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Circuit Clouts
May 1, 1994 • Opening Day Edition
May 1, 1994 • Opening Day Edition
Klesko and Bonds Star in UL's 44th Opening Day
Valdez Shines for Barons in Last Cleveland Stadium Opener
Detroit's Ryan Klesko was the star of the day in the UL's 44th Opening Day. The young LF homered twice in the Griffins' 10-5 rout of Toronto. Meanwhile, Barry Bonds homered in back-to-back innings as St. Louis devoured the Atlanta bullpen in a 9-5 triumph, and LA's Floyd Youmans fanned 10 in a 3-hit, 7-inning gem in a 2-1 win over Seattle.
WAS 2, BRO 1
At Griffith Stadium, Tom Glavine held Brooklyn to a single run and Victor Cruz got the save in a pitchers' duel against Kevin Brown. Robin Yount hit a pair of doubles in his Superbas debut.
FLO 4, MAN 2
At the Ponce, Mike Mussina gave up two in the first inning before settling down for a six-hit complete game to spoil Jose DeLeon's Manhattan debut. Mark McGwire was 2-for-4 with a home run for the Pink Birds.
KEY 4, HAV 1
Young ace Butch Henry held Havana to one run in seven innings, helping the Starlings to a 4-1 win at New Shibe Park.
DET 10, TOR 5
Ryan Klesko homered twice and Dave Nilsson added a third, as the defending division champs touched Dwight Gooden for eight hits and six runs in five innings. Ellis Burks, John Shelby, and Mickey Tettleton all homered for Toronto in a losing effort
STL 9, ATL 4
The defending strikeout and WHIP champion Pedro Martinez was solid, handing a 2-1 Atlanta lead to the bullpen, but the Maroons erupted for eight runs in two innings for a 9-4 drubbing. Barry Bonds homered in the 7th and 8th, driving in five, and Rich Gedman was 3-for-4 with 3 RBIs in his St. Louis debut.
CLE 6, BOS 0
#2 overall draft pick Ismael Valdez gave Barons fans a glimpse into the future, anchoring a shutout of Boston in the last Opening Day at Cleveland Stadium. Valdez allowed four hits in 5.2 innings and Hipolito Pichardo and Steve Rosenberg locked down the win. Cleveland's offense produced six runs off 11 hits and four hitters had two hits, including rookies Jeffrey Hammonds and Jim Edmonds.
CHI 4, DEN 1
Albert Belle delivered a three-run homer in the first off Ron Darling, quieting the large Opening Day crowd at Ralph Carr Field. Steve Cooke—the 24-year-old held 18-game winner—held the hosts to one run. Jeff Kent, a late addition to the lineup after a fan revolt, was 2-for-3 with an RBI.
LA 2, SEA 1 (10 inn)
At Arroyo Seco Stadium, Floyd Youmans allowed just three hits, while striking out 10 Rainiers and Stan Javier delivered the game-winning single to center off Doug Henry in the 10th as Los Angeles edged Seattle.
MON 5, SF 4
The Spider's Steve Trachsel shut out the visiting Voyageurs for seven innings, then single-handedly blew a 4-0 lead as Montreal plated five in the eighth, highlighted by Bret Boone's three-run double. The late rally gave Chris Bosio the win, with Gregg Olson earning the save. Garrett Anderson's Spiders' debut was less than memorable; the seventh overall pick was 0-for-3 and was ejected in the 6th for arguing a strike call.
Toppers Top West
Atlanta Features 4 of 7 Best ERAs; Boggs Batting Leader
The Atlanta Hilltoppers allowed just 2.4 runs per game in the first month, winning 18 games to lead the West Division. The Red Blobs are owners of four of the best seven ERAs in the league, led by Pedro Martinez' 1.52. Pedro, who lost the ERA title to teammate Fernando Valenzuela by percentage points last year, had a rough first outing, allowing four runs in a 4-3 loss at Havana on Apr. 6. But he has a 0.83 ERA in four starts since then. #4 starter Darryl Kile (1.54) is 4th in ERA. Kile, age 25, was 4-13, 3.10 last year but has looked good coming into 1994. The biggest surprise on Atlanta's staff has been Ed Whitson. The 37-year-old former Maroons came into the season with a career ERA of 3.72, but posted a 1.57 mark in his first six Topper starts. Last but not least, last year's Cy Young winner Fernando Valenzuela ranks 7th in the league, but just 4th on the Toppers, with a 1.94 ERA.
Atlanta's offense is tied for 4th with 4.2 runs per game. Newcomer Wade Boggs is adapting well to his new home after 11 years in the nation's capital. The 34-year-old Boggs leads the league with a .384 batting average. Manny Ramirez has 7 HR and 14 RBI already, and Gary DiSarcina is batting 3.13.
The Tool Shed Arrives!
Griffins GM Brings a New Approach to Press Conferences
As reporters continued to file into Conference Room J at UL HQ, the padding of the entrants’ feet and low hum of voices of those already seated were no match for the cacophony of sound coming from the dais. On said dais, workers were busily and furiously finishing the set-up of…..wait for it…..a tool shed. What was happening?
As the workers wrapped things up, GM Sean Holloway of the Detroit Griffins appeared on the dais and began to speak. “Typically, when I do the Draft Review, I am 100% spot-on because I never miss a detail, not one iota of an indicator of future performance, team strategy – I miss nothing. I even vowed that should anyone discover a verifiable ‘miss’ that I would do all press conferences from a tool shed. Sadly, after nearly 17 years, my reign of no misses has come to an end as I have overlooked KEY’s signing of SEA hero and future middling pundit Harold Reynolds to provide middle infield depth. As such, I must accept whatever consequences KEY’s GM, Doug Aiton, offers – hence the tool shed.”
While there were some titters from the audience, one sharp reporter chimed “but we won’t all fit in there; maybe you should get another shed that has windows so at least you’d be able to open one and speak through it to us.”
This elicited more laughs from the audience, but one astute reporter piped up. “Wait a minute! You said ‘Typically, when I do the Draft Review’. The Draft Review is done by Beat Reporter Sean Holloway, not the DET Griffins GM Sean Holloway…….unless Beat Reporter Holloway and Griffins GM Holloway are the SAME person!”
Upon hearing this, pandemonium was unleashed in Conference Room J. Reporters rushed the stage in the hope of getting their follow-up questions heard over the din. Security linked arms and formed a protective chain around the stage, while GM Holloway could be heard yelling “The first rule of Fight Club is never remove your pants if there are dwarves in the garden!” before being escorted offstage by big men in all black uniforms. One reporter was so overcome that all he could do was huddle in a corner while yelling “get out of my mind!”.
Ahhhhhh! Wait! What could this mean? Is it possible that Beat Reporter Holloway and GM Holloway are the same guy and hid this fact for 17 seasons? And how could this be? For he is the Kwisatz Haderach! Only a being like that could anyone pull off such trickery for so long. What does this mean for the Griffins? What does this mean for The Circuit Clouts and future articles? I’ll tell you that this Beat Reporter cannot wait to find out.
League Standings
League Standings
West W L GB Last R RA
Atlanta 18 10 - 5-5 4t 1
Havana 16 11 1½ 8-2 3 6
Chicago 16 12 2 5-5 8 2
Los Angeles 16 12 2 7-3 9t 5
Denver 15 12 2½ 4-6 11 8t
St. Louis 14 14 4 4-6 4t 10
Florida 12 16 6 5-5 12 15
Seattle 8 20 10 3-7 18 13
San Francisco 7 21 11 2-8 14 17
East W L GB Last R RA
Detroit 18 10 - 7-3 9t 4
Boston 17 11 1 4-6 2 12
Toronto 16 12 2 4-6 1 10
Montreal 16 12 2 6-4 6 14
Keystone 15 13 3 4-6 7 7
Brooklyn 14 14 4 6-4 15 3
Manhattan 13 15 5 6-4 13 18
Washington 11 17 7 6-4 16 8t
Cleveland 9 19 9 4-6 16 16
League Leaders
League Leaders
Batting Average
Wade Boggs ATL .384
Howard Johnson HAV .369
Dave Nilsson DET .366
Jim Thome BOS .364
Mark Grace SF .363
Shane Mack HAV .353
Matt Williams BRO .349
Sammy Sosa BOS .345
Juan Gonzalez TOR .333
Tony Fernandez DET .330
RBIs
Tim Salmon KEY 26
Bret Boone MON 25
Ryan Klesko DET 25
Raffy Palmeiro STL 23
Joe Carter MAN 22
Dave Nilsson DET 22
Jim Thome BOS 22
Mike Stanley HAV 21
Frank Thomas LA 21
Barry Bonds STL 20
Sammy Sosa BOS 20
Home Runs
Tom Brunansky MAN 9
Eric Karros TOR 9
Ryan Klesko DET 9
Raffy Palmeiro STL 9
8 tied with 8
bWAR
Wade Boggs ATL 2.3
Sammy Sosa BOS 2.2
Raffy Palmeiro STL 2.1
Howard Johnson HAV 2.0
Andy Van Slyke LA 1.9
Stan Javier LA 1.9
Dave Nilsson DET 1.8
Shane Mack HAV 1.7
Jim Thome BOS 1.7
Tino Martinez MON 1.7
Infield Zone Rating
Cal Ripken Jr MAN 5.8
Alan Trammell CHI 3.5
John Valentin MAN 3.4
Robin Yount BRO 2.9
Scott Brosius FLO 2.5
Earned Run Average
Mike Mussina FLO 1.20
Greg Swindell LA 1.39
Pedro Martinez ATL 1.52
Darryl Kile ATL 1.54
Ed Whitson ATL 1.57
Steve Avery BRO 1.77
F. Valenzuela ATL 1.94
Ismael Valdez CLE 1.95
Bill Swift DEN 2.00
Ron Robinson MON 2.23
Strikeouts
Pedro Martinez ATL 56
F. Valenzuela ATL 52
Scott Sanders DET 51
Floyd Youmans LA 48
Dwight Gooden TOR 47
Mike Mussina FLO 45
Jose DeLeon MAN 44
Roger Clemens HAV 42
Butch Henry KEY 42
W.VanLandingham KEY 42
Outfield Zone Rating
Stan Javier LA 5.1
Dan Pasqua HAV 2.3
Lloyd Moseby BOS 2.3
Ken Griffey Jr BRO 2.0
Shane Mack HAV 2.0
Wins
Mike Mussina FLO 5
F. Valenzuela ATL 5
Steve Avery BRO 4
Todd Frohwirth LA 4
Darryl Kile ATL 4
Joe Magrane STL 4
Chris Nabholz DET 4
Melido Perez MAN 4
Jeff M. Robinson CHI 4
pWAR
Pedro Martinez ATL 1.8
Butch Henry KEY 1.6
Mike Mussina FLO 1.5
Greg Swindell LA 1.4
Erik Hanson CHI 1.4
John Smoltz ATL 1.4
Fern Valenzuela ATL 1.3
Tom Glavine WAS 1.3
Bret Saberhagen BOS 1.3
Charlie Lea WAS 1.3
Awards
Awards
Batter of the Month
APR Raffy Palmeiro STL
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
Pitcher of the Month
APR Mike Mussina FLO
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
Rookie of the Month
APR Aaron Sele KEY
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
Player of the Week
4/11 Kal Daniels BOS
4/18 Tim Salmon KEY
4/25 Shane Mack HAV
Milestones
Milestones
Sep 29 - ATL Tony Gwynn 2,500 hits (#18 all-time)
Apr 8 - ATL Wade Boggs 2,500 hits (#19 all-time)
Apr 16 - MAN Otis Nixon 500 stolen bases (#18 all-time)
Apr 20 - CLE Rance Mulliniks 1,000 RBIs (#47 all-time)
Apr 24 - LA Andy Van Slyke 2,000 hits (#50 all-time)
Apr 25 - CLE Rance Mulliniks 1,000 runs (#56 all-time)
Apr 29 - WAS Charlie Lea 2,000 strikeouts (#40 all-time)
Injuries
(*min 4 wk; bold=this sim)
Injuries
(*min 4 wk; bold=this sim)
ATL RP Todd Worrell 3 mo
BOS SP Julian Tavarez 2 mo
CLE LF Darren Lewis 7 wk
DEN SP Bill Swift 4 mo
DET SP Pete Schourek 4 wk
LA SP Jose Lima 2 mo
MAN RP Heathcliff Slocumb 2 mo
SEA SP Joey Hamilton 11 mo
East Division
East Division
Catcher Dave Nilsson is 3rd in batting (.366), tied for 5th in RBI (22), and 7th in WAR (1.8).
Dave Beard has a phenomenal 11 saves already, putting him on a 63-save pace. His setup man Mark Wohlers—owner of the single-season save record of 49—has a 0.00 ERA in 9.1 innings.
Forget Sosa, Piazza, and Daniels. 1B Jim Thome is leading the 2nd-ranked Boston attack with .364-6-22, 1.036. Mike Scott, age 38, leads the staff with 2.91 ERA in three starts.
The P-Bears once again are leading the league with 46 home runs, led by Eric Karros (9), Ellis Burks (8), and Mickey Tettleton (8).
Junior Felix had six hits in Montreal's 8-7, 13 inn. win at St. Louis Apr. 10. Felix is batting .293 and trails only Larry Walker (.300) in batting average.
Aaron Sele won Rookie of the Month for April after going 3-2, 2.85 with a 1.17 WHIP in his first five starts. Fellow rookie William Van Landingham was 3-1, 4.84 in his first six starts and is tied for 8th in strikeouts.
The Superbas offense is off to a cold start, ranking 11th in bWAR, 14th in HR, and 15th in runs. Ken Griffey Jr. is batting just .226-2-10, .619—roughly 320 points below his career OPS.
Tom Brunansky hit 5-for-5 with 3 homers in a 10-3 win at Florida on Apr. 3
Washington's bullpen ranks 14th, but its starters rank 4th, led by Tom Glavine (3.05, 1.3 WAR) and Charlie Lea (2.85, 1.3 WAR).
Jeffrey Hammonds had a 7-RBI day in a 10-7 home win over Los Angeles Apr. 19. Thru 28 games, the rookie RF is batting .287-4-17, .740.
West Division
West Division
There have been 19 shutouts so far this season, but none was better than Pedro Martinez's on Apr. 18. Pedro allowed just two hits and struck out 14 in a 3-0 win over Florida.
#2-3 hitters Shane Mack (.353) and Howard Johnson (.369) are in the top six in batting, fueling the 3rd-ranked Leones offense. Mike Stanley leads the club with 21 RBI.
The defending champs ranked 2nd in pitching, led by Terry Mulholland (3-1, 2.58).
Greg Swindell is 2nd in ERA (1.39) and 4th in WAR (1.4) and has 20.1 consecutive shutout innings. Andy Van Slyke, age 33, is off to his best start in years with 8 HR and a .960 SLG.
Denver was the surprise team of the month with a 14-7 start, due largely to the torrid April of Bill Swift (2.00 ERA and 1.15 WHIP in five starts), before a season-ending labrum tear on Apr. 27.
Rafael Palmeiro took Batter of the Month honors with a .308-9-23, 1.035 April. During a nine-game hitting streak early in the month, Raffy hit .444 with a 1.274 OPS.
Pitcher of the Month Mike Mussina went 5-0 with a 1.20 ERA in April. He leads the league in wins and ERA, is 3rd in WAR, and 6th in strikeouts.
Joey Hamilton's rookie season came to an abrupt end on Apr. 11, when he left after just two batters faced in the game against Chicago with an elbow injury that will require reconstructive surgery. RP Graeme Lloyd has a 1.42 ERA in 10 appearances.
With the front office in turmoil, the Spiders got more bad news this month as the City of San Francisco condemned Seals Stadium, giving the club one year to complete long-delayed maintenance work on the 63-year-old stadium. Rumors are swirling that the owners may sell the club rather than pay for renovations. Rookie SP Kevin Foster is 3.13 in five starts and Mark Grace is batting .363 (5th).
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