[Marmel]

1934

April

In the AL East, it is Boston and Washington who are tied for first place with 14-11 records. The A’s are just 1 back while Washington and Cleveland are both 2 back. In the West, the LA Waves are in first by 1 game over Detroit and 2 games over San Francisco. Atlanta is right there, only 3 back. Vegas has only won 6 games and are 9 back already.

In the NL East, New York and the defending Champs, Pittsburgh are tied for first with 15-10 records. Brooklyn and Syracuse are both 3 back. In the Midwest, Dallas finished the month on a 10 game winning streak and lead the division by 6 games over Chicago and Cincinnati.

On April 16, St. Louis’ Lefty Gomez threw a no-hitter in a 10-0 victory over Syracuse. He struck out 10 and walked 3 on the day.

May

In the AL East, Washington has moved into first place by 4 games over Montreal. Cleveland is 5 games back while the A’s are in last place. In the West, we have a three way tie for first. Detroit, LA and San Francisco are all 28-26. Atlanta is 2 games back.

In the NL East, Pittsburgh leads the division with a 32-22 record. The Phillies are 2 games back. The Giants are 3 out. In the Midwest, Dallas has a 5 game lead over both the Reds and Cardinals. The Cubs are 6 back.

June

Washington is starting to pull away in the AL East. They are 47-34 and have a 7 game lead over the Red Sox. Montreal is 8 back while Cleveland is 9 back. In the West, Detroit is holding onto a 2 game lead over San Francisco.

In the NL East, Pittsburgh remains in first by 2 games over the New York Giants. The Phillies are 6 back. In the Midwest, Chicago has moved into 1st place by 1 game over the Dallas Braves. Cincinnati and St. Louis are both 3 games out.

In the All-Star game, the NL won 6-5. Gabby Hartnett was 1 for 3 with 2 RBI and was named MVP.

July

Washington is still controlling the AL East with a 62-44 record and a 6 game lead over the Red Sox. In the West, Detroit has opened up a 5 game lead over Atlanta.

In the NL East, Pittsburgh remains in first again, with a 4 game lead over the Phillies and a 5 game lead over New York. The Dodgers are 6 back. In the Midwest, Dallas leads by 2 games over both the Reds and Cardinals. The Cubs are only 3 back now.

On July 4, Pittsburgh’s Vince Shields threw a no-hitter against the Giants in a 5-0 victory. He struck out 8 and walked 2.

August 17, 1934

This early in the season, Chuck Klein has already broken his single season homerun record. Today he hit his 54th of the 1934 season! It was also his 325th of his career and he is still only 29 years old.


August

Washington still leads the AL East, but Boston has cut the lead down to 4 games. In the West, Detroit has it almost wrapped up. They are up 10 games on the Westerners.

In the NL East, Pittsburgh leads the Giants by 4 games. The Phillies are 6 out. In the Midwest, St. Louis has moved into first place with a 79-55 record. They are 2 up on Dallas and 3 up on the Cubs. Speaking of the Cubs, Chuck Klein has 57 homeruns.

On August 29, St. Louis’ Lefty Gomez throws his second no-hitter of the 1934 season. It was a 2-0 victory over the Reds. He struck out 5 and walked 1.

September 19, 1934

Detroit has clinched the AL West division. Washington has a 4 game lead over the Red Sox and A’s in the AL East.

In the NL East, New york and Pittsburgh are tied for first place. In the Midwest, St. Louis is hanging onto first place by 1 game over the Cubs. Dallas has fallen to 3 back. There are 10 games left in the season.

Chuck Klein is at 62 homeruns.

Detroit’s 31 year old RF Chick Hafey is the 3rd player in MLB history to hit 50 homeruns in a season.

September 29, 1934

The Cardinals have clinched the NL Midwest division.

With 1 game left in the season, Washington leads Boston by 1 game in the AL East, while New York leads Pittsburgh by 1 game in the NL East.


September 30, 1934

Washington wins on the road in the afternoon game, so Boston’s night game means nothing. The Sox do win, but Washington has won the AL East.

New York loses to Houston, the expansion team in the afternoon, so Pittsburgh has a chance to tie by winning at home against the Cubs.

It didn’t look like Pittsburgh cared, they got blown out 8-1 at home, and the Giants clinch the NL East.


1934 Final Standings

AL Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
East
Washington 88 74 .543 -- .244 3.37
Boston 87 75 .537 1 .242 3.24
Philadelphia (A) 85 77 .525 3 .244 3.64
Cleveland 80 82 .494 8 .239 3.38
Montreal 76 86 .469 12 .233 3.70
West
Detroit 89 73 .549 -- .249 3.61
San Francisco 80 82 .494 9 .245 3.64
Los Angeles 78 84 .481 11 .250 3.63
Atlanta 74 88 .457 15 .248 3.71
Las Vegas 73 89 .451 16 .238 3.84
NL Standings :
(Name W L PCT GB AVG ERA)
East
New York 89 73 .549 -- .239 3.34
Pittsburgh 88 74 .543 1 .250 3.41
Brooklyn 78 84 .481 11 .229 3.34
Philadelphia (N) 77 85 .475 12 .230 3.44
Syracuse 56 106 .346 33 .225 3.98
Midwest
St. Louis 95 67 .586 -- .244 2.82
Chicago 93 69 .574 2 .235 3.34
Dallas 90 72 .556 5 .240 2.90
Cincinnati 89 73 .549 6 .242 3.39
Houston 55 107 .340 40 .226 4.38






1934 Statistical Leaders

TOP 5 in BATTING AVG :
.326 Charlie Grimm(CLE)
.314 Frank Doljack(SLN)
.305 Earl Smith(SF,AL)
.305 Mel Ott(DET)
.297 Chuck Klein( CHN,NL)
TOP 5 in HOMERUNS :
66 Chuck Klein( CHN,NL)
53 Chick Hafey(DET,AL)
35 Phil Todt(LA,AL)
34 Ripper Collins(CHN)
34 Shanty Hogan(WS1,AL)
TOP 5 in RBI :
151 Chick Hafey(DET,AL)
145 Chuck Klein( CHN,NL)
118 Phil Todt(LA,AL)
111 Wally Berger(CIN)
105 Shanty Hogan(WS1,AL)
TOP 5 in ERA :
1.74 George Cox(BOS,AL)
1.92 Bill Swift(SLN)
2.08 Ownie Carroll(CHN,NL)
2.37 Erv Brame(DAL)
2.40 Jim Brillheart(SYR)
TOP 5 in WINS :
30 Ownie Carroll(CHN,NL)
25 George Cox(BOS,AL)
24 Roy Sherid(CHN,NL)
23 Erv Brame(DAL)
23 Hal Mckain(SLN,NL)
TOP 5 in SAVES :
13 Garland Braxton(PHI)
10 John Woods(NY1)
10 Ed Strelecki( BRO,NL)
10 Bobby Burke(DET,AL)
9 Allyn Stout(SF)




ALCS

The ALCS opens in Detroit, and the Tigers win game 1 at home, 4-1. Detroit also wins game 2 of the Series in a 7-2 blowout. The Tigers lead 2-0.

In Washington, the Tigers also take game 3, 9-4, and are now 1 game away from the World Series, for the 2nd straight year. In game 4, Detroit scores 3 times in the last 2 innings to take a 5-4 victory and a Series Sweep.


NLCS

New York steal game 1 in St. Louis’ home park in 10 innings, by a final score of 4-1. St. Louis comes back with a 5-1 win in game 2 to tie the Series up.

New York takes game 3 at home to go up 2-1 in the series. The Giants also win game 4, 8-1 and now they go up 3-1 in the NLCS. St. Louis is able to take game 5 in New York and send the Series back to St. Louis, though the Cards trail 3-2.

St. Louis trailed 4-3 in the bottom of the ninth, but scored 2 runs to force a game 7 in their home park!

The Cards go up 3-0 in the bottom of the first inning of game 7. They go up 4-0 in the third inning. After 6 innings, they lead 5-0 and the Giants have yet to get a hit. The Giants score 2 in the top of the 8th to make it 5-2.

In the 9th, the Giants get a solo shot to make it 5-3. A 1 out double puts the tying run at the plate. With 2 outs, Foxx walks to put the tying run aboard.

A wild pitch advances the runners, and now the tying run is in scoring position!

Lary grounds out to short though, and the Cardinals survive and move on to the World Series!





World Series

The Series opens in St. Louis, and the Cardinals defend their home field with a 6-4 victory. They also win game two by a score of 5-2 to take a 2-0 Series lead as it now moves to Detroit.

Detroit gets themselves back into the Series with a 3-1 victory in game 3. A 4-1 victory in game 4 for Detroit ties the Series up and makes it a best of 3.

In game 5, the home team finally loses in the Series, as the Cardinals get a 7-6 win and a 3-2 advantage in the Series as it heads back to St. Louis. The Tigers will have to win 2 on the road.

Detroit comes through in game 6 with a 6-4 win to force a final game 7!

The Cards take a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning in Game 7. They add another run in the bottom of the 2nd inning, and then another in the third to take a 4-0 lead.

The Cards get another 2 runs in the fourth to go up 6-0, and then 1 more in the 5th for a 7-0 lead.

The Tigers finally get on the board with a run in the top of the 6th, to make it 7-1, but that is all they get. The Cardinals win 8-1 and are the 1934 Champions! This is the Cards 4th Title, which is best in the majors. Their last came 10 years ago in 1924. Detroit has now dropped 2 World Series in a row.

Champion Review

Hal McCain was on the DL for the playoffs, but he went 23-12 with a 2.83 ERA. Lefty Gomez was the #1 starter for the Cards during the regular season. He threw 2 no hitters and won 22 games with a 2.46 ERA.

RF Frank Doljack led the team with a .314 BA and he hit 12 homeruns. 3B Howard Greigau batted .285 and hit 25 homeruns with 74 RBI. C Earl Grace batted .267 with 15 homeruns. LF John Stone batted .248 with a team high 26 homeruns.

Ty Cobb Award

AL: RF Chick Hafey, DET, (600 AB, .262 AVG, 53 HR, 151 RBI, 108 R, 157 Hits, .955 OPS) - This is Hafey’s 4th consecutive Ty Cobb Award.
NL: RF Chuck Klein, CHN, (589 AB, .297 AVG, 66 HR, 145 RBI, 105 R, 175 Hits, 1.062 OPS) - This is Klein’s 6th consecutive Ty Cobb Award.




Cy Young Award

AL: George Cox, BOS, (Record: 25-6, 1.74 ERA, 315.1IP, 301 Ks, 40 BB)
NL: Ownie Carroll, CHN, (Record: 30-9, 2.08 ERA, 362.2IP, 255 Ks, 66 BB)




Bob Meusel Award

AL: Curt Davis, PHA, (Record: 15-14, 3.86 ERA, 249.1 IP, 140 Ks, 48 BB)
NL: Fabian Kowalik, PIT, (Record: 15-8, 2.89 ERA, 236.1 IP, 132 Ks, 35 BB)




1934-1935 Offseason

Retirees:

Walter Anderson retires ...
Ray Blades retires ...
John Bogart retires ...
Frank Callaway retires ...
Ossie Bluege retires ...
Johnny Cooney retires ...
John Chapman retires ...
Buster Chatham retires ...
Earle Combs retires ...
Taylor Douthit retires ...
Neal Brady retires ...
Hod Ford retires ...
Freddie Fitzsimmons retires ...
Augie Johns retires ...
Bill Hubbell retires ...
Carl Hubbell retires ...
Willie Kamm retires ...
Freddie Maguire retires ...
Johnny Mostil retires ...
Joe Kiefer retires ...
Ted Lyons retires ...
Charlie See retires ...
George Lowe retires ...
Bill Sherdel retires ...
Paul Waner retires ...
Bill Snyder retires ...
Curt Walker retires ...
Kewpie Pennington retires ...
Carmen Hill retires ...
Rogers Hornsby retires ...
Billy Zitzmann retires ...
Bill Narleski retires ...
Ralph Shinners retires ...
Homer Summa retires ...
Lou Vedder retires ...
Tim Mccabe retires ...
CLE: George Stueland retires ...
CLE: Sammy Hale retires ...
MON: Herb Brett retires ...
MON: Sam Bohne retires ...
WS1: Harry Hulihan retires ...
ATL: Luke Sewell retires ...
ATL: Harry Biemiller retires ...
DET: Bill Piercy retires ...
LV: Bernie Hungling retires ...
LV: Pat Collins retires ...
LA: Slim Harriss retires ...
NY1: Chicken Hawks retires ...
PHI: Ernie Padgett retires ...
PHI: Rosy Ryan retires ...
CHN: George Earnshaw retires ...
CIN: Hod Lisenbee retires ...
CIN: Elmer Yoter retires ...
CIN: Pat Crawford retires ...
DAL: Jackie Tavener retires ...
HOU: Bernie Neis retires ...
SLN: Dick Burrus retires ...
SLN: Webb Schultz retires ...





League Outlook

Syracuse and Houston had the lowest attendances in the league last year, but that is to be expected, as they just completed their second seasons. Hopefully, they will start to make strides and draw some more fans to the parks. All other teams are doing terrific.

Free Agency, of Note

There are some great power hitters in free agency this year, including 4 time Ty Cobb Winner, Chick Hafey.

The New York Giants sign SP Pete Appleton (8-9-6) to a 4 year contract.

The St. Louis Cardinals improve their rotation in pursuit of another title by signing SP Erv Brame (8-8-8) to a 5 year deal.

The New York Giants continue to sign big names, and now get the biggest of all, Chick Haney (6-10-6). Haney signs for 11 million a year for 7 years.

The Cleveland Naps sign RF Shanty Hogan (6-8-6) for 4 years.

The Houston Astros sign LF Heinei Manush (6-5-6) to a 3 year deal.



Amateur Draft


Here is how the entire first round played out:

Houston pick: P Gene Schott
Syracuse pick: P Joe Sullivan
Las Vegas pick: P Harry Gumbert
Atlanta pick: P Bill Mcgee
Montreal pick: 3B Buddy Lewis
Philadelphia (N) pick: RF Wally Moses
Los Angeles pick: P Al Hollingsworth
Brooklyn pick: P Dick Lanahan
San Francisco pick: 3B Bobby Estalella
Cleveland pick: P Claude Passeau
Philadelphia (A) pick: P Hal Kelleher
Boston pick: P John Whitehead
Washington pick: P Hugh Casey
Pittsburgh pick: LF Mel Mazzera
New York pick: P Carl Doyle
Cincinnati pick: CF Terry Moore
Detroit pick: C Sammy Holbrook
Dallas pick: P Orville Jorgens
Chicago pick: P Buck Rogers
St. Louis pick: C Ray Mueller