Well, divisional play does indeed date to 1969, but not, apparently, Tyler's memory. Or the fact-checking reach of whatever earnest young Hemingways look over all the news that is fit to print. "A first"? At best, it is "a second."
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/27/sports/baseball/yankees-blue-jays.html?
Courtesy of the IIHIIFII...C Instant Correction Department, bringing you hot-off-the-pan fact corrections since 2022, not only has another such division seen four, 90-plus-win teams, but it is, like Rudolph, the most famous reindeer of all.
In 1978, the self-same American League East featured Four Over 90:
East Division
| Tm | W | L | GB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Yankees | 100 | 63 | .613 | -- |
| Boston Red Sox | 99 | 64 | .607 | 1.0 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 93 | 69 | .574 | 6.5 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 90 | 71 | .559 | 9.0 |
| Detroit Tigers | 86 | 76 | .531 | 13.5 |
| Cleveland Indians | 69 | 90 | .434 | 29.0 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 59 | 102 | .366 | 40.0 |
Besides the legendary, Jackson-Munson-Nettles-Guidry-Hunter-Goose-Sparky Yankees that year (3 HOF players), there was a terrifying BoSox team with Rice-Fisk-Yaz-Lynn-Evans-Eck (4 HOF), that hard-hitting Brew Crew, with Yount-Molitor-Cooper-Bando-Hisle-Ogilvie-Caldwell (2 HOF), and the Orioles with Murray-Singleton-DeCinces-Belanger-May-Palmer-Flanagan-D. Martinez-McGregor (2 HOF).
Oh, and in fifth place, with a mere 86 wins? The Tigers, with Trammell-Whitaker-Staub-LeFlore-Thompson-Kemp-Stanley-Morris (2 HOF).
Over 11 campaigns, 1976-86, the core of those 5 teams would win 9 pennants and 4 World Series—and finish just 3 games shy of making that 7 rings.
So spare us thy foul presentism, ye Tylers! We have seen the days.
Posts
6 comments:
Today, in news that will surprise no one...
"The Yankees announced on Tuesday that Severino will throw a bullpen on Tuesday instead of starting against the Blue Jays on regular season because, according to manager Aaron Boone, he’s been experiencing some “general arm soreness."
"General Arm Soreness" is Yankee mouthpiece euphemism for "Next time you see him, it'll be in the Dominican winter leagues".
I'm truly shocked to hear this news.
Just kidding.
Seeing this bunch of wannabe Yankees brought me over to this video. It will wash the bad taste out of your mouth:
https://www.mlb.com/yankees/video/mattingly-s-epic-homer-in-1995
Many is the campaign in which General Arm Soreness has vanquished us!
Truly, sorry to see this happen to Setback Sevvy. But, hey, they call him Setback Sevvy for a reason.
It would be great to know, someday, why this is. Why so many Yankees are now injured so often.
Take a little too much juice, and lift the weights just a little too much. For all of the talk regarding "bigger, faster, stronger", and teams having a squad of trainers, what team this year would you bet against that '78 team? The only important improvement in the past fifty years is surgery and rehab. Actually, how much better is the game now versus a hundred years ago? Imagine today's players on those fields, with those gloves? And I have to add that baseball was THE sport until maybe the sixties and got the best athletes who had to play their asses off or face going back to the farms and mines. Nobody can tell me that mentally no more than fifteen to twenty percent of today's players could have stood up to the Old-Timers.
Very true, Kev. The game has not improved—save, of course, for getting rid of the color line.
I think there's a strong argument to be made that, when it comes to play alone, roughly 1975-1987 or so was the real Golden Age of baseball.
You had guys who did everything: hit over 50 homers (well, at least once); hit nearly .400, stole over 100 bases, threw as many as 30 complete games, saved over 40 games, won 20 or more with regularity, etc.
All kinds of play at once, on all kinds of fields. Sure, the parks and the uniforms generally sucked. But it was still a much more fun game than it is today.
Well, a lot of guys started 36 games a season, but yeah, it was a better game. And we were younger then. ;)
Post a Comment