The Giants are sitting in last place through most of this season, thanks, in part, to the casting off of a number of the stars of the 70's team that won, at one time, seven division titles in a row (1974 to 1980). Since that stretch, the Giants appear to be sinking badly into mediocrity. Here is a quick look at the careers of some of the Giants of the 70's that made the team what it was....
Catcher: John Stearns: while not gifted with power or hitting ability, Stearns was one of the few catchers in the league with doubles and stealing ability. Often an afterthought, he provided the Giants with consistency till the day he was traded to the rival Astros. The irony is that the young star the Giants picked up for John, Terry Kennedy, had a season ending injury and a major drop in talent that has made him virtually useless.
First Base: Cecil Cooper: Cooper won 3 mvps awards in the 70's providing power in the middle of the lineup. Coop came within a couple of hits of winning the triple crown in 1978 (.343/42/130). He continues to provide offense for the Cubbies despite now being 33 years old. It looks like he will be around for awhile.
Second Base: Rod Carew: The Giants picked up Carew in the early 70's from the Twins for Rick Burleson. Carew went on to provide consistent defense along with his ability to hit for average. Presently, Carew, 37, still plays second base for the Rangers.
Shortstop: Roy Smalley/Tim Foli: Smalley came to the Giants via San Diego with the Padres getting Jim Gantner in return. Foli, while never particularly gifted beyond defense, did seem to find a way to win in playoffs. Smalley was just recently traded to the Blue Jays while Foli was traded to the Rangers in 1979 and continues to provide defensive wizardry for them.
Third Base: George Brett was a first round pick in 1973 and provided incredible hitting ability throughout the 70's. His lifetime average of .315 is the best in the Cdl. Brett was traded to Oakland at the beginning of the year for 2 younger players in Chili Davis and pitcher, John fulgham.
Outfield: Joe Lahoud is the only member of the 70's Giants stars to still be with the team. Pushed out of the outfield by rising star Davis, Lahoud is trying to cover first base for the Giants. Lahoud was picked up from the Astro's in 1973 in a trade that Brian still has nightmares about. Lahoud's best years were between 1974 and 1978 when he hit 30/100 fairly consistently.
Willie Horten: Picked up as a free agent in 1976, Willie provided power to the Giants. His best year as a Giant came in 1978 when he hit 30 home runs and 105 ribbies.
Al Ferrara: Forgettable Al provided a little punch in the lineup but that was about it...long retired
Gene Richards: Traded to the Indians this season, Gene was the leadoff hitter from 1976 on, amassing 371 stolen bases in his career to this point.
Pitchers: Andy Messersmith (1971 to 1975) was the Giants first major free agent signee (as i recall, 9 mill for seven years or something like that). Andy preceded to have 2 season ending injuries but in between provided solid starting pitching for the Giants. Andy was traded to the Brewers in '75 and is presently with the dodgers.
Dick Bosman (1978 to 1981)..picked up from the Astros, Bosman went 22-8 with a 2.22 era in his first year as a Giant.
Jerry Koosman (1970 to 1975)..was the ace, along with Marichal, in the early 70's. Traded to Boston, Jerry is now retired.
Juan Marichal...retired after the 1974 season, but was the early ace of the Giants pitching staff in their Cdl history.
Ross Grimsley...arguably the best of all the Giants pitchers in the 70's, Ross won the cy young in both 1975 and 1976. Still a star, Ross toils for the pitching heavy Brewers.
Barry Lersch: Aquired from the Tigers in 1975, Barry was the heart and soul of the bullpen from '75 to last year. Presently, Barry sits at 999 innings pitched in his career in 798 games with a lifetime era of 2.86. At 38, he waits for retirement in the Giants farm system. He will be brought up for one more sim so he can finish with over 1000 innnings. He probably won;t meet the requirements for the Hall of Fame, but he should be there.
Mike Hedlund: an original draft pick into the Cdl, Mike was just recently traded to the Cubbies. Hedlund provided solid pitching, mostly in relief but also with stints as closer and starter. Lifetime numbers for Mike are 1260 innings in 845 games with an era of 2.69.
Vincent Romo: Romo was another original draft pick of the Giants, playing his entire career with them. He retired in 1978 with a lifetime record of 1141 innings pitched in 663 games with an era of 2.54.
And last but not least..the only Giant who is presently a member of the Cdl Hall of Fame...Willie McCovey. Willie played for the Giants from 1969 to 1973 when upstart rookie Cecil Cooper forced the trade of willie to the Senators. McCovey is remembered every year during promotional events with his own Retro Day.
Monday 8/1/1983 :
American League-Pitcher of the Month :
Bill Laskey (CAL) !!
He had a record of 3-1 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 1.41.
American League-Batter of the Month :
Eddie Murray (SEA) !!
He batted .394 in 94 AB, with 5 homers and 30 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month :
Mike Caldwell (CHN) !!
He had a record of 6-0 in 7 games started, with an ERA of 2.35.
National League-Batter of the Month :
John Castino (SD) !!
He batted .353 in 102 AB, with 4 homers and 20 RBI.
The KC Royals finally dealt ace SP Scott Sanderson. After fielding countless offers GM John "I Take My Sweet Old Time" Kopera sent Scotty packing to Milwaukee for 2B Julio Franco, SP prospect Ron Darling and a #1 pick in next year's Rookie Draft. Also going to the Brewers is 2B Lou Whitaker.
"Milwaukee offered us the right combination of players/picks", said Kopera. "Although we hated to move Scotty, being only 7.5 games out, we felt the timing was right. We're very excited by the potential that Ron Darling has shown and we've been looking at Julio Franco for some time now," continued the Royals GM. "Our new double play combo of Thon/Franco is solid and with Larry(Parrish) over at the hot corner you gotta love our defense."
Rookie knuckleballer Tom Candiotti will probably replace Sanderson in the lineup. "I admit I'm intrigued at the prospect of following a flame thrower like Don Gullett with a knuckler like Tom Candiotti. Tom couldn't break a pane of glass with his arm but boy does his ball have movement," exclaimed Kopera.
So far Royal fans are split 50/50 on moving fan favorite Sanderson. "I'm sure our loyal fans will come around once they see Julio, Tom & ultimately Ron perform," said the GM.
When reached for comment Scott Sanderson said "I'll miss the guys in the locker room. I'll also miss the post game spread. we're the only team that has pierogies, pagach & halupki on a regular basis." Team owner & GM Kopera is Slovak, hence the unique cuisine in the clubhouse.
"It gives us a chance to compete this year!! With those other bums I really didn't see us factoring into the postseason at all!" said GM and owner Matt Skutley in reference to the deadline deal that brought Kansas City star pitcher Scott Sanderson (7-3, 3.54 ERA) along with Lou Whitaker (.201, 6 HRs, 34 RBI) to Milwaukee for former #5 overall pick in 1982 Julio Franco (.280, 3 HRs, 30 RBI), #12 overall pick in 1983 Ron Darling, and San Diego's first round pick in 1984 which was acquired in the Don Slaught trade.
"We're very excited about him. I envision him to be a young Steve Busby. He's got that kind of potential!"
To make room for Sanderson under the salary cap Milwaukee cut three of the "bums" mentioned by Skutley. Dick Drago (1-1, 5.40 ERA), Steve Renko (DNP), and Dick Tidrow (3-5, 3.32 ERA but injured for the next 5 weeks) were all given their pink slips. Others characterized by Skutley in his "bums" statement who are now clinging to jobs are Randy Jones (2-4, 4.96 ERA, opponent's batting average of .344), rookie Mark Thurmond (1-4, 7.65 ERA), and rookie Ray Fontenot (2-1, 2.83 ERA). It looks like Fontenot will move now into the #4 spot with Thurmond and Jones picking up a start here and there.
Replacing Franco in the starting lineup will probably be Frank White (.400 average in 70 ABs, 14 RBI) with Whitaker and Garth Iorg (.324 in 37 ABs) getting some additional playing time backing up all 4 infield positions.
It remains to be seen if this gamble will hurt the Brewer's offensive production as Franco was just starting to come into his own. The team batting average, currently .285, has been solid all season long while the team ERA has been hovering right around 4.00 and is currently at 4.08. Regardless the Brewers have a solid 1-2-3 punch in their rotation with Busby, Grimsley, and Sanderson and should be a force to be reckoned with if they make the playoffs.
The ATR comes at you with both barrels today, first a hard hitting exclusive on Oakland followed by the regular coverage you all know and love. Anyway, let’s get right down to business.
New York (A) receives SP Rick Rhoden
Milwaukee receives SP Ron Darling and New York (A)’s second round Amateur draft choice in 1984
Rhoden is a classic case of potential never meeting expectation. Rhoden looks like a quality starting pitcher, but has never put it together. The Yankees are taking a big gamble to give up a fine pitching prospect in Darling and a second round draft choice. If the gamble pays off and Milwaukee and Houston are just bad places to pitch and New York makes the playoffs, this move will qualify as having worked...though to be honest, I don’t think that’s the case.
Winner: Milwaukee
Cincinnati receives SP Bill Gullickson
San Francisco receives LF Larry Littleton, Cincinnati’s second round Amateur draft choice in 1984 and reprisal from the ATR!!!
If reprisal is what you ask for, reprisal is what you get from the ATR. I like Gullickson. I liked him when Oakland sent him across the bay and I like him when he goes to Cincinnati. He’s a solid pitching prospect and to be honest, the Giants have almost no listed starting pitchers. With the disappointing start to 1983, keeping a pitcher like Gullickson around is a good idea. But there are plenty of reasons to trade him…unfortunately for the Giants, a late second round draft choice is not one of those reasons in my book. Next season Gullickson should be terrorizing teams as part of the team that will have the best record in the CDL in 1983.
Winner: Cincinnati and ATR
Boston receives SP Dave Rozema
Pittsburgh receives SP Blue Moon Odom, Boston’s first round Amateur draft choices in 1984 and 1985 and Boston’s second round Amateur draft choice in 1984.
Rozema is one of the most talented pitchers in the CDL. He is young, has a clean bill of health and is signed to a decent contract. He also has been a key cog in propelling the Red Sox into the Wild Card lead. So, the draft picks that are being sent to Pittsburgh are going to be low in the round and not hurt as much. Perhaps someday the Pirates will be trading draft picks for the final pieces of the puzzle like the Red Sox, but that’s probably the next decade. Despite that, this collection of picks and corpses of Blue Moon Odom is quite the haul.
Winner: Pittsburgh
Baltimore receives: SP Rickey Clark
Minnesota receives: Baltimore’s fifth round Amateur draft choice in 1984.
OK, there is a point where adding draft picks is no longer beneficial. I’m fairly certain that round 4 is that point. But a fifth round draft choice and the end of the fifth round at that makes no sense. Clark is cheap and useful, so getting rid of him for this only makes sense if your goal is to lose a ton of games. It’s safe to say that is the real point behind this deal. Anyway, is there no limit to how little the Twins will take for a player?
Winner: Baltimore
New York (A) receives: SP Atlee Hammaker and MR Floyd Chiffer
Pittsburgh receives: 1B Pete O’Brien, New York (A)’s first round Amateur draft choice in 1984 and New York (A)’s second round Amateur draft choice in 1985.
Gambling on Rhoden is one thing. Making the same risk twice with Hammaker is like adding bullets to Russian Roulette. I wouldn’t want to be making these kinds of risks while trying to make the playoffs. The justifiable part of this deal is that Hammaker is only 25 and could turn into a front of the rotation starter. The Pirates on the other hand are just getting rid of anyone other than Quisenberry that could help them win games this year. The fans will frown upon this behavior, but eventually the dividends will pay off.
Winner: Pittsburgh
With the trade of Wade Boggs, the #1 pick in the 1982 draft, American League and CDL batting champ his rookie year, it looks like the rebuilding of the Oakland A's is complete. The fury and frenetic pace of the Oakland rebuilding has sent tremors throughout the CDL, ringing in a new era as traditional 70s powers the Giants, Twins and Pirates all went into re-building mode and in the process contributed to the rejuvenation of the Oakland franchise.
But did Oakland need to have a complete makeover? The A's 1982 season was, for them, a success: a 71-91 record; a batting title and rookie of the year; the best non-alien AL pitcher (see below). What did the flurry of moves bring to the poor fans on the wrong side of the bay?
The A’s have long been the sorriest franchises in the CDL. 10 seasons of 90+ losses; 4 season of 70+ wins with the best being 78 wins; never a winning record. But by virtue of being so bad, slowly a strong base of young talent was established. How could it not be? If you pick in the top 10 -- not to mention the top 3 -- every year you wind up with some good young talent, even with the computer picking for you.
So let's compare the Oakland roster at the end of 1982 with the mid-season 1983 version of the A's and see where they stand. All ages are 1983 ages so players are compare on the same basis. Players listed in bold are, in the ATR's humble opinion the better of the two.
Catcher
1982 - Jody Davis, 26
1983 - Butch Wynegar 27
The ATR Called this even but a slight edge could be given to Davis. He's a year younger, a lot cheaper and was coming off a very solid rookie season (.257 BA 15 HR 74 RBI).
First Base
1982 - Keith Hernandez, 29
1983 - George Brett 30
Brett has the advantage, but it's not as much as you might think. They are both very similar players, with Brett hitting for a better average and a bit more power.
Second Base/Shortstop
1982 - Todd Cruz, 27
1983 - Todd Cruz, 27
Cruz, a regular in 1982, was warming the bench until Boggs was traded. Not the greatest but acceptable with some run for growth.
Second Base/Short Stop
1982 - Wally Backman, 23
1983 - Rick Burleson, 32
Burleson is a huge improvement over the motley bunch that was clogging the 1982 A's infield. Backman has talent but had a miserable 1982, hitting .171.
Third Base
1982 - Wade Boggs, 25
1983 - Ken Oberkfell, 27
Oberkfell is a decent OBP man, but, I knew Wade Boggs, and you, Ken Oberkfell, you sir are no Wade Boggs.
Left Field
1982 - Mike Vail, 31
1983 - Bruce Boisclair 30
Vail left via free agency. Boisclair is a solid, if unspectacular, improvement.
Center Field
1982 - Oscar Brown, 37
1983 - Jerry Mumphrey, 30
Brown left via free agency after turning in a decent season. Again a solid, if unspectacular, improvement over 1982, even if because Mumphrey will be playing in the CDL in 3 years whereas Brown will be working at Denny's.
Right Field/DH
1982 - Greg Luzinski, 32
1983 - Greg Luzinski, 32
The Bull is the Bull. Low average decent power. If people get on in front of him he'll rack up the RBIs.
DH/Right Field
1982 - Bill Madlock, 32
1983 - Gary Matthews 32
Madlock seems to be getting better with age, while Matthews is losing what little power he once had.
Utility Spot
1982 - Pete Mackanin, 31
1983 - Jerry Hairston 31
Hairston is much better than any bench player of the 1982 A's, even having missed half the season so far. He's not great; he fits in quite well with the other OAK outfielders, but is a definite improvement.
#1 Starter
1982 - John Fulgham, 27
1983 - Doyle Alexander, 32
Doyle is a solid CDL starter a previous Cy Young winner who is having his best season -- in the Astrodome. How will he fare outside the dome. For a hint his era went up 40 points in the first sim since he left. Still a solid #1, he's no match for John Fulgham, who in 1982 was the best human pitcher in the AL. (Steve Busby, THE BEST PITCHER IN BASEBALL HISTORY is obviously an alien hence the reference to "human pitcher". We all know Busby is the best and that the Cy Young award is made out to him in advance every year. Steve Rogers can barely make out his name over the scratch marks on his 1981 award.) Fulgham, a former first pick int he draft, was coming into his own to be a dominant starter. Big edge to Fulgham based on quality and age, although no one would complain about having Doyle.
#2 Starter
1982 - John Candelaria, 29
1983 - Larry Christenson, 29
Similar pitchers, but Christenson is establishing himself as a top starter (in fact he could be listed as the #1 starter but since Wade Boggs was traded for Alexander, I figure Doyle must be the #1 guy). The Candy man is a solid innings eater but has never dominated as one would think.
#3 Starter
1982 - Danny Darwin, 27
1983 - Danny Darwin, 27
A solid young pitcher with a decent upside, but time is running out for him.
#4 Starter
1982 Steve Baker, 26
1983 Mike Scott, 28
Baker was nothing special, but better than Scott who is having his worse season ever since leaving the Astrodome (see Doyle Alexander). Scott doesn't seem like he will ever live up to his potential.
#5 Starter
1982 - Atlee Hammaker, 25
1983 - Clay Kirby, 35
Kirby is one of the solid old CDL SPs but is near the end of the line. Hammaker is a good young pitcher with a big upside. Who would you pick?
Bullpen
1982 - Todd Walker 34; Mike Kekich 38; and a bunch of other crap
1983 - Steve Howe 25; Gary Lucas, 28; Mark Clear 27; et. al.
The 1982 A's bullpen was atrocious and desperately needed help. In Howe they have one of the better young closers in the CDL (although again, his era is up more than a run after leaving Houston -- see Doyle & Scott). Lucas is a great MR, the kind you need to have to win pennants. Clear is listed because he's young and if he controls his walk frequency can contribute. And face it, my mother can pitch better than any one in the 1982 A's pen.
Minor Leagues
The 1982 A's had a decent farm system, not as good as you would think but that was because so many of their prospects were already up at the major league level.
At the end of 1982, they had 6 top 100 prospects: OF Chile Davis (#2 - asolid outfielder for years); DH Randy Johnson (an over-rated #11 but could contribute); SP Bill Gullickson (an under-rated #26; all the makings of a solid rotation pitcher); CL Doug Jones (#31 - good talent but old with no ratings; a big gamble); SP Lee Tunnel (#65 - average talent but young at 21 so room to grow); C Dave Schmidt (#80 - because someone needs to be at the bottom of the list, Schmidt will aspire to be a backup).
At the All-Star break in 1983, they have 2 top 100 prospects: Tunnel (fallen to #76) and OF RJ Reynolds (#91 a 3rd round pick who is a long shot to be productive).
A solid farm system has been blasted away. And to make things worse, there are no new prospects entering the system. Oakland traded their 1983 #1 and #2 making Reynolds their top pick. And in the first 3 rounds of the 1984 and 1985 draft, Oakland is left with one #3 pick. So no new blood anytime soon.
Summation
The A's are better. They have a 47-43 record at the all-star break and are in the hunt for the AL Wildcard.
According to my scoring the A's have improved themselves at 7 positions, while weakening themselves at 5.
A decent trade eh? Well no, not really if you look closer and think long-term.
The A's major improvements came in the bullpen (Howe & Lucas), in the middle infield (Burleson) and a general upgrade in the outfield from below average players to above-average players (3 minor imporvements make 1 major improvement). Minor improvements were made at 1B (Brett) and #2 SP (Christenson).
The flip side is that the weakened positions are major losses. The losses of Boggs, Fulgham and Hammaker represent serious downgrades, especially -- and see below -- long term. Madlock and Baker, while not as major still represent a serious drop in quality.
And one of the big reasons for this is age.
The A's in 1982 were a young team. Their best players were going to be 26, 29, 27, 25, 27, 29, 27, 26, 25 and 32. They had a 23 yr old OF and a 24 yr old SP in the minors ready to go. And these players were good. Sure there were holes but there was a great core in which to build around.
The A's in 1983 are significantly older: 27, 30, 32, 27, 27, 31, 30, 32, 31, 32, 29, 28, 35, 25, 27, 28. There are more good players but the quality level of these players have fallen. And the future -- the minor leaguers and the draft picks -- have been sacrificed for these players.
The 1982 A's looked like a team that was on it's way up, ready to establish itself as a key AL force for years with a couple a key players and few good breaks.
The 1983 A's are better. They have a good shot at the first winning season in club history and an outside shot at the Wildcard.
But is it not a team built to last. With older, less talented players -- but more of them -- a bare minor league system and no draft picks, these A's look like a .500 team for a couple of years before the lack of high-end young talent pushes them back into the basement from which they came.
Tuesday 7/11/1983 :
These players were selected for the AL OOTP-Allstar Team :
P Mark Fidrych from Chicago (A)
P Bill Butler from Baltimore
P Pat Underwood from Seattle
P Doyle Alexander from Oakland
P Don Robinson from California
P Ross Grimsley from Milwaukee
P Bob Stanley from Detroit
P Alejandro Pena from Texas
P Bruce Sutter from Baltimore
P Bill Campbell from Boston
C Johnny Bench from Seattle
C Ted Simmons from Detroit
1B Gary Thomasson from Baltimore
2B Paul Molitor from California
3B Bill Sudakis from New York (A)
SS Milt Ramirez from Milwaukee
LF Ron Blomberg from Texas
CF Tito Landrum from Milwaukee
RF Claudell Washington from Detroit
1B George Brett from Oakland
LF Dave Winfield from Milwaukee
RF Harold Baines from Boston
RF Don Baylor from Boston
3B Tim Wallach from Boston
SS Howard Johnson from New York (A)
These players were selected for the NL OOTP-Allstar Team :
P Larry Dierker from Chicago (N)
P Pete Falcone from Montreal
P Tom Hall from Montreal
P Lary Sorensen from Montreal
P Tim Lollar from New York (N)
P Jerry Reuss from Cincinnati
P Gary Boyd from San Diego
P Mike Kilkenny from Cincinnati
P Willie Hernandez from Los Angeles
P Tom Henke from Houston
C Gary Carter from Chicago (N)
C Lance Parrish from Montreal
1B Cecil Cooper from Chicago (N)
2B Jorge Orta from Philadelphia
3B Mike Schmidt from Montreal
SS Alan Trammell from Chicago (N)
LF Kirk Gibson from Atlanta
CF Reggie Jackson from Houston
RF Dale Murphy from Chicago (N)
1B Pedro Guerrero from St. Louis
RF Dwight Evans from St. Louis
LF Willie Crawford from Montreal
LF Fred Lynn from New York (N)
SS Toby Harrah from Houston
SS Garry Templeton from Atlanta
Red Sox' shortstop Domingo Ramos was named Rookie of the Month in the American league after he hit for ,368 in 76 At bats. The 25 years old also drew 13 walks, hit one homer and collected 10 RBIs, for identical OBP and SLG of ,461.
A third round pick in 1978 by the Blue Jays, he was traded to Boston in 1980.
Ramos finished ahead of Twins' 2B Wallace Johnson (,360-1-13) and Angels' pitcher Bud Black (2-3, 3,45).
In the National League, the honor went to Braves' starter Jose DeLeon. Only 22 years old, DeLeon had a 2-1 record in June, with a 1,50 ERA in 42 innings. He walked 17 batters and struck out 48. DeLeon was the 9th player selected in the last Amateur Draft.
Astros' closer Tom Henke (3,27 , 7 saves) and Phillies' shortstop Cal Ripken (,364-2-10) were also considered.
Friday 7/1/1983 :
American League-Pitcher of the Month :
Don Robinson (CAL) !!
He had a record of 5-0 in 5 games started, with an ERA of 0.74 and 1 shutouts.
American League-Batter of the Month :
Ron Blomberg (TEX) !!
He batted .369 in 103 AB, with 7 homers and 24 RBI.
National League-Pitcher of the Month :
Lary Sorensen (MON) !!
He had a record of 5-1 in 6 games started, with an ERA of 0.59 and 1 shutouts.
National League-Batter of the Month :
Dale Murphy (CHN) !!
He batted .390 in 100 AB, with 11 homers and 25 RBI.