Greatest National League
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@NailsEastNashville Thanks! I have to say I’m rooting against the 2020 team since they didn’t play anything close to a full season, but they are going to be formidable.
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In the battle of the seven Dodger champions, the 1963 Los Angeles Dodgers emerged as the best despite furious charges by the 2020 pandemic Dodgers and the 1955 bums from Brooklyn. Here were the final standings.
LA 1963: 37-23
LA 2020: 35-25
BRK 1955: 34-26
LA 1981: 33-27
LA 1965: 31-29
LA 1959: 23-37
LA 1988: 17-43The '63 Dodgers only hit .223 as a team, but in this pitching rich field of competition, they had the best team average and thus the most balanced of the Dodger teams. Frank Howard was the MVP of the play in season, hitting .264, 22 HR and 58 RBI. Maury Wills stole 26 bases and scored 35 runs. The '63 version of Sandy Koufax was the best one; 13-5, 1.60 ERA, 0.73 WHIP and 160 strikeouts in just 146 1/3 innings. Don Drysdale was no slouch: 10-6, 1.72 ERA, 0.77 WHIP. Close Ron Perranoski led a thin bullpen with 10 saves and a 1.69 ERA.
The 2020 Dodgers looked scary on paper. Two grade A starting pitchers, about 100 B grade or higher pitchers in the bullpen, eight of the nine regulars with a 1 at 66; four players with a 1 at 11 and 66. How could this team lose to anybody? I was not looking forward to seeing a team that only played…60 games(!) earn a berth into The Greatest National League. The real 2020 Dodgers steamrolled their way through to a 43-17 record. This team played .500 ball through 50 games before they spanked the 1988 Dodgers 10 straight games. A.J. Pollock (.320, 24 HR, 48 RBI), Will D. Smith (25 HR, 50 RBI, 41 runs scored), Corey Seager (.266, 15 HR), and Mookie Betts (.257, 17 HR, 16 SBs, 41 runs scored) were a relentless murderers row. Both Pollock and Smith had an OPS over 1. Tony Gonsolin (12-4, 1.66 ERA, 0.68 WHIP) was money on the mound. Clayton Kershaw ( 2.51 ERA , 0.88 WHIP) had a lot of hard luck starts and their other two starters Dustin May and Julio Urias were erratic. Victor Gonzalez saved 11 games with a 2.05 ERA.
Brooklyn was the only team not to have a starter with an A grade, but Don Newcombe ( 13-3, 2.43 ERA, 0.92 WHIP) played like one. He was good at the plate as well, hitting .269, two HRs, and 11 RBI in 53 ABs. The trio of Clem Labine, Roger Craig, and Don Bessent made up for spotty starting pitching with a combined 6-5 record, 10 saves, and a 2.35 ERA in 92 innings. Roy Campanella hit .250 with 25 HRs and 47 RBI to lead the offense. Duke Snider hit a disappointing .206 with 16 HRs and 40 RBI.
The 1981 Dodgers were carried by their starting pitching. All four starters (Fernando Valenzuela, Burt Hooton, Jerry Reuss, and Bob Welch) had ERAs under 3. No one had a more roller coaster play in season than Valenzuela who gave up only three earned runs in his first 49 innings pitched, then gave up 11 HRs in three starts against Brooklyn. Overall he had a 2.34 ERA but surrendered 18 HRs in 17 starts. Hooton (10-5, 2.24 ERA) was their most consistent starter. The '81 Dodgers did not sustain offense often; Pedro Guerrero led the team in HRs with 8 and RBI with 36 while only hitting .223.
The 1965 Dodgers problems with scoring runs can be summed up with these stats: Maury Wills stole an incredible 52 bases but only scored 32 runs. The '65 versions of Koufax and Drysdale did not fare as well as their '63 counterparts. Koufax finished just 7-8 with a 2.17 ERA. Drysdale went 6-9 with a 3.42 ERA. He gave up 17 HRs in his 18 starts. Similar to the '81 team, the '65 Dodgers lacked power; Lou Johnson led the team in HRs with 7.
The 1959 Dodgers did not have a regular hit over .250. The '59 version of Snider was equally as disappointing as the Brooklyn version: .227, 12 HRs, 30 RBI. Gil Hodges hit a lowly .189 with 15 HR. The '59 Drysdale (5-9, 2.57 ERA) was a hard luck starter while Roger Craig (4-11, 3.41 ERA) was by far the worst grade A starting pitcher. Koufax was awful (3-8, 5.63 ERA).
The 1988 Dodgers were grossly overmatched by most of the other teams. They only hit .184 as a team. Mike Marshall only hit .225, but he had a knack of driving in runs; he had 45 RBI on 14 HRs and missed five games with injuries; the next highest RBI total was Kirk Gibson with 18. Orel Hershiser (2.73 ERA) and John Tudor (2.42 ERA) combined for just a 6-20 record.
One other tidbit that made me laugh; catcher John Roseboro played for three of the teams (1959, 1963, and 1965). He was John on the '59 and '65 teams but Johnny on the '63 team.
The next play in season will decide who will represent the New York/San Francisco Giants from 1905, 1921, 1922, 1933, 1954, 2010, 2012, and 2014. Christy Mathewson leads the '05 Giants. I hope Moonlight Graham with his 1 AB gets a card (check out Field of Dreams if you don’t get the reference). The '21 and '22 Giants were all about their hitting with .300 hitters galore. The '33 Giants were led by Mel Ott and Carl Hubbell. The '54 Giants featured a monster season from WIllie Mays. The 2K Giant teams, offer the brilliance of Buster Posey in front of and behind the plate and the steady arm of Madison Bumgarner.
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Eight Giant franchises from New York and San Francisco battled it out in a 70 game play in season for a berth in The Greatest National League. In the end, the 1905 New York Giants eclipsed the 1907 Chicago Cubs as the oldest franchise to earn their spot among the best of the best National League teams. Here were the final standings.
1905 NY: 53-17
1921 NY: 42-28
1922 NY: 41-29
1954 NY: 34-36
2012 SF: 31-39
1933 NY: 29-41
2010 SF: 26-44
2014 SF: 24-46The 1905 New York Giants scored the most runs (378), despite only hitting 16 HRs and had the best team ERA at 3.12. Christy Mathewson had an amazing 17-1 record, but while his 2.39 ERA was great, he was vulnerable at times as well, giving up 16 HRs. Red Ames provided the other half of the 1-2 punch with a 12-3 record and 2.67 ERA. Mike Donlin hit .326 with 52 RBI despite hitting zero homeruns! Roger Breshnahan scored 67 runs in the 68 games he played while hitting .296 with 26 stolen bases. These Giants stole 172 bases, constantly putting men in scoring position.
The 1921 and 1922 Giants finished second and third respectively with their relentless hitting. Irish Meusel hit .323 with 12 HRs and 44 RBI for the '21 Giants and .323 with 8 HR and 46 RBI for the '22 Giants. Ross Young hit .313 for the '21 Giants with 18 triples (!) and 55 runs scored. The 1922 version hit .342 with 29 doubles and 64 runs scored. George Kelly led both teams in HRs and RBI with 12 and 50 for the '21 squad and 10 and 59 for the '22 team. Both teams had one dependable starting pitcher. The '21 Giants were led by Jesse Barnes (9-7 2.71 ERA). The '22 Giants were paced by Art Nehf (13-6 2.45 ERA).
The 1954 Giants were too dependant on the brilliance of Willie Mays on offense. Mays hit .304 with 20 HRs, 46 RBI, 44 runs scored and a 1.064 OPS. Don Mueller hit ,333, but a lot of his hits were empty as he only tallied 21 RBI and 22 runs scored. Nobody else hit above .209. These Giants also only had one dependable starter; Johnny Antonelli went 12-6 with a 2.14 ERA. Closer Marv Grissom saved 14 games in 21 appearances.
None of the San Francisco teams fared well in the play in season. The 2012 team came the closest to making noise. They were 25-25 before losing 14 of their last 20 games. The 2K12 team hit .218 while the 2K10 team hit .211 and the 2K14 squad hit just .204. Buster Posey has been the biggest disappointment of all of the superstar players so far. His numbers for the 2K10-14 teams: .216, 10 HR, 41 RBI (2010), .233, 12 HR, 46 RBI (2012), .187, 14 HR, 36 RBI (2014).Aubrey Huff put up solid numbers for the 2K10 team, hitting .268 with 13 HR and 41 RBI. Angel Pagan was a force for the 2K12 squad, hitting .290 with 45 runs scored and was the only player on the 2K14 team to hit .250; no one had a higher average. The 2K10 team had the highest team ERA at 4.05. Only four starting pitchers from all three teams combined had ERAs under 4. The best was Ryan Vogelsong from the 2K12 Giants who earned a 8-3 record with a 2.04 ERA. All three teams had very deep bullpens that kept them in games, but the offenses were not strong enough to pull off come from behind wins, and the starters put them in a hole too many times.
The 1933 Giants had a putrid offense, barely scoring over three runs a game. Mel Ott was a major disappointment, hitting just .215 with 8 HR and 30 RBI. Their lack of offense hurt the strongest group of starting pitchers. Carl Hubbell (2.87), Hal Schumacher (2.59), and Freddie Fitzimmons (2.77) combined for a record of just 19-22. Hubbell was mysteriously ineffective for a grade A + C pitcher. He failed to get a win in his first 10 starts, gave up 14 HRs, and had an ERA as high as 3.31 at one point.
With the 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks an automatic entry, the last spot will go to the winner of the play in season between the St, Louis Cardinals of 1926, 1931, 1934, 1942, 1944, 1946, 1964, 1967, 1982, 2006, and 2011. Some of the hall of famers (and future hall of famers) that will compete include Rogers Hornsby,Frankie Frisch, Dizzy Dean, Stan Musial, Enos Slaughter, Lou Brock, Curt Flood, Bob Gibson, Ozzie Smith, Albert Pujols, and Yadier Molina.
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11 teams from the St. Louis Cardinals franchise battled for the right to earn their spot in the Greatest National League. After 1,100 games, the 1942 Cardinals came out on top with a 64-36 record. Below are the final standings:
- 1942 Cardinals 64-36
- 1982 Cardinals 56-44
- 1944 Cardinals 51-49
- 1934 Cardinals 51-49
- 1931 Cardinals 51-49
- 1926 Cardinals 50-50
- 1946 Cardinals 50-50
- 1964 Cardinals 47-53
- 2011 Cardinals 46-54
- 1967 Cardinals 42-58
- 2006 Cardinals 42-58
The 1942 Cardinals offense was carried by Stan Musial. “The Man” led the Cards in average (.288), home runs (11), RBI (71), OPS (.868), runs scored (69), and stolen bases (12). Ironically, Musial hit even better for the 1944 and 1946 Cardinals teams. Musial hit .326 with 10 HRs, 54 RBI and a .977 OPS for the '44 Cards and .339, 61 RBI, and a .931 OPS for the '46 Cards. The two biggest reasons for the '42 Cardinals success came from the 1-2 punch of Mort Cooper and Johnny Beazley at the top of the rotation. Cooper finished 17-7 with a 2.22 ERA (lowest of all of the Cardinal pitchers) and 0.83 WHIP while Beazley was 18-8 with a 2.72 ERA and 0.87 WHIP.
Johnny Hopp of the 1944 Cardinals was the top hitter at .346. Frankie Frisch of the 1931 Cardinals was the top run scorer with 78 to go with a .273 average and 31 stolen bases. Albert Pujols of the 2006 Cardinals hit 39 home runs, 13 more than the second highest slugger. He also tied for first in RBI with 88. The best overall hitter was Rip Collins of the 1934 Cardinals. Rip lived up to his name by finishing 5th in hitting at .321, second in runs scored with 76, second in home runs with 26 (along with Lance Berkman of the 2011 Cardinals), first in RBI with Pujols at 88, and first in OPS at 1.052.
There were many outstanding pitchers in the play in season. Dizzy Dean of the 1934 Cardinals tied Beazley in wins with 18 (against 7 losses) to go with a 2.47 ERA. Bruce Sutter of the 1982 Cardinals pitched in the most saves with 28 with a 2.57 ERA. Bill Hallahan of the 1931 Cardinals had the most strikeouts, 167 in 224 2/3 innings while compiling a 9-14 record and a 3.20 ERA. Howie Pollet of the 1946 Cardinals had the lowest WHIP at 0.81 to go with a 12-9 record with a 2.41 ERA.
Now that the 1942 Cardinals are in, here are the list of teams in the Greatest National League:
1905 New York Giants
1907 Chicago Cubs
1942 St. Louis Cardinals
1957 Milwaukee Braves
1963 Los Angeles Dodgers
1969 New York Mets
1976 Cincinnati Reds
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates
1980 Philadelphia Phillies
1997 Florida Marlins
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks
2019 Washington NationalsThe teams will be organized into two divisions and play a 154 game season. I will continue to use this forum to update the regular season games. Finally, I will be creating a new forum to see which teams will make up the Greatest American League.
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The first week of the regular season in the Greatest National League is finished. Here are the standings.
East Division1905 New York Giants 5-1
1980 Philadelphia 4-2
1969 New York Mets 4-2
2019 Washington 3-3
1979 Pittsburgh 2-4
1997 Florida 2-4Central/West Division1907 Chicago 4-2
1942 St. Louis 3-3
1957 Milwaukee 3-3
1963 Los Angeles 2-4
2001 Arizona 2-4
1976 Cincinnati 2-4The 1905 Giants scored 45 runs in their six games; they scored 10 or more runs in two games, a 15-6 beatdown of the 1963 Dodgers and a wild 10-9 win over the 1976 Reds. First baseman Dan McGann went off, hitting .538 with three home runs and 15 RBI. Left fielder Mike Donlin was white hot at the plate as well; he hit .522 and scored 10 runs. Christy Mathewson won both of his starts with a 2.50 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 18 innings. Steve Carlton of the 1980 Phillies and Alex Fernandez of the 1997 Marlins also won their first two starts; Carlton with a 1.50 ERA and Fernandez with a 1.06 ERA.
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After two weeks into the regular season, The 1905 New York Giants have announced their presence with authority. Here are the current standings:
**East Division**1905 New York Giants 11-1
1980 Philadelphia 6-6
2019 Washington 6-6
1969 New York Mets 6-6
1997 Florida 5-7
1979 Pittsburgh 4-8**Central/West Division**1907 Chicago 7-5
1976 Cincinnati 7-5
1942 St. Louis 6-6
1957 Milwaukee 6-6
1963 Los Angeles 4-8
2001 Arizona 4-8The 1905 Giants are hitting a ridiculous .325 as a team. Mike Donlin (.458), Dan McGann (.408), and George Browne (.373) are first, second and fourth in hitting respectively. McGann also leads the league in RBI with 19 while Browne is second with 17. Joe Morgan of Cincinnati has the most homeruns (6) and highest OPS (1.475) while hitting .342.
The 1942 Cardinals have wasted their 1.97 team ERA with weak hitting. Mort Cooper has struck out 26 batters in 23 innings and is 4th in ERA at 1.17, but with only a 1-1 record to show for it. Bruce Kison of the 1979 Pirates has been one of their few bright spots so far with a 3-0 record and a 0.72 ERA.
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The third week of the Greatest National League is in the books. Here are the standings.
**East Division**1905 New York Giants 16-3
2019 Washington Nationals 10-9
1980 Philadelphia Phillies 8-11
1969 New York Mets 8-11
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates 8-11
1997 Florida Marlins 8-11**Central/West Division**1907 Chicago Cubs 12-7
1976 Cincinnati Reds 11-8
1942 St. Louis Cardinals 10-9
1963 Los Angeles Dodgers 8-11
1957 Milwaukee Braves 8-11
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks 7-12The 1905 Giants built up an 11 game winning streak before finally losing 10-5 to the 1969 Mets. Mike Donlin and Dan McGann are the top two hitters at .419 and .397 respectively. McGann also leads the league in RBI with 32, 10 more than the next closest player.
Not only did Jack Pfiester pitch back-to-back shutouts for the 1907 Cubs to improve his record to 4-0 with a 1.06 ERA, he also drove in the game’s only run in a 1-0 win over the 1969 Mets with a sac fly.
Three other shutouts were pitched this week: Max Lanier pitched a five-hitter for the 1942 Cardinals in their 8-0 win over the 2001 Diamondbacks. Gary Gentry pitched a two-hitter for the 1969 Mets in a 3-0 win over the 1907 Cubs, a game in which the Cubs committed five errors. Don Robinson pitched a four-hitter for the 1979 Pirates in a 9-0 win over the 1997 Marlins. Willie Stargell hit two homers in that game; he leads the league in homeruns with 10.
There were several dramatic endings to games. The 1957 Braves toppled the 1997 Marlins 5-3 after scoring all of their runs with two outs in the top of the 9th, including a pair of two-run homers by Johnny Logan and pinch hitter Bob Hazle. The 1963 Dodgers pulled off a 5-3 win over the 1980 Phillies on a walkoff three-run homer by Ron Fairly. The 2001 Diamondbacks had a couple of wild wins over the 1957 Braves. In a game featuring seven homeruns, the Diamondbacks won 10-7 on a three-run walkoff dinger by pinch hitter Alex Cintron. In the next game, they erased a 7-2 deficit in the bottom of the ninth with five runs, capped by a Matt Williams three-run homer. Then, trailing 10-7 in the bottom of the 11th, they scored four runs, ending with a walkoff single by Damian Miller for an 11-10 win.
A few games featured some odd outcomes. The 1976 Reds lost 5-2 to the 2019 Nationals despite having 16 hits; they left 16 men on base. Sandy Koufax hit three batters in the 1963 Dodgers’ 4-3 win over the 2019 Nationals; there were no fights. In the 1976 Reds 10-3 win over the 1980 Phillies, Joe Morgan had this stat line: 0-0, five walks, two stolen bases, four runs scored, one RBI.
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I’m amazed at the dominance of the '05 Giants. They were 53-17 in their play in games and off to a fast start here. I fancy myself as a decent baseball historian, yet I never heard much about this Giant team outside of Christy Mathewson. I guess it’s because, like you said, it’s a dead ball era team, but I still wonder why this team was never considered among the best teams ever. The offense is relentless and the starting pitching is suffocating. The Pirates have been a lot of fun to play with; when Dave Parker starts hitting, they will be even more dangerous.
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Each team has now played 25 games. Here are the current standings.
**East Division**1905 New York Giants 20-5
2019 Washington Nationals 13-12
1969 New York Mets 12-13
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates 12-13
1980 Philadelphia Phillies 10-15
1997 Florida Marlins 10-15**Central/West Division**1976 Cincinnati Reds 16-9
1907 Chicago Cubs 14-11
1942 St. Louis Cardinals 13-12
1963 Los Angeles Dodgers 12-13
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks 9-16
1957 Milwaukee Braves 9-16The Big Red Machine had a 5-1 week to take over first place in the Central/West Division. Joe Morgan continues to build an early MVP case with a .315 average (6th), 9 HRs (tied for second), 31 RBI (2nd), 28 runs scored (tied for first), 10 stolen bases (tied for third), and a 1.232 OPS (first). Here are the league leaders after the first 25 games.
**Batting Average**Mike Donlin (NYG) .398
Dan McGann (NYG) .384
Johnny Kling (CHI) .365
Roger Breshnahan (NYG) .340
Stan Musial (STL) .323**Home Runs**Willie Stargell (PIT) 12
Joe Morgan (CIN) 9
Bill Robinson (PIT) 9
Henry Aaron (MIL) 8
Dan McGann (NYG) 7
Tommy Agee (NYM) 7**RBI**Dan McGann (NYG) 38
Joe Morgan (CIN) 31
Mike Donlin (NYG) 23
Willie Stargell (PIT) 23
Matt Williams (AZ) 23**OPS**Joe Morgan (CIN) 1.232
Dan McGann (NYG) 1.113
Mike Donlin (NYG) 1.009
Willie Stargell (PIT) .951
Stan Musial (STL) .940**ERA**Ed Reulbach (CHI) 0.47
Bruce Kison (PIT) 1.07
Mort Cooper (STL) 1.35
Jack Pfiester (CHI) 1.50
Christy Mathewson (NYG) 1.50**Strikeouts**Mort Cooper (STL) 42
Kevin Brown (FLA) 41
Steve Carlton (PHI) 40
Christy Mathewson (NYG) 39
Alex Fernandez (FLA) 39There were a few dramatic endings in this week’s worth of games involving the 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks. Luis Gonzalez hit a two-run go-ahead home run in the 9th inning to lead the Diamondbacks to a 5-4 win over the Pirates. They lost in bizarre fashion later in the week 4-3 in 11 innings to the Reds after closer Byung-Hyun Kim walked four batters in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game. Gonzalez came back in the next game with a two-run go ahead homer in the 9th to give the Diamondbacks a 3-2 win.
There were eight complete game shutouts pitched this week, but the most impressive performance on the mound by far was by Kevin Brown of the 1997 Florida Marlins. Brown struck out 8 of the first 9 2019 Washington Nationals he faced, enroute to a 17 strikeout performance in a 6-1 win.
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Glad you like it! League batting average is .226 and ERA is 3.57. The best hitting team so far is the 1905 New York Giants at .298, and the worst is the 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks at .189. The best team ERA is the 1942 St. Louis Cardinals at 2.50 and the worst is the 1957 Milwaukee Braves at 5.06.
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A little more than 1/5 of the regular season has been played. Here are the updated standings.
**East Division**1905 New York Giants 23-9
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates 17-15
2019 Washington Nationals 17-16
1980 Philadelphia Phillies 13-19
1969 New York Mets 13-19
1997 Florida Marlins 13-19**Central/West Division**1942 St. Louis Cardinals 20-13
1907 Chicago Cubs 18-14
1976 Cincinnati Reds 17-15
1963 Los Angeles Dodgers 15-17
1957 Milwaukee Braves 15-17
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks 12-20The 1905 Giants finally came back to Earth a little, splitting a four game series with the 1979 Pirates before losing two of three to the 1997 Marlins; it is the first series they have lost this season. The 1942 Cardinals won seven in a row to propel them to the top of the Central/Western Division. Below are the updated league leaders.
*Batting Average**Mike Donlin (NYG) .416
Dan McGann (NYG) .387
Johnny Kling (CHI) .361
Lonnie Smith (PHI) .330
Stan Musial (STL) .328**Homeruns**Willie Stargell (PIT) 16
Bill Robinson (PIT) 10
Joe Morgan (CIN) 10
Tommy Agee (NYM) 9
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 8
Anthony Rendon (WAS) 8
Hank Aaron (MIL) 8
George Foster (CIN) 8**RBI**Dan McGann (NYG) 49
Willie Stargell (PIT) 36
Joe Morgan (CIN) 33
Goerge Foster (CIN) 31
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 28
Tony Perez (CIN) 28**OPS**Willie Stargell (PIT) 1.099
Dan McGann (NYG) 1.093
Joe Morgan (CIN) 1.090
Mike Donlin (NYG) 1.041
George Foster (CIN) .976**ERA**Ed Reulbach (CHI) 0.47
Mort Cooper (STL) 1.10
Pat Zachry (CIN) 1.37
Don Drysdale (LA) 1.49
Christy Mathewson (NYG) 1.57**Strikeouts**Sandy Koufax (LA) 53
Red Ames (NYG) 50
Kevin Brown (FLA) 50
Steve Carlton (PHI) 49
Mort Cooper (STL) 49
Max Lanier (STL) 49Here were some of the standout offensive performances: Joe Adcock hit a walkoff two run homer in the 11th to lead the Braves to a 3-1 win over the Diamondbacks. Yan Gomes hit a two out, two run single in the 9th to vault the Nationals over the Marlins 2-1. In the same series, Matt Adams hit a two-run go ahead homer in the 11th inning to give the Nats a 4-2 win. The Marlins hit into five double plays in that game. Mike Schmidt hit a walkoff single in the 9th to give the Phillies a 4-3 win over the Mets. Marty Marion hit a two-run go ahead double in the 9th to lead the Cardinals to a 5-4 win over the Dodgers. In the same series, the Cardinals bludgeoned the Dodgers with 21 hits en route to a 12-5 win. Jay Bell hit two homers to lead the Diamondbacks to a 6-3 win over the Dodgers. Jeff Conine pulled off the two homer trick for the Marlins in a 4-2 win over the Giants. The Pirates got two homers from Willie Stargell and Dave Parker in back-to-back games, both wins over the Reds.
There were several stellar pitching performances as well. At the top of the list was Johnny Beazley of the Cardinals who no hit the Nationals. Five other shutouts were pitched this week including a 1-hitter by Steven Strasburg in a 3-0 win by the Nationals over the Marlins and Mort Cooper who pitched a 4-hitter in a 3-0 win over the Nationals. The Cardinals got outstanding performances from their entire staff; Max Lanier struck out 12 in a 3-1 win over the Dodgers. In the same series, Ernie White pitched a complete game with 8 strikeouts in a 12-2 win while also going 3-4 at the plate with two RBI.
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Here are the updated standings after another week in The Greatest National League.
**East Division**1905 New York Giants 26-12
2019 Washington Nationals 21-18
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates 20-18
1980 Philadelphia Phillies 16-22
1969 New York Mets 15-23
1997 Florida Marlins 14-24**Central/West Division**1942 St. Louis Cardinals 25-14
1907 Chicago Cubs 22-16
1957 Milwaukee Braves 20-18
1976 Cincinnati Reds 19-19
1963 Los Angeles Dodgers 17-21
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks 14-24The Cardinals remained red hot as they won five out of six games as did the Braves, who moved up into third place in the Central/West Division. Here are the updated offensive and pitching league leaders.
**Batting Average**Mike Donlin (NYG) .435
Dan McGann (NYG) .359
Johnny Kling (CHI) .333
Stan Musial (STL) .323
George Foster (CIN) .318**Home Runs**Willie Stargell (PIT) 17
Henry Aaron (MIL) 11
Tommy Agee (NYM) 11
Joe Morgan (CIN) 11
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 11**RBI**Dan McGann (NYG) 50
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 40
WIllie Stargell (PIT) 38
George Foster (CIN) 35
Joe Morgan (CIN) 35**OPS**Mike Donlin (NYG) 1.054
Joe Morgan (CIN) 1.045
Willie Stargell (PIT) 1.024
Dan McGann (NYG) 1.019
George Foster (CIN) .959**ERA** (minimum 50 innings)Bruce Kison (PIT) 1.40
Mort Cooper (STL) 1.58
Christy Mathewson (NYG) 1.63
Pat Zachry (CIN) 1.63
Johnny Beazley (STL) 1.69**Strikeouts**Sandy Koufax (LA) 65
Kevin Brown (FLA) 61
Steve Carlton (PHI) 60
Max Lanier (STL) 59
Randy Johnson (AZ) 57One of the wildest games of the season took place between the 1942 Cardinals and the 1997 Marlins. The Marlins hit five home runs in the game and tied it 7-7 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth when Bobby Bonilla hit a solo shot and Charles Johnson blasted a two-run dinger. The Cardinals took an 8-7 lead in the 11th only for Bonilla to hit another solo homer to tie the game again. The Cards finally put the game away with three runs in the 12th to win 11-8. The Cardinals went on to sweep the series by winning another 12 inning game 6-5, and 2-0 thanks to a Jonathan Beazley 3-hit shutout.
In other pitching exploits: 2001 Arizona’s Robert Ellis and Byung-Hyun Kim combined for a 2-hit, 10 inning shutout of 1957 Milwaukee in a Diamondbacks 2-0 win. Warren Spahn struck out 10 for the losing Braves. The Braves came back in the next game with a 5-0 win as Lew Burdette pitched a 5-hitter and Wes Covington hit two homers. Bruce Kison pitched a 3-hitter in the 1979 Pirates’ 5-0 win over the 1969 Mets. Max Scherzer did everything for the 2019 Nationals in a 1-0 win over the 1980 Phillies; he pitched a 2-hit shutout, struck out 9 batters, and drove in the only run with a single. Bob Miller pitched a 3-hit shutout for the 1963 Dodgers in their 3-0 win over the 1907 Cubs. Randy Johnson struck out 10 batters for 2001 Arizona in their 3-1 win over the 1980 Phillies. Sandy Koufax turned in the most dominant performance of the week against the 2019 Nationals with a 2-hit shutout and 12 strikeouts in the 1963 Dodgers’ 8-0 win.
There were some hitting heroes this week as well. Dave Parker of the 1979 Pirates hit a walkoff triple in the Pirates 2-1 win over the 1969 Mets. In the same series, Ed Ott drove in all three of the Pirates’ runs including a walkoff single in the 11th to give the Pirates a 3-2 win. Harry Steinfeldt of the 1907 Cubs hit a two-out walkoff single in the Cubs 7-6 win over the 1963 Dodgers. Pete Rose hit a two-out walkoff single for the 1976 Reds in a 1-0 10 inning win over the 1905 Giants. In perhaps the best offensive performance of the week, Sam Mertes of the 1905 Giants went 5-6 at the plate with two doubles, a triple, and four RBI to lead the Giants to a 13-3 win over the 1976 Reds. Sammy Strang hit a walkoff double to lead the 1905 Giants to a 10 inning 4-3 win over the 1907 Cubs.
In other highlights and lowlights: Mike Schmidt of the 1980 Phillies had a rough day against the 2001 Diamondbacks when he struck out five times. Despite that, the Phillies won the game 8-1. The 1963 Dodgers had butter fingers in their 8-4 loss to the 2019 Nationals when they committed an error during three consecutive at bats. Stan Musial saved the day for the 1942 Cardinals against the 1976 Reds when he threw out a baserunner at home in the 8th inning to preserve a 4-3 win.
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Both my Braves and Pirates are in 3rd place. Interesting project. I will be following along the rest of the way.
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@falcon4fever Thanks! It’s been a lot of fun so far. Eventually, there will be a Greatest American League as well. I’m almost finished playing out who will represent the Boston franchise.
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This week featured a three game series between the top two teams so far in The Greatest National League, with one team continuing their dominance. Here are the standings.
**East Division**1905 New York Giants 33-12
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates 23-22
2019 Washington Nationals 23-23
1980 Philadelphia Phillies 20-25
1969 New York Mets 18-27
1997 Florida Marlins 16-29**Central/West Division**1942 St. Louis Cardinals 28-18
1907 Chicago Cubs 26-19
1957 Milwaukee Braves 23-22
1976 Cincinnati Reds 22-23
1963 Los Angeles Dodgers 20-25
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks 19-26The 1905 Giants won all seven games they played this week. They beat the 2019 Nationals 8-6 despite eight walks given up by Christy Mathewson. They won the next game in a wild 9-8 back-and forth contest on a two-run walkoff homer by Sam Mertes in a game that had eight lead changes or ties.The Giants went to St. Louis and swept them, thanks in large part to the Cardinals forgetting how to catch the ball. The Cards committed four errors in the first game, three by normally reliable shortstop Marty Marion, in a Giants 9-4 win. Game two had easily the most bizarre ending of any game this season. The Cardinals were holding on to a 1-0 lead with two outs and no one on and ace Mort Cooper on the mound. The Giants proceeded to score **10 runs ** on six hits, four errors, two walks, and a hit batter. Cooper ended up surrendering seven unearned runs before being pulled. The Cardinals tried to rally late in the bottom of the ninth with five runs of their own but the Giants held on to win 10-6. In all the Cardinals committed six errors in that game, four with two outs in the 9th. The Giants completed the sweep with a more ordinary 3-2 win. Here are the league leaders.
**Batting Average**Mike Donlin (NYG) .435
Dan McGann (NYG) .368
George Foster (CIN) .324
Stan Musial (STL) .315
Johnny Kling (CHI) .302**Homeruns**Willie Stargell (PIT) 21
Henry Aaron (MIL) 14
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 13
Joe Morgan (CIN) 13
Reggie Sanders (AZ) 11
Tommy Agee (NYM) 11**RBI**Dan McGann (NYG) 59
Willie Stargell (PIT) 49
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 47
George Foster (CIN) 42
Joe Morgan (CIN) 42**OPS**Joe Morgan (CIN) 1.086
Willie Stargell (PIT) 1.048
Mike Donlin (NYG) 1.044
Dan McGann (NYG) 1.025
George Foster (CIN) .967**ERA (minimum 60 innings)**Mort Cooper (STL) 1.32
Ed Reulbach (CHI) 1.35
Pat Zachry (CIN) 1.56
Steve Carlton (PHI) 1.82
Bruce Kison (PIT) 1.90**Strikeouts**Steve Carlton (PHI) 82
Mort Cooper (STL) 73
Red Ames (NYG) 71
Sandy Koufax (LA) 69
Kevin Brown (FLA) 66
Christy Mathewson (NYG) 66Here are some notable games to report: The 1969 Mets beat the 1997 Marlins 4-3 in 12 innings after Bud Harrelson hit a two-out two-run triple to tie the game. Tommy Agee hit a walk-off triple in the 12th to win the game. Bruce Kison is not only one of the top pitchers so far this year, he also showed some pop at the plate for the 1979 Pirates when he hit a two-run homer in a 14-5 win over the 2001 Diamondbacks. Jim Bibby struck out 10 Diamondbacks in the next game for a Pirates 6-2 win. The Diamondbacks managed to split that four game series which concluded with the Diamondbacks winning 9-8 on the strength of two Luis Gonzalez homeruns. It looked like the 1980 Phillies would spoil a 14 strikeout outing by Steve Carlton against the 1976 Reds when they trailed 2-1 in the 9th. Mike Schmidt tied the game with a solo dinger and Gary Maddox followed with a walk-off two-run blast to give the Phils a 4-2 win. The 1942 Cardinals took three of four from the 1963 Dodgers. Mort Cooper struck out 10 in a 9-1 win. Jimmy Brown hit a walkoff double in the 9th to give the Cards a 5-4 win. Warren Spahn did a little of everything in 1957 Milwaukee’s 5-4 win over the 1907 Cubs; Spahn pitched a complete game and hit a two-run homerun. The Cubs’ “Three Finger” Brown drove in two runs of his own to win the following game 3-2 in 10 innings.
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The 1905 Giants continue to have a stranglehold on the National League. They took three out of four games in St. Louis to highlight this week’s worth of games. The 1942 Cardinals won 7-2 in the first game only to drop the next three games. Dummy Taylor pitched a 3-hit shutout to give the Giants a 4-0 win in game two. They held on to win the next game 6-5 in which Christy Mathewson came in to get the save, and blew out the Cards 15-1 thanks to 20 hits and four Cardinal errors. Here are the updated standings and league leaders.
**East Division**1905 New York Giants 39-13
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates 26-25
2019 Washington Nationals 25-27
1969 New York Mets 22-29
1980 Philadelphia Phillies 21-30
1997 Florida Marlins 20-31**Central/West Division**1907 Chicago Cubs 30-21
1942 St. Louis Cardinals 30-23
1957 Milwaukee Braves 27-24
1976 Cincinnati Reds 25-26
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks 22-29
1963 Los Angeles Dodgers 21-30******Batting Average (minimum 155 PA)******Mike Donlin (NYG) .427
Dan McGann (NYG) .366
George Foster (CIN) .313
Johnny Kling (CHI) .301
Stan Musial (STL) .297
Roger Breshnahan (NYG) .297**Homeruns**Willie Stargell (PIT) 22
Henry Aaron (MIL) 16
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 16
Joe Morgan (CIN) 15
Reggie Sanders (AZ) 14**RBI**Dan McGann (NYG) 68
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 54
Willie Stargell (PIT) 53
Joe Morgan (CIN) 48
Sam Mertes (NYG) 44
George Foster (CIN) 44**OPS**Joe Morgan (CIN) 1.089
Dan McGann (NYG) 1.050
Mike Donlin (NYG) 1.035
Willie Stargell (PIT) 1.015
Mike Schmidt (PHI) .938**ERA** (minimum 70 innings)Mort Cooper (STL) 1.29
Pat Zachry (CIN) 1.74
Christy Mathewson (NYG) 1.83
Steve Carlton (PHI) 2.05
Randy Johnson (AZ) 2.10****Strikeouts****Steve Carlton (PHI) 90
Kevin Brown (FLA) 82
Mort Cooper (STL) 82,
Sandy Koufax (LA) 81
Red Ames (NYG) 78Here are some highlights from this past week’s games: The 1997 Marlins beat the 1979 Pirates 8-5 in a wild 11 inning game. After Bill Robinson tied the game 2-2 for the Pirates on a two-run homer in the 8th inning, Kurt Abbott but the Marlins back in front with a two-run dinger of his own in the 10th to retake the lead 4-2. Dave Parker came right back with a two-run blast in the bottom of the 10th to extend the game before the Marlins came back with three runs in the 11th to win it. The 1969 Mets beat the 2019 Nationals in 10 innings on a walkoff passed ball. The loss spoiled a 12 strikeout outing by Stephen Strasburg. The Nats rebounded in the next games with six runs in the 8th inning in an 11-4 win. Howie Kendrick had six RBI in the game. The Mets won the final game in the series 4-2 in 10 innings on a walkoff homer by Tommy Agee. Tom Seaver struck out 10 in that outing. Before dropping three of four to the 1905 Giants, the 1942 Cardinals lost two of three to the 2001 Diamondbacks. The Cards won the first game 2-1 in 11 innings, a game that was scoreless for 10 innings. Walker Cooper hit a two-run walkoff homer after Jay Bell had put the DBacks ahead 1-0 in the top of the 11th with a solo blast. The DBacks won the second game 6-2 when Reggie Sanders hit a grand slam to break the tie. They won another 11 inning game 2-1 with a Sanders walkoff tater after Luis Gonzalez sent the game into extras with a solo HR. Sanders wasn’t done with blasting; he hit a grand slam to lead the Diamondbacks to a 8-1 win over the '69 Mets. The 1907 Cubs had two walkoff wins against the 1957 Braves; one by Jimmy Slagle in the 10th of a 1-0 win, the other by Solly Hoffman, a two-run single to give them a 2-1 win. The Braves salvaged the series with a 10-3 win led by a grand slam and six RBI by Henry Aaron. The Braves swept the 1980 Phillies in their other series; Don McMahon saved all three wins. John Milner hit two homers to lead the 1979 Pirates to a 8-6 win over the 2019 Nationals. Frank Chance had a unique stat line in the 1907 Cubs 7-2 win over the 1976 Reds: three hits, three stolen bases, and four RBI.
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As we get closer to the halfway point of the regular season, here are the current standings:
**East Division**1905 New York Giants 44-15
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates 30-28
2019 Washington Nationals 29-30
1969 New York Mets 25-33
1980 Philadelphia Phillies 24-34
1997 Florida Marlins 23-35**Central-West Division**1907 Chicago Cubs 33-25
1957 Milwaukee Braves 32-26
1942 St. Louis Cardinals 32-28
1976 Cincinnati Reds 30-28
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks 25-33
1963 Los Angeles Dodgers 23-35The 1979 Pirates swept the 1942 Cardinals to move over .500 and in second place in the East Division. While the Giants have a stranglehold on the East, four teams in the Central-West Division are over .500 and within three games of each other. Here are the league leaders:
**Batting Average**Mike Donlin (NYG) .420
Dan McGann (NYG) .361
George Foster (CIN) .324
Roger Breshnahan (NYG) .310
Lonnie Smith (PHI) .302**Homeruns**Willie Stargell (PIT) 24
Henry Aaron (MIL) 18
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 17
Joe Morgan (CIN) 16
Reggie Sanders (AZ) 14
Tommy Agee (NYM) 14**RBI**Dan McGann (NYG) 73
Willie Stargell (PIT) 58
Mike Schmidt (PHI) 55
George Foster (CIN) 52
Joe Morgan (CIN) 51**OPS**Joe Morgan (CIN) 1.064
Dan McGann (NYG) 1.026
Mike Donlin (NYG) 1.010
Willie Stargell (PIT) .990
Mike Schmidt (PHI) .957**ERA**Mort Cooper (STL) 1.67
Christy Mathewson (NYG) 1.86
Jack Pfiester (CHI) 2.07
Don Drysdale (LA) 2.19
Pat Zachry (CIN) 2.21**Strikeouts**Steve Carlton (PHI) 105
Max Scherzer (WAS) 94
Sandy Koufax (LA) 93
Mort Cooper (STL) 92
Kevin Brown (FLA) 91The 1976 Reds beat the 1997 Marlins three out of four games, including a dramatic 5-4 win in 12 innings thanks to a Bobby Bonilla error that led to a Dave Concepcion go-ahead double. Earlier in the series, the Reds bludgeoned the Marlins 12-4 on the strength of 18 hits and four homeruns. The 1980 Phillies and 1942 Cardinals split a four game series with two dramatic wins. Marty Marion’s two-out RBI single in the 9th gave the Cards a 3-2 win in the first game, while the Phils got an unusual walkoff single from pitcher Ron Reed in the final game for a 3-2 Phillies win. The stars were out in the series between the 1963 Dodgers and the 1957 Braves. Don Drysdale pitched a 1-hitter with 9 strikeouts in a Dodgers 2-0 win. Drysdale also blanked the 1997 Marlins 3-0 with a 3-hit gem. Warren Spahn pitched a 1-hitter of his own in a Braves 6-0 win. Hank Aaron hit an 8th inning grand slam to propel the Braves to an 11-7 slobberknocker win. The 1907 Cubs pulled out a hard-fought win over the 1969 Mets 6-5 thanks to a Del Howard pinch-hit walkoff double after Ed Kranepool had tied the game for the Mets in the top of the inning with a solo homerun. The Mets came back later in the series with a 3-0 win. Don Cardwell and Tug McGraw pitched a combined five-hit shutout and all of the Mets runs came in the 9th inning. The 2019 Nationals beat the 2001 Diamondbacks up with pitching and hitting in a four game series; Max Scherzer struck out 12 in 7 innings to lead the Nats to a 2-1 win. They also slugged the Snakes 14-4 thanks to a 10 run 8th inning that included five homeruns (two by Anthony Rendon) and a grand slam by Adam Eaton. They hooked up again for a three game series with a number of pitching gems. Steven Strasburg struckout 10 in a Nationals 7-1 win. Miguel Batista struck out seven batters in a row in a Diamondbacks 5-3 win. Curt Schilling outdueled Max Scherzer in the finale 3-0 with a 3-hitter and 12 strikeouts while Scherzer struck out 11. The 1979 Pirates dropped three of four games to the 1905 Giants, but their one win was spectacular. Dave Parker hit a bases-clearing triple in the 9th to lead the Pirates to a 8-5 win. George Foster had a day for the 1976 Reds against the 1969 Mets; Foster went 4-4 with a homer and 6 RBI in a 14-8 Reds win. Jerry Koosman cooled off the Reds offense in the next game 3-0 with a 2-hit shutout and 8 strikeouts.
