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River Ave. Blues » Guest Columns » Page 2

Guest Post: 2018 ALDS Umpire Review

October 5, 2018 by Mike

The following is a guest post from Adam Seth Moss, who’s written tons of guest posts over the years.

Blaser. (Jeff Curry/Getty)

Tonight, the Yankees and Red Sox open the 2018 ALDS, so let’s preview the umpire crew for the best-of-five series.

Cory Blaser (No. 89 – HP Game 1)

In a bit of a surprise, Cory Blaser is our home plate umpire for the 2018 American League Division Series opener against the Boston Red Sox. Unlike the Wild Card Game, where we had six umpires that were mostly hitters umpires, we have an average umpire by definition. Cory Blaser has a 3.80 ERA in the 2018 season (68th of 89, tied with Nick Mahrley) and a 1.26 WHIP. Batters have an 8.4/hits per 9, 3.0/walks per 9 and an 8.7/strikeouts per 9 record with Blaser behind the plate. Batters also have a .245/.310/.399 batting line. None of these really jump out in any fashion and fall about average or just below it.

The native of Denver, Colorado made his MLB debut on April 24, 2010 in a doubleheader at Coors Field between the Colorado Rockies and the Florida Marlins under Joe West’s crew. If it gives you an idea how consistent he is, this is Blaser’s fourth straight postseason assignment, the third straight in the Division Series level. Blaser has 14 career ejections, 12 of which have come in the National League. The two in the AL are of Alex Rios and Gene Glynn, so it can be assumed there is no Yankee experience attached. Only of note was Martin Prado ejected on July 18, 2014 for balls and strikes shortly before he was traded to the Yankees.

Dan Bellino (No. 2 – HP Game 2)

Get your torches and pitchforks ready. Woooof. We have the first sign of a pitchers umpire in the 2018 American League Division Series. And we mean a pitchers’ umpire. Dan Bellino has a 3.70 ERA (79th of 89), with a 1.14 WHIP (one of the lower ones). Those already are pitchers numbers. Just to rub it completely in: batters have a 7.3/hits per 9 line. 7.3! The walks per 9 are average at 2.9, and the strikeouts are average at 8.4, which given the propensity for the low hit rate and the higher strikeout rate, yikes. To make everything crazier, batters have a .218/.285/.389 batting line with Bellino behind the plate. No one is getting on base, but slugging it out.

The Chicago, Illinois native made his MLB debut on the 25th of June 2008 at Wrigley Field in an interleague game between the Chicago Cubs and the Baltimore Orioles. Note, Matt Albers started that game for the Orioles. In eleven seasons, Bellino has racked up 37 ejections. Most are for balls and strikes. However, he does have a couple of Yankees on his roster, including CC Sabathia and Joe Girardi on June 7, 2015 for arguing balls and strikes. Bellino got some note from Todd Frazier this year for being ejected by Bellino after complaining mid-inning and reviewing the tape. Be ready for a ginormous headache on Saturday.

Mike Winters (No. 33 – HP Game 3 / CC)

The crew chief is also the man who was the crew chief for the Mariano Rivera farewell on September 25, 2013 and David Wright’s final game on September 29, 2018. Mike Winters has yet another average strike zone. For years it seemed to lean toward the pitchers, but this year is closer to average. The umpires’ ERA for Winters is 3.87 (tied with Tripp Gibson and punching bag Bill Miller for 61st of 89.) He has a 1.35 WHIP (really high), with an 8.6/H9, 3.5/BB9 (high) and an 8.7/K9 rate. Batters have a .250/.323/.396 batting line. All of these are pretty average, which surprises me.

This is the 11th Division Series for the native of Carlsbad, California. He made his MLB debut on July 9, 1988 in a game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium, working under the late John McSherry’s crew. That Pirates lineup featured a young Barry Bonds in left field leading off. Winters has 106 ejections over 31 seasons in baseball. He only has one this year, Clint Hurdle all the way back on April 26. He also ejected Joe Maddon twice during the 2017 playoffs. He has only tossed two Yankees in his career: Joe Girardi on May 14, 2011 for balls and strikes and Enrique Wilson on October 6, 2001 over a called third strike.

Angel Hernandez (No. 5 – HP Game 4)  

Welp. You knew this was coming. Angel Hernandez has Game 4’s home plate, if necessary. Angel Hernandez is what we call an “umpire known by name,” which usually means you’ve screwed up one too many times in front of a nationally television audience. However, Hernandez has a history of screwing up in many different markets, so he is well known. Aside of Joe West and CB Bucknor, he is likely the third-most known umpire in the majors right now. Hernandez has the first hitters zone of the group, but it’s inconsistent. Pitchers have an ERA of 4.28 with him behind the plate (29th of 89) and a 1.37 WHIP. Batters also have an 8.9/H9, 3.4/BB9 and 8.8/K9 with Hernandez. Those do lean hitters umpire though the strikeout rate is a tad higher than average for a hitters ump. Batters have a .257/.324/.427 batting line, also hitters special just above average.

This is the 10th Division Series for Angel Hernandez. The native of Havana, Cuba made his MLB debut on May 23, 1991 at the Astrodome between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Houston Astros with Mike Winters on Dana DeMuth’s crew. Hernandez has 87 career ejections in the 28 seasons in the majors. Boasting a new number this year (5, over his old 55 – he wore 5 in the National League but got stuck with 55 in the merge), Hernandez has not ejected a Yankee since August 30, 2007, when he tossed Joba Chamberlain for throwing at Kevin Youkilis’ head. Let us keep it clean with him around.

Fieldin Culbreth (No. 25 – HP Game 5)

The fifth and final home plate umpire we could see in this series belongs to Fieldin Culbreth, and he has another hitters’ zone. He has a guarantee definition of hitters’ zone. It is small. In 26 games this season, Culbreth had a 4.37 ERA (tied for 21st of 89 with 3 others) and  a 1.31 WHIP. The batters also have an 8.7/H9, 3.0/BB9 and 8.1/K9. The batters have a .253/.316/.427 batting line. All are just above average and lean toward the hitters. Don’t expect a lot of close calls to go the pitchers’ way.

The native of Spartanburg, South Carolina is in his 26th season as a major league umpire. He made his MLB debut on August 13, 1993 at the forsaken Kingdome between the Mariners and the then-California Angels. He is the only member of this crew to be a former member of the American League umpiring crews before the merge in 2000. In 26 seasons, he has only 50 ejections, so he’s probably the least hothead of the group besides the young Blaser. His last ejection of a Yankee was Randy Johnson on September 16, 2005, arguing balls and strikes. He got some notoriety in 2013 for allowing Bo Porter to break the rules of the game in a game between the Astros and Angels, letting Porter change pitchers after Scioscia went to the bench even though the pitcher did not face a batter. He got a two-game suspension for that, violating then rule 3.05b. (If the Angels hadn’t come back and won this game, there is a good chance this would’ve been a MLB upholding protest game.)

DJ Reyburn (No. 17 – HP in emergency only)

The second umpire with a new number on this crew, DJ Reyburn turned in his long time no. 70 in favour of No. 17, which was worn by John Hirschbeck for so many years. Depending on your preferences, you either do not want or do want Reyburn behind the plate. Reyburn has a 4.47 ERA (16th of 89) and a 1.35 WHIP, which both scream hitters umpire. However, Reyburn’s alternative numbers, 8.8/H9, 3.3/BB9 and 9.0/K9 mean the strike zone is um, a mess. Batters have a .255/.322/.427 batting line with Reyburn behind the plate. So good luck interpreting that into anything besides hitter or average umpire.

The native of Grand Rapids, Michigan made his MLB debut at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on June 10, 2008 in a game between the Yankees and the Athletics. That game was a vintage Chien-Ming Wang start with Jose Veras and Mariano Rivera wrapping up a Yankees win.  That day he was part of Jerry Crawford’s crew. Reyburn has 27 ejections in 10 seasons, none of which are of the Yankees. The only notable ex-Yankees on this team are Casey McGehee and Don Mattingly. Otherwise, not much to see here.

Conclusions

We have an average to pitchers umpire for the first 4 games really. Bellino is going to make a major headache. Regardless, the four umpires at the bunker in Chelsea are as follows: Marvin Hudson (No. 51), Brian Knight (No. 91), David Rackley (No. 86) and Bill Welke (No. 3). They are making the calls on replay. Hopefully the Yankees can sweep in 3 games and avoid any Angel Hernandez specials, but that Saturday game will be something to see in strike zones of large size.

Filed Under: Guest Columns, Playoffs Tagged With: 2018 ALDS

Guest Post: 2018 AL Wild Card Game Umpire Review

October 3, 2018 by Mike

The following is a guest post from Adam Seth Moss, who’s written tons of guest posts over the years.

Wolf. (Bob Levey/Getty)

The American League Wild Card Game is here again and so is the posting of the umpire review. This is sometimes an exercise in futility given there is only one umpire whose strike zone we have to focus on, but given the fact that umpires in the Wild Card Game are likely to appear later in the postseason, it will be useful anyway. So, without further ado, here are the six umpires that will be officiating the game between Oakland and New York.

Jim Wolf – No. 28 (HP)

The older brother of former journeyman pitcher Randy Wolf, the 48-year-old Jim Wolf is our home plate umpire for the game. Jim Wolf’s strike zone is the definition of a hitters’ umpire. The statistical analysis of his strike zone backs it up. In 32 games behind the plate, Wolf’s ERA is 4.48, tied with Todd Tichenor for 14th highest in baseball this season. The strike zone Wolf has leads to 9.1 hits per 9 innings, 3.3 walks per 9 innings and 8.3 strikeouts per 9 innings. The 8.3 is extremely low for most umpires. (There are lower, such as Tom Woodring with 8.1 and Ben May with 8.0.) Batters have a .262/.331/.422 batting line with Wolf behind the plate and those numbers match a hitters ump.

Wolf, a native of West Hills, California, made his MLB debut on September 2, 1999 working as part of a National League crew featuring Phil Cuzzi, Alfonso Marquez, and Brian Gorman. Wolf umpired a game at 3rd base between the San Francisco Giants and the Philadelphia Phillies at one of the last games at Candlestick Park for baseball. Wolf has something unusual: no ejections this season. In fact, he has never ejected a Yankee. If there is a rare heave ho in a Wild Card, the Yankees are not getting it from Wolf.

Greg Gibson – No. 53 (1B)

Greg Gibson is the first base umpire in the Wild Card Game. This might likely be his last postseason in baseball as all signs point to him retiring after the 2018 season. He is about to hit the pension level of 20 years in umpiring and already runs a State Farm branch in Kentucky. Gibson’s strike zone is pretty average, with a 4.04 ERA in 31 games behind the plate. That is tied for 52nd with Ryan Blakney. Batters have a 8.7/H9, 3.0/BB9 and 7.9/K9 (really small and low) batting line. Batters only have a .254/.320/.420 batting line, which is average, leaning towards hitters.

The native of Ironton, Ohio made his major league debut on June 14, 1997 at the old Busch Stadium in St. Louis in an interleague game between the Cardinals and the Indians. He was part of Paul Runge’s crew, with Brian Gibbons and Paul Schreiber. Gibson has 81 career ejections since his MLB debut, none of which were against the New York Yankees. Gibson has four ejections this year (Brandon Hyde, Brandon Belt, Juan Soto and Kevin Long). If this is his last go around, props to a wonderful career for Greg Gibson.

Gerry Davis – No. 12 (CC / 2B)

Gerry Davis is the crew chief, and until Tuesday afternoon, there was no one announced otherwise. An umpire and sports gear aficionado, Davis is one of the most veteran members of the game of baseball. Behind only Joe West in tenure, Davis has served as an umpire for 37 seasons. Davis worked 28 games behind the plate for the 2018 season, and he has a 4.21 ERA for the season. That is good enough for 37th of 89 umpires. His numbers though, lean toward the hitter. Scouting reports note he has one of the smallest strike zones in the game of baseball. The numbers are in some agreement of that. Batters have a 8.0/H9, 3.2/BB9 (high) and 8.4/K9 line with .236/.307/.407. The on-base percentage will be high with Davis behind the plate.

The native of St. Louis, Missouri, Davis now lives out in the western United States. He made his MLB debut on June 9, 1982 at Olympic Stadium as part of the late Frank Pulli’s crew, which included Jerry Crawford and Sicily-native Nick Colosi. Davis has 85 career ejections, including two this season. However, his most famous Yankee ejection came on April 23, 2014 when he tossed Michael Pineda for the pine tar on his neck. He also is the one who ejected Adrian Beltre for moving the on-deck circle, which showed up the umpire. Humorously, his next to ejections were of Joe Girardi in August 2014 and Bob Melvin that same month. Davis is one of my favourite umpires in the game. Hopefully he has an ALCS assignment.

Alan Porter – No. 64 (3B)

Alan Porter is our third base umpire in the Wild Card Game. Yay, more hitters umpires. If this were the American League Division Series, we would be in business with hitters zones. If Wolf’s strike zone wasn’t small enough, Porter has an 8.4/H9, 3.2/BB9 and 8.7/K9 strike zone. Do not expect much of a strike zone of questionable calls. Batters have a .247/.318/.434 batting line this season with Porter behind the plate in 30 games. That is an excellent hitters line, especially in the on-base percentage.

The native of Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia made his MLB debut on April 5, 2010 at PNC Park in a game between the Pirates and the Dodgers. That game he worked under John Hirschbeck’s crew, with Larry Vanover and Mark Carlson. Andrew McCutchen was in that game. Porter has 26 major league ejections in his short career, with four this season alone. Two are of the Yankees, one of which was this year. This year, he ejected Josh Bard on April 27 after a questionable strike three call. In 2015, he also ejected Joe Girardi for a check swing call.

Will Little – No. 93 (LF)

Five for five in average or hitters umpires. Will Little is the left field umpire for the Wild Card Game. Literally right above Gerry Davis in ERA (4.22) and a 1.30 WHIP, Little is another hitters specialty. Batters with Little behind the plate have an 8.5/H9, 3.2/BB9 and 8.4/K9 line. Hitters are batting .246/.312/.400 with Little behind the plate. Again, great numbers if this were a full series rather than just one game.

However, the heave-ho would be an accurate description of Will Little. He made his MLB debut on June 24, 2013 in a game between the Cleveland Indians and Baltimore Orioles as part of Ted Barrett’s crew. A native of Fall Branch, Tennessee, Little has racked up 29 ejections in six seasons, including eight this season. 28 of the 29 ejections are over balls and strikes or a check swing. The only one that has not been for that was ejecting Mike Matheny on August 1, 2014 for a balk call. The irony is that most of the calls in 2018 were correctly called.

Pat Hoberg – No. 31 (RF)

Well, we get 6 for 6 for umpires whose strike zones tend to favour hitters. Pat Hoberg is our right field umpire in the Wild Card Game, which is his first postseason assignment. (We may have Gibson in his last and have Hoberg in his first.) Batters have a 4.21 ERA (tied with Gerry Davis and John Tumpane) and a 1.32 WHIP with Hoberg behind the plate. The strike zone definition here is: miniscule. Batters have an 8.3/H9, 3.6/BB9 (!!!) and an 8.1/K9 rate. That strike zone is small. Really small. Batters have a .243/.317/.406 batting line, which backs it up.

The native of Des Moines, Iowa made his MLB debut on March 31, 2014 at Chase Field in a barn burner between the San Francisco Giants and the Arizona Diamondbacks as part of Tom Hallion’s crew. He has 16 career ejections, including 3 this year. He got some unintended airtime for ejecting Seth Maness, Yadier Molina and Mike Matheny in back to back games. No one was happy with him. The Yankees should remember Hoberg, he was the man who gave Aaron Boone his first ejection of the 2018 season and as Yankee manager. (For those wondering, Boone’s last ejection was in June 2007 for fighting.) Hoberg worked as part of Davis’ crew during the regular season, so no surprise they are together again.

Conclusion

Well, as I have repeated again and again, the Yankees would in the benefit of not one, not two, but six strike zones that all favour hitters if this were a full postseason. Hopefully if they advance, we get to see some of them again. If they do advance, Angel Hernandez awaits in Boston.

Filed Under: Guest Columns, Playoffs Tagged With: 2018 Wild Card Game

Guest Post: The Re-Marginalization of Adam Warren

June 28, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

The following is a guest post from Andrew Calagna, who goes by The Original Drew in the comments. You can follow him on Twitter at @_swarlesbarkley. He previous wrote a guest post about the 2016 trade deadline.

(Hunter Martin/Getty)

Adam Warren is having a typical season by his standards. He is pitching to a 1.56 ERA (3.10 FIP) with 27.0% strikeout rate in only 17.1 innings due to missing 39 games to a back injury suffered in late April. Aside from an elevated walk rate (12.2%), what has stood out about Warren this year are the game situations he has pitched in.

In 16 appearances this season, Warren has only pitched in a total of 4 games which would be considered a high leverage situation. Of those 4 games, only 1 has been since coming off the DL on June 4th. Looking at Baseball Reference’s Average Leverage Index (aLI) [where anything above a 1.0 is considered a high leverage situation] his last 5 appearances are as follows:

  • June 15th: Pitched 9th Inning – Yankees up 5-0 (aLI 0.08)
  • Jun 17th: Pitched 8th Inning – Yankees down 3-1 (aLI 0.32)
  • June 22nd: Pitched 6th Inning – Yankees down 2-0 (aLI 1.06)
  • June 24th: Pitched 4th-5th Innings – Yankees down 6-3 (aLI 0.78)
  • June 26th: Pitched 8th Inning – Yankees up 6-0 (aLI 0.08)

A whole lot of meaningless innings there. For the 2018 season, Warren has an aLI of 0.63 and since coming off the DL (Including the conclusion of the May 15th suspended game vs Washington) he has an aLI of 0.49.

You can also look at FanGraphs and see the following:

A total of 3.2 medium/high leverage innings is a waste considering the caliber of pitcher that Warren is. Warren is being used as the last man out of the bullpen despite the results.

There are a few reasons why this is happening.

1. The Yankees have a ton of great relievers (duh). On his best day, Warren is probably considered to be the 5th best reliever in the bullpen. There are only so many high leverage innings to go around and his extended absence has lead Aaron Boone to give to opportunity to others such as Jonathan Holder (aLI 0.95).

That being said, Chapman, Betances, and Robertson, are all on pace to appear in 70+ games each, along with Chad Green on pace to appear in 63 games (career high of 40 at the MLB level) this season. Adding another reliever into the mix to take the load off of the other high leverage relievers is a must. Tommy Kahnle is another option, but as long as he continues to be pitching with diminished velocity he might be better off pitching in lower leverage spots whenever he does make his comeback to the big league roster.

2. Warren’s versatility and other injuries to the pitching staff. Warren’s history of being stretched out as a starter has given the Yankees in the past and present the ability to use him as a Swiss Army Knife reliever. He can go multiple innings, and has proven that he is comfortable pitching at any time. This is a great weapon to have when a starter does a 5 and fly, or gets knocked out early.

That being said, there are other pitchers that the Yankees currently have that can fill in that role. Luis Cessa and A.J. Cole are two names that come to mind. Given the slew of injuries to Yankees pitching staff this season, the Yankees are currently using Warren in this role out of necessity. This won’t and shouldn’t be the case going forward as guys get healthy.

* * *

This all comes with the caveat that we are talking about an extremely small sample size of 17.1 IP, so there is still plenty of time to get Warren back into Boone’s Circle of Trust™. This isn’t the first time that Warren has been marginalized in his Yankee career, and he has proven time and time again that he has the talent to be put in those high leverage situations and be successful. He just needs to be given the opportunity.

As the trading deadline approaches, many (including RAB) have suggested that the Yankees should go after another high end reliever, and while there is never such a thing as too much pitching, the reliever the Yankees could be seeking is already on the roster.

Filed Under: Death by Bullpen, Guest Columns Tagged With: Adam Warren

Eyewitness Bouton: The Strange 70s of the Yankees’ Prodigal Son

June 17, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

The following is a guest post from Adam Moss, who goes by Roadgeek Adam in the comments. He’s written scores of guest posts at RAB over the years.

Bouton. (Getty)

On this June the 17th, 2018, we have the 72nd Annual Old Timers’ Day. While modern fans will be honoring those like Andy Pettitte, Jason Giambi and Nick Swisher on their first appearance, 79-year Jim Bouton will be possibly making his last appearance in a Yankee uniform. Bouton suffers from cerebral amyloid angiopathy, a disease that causes bleeding within the brain, causing dementia-like symptoms. His grandchildren have never seen Bouton in a Yankee uniform (even in his 1998 appearance at Old Timers’ Day). This may be the last time we see the resident of Great Barrington, Massachusetts in a Yankee uniform and we should treasure him.

For over 25 years, the general belief was that Jim Bouton, “The Prodigal Son” of Yankees baseball, was not allowed at Old Timers’ Day because of his feud with Yankee legend Mickey Mantle. The belief that Bouton had made questionable comments about the slugger in his 1970 book, Ball Four, led to a blacklisting. That rumor held up for many years because of the fact that Bouton did not come to Old Timers’ Day until after Mantle died in 1995. Bouton’s first Old Timers’ Day was 1998. That year, they also invited the 1978 Dodgers to the stadium in a rematch of the 1978 World Series. However, it ended a long departure from Yankee-life for #56.

However, the 1970s were a strange decade for the former 20-game winner. Despite numerous attempts to come back to the game he enjoyed, Bouton went for a different career: Sportscaster. The job in the media opened him to a national stage aside of his pitching in New York during a bad time in Yankees history. Until finally getting the chance in 1978 to return to a pitching mound, Bouton’s life during this time is almost a comedy in itself, unlike the reaction to Ball Four. One he never regretted.

Prodigal Son

For those who may not have lived in the 1960s, it is important to explain who Jim Bouton, the Yankee, was. A native of Newark, New Jersey, James Alan Bouton came to this world on March 8, 1939. Raised as a fan of the New York Giants, baseball was not Bouton’s sport of interest originally. Instead, he wanted to be on the basketball team and/or football team in Bloom Township, Illinois, where his family moved from Northern Jersey in the 1950s. Bouton almost never made the baseball team either, but eventually did. He was slow to start, being a bench arm for his 10th grade year. By his senior season, he was much improved, throwing a no-hitter that year. However, his pitches were very amateur: lots of different styles, but almost no velocity.

Eventually, he developed a knuckleball, and enrolled at Western Michigan University. His sophomore season he got a scholarship and when pitching in an amateur league in 1958, scouts began to look at Bouton. Art Stewart, the protégé scout of Lou Maguolo, signed Jim Bouton in 1958 for $30,000. After working his way through the minors, Bouton finally cracked the major league team out of Spring Training in 1962, Ralph Houk gave him #56 on his back, the first to ever wear that number in a regular season game for the Yankees. #56 would become Bouton’s lone number afterwards to show just how hard he worked to make it to the majors.

Bouton’s best seasons in a Yankee uniform were in 1963 and 1964. In 1963, the Yankees knuckleballer put up a 2.53 ERA as one of the better right-handers behind Whitey Ford. He started 30 games in 1963 and appeared in relief for 10 others. Bouton won 2 games in the 1964 World Series for Yogi Berra against the St. Louis Cardinals, outdueling Curt Simmons twice. The Yankees ended up losing that World Series in seven games as a gassed Mel Stottlemyre lost to Bob Gibson.

In a game against the Baltimore Orioles on June 6, 1963, Bouton nearly had his season ended by a foul ball to the face off the bat of Jackie Brandt. The shot was so powerful that Bouton appeared to have rebounded backwards from the force. He landed on his face in front of 28,000 people, who thought his jaw was broken. Joe Soares, the Yankees athletic trainer, ran with Bouton to Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore, despite Bouton’s pleas to stay in the game. Bouton had a nasty wound in his jaw, which took 12 stitches to clear. Soares joked with Bouton after “You’ll have to cut down on that smooching now.” He had married his wife in December 1962. Bouton, feeling a little embarrassed for being at the hospital, made his next start on June 10 in the second game of a doubleheader against the Washington Senators. He pitched seven innings and gave up one run (overshadowed by a complete game shutout by Claude Osteen.)

Bouton fell apart after the 1964 season. His arm started flaring up pain. Bouton’s motion was thrown out of whack and as a result, Bouton’s numbers fell apart. He was sent back to Syracuse in 1967 and fell apart farther there. However, the Yankees knuckleballer didn’t give up entering the 1968 season, but the Yankees did. Despite a great Spring Training, Bouton was sent to the Seattle Pilots expansion team for $20,000 (Yankees paid $8,000). Bouton was loved by the media for his openness, which made it easier on them to say positive things about the righty, but Bouton was bad and the Yankees wanted to go with their rotation of Stottlemyre, Bill Monbouquette, Stan Bahnsen, Fritz Peterson and Al Downing over Bouton.

The Pilot’s Author

Now a member of the famous 1969 Seattle Pilots season, playing in Sick’s Stadium, Bouton joined former Yankees Lou Piniella, Steve Barber, Mike Ferraro and Gary Timberlake along with third base coach Frank Crosetti on a new team. It was during this season that Bouton started taking notes about his daily life at his locker and compile everything going on in his life and around him in the Pilots clubhouse. This led to a lot of strain as he would hide his notes so his teammates and coaches would not see him. Multiple times he took shots at Pilots pitching coach Sal Maglie, a former Yankee. Like many of his teammates, he was traded on August 24, 1969 to the Houston Astros for former teammate Dooley Womack and Roric Anderson. 1969 ended up being his last full season, appearing in 73 games as a reliever for the Pirates and the Astros.

He returned to the Astros in 1970 and threw 29 games for the Astros, but sported a 5.40 ERA and released by the club on August 12, 1970. However, in June 1970, the book Ball Four hit bookshelves as the production of Bouton’s daily notes. The 371-page book opened the door into clubhouse life for the Yankees and the Pilots. The book was so popular, by September 1970, it reached to a spot between Up the Organization by Robert Townsend and Inside the Third Reich by historian Albert Speer.

Bowie Kuhn, the Commissioner of Baseball, tried to discredit the book and force Bouton, a noted activist, to recant everything. He did not. Many people in baseball saw it as a betrayal, along with some sportswriters. Dick Young called Bouton and Leonard Shecter, the editor, ‘social lepers’ for the book. The person Bouton was, he released a second book in 1971 called I’m Glad You Didn’t Take it Personally, which was in response to Dick Young’s comments, along with his battles with the Kuhn administration.

Bouton would end up calling it quits in 1970 after his release and that’s where we pick up his story. The ones not really talked about in Ball Four and the regular baseball media.

There Goes the News Van Again

While Jim Bouton was toiling with the Houston Astros during the 1970 season, going up and down between the minors and the majors, another group of people had interest in his services. This group, however, was not one of a baseball franchise. In just its third year of existence, Albert Primo, the director of news broadcasts for WABC-TV in New York City needed a new sportscaster. Howard Cossell, who worked aside of acerbic news legend Roger Grimsby, was the sportscaster for Eyewitness News. Cossell had other things to do, such as Monday Night Football, which became his big project with veteran Keith Thomas. However, Thomas was let go and the job became Cossell’s.

WABC in this time period was last in ratings compared to powerhouses WNBC and WCBS. Al Primo, was brought from KYW-TV in Philadelphia to revamp a middling news show called Roger Grimsby and the Noisemakers. The show was an 11 pm newscast, with a bit of a twist. Everyone on the group was a bit acerbic or maybe the better term, crazy. All of the members of the crew with Grimsby were established people with high egos. Facing against Jim Jensen & Robert Trout of WCBS, WABC sent Howard Cossell as the “Sports Noisemaker”; Tex Antoine as the “Weather Noisemaker”, smock and all; Allan Jefferys as the “Broadway Noisemaker”; Jimmy Breslin as “All-Around Noisemaker”; and Rona Barrett as the “Hollywood Noisemaker”. The group was definitely a raucous mix. They often all fought with Grimsby about his attitude towards them, especially Rona Barrett and Howard Cossell. Cossell once ripped Grimsby live on air after Grimsby went after one another in a series of backhanded comments.

When Primo came in, he had to deal with a lot of mixed personalities. Immediately he set new standards and abandoned the Noisemaker format. Barrett, Grimsby, Antoine and Cossell still thought they could beat to their own drum. Primo immediately asked all members for WABC to start wearing suits and skirts. This offended Tex Antoine, who was famous for wearing a smock on air (and smoking on air during his time at NBC) and his friend Uncle Wethbee. Despite his pleas to keep the look, he followed suit. Rona Barrett disliked having to be in New York for her work, preferring sunny Southern California. That and she was a noted pest to Grimsby (and Primo). One newscast, the acerbic Grimsby went ahead and introduced her with “Speaking of trash, here is Rona Rooter.” The entire studio laughed. Allan Jefferys quit in 1969 after a piece on a Broadway show was removed in favor of a series on prostitution.

In 1970, as Primo was hiring new reporters and new anchors for more broadcasts, Primo hired former New York city-based ABC reporter Bill Beutel to work aside Grimsby. Beutel was the ABC bureau chief in London from 1968 to 1970 and replaced Tom Dunn as the side anchor. He joined Grimsby, Antoine, Melba Tolliver, Bob Lape, Doug Johnson, Gil Noble, John Schubeck, Milt Lewis among others in the new Eyewitness News. This new approach, where reporters would be on-scene to report the news, was a far cry from Noisemakers, where it was just people telling you the news. Ratings skyrocketed. In 1970, Primo also hired Geraldo Rivera, then a member of the Young Lords, a Puerto Rican activist group considered similar to the Black Panthers. He gave Rivera a scholarship to journalism school, as well as dropping the name Jerry Rivers in favor of being the first Puerto Rican on television. The ratings were going up in WABC’s favor in 1970 and 1971 with the new format. Grimsby and Beutel made a great pairing together.

Also, in 1970, Al Primo picked up Jim Bouton to be a sportscaster for WABC. Primo, whose colleagues noted he had a knack for finding raw talent, called Bouton and offered him a position. However, Bouton wanted to focus on baseball first. During the All-Star Break of 1970, Bouton performed an audition for Primo and co, who offered him a five year deal for $40,000 base salary (escalators to $50,000). With the Astros, he basically made $27,000 in 1970. Bouton bombed the audition and decided that the requirement that he would have to quit baseball immediately was not an option he wanted to pursue.

However, after being sent to the minors, Bouton decided to go ahead and take their offer. Bouton was being beaten around in the minors for the Astros. The timing made sense. Instead of the five-year deal, the deal was reduced to one year with a starting salary of $24,000 on the 11 pm news.

Bouton told The New York Times that the adjustment to being a broadcaster over a ballplayer was hard. Never having a job, Bouton had to learn on the job. He learned from old movies about how to be a reporter, but on his first day at WABC, Bouton was put to the test. Denny McLain, a pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, was suspended a second time from baseball. The first time it was for bookmarking operation (also known as sports betting). This time, McLain dumped buckets of water on Jim Hawkins of the Detroit Free Press and Watson Spoelstra of the Detroit News. Bouton, on his first day, looked like a professional, shouting questions towards McLain.

On his first show as the 11 pm sportscaster, Bouton was modest, something unusual in the news industry in that time period. After being introduced by Grimsby & Beutel, Bouton noted that “Some people say I can’t pitch, others say I can’t write, now we’ll find out if I can’t broadcast.” During the first week, Bouton made several comments about Bowie Kuhn instructed players to not talk to the media. He made comments about women’s liberation could lead to “bra-less tennis tournaments” and even defended the use of “greenies” by Soveit weight lifters. (This is despite calling out the use of greenies in Ball Four.)

William Aylward, a veteran of Eyewitness News was disappointed that veteran sportscaster Lou Boda was moved out in favor of Bouton. At a bar near Channel 7 (Chipp’s at 66th & Columbus), Aylward told Bouton that he was terrible and that if Bouton did not get better, he would be out. Aylward considered Bouton an “interfering, inexperienced, dumb jock” (Bouton’s words). Despite that, ABC hired Bouton to replace Boda. Bouton did not fire Boda, so it was not Bouton’s fault. Bouton noted he got 3 minutes for the sportscast, whereas Boda got a lot less time for his effort.

The really interesting relationship at Channel 7 with Bouton was not with Aylward, or with Roger Grimsby for that matter. Howard Cossell was still with Channel 7 when Bouton was brought aboard. Cossell thought that Bouton was in the way and competition for him. Most people around the station hated Cossell one referring to a question of his location with “He’s out walking his pet rat.” Despite claiming to everyone that he was influential in bringing Bouton into Channel 7, he would waste no time talking crap about Bouton at other occasions.

Andy Lawson

Possibly the most interesting part of Jim Bouton’s tenure at WABC came in his waning months. Comeback attempts were still in Bouton’s blood. In 1972, he attracted a tryout with the Pittsfield Senators (AA affiliate of the Washington Senators). That failed. However, in 1973, sports producer Pete Heller wanted to video tape a Yankees tryout in August. Now, Pete Heller did not sign up for the tryouts. Jim Bouton did not sign up for the tryouts. “Andy Lawson” signed up for the event. In choosing the name, Bouton noted that it was the most generic baseball name he could come up with.

In August 1973, when the tryout came around, Bouton hid his hair under a dark black wig, while a dark black mustache that looked like the 70s (two small diagonal lines on his upper lip) was pasted to his face. Along with a Yankees hat, he looked like a different person altogether. At the tryout “Andy Lawson” showed off six different pitches, including the knuckleball, for the scouts at the camp. About sixty people from all different backgrounds (lawyers, cooks, television broadcasters, etc.) came to the 1973 tryout, an annual event.

In order to direct the cameras, Bouton had a microphone wired under his uniform, which he would whisper to. Now, Bouton’s work impressed the scouts that they asked him for a 2nd look. “Lawson” claimed that he was 21 originally, but when they asked for what year “Andy Lawson” was born, Bouton blew his cover by saying 1961. If you do the math, 1973-1961 = welp. The cover was mostly blown. Depending which year you ask Bouton (1973 vs. 1990), he seemed to have differing opinions on whether or not he really wanted to make the team. In the 1973 newspaper articles about the tryout, Bouton told the press that he did not really want to make the team, just show the world what a Yankee tryout was like. In 1990, that statement was not present.

However, Bouton did get to play some baseball in 1973. Well, it was softball. The broadcaster joined fellow radio and television broadcasters in a game against The Carpenters. These were Karen and Richard Carpenter, who were playing softball as part of fundraising for the American Cancer Society. They raised $3,500 during the game for the cause, but the Carpenters guaranteed $5,000 no matter what. Bouton pitched on the mound. Karen Carpenter fouled out consistently against Bouton. However, she reached second and scored after an error. Bouton’s team was quite the mix: Dave Marash, Murray the K, Tubby Ted Brown, Jim Scott, Jim Hartz, Sherrye Henry, and Vince Hartnett. However, the two names that really stuck out were Cousin Brucie (Bruce Morrow) and Geraldo Rivera (Bouton’s colleague at WABC), the latter of which caught for the team. Can you imagine Geraldo Rivera in 2018 catching at an event? They had some security problems as many girls wanted the young Rivera’s autograph. The Carpenters and their crew won 17-5 in 87-degree heat.

From 66th Street to 57th Street

In late August 1973, WABC’s management team decided to not renew Jim Bouton’s contract for the years 1974, 1975 and 1976. On Tuesday, September 11, 1973, Bouton informed viewers of Eyewitness News that he would not be returning, noting that “I guess I lost my fastball or something. To those of you who sent crank letters, let me just say you won’t have Jim Bouton to kick around anymore.” After signing off with Grimsby and Beutel, Bouton noted to the press that he was probably “too outspoken” for their preferences, but they gave him full editorial leeway until the very end.  He denied it having anything to do with money and was happy working at WABC. Bouton also noted that he had discussions with other stations and considering going back to pitching.

Bouton had no trouble getting a new gig. On September 19, WCBS’ news director Ed Joyce announced to the press that Jim Bouton would be joining the station. They felt that Bouton would have the right to be as outspoken as he wished at WCBS. Bouton, who made $30-40,000 at WABC, was said to make double that at WCBS. At WCBS, he joined with local newscasters Rolland Smith, the recently hired Dave Marash, the legend Jim Jensen along with Alan Kasper and Pat Collins.

However, you could not pull the baseball out of Jim Bouton. In August 1975, WCBS let Bouton pitch for three weeks in the Northwest League’s Portland Mavericks. Bouton picked up a baseball and threw his knuckleball. That was his inspiration. Instead of his five-figure salary, WCBS let him take a leave of absence for a $300/month salary for the Northwest League team. Bouton told the press in November 1975 that he would try to hook up with a AA or AAA team and that he would attend Spring Training in 1976.

In April 1976, however, Jim Bouton turned his role from baseball player to baseball actor as CBS picked up a new comedy named Ball Four. He, along with Marvin Kitman of Newsday, were co-writers for the new television show. Bouton and Ben Davidson were the main stars. Unfortunately, the show only lasted five episodes before CBS pulled the plug. That is show business. After the plug was pulled, Bouton left CBS completely. The game of baseball was still fresh on the mind of Bouton.

In 1977, the Portland Mavericks were the home of Jim Bouton once again. Despite the day to night work of sports casting and acting, Bouton was physically drained. Despite turning down $100,000 a year salary, Bouton decided to sell his $125,000 house in Englewood for a smaller, cheaper house for his wife and kids. That spring, he tried to join the Chicago White Sox farm team of Knoxville (AA) and then dropped by Durango in the Mexican League (AAA). Bing Russell offered Bouton back at $400 a month.

His comeback attempts finally came to a successful conclusion in September 1978 when the Atlanta Braves called him up. Now age 39, Bouton started five games for the Braves, consisting of 29 innings. The results were lackluster, 4.97 ERA and a 1-3 record. The knuckleballer, who had not appeared in eight seasons, was done, his dream completed. In December 1978, he called it quits for good. Bouton got an offer from WCBS to return to do sports on the 11 pm news. Another station in New York (unknown) offered him a positon as a sportscaster as well.

On January 15, 1979, Bouton returned to WCBS as a sports correspondent. He replaced former Met and Yankee Ron Swoboda. He wasted no time trying to get the big interview. Thurman Munson was not exactly an easy person to deal with an interview. Munson told Bouton thrice that he was not interested in an interview in Fort Lauderdale. Munson took his microphone and swore at Bouton rather than politely said no. Munson apparently did not like Ball Four, like many people.

However, by 1980, Bouton was gone from WCBS and replaced by a man who would become a legend in his own right, Warner Wolf. He moved on to freelancing and lecturing. The midlife crisis was over.

We all know the rest.

Filed Under: Guest Columns

Guest Post: A Black Fan’s Perspective on the Yankees

February 27, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

February is Black History Month, and the following is a guest post from longtime reader Randy Wilkins. Among many other things, Randy is co-editor of “She’s Gotta Have It” on Netflix, and he directed the ESPN 30-for-30 Short “86-32.” Here is his IMDB page. You can follow Randy on Twitter at @pamsson.

(Presswire)

I’m a filmmaker by trade, so naturally my inclination is to start a baseball related post with a film reference. Black Panther is a cultural phenomenon. Beyond being a fantastic piece of art, the true beauty of the film is the daring attitude to challenge what a superhero looks like. What makes it beautiful is that it doesn’t blatantly beat the audience over the head with its perspective. It simply exists. When RAB first asked me to write a guest post focusing on my experiences as a Black Yankees fan, I initially thought it would be a straightforward task. Yes, I’m a Black-American, but I didn’t think my fandom was different than anyone else’s. We all share an intense passion for our team and the game of baseball. It is safe to say that we all live a Yankees Only lifestyle. But in collecting my thoughts and exploring the context in which they exist, there is a concession that my fan engagement with the Yankees and Major League Baseball are in fact different. And in similar fashion to Black Panther, the reasons for this difference aren’t heavy handed. They simply exist and this piece explores the emotional resonance of this reality.

Many of us are aware of the declining number of American-born Black players at all levels of professional baseball. What isn’t explored when these numbers are mentioned is the emotional impact this has on the Black fan base. Since 1995 (I chose ‘95 because this is when the insane team success began), there have been 44 American-born Black players on the Yankees 25 man roster. This includes Derek Jeter, Russell Martin and Aaron Judge who are of mixed heritage. This list includes legends like Donzell McDonald, Willie Banks and Darnell McDonald. Even if we look at Mike’s 2018 Top 30 Prospects List, there are three Black players. These are disappointing numbers. There are conflicting feelings when you invest money, time and your emotional sanity into a team and industry that doesn’t have many reflections of yourself on the field. It is especially hard as a Yankee fan because the team has been so successful over the last two decades that you often excuse the lack of representation in exchange for all of the great team moments. On the one hand, you’re incredibly proud that the team represents the city so well, but you’re also frustrated the same team doesn’t properly represent the full range of supporters.

The lack of diversity within the Yankees beat also plays a big part in the fan experience. Let’s just say the demographic of the Yankee beat reporters is very specific. The media wields such a strong influence because they create the narratives for the public to consume. Much like filmmakers, journalists are storytellers. The stories we choose to tell are influenced by our values, our experiences, our judgements and our personal interactions with others. When the majority of the journalists are from the same background, there are perspectives that are often times ignored or not deemed important enough to discuss. Many times, we get the same story with a different name attached. There aren’t any current members of the Yankees media on the print or TV side that represent my perspective. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve yelled at my TV or computer screen reacting to an opinion that doesn’t even attempt to include another culture’s perspective. There are times when a player’s cultural background influences the way they play or behave in a game. These factors should be taken into account when evaluating or criticizing. Often times they are not and it leads to perceptions of a player that just aren’t the case. Do we remember the absurd controversy involving Ken Griffey Jr.’s backwards hat? The establishment couldn’t understand why the best player in the game looked like a thug on the field. These types of stories are incredibly frustrating and again leads to that conflicted experience.

Taking this point one step further, we are rarely treated to stories that explore the uniqueness of a Black player’s cultural background or stories that honestly jump into the racial complexities that currently exist in baseball. The best we’ll get is a bunch of Jackie Robinson pieces around April 15th. It is 2018. It would be great if we could honor Jackie’s legacy by addressing where the game is at various points throughout the year including the offseason. It feels that baseball not only has a problem on the field when it comes to Black representation, but off the field as well with the people who are charged to bring the game to the public. Improving in this area could do wonders for the game.

This is a complex topic for baseball. Quite frankly, it is a complex topic for our country. I do not believe the lack of Black ball players, coaches, media members and executives is based in maliciousness. I do not believe this is a coordinated effort to shut anyone out. I believe the game is rigid in its tradition and has an issue with change and innovation. The game doesn’t have a forward thinking vision. This is a reflection of the game’s fierce commitment to its past and hesitance to embrace the future. We can see this in baseball’s reluctance to aggressively market their great young stars of all backgrounds to both their core fans and casual ones. In all honesty, I don’t believe this is an issue the league cares a great deal about as long as they continue to generate record revenue. They don’t have to confront it because people love the product. I’m thrilled the game is thriving, but I would be really thrilled if I was able to see more people that look liked me in all aspects of the industry.

I want to thank Jay, Mike, Ben and Joe for giving me the opportunity to speak about this topic. I appreciate it a great deal.

Filed Under: Guest Columns

Guest Post: Actually, It Might Be Possible to Hit .400

February 23, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

The following is a guest post from Dan Gerwien, who you know as “DanGer’s Gleyber of Love” in the comments.

(Presswire)

Sam Miller wrote a piece for ESPN explaining why no one will hit .400 in the modern era. It’s a great thought exercise and definitely worth reading the full article. He essentially argues that in order to end a season with a .400 batting average, you need a player that can excel in three categories:

  • The ability to avoid strikeouts, which are always outs.
  • The ability to hit homers, which are always hits.
  • The ability to turn a big percentage of the rest (balls in play) into hits.

According to Miller, the .400 hitter would have to combine Andrelton Simmons’ ability to make contact, Chris Davis’ power, and DJ LeMahieu’s BABIP. The resulting Frankenstein’s Monster would hit *drumroll*… .396.

Ignoring the fact that .396 is a mere 4 points away from our stated goal of hitting .400, there’s actually a huge hole in the logic itself. It’s missing half the equation.

BATTING AVERAGE

Ichiro Suzuki broke the single season record in 2004 with 262 hits, yet finished with *only* a .370 batting average. Tony Gwynn hit .370 in 1987 but did so with 44 fewer hits. This shows us that you can’t just hit your way to a higher average. In fact, Barry Bonds hit .370 in 2002 with almost half as many hits as Ichiro, but four times as many walks (foreshadowing!). Here’s a full comparison:

Year PA AB AB/PA H BB Average
Ichiro 2004 762 704 92.4% 262 49 .370
Gwynn 1987 680 589 86.6% 218 82 .370
Bonds 2002 612 403 65.9% 149 198 .370

According to Section 9.21 of the official MLB Rulebook (page 136), here’s the formula for batting average:

… divide the total number of safe hits (not the total bases on hits) by the total times at bat, as defined in Rule 9.02(a) (Rule 10.02(a))

Hits divided by official at bats (H/AB). This also happens to be a ratio and like all ratios, you’re dividing one number into another number.  In this case, a smaller number into a larger number. Miller’s article only focuses on how to pump up the top half of the ratio while ignoring the bottom half. So in addition to simply avoiding outs, we also need to reduce the number of ABs.

But how do we accomplish this without changing how often a player goes to the plate? The answer: Walks. Walks are considered a plate appearance, but not an official AB. Returning to the example above, remember that Bonds was able to hit .370 because his massive walk total cut his official AB all the way down to 403.

So we know that a player can hit at least .370, but what about .400? Is that even possible in today’s game? To determine what’s realistic, let’s establish a reasonable baseline.

BATTING TITLE

Section 9.22 of the Rulebook (page 137), states that the batting title goes to:

… the player with the highest batting average … provided the player is credited with as many or more total appearances at the plate… as the number of games scheduled for each club in his club’s league that season, multiplied by 3.1 in the case of a Major League player…

To qualify for the batting title, a hitter must appear in 3.1 plate appearances for every scheduled game. In a 162 season, that works out to a little over 500 plate appearances, 502.2 PA to be exact. This is the bare minimum to qualify for the batting title, and therefore be recognized as hitting .400 in a single season.

OKAY, FINE, BUT IS THIS REALISTIC?

We’ve established that a player needs at least 503 PA to qualify, but we also know that most players have way more plate appearances, and therefore ABs, in a given season.

To get a sense of what is realistic, here are average numbers from the players that finished with the top 50 batting averages in 2017.

PA AB AB/PA BB K H Average
619 551 89.0% 56 104 166 .301

The typical .300 hitter last season had about 165 hits in 550 AB (620 PA), walked 55 times and struck out 100 times. Joey Votto, for example, played all 162 games in 2017 and had 179 hits in 559 AB (.320 avg) so we’re right in the ballpark (pun very much intended).

To get to .400, we have to give our ideal player a bit of help. First we’re going to bump up the hits to 200, an increase of 44. Altuve’s career average is 206 so we’re still within reason. Adding the hits, you’re up to a .364 batting average. An envious number that any ballplayer would take but nowhere close to our goal of .400.

Next, and this is key, let’s give our lucky player 50 more walks, bringing him up to 105. Joey Votto’s career average is 113 walk so again we’re still perfectly within reason.

Remember that a walk is considered a plate appearance, which is important to qualify for the title, but not as an AB. So by increasing walks by 50, we also reduce the total AB from 550 to 500.

THE FINAL PRODUCT

After all of our tweaking, we’re left with a .400 hitter who had 200 hits, 100 walks and 104 strikeouts in 620 trips to the plate. Scale this up to a full season and you’re probably looking at something closer to 220 hits and 144 walks. Last season, Charlie Blackmon had 213 hits and two players had 120+ walks, including New York’s own Aaron Judge. If Bonds had just 13 more hits in 2002, he would have hit .402 in 612 PA.

Admittedly, this is incredibly difficult to achieve and highly unlikely to occur, but maybe, maybe not as impossible as Miller’s article would lead you to believe. In the past 5 seasons, there have been 12 instances of a player with 200+ hits and 20 instances of a player with 100+ walks, but never both from the same player. Altuve has the hits but his career high in walks is 60. Votto has more than enough walks but maxes out at around 180 hits. Then again, maybe Votto could pull it off if he didn’t play in a home park with a below average hit factor. And maybe Colorado will be in the market should top 1B prospect Ryan McMahon not pan out …

Filed Under: Guest Columns

Guest Post: “I Would’ve Played Third Base Left-Handed”: The Unexpected 1944 Home Run Champ

December 1, 2017 by Mike Leave a Comment

The following is a guest post from Adam Moss, who goes by Roadgeek Adam in the comments. He’s previously written guest posts on Tim McClelland, Frankie Crosetti, the No. 26, Casey Stengel, Leo Durocher, Miller Huggins, Jerry Kenney, the Copacabana incident, Mark Koenig, Earle Combs, Urban Shocker, Michael Milosevich, and Snuffy Stirnweiss.

Etten. (AP)
Etten. (AP)

Being a New York Yankee in 1943 was an unsure time. Most players knew it was inevitable that players would be drafted into the United States Armed Forces and serve abroad. By the beginning of the 1944 season, most players knew they were being drafted. Teams spent most of 1943 preparing for such a thing. The Yankees acquired players to replace bodies such as Buddy Hassett, Phil Rizzuto and Joe DiMaggio. As a result, 1944 had a lot of players win awards that no one would have picked. Hal Newhouser and Buddy Marion won the MVPs in their respective league that year. An outcast from the Philadelphia Athletics was a 1943 Yankees world champion and he is the subject of the story.

The Prussian Warrior

Nicholas Raymond Thomas Etten was born on September 19, 1913 in Spring Grove, Illinois, just off the Chain O’Lakes in McHenry County. His parents were Joseph Bernard (1883-1940) and Gertrude Mary Scheusen Etten (1883-1966). While little is known about his father’s family, there is quite the history behind his mother’s. Gertrude Mary Scheusen Etten is the granddaughter of Karl Ernst Du Sartz de Vigneul, a former member of the Prussian nobility. While the Du Sartz de Vigneuil nobility heritage came out of the Lorraine section of France, Dr. Sharon Koelling of Iowa State University noted that the family history dates back to the 17th century. Karl Ernst was disowned by the Prussian nobility when they disapproved of his marriage to a commoner, Catherina Niederprum.

A member of the Prussian Uhlan Regiment, Karl Ernst du Sartz de Vigneul was a warrior for the German cavalry in their military. After his death in the Rhineland city of Seffern in 1872, the widow Niederpaum and their nine children immigrated to Chicago, Illinois. One of their daughters, Anna Margaretha Du Sartz de Vigneul Scheusen was Gertrude’s mother. Gertrude was one of eight kids belonging to Du Sartz de Vigneul and Heinrich Scheusen. Nick Etten was one of three children for Joseph and Gertrude, with elder brothers Joseph Etten (1906-2004) and Hubert Etten (1908-1982) preceding him in birth.

Nick Etten on the right as a member of the St. Rita's of Cascia High School. (Suburbanite Economist, May 2, 1930). #Yankees pic.twitter.com/NivpMzaP4M

— Adam Seth Moss, M.A. (@LFNJSinner) November 24, 2017

Nick Etten was a three-sport star at St. Rita of Cascia High School in Chicago, located at 7740 South Western Avenue. There, he specialized in baseball, basketball and football. At St. Rita’s, he was a guard in basketball, a first baseman in baseball and right end for the football squad. Graduating from St. Rita of Cascia in 1931, Etten took his talents to Villanova University. However, at Villanova, he took his football talent to another level. Despite that football talent, Etten joined the Duffy Florals, a semi-pro team in Chicago during the 1932 season until Cletus Dixon, the manager signed him to a contract with the Davenport Blue Sox, passing up a four-year athletic scholarship at Villanova.

At age 19, Etten succeeded with the Class-B team in the Mississippi Valley League. In 114 games, he got 162 hits, 35 doubles, 4 triples and 14 home runs on his way to a .357 average and .544 slugging percentage for the Blue Sox. However, the Pittsburgh Pirates came calling for the Davenport outfielder in August 1933. At 6’1”, 195, he was a skinny player, and the Pittsburgh Pirates scout that discovered him, Carleton Molesworth, a former pitcher who appeared in three games in 1895 for the Washington Senators, thought that Etten’s speed was below average, something he would gain with experience. Molesworth considered him the best player prospect in the Mississippi Valley League and bought him from the team for more than $2,000 in cold hard cash.

Molesworth ended any intent of the outfield experiment continuing on from Davenport. During his time with the Blue Sox, Etten managed 12 errors in the outfield. The Pirates decided that Etten would move back to his main position of first base. Molesworth stated to the press that all opportunities would be made to get him to work out at first base. Molesworth was confident that Etten would be ready for the big leagues in two years and farmed him out appropriately. As part of the deal, Etten would stay with the Blue Sox through the end of the season, and the Mayor of Davenport, IA, George Tank presented the 19-year old with a traveling bag for joining the Pirates at Islander Field on September 11. Etten arrived at Pittsburgh’s Forbes Field on September 18, the day they announced the signing of shortstop Elmer Trappe.

During Spring Training in 1934 for the Pirates at Paso Robles, California, manager George Gibson worked with Etten every day to improve his work at first base. The Pirate team of 1934 was already loaded, with Floyd Young, Paul and Lloyd Waner and Freddy Lindstrom on the team. That Spring Training, Gibson worked with Etten specifically on how to go around first base without tripping on his legs in order to make plays. Gibson stated that his 6’1” inch frame made him perfect for first base and would be a good alternate if Gus Suhr had a slow start. On April 5, 1934, it was announced that Etten would be on his way to Little Rock, Arkansas to play for the A-team Travelers as a first baseman.

In 1934, the season with the Little Rock Travelers was the first sign of things going backwards. After a great season with Davenport in 1933, the Travelers got a player with only 120 hits, 22 doubles, 4 triples and 2 home runs in 113 games. His batting line fell to a .291 average and.379 slugging, and things only seemed to look worse in 1935. In 1935, he jumped from the Elmira Pioneers, Birmingham Barons and Oklahoma City Indians, he managed all of a .264/.379 line with 108 hits, 22 doubles, 2 triples and an uptick to seven home runs.

The 1936 season was the fix. Demoted to the B-league Savannah Indians, Etten hit .329 and got 162 hits, 28 doubles, 10 triples and 12 home runs. It was enough to re-promote him to the A-ball Wilkes-Barre Barons. However, the prospect glow was gone from Etten. He spent the entire 1937 season with Savannah, hitting .304/.518 with 156 hits, 27 doubles, 10 triples and then-career high 21 home runs. By now, Etten was playing in the outfield once again. In 1938, he started the season with the Jacksonville Tars of the South Atlantic (B) League after two years with Savannah. Out of the Pirates organization, Etten batted .370/.516 with 193 hits, 15 triples and 2 home runs (along with 40 doubles) in Jacksonville.

Damaged Goods

The Philadelphia Athletics came calling in 1938. On September 1, 1938, Connie Mack purchased his contract from the Sally League and he would join the team in the majors as a first baseman. Mack got Etten his first game on September 8 against the Washington Senators. It was an eventful debut as a brawl broke out that day between Billy Werber and Buddy Myer. After Myer performed a knockout slide of catcher Harold Wagner, Werber took it upon himself to tell Myer where he can put his slide. The two went to fisticuffs and the fight was on. Umpire Bill Grieve tossed both for the rest of the event.

The next day, Etten got his first hit against Jim Bagby and the Boston Red Sox in a 4-3 win at Fenway. With the A’s in 1938, he played in 22 games, going 21 for 81, getting 6 doubles, 2 triples and no home runs while batting .259/.333/.383. For 1939, he started the season with the Athletics, managing a .252/.322/.406 line in 43 games with 39 hits, 11 doubles, 2 triples and three home runs. His first home run was off Bump Hadley of the Yankees on April 25, 1939 at the Stadium. After the game on June 10, he was optioned back out to the AA Baltimore Orioles. With the Orioles, he played 105 games, getting 115 hits, 25 doubles, 3 triples and 14 home runs, batting .299/.490.

In 1940, the Baltimore Orioles fell under the guise of a Philadelphia Phillies affiliation. As a result, the Phillies acquired Etten. That year, Etten managed a .321/.530 batting line with 185 hits in 160 games with the Orioles. He also hit 4 triples and 40 doubles. The power was slowly being discovered by Etten. 1941 became the first season in which Etten did not have to join the minor league teams. As the starting first baseman for the Phils, Etten hit .311/.405/.454 with 14 home runs, 4 triples, 27 doubles and 168 hits in his first full season. That year he finished 28th in the MVP voting. Etten returned in 1942 with the Phillies, playing in 139 games, but showing a clear decline. Etten hit .271/.355/.420 with 121 hits, 21 doubles, 8 home runs and 3 triples.

First base for the New York Yankees had been a mess leading into the 1943 season. In 1941, the Yankees had a rookie first baseman named Johnny Sturm (#34) from St. Louis. Despite the World Series ring in 1941, Sturm enlisted in the United States Army and served in World War II. He never saw another MLB game. He managed to injure himself in a freak tractor accident trying to build an Army baseball field, damaging his right index finger. He tried for a comeback in 1946, but injured his wrist and finished in the minors the rest of his career. However, he was the man who first recommended the Yankees look at Mickey Mantle. In 1942, the Yankees replaced Sturm with Buddy Hassett, a former first baseman for the Dodgers and Braves. Hassett was a god complimentary piece in 1942, but he went to the war effort leading into the 1943 season. He never played another MLB game after serving in the minors until 1950.

With the need to replace Hassett, the Yankees acquired Nick Etten on January 22, 1943. In return, the Yankees sent the Phillies $10,000 along with pitcher Allan Gettel and first baseman Ed Whitner Levy. However, the trade was not without controversy. William Cox, the President of the Phillies, took issue with the fact that Levy and Gettel would not be with the Phillies in 1943. As a result, the Yankees took back Gettel and Levy and sent Tom Padden and Al Gerheauser instead to the Phillies on March 26.

1943 Yankees: Joe Gordon, Nick Etten, Snuffy Stirnweiss, and Billy Johnson. (Chicago Tribune, September 1, 1982). #Yankees pic.twitter.com/tkHrCe5I5G

— Adam Seth Moss, M.A. (@LFNJSinner) November 24, 2017

From Last to First

Leaving the dumpster bin Phillies did wonders for Etten. In his first season with the Yankees, batting seventh in the lineup, Etten took Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio’s #5 to a .271/.355/.420 line. He played all 154 games at first, getting 158 hits, 35 doubles, 5 triples and 14 home runs. He drove in 107 RBIs. In his only postseason opportunity, Etten had a miserable postseason, batting .105/.150/.105 in 19 at bats against the St. Louis Cardinals. Despite that, the Yankees won Etten his only ring in 1943. In 1943, he was one of four Yankees to finish in the top 10 of MVP voting. Spud Chandler won the award, Billy Johnson finished 3rd, Etten 7th and Bill Dickey 8th.

1944 was Etten’s time to shine. Coming into March, the Yankees expected that Etten would be the only member of the starting infield that would return for the 1944 season. However, in early March, during Spring Training, Etten, along with New York Giants star Mel Ott, were reclassified into Draft Class 1-A. Draft Class 1-A was the one that made people eligible for the draft. Manager Joe McCarthy noted that Etten was not expected to report until the summer for his examination.

However, the draft decimated the infield for McCarthy and the Yankees. Not only was Etten eligible, but Billy Johnson and Charlie Keller went to the Merchant Marines. During Spring Training, Bill Dickey was called to war and two days after Dickey, Joe Gordon went to war. Beat writers considered the race for the 1944 American League pennant as open as ever. McCarthy assembled a rag tag version of his infield to replace the ones fighting abroad: Etten at 1B, Snuffy Stirnweiss at 2B, Frank Crosetti and Mike Milosevich at SS, Oscar Grimes at 3B and a team of Mike Garbark and Rollie Hemsley at catcher.

Etten was on a torrid pace to start the 1944 season, heavily credited for keeping the rag-tag Yankees in the race for the pennant early on. By May 18, a month into the season, Etten hit a .354/.485/.494 line with 3 home runs and eight multiple hit games. By June 18, Etten had slowed to a crawl with his average falling below .300 on June 7. He also fell in the lineup. When the season started, McCarthy had Etten in the 3-hole. On April 30, when he was hitting well, McCarthy put him in the 4-hole. On June 11, McCarthy moved him to the 5-hole. He stayed there through the 4th of July, except for June 12 and June 13, when he was back in the 4-hole. For the four games after Independence Day, Etten went to the 6-hole. He never left 5th after that.

Late August and September 1944 were Etten’s best time for power. In a span of August 31 to September 16, the Yankees first baseman hit 6 home runs. From September 16 to September 27, Etten went on a 13-game hitting streak. However, Etten never saw .300 again, despite peaking on September 27 with a .297/.403/.474 batting line. After that, Etten’s bat went cold again, despite a 2 hit game on October 1. Etten’s final line: .293/.399/.466 in all 154 games.

The Yankees lost to the Browns and the Tigers in 1944 as the Browns went for the World Series and the Yankees went home. Despite that, Etten led the majors in home runs with 22. A feared power hitter, Etten led the league in walks (97) and intentional walks (18). He only had 4 triples and 25 doubles (numbers that went down from 1943). In day games (126), he hit .307/.420/.503; in night games (all of 28), he hit .236/.306/.309. Also a pure left-handed hitter, the splits were insane with a .308 average against righties and .235 against lefties. The 296 foot right field in Yankee Stadium benefited Etten enormously as he hit 15 of his home runs at home and 7 on the road. However, the splits between road and home in average were a lot more reasonable (.304 (home) and .283 (road)). Etten finished 23rd in MVP voting that season, tied with Rudy York.

1945 was a slightly backwards season, but not by much. His April and May 1945 were much the same as his April and May in 1944. Through May 18, Etten hit .321/.411/.500 as the starting first baseman. However, unlike 1944, the 1945 season did not fall off a cliff. Etten managed a .300 or higher batting average until July 1. During that streak, McCarthy put him back in the 4-hole. After a 4-hit game in Cleveland, Etten got his average back above .300, but it would not last. On August 25, Etten was put back in the 5-hole for good, and Etten finished the season with a .285/.387/.437 batting line in 152 games. However, in part due to his good season, he drove in a league-high 111 RBI with 18 home runs and 161 hits. Etten finished 1945 with a 15th place finish in the MVP race.

Statistically, 1945 was an unusual season for Etten, if compared to 1944. For a 1944 season where Etten looked bad against left-handed pitchers, his 1945 season is amazing. In 1945, he hit .333 against left-handed hitters versus .267 against right-handed hitters. At home versus away, he hit better away (.287) versus at home (.283). However, his power remained mostly at home (12-6). In another statistical flip, Etten hit .311 at night despite .281 at home (19-133 games ratio). It would be reasonable to say 1945 was his best overall season, despite the lowered power numbers. Either way, 1944 and 1945 were the best years of his career.

The End of Etten

1946 was another story. With the war effort over and Joe DiMaggio back, Etten switched to #9 and promptly hit like a 9-hitter. After beating out Buddy Hassett for the 1B job, Etten had a miserable April. By May 18, he had been demoted to 6th, re-promoted to 5th, and batting a clear .202/.291/.346 while playing 1B. On May 25, seeing Etten’s numbers start to fall, the Yankees promoted Stephen “Bud” Souchock from the minors to play 1st base. The next day, from the farm in Tonawanda, New York (where I live), McCarthy resigned his position as Yankee manager in a telegram.

His ugly season continued as McCarthy’s replacements had Etten pinch hit more than play 1B. Etten’s time in New York continued to dwindle with Souchock getting more playing time. In 108 games, Etten hit .232/.315/.365 with 49 RBI, 9 home runs and only 75 hits (drastic drops from one year ago). On April 14, 1947, the Yankees sent Etten back to the Phillies, but after having a miserable start to the 1947 season, they sent him back to the Yankees. With the Yankees, he played in the minors for the Newark Bears and Oakland Oaks of AAA. In AAA, he hit .256/.369/.439 in 93 games.

He had one AAA resurgence in 1948, playing for the Oaks, where he hit .313/.407/.587 in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. There, Etten hit 43 home runs for the Oaks in 164 games, with 181 hits, 155 RBI and 27 doubles. That was a career minor league season for Etten. He never repeated it. In 1949, he joined the Braves minors, playing in Milwaukee for their AA franchise and hit .280/.408/.454 in 148 games. In 1950, aged 36, he joined the White Sox and their Memphis franchise. There, he hit .313/.487 in the South Atlantic League.

With his career over, Etten retired to his home in Chicago. In 1953, Etten became a player agent for a Beverly-Morgan Park pony league. Home with his kids and his wife Helen Patricia at 10214 Oakley Avenue, Etten eventually became a contractor and part-owner for the Carroll Construction Company in Oak Lawn. He moved to Hinsdale, the community he lived in until his death. His son Nick Jr. became a football star himself in the Cook County area. He was soon inducted into the Chicago Sports and Catholic League Hall of Fames for his time in baseball as well as his success at St. Rita’s.

In 1982, he told the Chicago Tribune about his time with the Yankees and about wearing the iconic #5 while DiMaggio was gone. He noted that he would’ve played third base left-handed if necessary to be on the team. He also told the paper that in 1933 he played for a pickup team at Portage Park in Chicago in which he played three innings with a clown outfit on. He kept the paint on after the game until 63rd Street and Kedzie on his way home.

On October 18, 1990, Etten passed away in his home at Hinsdale at the age of 77. His wife, Helen Patricia along with his daughter Patricia and three sons, Nick Jr, John and Thomas along with one of his elder brothers all survived him. He was buried in the Queen of Heaven Catholic Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois. Helen Patricia Conway Etten died in August 1995 at the age of 79. His elder brother, Joseph Etten, died in 2004 at the age of 97.

Nick Etten’s career is another one, unfortunately, shrouded by the war era. However, much like Snuffy Stirnweiss, these guys were legitimate prospects with legitimate chances. Yes, both of their careers died after the war, but baseball is cruel. Etten will forever be the forgotten American League home run king.

Filed Under: Guest Columns Tagged With: Nick Etten

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