I hope most of you got the Ken Phelps reference. It’s been, what, 30 years since Bill wrote that piece in one of the Abstracts? Time flies….
Intro 1
Why Billy Grabarkewitz? Why now? Well, there is a fun series of threads in Reader Posts going on right now that looks, day-by-day, at all-time teams by birthday. Billy Grabarkewitz was highlighted on the January 18th birthday all-time team, and it got me reminiscing.
You’ve heard of the Legend of Billy the Kid, the Legend of Billy Jack, and the Legend of Billie Jean? This is about the Legend of Billy G.
Intro 2
I have to admit it. I’m a little burned out by the Hall of Fame. From November through January, it seems like that topic dominates the offseason baseball discussion: who’s on the ballot, who should be in, who shouldn’t, how’s everyone tracking, I’m right, you’re wrong, and "this writer’s ballot is the worst I’ve ever seen – he should lose his voting privileges!" (I must have seen that last comment a hundred times in the Twittersphere…..)
I’m burned out. I needed to cleanse the palate.
This is an anti-Hall of Fame piece. You won’t see any of these players at Cooperstown unless they happen to be visiting the Hall of Fame the same day you are.
First, a little background….
1970
1970 was a significant year for me. It was the first year I truly started following Major League baseball. Oh, I do have memories of thumbing through an encyclopedia and seeing a photo of Mickey Lolich jumping into the arms of Bill Freehan after the final out of the 1968 World Series, and I also have some distant memories of seeing some of the iconic defensive plays (Ron Swoboda, Tommie Agee (twice)) from that "Amazin’" team that won in 1969. But, 1970 was truly the beginning for me as far as paying close attention to a Major League season and following a Major League team. In my case, of course, it was the Cincinnati Reds. In addition, it was the first year I started collecting baseball cards.
As a quick digression…..
1970 was a great time to start following the Reds. I couldn’t have planned it better if I tried. They were generally a winning team throughout the mid-to-late 1960’s, but finished 2nd through 4th most years. They were typically in the upper half of the National League, but couldn’t quite put it all together.
By 1969, though, you could see it coming together. They had a formidable offense, leading the league in runs scored (by almost half a run per game), home runs (by almost 30 over the 2nd highest team), and batting average.
They had assembled an impressive, young lineup:
- C Johnny Bench was 21 years old, already a 2-time All Star and 2-time Gold Glove winner, who had already labeled a future Hall of Famer by Ted Williams.
- 1B Lee May was 26 years old and had just hit 38 home runs with 110 RBI
- 3B Tony Perez was 27 years old and had just hit 37 home runs with 122 RBI
- RF Pete Rose was 28 years old and hit .348 to win his 2nd consecutive batting crown
- CF Bobby Tolan was 23 years old and hit .305 with 21 home runs, 93 RBI, and 26 stolen bases after coming over from St. Louis in the Vada Pinson trade
- LF Alex Johnson was 26 years old and hit .315 with 17 home runs and 88 RBI, although he was a big old pain in the ass.
Even with light hitters like Tommy Helms and Woody Woodward as the double play combination, it was a tremendous offense, and everyone was 28 years of age or younger. They were ready to explode.
And in 1970, they did just that. First they made some tweaks:
- Alex Johnson was traded to the Angels for pitchers Jim McGlothlin and Pedro Borbon
- The Reds played a combination of rookies Hal McRae and Bernie Carbo in LF to replace Johnson
- Another rookie, Wayne Simpson, was installed in the rotation and was a sensation, going 13-1, 2.27 through July 5th before he started having arm troubles.
- Yet another rookie, Dave Concepcion, received significant playing time at shortstop
- Yet two more rookies (Don Gullett and Milt Wilcox) made positive contributions to the pitching staff
The 1970 Reds won their first 4 games out of the gate, and after 100 games they stood with a stunning record of 70-30. Bench was the MVP, Perez was 3rd, and Rose was 8th. They reached the World Series where they lost to the evil Baltimore Orioles and "The Human Vacuum Cleaner", Brooks Robinson.
They moved into their new home (Riverfront Stadium) on June 30th, 1970 after 58 years at Crosley Field. Two weeks later, they hosted the 1970 All Star Game.
Which brings me back to the main topic…..
Certainly one of the more memorable All-Star Game moments occurred in that 1970 All Star game – Pete Rose barreling into catcher Ray Fosse to score the winning run in the 12th inning with 2 outs. A lot of people may remember the other players involved in that play:
- Clyde Wright was the pitcher.
- Jim Hickman got the base hit.
- Amos Otis was the center fielder who threw home
- Leo Durocher was the third base coach waving Rose around and "escorting" him home
However, many people forget (or never knew in the first place) that Billy Grabarkewitz was the runner on first base when the ball was hit, having singled Rose over to second on the previous at bat. A bit player in an iconic moment.
Grabarkewitz
Billy Grabarkewitz is one of the first players I remember. I mentioned card collecting earlier….his was one of the first cards I remember possessing. I can distinctly remember a few cards from that first pack: Chuck Taylor of the Cardinals. Joe Horlen of the White Sox. And, Billy Grabarkewitz of the Dodgers. Grabarkewitz came up briefly in 1969 with the Dodgers as a 23-year old, and I noticed on his card that his batting average was .092 that season. Even as a new fan who didn’t know what batting average exactly was just yet, I had already learned that .092 wasn’t good.
In 1970, though, Grabarkewitz received an opportunity for regular playing time, and he was a sensation. Through April, he was hitting .333, and then he got really hot, hitting .394 in May. He was named to the All Star Game as a reserve, and ended up playing his role in the Rose-Fosse play.
Even though he eventually slowed down, by the time they closed the books on the 1970 season, Grabarkewitz had an impressive stat line. He hit .289. He drew 95 walks to finish with an impressive .399 OBP (7th in the NL). He hit 17 home runs, drove in 84 runs, and stole 19 bases. He played nearly 100 games at third base, but also played 50 games at shortstop, and 20 at second base.
He posted an rWAR of 6.5, which was 5th among NL position players that year.
The top 5:
|
Rank
|
Player
|
rWAR
|
|
1
|
Johnny Bench CIN
|
7.4
|
|
2
|
Tony Perez CIN
|
7.2
|
|
3
|
Billy Williams CHC
|
6.6
|
|
4
|
Willie McCovey SFG
|
6.6
|
|
5
|
Billy Grabarkewitz LAD
|
6.5
|
As they used to sing on Sesame Street, "one of these things is not the same as the others".
Alas, success was fleeting for Grabarkewitz. He never had another season even remotely close to that one. The 17 home runs from that season represented over 60% of his final career total. He ended up with just a .236 career batting average. His second highest seasonal rWAR was 0.8. And his career rWAR was only 5.9.
I was curious how Grabarkewitz compared to others in history. I created a filter using some data pulled from Seamheads.com/The Baseball Gauge. Here was the criteria:
- An rWAR of 6.0 or higher in the player’s best season
- An rWAR of 1.0 or less in the player’s second best season
- An rWAR in the player’s best season that was higher than the player’s career total rWAR (this is possible since you can have seasons with negative rWAR).
The results of that filter returned just 2 players:
|
Player
|
Year
|
Pos
|
Best Season rWAR
|
2nd Best Season rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
|
Billy Grabarkewitz
|
1970
|
3B
|
6.5
|
0.8
|
5.9
|
|
Rube Vickers
|
1908
|
SP
|
6.1
|
(0.4)
|
2.7
|
If you relax the cutoff of the best season to 5.0 or higher, the filter pulls in 7 other pitchers and one additional position player – Cito Gaston, who posted a 5.1 in his best season and had negative rWAR for his career as a whole. Ironically enough, Gaston’s best season was also 1970….and, like Grabarkewitz, he played for the NL in the All Star Game that season.
The rarity of the career of Billy Grabarkewitz was the inspiration for this article.
What are We Looking For on this Team?
Now, since Grabarkewitz had a fairly uncommon career, I couldn’t build a whole team around that exact combination of criteria. So, I loosened it up a bit to generate some candidates. In general, I was looking for players who:
- Generated a "best" rWAR season of 3.0 or more
- Had a "second best" rWAR season of 2.0 or less
- The "best" rWAR season represented at least 60% of the player’s career total
In addition, in making the selections, I also tried to pick players who had relatively short careers, and were relatively young when they had their best season. They didn’t have to necessarily check all the boxes.
Before diving in, though, I should also explain what I’m not looking for. Conceptually, this may sound like a search for players who had a "fluke" season. That’s not quite it. To me, a "fluke" season would be the one that Norm Cash had in 1961, when he hit .361 with 132 RBI, or the one that Rico Petrocelli had in 1969, when he hit .297 with 40 home runs….as a shortstop.
But, Cash and Petrocelli were good players. They had other good seasons. Cash hit almost 400 career home runs, and Petrocelli had over 200 career home runs. Their noteworthy seasons were outliers and aberrations, and they deserve their own article (which I am thinking of putting together)….but they are not Grabarkewitz material.
Also, I’m not looking for players that had fluky one-season aberrations in a particular category. For example, Bert Campaneris in 1970, Davey Johnson in 1973, or Brady Anderson in 1996 with their unusually high home run totals. That’s not what I’m looking for, either.
Also, there are some others that you might anticipate might make this team. For example, Wayne Garland. Garland certainly had a surprise season in 1976 with the Orioles, going 20-7 with a 2.67 ERA. He had fantastic timing as well, as he became a free agent after that season, and signed with the Indians. Alas, he fell to 13-19, 3.60, led the league in losses, and everyone came to the conclusion that it was a horrible signing. Now, some of the difference in the 2 seasons is attributable to going from a good organization to a mediocre one. Also, with the Orioles, Garland had Bobby Grich, Mark Belanger, and Paul Blair up the middle defensively to provide support. The ’77 Indians had Duane Kuiper, Frank Duffy, and Jim Norris. Who would you rather have behind you?
In any case, Garland is often mentioned when people discuss "one year wonders". But, here’s a little secret. Guess which season had the higher rWAR? Believe it or not, it was 1977. In 1976, Garland’s rWAR was 3.7. In 1977, it was 4.1.
Why? Well, without diving in too deep to dissect the numbers, one clear difference is that in 1977, Garland pitched an extra 50 innings over 1976 (282 vs. 232), about 22% more. In terms of building quantifiable value, that helps a lot. I certainly wouldn’t conclude that he pitched better in 1977 than in 1976, but he didn’t pitch all that badly, and he consumed a lot more innings.
So, Garland, does not make this team. I’m afraid he’s not Grabarkewitz material, either.
Who else did not make it? Well, you might expect Mark Fidrych to make the team, right? He seems to check the boxes.
Except that….well….not quite. I’m tempted to include him, really I am. After all, his 1976 season was amazing….9.6 rWAR, 19-9, league-leading 2.34 ERA, 159 ERA+, Rookie of the Year, Cy Young runner-up, a real hoot to watch…..an amazing year. And that year was the overwhelming majority of his career value.
However…the next season (1977)….well, it was actually pretty good too. Like 1976, he made the All-Star team (although he didn’t pitch in the 1977 game). So, to start with, I conceptually have trouble putting someone on the Grabarkewitz team who made the All Star team in two different seasons.
Also, although it was abbreviated, Fidrych compiled some good numbers in 1977. In 11 starts he was 6-4, 2.89. He improved his control over his rookie season, decreasing his walks per 9 innings from 1.9 to 1.3. He increased his strikeouts per 9 innings from 3.5 to 4.7. As a result of those two improvements, his K/BB ratio increased from 1.83 in 1976 to a pretty impressive 3.50 in 1977. Had he been able to maintain that over a full season (which is no cinch, of course), it would have challenged Dennis Eckersley for the AL lead.
The bottom line is that Fidrych, even in an abbreviated 1977 season, was able to post an rWAR of 2.4 over 11 starts, or over 7.0 if you project it to a full season of starts. 2.4 is pretty decent total, and is really impressive in the context of the amount of time he pitched. In other words, even though he’s a good conceptual fit for the team in one regard, that 2nd best season was just a little too high. So, I left him off. However, I will accept petitions to include him.
How about Joltin’ Joe Charboneau? He had as many nicknames (3 - Super Joe, Joltin' Joe and Bazooka Joe) as he had Major League seasons. And that one season was pretty good….23 home runs, 87 RBI, .289.
However….his rWAR for that season is only 2.4, which is below my cutoff. To elevate him into the discussion, I’d have to give extra credit for eccentricity. According to his SABR bio, he "opened bottles of beer with his eye socket, pulled an aching tooth and fixed a broken nose with some whiskey and a pair of pliers, removed a tattoo with a razor blade, ate lit cigarettes and drank beer through his nose." Some of those may be exaggerated, but he was quite a character.
In addition, he inspired a song: "Go Joe Charboneau". For old times’ sake, let’s review the lyrics:
------------------
"Who's the newest guy in town?
Go Joe Charboneau.
Turns the ballpark upside down.
Go Joe Charboneau.
Who do we appreciate?
Go Joe Charboneau.
Fits right in with the other eight?
Go Joe Charboneau.
Who's the one to keep our hopes alive?
Go Joe Charboneau.
Straight from the 7th to the pennant drive?
Go Joe Charboneau.
Raise your glass, let out a cheer.
Go Joe Charboneau.
For Cleveland's Rookie of the Year.
Go Joe Charboneau
------------------
So, upon further review….I’d have to say at this point, it’s a "No go, Charboneau". I can’t put you on the team. Like Fidrych, though, I will accept petitions on your behalf. You would certainly be an entertaining addition.
Bob Hamelin? Kevin Maas? Hurricane Hazle? Nope. Close….but still not quite what I’m looking for.
The Grabarkewitz All Star Team
OK, with all the preliminaries out of the way, let’s go around the diamond for the team, showing some key stats for the "best" season, as well as rWAR figures for the best season, 2nd best season, and career.
Catcher – Bill Delancey, St. Louis Cardinals, 1934
|
Age
|
rWAR in that Season
|
2nd Best rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
% Best Season vs. Career rWAR
|
Season HR
|
Season RBI
|
Season BA
|
Season OBP
|
|
22
|
3.0
|
1.7
|
4.5
|
66.7%
|
13
|
40
|
.316
|
.414
|
Honestly, I had trouble finding catchers who fit the criteria. The best one I could find was Delancey, who was a member of one of the truly legendary teams, the 1934 "Gas House Gang". That team was filled with Hall of Famers….Frankie Frisch, Joe Medwick, Dizzy Dean were stars, and they had 3 aging future Hall of Fame pitchers in their 40s that were on the team at some point in the season (Dazzy Vance, Burleigh Grimes, Jesse Haines). Future Hall of Fame manager Leo Durocher was the shortstop. Ripper Collins probably had a better season than any of the Hall of Famers. Pepper Martin was another standout. A fantastic team.
Delancey split catching duties with veteran Spud Davis to form a very effective tandem. Both catchers hit over .300. Delancey was just 22, and was considered a future star. Branch Rickey, in "The American Diamond", named three catchers to his all-time team: Mickey Cochrane, Roy Campanella……and Bill Delancey.
By the way…..slightly off topic. Delancey’s position mate Spud Davis is in a bit of a select group. Here is a list of catchers with more than 3,000 plate appearances and a .300+ batting average (from Fangraphs.com):
|
Name
|
PA
|
AVG
|
|
Mickey Cochrane
|
6,206
|
.320
|
|
Bill Dickey
|
7,060
|
.313
|
|
Deacon White
|
6,972
|
.312
|
|
Mike Piazza
|
7,745
|
.308
|
|
Joe Mauer
|
7,417
|
.308
|
|
King Kelly
|
6,455
|
.308
|
|
Buster Posey
|
4,260
|
.308
|
|
Spud Davis
|
4,713
|
.308
|
|
Ernie Lombardi
|
6,349
|
.306
|
|
Buck Ewing
|
5,770
|
.303
|
And, even that is debatable…White and Kelly both played more games at other positions than catcher, and Ewing played a lot of at other positions. Those 3 also all played their entire careers before 1900. In addition, Mauer and Posey are both still active. So, if you restrict the definition to retired catchers post-1900, there’s really only Cochrane, Dickey, Piazza, Lombardi……and Spud Davis.
Back to Delancey…..
I did a search on Seamheads.com/The Baseball Gauge for young, great hitting catchers (22 or younger), using 1901 as my starting point. I sorted by offensive WAR. Here’s the top 12:
|
Rk
|
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Lg
|
Age
|
PA
|
oWAR
|
|
1
|
Johnny Bench
|
1970
|
CIN
|
NL
|
22
|
671
|
5.7
|
|
2
|
Johnny Bench
|
1969
|
CIN
|
NL
|
21
|
592
|
4.6
|
|
3
|
Joe Torre
|
1963
|
MIL
|
NL
|
22
|
556
|
3.9
|
|
4
|
Earl Williams
|
1971
|
ATL
|
NL
|
22
|
550
|
3.8
|
|
5
|
Ted Simmons
|
1972
|
STL
|
NL
|
22
|
629
|
3.7
|
|
6
|
Brian McCann
|
2006
|
ATL
|
NL
|
22
|
492
|
3.7
|
|
7
|
Johnny Bench
|
1968
|
CIN
|
NL
|
20
|
607
|
3.6
|
|
8
|
Bill Freehan
|
1964
|
DET
|
AL
|
22
|
572
|
3.6
|
|
9
|
Shanty Hogan
|
1928
|
NYG
|
NL
|
22
|
470
|
3.5
|
|
10
|
Frank Snyder
|
1915
|
STL
|
NL
|
21
|
522
|
3.1
|
|
11
|
Bill DeLancey
|
1934
|
STL
|
NL
|
22
|
295
|
2.8
|
|
12
|
Tim McCarver
|
1964
|
STL
|
NL
|
22
|
515
|
2.8
|
As you would imagine, Bench kind of dominates the list. I’m also struck by the fact that 3 Braves catchers (Torre, Williams, and McCann) were so high up on the list, and that the Cardinals represent a third of the list.
Notice anything else about the list? The other catchers all had significantly more plate appearances than Delancey. If you re-sort that group using a per-600 plate appearance context, here’s what you get:
|
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Lg
|
Age
|
PA
|
oWAR Per 600 PA
|
|
Bill DeLancey
|
1934
|
STL
|
NL
|
22
|
295
|
5.7
|
|
Johnny Bench
|
1970
|
CIN
|
NL
|
22
|
671
|
5.1
|
|
Johnny Bench
|
1969
|
CIN
|
NL
|
21
|
592
|
4.7
|
|
Brian McCann
|
2006
|
ATL
|
NL
|
22
|
492
|
4.5
|
|
Shanty Hogan
|
1928
|
NYG
|
NL
|
22
|
470
|
4.5
|
|
Joe Torre
|
1963
|
MIL
|
NL
|
22
|
556
|
4.2
|
|
Earl Williams
|
1971
|
ATL
|
NL
|
22
|
550
|
4.2
|
|
Bill Freehan
|
1964
|
DET
|
AL
|
22
|
572
|
3.8
|
|
Frank Snyder
|
1915
|
STL
|
NL
|
21
|
522
|
3.6
|
|
Johnny Bench
|
1968
|
CIN
|
NL
|
20
|
607
|
3.6
|
|
Ted Simmons
|
1972
|
STL
|
NL
|
22
|
629
|
3.5
|
|
Tim McCarver
|
1964
|
STL
|
NL
|
22
|
515
|
3.3
|
Now, he probably would not have been able to sustain that over a full season, but it does show the impact of what he was able to generate as essentially a half-time player.
Delancey developed a serious lung infection in 1935, had to retire early. He died at age 35 from pleurisy.
First Base – Mike Fiore, Kansas City Royals, 1969
|
Age
|
rWAR in that Season
|
2nd Best rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
% Best Season vs. Career rWAR
|
Season HR
|
Season RBI
|
Season BA
|
Season OBP
|
|
24
|
2.9
|
-0.1
|
1.4
|
207.1%
|
12
|
35
|
.274
|
.420
|
There weren’t a lot of great options at first base. I almost went with another 1969 player, Rich Reese, who hit .322 that year.
I ended up choosing Fiore, who was picked by the Kansas City Royals in the expansion draft from the Baltimore Orioles. He’s just under the 3.0 rWAR threshold I was looking for, but his 1969 season was more like two-thirds of a full season, so I let that slide. Fiore only played in 107 games but showed promise. He spiked his .274 average with 84 walks to form an impressive .420 OBP, which would have been among the league leaders if he had enough plate appearances. His OPS+ was an excellent 138, which would have also been among the league leaders if he had enough appearances.
Fiore never had anything remotely close to that season again. He 2nd best seasonal batting average was .177.
Second Base – Lou Klein, St. Louis Cardinals, 1943
|
Age
|
rWAR in that Season
|
2nd Best rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
% Best Season vs. Career rWAR
|
Season HR
|
Season RBI
|
Season BA
|
Season OBP
|
|
24
|
5.8
|
0.8
|
7.1
|
81.7%
|
7
|
62
|
.287
|
.342
|
Our second Cardinal on the team, Lou Klein’s career is a pretty decent match for Grabarkewitz. His best year was his first one, at age 24. He never hit over .229 again.
Like the first 2 members of our team, Klein also was part of a pennant-winner. 1943 was obviously a year affected by World War II, but that was a great Cardinals’ team with a 105-49 record, winning the NL by 18 games. The stars of the team were Stan Musial, Marty Marion, Walker Cooper, White Kurowski, and pitchers Mort Cooper, Max Lanier, Howie Pollet, and Harry Brecheen. Klein had a higher rWAR than anyone on the team outside of Musial. In fact, he was third in the league among position players behind Musial (9.4) and Bill Nicholson (6.9) of the Cubs. A good chunk of his value was defensive.
Shortstop – Pat Listach, Milwaukee Brewers, 1992
|
Age
|
rWAR in that Season
|
2nd Best rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
% Best Season vs. Career rWAR
|
Season HR
|
Season RBI
|
Season BA
|
Season OBP
|
|
24
|
4.4
|
1.7
|
4.3
|
102.3%
|
1
|
47
|
.290
|
.352
|
Pat Listach had a nice start to his career. That first year also saw him steal 54 bases and win the Rookie of the Year award. He was also the inspiration for one of the worst Chris Berman nicknames ever…..Pat "Pencil Thin" Listach. Ugh.
Listach hung around a few more years, but was never able to recapture the glory of that first year.
Third Base – Billy Grabarkewitz, Los Angeles Dodgers, 1970
|
Age
|
rWAR in that Season
|
2nd Best rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
% Best Season vs. Career rWAR
|
Season HR
|
Season RBI
|
Season BA
|
Season OBP
|
|
24
|
6.5
|
0.8
|
5.9
|
110.2%
|
17
|
84
|
.289
|
.399
|
Who were you expecting….Randy Ready?
If we did have to pick someone other than Billy, I suppose we could go with Jim Doyle, 1911 Chicago Cubs. He hit .282 with a .340 OBP as a 29-year old, 3.5 rWAR.
In February 1912, his appendix burst, killing him.
I think it’s best that we move along…..
Left Field – Al Wingo, Detroit Tigers, 1925
|
Age
|
rWAR in that Season
|
2nd Best rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
% Best Season vs. Career rWAR
|
Season HR
|
Season RBI
|
Season BA
|
Season OBP
|
|
27
|
5.3
|
0.8
|
6.5
|
81.5%
|
5
|
68
|
.370
|
.456
|
Al Wingo is the brother of Ivey Wingo, who put together a nice 17-year career as a catcher with the Reds and Cardinals. Al only played 6 seasons, but he did retire with a .308 career batting average and a .404 OBP.
1925 was his standout season, though, as he was the primary left fielder in an outfield that included a 38-year old Ty Cobb in center and a 30-year old Harry Heilmann in right. Wingo hit .370 that year….but still ranked third among Detroit outfielders (Heilmann hit .393, Cobb .378).
Here are the AL leaders in batting average for 1925:
|
Player
|
Batting Average
|
|
Harry Heilmann Det
|
.393
|
|
Tris Speaker Cle
|
.389
|
|
Al Simmons Phi
|
.387
|
|
Ty Cobb Det
|
.378
|
|
Al Wingo Det
|
.370
|
Wingo had a 151 OPS+, was 6th in position player rWAR, and finished 12th in the MVP voting. If you prefer Joe Charboneau in this slot….well, I wouldn’t argue too much. But Wingo is a good fit too.
Center Field – Wayne Comer, Seattle Pilots, 1969
|
Age
|
rWAR in that Season
|
2nd Best rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
% Best Season vs. Career rWAR
|
Season HR
|
Season RBI
|
Season BA
|
Season OBP
|
|
25
|
3.2
|
(0.1)
|
2.2
|
145.5%
|
15
|
54
|
.245
|
.354
|
Along with Fiore, we have our 2nd player on the team from a 1969 expansion franchise.
OK…I admit it. There weren’t a lot of great center field candidates for this team, so I decided to go with Comer because I found him more interesting to talk about than the other options, and it provides an opportunity to mention the 1969 Seattle Pilots, which was a fascinating team for a lot of reasons, not the least of which was that it served as the context for much of Jim Bouton’s famous and controversial diary, "Ball Four".
Comer was a member of the 1968 champion Detroit Tigers, and he was selected by the Pilots in the expansion draft. He ended up as the primary center fielder for that team, and even though his batting average was low, he found other ways to contribute, hitting 15 home runs, stealing 18 bases, drawing 82 walks, and scoring 88 runs, which wasn’t bad in context of a horrible team in its first year of existence. Comer also had 14 assists that year, tied for 2nd among AL outfielders.
Comer had 573 plate appearances that year, but never had higher than 171 in any other season. It wasn’t a great season, by any means, but I think it was good enough to fit the criteria for this team. As mentioned, he hit 15 home runs that year. He ended up his career with 16.
One interesting thing about that 1969 Seattle Pilot team, by the way, is that they had a lot of players that drew a pretty fair number of walks. As mentioned, Comer drew 82. Tommy Harper, who split his time among second base, third base, and the outfield, drew 95 walks (he also stole an impressive, league-leading 73 bases). First baseman Don Mincher had a fairly typical Don Mincher-type year – low average (.249) but spiked with 25 home runs and a decent number of walks (78). Right fielder/first baseman Mike Hegan (who was the son of that outstanding defensive catcher for the Indians in the ‘40’s and ‘50’s, Jim Hegan) drew 62 in only 334 plate appearances, an impressive ratio. He ended up hitting .292 with a .427 OBP, which would have been right up there with Harmon Killebrew for the league lead had he had enough plate appearances. Hegan did most of his damage in the first half of the season, but then injuries prevented him from playing much after that. Hegan was named to the All Star team, but was replaced by Mincher.
In addition to the players listed above, a 23-year old first baseman named Greg Goossen hit .309 with 10 homers and a 175 OPS+ over 52 games (if Goossen had a bit more playing time, he might have made the all-Grabarkewitz team as well). The Pilots also had veteran Tommy Davis playing in left field, although he was no longer the force that he had been earlier in his career. All things considered, in the context of the time, it wasn’t a bad offense (although they did have Ray Oyler and his .165 average playing at shortstop). The Pilots only hit .234 as a team, but they were 4th in the league in walks drawn, and were only a few walks short of finishing 2nd in that category. They were near the league average in both runs scored and home runs. Led by Harper’s 73, they led the league in stolen bases. Their pitching and defense were pretty bad, though, and they finished 64-98.
I did give some consideration to Cito Gaston (1970 San Diego) for this slot, but felt that he just had too many seasons as a regular to merit inclusion, as he had a 17 homer season and a 16 homer season outside of his "best" season, so I didn’t think he quite fit the criteria. But you can make a case for him too.
Right Field – Rich Coggins, 1973
|
Age
|
rWAR in that Season
|
2nd Best rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
% Best Season vs. Career rWAR
|
Season HR
|
Season RBI
|
Season BA
|
Season OBP
|
|
22
|
3.8
|
0.7
|
3.4
|
111.8%
|
7
|
41
|
.319
|
.363
|
I don’t know about you, but I can’t think of Rich Coggins without also thinking of Al Bumbry. Coggins and Bumbry were both exciting young outfielders who were rookies in 1973 for a Baltimore team that won the AL East. After three straight World Series appearances from 1969-1971, the Orioles fell off to third place in 1972, but returned to the postseason in 1973. The Orioles gave significant time in the outfield to 5 players – Don Baylor, Paul Blair, Merv Rettenmund, and the two hotshot rookies. Coggins hit .317, Bumbry hit .337, and they combined for 40 stolen bases as the Orioles (believe it or not) ended up leading the league in that category. An Earl Weaver team leading the league in steals? You bet.
Bumbry won the Rookie of the Year award in 1973, followed by Pedro Garcia, Steve Busby, Doc Medich, Darrell Porter, with Coggins finishing 6th. As I’m sure you know, Bumbry went on to a nice 14-year career (13 with the Orioles), but Coggins fell off dramatically.
For pitchers, I whittled it down to 6 men – 4 starters, 2 relievers. I’ll present the whole list, and then make a few comments:
|
Pos
|
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Age
|
rWAR
|
2nd Best rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
% Best Season vs. Career rWAR
|
W
|
L
|
ERA
|
ERA+
|
|
SP
|
Bill James
|
1914
|
Bos (N)
|
22
|
8.7
|
0.2
|
9.0
|
96.7%
|
26
|
7
|
1.90
|
150
|
|
SP
|
Gene Bearden
|
1948
|
Cle
|
27
|
5.1
|
1.3
|
6.4
|
79.7%
|
20
|
7
|
2.43
|
168
|
|
SP
|
Buzz Capra
|
1974
|
Atl
|
26
|
5.3
|
1.1
|
6.8
|
77.9%
|
16
|
8
|
2.28
|
166
|
|
SP
|
Wayne Twitchell
|
1973
|
Phi
|
25
|
6.1
|
1.1
|
2.2
|
277.3%
|
13
|
9
|
2.50
|
152
|
|
RP
|
Joe Black
|
1952
|
Bro
|
28
|
4.2
|
0.7
|
4.3
|
97.7%
|
15
|
4
|
2.15
|
171
|
|
RP
|
Dick Hyde
|
1958
|
Was (A)
|
29
|
4.6
|
1.5
|
5.8
|
79.3%
|
10
|
3
|
1.75
|
219
|
- It’s practically obligatory when writing an article anytime that this Bill James is mentioned to point out that he is neither "Big Bill" James (another pitcher from that same era) nor is he that sabermetric dude. He is, however, "Seattle Bill" James, and was a significant figure on the 1914 Miracle Braves.
- Gene Bearden’s story is pretty well known. Bearden led the AL with a 2.43 ERA in 1948 for the World Champion Indians, finishing 2nd in the Rookie of the Year award (they only awarded one for both leagues at that time, and he finished 2nd to Al Dark of the Braves) and 8th in the MVP. He was also a World Series hero with a complete game shutout in game 3, and then nailed down the championship with the save in game 6.
- Buzz Capra, like Bearden, won the ERA title in his one shining season, with a nifty 2.28 mark after being purchased by the Braves from the Mets.
- Wayne Twitchell was a surprise to me, mostly because I hadn’t realized how strong his 1973 season was. He was 13-9 for a team that was 71-91, and his 2.50 ERA was third in the league behind Tom Seaver and Don Sutton. His 6.6 rWAR pitching rWAR was 2nd in the league behind only Seaver. Twitchell was also among the league leaders in K/9, hits/9, and shutouts.
- You probably aren’t surprised to find Joe Black on here. Joe had a great year in 1952, winning the Rookie of the Year and finishing third in the MVP vote in an extremely close result among Hank Sauer, Robin Roberts, and Black. Of the 24 first-place votes, Sauer received 8, Black received 8, and Roberts received 7 (Duke Snider received the other one). Any of the three could have won it.
- Dick Hyde is the oldest player on the team, having his best season at 29. Hyde was a submarine style pitcher, and he developed arm trouble, but his 1958 season impressed enough people that he finished 12th in the MVP voting. He led the league in games finished and tied for the lead in saves (with Ryne Duren) with 19.
Wrapping it Up
In summary, then, here is the Billy Grabarkewitz All Star Team:
|
Pos
|
Player
|
Year
|
rWAR in that Season
|
Career rWAR
|
Season HR
|
Season RBI
|
Season BA
|
Other Notes
|
|
C
|
Bill DeLancey
|
1934
|
3.0
|
4.5
|
13
|
40
|
.316
|
Split catching duties with Spud Davis on World Champion Cardinals.
|
|
1B
|
Mike Fiore
|
1969
|
2.9
|
1.4
|
12
|
35
|
.274
|
84 walks, 138 OPS+
|
|
2B
|
Lou Klein
|
1943
|
5.8
|
7.1
|
7
|
62
|
.287
|
14 3B's, 3rd in position player rWAR
|
|
3B
|
Billy Grabarkewitz
|
1970
|
6.5
|
5.9
|
17
|
84
|
.289
|
All-Star, 95 BB, 5th in position player rWAR
|
|
SS
|
Pat Listach
|
1992
|
4.4
|
4.3
|
1
|
47
|
.290
|
54 stolen bases, Rookie of the Year
|
|
LF
|
Al Wingo
|
1925
|
5.3
|
6.5
|
5
|
68
|
.370
|
151 OPS+, 12th in MVP, 6 in position player rWAR
|
|
CF
|
Wayne Comer
|
1969
|
3.2
|
2.2
|
15
|
54
|
.245
|
18 steals, 82 walks
|
|
RF
|
Rich Coggins
|
1973
|
3.8
|
3.4
|
7
|
41
|
.319
|
17 SB's, 9 3B's
|
|
Pos
|
Player
|
Year
|
rWAR
|
Career rWAR
|
W
|
L
|
ERA
|
Other Notes
|
|
SP
|
Bill James
|
1914
|
8.7
|
9.0
|
26
|
7
|
1.90
|
3rd in MVP, 2-0, 0.00 ERA in World Series
|
|
SP
|
Gene Bearden
|
1948
|
5.1
|
6.4
|
20
|
7
|
2.43
|
8th in MVP, Rookie of Year runner-up
|
|
SP
|
Buzz Capra
|
1974
|
5.3
|
6.8
|
16
|
8
|
2.28
|
All-Star, led league in ERA, ERA+
|
|
SP
|
Wayne Twitchell
|
1973
|
6.1
|
2.2
|
13
|
9
|
2.50
|
All-Star, 2nd in pitcher rWAR
|
|
RP
|
Joe Black
|
1952
|
4.2
|
4.3
|
15
|
4
|
2.15
|
Rookie of Year, 3rd in MVP
|
|
RP
|
Dick Hyde
|
1958
|
4.6
|
5.8
|
10
|
3
|
1.75
|
19 saves, led league in games finished and tied for lead in saves
|
Thanks for reading.
Dan