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Monuments
Lively Bats
Washington in 2nd Place with
Top Offense
WASHINGTON (May 16) --
Washington boasts the league's leading offense, thanks to an explosion of runs
in early May. The Monuments lead the league in batting, OBP, and runs
scored, continuing last year's dramatic turnaround that saw the club jump from
11th to 1st in runs, ending seven years of second division offense. Third
baseman Ron Santo won Player of the Week on May 15 with a .500 average (12-24)
and 12 runs and a 1.392 OPS in six games. Three Mon regulars are hitting
over .330 (Dick Howser .369, Mike de la Hoz .337, and Davey Williams .331), and
left fielder Floyd Robinson is hitting .458 in 12 games, including .364 in seven
games since returning from a month on the DL with a fractured wrist.
Washington has scored 6+ runs in five straight games, including a 14-8 blowout
of Los Angeles.
Howser, who last season became the first .400 hitter in a
generation, hit .426 in his first 12 games in May, raising his average average
24 points to .369. If Howser hits better than .350 this year, he will be
the first player to hit over .350 for five straight years since Rogers Hornsby
(1920-25). (Hornsby never hit below .370 in that stretch and hit .402 over
a five-year span.)
Texans
Tumble
DALLAS (May 16) -- The
Dallas Texans lost eight straight to fall into the West Division cellar.
"The runs dried up and the bullpen let us down," lamented GM Eric Clemons after
being swept by Atlanta at home. Dallas was shut out twice during the skid
and score 3 or fewer runs in five of their last seven.
Rookie catcher Duke Sims has been particularly anemic at the plate
(.111 in last 11 games), but Curt Blefary, Jackie Brandt, and Bob Bailey are all
hitting .250 or below in May. Blefary hit just .214 in 9 games before an
arm injury on May 12 sidelined him. "I hate to say it, as a medical
doctor, but maybe Curt's injury is a blessing in disguise," Clemons said.
As for the bullpen, four of Dallas' eight losses came after leading
or tying after seven innings, with Casey Cox (0-3, 5.00) and Pat Jarvis (1-5,
4.87) playing leading roles in bullpen meltdowns. To be fair, Ken Holtzman
pitched a five-hit gem that happened to be a 1-0 loss to Atlanta's Steve Barber.
Antonelli, Aaron Burnish
Hall Credentials
4,000 Strikeouts, 400
Home Runs in Week of Milestones
by Peter Vays
LOS ANGELES (May 16) -- A big week in Hollywood as two Outlaws pass momentous
milestones to add to their Hall of Fame credentials. Johnny Antonelli becomes
the first pitcher in UL history to fan 4,000 hitters and Hank Aaron becomes the
fifth player to pass the 400 homerun mark.
May 8 against the Boston Federals Johnny K'ed seven Boston hitters
to pass the 4,000 mark. The memorable pitch came in the fifth inning as Art
Shamsky entered the box. Lefties historically do not do well against Antonelli
and this was no different. Antonelli started him with a 91mph fastball which
Art fouled off as he probably knew this was the last good pitch he would see.
Pitch #2 was the famous Antonelli change up which Art swung too early on for
strike two. Knowing that he was in trouble Art crowded the plate and choked up
on the bat to put something in play. The windup was long and the crowd held its
breath as the killer curveball came and dove way out of the strike zone but Art
was already committed to swinging and he went a good four inches over it. The
crowd gave a standing ovation after which Johnny finished the inning with two
more quick outs and went on to win the game.
Just two days later, on May 10, the man that was brought in to add
class to a struggling franchise passed a milestone with his 400th home run.
Hank Aaron against the Washington Monuments accomplished the great feat in the
fourth inning after already singling in the third. The pitcher of record was
Rick Wise who just watched the pitch sail into the upper deck through his cloudy
glasses. The at bat was a true battle as Aaron fouled off three pitches
prior to the crushing blow. The big pitch came on a 2-2 count with two runners
on and ended 434 feet in the upper decks. Aaron quickly rounded the bases
as he had done 399 other times and took his seat on the bench.
“We are thrilled for Aaron and Johnny on the big weeks that they
had," GM Peter Vays told reporters. Aaron is a class act that turned this
franchise and we hope Johnny is the final piece to our puzzle. Both players
will hopefully finish their careers here in L.A. and enter the Hall as Outlaws.”
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W E S T
D I V I S I O N |
E A S T
D I V I S I O N |
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Tony Taylor:
most ABs without a
home run (161).
Fred Newman:
league-low
1.8 strikeouts per nine, lowest K/W ratio (0.7).
J.C. Martin:
lowest RTO%
(17.4) |
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Don Demeter:
lowest range factor
for CF (1.40).
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Ron Hunt:
worst fielding
percentage for SS (.952).
Steve Barber:
most wild
pitches (9).
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Art Ceccarelli:
most innings
without win (27.2).
STL:
worst home record
(4-9) and in one-run games (3-8), lowest strikeouts per nine
(4.4). |
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Jim Merritt:
league-high 11.7
hits per nine, highest ERA (6.78), lowest Quality Start
percentage (18.2).
Bobby Del
Greco:
lowest DP ratio at SS (0.4 per 9).
DAL:
worst road record
(5-15) |
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Gene Freese:
lowest walk
percentage (3.2% -- 5 walks in 158 AB).
Bob Friend:
league-high
6.78 ERA, -14.9 VORP.
CLE:
fewest complete
games (4 in 42 GS).
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Bob Veale:
league-high 1.70
WHIP.
WAS:
fewest triples (4),
worst ERA (4.86). |
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George "Boomer"
Scott: Leads
league with 52 strikeouts (34 K%).
Jimmy Wynn:
league-high
7 CS (in 14 SB attempts), most innings in OF without an assist
(355).
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Tommy John:
lowest winning percentage (.143, 1-6), lowest run support (1.89
R/G).
Tex
Clevenger:
league-high 3 blown saves, league low save percentage (50%).
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Dick McAuliffe:
worst range
factor for SS (4.16).
BRO:
fewest stolen bases
(5)
BRO:
worst batting
average (.246)
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Pete Ward:
league-low .529 OPS
and -8.3 VORP.
Don Larsen:
league-high
6.9 walks per nine.
MAN:
worst record in
extra-inning games (1-5).
MAN:
fewest shutouts
(0), highest WHIP (1.55) |
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L E A D E R B O
A R D S |
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BATTING
AVERAGE |
HOME RUNS |
RBI |
VORP |
RUNS
/ GAME |
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Dick Howser, WAS |
.369 |
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*Boog Powell, DAL |
.360 |
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Roger Maris, STL |
.359 |
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Rod Carew, DAL |
.351 |
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Rocky Bridges, CHI |
.351 |
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Rico Carty, MAN |
.345 |
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Harm Killebrew, ATL |
.340 |
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*Bernie Allen, CLE |
.336 |
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Bill Freehan, BOS |
.333 |
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*Dave Williams, WAS |
.331 |
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Orlando Cepeda, BOS |
14 |
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Joe Adcock, CHI |
11 |
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Don Demeter, CHI |
10 |
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*Ron Hunt, ATL |
9 |
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Harm Killebrew, ATL |
9 |
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Mickey Mantle, BRO |
9 |
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*Don Pavletich, ATL |
9 |
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*Frank Robinson, LA |
9 |
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*Hank Aaron, LA |
8 |
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Willie McCovey, SF |
8 |
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*Dick Stuart, WAS |
8 |
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Billy Williams, SF |
8 |
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Joe Adcock, CHI |
45 |
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Ron Santo, WAS |
40 |
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Orlando Cepeda, BOS |
39 |
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Bob Bailey, DAL |
34 |
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Don Demeter, CHI |
31 |
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Mickey Mantle, BRO |
31 |
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*Dick Stuart, WAS |
31 |
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*Bill Freehan, BOS |
30 |
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*Hank Aaron, LA |
29 |
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Harm Killebrew, ATL |
29 |
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Billy Williams, SF |
29 |
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Dick Howser, WAS |
24.3 |
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Roger Maris, STL |
23.4 |
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*Bernie Allen, CLE |
21.3 |
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Harm Killebrew, ATL |
21.0 |
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Joe Adcock, CHI |
19.7 |
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*Boog Powell, DAL |
19.0 |
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Rod Carew, DAL |
18.5 |
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Don Demeter, CHI |
17.4 |
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*Ron Santo, WAS |
17.4 |
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Mickey Mantle, BRO |
14.4 |
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WASHINGTON |
5.4 |
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ATLANTA |
5.1 |
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LOS ANGELES |
5.1 |
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CHICAGO |
5.0 |
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BOSTON |
4.9 |
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CLEVELAND |
4.7 |
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ST. LOUIS |
4.6 |
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SAN FRANCISCO |
4.6 |
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DALLAS |
4.3 |
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BROOKLYN |
4.3 |
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MANHATTAN |
4.1 |
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DETROIT |
4.0 |
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EARNED
RUN AVERAGE |
WINS |
STRIKEOUTS |
VORP |
RUNS
ALLOWED / GAME |
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Johnny Podres, CLE |
1.54 |
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Dick Hughes, WAS |
2.48 |
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Bob Shaw, STL |
2.59 |
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*Mike Cuellar, BOS |
2.68 |
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*Fergie Jenkins, SF |
2.73 |
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*Tom Sturdivant, CHI |
2.86 |
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Pedro Ramos, DET |
2.88 |
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*Fritz Peterson, LA |
3.03 |
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*Herb Score, BOS |
3.03 |
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Earl Francis, CLE |
3.07 |
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*Jim Palmer, ATL |
8 |
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*Earl Francis, CLE |
6 |
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*Johnny Podres, CLE |
6 |
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Bill Singer, CHI |
6 |
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10 tied with |
5 |
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Whitey Ford, BRO |
77 |
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Herb Score, BOS |
74 |
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Johnny Podres, CLE |
72 |
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Fergie Jenkins, SF |
69 |
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Jim Palmer, ATL |
68 |
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Bill Singer, CHI |
64 |
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Bob Friend, CLE |
61 |
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Johnny Antonelli, LA |
60 |
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Pedro Ramos, DET |
60 |
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*Gene Conley, BRO |
57 |
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Johnny Podres, CLE |
27.9 |
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Fergie Jenkins, SF |
26.2 |
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Mike Cuellar, BOS |
21.2 |
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Dick Hughes, WAS |
19.7 |
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Pedro Ramos, DET |
19.5 |
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Ken Holtzman, DAL |
19.1 |
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*Bob Shaw, STL |
16.9 |
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*Fritz Peterson, LA |
16.1 |
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*Earl Francis, CLE |
15.8 |
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*Tom Sturdivant, CHI |
15.5 |
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CLEVELAND |
3.5 |
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SAN FRANCISCO |
4.3 |
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BROOKLYN |
4.4 |
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CHICAGO |
4.5 |
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ST. LOUIS |
4.5 |
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LOS ANGELES |
4.8 |
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DETROIT |
4.8 |
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ATLANTA |
4.9 |
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DALLAS |
5.0 |
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MANHATTAN |
5.1 |
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BOSTON |
5.1 |
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WASHINGTON |
5.2 |
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A W A R
D S & M I L E S T O N E S |
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Batter of the Month |
Pitcher of the Month |
Rookie
of the Month |
Milestones |
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APR
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Harmon
Killebrew, ATL |
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MAY
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JUN
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JUL
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AUG
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SEP |
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APR
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Johnny Podres,
CLE |
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MAY
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JUN
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JUL
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AUG
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SEP |
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APR
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Rod Carew, DAL |
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MAY
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JUN
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JUL
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AUG
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SEP |
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Johnny Antonelli, LA
4,000th
strikeout (May 8), #1 all-time
278th win (May 8), #2 all time, 1 behind Billy Pierce
Hank
Aaron, LA
400th home run (May 10), #5 all-time
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Player of the Week |
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4/10
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Don Demeter, CHI |
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4/17
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Orlando Cepeda,
BOS |
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4/24
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Jim Fregosi, STL |
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5/1
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Rod Carew, DAL |
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5/8
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Lou Clinton, ATL |
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5/15 |
Ron Santo, WAS |
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5/22 |
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5/29 |
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6/5 |
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6/12
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6/19
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6/26
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7/3
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7/10
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7/17
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7/24 |
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7/31 |
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8/7 |
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8/14
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8/21
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8/28
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9/5 |
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9/12 |
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9/19 |
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9/26 |
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