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Circuit Clouts
August 1, 1998 • All-Star Classic Edition
August 1, 1998 • All-Star Classic Edition
East W L GB Last R RA
Toronto 60 49 - 11-14 2 12
Brooklyn 59 50 1 12-13 1 5
Florida 56 53 4 14-11 11 1
Havana 49 58 10 15-10 17 8
Montreal 49 60 11 12-13 8 9
Washington 48 61 12 13-12 13 13
Keystone 47 62 13 11-14 14 15
Manhattan 46 63 14 9-16 15 5
Boston 44 64 15½ 9-16 16 17
West W L GB Last R RA
Seattle 68 41 - 14-11 4 2
Chicago 68 41 - 15-10 3 7
St. Louis 61 48 7 15-10 6 3
Cleveland 60 49 8 12-13 7 16
Denver 60 49 8 13-12 5 9
Minneapolis 60 49 8 13-12 10 4
Atlanta 59 50 9 16-9 9 14
Detroit 54 55 14 14-11 11 9
Los Angeles 31 77 36½ 7-18 18 18
tied
ROLEN ROLEN ROLEN
Scott Rolen (MPS) became the first batter in UL history to hit four home runs in one game. The Foxes' All-Star 3B did the feat at Fenway Park on Apr. 24 in Minneapolis' 11-2 rout. Two of the dingers came off starter Andy Pettitte, one off Osvaldo Fernandez, and the last off Troy Percival.
144 players had hit homer hat tricks before Apr. 24, but none had succeeded in getting the fourth one out of the park.
Move 'em on, Head em' up
Cut 'em out, Ride 'em in!
LOWE'S NO-NO
Toronto SP Derek Lowe recorded the first no-hitter in franchise history on July 15 at Ed Werenich Stadium. Lowe, the 12th overall pick last year, is already 23-15 for his career, with 288 strikeouts and 6.3 WAR. And he is only one and a half seasons into his career. Lowe blanked the Maroons, allowing just two walks and striking out 14.
ALL-STAR CLASSIC
MVP Vladi Rules the World
World Wins 3 of 4 Behind Hot Bats
The World batted .318 with a .876 OPS, overpowering the USA to win three of four games in the UL's second All-Star Classic. World pitchers combined for a 3.55 ERA and held USA batters to just a .207 average and .603 OPS.
WORLD 7, USA 3
Pedro Martinez (ATL) established an ASC record with 15 strikeouts, while Orlando Cabrera (KEY) and Dave Nilsson (BRO) each clobbered two-run homers off USA starter Mike Mason (MON) in a 7-3 World romp. Mason was one of the stars of the inaugural Classic in Miami last year. Pedro's pitching line was even more impressive before Rich Gedman's (CLE) two-run homer in the 8th.
WORLD 7, USA 6 (12)
Juan Gonzalez (TOR) hit a solo homer off Bret Saberhagen (STL) to deliver an extra-inning win in the second game. Jermaine Dye (MON) was 2-for-5 with a homer and 3 RBIs for the USA, but the World's bullpen proved superior to the Americans', as Hideo Nomo (DEN), Mariano Rivera (SEA), Armando Benitez (CHI), Ismael Valdez (CLE), and Fernie Valenzuela (ATL) combined for eight shutout innings, allowing just two hits, after Julian Tavarez's (BOS) nightmare start. The Boston ace gave up nine hits and six runs in just four innings as the USA took a 6-5 lead after five. But Cleveland's Carlos Delgado tied it at 6-6 with an RBI double in the eighth, setting up the extra frames.
USA 3, WORLD 2
Steve Cooke (CHI) and Kelvim Escobar (MPS) locked horns in the Classic's only pitchers' duel. Cooke got the better of the Foxes' sophomore sensation, allowing just five hits and one run in 8.0 innings. Nomar Garciaparra's (SEA) two-run double off Valenzuela in the fifth proved to be the decisive runs. Vladimir Guerrero provided half of the World's six hits and drove in both of their runs, as Escobar took the hard-luck loss (4.1, 2 H, 3 R, 5 K).
WORLD 5, USA 3
In an unscripted and unplanned fourth game, Pedro Martinez got a curtain call, adding 6 strikeouts to his tally in a 5.2-inning, 3-run performance. Jermaine Dye (MON) and Darin Erstad (DEN) each hit their second home run of the tournament, but could not overcome the World's bats. Every 1-8 hitter got at least one hit, led by Raul Mondesi's 4-for-4 with a home run, as the World racked up 15 hits, chasing Mike Mason after just three innings.
Montreal's Vladimir Guerrero capture First Star honors. The reigning MVP hit .474-1-4 with a 1.421 OPS. Mondesi was the Second Star with a .467 average, 1 HR, 5 RBI, and a 1.171 OPS. The Third Star was Steve Cooke, who allowed just 5 hits and 1 run in 8.0 innings for a 1.12 ERA and 6 strikeouts.
Next year's Classic will be hosted by Vladi's Montreal Voyageurs, who last hosted the All-Star Game in 1980 in the old Parc Jarry and have yet to host the Midsummer Classic in its space-age Stade Olympique.
CRISIS IN CUBA
Leones to San Diego
Golden State Welcomes Refugee Team With Open Arms
Just months after winning its second United League franchise, California welcomed its third.
The Havana Leones struck a deal with California officials today to move the beleaguered franchise to San Diego for the 1999 season. The Leones were forced to move their team offices to Miami after the Cuban revolution, though the Castro regime later agreed to let the club finish the 1997 at Stadio Latinoamericano.
According to a reliable source, Stedman Pacafox, absentee Leones GM Lance Mueller, who has run the Havana franchise from his midcentury modern home in Marin County for several years, placed some phone calls from Miami in the early days of the crisis. One of the first calls was to California Gov. Pete Wilson, who happens to be the former mayor of San Diego. Wilson helped the Leones arrange the relocation of many club facilities directly to San Diego, home of their Triple-A farm club, rather than to Miami. A few weeks later, Gov. Wilson brokered a meeting between Mueller and current San Diego mayor Susan Golding (a progressive Republican who was born in Muskogee, Okla. and earned a degree in international relations from Carleton College in Minnesota).
Golding called an emergency session of the city council, which unanimously approved the move of the UL franchise to Jack Murphy Stadium, a concrete cathedral where the Triple-A Admirals already play. "From a logistics point of view, there isn't much different between the Admirals and the Leones," a stadium official said. "I won't comment on the quality of the teams," he added with a chuckle, followed by a roar of laughter that left this reporter somewhat rattled.
Jack Murphy Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium that hosts the NFL's San Diego Chargers and the NASL's San Diego Sockers, in addition to the International League club. Mueller said the club has brainstormed the idea of a new ballpark in the city, but at the moment was focused on getting all the club's assets off the island of Cuba and sorting out the cross-country move off the club elements currently in Miami.
When the season started, the Los Angeles Outlaws and Seattle Rainiers were the only West Coast teams in the UL. Next Opening Day, there will be five, after the addition of the Bay Area Breakers, the Portland expansion team, and the relocated San Diego team. All that lobbying of the Western senators in the halls of Congress have paid off.
50,000 Games
United League Hit Landmark in Early March
The May 13 matchup between the Atlanta Hilltoppers and the Denver 14ers marked a historic milestone in the history of the league. That contest was the 50,000th regular season United League game. Denver won the game 4-3 behind a solid start by Hideo Nomo. Nomo was presented with a commemorative golden ball to mark the occasion.
The United League arose from the ashes of the defunct National and American Leagues, started as an eight-team circuit, and played its first game in April 1951. In 1999, with three new expansion clubs, the league will expand to 21 clubs, as it closes in on its 50th season in 2000.
West Division
West Division
East Division
East Division
League Leaders
League Leaders
Batting Average
Bobby Abreu MPS .366
Vladi Guerrero MON .358
N. Garciaparra SEA .347
Juan Gonzalez TOR .343
Scott Rolen MPS .334
F. Catalanotto CHI .331
+Ben Grieve FLO .327
+Tony Gwynn ATL .325
Michael Tucker STL .319
+Derrek Lee ATL .316
RBIs
Alex Rodriguez CLE 93
Juan Gonzalez TOR 91
Ken Griffey Jr BRO 91
Scott Rolen MPS 84
Raul Mondesi TOR 82
Carlos Delgado CLE 81
+N. Garciaparra SEA 81
Chipper Jones STL 78
+David Ortiz SEA 78
+Wil Cordero KEY 75
Todd Helton DET 75
Infield Zone Rating
Shane Andrews LA 16.0
Rey Sanchez STL 16.0
Benji Gil SEA 14.8
+T Graffanino MAN 13.8
Tony Batista STL 13.6
Home Runs
Chipper Jones STL 34
Raul Mondesi TOR 33
Juan Gonzalez TOR 32
Alex Rodriguez CLE 27
Carlos Delgado CLE 26
Tony Batista STL 25
+Ken Griffey Jr BRO 25
+Todd Helton DET 24
Derrek Lee ATL 24
bWAR
Scott Rolen MPS 6.3
Tony Batista STL 5.9
Ken Griffey Jr BRO 5.8
Michael Tucker STL 5.5
N. Garciaparra SEA 5.5
Chipper Jones STL 5.5
+Vladi Guerrero MON 5.1
Raul Mondesi TOR 4.9
Juan Gonzalez TOR 4.8
Bobby Abreu MPS 4.7
Outfield Zone Rating
Andruw Jones WAS 15.0
Michael Tucker STL 14.5
Ruben Rivera ATL 14.3
Matt Lawton HAV 12.5
+Darin Erstad DEN 11.5
Earned Run Average
Dwight Gooden SEA 2.22
Erik Hanson SEA 2.75
Mike Mason MON 2.84
+Franc Cordova FLO 2.97
Pedro Martinez ATL 3.04
+Britt Burns STL 3.09
+Kelvim Escobar MPS 3.09
Julian Tavarez BOS 3.10
+Joe Magrane DEN 3.11
Steve Cooke CHI 3.11
Strikeouts
Pedro Martinez ATL 185
Steve Cooke CHI 157
Bartolo Colon FLO 142
Chan Ho Park MON 140
Joe Magrane DEN 138
+Mike Mussina FLO 131
Hideo Nomo DEN 131
+Justin Thompson DET 130
Bret Saberhagen STL 129
+Andy Pettitte BOS 128
Wins
Erik Hanson SEA 15
Britt Burns STL 13
Dwight Gooden SEA 13
+Joe Magrane DEN 13
Kelvim Escobar MPS 12
Pedro Martinez ATL 12
Greg Swindell BRO 12
pWAR
Pedro Martinez ATL 4.9
Erik Hanson SEA 4.3
Bret Saberhagen STL 4.1
Kelvim Esocbar MPS 4.1
Ismael Valdez CLE 3.9
+Dwight Gooden SEA 3.8
+Justin Thompson DET 3.7
Mike Mason MON 3.7
Mike Grace TOR 3.6
Greg Swindell BRO 3.6
Awards
Awards
Batter of the Month
APR Juan Gonzalez TOR
MAY Vladi Guerrero MON
JUN Bobby Abreu MPS
JUL Kurt Abbott HAV
AUG
SEP
Pitcher of the Month
APR Hideo Nomo DEN
MAY Greg Swindell BRO
JUN Dwight Gooden SEA
JUL Joe Magrane DEN
AUG
SEP
Rookie of the Month
APR Carlos Beltran CHI
MAY Carlos Beltran CHI
JUN Roy Halladay HAV
JUL Troy Glaus HAV
AUG
SEP
Player of the Week
4/6 Tony Gwynn ATL
4/13 Ken Griffey Jr BRO
4/20 Tony Batista STL
4/27 Scott Rolen MPS
5/4 N. Garciaparra SEA
5/11 Todd Helton DET
5/18 Carlos Beltran CHI
5/25 Shawn Green WAS
6/1 Bobby Abreu MPS
6/8 Chipper Jones STL
6/15 Jermaine Dye MON
6/22 Sean Casey MPS
6/29 Kevin Millar KEY
7/6 Kurt Abbott HAV
7/13 Ellis Burks SEA
7/20 Kurt Abbott HAV
7/27 Vladi Guerrero MON
8/3
8/10
8/17
8/24
8/31
9/7
9/14
9/21
9/28
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