United League Baseball

A Flag Flies in Brooklyn
Superbas Christen New Park with Title
by Glen Reed
BROOKLYN (Oct. 1) -- A glorious new stadium; a league attendance record; a sterling rookie in the rotation; a Cy Young-worthy performance from Gorman; a blockbuster trade; an offense that went from worst (well, we were just five runs from being the lowest-scoring team in the league last year) to first; the top two hitters for average in the league; and yet for all that, the single biggest development in the Superba pennant drive of '55 took place on another club! The mid-season loss of the great Stu Miller cost three-time holders Washington the flag. It's been my oft-stated position that this is Kaplan's league, we merely play in it. But bereft of the league's best pitcher, the Monuments are merely great, rather than untouchable. To wit, higher mathematics (of the Pythagorean kind) show the Mons to be the best team in the league even without Stuey--they carried the best record on a Pythagorean basis in both years in which they failed to capture the flag, both years effectively without the mighty Miller. In any event, it's certainly a testament to the how truly great Kaplan's Monuments are that they nevertheless finished second and made a race of it until the final week of the season.
Not to suggest that Iron Mike paved the road to the pennant with gold--we Superbas had to battle through a combined 13 weeks without our number two and three hitters (who stood one and two in the league batting table at the time of their injuries); repeated and talent-robbing injuries to mercurial young lefty Curtis Simmons; as well as additional downgrades to core young players, including Amoros, Franky T., Runnels, Logan, Burgess, and Grim. Nevertheless, newcomers Doc Brown and Frank Thomas added tremendous punch at the plate, and the maturation of the highly coveted Sandy Amoros all help account for how the '55 'Bas ascended to the top of the league table. That also explains how the Screaming Bats found their offensive voice, so obviously lacking in the first four years of this Flatbush franchise. And credit the shining Frank Thomas Memorial Stadium with helping the cause atop the mound--Superba pitchers saw their ERA drop about three-quarters of a point at home, and finished just a fraction of a run per game off pacsetters Washington in the race for the best pitching team on the circuit.
Looking ahead, the return of Captain Stu-bing to pilot the ship in the nation's capitol and the effect of all those downgrades among key Brooklyn contributors make repeating as champions an unlikely feat. In addition, the degree of difficulty goes up in '56 as we're likely to see the South rise again, this time in the form of a talented young Louisville squad. Not to mention the fact that the hard-charging ponies out of Chicago look to be the most-improved team on the circuit for a second consecutive year. Add it all up, and we go into '56 the same way we started '55--happy to challenge for the title popularized by St. Louis, Best of the Rest.

Gorman Wins Cy, Conley Top Rookie
Two Brooklyn pitchers nabbed top awards, as Tom Gorman won the prestigious Cy Young Award for the league best pitcher and Gene Conley won Rookie of the Year honors. Gorman (27-8, 3.03) led the league with 27 wins (one shy of the record), games started, and innings pitched, and complete games. Gorman, 30, finished strong, going 10-1 in his last 14 starts. He wins what was perhaps the most tightly contested Cy Young race in the league's history, edging out Chicago's Whitey Ford (24-3, 2.89, 263 K), Washington's Carl Erskine (25-9, 2.82, 177 K), and Louisville's Herm Wehmeier (21-6, 2.76). Wehmeier won the ERA title, Ford had the best winning percentage, and Billy Pierce won the strikeout title (with a record 344 K's).
   Gene Conley (18-10, 4.18), becomes the second pitcher to win the Rookie of the Year. He beat out Louisville's Bill "Moose" Skowron, who lead all rookies in hits, home runs, and RBIs.

Back in Black
NEW YORK (Oct. 1) -- After a deficit of $12.9 million last year, the United League turned a $25.8 million profit this year. The addition of two expansion teams and a new ballpark raised per-game attendance by 14.8%. In Brooklyn, the christening of Frank Thomas Memorial Stadium combined with a dramatic pennant drive to nearly double the Superbas attendance over last year, when they were 5th out of eight teams. Louisville also had a big increase of over a half-million, as they emerged as contenders after four losing seasons.
   Total league revenues increased to a record $540 million, but because of expansion, per-team revenues were down 7.7%. Expansion also had a dramatic effect on payrolls, as player expenses dropped by an average of 14.5% for existing teams.
   The San Francisco, New York, and Chicago clubs were the most profitable, posting profits of $15.6, $11.1 million, and $8.4 million respectively. The expansion Spiders took a conservative approach and managed to maintain the smallest payroll in the league, allowing it to yield over $15 million in profit in its first year. The Gothams and Colts released high-salary players to the expansion draft and trades. New York slashed its payroll by $15 million, but consequently suffered its worst season ever, winning 12 fewer games than last year and dropping four spots to 7th place The Colts managed to cut costs by $10 million and still improve their team by 13 wins, making a pennant run before finishing tied for third. Other profit-turning clubs were Brooklyn (who kept their payroll flat but increased revenues by $10 million) and Los Angeles (who made a modest profit despite a disappointing fourth largest gate).
   The most troubled franchises were Boston and Detroit, which both lost over $5 million for a second year running. Boston's $7.4 million deficit increased to $9.4 million this year, making the club the first to go into debt in league history (-$1.08 million cash balance). The Beacons' revenue declined for the fourth straight year, dipping below $47 million. The Sound's revenues dipped $6 million this year, to $45 million, $7.5 million short of expenses.

1955 FINANCES
TOTAL ATTENDANCE			TOTAL REVENUE
1955		Change	1955 ($ million)		Change
BROOKLYN WASHINGTON CHICAGO LOS ANGELES ST. LOUIS NEW YORK SAN FRANCISCO LOUISVILLE BOSTON DETROIT Total Average	2,707,780 2,137,781 2,093,819 2,045,041 2,039,068 1,629,510 1,529,060 1,403,981 1,126,461 954,737 17,667,238 1,766,724	1,464,485 (143,269) 73,336 -- (170,536) (399,373) -- 563,426 319,016 69,882 5,351,098 14.8%	BROOKLYN WASHINGTON CHICAGO NEW YORK LOS ANGELES ST. LOUIS SAN FRANCISCO LOUISVILLE BOSTON DETROIT Total Average	62.09 58.74 58.08 57.85 56.18 55.18 50.00 49.94 46.95 44.98 539.99 53.40	10.24 (10.49) (5.84) (6.10) -- (9.01) -- (3.93) (3.12) (6.14) 71.79 (7.7%)
PLAYER EXPENSES			NET PROFIT
1955 ($ million)		Change	1955 ($ million)		Change
WASHINGTON ST. LOUIS BOSTON BROOKLYN LOS ANGELES DETROIT LOUISVILLE CHICAGO NEW YORK SAN FRANCISCO Total Average	58.62 57.21 56.37 56.25 52.51 52.49 49.96 49.65 46.72 34.42 514.20 51.42	(1.32) (8.35) (1.14) 0.22 -- (3.93) (14.26) (10.02) (14.99) -- (33.14) (14.5%)	SAN FRANCISCO NEW YORK CHICAGO BROOKLYN LOS ANGELES WASHINGTON LOUISVILLE ST. LOUIS DETROIT BOSTON Total Average	15.58 11.13 8.43 5.84 3.67 0.12 (0.02) (2.03) (7.51) (9.42) 25.79 2.58	-- 8.89 4.18 10.02 -- (9.17) 10.33 (0.66) (2.21) (1.98) 38.65 300.5%
CASH
1955 ($ million)		Change
CHICAGO WASHINGTON NEW YORK SAN FRANCISCO ST. LOUIS BROOKLYN LOS ANGELES DETROIT LOUISVILLE BOSTON Total Average	48.99 45.12 30.06 15.58 15.12 10.62 10.32 7.15 4.51 (1.08) 186.50 18.65	10.32 0.11 3.29 -- (0.59) 9.84 -- (6.62) 0.48 (12.03) 30.70 (4.2%)

PERFORMANCE BONUSES ($100k each)
Gil Hodges, BRO	Hoyt Wilhelm, BRO	Gus Zernial, CHI	Sam Zoldak, STL
Gene Woodling, BRO	Harry Dorish, BRO	Ernie Banks, CHI	Spec Shea, STL
Minnie Minoso, BRO	Willie Mays, WAS	Bobby Thomson, CHI	Sid Gordon, LOU
Richie Ashburn, BRO	Hank Thompson, WAS	Yogi Berra, CHI	Jackie Jensen, LOU
Bobby Brown, BRO	Duke Snider, WAS	Gus Bell, CHI	Nellie Fox, LOU
Smoky Burgess, BRO	Gil McDougald, WAS	Whitey Ford, CHI	Herm Wehmeier, LOU
Granny Hamner, BRO	Joe Ginsberg, WAS	Camilo Pascual, CHI	Johnny Antonelli, LOU
Pete Runnels, BRO	Billy Goodman, WAS	Joe Ostrowski, CHI	Roy Campanella, LA
Connie Ryan, BRO	Joe Adcock, WAS	Stan Musial, STL	Willie Jones, LA
Frank Thomas, BRO	Carl Erskine, WAS	Dick Kokos, STL	Erv Palica, LA
Tom Gorman, BRO	Larry Jansen, WAS	Vern Stephens, STL	Irv Noren, NYG
Lew Burdette, BRO	Dave Koslo, WAS	Gil Coan, STL	Bob Friend, NYG
Gene Conley, BRO	Warren Hacker, WAS	Hector Lopez, STL	Mickey Mantle, BOS
Curt Simmons, BRO	Bob Chakales, WAS	Billy Pierce, STL
Bonuses by club: BRO (16), WAS (12), CHI (8), STL (8), LOU (5), LA (3), NYG (2), BOS (1)

YEAR IN REVIEW

1955 saw a new champion, two expansion teams, and the first bicoastal league in baseball history. Fans in Brooklyn opened a new park, which will be decorated next year with their first United League pennant. Glen Reed's Superbas outlasted Jay Kaplan's Monuments by six games, ending Washington's three-year dynasty. Aside from Brooklyn (+25 wins), Chicago and Louisville were the most improved teams. Both figured in the pennant race thanks in large part to the blossoming of young pitching phenoms: Whitey Ford and Herm Wehmeier. Washington lost not only its grip on the title, but also on the league's top pitchers. The Monuments' "Big Three" were nowhere to be seen among the pitching leaders, as a new generation of hurlers emerged, shifting the balance of power in the now 10-league circuit. Below is a summary of the year gone by, as written by the GMs themselves (except where noted).
BROOKLYN SUPERBAS 99-55 -- 3-3 (+25)	Escalation Dominance 1955 was about pitching: Adding Conley to the rotation and putting our young hurlers in a cavernous park were top priorities. So it follows that 1956 will be about . . . pitching. A quick survey of the league shows the return of Miller and Larsen in Washington and the continued maturation of Antonelli and the gang in LOU, while HoFer Robin Roberts will take a turn in the Chicago rotation. In short, the year is shaping up as an arms race of epic proportions. And as any of the several students of international relations in this league can tell you, a goal in every arms race is escalation dominance--that means being able to outpitch the competition no matter how stiff the challenge. Thus the trade for the much-coveted (at least by me) Don "Sphinx" Mossi. Here's to hoping that's enough to help outrun the pretenders to King Kaplan's throne for a second year.
WASHINGTON MONUMENTS 93-61 6 3-3 (-7)	x
ST. LOUIS MAROONS 84-70 15 5-1 (-9)	Taken to the Cleaners The preseason trade that brought Steve Gromek to the Maroons was intended to create a pitching juggernought to rival those of Washington. Instead, the deal shipped away an MVP and two other players who contributed 240 RBI and 37 saves to the expansion Outlaws. Meanwhile, Gromek (5-10, 4.83) struggled through a seemingly endless campaign. The net effect was that the Maroons finished below second for the first time, while attendance dipped to a four-year low. Ace Billy Pierce (17-13, 3.36) was unable to maintain his '54 Cy Young form, but managed to break his own single-season strikeout record on the final day. 35-year-old Sam Zoldak (18-9, 3.50) had another solid year, and Spec Shea (11-7, 3.11, 15 SV) split the year between closer and starting roles, performing both admirably. Offensively, Stan the Man (.320-39-117) turned in his third straight 35-100 campaign, was the home run champ, and hit .320 or better for the fourth year running. Right fielder Dick Kokos (.244-29-91) emerged as the league's top slugging prospect. And third baseman Hector Lopez (.264-14-67) had a solid rookie effort, though he fell short of filling Puddin' Head Jones' shoes. GM Timothy J. Smith shelled out major bucks to retain Pierce and Musial, and the pitching staff, in particular, is getting gray behind the ears. The club is most likely entering a rebuilding phase and, for the first time, will probably not be among the pennant contenders in 1956.
CHICAGO COLTS 84-70 15 4-2 (+13)	Same Ol' Same Ol' Another year, another familiar finish...always good enough to be in the wedding party, never quite good enough to be the bride's maid, much less the bride. Despite the tags of "most improved" and "serious threat," the Colts never really put it all together to contend for the championship. None the less, "most improved" did mean the best record and highest attendance in team history, plus an 8.4 million dollar profit that helped the horsies leap frog the Mons into the #1 position...in cash, anyways. Not willing to accept "pretty damn good," Colts' management has already pulled the trigger on a trade to land Detroit ace Robin Roberts, and also snagged their 1st Round Rookie selection (most likely #1 overall). That means Chicago could soon be sporting a rotation that included Ford, Roberts, and Drysdale in the 1-3 spots. All I can say is, look for these ponies to be chargin' even harder next season.
LOUISVILLE COLONELS 80-74 19 0-6 (+16)	The Colonels finally started to reap the benefits of playing their youth the first 4 years of their existence as they were over .500 for the first time and sat in 3rd a lot of the year before fading at season's end. They still finished 5th at 80-74 -- an amazing 16 games better than previous season. By position here's a breakdown of Colonels main players responsible for their success: C Ed Bailey: Ed had a disappointing sophomore season, seeing his average drop 15 points from his ROY season. However Ed was out seven weeks with an injury but in 86 games did increase his HR total to 11 when he only hit 8 in 133 at-bats in his rookie year. The Colonels need Ed to continue his development into what could be one of league's premier catchers. The Colonels showed their confidence in Ed by giving him a 5 yr, $1.2M contract. 1B: Rookie Bill Skowron, who in the opinion of most Louisville fans should have been the 1955 ROY, provides a solid foundation for the foreseeable future at 1B. He should be a solid .290-.300 hitter (.291 in '55), 20+ HR (22 in '55). Moose is a solid all around player as he also stole 29 bases. He is one of a select few that could have legitimate shot at being a 30-30 guy. Moose will probably bat 5th or 6th for the Colonels next year. 2B: Nellie Fox had his best year ever hitting .307 and stealing 33 bases, both career highs. He also set a personal best in runs scored with 87. Nellie also provides solid foundation up the middle with his defense. SS: Alvin Dark showed the effects of going through tough personal times (two highly contested and publicized divorces) as he had his worst year ever hitting a meager .247. The Colonels regret now giving Alvin that 3 yr deal in 1955 for $4M a year. That is probably the only reason he is still on team as it is certain for 1956 he will be spending significant time riding the pine with recently re-acquired Wayne Causey getting most of the playing time. 3B: Billy Cox though much older (35) than most Colonels, Cox will be a key part of the team's success in next few years. He will be the primary 3B after splitting time last year with the recently retired Peanuts Lowery. Billy hit a solid .280 in 107 games. His range at 3B leaves something to be desired but if he gets to it he is usually fairly sure-handed. OF: Jackie Jensen is without a doubt the Colonels most valuable everyday player. He had another outstanding season again just barely missing the exclusive 30-30 club (28 HR and 50 steals, which lead league for 4th time in 5 yrs). He is the heart of Colonels' offense -- usually batting in the 3rd spot. Henry Aaron is a superstar waiting to happen. Despite missing almost half the season with a mysterious leg injury he still managed to put up a legitimate challenge for ROY hitting .281 with 19 HR and 59 RBI. He's expected in a full season this year to have a real shot at 40 HR and 120 RBIs. He's another Colonels contender for 30-30 as in half a year he had 18 SB. Another oldster (35) helping the Colonels is Elmer Valo. Elmer hit .311 while scoring 17 runs. Probably even more amazing is the fact that Elmer only stuck out 8 (yes 8) times all year in 302 AB and 57 walks for an amazing OBP of .421!!! How much of an impact he will have this year is unknown as Colonels rumored to be shopping him to make room for Kaline to make his debut. SP: Finally something GOOD to say about the Colonels' pitching staff. Actually couple of good things to say: Wehmeier and Antonelli, who combined for a 35-19 record with an ERA under 3.00. Johnny A finished 2nd in the league with a career high 298 Ks while hurling 3 shutouts, while Herm led the league in ERA and WHIP while also throwing 3 shutouts. Vinegar Bend Mizell probably earned himself a final shot at the rotation with a solid if unspectacular year in middle relief (3.51 ERA). We'll have to see if he can make the jump. Tom Morgan again anchored the pen with 34 saves (4th) with a 3.36 ERA in a career high 60 games. The Colonels seem to have given up on making him a starter as they did his first two years and Plowboy has responded. The Colonels still have their doubts though as they only gave him a one-year deal in last off season. Tex Clevenger was solid as a rookie setup man, once promoted to big show. He appeared in 22 games with a measly 2.08 ERA and should be main setup guy this year. Continuing to disappoint is franchise designated player Mickey McDermott who was given yet another shot in 17 starts where he went a typical Mickey 3-8 with 5.16 ERA. He's getting close to running out of time and really needs to pitch this year to his potential. Steve Bilko is a player with good potential but, being stuck behind the Moose, he saw limited playing time once he got the promo to big show. Rumors have it that the Colonels may play him at 3B this spring to maybe get his booming bat in lineup more. Al Kaline has as much potential as anyone and more than likely at age 21 will start the year as a starting Colonel OF. The Colonels are a little disappointed in his minor HR #'s but are going to give him a shot to see if he is ready. Wally Post continues to disappoint the Colonels as they expected him to be major league ready by now but he hit a measly .256 last yr in AAA. He may also be shopped, since Colonels believe Jensen/Aaron/Kaline is their outfield of the future.
LOS ANGELES OUTLAWS 77-77 22 5-1	x
NEW YORK GOTHAMS 73-81 26 3-3 (-12)	The Revolving Door (by Glen Reed) "Regime change" isn't just bad foreign policy, it's a way of life in New York, where there's apparently a rule that Gothams ownership has to turn over every year. The league and Gotham fans are worse off for it, with each new ownership group having to learn to navigate the league's financial and contractual maze. Failure to clear this all-important hurdle has contributed to the departure of 10 of the Gothams' first 13 picks from the 1951 initial draft. Throw in the loss of Fornieles and collateral damage resulting from the expansion draft, and the House that Ruth Built is losing talent at an alarming rate. The proof is in the puddin'--NY regressed further than any team in the league in the 1955 standings. The toteboard shows Wally Moon gave up 15 dongs and 20 ribs to Wertz, whom he replaced for no good reason. Sibby Sisti managed a total of 30 ribs and almost as many errors in place of the Ed Yost/Bobby Brown platoon of the prior regime.The ancient Boudreau blew chunks, one of their leading run producers was let go, and on and on. However, 1955 showed one unqualified bright spot--GM Don Carrington saw fit to retain young SP Bob Friend, who managed to go 14-8 for a team that finished 8 games under .500. But if it wasn't for bad luck, the Gothams wouldn't have no luck at all--they were cruelly punished by the vagaries of the draft lottery, giving up two spots to vastly more talented teams in LOU and LA. Par for the course for this cursed franchise, which stumbled badly in '55 and presents prospective owners a formidable challenge in '56 and beyond.
BOSTON BEACONS 69-85 30 4-2 (+1)	Brother, Can You Spare An Arm? Apparently I was bragging when I called out "low expectations" for this season. Once again, the Beeks fail to even come close to putting it all together. Some off-season power trades proved fruitful, as I fielded one of the league's more potent offenses. New outfield additions Jim Delsing and Johnny Lindell slapped solid years together, both getting off to blazing starts before eventually cooling down for the stretch. Delsing and Lindell also brought home Boston's only Gold Glove Awards. The Kuenn/Reese tandem was quite effective, despite lapses in fielding from both. The Mantle/Mathews Mashfest is blooming nicely as both youngsters landed in the top ten in OPS. "Don't Bring Me Down" Bruce Edwards' production behind and at the plate has been a pleasant surprise as well. Jim Gilliam scratched his way to becoming one of the league's top producing Second Pouchers. But the pitching? The holiest of holy crap! "Drop Dead" Fred Hutchinson failed to put us over the top as hoped. Warren "What the Hell Happened?" Spahn was up to his old below average tricks in a contract year, and as a result, finds himself sprawled out on the re-entry draft floor. Will someone take a chance on a $10 million ace-in-name-only next season? Not likely, and sure as hell not me. No other starters seemed up to the task of stepping up either. The closest we could come to an ace was Harvey "Migraine" Haddix, who won 16 games and is the only lock for next year's rotation. The bullpen could have been worse, but none have secured spots in '56. The kicking to the curb of Spahn, Lopat, Lemon, Branca and Hutchinson (damn, if that doesn't sound like a kick ass rotation! Fudge!) should help to alleviate the team's cabbage crunch to the tune of 25 bananas. But the battle has just begun as the fresh arms and faces of Jackson, Brewer and Portocarerro will compete for starting jobs next year.
SAN FRANCISCO SPIDERS 56-98 43 2-4	Nowhere to Go But Up was the motto for the end of the Spiders' season. Although our first year in existence was a rough one, our fans came out to show their support. We hope in the coming seasons to reward them for their efforts. We plan to build a more competitive team. After taking over the GM spot from the previous holder after a hasty exit, the leadership of the club seems to be going in the right direction. Although the jury is still out, some of the moves including a trade which brought some promising youngsters to the club and doubled our draft picks, which will hopefully provide solid building blocks for the future. There were a few bright spots, the pitching staff not being one of them. We have some young arms in Ron Kline, Herb Score, and Tom Sturdivant waiting to come up and turn the staff around. We are looking for youth ,with a few vets thrown in to build our team. We are pleased with the pick up of catcher Elston Howard and know he will put up better numbers with a year under his belt. We plan to be patient and put our team together to form a solid contender. We have no where to go but up.
DETROIT SOUND 55-99 44 1-5 (-6)	Giant Sucking Sound (by Tim Smith) A tumultuous off-season, which saw the departure of two of their best players, combined with the season-long injury to one of their best remaining players to sent the Sound into a death spiral and the first repeat cellar finish in league history. Jerry Priddy and Willard Marshall became crown jewels of the expansion draft, after GM Brad McNeely left them both unprotected. Both wound up by the Bay, where Priddy won his second Gold Glove and Marshall (.292-14-73) had another fine season. Detroit set a league record for fewest runs scored (613, 3.98 per game), and was last in batting (.248) and home runs (92). Take away Kiner's 37, and the power outage was (in)visible from Windsor. Only Catfish Metkovich managed to bat over .269, and so poor was the offense that the second most productive hitter was 2B Lou Klein (.243-13-69). On the pitching side, Robin Roberts (10-17, 4.16) suffered his worst year to date, but Bob Porterfield (12-17, 3.55) had his best, despite a career-high loss total, and Don "Sphinx" Mossi had a couple (brief) moments of greatness. So bad was Detroit that a fan revolt -- along with years of neglect and a record financial loss -- forced the resignation of McNeely on August 31. The club was 10-10 in September, under new GM Sean Holloway. He set to rebuilding the club, both on the field and in the ledger books, and proved that no one would be spared from the salary purge by dealing ace Robin Roberts to Chicago.