1960 PRESEASON PROGNOSIS

1960 PRESEASON PROGNOSIS

AMERICAN LEAG= UE

West Warwick Monarchs<= o:p>

The Monarchs are under new ownership in 1960 as the lo= ng time manager has decided to retire due to health problems but this yearR= 17;s edition is top notch. In seco= nd sacker Nellie Fox and shortstop Ron Hansen they have a great keystone combo, both offensively and defensively plus four full time outfielders who could = each start for almost any team in the league.&n= bsp; Add sluggers Joe Adcock and Harmon Killebrew at the infield corners = and you have a potent lineup. Plu= s a strong bench and a pitching staff that is the class of the division. They have four pitchers (Drysdale,= Sad Sam Jones, Pappas & Larry Jackson) each of whom could win 15-20 games.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> A top flight closer is missing but= the rest of the staff should be good enough, especially given the quality of the starting crew.

Route 66 Hot = Rods

The Rods’ manic trading is starting to pay off a= s they may finally move into contention. Frank Robinson and the Baby Bull Orlando Cepeda carry the big lumber= although one will have to play out of position as both are natural left fielders. Norm Larker is poised for a big se= ason at first base and slick fielding Jim Landis holds down CF. Luis Aparicio will play his usual stellar SS and steal a few bases. The pitching staff has some quality but not up to the level of the Monarchs although Lindy McDaniel and Turk Farrell form the best one-two bul= lpen punch in the league.

Rossville Hor= nets

The defending AL champs could contend again this year but will need a falloff from the Monar= chs. Ernie Banks should again vie for t= he home run crown and he is ably supported by outfielder Minnie Minoso, catcher Del Crandall and first sacker Vic Wertz.&n= bsp; The walking man, Eddie Yost, holds down the hot corner. The team suffers from a below aver= age outfield defense but the infield is decent. On the mound veteran lefties Warren Spahn and Billy Pierce will carry the biggest load but the rest of the star= ting corps is spotty at best. Roy = Face and Don Elston will log a lot of games out of the bullpen and help to offset shortcomings of the starters.

Frankfort Fortress

The Forts or Farts as they are often called won 81 gam= es in 1959 but might be hard pressed to repeat that number a year later. The team could lead the league in = homers but an almost pathological aversion to the base on balls will mean that many will come with the bases empty. Sluggers Rocky Colavito and Jim Lemon could combine for 75-80 dingers plus Gene Freese and Dick (Doctor Strangeglove) Stuart could chip in with another 20 each.= The catching corps is represented by a cast of thousands, none of wh= om can hit the ball very well. T= he team is strong on the mound with workhorses Jim Perry and Frank Lary plus several other solid role players. Bobby Shantz and Hank Aguirre are both port siders but they both will contribute out of the pen. &nbs= p;

East Kenosa Lions

The team formerly known as the Southport Saints has ad= opted a new moniker in 1960 despite a surprisingly good season in 1959 but it wil= l be a real accomplishment if they can duplicate last year’s 79 wins. They start out with a very good key= stone combo in Pete Runnells and Maury Wills, who should challenge Aparicio for t= he stolen base crown. They also = have a decent outfield and a very good catching duo in veteran Smokey Burgess and youngster Earl Battey. However the defense is mediocre at= best, they lack home run power and the pitching staff is definitely below par. Vern Law and Skinny Brown are two = good starters but the quality falls off fast after those two. Way too many starts will go to the= likes of Jim Owens and Juan Pizzaro plus you have to = look long and hard for a reliable closer.

South River Gladiators<= o:p>

The Glads have been a perennial contender and were in = the money last year until the Hornets caught fire in September but now it’= ;s 1960 and their fortunes have fallen. The outfield of Mays, Al Smith and Moon is solid and first sacker Bi= ll White is first rate. Three ca= tchers will need to share time and might not hit a combined .200 between them. Frank Thomas will pop a few home r= uns from the hot corner but his fielding is suspect and he needs to get on base= a whole lot more. On the mound = they lack a horse and will need to run a lot of bodies out to the hill in order = to get through the season, most of whom are far from All-Star quality. However when they do get a late le= ad, Johnny Klippstein should prove to be a capable closer.

Goshen Aces

The Aces finished last in 1959 and look to repeat that= feat in 1960. They have issues offensively and the pitching staff is well below average. On the plus side, Roy Sievers and = Brooks Robinson anchor the corners of the infield and Jerry L= umpe is a decent second sacker but shortstop appears to be a serious problem. They could move Lumpe to short and play Gil McDougal most of the time at second but that is a sto= pgap at best. They do have four ca= pable starting pitchers but a quality bullpen is nowhere to be seen.

NATIONAL LEAG= UE

Los Angeles Surfers

After a disappointing 1959, the LA crew appears poised= to get back in contention although the Elephants and possibly the Bishops could give them a run for their money. The Mick seems to have come back in the off season from an injury plagued 1959 and will contend once again for the home run crown. Often times the Surfers will field= an entire lineup each capable of hitting 15-20 home runs. Frank Malzone is a defensive wizar= d and strong offensive contributor at third while Woodie Held is a power hitting shortstop. Jim Bunning and Vinegar Bend Mizell = lead the mound staff while Robin Roberts needs to hold down his home runs allowe= d to be a major contributor. They = also have several other decent role players and Dave Sisler= should be a capable closer but the depth is thin and they can’t affor= d a breakdown of any of the top pitchers.

Evanston= Elephants

The Pachyderms have a superior infield defense, an exc= ellent outfield, a good bench and the best pitching staff in the league but they a= lso have two major flaws. The fir= st is a dearth of left handed hitters as only three regulars hit from the port si= de and the second is a serious lack of home run power; they could easily finish last in the league in dingers. Hank Aaron is a good start to any lineup and even though he will be hard pressed= to duplicate his numbers from 1959 (a .351 BA) his power number should improve from the 32 he hit last year. Ritchie Ashburn is a stellar lead-off man and should draw well over = 100 walks. Dick Groat (poised for= a breakout season) and Billy Gardner are a solid keystone combo and the rest = of the lineup, except catcher is first rate.&= nbsp; On the mound they have three great starters in McCormick, Broglio & Friend with Ernie moonlighting as a reliever. The draft brought impressive rookie Art Mahaffey and a trade standout closer Gerry Staley. The big question is how much will = the lack of lefty hitting and power hold them back?

Salzburg= Bishops

The defending SPB II champions return with a fine club= but will have to modestly overachieve plus the two teams above must falter in o= rder for them to repeat. The team batting average promises to be low but they do possess good power and on base. One interesting wrinkle= is that the Prelates have exactly the opposite problem of the Elephants; their lineup is overwhelmingly left handed. Teddy Ballgame will probably retire= at the end of the season and is looking for a bang up final season. Slugger Eddie Mathews would like to repeat his 58 home run season of 1959 although he might fall a little short= . The infield and outfield defense i= s not that strong although the pitching staff is above average. Their best starters won’t be= able to answer the bell every fourth or fifth day but they do have decent depth. Mike Fornieles promise= s to be a top flight closer.

Lafayette Slims

The Slims were pitiful in 1959, winning only 61 games = and might even be able to approach .500 this year but asking for a lot more wil= l be difficult. The team is good d= efensively but lacks a big slugger although they do have a half dozen or so who could reach double figure homers. T= he team leader is Roberto Clemente but Storming Norman Cash and Don Hoak will contribute along with defensive wizard Bill= Mazeroski. The outfield sans Clemente is a constantly changing cast of characters, none of whom is particularly impressive. The pitching staff is OK but several of the better members have prob= lems with control especially Bob Buhl and Jack Sanford. Stu Miller is the closest thing to= a decent reliever but the starters will fill in when they aren’t starting.

Hampton Road Cruisers

Hampt= on Road has some good power with Roger Maris, Hondo Howard & Moose Skowron but = the overall offense is no great shakes especially considering the team on base doesn’t appear to be that good. It would be no great feat for them to overtake the Slims but advanci= ng any further will be tough. There = is some decent talent on the roster but they can’t all play at the same = time and manipulating them in and out of the lineup will be a real challenge. On the mound they have some real standouts like Whitey Ford and rookie Juan Marichal plus rubber armed Pedro Ramos but other than those hurlers and swing man Chuck Stobbs plus ace closer Jim “Ball Four” Brosnan, the rest of the staff depth is thin.

Portland= Beavers

The Beavers got all the way to 79 wins in 1959 but dup= licating that effort this year will be a real challenge. They can hit the ball for average = but not out of the park and lack a good team on base average. Ken Boyer is far and away the lead= er of the offense but he lacks any big time support. The infield defense is very good although the catching corps is weak. Flashy fielding Vic Power has good offensive stats, for a second bas= eman that it, not a first sacker. = The keystone combo is good defensively and decent at the plate. There isn’t much quality in = the outfield which might rank as the weakest in the league. Youngsters Chuck Estrada & Ste= ve Barber are good starters but have some control problems while veteran Ray Herbert is top notch. Ed Roeb= uck and Larry Sherry are a good one-two punch out of the pen. Beyond that crew the depth is thin= .

Wabash Rivers=

The former Minneapolis Lakers are under new ownership = and had a name change but the cellar dwellers of 1959 will probably end up there again in the new season. The offense is weak and the pitching staff the worst in the league by far. The outfield defense is strong unl= ike the infield. Ancient Stan Mus= ial is probably the team’s best player but advancing age will reduce his availability. The only other = power threat is catcher Johnny Romano and they will be close to the bottom in team homers by season’s end. Swingman Hoyt Wilhelm and seldom used Wes Stock might be the only hurlers to finish the season with an ERA under 4.00. Gary Ding Dong Bell and Johnny Buzhardt would be OK fourth or fifth starters on a go= od team but they are the staff leaders here.&= nbsp; Wilhelm will do a decent job in the pen when he isn’t starting= but Katie Bar the Door after him as the rest= of the group would qualify more as arsonists rather than firemen.