. He just said it was important."
"You sound tired."
He snorted. "Me? We're having our best year ever, Chuck. We're on track to win 64 games. I'm doing great."
"Is Boeing losing patience with you?"
"I wish! No, really! You'd think they would care about such a big investment, but I get nothing from them! I call once a week and let them know what we need. It arrives by courier in the next day or two. Then nothing."
"Maybe they trust your judgement."
"I'm glad someone does. The Seattle Times wants my head."
"I think the Star wants to give me a medal."
"Lucky ______!"
*******
I have no immediate needs for the Amateur Draft. Ignoring starters and bench players:
At catcher I have Paepke (71/73) [26] and Martinez (71/93) [22]. As I said, Paepke will probably leave shortly. Only Grote is over 27. I'm okay for a few years.
After Oliver there's Fiore (73) [26], Thompson (82/94) [19] and Kusick (67/81) [22]. Again, only Oliver is over 27. Someone there is expendable. I don't need a first baseman.
In the infield there's White (73/94) [20] and Duffy (73/75) [24] on the horizon with more on the way. Hart's the oldest infielder at 29. Interesting enough, he's technically my only 3B. It doesn't really matter as there are others more than qualified to play third, but perhaps I'll look for one.
After our bench players the only qualified outfielder is Joe Keough (73/81) [25]. A strong outfielder as a high pick might be useful, but we have more solid OFs only a few years from the Big Show.
Once Bunker and Butler return I'll have more than enough SP and may look to move one by the deadline. Lopez (72/81) [22] and Steve Busby (73/86) [21] can fill in when there are major injuries as at present.
I'm also fairly solid with relievers, Lance Clemons (72/90) [23] can come up if there's an injury. I wouldn't say no to another RP, but it's not really needed.
*******
Top 10
1, 3B Larry Parrish (MON) (52/91) (Oh well.)
2. 3B George Brett (SDP) (65/92) (GAH!!!)
3. SP Frank Tanana (SEA) (62/93)
4. RP Larry Andersen (CLE) (59/82)
5. LF Jim Rice (KCR) (60/93)
* Well, after a year or two of seasoning any OF problem should be over.
6. SP John Candelaria (LAA) (61/90)
7. SP Tom Underwood (LAD) (57/91)
8. C Bo Diaz (BOS) (59/84)
9. RP Bruce Taylor (DET) (46/87)
10. SP Paul Moskau (CIN) (47/85)
Other Royal Picks
2. SP Pete Falcone (47/93) * Too valuable to pass up
3. 2B Jose Baez (49/80) * A backup infielder. Converting to third base
4. RP Roger Slagle (46/83) * Not that many pitchers in the low minors.
5. RP Victor Bernal (46/83) * Ditto
6. 3B Juan Bernhardt (49/73) * Probably a throwaway. We'll give him a shot though.
Retired Dynasties I'm Proud of
To Rule in Kansas City Part I and Part II (Kansas City Royals 1969-73, Hall of Fame)
Cardinal Sins (St. Louis Cardinals 1976-78) and it's sequel:
Diverting Destiny (Montreal Expos 1994)
Script for my Requiem (New Orleans Blues (fictional) 1954)
Vigilante
Great draft!
You got a potential Hall-of-Famer in Jim Ed Rice, and your second pick Falcone may be just as good. This may become a true dynasty in about 5 years!
Pity about Brett though. Looks like this universe is completely on its own now.
BTW -- if Rice is around, Dewey Evans is in the league somewhere too. He turned 18 in '70
Problemo?
Originally Posted by CatKnight
Did you ask Arnie if you could use his copyrighted word?
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PotatoofCouch: I was really happy to get Rice. Of course, I wasn't so happy to have lost Brett. Oh well.
Imgran: We're definitely on our own.
When I realized I had Rice I decided to look up Dewey and Fred Lynn:
Jim Rice
Acquired by KCR: 1st round (5th pick) 1971
Overall/Peak: 60/93
Assignment: D- Kingsport Royals (Rookie ball)
Currently .333/.333/.333 0 HR-3 RBI 0 SB in 9 AB
Fred Lynn
Acquired by SDP: 1st round (1st pick) 1970
Overall/Peak: 65/92
Assignment: C- Lodi Padres (A ball)
Currently: .375/.450/.522 3 HR-32 RBI 1 SB in 136 AB
Also .325/.400/.600 2-9 1 in D-Tri City this year
Dwight Evans
Acquired by MON: 1st round (2nd pick) 1969
Overall/Peak: 77/93
Assignment: C- West Palm Beach Expos (A ball)
Currently: .431/.556/.884 24 HR-74 RBI 3 SB in 225 AB
Coach Owens: Who's Arnie and what makes him think he can steal my GAH?
Retired Dynasties I'm Proud of
To Rule in Kansas City Part I and Part II (Kansas City Royals 1969-73, Hall of Fame)
Cardinal Sins (St. Louis Cardinals 1976-78) and it's sequel:
Diverting Destiny (Montreal Expos 1994)
Script for my Requiem (New Orleans Blues (fictional) 1954)
Read More Dynasties!
Early June 1971
Sports Illustrated
Cover Story
With one third of the baseball season over with, a third year expansion team threatens to unseat the American League champions and take the division. Improbable? More like...
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE
It is a Wednesday evening at Municipal Stadium in Kansas City. Fans fill the stands to near capacity wearing Royal blue in a growing tidal wave of support for their team.
Last year there were fewer fans towards the end. Kansas City finished 64-98, an embarassing fifth place in a year where manager Billy Martin all but guaranteed a better performance. The average baseball fan here can be a little jaded: Many watched the Athletics stumble for years, and just when it seemed they might turn things around owner Charlie Finley moved them to Oakland. One could forgive anyone who thought this team would just bring their city more heartache.
Then the Royals showed what they could do: They're a young team, which perhaps was part of the problem last year. Now most of their players have a full season under their belts and the difference is plain.
General Manager Chuck Hunter, who 'guaranteed' 72 wins this year, is ecstatic. "We drafted in 1969 for young players with potential as opposed to established players. I knew it would take a few years for us to hit our stride. I never expected anything like this."
Hunter gives a lot of credit to first year manager Bob Lemon. "Bob is very calm and patient. I believe that's rubbed off on the players. They're much more patient this year, much less apt to make mistakes and more willing to wait for opportunities."
Tonight's game requires patience. They're playing Minnesota, and after both teams score a run a piece by the second inning the bats remain silent until the 8th. Jim Rooker, the current old man of the rotation at 28, looks like a staff ace mowing through the Twin lineup.
"Bob is a great manager," added Bert Blyleven, their 20 year old star. "He and (Pitching Coach) Satchel (Paige) really understand pitching and I've learned a lot from them."
"Bob's more relaxed," first baseman Bob Oliver agreed. "Nothing against Billy, but sometimes he'd explode for no reason. You could never be sure where you stood with him."
Lemon praises his players as well. "We don't have one slacker on this team. Not one. These boys give the team everything they can and stay very focused during games. So many of them are hitting their stride in the same year it's amazing. They make it fun to come to the ball park."
As it turns out Kansas City will lose this game 3-1 as reliever Mike Hedlund gives up two runs late. Naturally the players are disappointed, but they have a good attitude.
"Tomorrow's another day," CF Pat Kelly said. "You can't beat yourself up about one game. There are too many of them. You'd go nuts. All you can do is go back out there and get it right tomorrow."
*******
Minnesota (26-28) (4th, -6g) at Kansas City (32-22) (1st, +2.5g)
5/31: Montgomery pitched 8 innings of shutout ball giving up 4 hits. Good offense all around, led by Jose Cardenal (2/4 2R, 2BI) gives us a convincing win. Royals 7-0
WP: Montgomery (2-2)
1: Another slaughter. This time it's Blyleven going 8 innings. Northey starts in center going 2/4 2R, 3BI. Fiore also gets 3 RBI. Royals 10-1
WP: Blyleven (10-3), HR: Northey (1)
2: Minnesota's Jim Perry gets some revenge with a CG shutout of his own. We only get 4 hits, two by Rich Severson starting at 3B. Twins 3-0
LP: Splittorff (7-2)
*******
After being taken out in the sixth Splittorff walked up and down the dugout exchanging sharp words with several teammates. Only one of those three runs were earned, as we gave up three errors. I hope things settle down soon.
*******
Kansas City (34-23) (1st, +3.5g) at Boston (27-30) (4th, -15g)
3: Our pitching...blew. Not much else to say. Oliver hit his fourth homer for all the good it did us. Red Sox 7-3
LP: Rooker (4-4), HR: Oliver (4)
4: Again our pitching struggles, with Ken Wright (1 IP 4 ER) putting together a particularly obnoxious performance. We score 3 late thanks to Andrews, Paepke and Concepcion but the damage is done. Red Sox 8-3
LP: Montgomery (2-3)
5: We really should have had this one, taking a 4-1 lead through 4. They scored one in each of the next 4 innings. Our offense isn't clicking well despite three homers. Red Sox 5-4
LP: Hedlund (1-2), HR: Hart (9), Kelly (5), Concepcion (3)
*******
...Uhoh... The good news (I hope) is Fitzmorris comes back this series.
*******
Kansas City (34-26) (1st, +2.5g) at Oakland (30-27) (2nd-T, -2.5g)
6: Splittorff is once more chased out early and once more seems to bring out the worst in our fielders, but this time we strike back. Piniella hits a three-run homer in the ninth to win. Royals 5-4
WP: Hedlund (2-2), HR: Cardenal (8), Piniella (2)
7: Fitzmorris returns from the DL with a complete game! True to form, he also gets two hits raising his BA to .391. Royals 4-1
WP: Fitzmorris (3-2) (CG), HR: Oliver (5)
8: Rooker put together 8 solid innings, giving up only 1 ER (though 7 H, 5 BB). A more substantial performance by our offense, with Rodriguez getting 3 R, Kelly going 3 for 5 with 3 RBI, and Hart hitting a 3-run homer. Royals 7-1
WP: Rooker (5-4), HR: Hart (10)
*******
SLAM! That was the sound of the door slamming on Oakland's chances at catching us in the near future. Another sweep! Kauffman called asking me to convey his congratulations to the entire club.
Not all is well, however. We've lost Paul Splittorff! It turns out the fielders are having trouble because he's thrown more erratic lately and had trouble placing his pitches. This was due to a growing case of elbow tendonitis which is now running away from him. He's out indefinitely! He's 7-2 3.13 2 CG. This could be disastrous.
Jerry Grote is back, leading to a difficult decision. He's batting .327-2-23 with a .384 OBA and .438 SLG. Rodriguez is .313 0-9 1 with .415 OBA and .364 SLG. Pretty much a dead heat. On the one hand, any ounce of power (like Grote possesses) is useful. On the other, Rodriguez is better at getting on base (a #1 hitter's sole job) and he's the one who's held the job here in KC for years. Bob is giving the tentative nod to Grote, but he told me he could change his mind. Ellie's grown much better at calling games and controlling the field in the last year.
*******
Kansas City (37-26) (1st, +3.5g) at Cleveland (20-43) (5th, -25g)
9: Cardenal goes 2/4 with a BB, 3R and 2BI while Salmon follows going 3/4 with 2 BI of his own . Montgomery puts in a fair performance, while the bullpen keeps Cleveland down for 4 innings. Royals 6-3
WP: Montgomery (3-3), SV: Hedlund (2), HR: Cardenal (9)
10: Blyleven pitches a CG shutout. We only get 5 hits, 3 of them (Hart, Piniella and Kelly) doubles. Royals 2-0
WP: Blyleven (11-3) (CG)
11: Trailing 2-0 entering the 7th our offense explodes! Oliver hits a 2-run shot, Concepcion one for three more. Reliever Jim York surprises everyone with a 2 RBI single. Royals 9-2
WP: Drago (1-0), SV: York (3), HR: Oliver (6), Concepcion (4)
*******
Drago had to pitch because Fitzmorris has an emergency in his family and will miss a few days. This means Aurelio Lopez is our new number 4 pitcher and we'll see how he does.
We've won six in a row!
*******
Kansas City (40-26) (1st, +4.5g) at Seattle (26-34) (5th, -11g)
12: We get our first look at Seattle ace Marty Pattin in a year. It's not very promising. Oliver leads the way with 3 RBI. Royals 9-4
WP: Rooker (6-4), HR: Grote (3), Oliver (7)
13: We battle long into the Washington night. Cardenal walked, stole second and scored on Hart's triple in the 11th. Seattle's Ed Kranepool responded by walking, advancing on a single and scoring on a suicide bunt. It wasn't until Cram gave up a single to Ron Theobold, who stole second and scored on Bob Boone's single that the game ended. Pilots 4-3 (14)
LP: Cram (0-2)
14: Revenge! Lopez gave up 3 hits in 5 innings (no runs) in his ML debut, while Cram and Hedlund completed the shutout. Kelly went 3/5 with a double, homer, 2 R and 2 RBI as we win. Royals 8-0
WP: Lopez (1-0), HR: Kelly (6)
*******
After this we got three days off and could only watch Chicago whittle away at our lead.
Thru 6/17
AL East: Baltimore (51-21), New York (-5g), Washington (-11g)Code:Team W L GB KANSAS CITY 42 27 -- Chicago 39 30 3 Oakland 34 35 8 Minnesota 34 38 9.5 Seattle 28 38 12.5 Los Angeles 29 43 14.5
NL East: Chicago (39-30), NY Mets (-3.5g), St. Louis (-6g)
NL West: San Francisco (42-27), Atlanta (-3g), Houston (-3.5g)
Team Leaders:
********Code:AVG: Jose Cardenal (.317) HR: Jim Ray Hart (10) RBI: Jim Ray Hart (50) (7th-T) SB: Pat Kelly (10) (9th) W: Bert Blyleven (11) (1st) ERA: Paul Splittorff (3.13) (6th) K: Bert Blyleven (104) (1st) SV: Rollie Fingers (6) (8th-T)
Retired Dynasties I'm Proud of
To Rule in Kansas City Part I and Part II (Kansas City Royals 1969-73, Hall of Fame)
Cardinal Sins (St. Louis Cardinals 1976-78) and it's sequel:
Diverting Destiny (Montreal Expos 1994)
Script for my Requiem (New Orleans Blues (fictional) 1954)
Registered User
Wow, another sweep of Oakland...this is getting a little scary! Go KC!
A little surprised that none of the three outfielders (Lynn, Evans, Rice) ended up in Boston, I sometimes find the AI just picks guys that actually played for the drafting team, not always of course, but sometimes.
Bored
FYI: You can make it more realistic in 09 (Atleast in the Beta), so the teams "mimic Historical Drafts". Atleast that's what I think it says
Back at this dynasty thing again: Resurrecting The Rockies: 2001 Onward
Vigilante
Looks like you've avoided the dreaded "SI Cover Jinx" up to this point (knock on wood). And another sweep of the A's? Way to keep rolling!
Bet you can't wait to get some of your starters back. What's that, 4 out all at once and you're still leading?
Problemo?
Arnold Schwarzenegger of course! The one who trademarked "GAHHH!!"
[b
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