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3 April, 1922 |
The Essex Eagles sent shock waves through the press corps with their hire of Becky Aldrich as general manager. Although the club had been looking to go in a new direction for some time, this decision was not anticipated. "Becky Aldrich is just who we need to lead the club. Not just in 1922, but we hope for many seasons to come," a spokesman for the Eagles said at the press conference.
Hope springs eternal. At least that was the mood of the press conference when it was announced that Billy would be the new GM of the Derbyshire Phantoms. Team owners and fans are really enthused about the signing and are looking forward to the upcoming season. "I'm very honored to be working for the fans of Derbyshire. We have several questions to resolve, and a wholesale team assessment to perform, along with time constraints to consider," Billy told reporters at the press conference. "Baseball is a year-round job these days, and I'm fortunate to be working with the Phantoms ownership."
As we approach the start of the 1922 season, what can we look for in the coming campaign. The obvious question is can the Northamptonshire Steelbacks win their third straight Word Test? Who would be the probable challengers to the title? Last season, four squads made their test debuts, can that happen again in 1922?
To determine the Steelbacks chaances we
need to look at the challengers. The obvious choice is the Clontarf
Bulls. The Bulls have had the best regular season record in both the
previous campaigns. They were 106-56 in the inaugural season and 102-60
last season.
Gaffer, Seawolf, has stated that the Bulls' substitutes
bench has not been of the quality to compete in a short test. To that
end they acquired Harry Salisbury on transfer. They upgraded their
backstop position by drafting Darren 'Dutch' Daulton. The Bulls are
skilled at getting on the bases and Daulton will be expected to bring
them home. On paper, this should be the squad to displace
Northamptonshire.
The Durham Dynamos were one of the most improved clubs last season, improving from 70 to 98 wins and earned a spot in the World Test match. This was a significant achievement for a side that finished 8th in hitting. That weakness was addressed via transfers of Johnny Hopp and George Gore. The Dynamos also drafted Ollie Beard to fill in at midfield. Hilton Smith, Jack Taylor and Red Faber may be the best rotation in the HNBA. With the added attack and improved defensive posture, can Durham take the final step in their quick improvement?
The best improvement in the HNBA last season was the emergence of the Glamorgan Dragons as a test quality side. The Dragons improved from 54 to 100 wins, in large part due to the emergence of Charlie Buffinton as one of the league's best bowlers. The addition of Tood Jones via the draft will certainly bolster what was only the ninth best substitutes bench in the CL.
The Hampshire Hawks have competed in the test matches in both seasons. But they may be only the fourth best side in the Celtic League. There have been several changes at the Rose Bowl where an emphasis improving the quality of the starting bowlers was the theme. Frank Miller and Lee Meadows were the key transfer acquisitions, but Ray Lamb may play a key role for the Sir William's squad. Also, a transfer acquisition, Ray appears to be poised to have a breakout campaign. Of the three new acquisitions, Lamb's spring numbers of 2-0, 1.13 ERA and .163 OBA were certainly the most impressive.
While the Celtic challengers to Northampton's cup run seem well defined, is there a side which will prove the Steelbacks' equal in the British League?
Last season's surprise squads were Derbyshire and Kent. Ron Cey led a late Spitfire run in the regular season. The addition of Rincon in the closer role will certainly help the late game situations, but that alone doesn't appear to be sufficient to de-throne the Steelbacks.
In Middlesex, the addition of Bill Terry and Mark Sharpson will add significantly to the attack, but the Crusaders did little to help what was the league's worst staff of bowlers.
The Brown Caps chased Northamptonshire during the 1920 campaign, but fell off sigificantly last season. The addition of Pete Rose and Frank Bower will add to the attack and if Surrey can find an adequate fourth starter, may challenge again.
The Midlands Division appears to be loaded again and whoever survives the season long rigors may represent the best challenge to the British Test champions. In the first two seasons, only Yorkshire has failed in making a test appearance. Their best batter, Chet Lemon will begin the season injured, which will hinder the Phoenix from reaching this year's test matches.
There is no real separation among the other five squads. Leicestershire was the dominate squad in 1920 with 100 wins but lost to the Steelbacks in the British test match. Last season produced a slow start, from which they couldn't quite recover. This year they will have a full season with Albert Pujols, plus the addition of first round selection Wally Joyner, makes the Foxes attack one to fear.
The Warwickshire Bears were last seasons surprise squad in the Midlands improving from 70 to 96 wins. However, the spring was not kind to the Bears who lost Harry Eisenstat for the season and Dave Gumpert for the first 6 weeks of the season. Jim O'Rourke is expected to take over 1B for last season's Youth of the Year candidate Wally Pipp. Duke Gillespie won 19 games from the substitutes bench last season and with the injories already sustained to the staff of bowlers a similar result may be required this campaign.
Derbyshire seemed to get the better of last years blockbuster transfer. With George Winter in the rotation, the Phantoms made a late run and earned a spot in the test matches. George will anchor the rotation all season this year, which should be enough to keep them in the chase.
Nottinghamshire's return to the test matches las season ultimately failed due to sub-par seasons by Willie Mays and Terry Pendleton, their return to form and the addition of Lyle Overbay to the attack should push Nottinghamshire back to a challenging position.
The Worcestershire Royals are the only side to have threatened the Steelbacks in test matches, doing so in 1920. Last year was a disappointment for Royal's supporters as they never mounted a serious challenge. Carlos Zambrano remains one of the league's premier power bowlers and the addition of Alex Voss would add significantly to the staff. The question asked by the Royal supports is where is the attack going to come from. There is little behind Tris Speaker in consistency and no real power, so it will be necessary to rely on small-ball at New Road.
| British Standings | ||||
| Midlands Division | W | L | PCT | GB |
| Derbyshire Phantoms | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Leicestershire Foxes | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Nottinghamshire Outlaws | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Warwickshire Bears | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Worcestershire Royals | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Yorkshire Phoenix | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Coastal Division | W | L | PCT | GB |
| Essex Eagles | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Kent Spitfires | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Middlesex Crusaders | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Northamptonshire Steelbacks | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Surrey Brown Caps | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Sussex Sharks | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
Frank Thomas smacked opposing pitchers around for a .302 batting average and .455 on-base percentage this year, tallying up 33 doubles, 3 triples, 37 home runs, 96 RBIs and 99 runs scored.
George Ruth, the ace of the Northamptonshire pitching staff, dominated all season, finishing up with 25 wins and 4 losses and a 1.99 ERA. In 34 starts he worked a total of 284.2 innings, striking out 244 while walking 93. Other clubs only managed to hit .304 against him.
Ron Cey, third baseman for the Kent Spitfires, in his debut season he piled up some good stats, hitting .271, batting in 93 runs and scoring 91 times, while playing in 153 games. The 23-year-old rookie also had 25 doubles, no triples and 26 home runs.
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| Celtic Standings | ||||
| Cumbria Division | W | L | PCT | GB |
| Buckie Whalers | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Durham Dynamos | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Lancashire Lightning | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Larne Pirates | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Limavady Greyhounds | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Lurgan Setters | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Cornish Division | W | L | PCT | GB |
| Clontarf Bulls | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Glamorgan Dragons | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Gloucestershire Gladiators | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Hampshire Hawks | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Pembroke Red Foxes | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
| Somerset Sabres | 0 | 0 | .000 | - |
Ben Chapman, the outstanding Somerset left fielder, certainly made an impression on Celtic pitchers this past season. He pummeled them for 194 hits in 591 at-bats, 29 doubles, 8 triples, 16 home runs, 85 RBIs, and scored 113 times.
HILTON SMITH, the Durham starter really shined on the hill time and again and finished up 1921 with a sparkling 26-15 record. In 51 starts, he fanned 286, walked 57 in 376.2 innings and posted a 2.22 ERA. SMITH held opposing hitters to a .235 batting average, when he was on the mound.
Hilton Smith snatched the award away from the competition by rolling up a 26-15 record, 2.22 ERA, and 286 strikeouts in 376.2 innings.
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