"The Days of Wine and Rojas" The Newsletter of ADML '50 and ADML'66 1966 Preseason Special Edition "Confessions of a Fan" Welcome to our special 1966 Preseason Edition of the Days of Wine and Rojas. This edition has none of our usual features: trade notes, trivia and quotable quote. Instead, we focus on the upcoming season with our manager poll, preseason analysis by our crack team of sportswriters and a review of the Rookie Draft. Manager Poll Only seven managers responded to our manager poll but set forth below is a summary of the results. The poll awards points for 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th place finishes of 4,3,2 and 1 points. The number of 1st place votes are in parenthesis. Votes for conference and World Series champions are also setforth. For those in the ADML '50 League, let's try to get a greater number of votes. Foxx Conference Hutchinson Division Matthewson Division Moonshiners 28(7) Whips 27(6) Sodbusters 21 Amazins 17(1) Red Dogs 11 Eagles 16 Frontier 10 Lucky 7s 10 Gehrig Conference McGraw Division Young Division Redbirds 28(7) Juice 25(5) Pilgrims 16 Dynamo 23(2) Mudhens 13 Kacems 11 Lightning 13 Constables 11 Foxx Conference Champions: Whips (4), Moonshiners (3) Gehrig Conference Champions: Juice (5), Dynamo (2) World Series Champions: Juice (4), Whips (2), Dynamo (1), Hutchinson Division by Bob Courter MIDDLE GEORGIA MOONSHINERS The class of a weak division. The team traded most of it draft away and didn't make a pick until the third round. Fortunately, this team was already good and did not need any help for this year. They already have enough to breeze to the division title. The balanced attack starts with power hitters Norm Cash, Dick McCauliffe and Richie "don't call me Dick" Allen. The pitching staff has 2 solid starters and one of the craftiest closers of the 60's. Don Drysdale and Dean Chance will win their share of games and Phil "The Vulture" Regan will save his share, but can this team get too Phil with Chance and Drysdale having subpar years and the rest of the starters being average. Probably, as Face and Locker are tough competitors out of thebullpen and will hold a lead or keep the team in the game to the late innings. With the soft teams in this division, the Moonshiners could win in a runaway. And the future is bright for the Moonshiners. They have future star pitching with improved years ahead from Chance and Drysdale, a career year from Lonborg and consistent quality years from the trio in the bullpen. The power nucleus referred to earlier will remain and receive improvement from the full time return of Bob Allison. TENNESSEE SODBUSTERS One of the most active traders of the off season having traded away the first pick in the draft to acquire rocket armed right fielder Roberto Clemente. Having 3 of the first 18 picks and getting Stan Bahnsen Eddie Watt and Daryl Knowles, along with Pat Jarvis, will improve this weak pitching staff. Future broadcaster Tim McCarver, will help hold the numerous runners close to first, but will the runners only get to first. The starting pitching is well below the league norm. The relievers are only slightly better than the starters. With a lack of run producing power and weak pitching this team should finish a distant second to the Moonshiners. There is hope in the future though as this team's young pitching matures but only if it acquires some additional offense in future drafts. CHICAGO RED DOGS This team will again fight for the worst record in the league along with division foe the Frontier and the Mud Hens. After third baseman Ken Boyer, there is not much help for the infield. Catchers and firstbase are weak. The outfield is only above average with Cleon Jones and Gonzalez. There is some team speed to speak of. The on base percentage and slugging percentage for the team are the worst in the league. The bench won't help either. Opposing Pitchers E.R.A.s' will be dropping against this team. The starting pitcher situation is a little brighter with Gary Peters and Earl Wilson having good years. In fact Peters is spectacular with a 1.97 E.R.A. in 27 starts. The rest of the starters are fair and the relief pitchers couldn't hold a resin bag, never mind a lead. Tony Perez is about to begin a great career, complimented by Rick Monday, the Red Dogs first pick in the draft, and Jones, this team does have some prospects. Earl Wilson has a few good years left and young Pat Dobson, picked up in the draft, will produce quality starts for a long time. But it's a Peggy Lee future - "Is that all there is?" This team needs several years of high draft picks or a killer trade to have little hope of competing for years to come. FAYETTEVILLE FRONTIER Having the 4th pick in this draft was going to assure a good pitcher, but who knew that 3 better pitchers would go 1,2,3. Future wife swapper Fritz Peterson, along side of Mel Stottlmyre, will take games deep before turning over to the newly acquired Dick Lines and Hal Reniff. The offense is led by an aging Ernie Banks and Sweet Swinging Billy Williams will hit, but this will not be enough to stay out of the cellar. Kessinger is a fixture for years at short. Beckert complements the middle nicely at second base. The outfield and rest of the hitters are of little help. Producing enough runs to stay competitive, will be a problem. The team can run with some good base stealers and runners. The hitters are next to last in slugging percentage and on base percentage in the league. Not much to fear here. The starting pitching is fair, again, next to last in an important league category, E.R.A. There are, however, four good relievers in Lines, Rubio, Reniff and Worthington but this won't be enough. Matthewson Division by Paul Faits WHIPERNON WHIPS The Whips had the second best record in this division last year, were awarded the title when the Miracles forfeited, beat the Hawks in the Conference series, and made it to the seventh game of the World Series before losing to the St. Louis Redbirds. Will they be back again? The Whips filled a major need in the draft and they have made no tradesas of the publication date, so you must feel good about the team. They had the 6th best pitching staff in the league last year, anchored by McDowell, Maloney, and Seibert. They are all back, and their younger pitchers, like Bell and Jim Perry should be hitting their stride. The bullpen was great last year led by Frank Linzy. He's back, and will have lots of help from Lee and Miller. This looks like the best pitching staff in the league. The Whips scored 712 runs last year, 4th best in the league. Most of the lineup returns, except for the left side of the infield. Sonny Jackson takes over at SS, and there looks to be a platoon at 3rd base. The offense is anchored by Willie McCovey, and augmented by Mickey Mantle, Manny Mota, and Fred Valentine. The offense doesn't really scare you from top to bottom, but it has good speed, switch hitters, and good power to take advantage of Yankee Stadium. In summation, this is the best pitching team in the league, the hitting is suited to the park, and there is good team speed. This team will win a lot of low scoring games. LUCKY LAKE LUCKY 7'S This was a team last year that played way below its numbers, finishing at 82-80 despite having solid pitching and pretty good power hitting. The pitching staff actually had the 4th best E.R.A. in the league, but was 6th in the league in runs allowed, giving up 89 unearned runs. Last year's pitching staff was solid, led by Juan Marichal and Milt Pappas, and supplemented by Morehead, Sheldon, and Terry. There is some age on that staff, but youngster Gaylord Perry should be hitting his stride and picking up some of the slack. Dan Osinski anchored the bullpen, he is back and has help from Mikkelsen and McDaniel. The staff is solid, but not in the class of the Whips or Amazins. Marichal and Perry are as good as any two pitchers in the league, but the quality falls off after that. The hitting is much better than last year, and probably the best in the division. Tom Haller is perfect for this park, 18 HR last year, should be in the 20's this year. Orlando Cepeda should be healthy this year, how would you like an infield of Cepeda, Rose, Campaneris, and Foy? With Dick Stuart and Dick Groat as bench players. Wow! The outfield doesn't match up with the infield, good thing, or this team would be the new World Champions. Main players in the OF will be Browne, Lock, and Phillips, but you know, they all can hit the long ball, and that's what plays in this park. Campaneris and Phillips add team speed. If the defense were a little better, they would be a first place club. In summation, this is the best hitting team in the division, with solid pitching, and good speed. The defense is a little weak. This team will win a lot of high scoring games, and give the Whips a run for their money. ABSECON AMAZINS Last year the Amazins (then the Miracles) had the best record in the division. There was lots of turmoil, however, and the Whips were awarded the title after rules irregularities were found to have been committed by the Miracles management. Now there is a new name, new management, and virtually a new team. There has been an amazing amount of trades made here, involving big names like Roberto Clemente, Al Kaline, and Ferguson Jenkins, via trade of the #1 draft pick to the Mud Hens. Has this action resulted in a better team? Nope. The Amazins had an abysmal draft. The trades are even harder to sort out, because there are so many of them. Let's look at the team as it stands now. Last year's strength was the pitching staff, led by Jim Kaat, Claude Osteen, and Bob Veale, supplemented by Roberts, Sadowski, and Lary. Of the starters, only Kaat and Osteen return. Newcomer Cuellar, McCormick, and Fisher will have to pick up the slack. Any improvement there? I don't think so. The bullpen was good last year, led by Woodeshick and McBean, with 29 saves between them. They return, and should be effective again. In sum, the pitching staff was one of the best in the league last year, and should be again this season. This team was 6th in the league in runs scored last year. There is a major shakeup among the hitters, and not for the better. The main thing to remember about the Amazin's home park, is that it is death valley for a right handed power hitter. So what are the two main changes in the hitting, attack, yep, two right handed power hitters, Hundley and Kaline, replacing Roseboro and Clemente. Duh! The Hundley fiasco is the hardest to understand. In effect, this team gave up Ferguson Jenkins to draft Hundley, which puts Roseboro on the bench. I suppose another trade could be in the works, but it looks bad right now. Last year's infield was White, Buford, McMillan, and McMullen, this year Buford is out at 2nd, and Knoop, I guess, gets the nod. Richardson and Hunt are also available. Buddy Harrelson takes over at short for McMillan. Does this improve anything? I don't think so. Buford stole 39 bases last year, I don't think any of these mediocre middle infielders will come close to that. Last years outfield was Clemente, Colavito, and Mack Jones. Kaline replaces Clemente. Improvement? Nope. In summation, the pitching is as good as it was last year, but the hitting will be down because it is not suited to this park, and the team has lost a lot of speed. The fielding is off at catcher and 2nd base. The best hitters from last year now play for the Sodbusters, and the #1 pick that the Amazins got in return now plays for the Mud Hens. This team will lose a lot of low scoring games. BROOKLYN EAGLES This is the sleeper team in the division. A terrible team last year, as the Highlanders they lost 94 games. New owners and a new name leave a lot of questions to be answered. The pitching staff is something of an enigma. It was the 4th worst in the league last year, but should have been better. How much will it improve this year? It's a staff that needs to be nursed along, used judiciously. You can't just march guys like Luis Tiant, Curt Simmons, or Don Schwall out there every 4th day. If the new management can nurse the team into the late innings, Miller and Perranoski should be able to close the door. This is a slap-and-tickle offense, which is right for this park, but which needs a sure hand to make it work. Brock and Agee key the speed game at home. At the same time, you need some power when you go on the road. And its there, provided by Horton and Whitfield. Is the new management smart enough to use the right players at the right time? It remains to be seen. In summation, there is a big margin of error for this prediction. This team could lose 90+ games again. On the other hand, it could make a strong stride forward and finish in the middle of the pack, playing .500 or better. I'm from Missouri, though, so they'll have to show me. McGraw Division by David Vinson ST. LOUIS REDBIRDS The trio of Santo, Mays, and the Toy Cannon will insure that this team will be a tough club for its division rivals to overcome. They all have some good years left and that bodes well for the future. From the pitching and defense side all Gibson did was toss 20 complete games in '66 and he'll be around for a few more years. He'll be supported by an aging but still effective Whitey Ford with Giusti, Law, and Shaw rounding out the rotation and capable of producing some quality starts. The bullpen is anchored by the capable hands of Eddie Fisher and Bob Humphreys and the infield defense is anchored by the superb SS play of Dal Maxvill. The only club's weakness might be the limited production from the 2B position and the 3rd OF. MARLBORO MUDHENS This would be an interesting team to manage if for no other reason than to figure out where to play the "Beeg Boy." That and figuring out how not to have to use Ed Bressoud for any long stretches would tax most managers' abilities. There seem to be enough at bats in the infield to accomplish the latter of those 2 situations. If Carty's not in the OF there will be good speed out there amongst the flychasers. And there's enough power in the line-up to get the job done. On offense the Mudhens have Yaz's '67 season to look forward to and also Carty's courageous comeback from TB with his back-to-back .342 and .366 seasons yet to come. The starters have at best an adequate at best starting rotation be up to the task. The bullpen will have the nearly unhittable Billy McCool to close. Except for the to be excellent starter Ferguson Jenkins, the remainder of the bullpen is only mediocre. But this below par staff has a bright future with a starting rotation anchored by Ferguson Jenkins and Wilbur Wood. Despite their multitude of starting appearances, the Mudhens need future drafts to yield another quality starter or two and a bullpen replacement for McCool following this his career year. The number one priority may be finding an everyday catcher to replace the current inadequate catcher by committee. The Mudhens should draft high enough to accomplish some of these goals over the next couple of years as they more likely than not continue to have sub .500 seasons. But a stable base of Jenkins, Wood and quality outfielders is there to build a competitive club. PLYMOUTH PILGRIMS The first thing I like about this team is the name. Pilgrims reminds me of John Wayne. And he was the best. I've seen some of his movies at least 10 times and still enjoy them. The Pilgrims don't have John Wayne but they do have the broad shoulders of big Kentuckian Jim Bunning to cling to. Unfortuanately, they aren't big enough to make the Pilgrims competitive even with the spectacular assistance of veteran reliever Hoyt William, who batters in '66 managed to only hit .178 against. Fortunately, help is on the way with the development of youngsters Ken Holtzman, Dick Bosman, Ken Sanders and Tug McGraw. Unfortunately, it won't come this year. This team has a good blend of speed (Davis, Salmon) and power (Clendenon, Alou, Petrocelli, Matthews). There may be better offensive outfields in the league, but there's enough punch in the infield to make up for it. And Petrocelli and Clendenon still have some good years to come. When the young pitching comes around this could be a solid ballclub with only one glaring weakness. The one position that Manager Jim Condon must improve is catcher. Although he has the distinct pleasure of announcing "John Boc-a-BELL-a" every time he comes up in the old Parc Jarry tradition, his team, like division rival the Mudhens, must employ a catcher by committee using valuable roster spots. If Jim can't make a trade he will be in the Johny Bench-Manny Sanguillen sweepstakes in next year's draft. LOUISVILLE LIGHTNING Even though this team will be an also ran this year the future is bright for this club. For one thing they get good production from the catching position and are blessed with an amount of depth at backstop which is rare. For another they have some skilled base stealers. They also are blessed with arguably the division's most depth in their starting pitching, particularly in the not too distant future . The roster is structured so that there will be no sudden drop-off in the quality of the pitching in the near future. Case in point-Steve Carlton. A rotation in future years of Carlton, Blass, McNally and Downing will be very formidable.The middle infield is strong defensively and offensively and should be for years to come with the arrival of the "Kitten." The major weakness is the lack of power production in a home park that is about home-run neutral. The "Hawk" will provide some power production in subsequent years, but Manager Terry Fraser may need to pick up one or two more bats to help Oliva and him. Fortunately, he has ample valuable trade bait with the wealth of starting pitching and the depth at catcher and middle infield positions. If Terry can't make a deal, look for the Lightning to pluck one of the two Reggie's in next year's draft. Young Division by Peter Shibley MONTREAL JUICE The most balanced team in the league, the Juice had a poor draft. Fortunately for the Juice, they don't need much. The infield is very good with Torre at first, Lefebvre at second, Aparicio at short and Brooksy at the hot corner. If Torre plays first, catching is suspect. The outfield is strong in left and right with Tony and Wagner. A center fielder is needed. The starting pitching is second in the league with Koufax and Barber ready to be work horses. Mcmahon and Carroll will be tough to score on in the late innings. If the team has a weakness it is overall speed. This is offset by the second best run scoring ability in the league and power galore with 6 hitters going deep more than 20 times each. This is the most balanced team in the league. Their future is now however, as they have several players in their prime and many teams on the move up. Their draft did little for the long term but we like George Thomas as a pinch hitter with power. DIXIE DYNAMO The Dynamo had an excellent draft shoring up a below average pitching staff. With the best team in the league for scoring ability and their vastly improved pitching, the Dynamo are going to push the Juice to the final week of the season. The corners are very strong with Stargell at first and Killebrew at third. Morgan and Cardenas are no slouches up the middle. The outfield is full of good hitters who will get on base for sluggers Stargell and Killebrew. The bench is good also with Charles, Parker and Adcock. Team speed is average to fair. The starters are good enough to hang tough but not among the top 5 staffs in the league. The draft helped produce a tough bullpen. If the starters get alead into the seventh, this team will be hard to beat. Fielding is average. The batters won't steal a lot of bases but can take the extra base. This is a rising team that because of it's starting pitchers will come up just short of the Juice. They will learn however from the experienced Juice and it will not be a surprise if they could win it all. DAYTON CONSTABLES Unfortunately for Dayton, they play in the division with two toughest teams in the league. They could contend for a pennant in any other ADML '66 division. Their draft helped a little. The infield is average. The outfield is very good with Frank Robby, Howard, Tommy Davis and Northrup. This team has a good bench and lots of flexibility. The top two starters are good with John and Krause. After that though, they do not have the Juice class. The bullpen is average with 3 decent relievers but no big stopper. The Constables will score runs but not enough to pass the Juice or the Dynamo. They have good team speed and power. This is a team of the future however with future star pitching. These hurlers are about to hit their peak years : Phil Niekro, Abernathy, Drabowsky, John, Krausse, Rudy May, McGlothlin, Jim Palmer, Sadecki, and Segui. What trade bait to beef up their hitting! Not this year though. KANSAS CITY KACEMS Again a team in the wrong division. The draft provided future pitching and immediate catching help. Hart at third and Boog Powell at first are very strong on the corners. Fregosi is a good shortstop and Tony Taylor is steady at second. The outfield can hit also with Aaron, Staub, and Callison. This team can score runs with the best in the league. The Kacems field well also but lack team speed. Although their is promise in the future for the starters, the pitching won't cut it this year. Fisher, Hands, Hannan and Hunter have their best years ahead. The relief pitching is average. The Kacems could push for third but should just miss. A team of the future however. THE DRAFT WINNERS AND LOSERS By Paul Faits, Peter Shibley & Pat Lucas MONTREAL JUICE- The Juice had a poor draft. Their first pick, Woody Fryman, is an erratic starter until he becomes a full time reliever in 1979. Jay Johnstone has a long career but is also erratic. Third choice, Norm Miller won't be used much playing behind Hall Of Famer, Brooks Robinson. (rated- "D") DIXIE DYNAMO- The Dynamo had an excellent draft. They needed pitching and got it with Sutton, Hoerner, Higgins and Rojas. Andy Etchebarren will help solidify a weak catching position. (rated- "A") DAYTON CONSTABLES- The Constables had an average draft. George Scott could move Frank Robinson to the outfield. McGlothlin has 5 good years from '67 to '71. Cimino has two good years in the pen and Whitaker is a good power hitter off the bench. May was acquired to backup a weak catching position led by Freehan. (rated- "C") KANSAS CITY KACEMS- Two good draft picks of Hands and Phoebus will help in the future. Casanova provides immediate help at catcher. (rated - "B"). MIDDLE GEORGIA MOONSHINERS- Having traded away high draft picks, the Moonshiners had one of the worst drafts in the league. Not picking until the third round, the best they could come up with was Ken Berry, an unexciting outfielder. The rest of the picks consisted primarily of utility infielders and back-up outfielders. (rated - "F"). TENNESSEE SODBUSTERS- The Sodbusters had a good draft picking up four good to very good pitchers in Bahnsen, Knowles, Watt and Jarvis. All four give future help. Some astute picks in later rounds improved the defense and team speed. (rated- "B+"). FAYETTEVILLE FRONTIER- Fritz Peterson was a good draft pickup for the Frontier. The second pick was confusing, however. Dick Lines is a reliever who can help a contender for the next two years, He is an absolute waste on a team that may lose 100 games in 1966. Trade bait is his only value. Hal Reniff is a good pickup short term but with the same comments on him as Lines. Why? (rated -"C"). CHICAGO RED DOGS- The Red Dogs had a pretty good draft picking up long playing but inconsistent, Rick Monday. He does have some good years scatterred thoughout his long career. Wright is a good starter through 1973. Dobson provides lots of starts for the next five years. Cox helps the pitching picture also. Allen and Umbach will beef up the bullpen. There were also some decent defensive selections. (rated - "B"). ST. LOUIS REDBIRDS- The Redbirds had a very productive draft filling one hole at 1B with Ron Fairly, as well as adding needed bullpen depth in the future with Paul Linblad and a starting pitcher to fill the gap being left by the impending retirements of Ford, Law, and Shaw in 1967 and 1968 with short term but quality replacement Dick Hughes. (rated - "B+"). MARLBORO MUDHENS- The Mudhens needed to shore up their pitching and catching. To a large extent they did that but fell short of what they could have done. Ferguson Jenkins gives the Mudhens a workhorse #1 starter for years. Unfortunately, shoring up their future starting depth and help in the bullpen did not occur in the selection of Darrell Brandon. Better long range starting help was available with Nash, Phoebus, Dobson and McGlothlin and better bullpen future help could have come in the form of Lindblad or Sanders. The catching by committee will not be helped with Gene Oliver. (rated- "C-"). PLYMOUTH PILGRIMS- The Pilgrims filled their most pressing need- future pitching- admirably with the picks of Holtzman, Bosman and Sanders. They still need an everyday catcher but they probably did as well as they could selecting Boccabella. But you can't do everything in one draft. (rated- "B+"). LOUISVILLE LIGHTNING- The Lightning needed two things to make them competitive in the future- power and a strong relief corps- to go with their excellent starting pitching, superior team speed and quality defense. Unfortunately, they didnt get either but they still had a good draft. By the time his first pick rolled around the power available in the draft (May, Monday and Scott) was gone so Terry Fraser filled a needed outfield spot with speed and versatility (Cesar Tovar). By the time the second pick rolled around the star relievers were gone (Watt, Knowles and Hoerner) so Terry added middle superior quality infield depth (Felix Millan). And Johny Edwards, the third pick, provides quality starting catching in the 70s. So although the Lightning didn't fill their needs they probably took the best players available and provided themselves ample trade bait. (rated- "B"). ABSECON AMAZINS- The Amazins, in effect, traded Ferguson Jenkins for Randy Hundley, Jack Fisher, Buddy Harrelson, Bobby Knoop, and Ed Kranepool. Huh? (Rated "F") WHIPPERNON WHIPS- The Whips, drafting 15th, identified a need, and filled it, picking up Sonny Jackson to anchor the infield. Jim Nash was a quality pick in the late second round. The jury will be out on one year wonder Tim Talton. If they win the pennant its a big win, if not a wasted pick. (rated "B+) LUCKY LAKE 7S- The Lucky 7s play in a park that gives up a lot of home runs, and the Lucky 7's had that in mind when they went to the draft, picking up Lee May and Joy Foy in the first two rounds. But they didn't pick up some starting pitching depth which they needed. (rated "B") BROOKLYN EAGLES- Playing in a pitchers park, the Eagles drafted well. Tommy Agee is a perfect player for this park, adding speed as well as solid hitting. Julian Javier was a solid second round pick filling a significant at second base. Similarly, a need was filled with third baseman Rich Rollins. (rated- "B+").