United League of American Base B

Anderson No-No's Barons
Bob Stymies Cleveland, But Is He For Real?
Manhattan's third starter Bob Anderson turned in a command performance today, silencing Cleveland's bat for the seventh no-hitter in UL history
by Jeff Gurganus

MANHATTAN (Sept. 7) -- After a strong first two-thirds of the year, there had been little to cheer about for Gray fans during the final third of the season. While the Sox starting pitching continued to be strong, both the bullpen, less that crazy outfielder-turned-closer Tom Abernathy, and the everyday lineup have fallen on hard times.
   Bob Anderson managed to provide a glimmer of hope. First, his no hitter gave fans something to cheer about during what has turned into a long, hot summer. Second, and more importantly, Anderson showed himself as an important cog of the Gray Sox’s future rotation, grouped with Podres, O’Dell and Williams – with Chance and Sadecki waiting in the wings.
   In his match-up with Cleveland’s Don Drysdale, Anderson struck out 4 and walked 6 on 112 pitches. He was supported by outstanding defense, including two double plays, and run support. Something the hard luck Anderson has not been accustomed to.
   Unfortunately, that run support disappeared in his next two starts following the no hitter – and he lost both decisions. So, the question for the Gray Sox remains, will Anderson develop into a quality, consistent starter or will he display moments of greatness surrounded by poor outings and just plain bad luck?

Herb Settles the Score
Maroon Breaks Single-Season Record, Closes In on 400 Ks
ST. LOUIS (Sept. 8) -- St. Louis ace Herb Score fanned 12 men tonight to smash Johnny Antonelli's six-year-old strikeout record. Score needs just six strikeouts in each of his last three starts to become the first major league pitcher to punch out 400 hitters since Matt Kilroy and Toad Ramsey in 1886 (though in fairness, the latter two each pitched over 580 innings). Score's 12 whiffs made for his 21st game with 10 or more Ks (he has fanned 15 twice and at least 12 13 times). And the competition are no slouches. Antonelli (323 Ks) logged his UL record third straight 300-K season and should join Billy Pierce in the 3,000-K club sometime next summer. And Pierce himself shows no signs of slowing down at the age of 34, notching his first 300-K year since 1956 (and his best ERA in eight years, to boot).
At age 29, Score recently passed Sam "Toothpick" Jones for seventh on the all-time K list with 1,696. Among pitchers under 30, only Johnny Podres (1,288) and Pedro Ramos (1,222) rank in the top 25--and they are almost 400 Ks behind Score.

Records on the Brink
Hitters Feast on Expansion-Thinned Pitching
No fewer than seven major single-season batting records are in jeopardy heading into the season's final fortnight. Granny Hamner alone needs just 11 hits, 3 doubles, 9 RBIs, and an eight-point boost to his batting average to carve new lines in the UL record book.
   The season began with Roger Maris threatening to make a run at the single-season home run record. Maris slugged 11 round-trippers in April, setting a torrid pace, but quickly cooled off and has just 31 with 13 games to play. Willie Mays picked up where Maris left off, setting some kind of record with 15 home runs in the month of May, and sits just three homers back of Gus Zernial's 1957 standard. Meanwhile, teammate Dick Howser is making his own run for the archives, literally. The second-year second baseman has swiped 63 bases and needs just eight more to tie Richie Ashburn's 1954 record.
   What has sparked all these offensive superlatives? The first explanation is surely down to expansion. UL hitters are feasting on pitching staffs thinned by the expansion to a 12-team circuit. But other factors include the altered park effects; the Polo Grounds' friendliness to hitters outweighs Turnpike Stadium's friendlieness to pitchers.
   Pitchers, too, have benefitted from expansion, albeit not on the same record-breaking scale as hitters. After all, pitchers must benefit as well from the thinning out of the league's batting orders. A quick look at the league's top hurlers reveals a trend -- most are having the best year's of their careers, in terms of ERA and WHIP. Check the list of pitchers having career years: Brooklyn ace Lew Burdette (2.00 ERA, 0.95 WHIP), Billy Pierce (0.97 WHIP), Don Mossi (2.93 ERA), Johnny Antonelli (2.39 ERA, 0.97 WHIP), Pedro Ramos (2.46 ERA, 1.00 WHIP), Johnny Podres (2.83 ERA, 1.00 WHIP). Alas, the only single-season pitching records set to topple, other the already smashed strikeout record, are in games started and base on balls.