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Circuit Clouts
July 1, 1994
July 1, 1994
Griffey Lifts Bas to 1st
Brooklyn Jumps Three Spots with 22-5 June
Batter of the Month Ken Griffey Jr. had one of the better months in recent UL history in June, batting .394-11-30, 1.161 and helping lift the Brooklyn Superbas from 4th to 1st with a 22-5 month. Matt Williams (.385-7-24, 1.117) and Robin Yount (.388) helped power a mighty lineup that produced 135 runs in June, good for 5.0 runs per game.
Griffey and Williams are the top 3-4 slugging tandem in the league. At the midway point, they have combined for 38 HR and 130 RBI, and Williams (.355) is leading the batting race while Griffey (5.3) leads the league in bWAR.
All three teams that Brooklyn jumped in June had winning records for the month, showing just how torrid the Bas' recent hot streak has been. And they've been doing it with pitching as well, including a 7-0 shutout at Manhattan June 6 anchored by Ramon Martinez, a 1-0 shutout at Denver June 30 anchored by Steve Avery and 10 others wins allowing two or fewer runs.
Ramon Martinez (25) and Steve Avery (24) are both having breakout years, posting identical 2.17 ERAs in the first half for a combined record of 18-5.
Though Brooklyn is tied for first with Detroit at the end of the first half, Brooklyn ranks 2nd in both runs and runs against and seems well-positioned to claim their first division title since 1976.
Quake Damages SF Stadium
Troubled Franchise Now Playing in Crumbling Ballpark
Tremor Disrupts Soundgarden Concert
The Loma Preta earthquake, which collapsed a section of the Bay Bridge and toppled multiple homes in the Marina District on June 4, also caused major damage to the "Queen of Concrete": 63-year-old Seals Stadium.
The entire grandstand on the first base side has been cordoned off for safety following major structural damage following the quake, which caused an estimated $5-6 billion in property damage. The rest of Seals Stadium was determined safe for use, but attendance will be capped at 20,180 the rest of the season. Fortunately, despite the widespread structural and infrastructure damage caused by the tremor, there were no fatalities, through three roadies sustained minor injuries at the Soundgarden concert at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley.
The NFL's 49ers have offered the Spiders the use of Candlestick Park, which escaped the trembler unscathed and the Oakland City Council has . The team was already looking for new ballpark options since city inspections revealed that the ballclub had performed virtually no routine maintenance on the 1931 facility for over a decade.
Mr. Eventually Crowned!
Everything in Atlanta Is Rising
ATL, EET Announce Partnership
by Sean Holloway, Beat Reporter
With the Hilltoppers on pace to win a record 197 games this year, it seems that everything is looking up and coming up in Atlanta.
To wit, Hilltoppers GM Andy Chaney, and the Official EET Liaison to the UL, Lance Mueller, held a joint presser in conference room K at UL HQ to announce a team specific deal whereby Chaney will become yet another high-visibility UL face to represent EET’s brand.
Stated Chaney. “Negotiations were very long and very hard, but I never doubted that I and the rest of the participants would finish. We are not soft, but we are a bit arrogant, so it took a little more ‘ego’ stroking by EET to push us over the edge, come to an agreement, and consummate this relationship.”
Mueller followed up with his own comments. “EET is very happy to be working with Andy and the Hilltoppers organization, as they embody the spirit of EET - resilient, persistent and ready to go the distance thanks to their rock hard level of focus. There were times in the past when Chaney and ATL finished too quickly and found themselves out of the playoffs prematurely. However, Chaney has built a fighting force of extraordinary magnitude.
We are convinced that he and the Hilltoppers will rise to the occasion and stand firm no matter what the challenge, and it’s that enduring spirit that exemplifies EET. I, for one, would not be shocked if the last memories of the 1994 Season are Hilltopper fans blowing their wads of confetti at a WS victory parade in Atlanta.”
A reporter chimed in and asked Mueller what other plans EET had for the UL. “Well, we are always looking for ways to expand, and we believe we’ve found a hole that we can fill in FLO. GM Lima has finally got the Flammies respectable, so don’t be shocked if something arises there. With a little bit of help, we firmly believe there could be a massive explosion of success.”
Wow! Me thinks this is a partnership made in Heaven! And it seems as if the Flamingos are coming soon and not far behind! That Lance Mueller guy is crazy busy - HAV GM, Special Envoy to the Detroit Griffins, and EET Liaison to the UL! I wonder how he does it?
Just How Good Are These Toppers?
Second Most First Half Wins, 7th Best Win Percentage
On Pace for Record Low Runs Allowed
Whatever becomes of the 1994 Atlanta Hilltoppers, they will already go down in history as one of the best first-half teams in UL history. The Red Blobs notched 59 victories before July 1, making them only the second team to accuulate 59 wins in the first half (Manhattan got 60 in 1977). By winning percentage, Atlanta is the first .700 first half team in 14 years and the 7th best all-time. The best first-half team in history was the 1960 Brooklyn Superbas, who were 52-19 for a .732 win percentage.
Of the nine previous teams to go .700 in the first half, five went on to win the World Series, two lost the World Series, one lost the Semi Series, and one (1957 Washington) missed the playoffs. Only the '60 and '63 Superbas finished the season over .700. The 1963 Superbas also hold the record for fewest runs allowed (2.93), which the Toppers are on pace to shatter (2.64).
The chart below lists every .700 first-half team and their final record and playoff outcome
Best First Half Teams in UL History
Team W L WPct W L WPct Playoffs
1960 Brooklyn 52 19 .732 108 46 .701 Won World Series
1963 Brooklyn 58 22 .725 115 47 .710 Won World Series
1977 Manhattan 60 23 .723 104 52 .667 Won World Series
1957 Washington 52 20 .722 95 57 .617 Missed Playoffs
1959 Brooklyn 54 22 .711 105 49 .682 Lost World Series
1980 Boston† 44 18 .710 96 56 .632 Won World Series
1994 Atlanta 59 25 .702
1961 Brooklyn 54 23 .701 102 52 .662 Won World Series
1962 Chicago 56 24 .700 101 61 .623 Lost World Series
1986 St. Louis 56 24 .700 96 66 .593 Lost Semi Series
† - WW III-shortened first half
League Standings
League Standings
West W L GB Last R RA
Atlanta 59 25 - 19-8 1 1
St. Louis 47 37 12 16-11 4 5
Havana 46 37 12½ 13-14 8 9
Los Angeles 46 38 13 9-18 11 3
Florida 44 40 15 13-14 10 10
Chicago 41 43 18 12-15 12 4
San Francisco 31 53 28 13-14 13 17
Seattle 31 53 28 9-18 16 15
Denver 30 53 28½ 7-20 17 14
East W L GB Last R RA
Brooklyn 52 32 - 22-5 2 2
Detroit 52 32 - 17-10 3 6
Boston 49 35 3 17-10 9 7
Keystone 46 38 6 15-12 7 11
Toronto 45 39 7 17-10 5 8
Montreal 41 43 11 14-13 6 16
Washington 35 49 17 15-12 14 12
Manhattan 30 54 22 5-22 18 18
Cleveland 30 54 22 10-17 15 13
League Leaders
League Leaders
Batting Average
Matt Williams BRO .355
Wade Boggs ATL .344
Dave Nilsson DET .337
+Tony Gwynn ATL .328
+Ken Griffey Jr BRO .318
Larry Walker MON .317
Shane Mack HAV .314
Stan Javier LA .312
+John Kruk STL .309
Juan Gonzalez TOR .309
RBIs
Ryan Klesko DET 81
+Ken Griffey Jr BRO 68
Tim Salmon KEY 68
+Barry Bonds STL 63
Bret Boone MON 63
+Matt Williams BRO 62
Mike Piazza BOS 60
+Eric Karros TOR 59
Frank Thomas LA 57
+Howard Johnson HAV 56
Home Runs
Eric Karros TOR 29
Ryan Klesko DET 27
Barry Bonds STL 24
Tim Salmon KEY 23
+Ken Griffey Jr BRO 21
Sammy Sosa BOS 20
Tom Brunansky MAN 19
+Manny Ramirez ATL 19
5 tied with 18
bWAR
+Ken Griffey Jr BRO 5.3
Tony Phillips STL 4.9
Andy Van Slyke LA 4.9
+Matt Williams BRO 4.9
Dave Nilsson DET 4.8
+Barry Bonds STL 4.7
Wade Boggs ATL 4.5
Shane Mack HAV 4.3
Sammy Sosa BOS 4.2
+Rich Gedman STL 4.2
Infield Zone Rating
Robin Yount BRO 8.3
Alan Trammell CHI 7.9
John Valentin MAN 5.7
+Lou Whitaker HAV 5.0
John Olerud CHI 4.6
Earned Run Average
Darryl Kile ATL 1.87
Pedro Martinez ATL 2.02
Mike Mussina FLO 2.08
Greg Swindell LA 2.15
Ramon Martinez BRO 2.17
Steve Avery BRO 2.17
+Floyd Youmans LA 2.30
Joe Magrane STL 2.41
Ed Whitson ATL 2.48
+F. Valenzuela ATL 2.59
Strikeouts
Pedro Martinez ATL 169
F. Valenzuela ATL 146
Mike Mussina FLO 142
Floyd Youmans LA 141
Roger Clemens HAV 130
+Darryl Kile ATL 127
+Pat Hentgen BOS 122
Jon Lieber BOS 121
Dwight Gooden TOR 120
Scott Sanders DET 119
Outfield Zone Rating
Eric Davis CHI 11.6
Stan Javier LA 8.4
Shane Mack HAV 8.0
+Ken Griffey Jr BRO 5.5
Jerry Browne BRO 4.8
Wins
Mike Mussina FLO 12
Joe Magrane STL 11
Ed Whitson ATL 11
Brian Anderson BOS 10
Darryl Kile ATL 10
7 tied with 9
pWAR
Mike Mussina FLO 4.4
Pedro Martinez ATL 4.3
Darryl Kile ATL 3.8
Jon Lieber BOS 3.5
Dwight Gooden TOR 3.2
Greg Swindell LA 3.1
+Bret Saberhagen BOS 3.1
Erik Hanson CHI 3.0
Fern Valenzuela ATL 3.0
+Butch Henry KEY 2.9
Awards
Awards
Batter of the Month
APR Raffy Palmeiro STL
MAY Tim Salmon KEY
JUN Ken Griffey Jr BRO
JUL
AUG
SEP
Pitcher of the Month
APR Mike Mussina FLO
MAY Mike Mussina FLO
JUN Pat Hentgen BOS
JUL
AUG
SEP
Rookie of the Month
APR Aaron Sele KEY
MAY Jon Lieber BOS
JUN Jim Edmonds CLE
JUL
AUG
SEP
Player of the Week
4/11 Kal Daniels BOS
4/18 Tim Salmon KEY
4/25 Shane Mack HAV
5/2 Jeff Bagwell KEY
5/9 Greg Colbrunn ATL
5/16 Ken Griffey Jr BRO
5/23 Andy Van Slyke LA
5/30 Matt Williams BRO
6/6 Ron Karkovice LA
6/13 Matt Williams BRO
6/20 Ken Griffey Jr BRO
6/27 Barry Bonds STL
Milestones
Milestones
May 14 - HAV Lenny Dykstra 500 stolen bases (#20 all-time)
May 16 - ATL Tony Gwynn 500 stolen bases (#21 all-time)
May 18 - LA Andy Van Slyke 700 stolen bases (#5 all-time)
May 25 - TOR Dwight Gooden 2,500 strikeouts (#22 all-time)
June 5 - BOS Mike Scott 2,000 strikeouts (#42 all-time)
June 6 - ATL Wade Boggs 1,000 runs (57 all-time)
June 7 - SEA Alvin Davis 1,000 RBIs (48 all-time)
Injuries
(*min 4 wk; bold=this sim)
Injuries
(*min 4 wk; bold=this sim)
ATL SP John Smoltz 8 mo
ATL RP Todd Worrell 6 wk
DEN SP Bill Swift 2 mo
LA SP Jose Lima 12 mo
MAN RP Frank Seminara 4 wk
SF SP Steve Trachsel 5 wk
SEA SP Joey Hamilton 8 mo
East Division
East Division
Brooklyn's 22-5 June came on the heels of a 9-3 run, giving them a 31-8 record since May 18, when they were 21-24 and in 6th place. Ramon Martinez is 27-8, 2.64 since 1993 and 6-0, 2.03 in his last nine starts.
Youngsters Ryan Klesko and Dave Nilsson are leading the Flyin' Lions attack. Klesko (23) is 2nd in HR (27) and 1st in RBI (81), while Nilsson is 3rd in batting (.337) and 5th in WAR (4.8). Dave Beard leads the league with 24 saves.
Pat Hentgen was Pitcher of the Month for June with a 6-0 record and 1.11 ERA. Third-year catcher Mike Piazza (2nd overall pick in 1992) is on pace for his third straight 30-homer year.
Jose DeLeon is 3-1, 3.28 in 5 starts since joining the Murmuring from Manhattan on June 1; sophomore southpaw Kirk Rueter is 9-3, 3.99; and closer John Dopson has 20 saves with a 3.43 ERA. Tim Salmon's next home run will be his 100th, ranking 6th among batters 25 and under (Griffey, Sosa, Alomar, Felix, Sheffield).
Dwight Gooden was 4-1, 2.38 in June and the P-Bears were 17-10. In May, Doc was 0-5, 4.82 and the P-Bears were 12-17, further supporting the axiom "As goes Gooden, so go the Polar Bears."
Closer Rene Arocha has a 17-game save streak.
The Canoeists have three hitters batting .300 and that does not include Bret Boone, who leads the club with 18 HR and 63 RBI and co-leads with 2.7 WAR. Larry Walker is batting .316 with 94 doubles over the last three seasons. Montreal ranks dead last in Starters ERA; Kenny Rogers (5.60 in nine starts) and Darren Oliver (5.09 in 17 starts) have particularly struggled.
After a 21-41 start, the Mons are 14-8, thanks in part to Kirby Puckett's resurgence. Kirby's OPS by month: .442, .678, .819. David Wells started 4-4 and was 5-0 in June.
Second-year closer Bryce Florie notched six saves in 12 appearances, with a 2.70 ERA in June.
The Sox were 5-22 in June and rank dead last in both runs and runs against. 3-4-5 starters Greg W. Harris, Bill Laskey, and Bob Tewksbury are a combined 0-13 with a 6.50ish ERA in 19 starts.
CF Jim Edmonds was Rookie of the Month (.358-6-20, 1.010). Ismael Valdez has a quite respectable 2.81 ERA in 17 starts. Allen Watson is 0-12 in 17 starts with a 5.40 ERA. Six of his losses came in games in which Cleveland held the opposition to three runs or less.
West Division
West Division
The Toppers are 1st in SLG, OPS, bWAR, runs, XBH, ERA, Starters' ERA, runs allowed, pWAR, hits allowed, opponents AVG, and home runs allowed. Manny Ramirez' 19 first-half homers already surpasses last year's season total and the SP trio of Pedro, Fernie, and Darryl is 28-8, 2.15
The Maroons climbed three spots in June, from 5th to 2nd, with a 16-11 record. St. Louis and Atlanta were the only West Division teams with winning records in the month. Barry Bonds hit his third career homer hat trick on June 24 and took Player of the Week honors.
The Leones are the biggest surprise team of the first half—though not exactly a shock. Havana was picked fifth in the division by both BNN and Reed's Read, but was touted—along with Atlanta—as a potential breakout team that could usurp the three-team stranglehold on the West Division. #2 starter Roger Clemens, in his 11th year, is posting career bests in ERA (2.62), WHIP (1.15) and ERA+ (135).
In an otherwise forgettable month, catcher Ron Karkovice won Player of the Week on June 6 with a .556-1-6 week. For the year, however, "Officer" is batting just .235 with a .668 OPS. L.A. was 9-18 in June, dropping from 2nd to 4th and imperiling its league-record 13-year playoff streak.
In this year of the pitcher, Flammies ace Mike Mussina—the 1st overall pick in 1991—is having one of the best pitching years in recent years, with a 12-2 record and 2.08 ERA. He ranks 3rd in ERA and strikeouts and leads the league with 4.4 pWAR. After a 26-win improvement in 1993, the Mings are again over .500 and just 2.5 game out of the Hex.
Picked to finished 1st overall by BNN, the Colts instead are the biggest disappointment of the season and the only playoff team from a year ago with a losing record. Chicago's offense has plummetted from 5th to 12th and one need to look no further than the cleanup spot to discover the culprit. Gary Sheffield is batting .226-8-31 after going .299-34-81 last year. His OPS has cratered 200 points to .673.
Following the June 3 earthquake, the Spiders are now the only UL club playing its home games in a metaphor. Since late June, the Spiders have lost their ace Steve Trachsel for five weeks and their top-rated prospect Garrett Anderson for six weeks.
The Rainiers team batting average was north of .280 for eight straight years from 1985-92. Last year, it dipped to .256 and this year the R's are batting .237, 15th in the league. Willie McGee, a career .327 hitter, is batting .280; Rickey Henderson, a career .294 hitter, is batting .242; and Alvin Davis, a career .299 hitter, is batting .239. Among the .300 hitters of the Rainiers' prime, only 3B Chris Brown (.299) is batting near his career.
You know your offense is in trouble when your RBI leader is Ozzie Smith. Tim Raines (.296) is the only regular batting over .264. Anthony Young leads the staff with a 3.71 ERA.
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