Here’s a rundown of the requirements:

• APBA Major League Players Baseball – Game Disk (DOS version)
• APBA Baseball Wizard (DOS version)
• optional: APBA Major League Players Baseball – Season Disks
• optional: Duerk’s Encyclopedia (DOS version)

APBA Major League Players Baseball was developed by Miller Associates and published by Random House in 1985 for the IBM PC personal computer and 1986 for the Apple ][. I’m utilizing the IBM PC edition (version 2.0) in my tutorial, however the menu options and key combinations are similar in both versions of the game.

It is recommended that your data disk(s) are subfolders placed directly below the folder containing the APBA DOS executable files. The data disk subfolder needs to be named in the following manner:

folder-name.ddr (example: C:\APBA\1990.ddr)

View the tutorial video here:

Season Disk Downloads:

coming soon

References:

Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – APBA Baseball

SABR Stay at Home – Kenneth and Roswell Miller

Based on the research for my book “Hardball Retrospective“, I assigned every Major League ballplayer to the first team that signed them to a professional MLB contract. Each player remains on their assigned “Original” team for the duration of their careers. For comparison purposes, I also compiled “Actual” teams using the individuals that actually played for each franchise. In both cases, I created half-decade leagues for the “Originals” and “Actuals”.

To determine the rosters for my “Actual” half-decade leagues, I utilized the following criteria:

• Half-decades were designated as 1900-1904, 1905-1909, 1910-1914, 1915-1919, etc. up to 2015-2019. For the older National League franchises, I am not including any 19th Century player-seasons.
• I take the top 40 players for each roster based on Win Shares using each player’s best season in the five-year period. For example, Mike Trout registered 42, 36, 30, 38 and 34 Win Shares from 2015 to 2019. On the Angels 2015-2019 “Actuals” roster, Mike Trout’s 2015 season will be represented.
• I manually entered the team information into Earl Weaver Baseball 1.5 for the IBM PC. I selected this version of EWB for several reasons – personal preference (I’ve a huge fan of EWB since the game was released!), challenge (I had the Amiga and Apple ][ versions back in the day, but only recently acquired the IBM PC version), aesthetics (the physics modeling, animations, sounds were all top-notch for a game produced in the late 1980’s). Another determining factor – the IBM PC edition allows the user to ‘fast-play’ a series of games without any user intervention. For example, I created the schedule and saved it to disk. Then I can reference the schedule after I launch the game using the command, “WEAVER p d %” and enter the first game number along with the number of days to play. I usually play ten days at a time then back up the EWB files. I can also increase the amount of CPU cycles in the DOSbox emulator to speed things up a bit. Here is an excellent FAQ for EWB by Demystifier which explains the various command-line parameters and other interesting information about the game.
• Earl Weaver Baseball has a roster limitation of 25 players, so each roster will consist of either 14 batters / 11 pitchers or 15 batters / 10 pitchers.
• One of the few omissions in the original Earl Weaver Baseball computer game is the inability to save lineups and designate pitching roles for a computer-managed team. The teams that are managed by “Earl” use algorithms to generate lineups before every game, substituting players as needed based on injuries and fatigue.
• Another minor flaw is the lack of “reserves” so the user is limited to a 25-man roster for each team.
• Playoffs / World Series – I will manage a series of games between the top two teams in the simulation and livestream the results to my Twitch and YouTube channels.

Angels “Actuals” – Playoffs & World Series Videos

Championship Series – 2010-2014 Angels vs. 1975-1979 Angels – view videos here!

Championship Series – 2005-2009 Angels vs. 2000-2004 Angels – view videos here!

World Series – 1975-1979 Angels @ 2000-2004 Angels – Game 1

World Series – 1975-1979 Angels @ 2000-2004 Angels – Game 2

World Series – 2000-2004 Angels @ 1975-1979 Angels – Game 3

World Series – 2000-2004 Angels @ 1975-1979 Angels – Game 4

World Series – 2000-2004 Angels @ 1975-1979 Angels – Game 5

World Series – 1975-1979 Angels @ 2000-2004 Angels – Game 6

World Series – 1975-1979 Angels @ 2000-2004 Angels – Game 7

Angels “Actuals” – Statistics, Standings & Leader Boards

Angels “Actuals” – Final Regular Season Standings

Angels “Actuals” – Team Totals

Angels “Actuals” – League Leaders – Batting

Angels “Actuals” – League Leaders – Pitching

Angels “Actuals” – Team Rosters with Individual Batting & Pitching Statistics

Publisher – Performing Arts Software

Release Year – 1986

Platforms – Apple ][, IBM PC

Credits

Unknown – if anyone can provide this information, please post a Comment and I will update this section accordingly.

Review

So much for chronological order.. I skipped Baseball Fanatic early in my series of retro computer baseball games reviews but I’m finally able to revisit it now. The chief reason for omitting the game on my first time through the lineup is that I no longer possessed the game disk. I purchased the game circa 1986 or 1987 for my Apple ][e computer. I still have the manual and scanned a copy to help with the preservation of game’s existence. However I regrettably sold my Apple computer along with the software in the mid-1990’s shortly after purchasing my first IBM PC clone (a Micron tower). I don’t recall spending a lot of time with Baseball Fanatic – MicroLeague Baseball, APBA Major League Players Baseball and later Earl Weaver Baseball consumed most of my leisure time back then. When I started writing my Retro Review series, I remembered Baseball Fanatic and located my manual but I couldn’t find any references of the game on the Internet. The lone proof of it’s existence online was an advertisement that I tracked down in the April 1987 issue of Computer Gaming World along with a brief blurb about the game:

I finally tracked down a demo of the IBM PC version of the game which only allows the user to play two innings and most of the other features are disabled. You can view my playthrough video on my HardballRetro Youtube channel:

Still no luck locating the Apple ][ version or the full version of the IBM PC edition of Baseball Fanatic.. but the demo at least allowed me to reacquaint myself with the game almost four decades after my first encounter. Unfortunately, it matched my initial recollection – a fairly bland simulation of the National Pastime that doesn’t do anything particularly well. There is no “one-pitch” mode so you have to slog through every pitch of every at-bat. This might have been a tolerable exercise if the play-by-play contained any variation or imagination. Baseball Fanatic came with 32 World Series teams from the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s or a 1986 season disk. An optional stat compiler / file editor disk was sold separately.

If you decide to play a single game, you can choose from four “playing levels”: Super Slugfest, Slugfest, Pitcher’s Duel and Average Big League to adjust the scoring production and strategies to be utilized on a per-game basis. Once the game begins, the defense must select the pitch type and location. The manager on offense has to guess the pitch type and location, then the result is displayed. Instead of playing individual games, there is also an option to “Watch the Scoreboard”. The file editor allows you to modify player characteristics.

Ratings

Graphics – [1] While I don’t have the Apple ][ version of Baseball Fanatic, my recollection is that the game screen was ordinary and consistent with the baseball sims of that era: Full Count Baseball, Monday Morning Manager, Avalon Hill Pro Manager, Radio Baseball and the APBA Major League Players Baseball. The color scheme for the IBM PC version is off-putting – a mix of browns and greens, a generic stadium and players with minimal animation.

Sound – [1] A few bleeps and bloops.. with two runners aboard, I was treated to a bleep-bloop rendition of a “Here We Go!” chant.

Strategy – [1] There’s not much strategy going on here.. You’re guessing at pitches and can attempt to bunt or steal a base. On defense I could pitch out with a runner on base or issue an intentional walk.

Artificial Intelligence – [1] I’m only able to play two innings at a clip so this limits my ability to determine if the computer AI is adequate.

Box Score – [1] Perhaps it’s a limitation of the demo but when my two-inning game concluded, I was booted back to the main menu after pressing a key (no option to view a box score). While setting the lineups pre-game, Baseball Fanatic displays offensive statistics in a peculiar order: at bats, hits, home runs, doubles, RBI, average and triples!

Rosters – [1] – The Create a New Team option allows you to build a ballclub from scratch. However you are limited to a 20-man roster (the World Series teams are bare-bones – only 11 batters and 5 pitchers per squad!). You do not have the ability to trade or draft players. Each player is assigned a position, then you enter their speed, power and batting average ratings. Batters additionally get a fielding rating. The sole rating for pitchers is their “ERA range”.

Statistics – [1] – Depending on your preference when plunking down your hard-earned cash for Baseball Fanatic, you received a game which included 32 World Series teams from the 1960’s through early 1980’s or a 1986 season disk with 26 team rosters. Addition data disks may have been available for purchase and an optional stat compiler / file editor disk was offered as well. I don’t have access to the stat compiler and the manual fails to specify what statistics are tracked.

Usage/Injuries/Ejections – [1] – Pitchers will become tired in the game according to the manual – “The computer keeps tracks of the number of pitches thrown by each pitcher and there is a fatigue factor, so watch for signs that your pitcher is tiring late in the game.” Injuries and ejections do not occur as far as I can tell.

Ballparks / Park Factors – [1] – Baseball Fanatic only depicts a generic stadium in-game and the manual does not mention anything about ballpark factors.

Commentary – [1] – Play results appear below the scoreboard at the top of the screen. The play-by-play is extremely bland with mostly one or two-word responses.

Scale:  Ratings from 1 (worst) to 5 (best)

Total Score: 11 out of 50

Observations

Baseball Fanatic offers a straightforward pitch-by-pitch simulation but doesn’t do anything particularly well. In a marketplace with five very similar titles, a primarily text-based simulation had to offer something special to separate itself from the rest of the pack. Apart from my desire to track down this game nearly forty years later for the sake of fully documenting my favorite gaming genre, I cannot recommend Baseball Fanatic.

Please add a comment below if you spent a significant amount of time and/or have any recollections of Baseball Fanatic.

Screenshots

Articles in the Series

	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – SSI Computer Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review –Computer Statis Pro Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Avalon Hill Pro Manager / Major League Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pure-Stat Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Monday Morning Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Radio Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Full Count Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball II – III – IV
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa’s Ultimate Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – APBA Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Front Page Sports Baseball ’94 – ’96 – ’98
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – ESPN Baseball Tonight
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Hardball 3-4-5-6
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pursue the Pennant – Diamond Mind Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pro League Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – 4 – Old Time Baseball		Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Baseball Fanatic

Additional Links

DOS Game Zone – play Baseball Fanatic (IBM PC demo) in your browser:

https://dosgamezone.com/game/baseball-fanatic-525.html

Playthroughs – Hardball Retro

IBM PC version:

Wilson, Johnny. “Baseball Game Survey.” Computer Gaming World. Volume 36, April 1987, p6-9, 42-44.

http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_36.pdf

About the Author

I am a New Jersey native with a passion for baseball, statistics, computers and video games who enjoys spending quality time with his family.

“Hardball Architects – Volume 1 (American League)“, published in July 2020 and
“Hardball Architects – Volume 2 (National League)”, published in April 2022, examine the trades, free agent acquisitions, draft picks and other transactions for the 30 Major League Baseball franchises, divided into a 2-volume set. Both books are available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. All key moves are scrutinized for every team and Sabermetric principles are applied to the roster construction throughout the lifetime of the organization to encapsulate the hits and misses by front office executives. Team performances are analyzed based on transaction type with graphs depicting the WAR (Wins Above Replacement) in every decade. Individual results for each player-transaction is charted over the duration of their stint with the franchise. Every team chapter includes All-Time Rosters and Single-Season Leaders based on transaction type. The Team Trade Record chronicles the WAR and WS (Win Shares) accumulated by players acquired in comparison to those traded to opposing teams. The opening chapter is devoted to the Evolution of the General Manager and incorporates a discussion with former Dodgers GM Fred Claire (along with former Angels and Red Sox GM Mike Port and current Reds GM Nick Krall in Volume 2) on a variety of front office topics.

“Hardball Retroactive”, published in June 2018, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com.  Hardball Retroactive is a modest collection of selected articles that I have written for Seamheads.com along with my Baseball Analytics blog since 2010. Exclusive content includes the chapter on “Minors vs. Majors” which assesses every franchise’s minor league successes and failures in relation to their major league operations.

“Hardball Retrospective” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. Supplemental Statistics, Charts and Graphs along with a discussion forum are offered at TuataraSoftware.com. In Hardball Retrospective, I placed every ballplayer in the modern era (from 1901-present) on their original teams. Using a variety of advanced statistics and methods, I generated revised standings for each season based entirely on the performance of each team’s “original” players. I discuss every team’s “original” players and seasons at length along with organizational performance with respect to the Amateur Draft (or First-Year Player Draft), amateur free agent signings and other methods of player acquisition. Season standings, WAR and Win Shares totals for the “original” teams are compared against the real-time or “actual” team results to assess each franchise’s scouting, development and general management skills.

Don Daglow (Intellivision World Series Major League Baseball, Earl Weaver Baseball, Tony LaRussa Baseball) contributed the foreword for Hardball Retrospective. The foreword and preview of my book are accessible here. 

“Hardball Retrospective – Addendum 2014 to 2016” supplements my research for Hardball Retrospective, providing retroactive standings based on Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and Win Shares (WS) for each “original” team over the past three seasons (2014-2016). Team totals from 2010 – 2013 are included for reference purposes. “Addendum” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. 

The New Sports Games Journal – Volume 9 Issue 2

This is the twentieth entry in a series focusing on computer baseball simulations to supplement the chapter “Play Retro Baseball Video Games In Your Browser” from my Hardball Retroactive book along with the corresponding post at Baseball Analytics. The series focuses on baseball simulations – games in which the primary emphasis is on managerial strategy and the ability to replay entire seasons with a degree of realism. Baseball video games that are strictly arcade representations of baseball (based solely on reflex and hand-eye coordination) are excluded.

Tony La Russa Baseball 3

Publisher – Stormfront Studios

Release Year – 1995

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Old Time Baseball

Publisher – Stormfront Studios

Release Year – 1995

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Tony La Russa Baseball 4

Publisher – Maxis

Release Year – 1997

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Interview

Don Daglow served as the Executive Producer for the Tony La Russa Baseball series along with Old Time Baseball. He graciously responded to my inquiries specific to TLRB3 & 4 and OTB.

DB – Tony La Russa Baseball 3 and Old Time Baseball were nearly released simultaneously in 1995. When was the concept for OTB conceived and was it intended to be a parallel project to TLRB3? Was there any concern about releasing two baseball products into the marketplace around the same time?

DD – The decision to release both was a calculated risk. Our theory was that the baseball history fans (like me) whose baseball desires were satisfied by Old Time Baseball and wouldn’t buy TLRB wouldn’t cannibalize too many TLRB sales. I also had dreamed for many years of creating something like OTB and we had our proprietary baseball engine upon which to base it, and that felt like the moment when I could “make the dream come true.” Of course, the factor we didn’t think about was the baseball strike!

DB – Is there any significance to the number “11” on the backs of the player uniforms?

DD – We weren’t yet at the point where available RAM and processor speed in the typical consumer machines would allow us to individualize the animations, and 11 was the least likely number to draw attention to that fact.

DB – The GM Challenge mode includes an undocumented feature where women begin to appear in the game after you progress into the 2040 season. MLB has been slowly moving in this direction on the field (female coaches and managers in the Minor Leagues) and the front office. Do you believe there is enough momentum towards this initiative to fulfill this prophecy within that timeline? When the Silver Bullets team was formed in the mid-90’s, there was some momentum in this direction.

DD – That’s outside my forecasting abilities, but I certainly hope we see more girls playing baseball in Little League etc. if that’s what they want to do. The hiring of Alyssa Nakken is also an encouraging signpost.

DB – Old Time Baseball featured the “Time Machine” to convert player statistics across different eras. What statistics were utilized when converting player data from one era to another? Did you utilize park factors, league runs per game, or a combination of formulas?

DD – We aggregated a series of factors, and I have to admit that 30 years later I don’t remember every step. Obviously, the toughest part was trying to maintain some kind of meaningful competition across the dead ball to modern ball transition. We even tried simulating 1871-92, though I’m not sure if that was a failed experiment.

DB – Tony La Russa 4 was the final edition in the series. Were further sequels with a revamped engine under consideration? What were some of the enhancements that you would have considered for a new game or series?

DD – There were two factors that caused us to end work on the series. First of all, the 1994-95 strike decreased consumer spending on everything baseball, even after play resumed. Our forecasts for unit sales of the games were dramatically affected. Second, over the course of the 1990s the large game publishers went public and started making games with much bigger budgets as a way to outsell and marginalize smaller publishers. Since we developed original games for publishers but baseball games were the only titles we published ourselves, this placed us at a big disadvantage. The combined effect of these two factors was to make another sequel a bad bet.

DB – You attempted to revive the La Russa product line in 2012 after a 15 year absence. “Tony La Russa’s Baseball With Fans” was targeted for Smartphone platforms but the Kickstarter support ultimately fell short. What would a re-imagined “Tony 5” look like and do you have any future plans for TLRB or perhaps an Old Time Baseball II with the ability to import statistics from online sources, internet play, etc.?

DD – That effort was undertaken when my passion for baseball caused me to not properly factor the fact that Kickstarter users usually support physical games, not digital ones. I always have dreams about making new kinds of baseball games, and one day one of them may come to life.

DB – If there are any important points about the Tony La Russa Baseball series and Old Time Baseball that I’ve missed, please share your thoughts here!

DD – Just that the roles of Mark Buchignani, David Bunnett and Hudson Piehl (in alphabetical order) in creating the games were critical in our initial and long-term success, and that without Katie Kelly coordinating everything the series would never have launched.

Review

Old Time Baseball

One of the neat features implemented in Old Time Baseball is the “Time Machine” which allows you to configure your league (universe) based on different eras in baseball history or you can select a specific season so the outcomes veer towards high, neutral or low-run environments. The available eras include:

All-Time Average, Early Baseball (1871-1892), Dead Ball Era (1893-1919), Babe Ruth Era (1920-1945), The Golden Age (1946-1960), Expansion Era (1961-1976), and Modern Baseball (1977-1994). The only competitor’s product offering similar functionality during this timeframe was Pursue the Pennant / Diamond Mind Baseball, to my knowledge. I imported the 1979 rosters and ran a test season using the Dead Ball Era to test-drive the Time Machine. Fred Lynn led the Majors with 10 round-trippers in the regular season. Five players tied for the runner-up spot with 6 circuit clouts apiece. Billy North (114 SB) was one of three players topping the century mark in steals as a dozen thieves pilfered at least 80 bags! David Palmer flummoxed the opposition, posting a Major League-best 1.44 ERA.

Experimenting further with the expansive Old Time Baseball statistics, I loaded the 1981 season into OTB and then imported that universe into TLRB3. Using the Player Stats function under the Utilities menu, I tabbed through each franchise and corrected the player names for individuals who were still active in 1995. Due to licensing issues with MLBPA, those player names in the OTB database were simply “Center Fielder” or “Pitcher”. However their actual statistics allowed me to easily discern their identities by browsing through the corresponding team roster on Baseball-Reference. So the Yankees “Pitcher” with an ERA of 0.77 and 46.2 IP became Rich Gossage while I ascertained the southpaw with the 2.05 ERA and 105.1 IP as rookie sensation Dave Righetti. I also encountered an issue with batter handedness. None of the players imported from the Old Time Baseball CD-ROM were listed as switch-hitters, so I had to scroll through each roster and compare to that season’s entry on the Baseball-Reference website. One other quirk involved primary positions for some outfielders. Many of them default to right field, making it necessary to peruse the actual games by position and correct those that should be in left or center field. I adjusted the lineups and rotations according to the historical record and simulated the season using a 162-game schedule.

I used the “Create Team” option in Old Time Baseball to build rosters from another project that I’m working on, tentatively titled “The Ones That Got Away”. I organized the best players that each franchise traded, released, or allowed to otherwise leave via free agency or other means, sorted by their WAR and Win Shares totals in their best seasons for their new club and divided into teams by decade. In this edition I elected to use the squads from the 1970’s as OTB contains all player-seasons through 1981. After I drafted the players on to their respective franchises, I selected starting lineups (vs RHP and LHP), starting rotations and bullpens. Stadiums were assigned to each team from the list of 16 beautifully rendered old-time ballparks that are included in the game. Since I had 24 teams (the 16 “original” franchises from the turn of the century plus the expansion teams through 1969), I opted to assign two teams to some of the stadiums.

The 70’s Yankees, Phillies, Athletics and Giants’ “Got Away” squads led their respective divisions at the All-Star Break. I signed on as the skipper for the American League All-Stars. A couple of left-handers, Vida Blue (OAK) and Wilbur Wood (PIT), were rewarded with the starting assignments. The afternoon affair at Fenway Park commenced with a scoreless first inning but George Foster (SFG) but the Senior Circuit on the board with a solo blast over the Green Monster. Davey Johnson (BAL) crushed a three-run shot into the netting above the left field wall to propel the Junior Circuit into the lead with two outs in the bottom of the third. He repeated the feat with two aboard in the fifth as the American Leaguers extended their advantage to 6-1. Foster tallied another RBI when he hit into a fielder’s choice with runners on first and second in the visitor’s sixth. Gaylord Perry (TEX) relieved Blue to begin the seventh frame and proceeded to set the NL crew down in order. Perry’s brother Jim held the opposition in check during the eighth inning and Andy Messersmith entered the contest to nail down the final three outs as the American League triumphed by a score of 6-2.

The season concluded with the Tribe outlasting the Bronx Bombers by a five-game margin in the AL East while the Angels, Athletics and Rangers each posted 90+ victories in the AL West. Texas emerged with the division title by a lone victory over Oakland. In the National League, Philadelphia claimed the Eastern Division crown and finished five games ahead of St. Louis. The Astros topped the Majors with 97 wins and prevailed in a tight race with the Reds to take the NL West.

Cleveland stormed out to a 3-0 lead in the American League Championship Series. Tommy Harper clubbed a round-tripper and knocked in four runs while Dennis Eckersley hurled 8 strong innings as the Tribe took Game 1 by a score of 7-3.  Sonny Siebert (CLE) and Bert Blyleven (TEX) engaged in a pitcher’s duel in Game 2, trading zeroes for eight frames until Ray Fosse singled home Joe Rudi with the game’s lone run off Don Stanhouse to propel Cleveland to a 1-0 triumph. Harper led the Indians’ offensive ambush with 4 of the team’s 13 base knocks in Game 3. Jim Perry and Jim Kern held the Rangers at bay, allowing 4 base hits as Cleveland pushed Texas to the brink of elimination. The Rangers showed their resiliency in Game 4 with a 4-3 victory in a ten-inning affair. Texas hurlers Joe H. Coleman, Stan Thomas and combined for a 2-0 shutout in Game 5. Harper swatted a big-fly and Rudi drove in 3 runs to clinch the AL pennant as Cleveland defeated Texas, 6-5 in Game 6 to advance to the World Series.

Philadelphia prevailed 12-9 in Game 1 as Houston wasted a home run and 5 RBI from first-sacker John Mayberry and Joe Pepitone’s 3 RBI. The Phillies countered with four circuit clouts – a couple of taters off the bat of Barry Foote along with big-flies by John E Briggs and Don Money. Also known as “Brooks” for his fielding prowess, Money cashed in with a 5-for-5 day at the office. Everyone in the Phillies lineup contributed at least one base hit as Astros’ southpaw Dave A Roberts and a trio of relievers yielded 20 base knocks. The Fightin’ Phillies repeated the feat in the second contest, a 12-0 shellacking in which the Houston staff allowed 19 hits while Fergie Jenkins spun a 5-hit shutout. Dick Allen went yard twice and John “Bad Dude” Stearns delivered a solo shot. The Astros triumphed on the road in Game 3 as the ball club rallied with 2 runs in the ninth to secure a  7-6 victory. Rusty Staub plated three baserunners and Joe Ferguson added a pair of RBI. Ken Brett (PHI) twirled a 3-hitter to claim victory in a 1-0 affair in Game 4 despite a one-hitter by Houston’s Jerry Reuss. Unfortunately for the ‘Stros, that one hit was a solo round-tripper by Toby Harrah in the sixth inning. The visiting Astros held a 3-1 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth in Game 5 when the hometown Phils erupted for 3 runs against Howie Reed and Fred Scherman to capture the NL pennant. I elected to skipper the Phillies in the upcoming Series.

Philadelphia travelled to Cleveland and the World Series commenced with a pair of aces on the hill for their respective clubs. Dennis Eckersley got the Game 1 nod for the Tribe while the Fightin’ Phillies countered with Fergie “Fly” Jenkins. Toby Harrah advanced to second on a two-base error by left fielder Joe Rudi. “Eck” walked John Stearns and Dick Allen to load the bases with nobody out. Oscar Gamble lofted a fly ball to center, deep enough to score Harrah. John E. Briggs rapped into a 5-4-3 double play to end the threat. Tommy Harper laced a two-bagger off the center field wall to ignite a potential rally for the Indians. Rudi atoned for his earlier miscue to knot the game at 1-1 with a double to right-center field. Eckersley held the Phillies hitless until Cesar Tovar delivered a clean single to left with one away in the top of the fifth. The match remained tied until the bottom of the eighth when Jenkins yielded consecutive two-base hits to Alfredo Griffin and Harper. Cleveland assumed a 2-1 lead and Philadelphia elected to call upon Grant Jackson after issuing a free pass to George Hendrick. Jackson got out of the jam and the Tribe brought Jim Kern on to pitch the ninth inning. Oscar Gamble drew a base on balls. Briggs bounced a high chopper back to the mound. Kern whirled and fired to second to gun down the pinch-runner, Bill Robinson. Don Money drilled a double up the gap in left-center and Briggs was off to the races, scoring all the way from first to tie the game at 2-2! Cleveland’s skipper held up four fingers and Kern walked Del Unser intentionally to face Tovar. I countered with pinch-hitter Willie Montanez, who promptly whiffed on a 3-2 curveball. Dave Cash lined out to third for the final out of the frame. Jackson retired the Indians in order and the game headed into extra innings. Harrah belted a double high off the center field wall to commence the top of the tenth and he advanced to third on a slow roller to first off the bat of Stearns. Cleveland chose to pitch to Allen even though first base was unoccupied and the slugger drove in Harrah with a sacrifice fly to left to put the Phillies in front, 3-2. Darold Knowles shut down the Tribe offense in the home half of the tenth to notch the save as Philadelphia took a 1-0 lead in the Series.

Jim Perry merited the starting nod for the Indians in Game 2 while the Phillies countered with Rick Wise. Cleveland scratched across a run in the first when Toby Harrah booted Joe Rudi’s grounder to short with the bases loaded. Another miscue by Harrah with two outs in the second allowed George Hendrick to bat with a pair of baserunners aboard. “Silent George” took a mighty cut and deposited the ball far beyond the center field fence for a three-run bomb as the Indians extended their lead to 4-0. Harrah drew a leadoff base on balls in the fourth and later scored with two down on an opposite-field single off the bat of Oscar Gamble. Ron Schueler relieved Wise after he issued a free pass to Alfredo Griffin with one out in the sixth. Tommy Harper promptly rapped into a 6-4-3 double play to keep the score at 4-1. Rudi’s web gem, a diving catch that robbed Cesar Tovar of a base knock, keep the Phils at bay in the visitor’s seventh. Griffin laced an RBI double in the eighth to provide further cushion for the Tribe. Perry cruised to a complete-game six-hitter, retiring pinch-hitter Johnny Callison on a pop-up to Ray Fosse to end the contest and knot the series at one game apiece.

In the City of Brotherly Love, the two teams prepared to square off in Game 3. Tommy Harper worked a base on balls leading off the contest and Jose Cardenal followed with a two-run blast off Ken Brett which landed just inside the left-field foul pole. Tommy John served up a gopher ball to left-center field off the bat of center fielder Jerry Martin to cut the Indians lead in half. Toby Harrah and Dick Allen tagged solo shots off “TJ” in the third frame to put the Phillies on top, 3-2. Rico Carty belted a triple over Martin’s outstretched glove in center to start the visitor’s fourth. Brett whiffed Graig Nettles and Joe Rudi to nearly escape the inning unscathed, but Chris Chambliss laced a single to center to drive home the tying run. Alfredo Griffin singled to commence the fifth frame, moved to third on Harper’s two-base knock and scored on a solid single to center by “Silent” George Hendrick. Jackie Brown relieved Brett in the top of the sixth. The Tribe tacked on a run in the eighth after Harrah committed a pair of errors. John hurled scattered eight hits across eight innings before Jim Kern entered the game in the bottom of the ninth. The “Emu” yielded a one-out single to John “Bad Dude” Stearns but he induced a 6-4-3 double play ground ball off the bat of pinch-hitter Willie Montanez to secure the 5-3 victory as Cleveland assumed the advantage in the Series.

The Tribe had another ace up their sleeve as the wily right-hander Gaylord Perry got the starting assignment in Game 4. The Fightin’ Phils countered with southpaw Rudy May. I noticed a bug in the box score when Cleveland tallied an unearned run in the top of the third inning. Chris Chambliss singled and advanced to third base on a two-out base knock off the bat of Tommy Harper. However, Chambliss twisted his ankle on the play and had to be removed from the contest in favor of Vada Pinson. A surprise bunt by Jose Cardenal caught May off-guard and the pitcher bobbled the ball, allowing Pinson to score as Harper moved up to second and Cardenal beat the throw to first. The box score credited Chambliss with the run scored instead of Pinson. Regardless, the Indians held a 1-0 advantage after May whiffed “Silent” George Hendrick. Philadelphia knotted the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the third. Toby Harrah drilled a two-bagger up the gap in left field. Willie Montanez and John E. Briggs delivered consecutive base hits with Harrah coasting home when Cardenal trapped Briggs’ liner to center. May struck out nine batsmen through 6 2/3 innings but ran out of gas and yielded the bump to right-hander Dyar Miller. Harper drew a walk to load the bases. Cardenal jumped on Miller’s first offering and ripped a double that one-hopped the fence in left-center, scoring a pair to put the visitors out in front, 3-1. Hendrick struck out but the damage was done. Jim Kern entered the game in the bottom of the ninth after Perry held the Phillies to one run through eight frames. Don Money coaxed a base on balls leading off the inning and Johnny Callison blooped a base hit to right field. Del Unser slapped a single past a diving Pinson at first base, cutting the lead to 3-2. Kern proceeded to strike out the side as Oscar Gamble, Harrah and Richie Hebner were punched out in succession to slam the door shut on the Phillies’ rally.

Philadelphia returned to the ballpark for Game 5 facing a must-win scenario with Ferguson Jenkins on the hill for the hometown squad and Dennis Eckersley slinging for the visiting ball club. Both hurlers held the opposition in check until the visitor’s fifth when Jose Cardenal laced a sharp single over the head of second-sacker Dave Cash, scoring Ray Fosse from third. In the bottom of the seventh, Del Unser led off with a base hit to center field and reached second on a throwing error by Cardenal. Dave Cash delivered a single but Unser was only able to advance one base. John Stearns drew a base on balls following a strikeout by Toby Harrah. Dick Allen whiffed for the second out but Willie Montanez stroked a solid single back through the box and into center field to tie the game at 1-1. Johnny Callison slashed an opposite-field single to left with one away in the eighth, sending “Eck” to the showers in favor of the Tribe’s closer, Jim Kern. Cesar Tovar came on as a pinch-runner. Cash executed the hit-and-run to perfection, lining the ball up the right-center field gap for the go-ahead double. Grant Jackson replaced “Fly” to begin the ninth frame and he retired the Indians in order to secure the save as the Phillies prevailed, 2-1 and sent the Series back to Cleveland.

The skippers for Philadelphia and Cleveland turned to veterans Rick Wise and Jim Perry, respectively, for Game 6 matchup. Joe Rudi commenced the scoring with a two-run blast over the right-center field wall in the home half of the second inning. Ray Fosse drilled a one-out double to deep center field in the fifth to plate Vada Pinson. The Indians loaded the bases but Wise extracted himself from the jam with a pair of grounders to shortstop Toby Harrah, the first one resulting in a force out at home. John Stearns and Dick Allen rapped back-to-back two-base hits in the top of the sixth to put the Phillies on the board. Oscar Gamble ripped a hot grounder past a diving Tommy Harper to drive in Allen, cutting the Cleveland advantage to 3-2. Darold Knowles replaced Wise to start the sixth inning. He kept the Tribe in check for two frames before yielding to Dyar Miller in the eighth. Miller and southpaw Grant Jackson worked in and out of trouble in the eighth. Cleveland’s manager summoned Jim Kern from the bullpen to pitch the ninth. Gamble led off with a line-drive single to center. Don Money ripped a tailor-made double play grounder to shortstop but Tommy Harper failed to handle the throw from Alfredo Griffin and the ball sailed into right field for a two-base error. The unexpected gift gave the Phillies new life, placing runners on second and third with nobody out. Johnny Callison’s next swing silenced the hometown faithful as he connected on an opposite-field, three-run round-tripper over the left field wall. The FIghtin’ Phils loaded the bases on one-out singles by Dave Cash and Harrah, followed by a base on balls to Stearns. Kern struck out Allen but Willie Montanez laced his fourth base knock of the day to extend the Phillies’ lead to 6-3. Kern was mercifully removed in favor of portsider Brent Strom. Pinch-hitter Bill Robinson greeted him with a single to center, tallying another run for the visitors. Money grounded out to Griffin to conclude the inning with the Indians trailing 7-3. Bill Champion took the mound for the Phillies and promptly served up an opposite-field long ball to Rudi. Consecutive two-base hits by Chris Chambliss and Duke Sims brought the fans to their feet and sent Champion to the showers. Veteran left-hander Woodie Fryman entered the fray with Sims on second base and the tying run at the plate with nobody out. Harrah made a diving stop on a hot grounder up the middle and fired to first base in time to retire Griffin. Harper went down swinging and Rusty Torres flew out to center for the final out as Philadelphia claimed a 7-5 victory to force a seventh game.

A couple of southpaws, Ken Brett for the Phillies and Tommy John for the Indians, received the starting assignment in Game 7. Both lineups were stacked with right-handed batsmen save for Graig Nettles. The visitors loaded the bases on consecutive singles by Bill Robinson and Jerry Martin, followed by a walk to Don Money. John whiffed Cesar Tovar but Barry Foote crushed an 0-1 curveball deep over the fence in center field for a grand slam! In the fourth, John Stearns ripped a two-run single to left which knocked John out of the contest. Brent Strom came on in relief as Cleveland trailed 6-0. Money deposited a long ball in the right-center field bleachers for a solo shot off Strom in the seventh. Brett yielded his first tally in the home seventh when Ted Ford drilled a two-bagger off the center field wall to plate Rico Carty. Jackie Brown entered the game in the eighth with a 7-1 lead. He skated through his first frame without issue but ran into trouble in the ninth as Duke Sims and Alfredo Griffin produced successive RBI singles. The Phillies’ skipper called upon the closer, Darold Knowles, to extinguish the fire. He got Tommy Harper to ground into a fielder’s choice and Jose Cardenal on a two-hopper to second-sacker Dave Cash for the final out. The Fightin’ Phils gathered near the mound to revel in the victory. Fergie Jenkins earned MVP honors with 15 1/3 innings pitched, 11 strikeouts and 3 runs allowed.

Tony La Russa Baseball 3

Tony La Russa Baseball 3 introduces the GM Challenge, a “career mode” option in which the user assumes the role of the General Manager. You begin in the currently selected universe’s year. I imported the 1961 Season from Old Time Baseball so I could oversee the roster construction for the expansion Angels’ ball club. So you have the players from 1961 on their actual teams to start the GM Challenge. You adjust the levers on the Scouting Emphasis screen to determine an order of preference with regards to available amateur talent in the upcoming draft. The drafting is performed behind-the-scenes and consists of fictional players. This is where my interest in this mode drifted… I am just unable to find any enjoyment managing fictional players when it comes to baseball simulations. I put the game through its paces for several seasons using the GM Challenge but it failed to capture my attention. One interesting note that I came across during my research – if you play into the 2040 season or thereabouts, female ballplayers will begin to appear on your rosters.

All three games include the Fantasy Draft. This allows you to create a brand new baseball universe using a variety of standard fantasy or Rotisserie baseball options. You can choose the draft order (cycle, snake or random) and whether to utilize “Rotisserie Points” or conduct an Auction Style draft, where owners can bid on each player. You can assign human or computer general managers to each team prior to the draft and the user is able to modify the General Manager Profile for each individual GM with custom or preset biases: Tony La Russa (balanced pitching, hitting, defense), Power Hungry (emphasis on homers), Steal Bases/Steal Hits (emphasis on speed and generating one run at a time), Pitching-Pitching-Pitching, and Tough in the Field (defense and pitching). Each draft can last for up to 40 rounds, provided there are enough players in the free agent pool.

I elected to simulate the 1995 season with the hopes that my favorite team, the Angels, would somehow avoid their September collapse and reach the playoffs. The Halos achieved this goal with 95 victories in the regular season. California triumphed over Baltimore in the first round, 3 games to 1. Chuck Finley went the distance in Game 1, yielding only two hits while striking out seven O’s. Mark Langston out-dueled Scott Erickson as the Halos took Game 2 by a score of 5-2. The Orioles prevailed in an extra-inning slugfest in Game 3, 9-8, in a contest featuring 8 circuit clouts. Mark Dalesandro, Tony Phillips and J.T. Snow cleared the fences at Camden Yards as the Angels advanced to the next round with a decisive 6-1 victory in Game 4.

Cleveland and Boston squared off in the other American League Division Series. Dennis Martinez blanked the BoSox on three hits in Game 1. Carlos Baerga rapped four base knocks as Cleveland prevailed 7-5 in Game 2. Albert Belle swatted a pair of big flies and drove in five runs to propel the Indians into the next round with a convincing 9-0 rout of Tim Wakefield and the Sox in the third contest.

The National League Division Series featured Cincinnati’s sweep of San Diego. The Redlegs’ Jerome Walton provided the margin of victory with a two-run jack in the top of the ninth off Scott Sanders. Eddie Taubensee clubbed a couple of long balls and knocked in four runs as Cincinnati rolled to a 9-1 triumph in the second game. Back on their home turf in Game 3, the Cincinnati lumber crew belted 4 round-trippers and David Wells twirled a 3-hit shutout to close out the sweep of the Friars.

Los Angeles won a hard-fought series over Florida in 5 games. The Dodgers outlasted the Marlins, 6-5 in Game 1 as Jose Offerman recorded 3 hits and Bill Ashley mashed a two-run tater. Bobby Witt whiffed 10 in 6 2/3 innings as Florida evened the series at one game apiece. The Marlins nearly wasted a brilliant effort by Chris Hammond in Game 3 (8 IP, 5 H, 0 R) when the Dodgers rallied for a pair of runs in the top of the ninth to tie the score, but the LA bullpen imploded in the bottom of the inning. Antonio Osuna walked Gary Sheffield, then Todd Worrell issued free passes to Charles Johnson and Jesus Tavarez before pinch-hitter Jerry Browne slapped a game-winning single! Hideo Nomo flummoxed the Fish in Game 4, striking out ten and allowing only three hits in an 8-0 rout as Offerman homered and knocked in 4 runs. Dave Hansen plated 3 baserunners and Tom Candiotti’s flutterball finished off Florida with a convincing 8-2 triumph in Miami.

The Angels took the Indians to six games in the American League Championship Series but California’s pitching staff took a collecting beating from the Tribe offense. Orel Hershiser struck out 13 Halos in Game 1 while Kenny Lofton and Paul Sorrento knocked in three runs apiece as the Tribe notched a 9-1 victory. Angels’ hurlers served up seven gopher balls in Game 2 including 4 jacks by Paul Sorrento! Shawn Boskie allowed 11 earned runs and Brian J. Anderson coughed up 5 of the round-trippers as Cleveland trounced California, 19-8. The Angels’ offense came to life in Game 3 as the club registered 19 base hits, but the Indians countered with 15 of their own in a 13-8 decision that put the Tribe in position to sweep the series. Tim Salmon produced 3 hits, a home run, 3 RBI and stole a base as California finally recorded a win, 6-5 in 10 innings. J.T. Snow, Rex Hudler and Spike Owen cranked circuit clouts and southpaw Mark Langston held Cleveland in check over 8 1/3 innings as the Halos claimed Game 5 by a score of 5-3. Alas, the Indians returned home for Game 6 and got their mojo back as Hershiser spun a five-hitter and blanked the Angels, 8-0. The “Bulldog” was mobbed by his teammates at the mound and Cleveland was headed to the World Series.

The Dodgers coasted to victory in the National League Championship Series in six games. Raul Mondesi launched two long balls and drove in four runs as the Dodgers defeated the Reds in Game 1. Cincinnati only registered three base knocks in Game 2 but they somehow managed seven tallies against one for Los Angeles while Pete Schourek scattered 9 hits over 8 innings. Todd Hollandsworth swatted a big-fly and knocked in 3 runs for LA to secure a 5-3 victory in Game 3. The Dodgers belted three solo shots but fell to the Reds, 4-3 in Game 4. With the series knotted at two games apiece, Los Angeles seized the upper hand when Raul Mondesi walloped a majestic three-run blast and his teammates scratched out a couple of late-inning tallies in a 5-4 triumph. Jose Offerman and Roberto Kelly delivered 3 hits each and the Dodgers prevailed in Game 6, 5-4 in 10 innings to claim the National League pennant!

The World Series commenced at Dodger Stadium and I elected to manage Los Angeles. Carlos Baerga delivered a solo blast off Ismael Valdes in the top of the first. Mike Piazza countered with a line drive that cleared the fence in left-center off Mark Clark to tie the score at 1-1 in the bottom of the second. Paul Sorrento slapped a bases-loaded single just beyond the reach of shortstop Jose Offerman to briefly give the visitors a 2-1 lead in the sixth but Eric Karros led off the home half of the frame with a towering four-bagger into the center field bleachers to knot the game at 2-2. Valdes supplied seven strong innings of 5-hit ball but the manager summoned Antonio Osuna from the bullpen to start the eighth. Osuna immediately allowed a double up the gap in right-center to Kenny Lofton and later issued a pair of walks. John Cummings extinguished the blaze when he fanned Sorrento for the third out. LA loaded the bases against Clark on successive singles by Piazza and Karros followed by an intentional pass to third baseman Dave Hansen later in the frame. Pinch-hitter Henry Rodriguez popped up to Jim Thome in foul territory to quell the threat. Light-hitting backstop Tony Pena greeted the Dodgers’ closer Todd Worrell with a deep fly that landed in the left field seats. The hushed crowd stared in disbelief as Worrell grabbed the rosin bag and tossed it behind the mound in anger as Pena trotted around the bases. He retired the next three hitters in order. I noticed a potential glitch in TLRB3 at this point. Jose Mesa was announced as the new pitcher, followed by a notification that Julian Tavarez and Paul Assenmacher were warming up in the bullpen. Immediately thereafter, the game advised that Tavarez was now pitching. To confirm that I wasn’t imagining this, I checked the box score and confirmed that indeed Mesa was listed for the Indians and removed without pitching to a batter. Perhaps he was injured on his journey from the bullpen to the mound, or hurt himself throwing warm-up tosses? Chad Fonville reached on a single and advanced to third when Offerman’s grounder snuck through the hole vacated by Omar Vizquel when the shortstop went to cover second on the hit-and-run play. Raul Mondesi stepped up to the plate with runners on the corners and nobody out. Tavarez whiffed Mondesi and Piazza hit a slow roller towards Vizquel who wheeled and fired to Baerga for the second out. However, Piazza just beat the relay to first and Fonville easily crossed home plate with the tying run! Vizquel settled under Karros’ pop-fly to shallow left and the game drifted into extra innings. Baerga belted a two-base knock into the left field corner to start the visitors’ tenth and the Dodgers elected to issue an intentional pass to Albert Belle. Willie Banks replaced Worrell on the bump and peered in to Piazza for the signs as Manny Ramirez took a couple of practice swings. Ramirez grounded into a fielder’s choice, erasing Belle from the base paths. One man out and runners at the corners for Thome, who delivered a liner between first and second for a run-scoring single as Baerga trotted home with the go-ahead run. Mondesi gunned down Belle at third base as Thome snuck into second. Sorrento drew a base on balls, so I summoned Pedro Astacio from the bullpen. Pena ripped a sharp single to left and Roberto Kelly came up firing. Inexplicably, Offerman cut off the throw and fired to first base which allowed Thome to reach home plate uncontested! Vizquel lined out to Fonville to end the inning but the Tribe now held a 5-3 advantage. Tavarez remained on the bump to begin the frame. Roberto Kelly scorched a hot grounder down the third base line. Thome gloved it, fired across the diamond and almost nailed Kelly but the ball ticked off Sorrento’s mitt and landed near the tarp. Pena backed up the play so Kelly did not attempt to advance. Jim Poole answered the call to the ‘pen. Hansen rapped a base hit to right sending Kelly scampering over to third. Brett Butler popped up to the catcher behind the plate. Billy Ashley, batting for Astacio, coaxed a base on balls to load ‘em up. Fonville lofted a fly ball to medium center, just deep enough to score Kelly. Offerman skied a pop-up behind the dish and Pena settled under it for the last out to secure a 5-4 triumph for the Indians.

Game 2 was slated to be the “Battle of the Martinez’s” as Ramon J. of the Dodgers prepared to square off against Dennis of the Indians. Sandy Alomar Jr. put the Indians on the board with a solo blast in the top of the second. Later in the frame, Dennis Martinez clubbed a two-run dinger off his counterpart to give the Tribe an early 3-0 advantage. Carlos Baerga belted a long ball leading off the third, which sent Ramon J. Martinez to the showers in favor of Pedro Astacio. Albert Belle walloped a tape-measure job deep into the left field bleachers. Manny Ramirez laced a double into the gap in left-center followed by a Jim Thome single. After Paul Sorrento popped up to third, Alomar slapped a base hit to right field to plate Ramirez. Omar Vizquel drilled a two-run triple to left-center, knocking in a pair of runs. When the dust finally settled, Willie Banks was on the bump for LA and the Tribe had a comfortable 8-0 lead!  Undaunted by the deluge of runs tallied by their opponents, the Dodgers mounted a comeback against “El Presidente” in the home half of the third. Jose Offerman and Raul Mondesi hammered back-to-back doubles with two outs to put LA on the board. Mike Piazza drew a base on balls and Eric Karros smacked a three-run bomb into the right-center field bleachers to cut the Indians’ lead to 8-4! Offerman injured himself on a defensive play in the fourth, so Chad Fonville moved from second to short and the Dodgers substituted Garey Ingram at second base. Los Angeles scratched out a run in the bottom of the sixth. With a pair of runners aboard, Fonville delivered a sacrifice bunt and pinch-hitter Todd Hollandsworth grounded out to short for an RBI fielder’s choice. John Cummings and Antonio Osuna held the Indians in check. Roberto Kelly led off the eighth with a base knock. Dave Hansen executed a perfect hit-and-run play as he slapped a slow roller through the hole vacated by Vizquel. Fonville’s two-hopper between short and third was fielded cleanly by the Tribe shortstop, who gunned the ball to second for a fielder’s choice. Dennis Martinez remained on the mound as the Dodgers sent pinch-hitter Henry Rodriguez to the plate with runners on the corners and only one away. Baerga snared Rodriguez’s liner for the second out and Brett Butler grounded out to short to retire the side. Todd Worrell served up a two-run blast to Sorrento in the ninth to extend the Indians’ lead. Martinez finished off the Dodgers to preserve the 10-5 victory and send the Indians home with a 2-0 advantage in the Series.

The festivities commenced in “The Forest City” with Charles Nagy on the hill for the hometown team. Japanese rookie sensation Hideo Nomo got the nod for the visitors with the added pressure of his squad’s 0-2 deficit entering the contest. Eddie Murray batted cleanup for Cleveland, making his first appearance as the designated hitter was implemented only in the American League ballpark per the rulebook. Nomo suffered control problems throughout the early innings, issuing 5 free passes through the third inning. He wiggled out of a bases-loaded jam when Manny Ramirez took a mighty cut and came up empty in the home half of the third. Kenny Lofton launched a moon-shot into the right-field seats to give the Tribe a 2-0 lead in the fifth. Nagy and Nomo racked up the strikeouts as both clubs flailed wildly at their offerings. Nomo yielded to Antonio Osuna to start the eighth frame after his pitch count climbed to 129 with his 10 strikeouts offset by 7 bases on balls but only 3 hits allowed. Nagy was absolutely dominant, completing a 12 strikeout, 2-hit shutout by fielding a comebacker off the bat of Eric Karros and flipping to Paul Sorrento to ice the game. The Indians shook hands at the center of the diamond and looked ahead to tomorrow’s match, confident that they would sweep the Dodgers and secure the trophy.

Veteran right-handers Orel Hershiser and Tom Candiotti took the mound for their respective ball clubs in Game 4. Paul Sorrento crushed a knuckleball deep into the right-center field bleachers to notch the first tally of the contest in the third inning. Later in the frame, Kenny Lofton drew a walk and scored on Carlos Baerga’s big fly. The Tribe led 3-0 and they had Candiotti on the ropes. Albert Belle struck out to end the threat but Pedro Astacio entered the game in the bottom of the fourth. Brett Butler led off the top of the sixth with a two-bagger off the center field wall. “Bulldog” escaped the jam with a soft fly out to right, a strikeout of Raul Mondesi, a free pass to Mike Piazza and a lineout to first by Eric Karros. Cleveland threatened to extend their lead in the seventh, loading the bases on a pair of singles by Manny Ramirez and Jim Thome, along with an intentional walk to pinch-hitter Herb Perry. Mark Guthrie departed in favor of Antonio Osuna, who was called upon to face Sandy Alomar Jr. with the infield in and nobody out. Alomar delivered a sacrifice fly to center, easily plating Ramirez for the 4-0 lead. Thome wisely tagged up and reached third on the play. Omar Vizquel slapped a hard grounder to third which was fielded cleanly by Dave Hansen, who fired home in plenty of time for Piazza to apply the tag on Thome for the second out. Lofton flew out deep to center but the Dodgers’ hopes of extending their season were rapidly fading. Butler ripped a long single towards right-center to start the eighth. Hershiser induced Chad Fonville to hit a comebacker and he nailed Butler at second base, but Fonville beat the relay to first. Perry took the wind out of LA’s sails when he snared a liner off the bat of Mondesi and instinctively tagged Fonville for an unassisted double play! Hershiser retired Piazza on a one-hopper to Vizquel and appeared to be in complete command as he attempted to shut out the Dodgers and finish the series sweep. Eric Karros lined a double up the gap in left-center and he advanced to third on Roberto Kelly’s ground out to Baerga. Henry Rodriguez coaxed a base on balls and Hansen subsequently singled to left to drive in Karros with LA’s first run of the contest. Billy Ashley, batting for Garey Ingram, swung through a full-count off-speed delivery. Hershiser was mobbed by his teammates in the middle of the diamond and there was pandemonium at Jacobs Field as the Indians prevailed 4-1!  Cleveland thoroughly outplayed their opponents in all facets of the game, breezing through October with an 11-2 record in the playoffs to secure the World Series trophy.

Tony La Russa Baseball 4

Tony La Russa Baseball 4 comes with the 1996 Season and the 1997 Opening Day rosters. TLRB4 includes a Remote Game option (which I never tested) that permits a connection to another TLRB4 user via modem, serial or local area network (LAN). The ballpark resolution is enhanced from the prior iterations but the gameplay, announcers, and menu options will otherwise be familiar to individuals who played any of the first 3 editions in the series or Old Time Baseball. Additional bells and whistles in TLRB4 consist of League News, Trade Offers and Free Agents. League News will provide up-to-date information for your replay league such as injuries, recently released and traded players. Trade Offers indicates which players might be available in a deal with another ball club. Free Agents displays a sortable list of the players currently not under contract by any of the teams in your league.

I replayed the ’96 campaign and stopped the action at mid-season to manage the American League squad in the All-Star matchup. Both lineups were stacked and the Senior Circuit elected to send Al Leiter (11-8, 2.22) to the hill while I handed the ball to Pat Hentgen (6-7, 3.71). Both hurlers extracted themselves from jams in the first inning. The Senior Circuit loaded the bases with three walks in the third but Hentgen whiffed Gary Sheffield and Todd Hundley to keep the contest scoreless. Ivan Rodriguez plated Alex Rodriguez to draw first blood for the A.L. squad in the fourth. The pitcher was due up next so I pulled a double-switch with Hentgen, sending Cal Ripken up to bat. The “Iron Man” whiffed on a 3-2 pitch but I kept him in the game at third base, replacing Dean Palmer as Roger Clemens trotted in from the bullpen. Sheffield tied the score at 1-1 with a run-scoring single to left off the “Rocket Man” in the fifth frame. Alex Fernandez entered the ballgame for the AL in the sixth inning. “Rip” laced a one-out single off Leiter in the seventh and Roberto Alomar followed with a base hit. Chuck Knoblauch replaced Ripken as a pinch-runner at second base as Frank E. Thomas strolled to the plate. The “Big Hurt” grounded into a 6-4-3 double play to end the threat. Fernandez put up a pair of goose eggs to preserve the tie game. Leading off the next inning, Juan “Igor” Gonzalez belted a solo shot over the fence in left-center to propel the Junior Circuit into the lead. The National Leaguers failed to tally a run against Troy Percival in the eighth, saving their heroics for the following frame when pinch-hitter Ellis Burks launched a game-tying circuit clout into the center-field bleachers off John Wetteland. Leiter reluctantly yielded to Rich Batchelor as the match entered extra innings. “A-Rod” delivered a base knock to start the eleventh and advanced to second on a slow roller to the pitcher. Batchelor issued a free pass to pinch-hitter Terry Steinbach. The N.L. skipper made the call to the bullpen and Mark Petkovsek took the mound. Ivan Rodriguez flew out to left for the second out. Knoblauch slashed a liner through the hole between shortstop and third but it was hit with such force that the third-base coach signaled for the lead runner to put on the brakes. Two outs, bases loaded for Jim Thome. The lefty slugger took a mighty cut but fanned on a 2-2 changeup. Jose Mesa jogged in from the pen, took his warmup tosses and picked up the rosin bag as Jeff Bagwell knocked the dirt from his cleats and settled into the batter’s box. “BagPipes” worked the count to 3-2 before drawing a base on balls. Barry Larkin barely got a piece of the ball, tapping a little dribbler in front of home plate. “Pudge” Rodriguez pounced out it and threw down to first to nail the speedy Larkin as Bagwell advanced to second. Steve Finley was walked intentionally to set up the double play and bring up the pitcher’s spot in the batting order. Andres Galarraga took a couple of practice swings in the on-deck circle, surveyed the defense and walked up to the plate. Galarraga swung at Mesa’s 3-0 delivery and hit a sky-high pop up towards third base. Thome camped under it as the umpire ruled “infield fly”. Eric Young struck out on a 1-2 changeup and the contest extended into the twelfth inning. Scott Sanders entered the game for the National Leaguers and set the opposition down in order. Heathcliff Slocumb retired the side in order in the bottom of the twelfth and escaped a jam in the thirteenth when he struck out Finley with two outs and the potential winning run on third. Mike Piazza rapped a pinch-hit single down the left field fence off Andy Pettitte in the bottom of the fourteenth. Eric Young popped up to third for the first out. Ken Caminiti hammered a fastball over Ken Griffey Jr.’s outstretched glove in center field for the game-winning double!

The Cleveland Indians topped the Junior Circuit with 102 triumphs and the Texas Rangers snatched the AL Wild Card spot while the New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners claimed the remaining division titles. The M’s rallied from a 0-2 deficit to defeat the Bronx Bombers with three consecutive wins at the Kingdome in the opening round of the playoffs. The Tribe swept the Rangers to advance to the next round. In an epic Championship Series, Seattle emerged victorious after a fierce seven-game bout with Cleveland.

The Atlanta Braves (96-66) recorded the highest victory total in the Senior Circuit. The San Diego Padres and the St. Louis Cardinals seized the other divisional crowns while the Montreal Expos outdistanced the Cincinnati Reds by a five-game margin to snag the NL Wild Card entry. The Braves trailed the Redbirds two games to one before rallying to take a pair of contests at home to prevail in the Divisional Series. The Friars obliterated the Expos in three games to move on to the Championship Series. Atlanta again found themselves behind the eight ball as San Diego nabbed a 2-1 lead in the NLCS before the Braves rebounded with three successive wins to secure a World Series berth.

A pair of portsiders prepared to square off in Game 1 of the 1996 World Series as Tom Glavine and Sterling Hitchcock warmed up in their respective bullpens. Atlanta quickly put a crooked number on the scoreboard in the bottom of the first. Hitchcock yielded a base hit to Mike Mordecai and issued successive walks to Chipper Jones and Fred McGriff. Ryan Klesko laced a long single that one-hopped the wall in right-center to drive home Mordecai and Jones. Side note: TLRB (all versions) seemed to suffer from an inordinate number of “long singles” – understanding that the occasional hard-hit ball in combination with a strong-armed outfielder will cause a slow-footed slugger to think twice about stretching a single into a double, the frequency of these outcomes seemed a bit off. I believe one or more patches attempted to resolve this issue, but thought I’d mention it here since it occurred in the fourth edition of the game. Back to the action.. Javy Lopez lofted a sacrifice fly to center field and McGriff cruised home with the third tally. Marquis Grissom sprinted into the gap in left-center and made a diving catch of a line drive off the bat of Jay Buhner for the first out in the fourth frame. Two batters later, “Hard-Hittin’” Mark Whiten belted a hanging curveball over the fence in left for a solo blast, cutting the Braves’ advantage to 3-1. Luis Sojo clubbed a long drive over Grissom’s head for a two-base knock leading off the fifth but Glavine retired the next three Mariners in succession. Glavine noticeably tired in the sixth when he allowed singles by Hitchcock, Edgar Martinez and Ken Griffey Jr. to load the bases with one out. As the Braves skipper in this series, I summoned Greg McMichael from the bullpen. Jay Buhner deposited a split-fingered fastball into the left field bleachers for a grand slam and the Atlanta crowd sat in utter disbelief as the M’s dugout erupted! Seattle suddenly had a 5-3 advantage. The Braves orchestrated a two-out rally in the bottom of the inning. Grissom reached via base on balls and Jermaine Dye delivered a pinch-hit single. Chipper Jones rapped a grounder back through the box that bounced into center field for a base hit, scoring Grissom and cutting the Mariners’ lead to 5-4. Seattle skipper Lou Piniella made the slow walk to the mound, retrieved the ball from Hitchcock and waited for Mike Jackson to jog in from the ‘pen. The “Crime Dog” stepped into the box and belted one high in the air towards the gap in right-center, but Buhner camped under it on the warning track and made the catch for the third out. Jackson got into trouble again in the seventh as Klesko ripped his third hit of the contest and Andruw Jones drew a free pass with one out. David Justice batted for light-hitting shortstop Rafael Belliard and promptly rapped into a 4-6-3 double play to extinguish the threat. The game doesn’t remind you that your pinch-hitting from the previous inning is now playing out of position, so you need to be cognizant of that scenario. I moved Chipper Jones over to shortstop and substituted Terry Pendleton for Justice. Mike Bielecki came into the ballgame in relief of McMichael and hurled a scoreless frame. Norm Charlton trotted in from the bullpen as the Mariners clung to a one-run lead in the bottom of the ninth. With the Braves’ bench nearly depleted, Luis Polonia grabbed a bat and strolled to the plate to pinch-hit for Bielecki. The fleet-footed outfielder came through with a line drive single over the second baseman’s outstretched glove. Grissom fouled out to third baseman Dave Hollins. Dwight Smith, pinch-hitting for defensive replacement Ed Giovanola, flew out to Griffey Jr. for out # 2. Chipper Jones kept the inning and Atlanta’s hopes alive when he coaxed a four-pitch walk. The stadium was rocking as McGriff dug in to face Charlton. He connected on a deep drive down the right field line.. would it stay fair? … yes!! McGriff’s mammoth blast measured 496 feet. His teammates mobbed him at home plate after he circled the bases to celebrate the walk-off, come-from-behind, 7-5 victory for the Braves!

Greg Maddux and Chris Bosio received the starting assignments in Game 2. The Braves threatened in the bottom of the third when Maddux and Marquis Grissom produced back-to-back singles and Bosio issued a four-pitch walk to Mike Mordecai. Bosio carved up the heart of the Atlanta lineup, sandwiching a pair of strikeouts to Chipper Jones and David Justice around a line out by Fred McGriff. The Bravos botched another bases-loaded opportunity in the fourth when Maddux popped up into a double play and Grissom whiffed. Seattle placed a couple of runners aboard and Bosio successfully sacrificed them over to second and third, but Joey Cora hit a harmless fly ball to right field for the last out of the visitor’s fifth as both hurlers continued to put goose eggs on the scoreboard. Chipper Jones hammered an off-speed offering from Bosio deep into the center field seats (475 feet) to put the Braves on top, 1-0. Jay Buhner drilled a two-base knock to place runners on second and third with one out in the sixth. Maddux got a reprieve when Mordecai ranged into short right-center to snare a pop fly off the bat of Paul Sorrento, then whirled and fired a strike to home plate to nail Ken Griffey Jr. Maddux departed after a loud single of the bat of Edgar Martinez with two outs in the eighth. Terrell Wade entered the contest and induced “Junior” to bounce back to the box. Salomon Torres kept the Braves at bay after relieving Bosio with two down in the fifth before he finally ran out of gas in the bottom of the eighth. Justice singled and Ryan Klesko doubled to begin the frame. After Javy Lopez whiffed, pinch-hitter Luis Polonia grounded into a fielder’s choice to plate Justice. Terry Pendleton, batting for Wade, delivered a worm-burner up the middle to score pinch-runner Andruw Jones to provide the Braves with a 3-0 cushion. Mark Wohlers took the mound in the top of the ninth. Buhner drew a base on balls and Sorrento singled to left field. Mark Whiten scorched a line drive to short which was snagged by defensive replacement Rafael Belliard. Buhner was caught in no-man’s land, too far off second base, and he was easily doubled off as Mordecai took the throw from Belliard. Luis Sojo lined out to short on a 3-0 heater from Wohlers to complete the shutout. The teams headed to the Pacific Northwest as the Braves held a commanding two games to none advantage.

Injuries to starting pitchers Randy Johnson and John Smoltz forced both managers to improvise. The M’s moved Bob Wolcott into the third slot of the rotation while the Braves countered with lefty Steve Avery. Alex Rodriguez returned to the Seattle lineup after missing the first two games in the series, as did Atlanta shortstop Jeff Blauser. After Joey Cora reached on an error to commence the bottom of the first, “A-Rod” ripped a double into the left field corner to put his squad ahead, 1-0. Avery battled control issues, loading the bases with only one out. Paul Sorrento drilled a double into the right-center field gap to plate two of his teammates. Dave Hollins contributed a sacrifice fly to put the M’s ahead by a score of 4-0. Edgar Martinez and Jay Buhner produced back-to-back RBI singles to extend Seattle’s advantage to 6-0 in the bottom of the second. Jermaine Dye led off the visitor’s third with a long ball deep into the left field seats. Avery was replaced on the mound after only two innings of work in favor of right-hander Jason Schmidt. Dave Hollins drew a base on balls and later scored when Fred McGriff muffed a pop-up near the first base cutout (the “Crime Dog” claimed that the ball disappeared against the backdrop of the Kingdome roof). The Braves threatened in the fifth but Marquis Grissom lined into a double play with runners on the corners. Seattle scratched a pair of runs across in the home half of the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Buhner and a sharp single off the bat of Sorrento. Atlanta unloaded their bench in the seventh inning, sending out five defensive replacements. Brad Clontz pitched two frames in relief of Schmidt, yielding an RBI single to Hollins in the eighth. “A-Rod” made a dazzling, diving stop of a hot grounder up the middle and then fired a strike to first to nab pinch-hitter Eddie Perez for the final out of the contest. Wolcott scattered eight hits for a complete game, 10-1 triumph.

The starters from Game 1 would greatly benefit from one more day of rest, so the bullpens would likely get a workout in the fourth match. Bob Wells of the Mariners and Mike Bielecki of the Braves received the unexpected honor of making a World Series start, but both right-handers were on a short leash. Darren Bragg blasted a three-run dinger off Bielecki with two outs in the bottom of the second to give Seattle a 3-0 lead. Bielecki got a quick hook from Atlanta’s skipper as southpaw Brad Woodall jogged in from the ‘pen. Meanwhile, Wells held the Braves hitless through four frames before David Justice grounded a clean single up the middle. Marquis Grissom connected on a 400-foot long ball over the fence in left-center field to put the Braves on the scoreboard in the top of the sixth inning. Later in the frame, Chipper Jones reached on an error by Sorrento. Fred McGriff laced a single to right to put runners on the corners and Ryan Klesko coaxed a walk to load the bases. Justice crushed an inside fastball from Wells into the right-center field bleachers for a grand slam and suddenly Atlanta went ahead, 5-3! Seattle stormed right back in the bottom of the sixth. Joe Borowski issued three bases on balls and he was rewarded with a quick trip to the showers. Bragg tied the contest at 5-5 with a base knock to shallow center and Dan A. Wilson slashed another single to plate the go-ahead run. Pedro F. Borbon recorded three outs and Greg McMichael struck out Jay Buhner to end the seventh. The Braves knotted the scoring at 6-6 when Chipper Jones led off the visitor’s eighth with a 385-foot drive to right-center that just cleared the wall. Mike Jackson relieved Wells with one out in the inning. Klesko earned another free pass but Jackson escaped without allowing any further damage. Seattle had McMichael on the ropes in the bottom of the eighth following back-to-back singles by Dave Hollins and Mark Whiten, but the Braves caught a break when Wilson whiffed and Hollins was inexplicably gunned down attempting to steal third base. Jermaine Dye greeted M’s reliever Norm Charlton with a big fly that landed in the left field seats to put the Braves back on top, 7-6! Mike Mordecai bounced back to the mound but Charlton fired the ball over defensive replacement Brian R. Hunter and down the right field line for a two-base error. Charlton regained his composure and retired the next three batsmen in order. Mark Wohlers was summoned from the Atlanta ‘pen to face the top of the Mariners’ lineup in the bottom of the ninth. Wohlers gave up three consecutive singles to Alex Rodriguez, Ken Griffey Jr. and Edgar Martinez to load the bases with one out in the frame. Buhner struck out after battling Wohlers to a full count. Atlanta’s manager made the unorthodox move of the game as he called upon the young left-hander, Terrell Wade to face the right-handed Hunter. The gamble paid off when the first-sacker grounded into a 6-4 force play and the Braves outlasted the Mariners, 7-6.

Game 5 offered a rematch of the opening contest as Tom Glavine and Atlanta geared up to clinch the Series while Sterling Hitchcock and his Seattle mates hoped to stave off elimination. It was quickly apparent that both hurlers were dealing. Glavine held the Mariners hitless into the sixth frame when Joey Cora and Alex Rodriguez delivered consecutive singles. Ken Griffey Jr. sent Marquis Grissom back to the warning track to retrieve a long fly ball to center, easily scoring Cora on a sacrifice fly to put the M’s on top. Edgar Martinez ripped a two-bagger up the gap in left-center to knock in “Junior” for a 2-0 lead. Glavine retired Jay Buhner on scorching hot grounder to Chipper Jones at third for the final out. Atlanta threatened in the top of the seventh as Jeff Blauser led off the inning with a single back through the box and Chipper Jones drew a base on balls. The Braves’ middle-of-the-order batsmen failed to come through in the clutch as Fred McGriff and Javy Lopez flew out and Jermaine Dye lined out to third base. “Hard Hittin’” Mark Whiten started the home seventh with a base hit and advanced to third on a double by Dave “Head” Hollins. Glavine issued an intentional pass to Brian R. Hunter to set up a force at any base. Brad Clontz was summoned to face John Marzano. The backup backstop belted a base hit to left, plating Whiten. Joey Cora hit into a fielder’s choice but another run scored. “A-Rod” ended Clontz’s night with a solid single to left as the M’s went ahead, 5-0. Terrell Wade entered the contest and induced Griffey Jr. to hit a short pop-fly to right. Martinez laced a line drive to left-center to knock in Cora, then Buhner struck out to mercifully close out the frame as the Mariners assumed a commanding 6-0 advantage. Joe Borowski took the mound in the bottom of the eighth. Whiten coaxed a walk and with one away, Hunter put the icing on the cake with a two-run blast into the center field seats. Atlanta went quietly in the ninth and Hitchcock’s teammates greeted him at the pitcher’s mound with high-fives and handshakes. The southpaw etched his name in the record books with a two-hit shutout that sent the Series back to Georgia.

John Smoltz was healthy enough to go in Game 6, so the Braves’ skipper elected to start him and give Greg Maddux an extra day of rest, lining him up for a potential Game 7 assignment if necessary. Seattle countered with Chris Bosio. David Justice connected on a 401-foot blast to right-center in the bottom of the second to put the hometown team on top, 1-0. Bosio issued three successive walks to open the sixth before inducing a 4-6-3 double play grounder by Justice. However, Jeff Blauser scored on the play, and the Mariners called upon Terry Mulholland to face the left-handed hitting Ryan Klesko with a runner on third and two away in the inning. The crafty portsider pulled the string on an inside breaking pitch and Klekso swung right through it for the final out. In the seventh with Atlanta clinging to a 2-0 advantage, Andruw Jones drew a base on balls as a pinch-hitter for Mike Mordecai. After striking out Smoltz, Mulholland promptly picked off Jones to keep the contest tight heading into the eighth but the M’s were running out of chances. Smoltz was in complete command but the Braves began warming up a pair of relievers, Pedro Borbon and Greg McMichael, just in case. “Smoltzie” culminated a 1-2-3 eighth with a punch-out of Alex Rodriguez. Atlanta went quietly in the bottom of the eighth, registering merely two safeties against Bosio and Mulholland. Smoltz was back on the hill for the ninth with Mark Wohlers getting ready down in the ‘pen. Facing the heart of the Seattle lineup, he got Ken Griffey Jr. on a pop fly to short right field that Fred McGriff snared for the first out. Edgar Martinez ripped a base hit to center field and that was it for Smoltz. Jay Buhner worked the count to 2-0 against Wohlers, then scorched a sizzling grounder to deep short. Jeff Blauser corralled it and fired to Rafael Belliard at second, who pivoted and fired a bullet to McGriff. The relay beat Buhner to the first base bag and the Braves’ bench and bullpen emptied as the Atlanta faithful erupted in cheers. The Mariners battled but came up short as the Braves took the Series in six games, with Smoltz and Wohlers combining for the 2-0 shutout.

Ratings

Note – ratings below for Old Time Baseball – deduct 1 point for Rosters in Tony La Russa Baseball 3 and 4

Graphics – [5] – All three games deliver the goods with stunning ballpark renderings that are highly detailed and based on blueprints from the modern (TLB3 & 4) and classic (OTB) stadiums. The player animations are on par with the competition from that timeframe. I encountered some stuttering with the animation at times but that might be specific to my emulator configuration, so I’m not deducting points for it. The Jumbotron display also lagged a bit for me; while amusing at first, I ended up disabling this option. The menus are well-designed and intuitive but TLB4’s scroll bars hinder navigation instead of helping. You can select a manager view (overhead) or close-up view for balls in play and there are four options when watching the batter/pitcher matchups: (camera behind the) batter or pitcher, or home team / visiting team view which alternates the camera angle depending on the team that is currently on the field. Instant replay is available for the previous play in all versions. However TLB4 adds the ability to change the camera angle between a preset view and free-floating, allows the user to zoom in/out, and load/save a highlight. TLB3 includes a “Making of Tony La Russa Baseball 3” video – you can view it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_d05f46_X8&t=2s

Sound – [4] – Ambient crowd noise is a welcome addition to the three games covered here. The audience will offer an occasional “boo” when the visiting team scores. The original music that is heard as you navigate the various menus is upbeat and memorable. The organist delivers a bubbly rendition of “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” during the seventh-inning stretch and blasted several different versions of “Charge!” when the home team attempted to rally from behind in the late innings.

Strategy – [4] –

The offensive and defensive strategy options remain consistent through the entire TLB series (including OTB). TLB3 & 4 incorporated “Tony’s Tips” videos highlighting La Russa’s insights and strategies for various pre-game and in-game situations. This link contains all of the Tony’s Tips in a single video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOqlgM6hLFo

Artificial Intelligence – [4] – Customized manager profiles enable the granular configuration of each team’s skipper with regard to lineup selection and game-level strategy. “Tony” effectively handles the in-game decisions with enhanced algorithms, giving the illusion that you’re facing a human opponent. TLRB3 introduced the “Argue with Umpire” option. You can give the ump an earful but don’t wait too long before walking away, or you might find yourself ejected from the contest! (You can go back into the Game Options and restore yourself as the manager.)

Box Score – [3] – When the ballgame ends, you are taken to the first of several screens to review the results from the contest. After perusing the line score, the user can navigate between expanded batting and pitching box scores for the visiting and home team. The pitching box also contains the location, time, attendance, runners left on base and double plays. There are no options to view a game summary (how they scored). You can save the box score to disk or print out a hard copy (the box score is automatically saved if you selected that option in the Season / Games of Note menu.

Rosters – [5] – You manage a 40-man roster with 25 active and 15 reserve players at any time (excluding exhibition games, where all of your players are available). The active roster is divided among 15 batters and 10 pitchers with reserve slots allotted for up to 9 additional batsmen and 6 hurlers. All 3 games come with the Fantasy Draft option. The Old Time Baseball CD allowed the user to import 110 seasons with more than 12,000 ballplayers!

Statistics – [5] – The number of categories for record-keeping increased from 19 batting, 22 pitching and 7 fielding in TLB2 to 33 batting and 35 pitching in TLB3 with a nod to Sabermetric formulas such as RC (Runs Created), RP (Runs Produced), ISO (Isolated Power) and OP (Opponents Production). The ability to sort the league leaderboards with a multitude of options persisted through the balance of the series. TLB4 offered a League News feature to provide the latest injury and other pertinent information.  

Usage/Injuries/Ejections – [4] – Just like your real-life counterparts, as the manager of your squad, you now have the ability to argue with the umpire. Spend too much time debating “The Boys in Blue” or say the magic words and you’ll get the heave-ho. Unlike real life, you are able to go into the Game Options screen and resume your managerial responsibilities if you wish, or you can allow the computer skipper to manager the remainder of the contest once you’ve been tossed. The injury and fatigue options from TLRB2 remain the same in TLRB3/4 and OTB. You can elect to use Injuries but a player’s stint on the sidelines is capped at 30 days. Pitcher usage must be monitored as they can become fatigued with regular or over-use (denoted by a “#R” in the Days Unavailable column on your roster).

Ballparks / Park Factors – [4] – TLRB3 and 4 deliver the 28 ballparks that were currently in use in the mid-1990’s. Old Time Baseball allows the user to select one of sixteen classic ballparks such as Crosley Field, Ebbets Field, Forbes Field, Griffith Stadium, L.A. Coliseum, and the Polo Grounds. Park effects – altitude, wind speed and direction, average humidity and temperature – add another level of realism. OTB also provides “Stadium Histories” with succinct, well-written outlines of each ballpark along with one or two postcard photographs depicting the exterior and interior.

Commentary – [3] – You get to choose among three broadcasters for the play-by-play in TLRB3 and 4: Yankees legend Mel Allen, Lon Simmons and Hank Greenwald. Old Time Baseball offers the voices of Allen and Curt Gowdy. The player’s names are spoken if they were among the words vocalized during the recording sessions with those announcers, otherwise the program will identify them by their position. In comparison to APBA Broadcast Blast, there does not appear to be nearly as much variety in the narration.

Scale:  Ratings from 1 (worst) to 5 (best)

Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – Total Score: 40 out of 50

Old Time Baseball – Total Score: 41 out of 50

Tony La Russa Baseball 4 – Total Score: 40 out of 50

Enhancements and Features

Observations

If you want to visualize how baseball was played at the turn of the (Twentieth) century with fully rendered ballparks restored to their original glory, look no further than Old Time Baseball. The organ music, stadium histories and Time Machine will stimulate your senses and whisk you back in time to the early days of the National Pastime. Tony La Russa Baseball 3 and 4 represented significant progress in the baseball simulation field. The ability to select among three announcers, the beautiful and highly detailed depictions of modern stadiums along with the GM Challenge helped to deliver the most complete product on the market in the mid-1990’s.

Please add a comment below if you spent a significant amount of time and/or have any recollections of Tony La Russa Baseball 3, Old Time Baseball and Tony La Russa Baseball 4.  

Screenshots

Old Time Baseball

Tony La Russa Baseball 3

Tony La Russa Baseball 4

Articles in the Series

	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – SSI Computer Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review –Computer Statis Pro Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Avalon Hill Pro Manager / Major League Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pure-Stat Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Monday Morning Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Radio Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Full Count Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball II – III – IV
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa’s Ultimate Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – APBA Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Front Page Sports Baseball ’94 – ’96 – ’98
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – ESPN Baseball Tonight
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Hardball 3-4-5-6
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pursue the Pennant – Diamond Mind Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pro League Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – 4 – Old Time Baseball

Additional Links

Playthroughs – Hardball Retro

Tony La Russa Baseball 3

Old Time Baseball

SABR Stay at Home – Don Daglow

Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – Gindin, Jim. “Baseball: Diamonds Are A Fan’s Best Friend”. Computer Gaming World. May 1995. p62. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_130.pdf

Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – Gindin, Jim. “Swinging For the Fences: Stormfront Studios Goes For the Long Ball With Tony La Russa 3”. Computer Gaming World. August 1995. p110-112. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_133.pdf

Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – Jones, George. “Holiday Top 100: Sports”. Computer Gaming World. December 1995. p110. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_137.pdf

Tony La Russa Baseball 3: 1996 Edition – McCauley, Dennis. “Atop the Mound: Baseball Slides Head-First Into Your PC”. Computer Gaming World. July 1996. p76. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_144.pdf

Tony La Russa Baseball 3: 1996 Edition – Green, Jeff. “Holiday Hot 100: Sports”. Computer Gaming World. December 1996. p180. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_149.pdf

Tony La Russa Baseball 4 – McCauley, Dennis. “Sim World Series: Winners and Losers in This Year’s Baseball Sim Contest”. Computer Gaming World. December 1997. p312.

http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_160.pdf

https://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/tony-la-russa-baseball-3

https://www.mobygames.com/game/windows/tony-la-russa-baseball-4

https://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/old-time-baseball

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0ckttRyjdU, Tony La Russa Baseball 3, video by John Fowler

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVF8xLHkh_A&t=63s, Tony LaRussa Baseball 1996 Edition, video by John Fowler

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YroFO5Dz2Ls, Tony La Russa Baseball 3: 1996 Edition (PC) – Gameplay, video by 30-30 Club – Baseball Video Game Encyclopedia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOqlgM6hLFo, All of Tony’s Tips from Tony La Russa Baseball 3: 1996 Edition (PC), video by 30-30 Club – Baseball Video Game Encyclopedia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_d05f46_X8&t=2s, The Making of Tony La Russa Baseball 3, video by Zeke Miller

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dNPQpMvDLc, Tony La Russa Baseball 3 | Sports Game Ballparks, video by Pichu London Sports and Stadiums

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wRGnIopRww, Tony La Russa Baseball 4 | Sports Game Ballparks, video by Pichu London Sports and Stadiums

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOgVEP_Lo18&list=PLc2AYL7_CrPGUavZpH4EDVDwY376047TU, Old Time Baseball Opening Sequence, video by Brad Kay

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nNSLV5DmYU, Old Time Baseball PC Game 1941 Redsox @ 1910 Philadelphia A’s, video by mrwrestlingII

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhlzNb8Vj7g, Old Time Baseball Full Game (’27 Yankees v. ’68 Cardinals), video by Enrico Dandolo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J95g0DJ3Ilc, Old Time Baseball | 1975 Reds and Red Sox, video by Beatles Eternally

About the Author

I am a New Jersey native with a passion for baseball, statistics, computers and video games who enjoys spending quality time with his family.

“Hardball Architects – Volume 1 (American League)“, published in July 2020 and
“Hardball Architects – Volume 2 (National League)”, published in April 2022, examines the trades, free agent acquisitions, draft picks and other transactions for the 30 Major League Baseball franchises, divided into a 2-volume set. Both books are available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. All key moves are scrutinized for every team and Sabermetric principles are applied to the roster construction throughout the lifetime of the organization to encapsulate the hits and misses by front office executives. Team performances are analyzed based on transaction type with graphs depicting the WAR (Wins Above Replacement) in every decade. Individual results for each player-transaction is charted over the duration of their stint with the franchise. Every team chapter includes All-Time Rosters and Single-Season Leaders based on transaction type. The Team Trade Record chronicles the WAR and WS (Win Shares) accumulated by players acquired in comparison to those traded to opposing teams. The opening chapter is devoted to the Evolution of the General Manager and incorporates a discussion with former Dodgers GM Fred Claire (along with former Angels and Red Sox GM Mike Port and current Reds GM Nick Krall in Volume 2) on a variety of front office topics.

“Hardball Retroactive”, published in June 2018, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com.  Hardball Retroactive is a modest collection of selected articles that I have written for Seamheads.com along with my Baseball Analytics blog since 2010. Exclusive content includes the chapter on “Minors vs. Majors” which assesses every franchise’s minor league successes and failures in relation to their major league operations.

“Hardball Retrospective” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. Supplemental Statistics, Charts and Graphs along with a discussion forum are offered at TuataraSoftware.com. In Hardball Retrospective, I placed every ballplayer in the modern era (from 1901-present) on their original teams. Using a variety of advanced statistics and methods, I generated revised standings for each season based entirely on the performance of each team’s “original” players. I discuss every team’s “original” players and seasons at length along with organizational performance with respect to the Amateur Draft (or First-Year Player Draft), amateur free agent signings and other methods of player acquisition. Season standings, WAR and Win Shares totals for the “original” teams are compared against the real-time or “actual” team results to assess each franchise’s scouting, development and general management skills.

Don Daglow (Intellivision World Series Major League Baseball, Earl Weaver Baseball, Tony LaRussa Baseball) contributed the foreword for Hardball Retrospective. The foreword and preview of my book are accessible here. 

“Hardball Retrospective – Addendum 2014 to 2016” supplements my research for Hardball Retrospective, providing retroactive standings based on Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and Win Shares (WS) for each “original” team over the past three seasons (2014-2016). Team totals from 2010 – 2013 are included for reference purposes. “Addendum” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. 

IBM PC version

Pro League Baseball

Publisher – Interplay

Developer – Micro Sports Inc.

Release Year – 1992

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Pro League Baseball (1994 Edition)

Publisher – Interplay

Developer – Micro Sports Inc.

Release Year – 1994

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Pro League Baseball ‘97

Publisher – General Admission Gold

Developer – Micro League Multimedia Inc.

Release Year – 1997

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Review

Prior to preparing for this review, three decades elapsed since the last time I played Pro League Baseball. I encountered some issues with lock-ups and crashes when I purchased the game back in 1992 but I don’t remember the specifics. Jim Gindin in the October 1994 issue of Computer Gaming World referenced a number of debilitating bugs in the code. However for the sake of completeness and my desire to evaluate it alongside contemporary games, I was determined to give Pro League Baseball a fresh look. Originally I planned to review the game after I completed my entry for Earl Weaver Baseball II as I’m attempting to work through the list in chronological order. I ran into some difficulty when I installed the software on my Windows XP computer (which has a 3.5” floppy drive so I can access my older disk media). So I skipped the game at that time and only recently discovered that I could download the media from archive.org. This set of files worked successfully so I am finally able to revisit this title.

Apparently several sequels were released. I located a Pro League Baseball game on eBay which contains updated graphics and appears to have been released in 1994. Three years later, the appropriately titled “Pro League Baseball ‘97” was published. I do not recall seeing either title on store shelves and I’m attempting to acquire pre-owned editions of both games through eBay or other auction sites. Fast forwarding to May 2023, I could only locate two articles and no videos for the ’97 edition during the process of researching this review. I will point you to Mr. Gindin’s article in the May 1997 issue of Computer Gaming World for a discussion on Pro League Baseball ’97.

The game included head-to-head play via modem. I believe Pro League Baseball is the first computer baseball simulation to incorporate this functionality. 

Pro League Baseball comes with the 1991 Season so I selected the default schedule, set the “pregame” options to League, Computer opponent, One Pitch Mode, and Computer selects lineups and starting pitchers. I also disabled animations and digitized images. I answered “Yes” when the game asked if I wanted to enter “Replay”. The game screen appears and after several moments, it began to swiftly play through the season. Each game took about two seconds to complete. The replay screen consists of the standings in the upper right corner, current game’s line score in the scoreboard at the top right, the current ballpark graphic in the right-center, play-by-play in the lower left, and the result of today’s games in the lower right. The game executes so quickly that the play-by-play is unreadable but it gives you a sense of how quickly each at-bat is resolved. The standings are updated in real-time.

The 1991 American League replay executed flawlessly and completed in less than one hour. Unfortunately the National League replay locked up about halfway through the season. I had to close the DosBox emulator and when I returned to Replay mode, the standings were reset to the beginning of the season. I suffered through two more lock-ups and restarts before the game grudgingly resolved to play through the entire NL campaign without crashing.

In the American League final regular season standings, the Red Sox outlasted the Brew Crew by a two-game margin in the East while the Royals edged the Twins by a mere victory in the West. Five teams in the A.L. West finished within three games of the division lead! Over in the National League, the Pirates sailed to victory with a comfortable 10-game lead ahead of the Redbirds. The Dodgers triumphed in the West as the Reds came up four games short. The user only has the option to view (on screen) or print the statistics and standings to a printer. There is no option to export the stats to a text file.

The Leaders menu is very well-organized and divided into 4 sections: batting, pitching, fielding and options. There are 19 statistical categories listed in the batting and pitching sub-menus and the fielding menu includes 6 positions (C, 1B, 2B, SS, 3B, OF) and 6 statistical categories. Options allow the user to focus the resulting lists by American (AL) or National (NL) leagues, standings and specific team. You can toggle between displaying results for all players (ALL) or only those who meet the minimum (MIN) requirements, and the PRINT option is found here as well.

Here are the batting and pitching leaders for the 1991 replay:

1991 American League – Batting

1991 American League – Pitching

1991 National League – Batting

1991 National League – Pitching

Several items of note – while reviewing the leaderboards, I noticed that several starting pitchers appeared in the top 10 for games pitched despite having 20+ starts. This indicates a lack of a fatigue factor for pitchers which would explain John Burkett’s rubber-armed effort during the ’91 replay as he made 34 starts and appeared in 34 additional contests out of the ‘pen! The save totals were a bit low for this era in baseball history but overall the statistical results were fairly competent.

ALCS – KCR vs BOS  

Kevin Appier and Roger Clemens got the starting nods at Fenway Park for their respective ball clubs in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series. Brian McRae led off with a walk against the “Rocket” and promptly stole second base. He notched the first tally when Danny Tartabull rattled a two-base hit off the Green Monster. The Royals held a 1-0 advantage heading to the bottom of the third. Luis Rivera commenced the frame with a line drive down into the right-field corner which Tartabull played into a triple. KC’s braintrust elected to bring the infield in with no outs. The gamble paid off as Wade Boggs grounded out to short and Rivera had to stay put. The following hitter, Jody Reed, lashed a clean single into right field which plated the tying run. Tartabull belted a heater from Clemens high and deep over the Monster for a solo shot as the Royals reclaimed the lead in the top of the fourth, 2 to 1. George Brett started the top of the sixth with a two-bagger into the right-field corner but the Red Sox ace set the next three batters down in order to keep his team within striking distance. Appier sliced through the heart of the Boston batting order in the home sixth. Kansas City tacked one a run in the seventh when Brett reached on a fielder’s choice and Tartabull followed with a two-out double to place runners on second and third with two away. Jim Eisenreich, batting for Todd Benzinger, ripped a line-drive single through the hole between first and second to send Brett home. Dennis Lamp relieved Clemens and pitched a scoreless ninth. Jeff Montgomery trotted in from the bullpen to face the middle of the order for Boston in the bottom of the ninth inning. Phil Plantier crushed a double down the right-field line. Brian McRae tweaked his hamstring backing up the play and had to leave the game, so Gary Thurman replaced him in center field. Montgomery settled in and retired Jack Clark on a pop-up and Mike Greenwell on a line-out to second. Ellis Burks, representing the potential tying run with two outs and Plantier on second base, struck out swinging as the Royals prevailed 3-1.

Gary Thurman found his name listed first on the lineup card prior to Game 2 as Brian McRae’s hamstring required one more day of rest. Mike Gardiner ventured out to take his warmup tosses while opposing starter Bret Saberhagen chatted with his pitching coach in the visitor’s dugout. Gardiner set down the Royals in order but “Sabes” yielded four consecutive two-out hits. Mike Greenwell pulled the ball just fair down the right-field line to drive in Phil Plantier as the Sox assumed the 1-0 lead. Ellis Burks followed with a solid single to left, plating Jack Clark with Boston’s second tally. Kansas City knotted the scoring at 2-2 in the second.  Danny Tartabull coaxed a base on balls and Mike Macfarlane singled. Back-to-back fielder’s choice grounders pushed the first run across. Bill Pecota walked to load the bases with two outs and Dave Howard came through with a sharp single to center to score Macfarlane. Jody Reed drew a walk to begin the home half of the third. One out later, Jack Clark absolutely crushed an inside fastball from Saberhagen that easily cleared the Green Monster. The Boston faithful erupted as Clark jogged around the bases and high-fived Reed and his fellow teammates at home plate. Saberhagen kicked the dirt behind the mound and fired the rosin bag into the turf as the manual scoreboard was updated to display the 4-2 score for the BoSox. The crowd rose in unison as Greenwell’s deep fly ball was flagged down by Jim Eisenreich about a foot shy of the left-center field wall. The fans lost some of their fervor when Kevin Seitzer drilled a Gardiner offering to the opposite field and into the visitor’s bullpen, cutting the lead to 4-3 just as the fourth inning got underway. In the top of the fifth, Eisenreich sliced a two-bagger down the line and into the left-field corner. He moved to third on a ringing single to right by Macfarlane and raced home with the tying run on a base hit by Todd Benzinger which Plantier had to corral on one hop. The Sox’ skipper paid a visit to the mound and signaled for Jeff Gray to enter the contest, replacing Gardiner on the bump. Seitzer greeted the right-hander with a heat-seeking missile towards deep center. Burks raced back but he had no chance to catch up with this one. The ball slammed off the wall and bounced directly to Burks, who wheeled and fired to second base. When the dust cleared, Seitzer was safe at second and Benzinger stood on third as Macfarlane strolled home with the go-ahead tally.  Pecota delivered a base hit back through the box to drive in Benzinger. The inning finally ended on a foul pop fly off the bat of Howard but KC now held the 6-4 advantage. Dan Petry twirled several scoreless innings in relief of Gray. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Saberhagen yielded a single to Plantier and then struck out Clark. Mike Magnante relieved “Sabes” but the portsider had trouble find the plate and issued a free pass to Greenwell, placing the potential tying run on first with one out. Tom “Flash” Gordon was summoned from the ‘pen to face Burks, who lofted a harmless fly ball to left for the second out. Mo Vaughn coaxed a base on balls to load ‘em up for the backup backstop, John Marzano. The Sox catcher took a couple of practice swings, dug in and waited on Gordon’s delivery. “Flash” hung a breaking ball up in the zone and Marzano connected, sending the ball high and deep. Thurman turned and watched the orb sail into the center field seats for a grand slam! Luis Rivera grounded out and Boston entered the ninth with an 8-6 lead. For reasons only known to the Red Sox manager, Petry returned to the mound to start the frame instead of relief ace Jeff Reardon. George Brett ripped a one-out single and Tartabull hit into a force play. Macfarlane drilled a two-base hit off the center field wall to keep KC’s hopes alive. Finally, the Red Sox skipper made the slow walk from the dugout and raised his right hand to signal for Reardon. Former Sox farmhand Benzinger slapped a single to left, bringing the Royals within one run as Tartabull dashed home. Runners on first and third, two outs and Seitzer at the plate with Reardon and the Sox clinging to an 8-7 lead. Seitzer fouled off an inside pitch but found himself behind in the count, 1 ball and 2 strikes. Reardon rocked and fired… strike three! Boston tied the series at one game apiece and both clubs headed to Kansas City to resume the series following the scheduled off-day.

Veteran right-hander Mike Boddicker received the starting assignment for the Royals in the third game while southpaw Joe Hesketh got the ball for the visiting BoSox. Wade Boggs and Jody Reed pounded back-to-back doubles down the right field line in the top of third to stake the Sox to a 2-0 lead. One inning later, Luis Rivera ripped a single up the middle to load the bases with two away but Boddicker induced Boggs to fly out to center. The home team finally broke through in the bottom of the fifth. Hesketh issued successive walks to Todd Benzinger and Bill Pecota. He got Kevin Seitzer to ground into a 6-4-3 double play, with Benzinger advancing to third. Kurt Stillwell blooped a base hit into shallow center to drive in “Mercedes” Benzinger. Brian McRae drew a base on balls and Gary Thurman followed with a sinking liner to center that dropped in front of Ellis Burks for a clean single. Stillwell survived a close call at the plate and the game was tied at 2-2. Hesketh was laboring on the mound but he managed to escape the inning without further damage when George Brett hit a two-hopper to third for the last out. Tom Brunansky smacked a two-base hit off the right field wall with one down in the top of the sixth. Boddicker struck out Tony Pena for the second out and then he got the hook in favor of fellow right-hander and former Orioles teammate Storm Davis. Luis Rivera whiffed to end the threat and the contest remained knotted at two-all. Danny Tartabull’s long fly to center nearly cleared the fence but he had to settle for a long double leading off the home sixth. Dennis Lamp emerged from the Sox bullpen to relieve an exhausted Hesketh. After Mike Macfarlane flew out to the warning track in left, Benzinger laced a single to move Tartabull to third. Pecota punched a two-bagger towards the left-field corner, plating Tartabull with the go-ahead run. Burks and Brunansky singled with two outs in the visitor’s eighth. KC’s skipper summoned Luis Aquino and the Royals escaped the inning with the 3-2 lead intact when Tony Pena grounded out to short. Rivera flared a single into the right-center field gap to start the ninth. Jeff Montgomery induced a force play groundout off the bat of Boggs, but Reed stroked a base hit up the middle and Carlos Quintana ripped a line drive that one-hopped the left field fence. Boggs came around to score and Quintana scampered to second with a stand-up double. Jack Clark fanned on a 3-2 pitch but Montgomery still had to face Mike Greenwell with the potential go-ahead runners on second and third with two away. “Gator” triumphed in this encounter, sending the ball screaming down the first-base line for a two-run triple. The Boston dugout erupted while the rest of the stadium went silent as the visiting Sox tallied three in the ninth against the Royals’ stopper to take a 5-3 lead. Jeff Reardon yielded a two-out single to Brian McRae and then struck out pinch-hitter Warren Cromartie to secure the victory as the Red Sox edged the Royals and went ahead two games to one in the ALCS.

The Kansas City crowd filled the stadium to capacity for Game 4 and the club pinned their hopes on Mark Gubicza. The Bostonians countered with crafty left-hander Tom Bolton. Phil Plantier lined a two-out single to right field for the first base knock of the contest but Gubicza blazed an inside fastball past Jack Clark to close out the top of the first. Bolton tied the Royals up in knots, fanning three successive batters in the bottom of the frame. Danny Tartabull and Mike Macfarlane smacked successive two-base hits to open the home half of the second to stake Kansas City to a 1-0 lead. Boston’s bats awakened in the third with a five-run outburst culminating in a grand slam into the right-center field bleachers off the bat of Mike Greenwell. Former Sox reliever Steve Crawford was tasked with damage control and he was able to staunch the bleeding with back-to-back strikeouts of Ellis Burks and Mo Vaughn. Crawford pitched into the fifth where he allowed back-to-back singles by Clark and Greenwell before KC’s skipper called on Luis Aquino. John Marzano rapped an RBI single to left and consecutive walks to Mike Brumley and Wade Boggs forced home another run. In the sixth, Kurt Stillwell drew a base on balls to lead off the inning but injured his hand diving back to first base on a pick-off attempt. David Howard entered the contest as a pinch-runner and promptly advanced to second on a fielder’s choice groundout by McRae. Bolton yielded a two-base knock to Gary Thurman which scored Howard with the Royals’ second run. George Brett struck out and then the Red Sox manager summoned Joe Hesketh in relief of Bolton. This one was a real head-scratcher, especially since the southpaw started Game 3 less than 24 hours prior. Nevertheless, Thurman was stranded at second base when Tartabull fanned. In the bottom of the sixth with two outs, Kansas City chipped away at the BoSox lead as David Howard slapped a clean single to center field subsequent to a base hit by Todd Benzinger and a two-bagger off the bat of Bill Pecota. Brett blasted an opposite-field solo shot off Hesketh with one away in the seventh to cut the Sox advantage to 7-4. Boston loaded the bases with two outs in the visitor’s eighth but Tom “Flash” Gordon whiffed Vaughn on a curve ball. Hesketh pulled a Houdini act in the bottom of the frame after the Royals placed ducks on the pond when he posted back-to-back strikeouts of McRae and Thurman. Jeff Reardon jogged in from the ‘pen as the Sox held a three-run advantage heading into the bottom of the ninth. Tartabull lined a one-out single to left and pinch-hitter Jim Eisenreich drilled a base hit to center with two away. Boston’s manager lifted their ace reliever Reardon in favor of Daryl Irvine, a right-hander who posted a 6.00 ERA in 9 regular-season appearances during the ’91 campaign. Kansas City countered with veteran outfielder Kirk Gibson to bat for Benzinger. “Gibby” took a mighty cut but the result was a two-hopper to Brumley for the final out of the contest. The Sox secured a 3-1 advantage and the Royals were looking at a must-win scenario in Game 5 against Roger Clemens in order to extend the series and return to Beantown.

George Brett got the hometown crowd fired up when he clubbed an opposite-field round-tripper over the fence in left-center field for a solo shot in the bottom of the first off the Red Sox ace, Roger Clemens. Ellis Burks responded with a three-run bomb to straightaway center in the visitor’s second after the Royals starter Kevin Appier yielded a walk to Jack Clark and a ringing single to right by Mike Greenwell. Phil Plantier swatted a two-run big fly to left-center, boosting the Sox advantage to 5-1 in the third. Appier survived until the Red Sox rallied again in the top of the fifth. Boston put ducks on the pond with one out on a Plantier single followed by consecutive bases on balls issued to Clark and Greenwell. Burks drilled a single to right field and everyone moved up 90 feet. KC’s skipper took a long, slow stroll to the mound, patted Appier on the back and called upon Luis Aquino. The right-hander perplexed first-sacker Carlos Quintana as he flailed helplessly at strike three and induced a foul fly off the bat of Tony Pena. Boston tacked on a pair of runs in the subsequent frame. Loading the bases against Aquino, Greenwell slashed a hard grounder that handcuffed shortstop David Howard for an E-6. Burks coaxed a walk which forced home another run. The score was 8-1 when Steve Crawford was summoned. The Royals’ faithful collectively observed the black clouds slowly moving in. Quintana drew a walk to increase the Sox lead to 9-1. A smattering of sarcastic applause echoed across the stadium when Pena swung futilely at a Crawford offering for the third out. Clemens gave up three hits in the sixth culminating with an RBI single by Kevin Seitzer. In the top of the seventh, Plantier pummeled an off-speed pitch from Mark Davis over Tartabull’s head. The ball caromed off the wall and rolled around the warning track as Jody Reed and Plantier rounded the bases. The dust settled as Plantier slid into third with a triple and Reed scored easily to register Boston’s tenth tally of the day. Seitzer clouted a long ball to center with two down in the eighth, ending Clemens’ outing. Jeff Gray retired the final four Royals in order to secure the victory for the Red Sox. The Bostonians celebrated near the pitcher’s mound after Reed snared Brian McRae’s line drive.

NLCS – LAD vs PIT

Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers Stadium was filled to capacity as the Bucs prepared to take on the Dodgers in a best-of-seven series to determine the 1991 National League champions. Doug Drabek warmed up under the watchful eye of his pitching coach while Ramon J. Martinez performed a similar ritual on the visitor’s bullpen mound. After the pre-game festivities concluded, Drabek took the mound and threw the customary eight tosses. The home plate umpire signaled “Play Ball!” and the game was underway. LA leadoff man Brett Butler grounded out to shortstop but Juan Samuel smacked a single and swiped second. Darryl Strawberry connected on a mammoth two-run homer to right-center and the Dodgers quickly assumed a 2-0 advantage. Andy Van Slyke responded with a laser shot over the center field fence with two down in the bottom of the first to notch the first tally of the day for the Buccos. Drabek plunked Lenny Harris to start the second inning and served up a gopher ball to Alfredo Griffin later in the frame. Pirates’ manager Jim Leyland bolted from the dugout and yanked Drabek from the contest in favor of right-handed reliever Roger Mason. “The Straw Man” launched a moon-shot deep into the second deck in right-center field to tack on another run in the top of the third. Bob Kipper got the nod from Leyland following a base on balls to Eddie Murray. The southpaw recorded two outs to escape the frame without any further damage. Bill Landrum became the fourth Pirates’ hurler when he trotted in from the bullpen with two outs and one runner aboard in the visitor’s fourth. He walked Butler and gave up a screaming single to left by Samuel before retiring Strawberry on a three-hopper to shortstop. The parade of Pirate pitchers persisted when Rosario Rodriguez replaced Landrum on the mound with one away in the fifth. Steve Buechele led off the home half of the fifth with a smash into the left-field corner but Kal Daniels cut him down at third base attempting to leg out a three-base hit. The Bucs’ bullpen buggy delivered Neal Heaton to the bump with two down in the sixth. Van Slyke hammered a two-base knock down the right-field line, scoring Orlando Merced and cutting the Los Angeles’ lead to 5-2. How deep is the Pittsburgh ‘pen? Vicente Palacios got the nod in the top of the eighth and he allowed three straight hits including a two-run triple by Mike Scioscia. Butler slapped an RBI single to increase LA’s advantage to 8-2 heading to the bottom of the eighth. Former Pirates’ ace John Candelaria took over for Martinez in the eighth and retired the side in order. Los Angeles put the icing on the cake with two more tallies in the ninth on a Lenny Harris sacrifice fly and a fielder’s choice by Jose Offerman. Tim Crews closed out the contest, allowing a harmless hit to Barry Bonds as the Dodgers cruised to a 10-2 victory.

Zane Smith toed the rubber for the Bucs in Game 2 while the Dodgers countered with veteran right-hander Mike Morgan. Andy Van Slyke got the scoring underway with a solo circuit clout in the home half of the first inning. Mike “Spanky” LaValliere lined an opposite-field shot over the fence in left-center to put the Pirates ahead 2-0 in the second. Los Angeles loaded the bases in the fourth on a Kal Daniels single, Juan Samuel double and a walk to Gary Carter. Mitch Webster batted for Alfredo Griffin but the ploy backfired when he slapped a hard grounder to second and Jose Lind fired home in time for the force play on Daniels. The wheels were turning and LA’s brain-trust sent Jeff Hamilton up to the dish, batting for the starting pitcher Morgan. The results were unfavorable as the young third baseman grounded out to shortstop to end the threat. Southpaw Bob Ojeda entered the contest while a dejected Morgan jawed at his manager but heading down to the clubhouse to cool down. Darryl Strawberry socked a majestic home run into the left-center field bleachers to cut Pittsburgh’s advantage in half with two outs in the fifth. Ojeda plunked Van Slyke with an errant breaking ball in the sixth and a two-bagger by Steve Buechele notched another run as the Pirates assumed a 3-1 lead. LaValliere lined a hard single to left, scoring Barry Bonds and signaling the end of Ojeda’s outing. Jose “Chico” Lind greeted reliever Kevin Gross with a sharp base hit that landed several feet in front of Daniels. Buechele jogged home and the Buccos were ahead 5-1. Gross struck out the next two batsmen but Smith was in command and the hometown fans cheered fervently. Roger Mason began warming up in the ‘pen and the Bucs’ skipper made his move after the “Straw Man” slapped a base hit between the hole at short and third with two away in the visitor’s seventh. The Pirates rallied when Jay Bell singled to center and snuck into second on a lackadaisical return throw by Butler. He tagged up and advanced to third on a deep fly to left off the bat of Van Slyke. Bobby Bonilla whiffed and Barry Bonds was intentionally walked in favor of a righty-righty matchup with Buechele, who promptly laced a base hit to right for an RBI. LaValliere went down on strikes but Pittsburgh was cruising towards a “W”, up by five runs entering the eighth frame. Mason twirled 1 1/3 scoreless frames and Stan Belinda entered in the top of the ninth with a 6-1 lead. The right-hander secured the final three outs and the teams traveled to the west coast with the series knotted at one game apiece.

Tim Belcher squared off against John Smiley in Game 3 at Dodger Stadium. Both pitchers held the opposition in check until Brett Butler led off the bottom of the third with a long liner that just evaded Andy Van Slyke’s leaping attempt at the right-center field fence for a solo big-fly. Darryl Strawberry lashed a double into the right-field corner and scored on a single by Juan Samuel. Gary Carter drove in Kal Daniels (who had reached on an error by shortstop Jay Bell) and Smiley got the quick hook from the Bucs’ skipper in favor of Bill Landrum. The right-hander prevented any further damage and the Dodgers were unable to extend their advantage. Randy Tomlin relieved Landrum to commence the bottom of the fifth inning. LA loaded the bases against the southpaw on a pair of singles sandwiched around a walk. Belcher was pitching a two-hit shutout at the time and the Dodgers elected to allow him to take his turn at-bat. The gamble paid off as Tomlin couldn’t find the plate and issued a base on balls, forcing in a run. John Candelaria entered the game with one out and two runners aboard in the eighth. Van Slyke ripped a line drive up the middle to plate the first run for the visitors but the “Candy Man” induced an infield fly from Bobby Bonilla and struck out Barry Bonds to end the inning. Jay Howell struck out two of the three batters he faced in the top of the ninth to notch the save as the Dodgers triumphed, 4-1.

Randy Tomlin was originally slated to start Game 4 for the Pirates, but he pitched four innings in relief of fellow left-hander John Smiley the previous night. Pittsburgh’s skipper turned to veteran Bob Walk in his stead while Los Angeles countered with the “Bulldog”, Orel Hershiser. Following a scoreless first frame on both sides, Barry Bonds led off the top of the second with a triple down the left-field line. Hershiser deftly worked around the next three batsmen and kept the Buccos off the board. Eddie Murray rocked a solo homer to center in the home half of the second to put Los Angeles ahead, 1-0. Andy Van Slyke laced a two-base knock leading off the fourth and he later scored on a deep fly to center by Steve Buechele to even up the scoring at 1-1. Bonds twisted his ankle while tracking a foul ball in the home half of the fourth and preliminary reports indicated that he would need to rest for three days. Gary Varsho grabbed his glove and reported to left field. Darryl Strawberry coaxed a base on balls and Murray delivered a double to right. Kal Daniels cracked a base hit between first and second, plating the “Straw Man” with the go-ahead run. Lenny Harris followed with an opposite-field two-bagger to send Murray home. Walk issued another base on balls with Mike Scioscia at the dish to load the bases. Los Angeles’ skipper sent Chris Gwynn to bat for Alfredo Griffin. Another free pass forced home Daniels and the Pirates made a call to the bullpen. Vicente Palacios relieved Walk and entered the fray with the sacks juiced and nobody out. Hershiser hit a one-hopper back to the mound and Palacios flipped the ball to Don Slaught to record the first out of the inning. With the infield in, Brett Butler slapped a hard grounder to second and “Chico” Lind fired home to nail the baserunner. Juan Samuel lofted an easy fly to center and Palacios’ teammates congratulated him in the dugout for containing the damage. The Dodgers weren’t finished, however. In the fifth, Strawberry singled and Murray walked. Daniels slashed a Palacios offering into the left field corner for a two-base hit as Strawberry crossed home plate with LA’s fifth tally. Scioscia ripped a RBI single to center but Palacios remained in the game and achieved consecutive outs to keep the game from becoming a blowout. Roger Mason answered the call to the bullpen in the bottom of the sixth and he retired the Dodgers in order. Hershiser yielded to veteran right-hander Jim Gott upon completing the seventh frame. Pittsburgh was unable to generate any offense in the final two frames as Los Angeles triumphed 6-1, pushing the Pirates to the brink of elimination.

Dodger Stadium was filled to capacity as the starters from Game 1 prepared for a rematch. Doug Drabek and Ramon J. Martinez engaged in classic pitcher’s duel with both starters holding the opposition at bay through five innings. Eddie Murray snapped the scoring drought with a solo blast into the right-field bleachers in the home half of the sixth. Drabek permitted five of the next seven Dodgers to reach base via singles including RBI knocks by Alfredo Griffin and Juan Samuel. Bob Patterson entered the contest and struck out Darryl Strawberry to end the inning with Los Angeles ahead 3-0. The base hit barrage continued in the seventh as LA strung together three consecutive safeties to load the bases. Gary Carter batted for Mike Scioscia and drew a walk to force home a run. Bill Landrum relieved Patterson and whiffed Griffin but gave up an opposite-field knock to pinch-hitter Mitch Webster. Brett Butler slapped a single to left for an RBI and Samuel capped the outburst with a grand slam over the wall in right-center as the Dodgers increased their advantage to 10-0. The stadium was rocking as the fans began to count down the number of outs remaining. Bob Kipper completed the frame, retiring Strawberry on a fly out to right and Murray on a grounder to second. Roger McDowell took over on the mound for Martinez and recorded the final six outs of the contest. The Dodgers celebrated as the squad advanced to the World Series.

All eyes were on Fenway Park as the pre-game festivities for the opening match of the ‘91 World Series concluded and the starting pitchers completed their warm-up tosses in the bullpen. Ramon J. Martinez of the Dodgers got the starting nod for the visiting squad while Roger Clemens drew the assignment for the hometown team. Los Angeles commenced the scoring when Kal Daniels deposited a fastball from the “Rocket Man” into the Fenway bullpen for a 1-0 lead with one out in the top of the second inning. Phil Plantier launched a long ball deep into the right-center field bleachers leading off the home half of the frame to knot the contest at 1-1. Wade Boggs ripped a two-out double into the right-field corner later in the inning to put the Sox ahead by one. Lenny Harris led off the fourth with a base hit, advanced to second on a wild pitch and raced home on a two-base knock down the right-field line with two outs as LA tied the game at 2-2. Clemens yielded a single to Mike Scioscia to commence the fifth frame and issued a walk to Mitch Webster. Stan Javier pinch-ran for Webster, who had fouled a ball off of his foot earlier in his plate appearance. Lenny Harris ripped a single to right with two outs but the third base coach held Scioscia at third. Darryl Strawberry strolled to the plate with the bases loaded and laced a liner to left but Mike Greenwell had a bead on it and made the catch to retire the side. Jody Reed legged out a triple in the bottom of the eighth and Greenwell followed with an opposite-field bomb over the Green Monster to stake the Sox to a 4-2 advantage. Mo Vaughn ripped a base hit to right later in the frame off reliever Roger McDowell to put another run on the board for Boston. Tim Crews induced a groundout by Luis Rivera to end the inning but LA trailed 5-2. The Red Sox skipper called upon Jeff Gray to close out the contest and he complied by retiring the side in order.

Los Angeles pounced on Sox starter Mike Gardiner, tallying four in the visitor’s second to knock him out of Game 2 in favor of Greg A. Harris. A trio of singles by Kal Daniels, Juan Samuel and Stan Javier were followed by a sacrifice fly by Alfredo Griffin and a base hit to left by Lenny Harris. Darryl Strawberry stroked a two-run double off the center field wall to put an early end to Gardiner’s day. In the top of the third, Samuel swatted a solo blast that cleared the Green Monster to extend the Dodgers’ lead to 5-0. Mike Scioscia clubbed a two-bagger to deep center field and he later scored on consecutive base knocks by Griffin and Brett Butler. Boston loaded the bases with three straight singles in the home half of the third. Jack Clark ripped a hard grounder to short but Griffin gobbled it up and fired home in plenty of time to nail Wade Boggs. Mike Morgan induced a 6-3 groundout off the bat of Phil Plantier to escape the frame without yielding a run and the hometown faithful expressed their displeasure over the missed opportunity with a cascade of boos. In the fifth, Matt J. Young entered the contest to replace Harris on the mound. Scioscia belted an RBI double to straightaway center in the sixth as LA upped the advantage to 7-0. Eddie Murray slammed a no-doubter high above the wall in left-center to tack on a run in the eighth. Morgan scattered 8 hits and held the BoSox scoreless through 7 1/3 innings. The Dodgers’ skipper summoned Tim Crews to finish the contest and LA evened the series at one game apiece.

Joe Hesketh and Tim Belcher engaged in a pitcher’s duel at Dodger Stadium. Hesketh only lasted 4 2/3 innings but the Sox relief corps held the home team at bay while Belcher spun seven shutout innings before he was lifted for a pinch-hitter. Brett Butler slapped an opposite-field double leading off the bottom of the eighth against Greg A. Harris. Darryl Strawberry delivered a sharp, one-out single to put runners on the corners as Eddie Murray strolled to the plate. Harris flummoxed “Steady Eddie” with an assorted of junk to notch the strike out and Kal Daniels endured a similar fate. Bob Ojeda was the odd man out in the playoff rotation but he made the best of the situation and found himself on the mound in the ninth inning of a scoreless Game 3. In another example of poor strategy by the computer manager, the relief pitcher was allowed to bat twice in the game for Boston with the go-ahead run on base. In the tenth frame, Mike Greenwell blasted a two-base knock off the base of the center-field wall, but Ojeda whiffed Carlos Quintana to end the threat. Mitch Webster batted for Ojeda and delivered a pinch-hit single leading off the bottom of the tenth. Butler followed with a bunt single and Mike Sharperson laced a base hit to center to place ducks on the pond with nobody out. The “Straw Man” came through with an opposite-field liner that landed in front of Greenwell for the game-winning knock. The elated crowd roared with approval as Los Angeles assumed a 2-1 lead in the Series.

Former Cy Young Award winners Roger Clemens and Orel Hershiser took the mound for their respective clubs in Game 4. The pair traded goose eggs for a few frames until the hometown team came up to bat in the bottom of the third. “Rocket” yielded a leadoff single to Alfredo Griffin and the “Bulldog” legged out a bunt hit. Brett Butler coaxed a base on balls to load ‘em up for Lenny Harris. Jody Reed fielded Harris’ tapper towards second and fired a perfect strike to John Marzano to peg Griffin at the plate for the first out. Darryl Strawberry’s two-hopper to shortstop Mike T. Brumley produced a similar result as Hershiser was forced at home. The bases remained loaded for Eddie Murray, who lofted an easy fly to center fielder Ellis Burks as Clemens wriggled out of the inning without allowing a run. The scoreless affair continued into the home half of the sixth when Murray along with Kal Daniels and Juan Samuel rapped consecutive singles to start the inning. Clemens and his Boston mates were confronted again with a bases-loaded, nobody out situation. Mike Scioscia hammered a Clemens’ heater off the wall in straightaway center field to put his ball club ahead by two. Griffin’s ground out failed to advance Samuel or Scioscia, but Clemens issued a free pass to Hershiser. Los Angeles registered another tally on a single up the middle off the bat of Butler which drove Clemens out of the game in favor of lefty Matt J. Young. Mike Sharperson, batting for Harris, drew a walk to force in another run. “Straw” capped the outburst with a grand slam into the left-center field bleachers and the crowd erupted! The BoSox skipper bolted out the dugout and promptly signaled to the bullpen to summon Tony Fossas as a dejected Young kicked the mound in disgust. Cruising along with an 8-0 lead, the Dodgers’ manager removed Hershiser for a pinch-hitter in the seventh and replaced him with Roger McDowell in the top of the eighth. Boston was unable to muster any offense as the Dodgers sealed the victory, placing the Sox in a must-win position.

Boston’s skipper selected veteran right-hander Greg A. Harris to start Game 5 with the Sox season on the line. The Dodgers threatened immediately in the bottom of the first, loading the bases on a walk and a pair of singles but Harris whiffed Juan Samuel to escape without allowing a run. Ramon J. Martinez grappled with control issues in the second frame, loading the bases and walking Luis Rivera to force home a run to gift the Sox a 1-0 advantage. Mike Scioscia rapped a two-base hit leading off the bottom of the second. Alfredo Griffin singled and Brett Butler coaxed a base on balls with one out to put ducks on the pond. Lenny Harris’ shallow fly to center wasn’t deep enough to score Scioscia but the next batter took care of that. Darryl Strawberry absolutely demolished a hanging breaking ball from the Sox hurler and deposited it in the center-field bleachers for a grand slam and the LA faithful celebrated as the “Straw Man” casually strolled around the bases. Down 4-1 and facing a win or go-home scenario, the Boston manager had no choice but to replace his starting pitcher with veteran southpaw Tony Fossas.  Martinez worked into another bases-loaded jam in the third. Phil Plantier smacked a hard grounder to Eddie Murray who threw home for a force out. Mo Vaughn lined a one-out single to center and the Sox now trailed 4-2. Tony Pena delivered a base knock to register another tally but Brett Butler made a strong throw to the plate to nail Ellis Burks for the second out. Rivera lofted an easy fly ball to center but the BoSox still had a pulse with the score 4-3 after 2 and ½ innings. Jeff Gray relieved Fossas with one away in the home third and quieted the Dodgers’ offense. Joe Hesketh came out of the ‘pen to start the fifth with LA still clinging to a one-run lead. Jody Reed shocked the hometown crowd with an opposite-field two-run blast in the top of the sixth to put the Sox on top, 5-4. Mike Greenwell greeted reliever John Candelaria with a triple into the right-field corner. After an intentional walk to Burks, “Gator” tagged up on a long drive to center off the bat of Plantier to tack on an insurance run. Crafty right-hander Dan Petry, the fifth Sox hurler of the day, was summoned with one out in the eighth and two runners aboard. Strawberry grounded into a fielder’s choice and Murray laced a single to left to cut the Boston advantage to one run. Kal Daniels hit a three-hopper to Reed and the visitors trotted back to the dugout needing three more outs to remain alive. Samuel twisted his left ankle during a defensive pickoff attempt and was expected to miss the remainder of the Series. The Dodgers went quietly in the ninth and the clubs headed back to Beantown.

Mike Gardiner took the mound for the Sox in Game 6 while the Dodgers countered with Mike Morgan. Los Angeles stormed out to a 4-0 lead in the opening frame. Brett Butler led off with a slap single to left and scored on a Kal Daniels’ two-base knock. The visitors loaded the bases and recorded consecutive RBI base hits by Mike Scioscia, Chris Gwynn and Alfredo Griffin. The Sox tallied one in the bottom of the third when Tony Pena swatted a solo big-fly.  Butler drove in another run with a base hit in the sixth to extend the Dodgers’ advantage to 5-1. Ellis Burks walloped a three-run blast into the right-center field bleachers to breathe a glimmer of hope into the Sox faithful with two outs in the bottom of the sixth. Roger McDowell entered in relief of Morgan. He escaped the inning with LA ahead by one but stumbled into trouble in the seventh. John Candelaria extinguished the blaze with a strikeout of Mike Greenwell. The “Candy Man” served up a gopher ball to Jack Clark leading off the home half of the eighth inning to knot the scoring at 5-5. The Dodgers’ skipped summoned Tim Crews and the right-hander retired the next three batters in order. Tony Fossas, facing the middle of the Los Angeles order, yielded a one-out single to Eddie Murray. The southpaw grooved an off-speed pitch to Kal Daniels, who swatted an opposite-field two-run moon shot over the Green Monster to propel the visitors into the lead, 7-5, as the crowd fell silent. Jay Howell began to warm up in the visitor’s bullpen and he got the nod to enter the contest in the bottom of the ninth. Pinch-hitters Steve Lyons and Carlos Quintana grounded out to third base and the pitcher, respectively, bringing Wade Boggs to the plate with two outs and the Sox trailing by two. The “Chicken Man” fell behind in the count and uncharacteristically flailed at Howell’s final offering, a curveball in the dirt, for strike three. Scioscia tagged Boggs just to be sure, then dashed out to the mound as the LA crew dog-piled in the middle of the field to celebrate their victory over Boston!

Ratings

Graphics – [2] – The in-game display is divided into seven sections. The result is a highly functional view which optimizes the delivery of information without sacrificing readability. The top of the screen is devoted to the game title and the scoreboard. There are 5 panels in an L-shape progressing from the upper left to the bottom right of the screen as follows: Strategy, Stadium Screen, Play by Play, Modem Play and Options. I will elaborate further on the available options under the Strategy ratings section below. The remainder of the screen real estate is devoted to a top-down depiction of the stadium. Each play is rendered on the field but the motion is not very fluid. The Stadium Screen depicts a digitized “replay” but after you’ve watched a few of them, I recommend disabling this enhancement in order to speed up your games. The animation in Pro League Baseball ’94 is extremely choppy, regardless of the animation speed setting that I chose.

Sound – [2] – The crowd roars with an inning-ending strikeout but the white-noise sound effect quickly loses its appeal after a few repetitions. If you enable the digitized images option, you’ll hear the crowd noise even more frequently along with the crack of the bat. My suggestion is to turn digitized images off and keep the sound on, if only to help you keep track of the end of an inning. The manual mentions a Play-by-Play Announcer: “A real announcer’s voice calls the plays! Although a sound card will enhance the voice quality, you can still hear the announcer loud and clear even without a sound card!” I don’t recall an announcer when I played this game on my 486/33 PC back in the mid-1990’s and I was unable to hear any commentary now, utilizing DosBox with the proper Sound Blaster settings configured (I can hear the crowd roar and other sounds). Pro League Baseball ’94 implements a cleaner ambient crowd noise but I found that the stadium went completely quiet when a home run cleared the wall (I expected cheers or boos, at least!)

Strategy – [4] – The Strategy menu offers multiple choices in six categories: Batting, Pitching, Fielding, Throw/Run, Batter and Pitcher. You may click on one or more options in the Strategy menu after clicking on the Select button. Under the batting sub-menu, you can elect to Hit Away, Steal, Hit/Run or Bunt. Pitching possibilities include Pitch Normal, Pitch Around, (Intentional) Walk, and Hold Runner. Defensive positioning can be altered on a per-play basis using Normal, Infield In, Outfield In, Both In, Guard Lines or In @ Corners. You can advise your team to be Conservative, Normal or Aggressive with regards to running the bases while on offense or throwing the ball around on defense under the Throw/Run sub-menu. The following pitch types and locations are offered: Fastball Inside (FI), Fastball Outside (FO), Change-Up Inside (CI), Change-Up Outside (CO), Breaking Inside (BI), Breaking Outside (BO). Batters can try to anticipate the pitch type and location. To replace a pitcher, select Bullpen from the Options menu. You do not have the ability to warm up relief pitchers prior to calling them into the contest. To swap out an offensive player, go to the Substitution option. I did not see any method to swap fielding positions so all of my managerial moves were limited to replacing players who could play the same position as the individual being removed from the game.

Artificial Intelligence – [2] – The game does not provide a mechanism to customize managerial profiles so all of the computer-managed contests will be handled in a similar manner. The algorithms employed to determine replacement of a pitcher and player substitution (especially pinch-hitting for the pitcher) could have been optimized further. I witnessed numerous examples where the pitcher was allowed to bat when there were 5 or 6 options available on the bench, including multiple instances in which a relief pitcher batted and then was promptly replaced on the mound upon the start of the next inning! In one exhibition game, the computer manager let the losing pitcher stay in the game despite serving up 16 runs.

Box Score – [2] – While perusing the box score from Game 2 of the 1991 AL Championship Series, I discovered that Tom Gordon was charged with 4 earned runs even though he was only responsible for two of the runs in that inning. Unfortunately this particular issue is not unique to Pro League Baseball. Another quirk that I noted while playing games against the computer occurs when a batter is hit by a pitch. The game screen displays a prompt to indicate the event and you have to click “OK” to proceed. However in the play-by-play window, it states that the result was a base on balls! The box score does not maintain HBP, so it appears that the programmers were saving a few bytes by omitting this category at the expense of accuracy. The 1994 edition of the game did not remedy the HBP issue – the announcer stated that the batter was plunked, but the incident was logged as a base on balls. Pinch-hitters are not identified as such – when Steve Lyons and Carlos Quintana batted for Tony Pena and Luis Rivera, respectively, in my 1991 Season Replay, the box lists Lyons as a catcher and Quintana as a shortstop. On a positive note, the box score is presented in a clean, easily readable manner with the batting and pitching results each occupying one-half of the screen real estate.

Rosters – [4] – Based on the Pro Draft section of the manual, it appears that you can employ between 23 and 39 players per team and at least 15 must be pitchers. This is an interesting quirk as I know that several teams in the 1980’s made it through an entire campaign with less than 15 hurlers. You can use the Pro Draft to re-populate rosters from existing Season Disks, Pro Trader to swap players between two teams and Team Editor to modify existing players or create new ones from scratch. I don’t see any options to reserve or bench players.

Statistics – [3] – Most of the standard counting categories are available in the Leaders module. Select the League that you wish to view and then choose whether you want to see league leaders in a particular category, team leaders or standings. Hitting streaks are tracked and batting averages versus left and right-handers are computed but other splits are not maintained or displayed. Standings consist of the usual won-loss record, games behind leader and winning percentage while additionally tracking runs and hits per game (for and against), current winning streak, and won-loss record for home, away and day games. Statistically with historically low totals are omitted such as hit by pitch, sacrifice hits, sacrifice flies, grounded into double plays and intentional walks. I noted that a hurler who threw a complete game in an exhibition match was only credited with 8.2 innings pitched in the ’94 edition.

Usage/Injuries/Ejections – [3] – You can choose to play exhibition or league games with Injuries enabled or disabled. The final statistics in my 1991 season replay appeared to reflect player usage based on injuries occurring throughout the year. Pitchers get fatigued during games. I did not see any ejections during the playoff and World Series games that I managed and don’t see ejections referenced in the manual.

Ballparks / Park Factors – [2] – VGA renderings of the current ballparks in use during the 1991 season add some flavor to the otherwise bland graphics. The stadiums are expanded and rendered on multiple screens in the ’94 edition. Park factors are not utilized in Pro League Baseball.

Commentary – [1] – No commentary to speak of in the original release.. the manual claims that there is a play-by-play announcer but I never heard it (If someone has this feature working, please contact me and provide your configuration so I can try it – I will amend my statement if this actually works!) In the ’94 edition, the announcer is barely functional – the limited vocabulary will leave you scratching your head and wondering, why did they even bother with this? Even more infuriating is the fact that the announcer refuses to speak his short phrases until the play is completed and the ball is return to the pitcher. By that time, we’ve already seen the play unfold before our eyes, so his brief banter is rendered totally useless. The play-by-play window simply delivers the recap of each play. For example: Pitcher – Clemens, Batter – Murray, Result – ground out, Outs – 1, Vplay – 111, Hplay – 1111, On Deck – Daniels 0-0-0-0-0.

Scale:  Ratings from 1 (worst) to 5 (best)

Pro League Baseball – Total Score: 25 out of 50

Pro League Baseball – 1994 Edition – Total Score: 25 out of 50

Observations

The ability to play Pro League Baseball head-to-head with remote opponents through the use of a modem was a key selling point in the early 1990’s. This game might have been a contender if not for some of the crippling bugs that I encountered. Perhaps those issues were resolved with patches or later releases of the game in 1997 (I’m still trying to acquire those versions). As I revisited this title three decades after originally purchasing and installing it on my IBM PC clone, I had a slightly better experience but I’m unable to ignore some of the blemishes that I encountered (applying statistics to the wrong individuals, limitations with substitution, crashes during League Replay). If you still have a landline and want to take Modem Play for a spin, by all means, track down a copy of Pro League Baseball and dial me up! Otherwise, I have a tough time recommending this one.

The 1994 edition of Pro League Baseball appears to have been rushed out the door just like the original game. Another half-baked effort filled with inexcusable errors, PLB ’94 was not ready for prime time. Stat-tracking bugs such as the “hit by pitch = walk” and missing outs in a 9-inning complete game along with AI issues (allowing a starting pitcher to remain on the mound for an entire contest despite yielding 23 hits and 16 runs!) relegate this one to the minor leagues.

Please add a comment below if you spent a significant amount of time and/or have any recollections of Pro League Baseball or its sequel(s).

Screenshots

Pro League Baseball

Pro League Baseball – 1994 Edition

Articles in the Series

	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – SSI Computer Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review –Computer Statis Pro Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Avalon Hill Pro Manager / Major League Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pure-Stat Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Monday Morning Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Radio Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Full Count Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball II – III – IV
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa’s Ultimate Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – APBA Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Front Page Sports Baseball ’94 – ’96 – ’98
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – ESPN Baseball Tonight
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Hardball 3-4-5-6
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pursue the Pennant – Diamond Mind Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pro League Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – 4 – Old Time Baseball

Additional Links

Play Pro League Baseball in your browser!

Archive.org – Pro League Baseball

Pro League Baseball – Playthrough – HardballRetro

Pro League Baseball – 1994 Edition – Playthrough – HardballRetro

Gindin, Jim. “It’s All In The Follow-Through”. Computer Gaming World. October 1994. p110, 112, 114. https://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_123.pdf 

Gindin, Jim. “Playing the Numbers”. Computer Gaming World. May 1997. p146, 148. https://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_154.pdf

Giovetti, Al. “Pro League Baseball ’97”.

http://www.thecomputershow.com/computershow/sports/proleaguebaseball97.htm

McCauley, Dennis. “Pro League Prophet – An Exclusive Interview with Game Designer and Online Pioneer Dave Holt”. Computer Gaming World. May 1997. p187. https://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_154.pdf

https://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/pro-league-baseball

https://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/pro-league-baseball-97

About the Author

I am a New Jersey native with a passion for baseball, statistics, computers and video games who enjoys spending quality time with his family.

“Hardball Architects – Volume 1 (American League)“, published in July 2020 and
“Hardball Architects – Volume 2 (National League)”, published in April 2022, examines the trades, free agent acquisitions, draft picks and other transactions for the 30 Major League Baseball franchises, divided into a 2-volume set. Both books are available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. All key moves are scrutinized for every team and Sabermetric principles are applied to the roster construction throughout the lifetime of the organization to encapsulate the hits and misses by front office executives. Team performances are analyzed based on transaction type with graphs depicting the WAR (Wins Above Replacement) in every decade. Individual results for each player-transaction is charted over the duration of their stint with the franchise. Every team chapter includes All-Time Rosters and Single-Season Leaders based on transaction type. The Team Trade Record chronicles the WAR and WS (Win Shares) accumulated by players acquired in comparison to those traded to opposing teams. The opening chapter is devoted to the Evolution of the General Manager and incorporates a discussion with former Dodgers GM Fred Claire (along with former Angels and Red Sox GM Mike Port and current Reds GM Nick Krall in Volume 2) on a variety of front office topics.

“Hardball Retroactive”, published in June 2018, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com.  Hardball Retroactive is a modest collection of selected articles that I have written for Seamheads.com along with my Baseball Analytics blog since 2010. Exclusive content includes the chapter on “Minors vs. Majors” which assesses every franchise’s minor league successes and failures in relation to their major league operations.

“Hardball Retrospective” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. Supplemental Statistics, Charts and Graphs along with a discussion forum are offered at TuataraSoftware.com. In Hardball Retrospective, I placed every ballplayer in the modern era (from 1901-present) on their original teams. Using a variety of advanced statistics and methods, I generated revised standings for each season based entirely on the performance of each team’s “original” players. I discuss every team’s “original” players and seasons at length along with organizational performance with respect to the Amateur Draft (or First-Year Player Draft), amateur free agent signings and other methods of player acquisition. Season standings, WAR and Win Shares totals for the “original” teams are compared against the real-time or “actual” team results to assess each franchise’s scouting, development and general management skills.

Don Daglow (Intellivision World Series Major League Baseball, Earl Weaver Baseball, Tony LaRussa Baseball) contributed the foreword for Hardball Retrospective. The foreword and preview of my book are accessible here. 

“Hardball Retrospective – Addendum 2014 to 2016” supplements my research for Hardball Retrospective, providing retroactive standings based on Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and Win Shares (WS) for each “original” team over the past three seasons (2014-2016). Team totals from 2010 – 2013 are included for reference purposes. “Addendum” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. 

Note: article revised on 9/16/2023 to incorporate additional notes on Pro League Baseball ’94 edition.

Please submit your orders by Friday, April 28, 2023 if you’re interested!

Contact me on Twitter @HardballRetrosp if you have any questions.

If I can confirm 20+ orders, the shirts will cost $13.50 + tax + $9.95 shipping. Thanks!

Pursue the Pennant

Publisher – Pursue the Pennant (versions 1 through 5)

Release Year – 1987 – 1995

Platforms – IBM PC (DOS)

Credits

Diamond Mind Baseball

Publisher – Tippett Software (versions 6 through 7)

Release Year – 1996 – 1997

Platforms – IBM PC (DOS)

Credits

Diamond Mind Baseball

Publisher – Tippett Software (versions 8 through 9)

Release Year – 1998 – 2006

Platforms – IBM PC (Windows)

Credits

Diamond Mind Baseball

Publisher – Imagine Sports (versions 10 through 12)

Release Year – 2006 – 2022

Platforms – IBM PC (Windows)

Credits

Programmer Interview

Tom Tippett developed and programmed Pursue the Pennant / Diamond Mind Baseball through nine iterations. He responded to a series of questions about the product.

DB: How did you conceive the original design of Pursue the Pennant? Did you have any prior game development or programming experience?

TT: I started playing the Strat-O-Matic board game in the early 1970s, and I got into it in a big way.  My biggest SOM project was a 140-game season featuring 10 teams from the real-life 1972 season that took me three years to complete.  I kept a detailed scoresheet for every one of the 700 regular-season games and painstakingly maintained a ledger with season-to-date stats for every player.  One wall of my bedroom was devoted to a large piece of plywood that I painted Fenway green and fitted out with hooks and cardboard numbers so I could always look up and see the current standings.

A few years later, when I was studying math and computer science in college, I started to wish that someone would create a computer baseball game so I wouldn’t have to do all the work of looking up the play results on cards and charts and then compiling all the stats. After college I got a job as a mainframe programmer.  A year later, I decided to learn how to write apps for PCs.  Apple computers had been out for a few years and the IBM PC had been launched a few months earlier.

I wasn’t much interested in doing a little toy program like so many of the assignments one is given in a programming course, and the only thing more challenging that I could think of was a baseball game. I started by sketching out a user interface, a database design, and some ideas for using the power of the computer to achieve a higher degree of realism and statistical accuracy than could be achieved with a board game.  Lots of great board games have been created over the years, but a board game simply can’t capture all the complexity of real-life baseball and still be playable by ordinary people in a reasonable amount of time. 

For the next eight months, I spent my evenings and weekends working on the game before putting it on the back burner while I went to graduate school for two years.  After graduating, I got a day job with a software company and once again spent my evenings and weekends working on the game.  I managed to get it ready for its first public demo at the national SABR convention in 1986.

That’s where I first met some people from Pursue the Pennant.  The PTP board game was designed by Mike Cieslinski and had launched the year before.  I’d never heard of it, but when I got a chance to check it out a little later, I was impressed. It didn’t take long for us to realize that Mike’s board game and my computer game were similar at the surface level even though both were designed with absolutely no knowledge of the other.  For example, both games used a five-point scale for most player ratings, so we could rate the players once and use the same ratings in both games. We started talking about having PTP license my game and market it as their computer version.  In late October I flew to Milwaukee to finalize the terms.  After a long day of discussions that led to an agreement, I went back to my hotel room, flipped on game six of the World Series, promptly fell asleep, and woke up just in time to watch the Mets rally against the Red Sox. After I made a few cosmetic changes to make my game look a little more like the PTP board game – such as displaying player ratings as Ex/Vg/Av/Fr/Pr instead of 1/2/3/4/5 – the first version of the game now known as Diamond Mind Baseball was published in the spring of 1987 under the name Pursue the Pennant PC Baseball.

DB: Did you take any computer programming courses in high school or college?

TT: I graduated from high school in 1976.  At that time, there were no programming courses, but one of the math teachers started a programming club in my senior year.  The only computer in our school district was miles away at another school, and our club was only able to get an hour of processing time each week.  We would write our programs using punched cards after class one day, the teacher would take them to the other school and run them the next day, and a week later we would find out whether our code would even compile, let alone run.

College was much different.  I went to the University of Waterloo, which had one of the best data centers in Canada.  My class was the first that didn’t have to use punched cards.  We were lucky enough to have access to data entry terminals for writing our code. There were a lot more students than terminals, though, so terminal time was hard to come by.  And when we were ready to submit our code, it could take an hour or more for our jobs to get through the queue for compilation and execution.  If there was a syntax error in your code, the job wouldn’t run and you’d be looking at another long wait before you got to see the results of your next attempt. At Waterloo, I learned to code in COBOL, FORTRAN, PASCAL, and assembly, but the most valuable course I took there was data modeling.

DB: Did you consider porting the game to other popular computers such as Macintosh, Amiga, etc.?

TT: Not really.  The game was on the market for five years (through PTP) before I could afford to quit my day job and work on baseball full time.  I didn’t have time to think about porting it to other platforms when I was limited to evenings and weekends. In 1994, the relationship with PTP ended and I founded Diamond Mind.  Over the next few years, I thought about building a Mac version.  But that was a time when the market share of the Mac had dropped into single digits, so it was hard to make a business case for it. And I was sure it would be a bad idea to save money on the development work by simply porting the PC version to Mac.  Mac users would only be happy with a version that fully embraced the Mac UI and ecosystem, and I figured the cost of building a true Mac version would be too high. In the late 1990s, I started thinking about building an Internet version, but we were fully occupied with our first Windows versions at that time.  When Imagine Sports approached us in 2005 about collaborating on an Internet-based game, we were ready.

DB: Describe your role in the development of each product. Were you the sole developer / programmer throughout the entire DOS-based series of PTP/DMB? Did anyone else contribute to utilities, season disks, play-testing?

TT: We were a very small company.  It was me plus one full-time programmer, a part-time office manager, and for a few years, one baseball researcher. I was the lead architect and lead developer of every DMB version until I sold the company to Imagine Sports in 2006.  I was also the project manager and lead ratings analyst for the annual season disks. Luke Kraemer, the full-time programmer, did a lot of work on the DMB game and a bunch of utilities and testing tools.  Luke is still working on DMB at Imagine Sports and has been on the Retrosheet board throughout its history. The baseball researcher was Zack Scott, who worked on player ratings for both new and past seasons and did a bunch of baseball research projects related to improvements in the sim engine.  He left Diamond Mind in 2004 to join the Red Sox, where he was part of four World Series winners and rose quickly through the ranks to become Director of Baseball Operations and later Assistant GM and head of all their baseball research and development efforts.

DB: Were any features scaled back or omitted due to budgetary or time constraints? Were those features considered or implemented in later editions?

TT: We always wanted to do more than we really had time for, so each release would start out with a somewhat ambitious list of hoped-for features.  When you’re trying to invent something new, it’s hard to predict how long things will take, so we were always reevaluating what was possible.  Sometimes we would reassign a few of the less-important features to the next release.

DB: The DOS versions of PTP/DMB focused on the gameplay and the engine. Some of your competitors migrated their DOS products to Windows in the early to mid-1990’s and added stadium graphics, broadcasters to provide the play-to-play commentary, etc. Did you consider migrating the products to Windows during that timeframe? Did you consider adding any “eye” and “ear candy” to the product?

TT: We didn’t seriously consider building a Windows version until the mid-90s.  I think a lot of people would agree that the first really good Windows version was Windows95.  The only eye candy in our Windows version came from the colorful scale 2D drawings of the ballparks.  They were done by our friend Keith Conforti, a terrific graphic designer and avid baseball fan who loved scouring the internet for photos, architectural drawings, and anything else that would help him make highly-realistic diagrams for both current and historical parks. For a few reasons, I wasn’t too interested in adding more graphics, animation, and sound during those years.

First, we were busy making the sim engine more realistic by simulating every pitch. A lot of real-life baseball strategy involves decisions that are heavily influenced by the ball-strike count. For instance, if the batter gets into a good hitter’s count, you probably don’t want to squander that advantage by bunting or stealing on the next pitch. And in situations where a bunt or steal makes sense, opposing real-life managers often try to guess whether what the other will do from pitch to pitch. By going to a pitch-by-pitch model, we gave the offensive manager more freedom to choose when to use these tactics.  And we gave the defensive manager the tools to defend against these tactics with pitchouts and pickoff throws.  In games that only support batter-by-batter mode, the defensive manager is just a passive observer on these plays. In addition, when a real-life batter takes a strike on a steal play or fails to get a bunt down, he falls behind in the count and gives the pitcher an advantage.  That also became true in DMB when we went to the pitch-by-pitch model, but it doesn’t happen in games that only offer batter-by-batter mode. By the way, DMB lets you decide whether to play in pitch-by-pitch or batter-by-batter mode, but it simulates every pitch in both modes.  In pitch mode, it reports the result of every pitch and gives you a chance to change tactics for the next pitch.  In batter mode, it simulates pitches silently until the plate appearance is resolved or some other event, such as a wild pitch, changes the game situation.

Second, most of our customers were avid baseball fans, not casual gamers. Before they started playing DMB, they had seen loads of games on TV and listened to tons more on the radio.  DMB’s play results were displayed as a textual, radio-style play-by-play commentary that I believed would allow them to create a mental image of the play that would be far more realistic than anything we could provide with the graphics and animation tools that were available then.

Third, it was a business decision.  We didn’t have enough revenue to fund efforts like that, so we would have had to bring on investors to raise enough capital.  Some other small baseball game companies had done that and then gone out of business within a few years because they were not able to pay back the initial investment.  That was a risk I couldn’t take because I was married with a young child and a wife who had just quit her job to go to graduate school.

Finally, it was a matter of emphasis.  In those days, and probably today, too, every baseball game claimed to be the most realistic one you could buy.  But there’s more than one type of realism. It seemed to me that other companies viewed realism as making their games look and sound like baseball on TV.  That’s a perfectly good goal, and there are plenty of gamers who want that, but it wasn’t what interested me most and not what I thought our customers wanted most. I wanted DMB to feel and work in a realistic manner by being very accurate statistically and offering the same risk-reward profiles for different tactics that real-life managers faced.

DB: Your competition in that era included APBA, Full Count and Strat-o-Matic for text-based sims along with the Earl Weaver and Tony La Russa Baseball games which delivered both arcade and simulation options. What were your impressions of those products at the time and in what areas do you feel that the PTP/DMB series excelled in comparison?

TT: I was too busy with my own work to spend a lot of time playing other games, and I wasn’t too focused on trying to one-up the competition.  I felt that if we kept our eyes on what we were trying to build, we’d find enough customers who wanted the type of game we were building.

I was very familiar with Strat-O-Matic from my younger days and always thought it was a terrific board game, but my sense was that they wanted their computer version to be identical to the board game, while we were trying to take advantage of computing power to do things that board games weren’t ideally suited for.  With our pitch-by-pitch simulation, for instance, the probabilities of the different outcomes are quite different on a 2-0 count than on an 0-2 count.  I don’t know how you do that with a board game and still make it playable in a half hour.

I was very impressed when APBA’s Baseball for Windows added the Ernie Harwell commentary.  They did a great job with that.  At the same time, I was never tempted to follow suit because it took me much longer to play a game while listening to the commentary than when reading it, and I thought our customers would rather get the play result quickly and get on with the next tactical decision.

Every one of the products you mentioned were good games with some unique features that I liked.  But I strongly believed that it would be a mistake for DMB to try to be everything to everybody.  Different gamers like different things, and it was perfectly fine with me if the gamers who wanted more animation and sound passed us by and used other products.  We were trying to build a game that would be the first choice of customers who valued strategy and realism above all else, and I was just hoping there would be enough of them to keep us in business.

DB: The Red Sox hired you in 2003 and you spent more than a decade with the club as a Senior Baseball Analyst. How did your experiences with designing and programming PTP/DMB translate into your role with the Red Sox? Did you utilize DMB to run through various scenarios?

TT: When we first started consulting with the Red Sox in September 2003, they asked us to help them simulate the Division Series before it started to see if it might offer them any insights that would help them choose the 25-man roster and perhaps give some insight into in-game tactics. Later that winter, we simulated the 2004 season with different what-if scenarios around trades and free agent signings.  After that, we routinely ran simulations of the upcoming season each year. But that wasn’t the biggest part of the relationship.  In 2004 the Red Sox became aware that Diamond Mind had built a suite of databases and programs for analyzing player performance as a natural part of our data-driven process for coming up with player ratings for the game. Back then, when the Red Sox (and presumably other teams) were preparing for the amateur draft or the MLB trade deadline, they asked their interns to scour the public internet for stats they could cut and paste into spreadsheets that could be printed out, copied 20 times, and put into thick binders for the scouts and senior front office people.  Those printouts became more and more outdated as new games were played each night. There were questions we could answer with our systems in minutes or hours that would take them days or weeks, so they hired us to build a baseball information system that would give their senior decision makers immediate access to the data on their laptops through an app with a consistent user interface.  It started with tools we had already built at Diamond Mind and quickly expanded to include scouting reports, player contracts, and many other things. My role with the Red Sox was a blend of building that system, building new analytical tools that used data from that system, running simulations from time to time, and (when asked) offering my opinion on proposed trades and free agent signings.  Lots of people were involved in those decisions, so my opinion was just one of many, but it was amazing to be in the room after being a baseball outsider for a quarter century.

DB: In reviewing the documentation and playing PTP/DMB, I gained an appreciation towards the amount of time, effort and attention to detail which you poured into the development of the game. There are rare events that are omitted from other games, but it’s those strange and unusual plays that enhance the manager’s immersion in the simulation and help to distance this product from the competition. Were you utilizing scoresheets from Retrosheet or other sources to determine the frequency of these events?

TT: Yes, we were very data driven.  In 1984, Bill James announced the idea of creating a network of volunteers who would keep pitch-by-pitch scoresheets (using a common format) whenever they watched games and then send them to a central location where they would be copied and mailed to other volunteers who would enter them into a database.  That organization was called Project Scoresheet. I started keying in games for Project Scoresheet while I was still working on the first version of the game.  I wanted my player ratings to be based on as much objective data as I could find, and that was the only way to get it. A year or two later, the leadership of Project Scoresheet couldn’t agree on whether to stay as a volunteer organization with no hard deadlines or professionalize the effort and try to publish game accounts overnight.  The group that wanted to go pro ended up leaving the project and becoming the core leadership team at STATS, Inc., where they were extremely successful. The rest of us were left with the question of whether to keep Project Scoresheet alive.  Among other things, we would need a new data entry program because the previous one had been written by two of the people who left for STATS. We decided to give it a go, so I collaborated with my friend David Nichols on new tools.  Project Scoresheet came to an end a couple of years later, but the software was licensed to The Baseball Workshop, Retrosheet, a short-lived company called Total Sports, and finally to MLB, where it formed part of MLB’s scoring system for about 20 years. Years later, Diamond Mind was able to jumpstart the Red Sox information system project because we had already written more than 50 programs to compile stats, splits, game logs, park factors, and metrics for evaluating player performance from data in “Retrosheet” format and because MLB had adopted the same format for the data feed it provided to the teams.

DB: I was particularly intrigued by the weather modeling in relation to park effects and pitcher fatigue. How did you compile and correlate this data in order to factor it into the game?

TT: From the first days of Project Scoresheet, the play-by-play files contained weather information for each game – temperature, wind speed and direction, precipitation, cloud cover, and the condition of the field.  Extracting weather details from those files was easy, but we had to do some of our own work when retractable-roof stadiums came along.  When the roof was closed, the game account would just say the there was no wind and it was 70 degrees inside.  But we needed to know what the weather was outside the stadium for these games.  In DMB, we generate a set of weather conditions that are typical of that location and time of year.  Only then does the sim decide whether the roof should be closed for that game. That meant searching the internet for data from weather stations located near the parks with retractable roofs and building our own database of weather data for those roof-closed games.  We then merged those readings with the data from the play-by-play files to get the full-season weather picture. If instead we had relied only on the data in the play-by-play files for roof-open games, our system would have been seriously biased.  For games in Toronto and Milwaukee, we would have data only for the nicest summer days and not for the cold April nights.  And the outdoor-game readings in Arizona and Houston would have been limited to the cooler days of spring and fall and ignored the summer heat.

DB: Is your original code utilized in the Windows versions? Do you have any involvement with the current or previous Windows releases of DMB?

TT: I led the development of DMB through the first two Windows versions (8 and 9) before I sold the company to Imagine Sports in 2006.  After the sale, I did some work on DMB 10 on a consulting basis until I took a full-time job with the Red Sox in late 2008.

DB: Do you have any involvement with Diamond Mind Baseball now? Can you share any projects that you’re currently working on?

TT: I left the Red Sox after the 2016 season because my work in baseball didn’t leave me nearly enough time for my non-baseball interests.  I did a few small consulting projects in baseball in 2017 and 2018, but since then I’ve made no effort to get back into that world in a big way. But I never lost touch with the folks at Imagine Sports, including the Diamond Mind people who are still there.  In recent years, I’ve helped them out with a few things, such as updating the sim engine to accommodate MLB’s recent rule changes.  But it’s a limited part-time role that comes and goes, and these days I’m spending most of my time on pursuits that have nothing to do with sports.

Review

This entry will include a review of Diamond Mind Baseball (IBM PC – DOS, version 6.0) along with the current Windows version (12.0). I also have Pursue the Pennant (version 5.0) which is nearly identical to DMB 6.0 in terms of content and gameplay (minus a number of enhancements). I will chronicle the differences between the three games but focus solely on DMB versions 6.0 and 12.0 for the in-depth review.

Pursue the Pennant and Diamond Mind Baseball (DOS versions)

Running in DosBox emulation, DMB 6.0 completed a week’s worth of games in about two minutes and thirty seconds, or about three seconds per contest, using the following settings:

Display Mode:                               Show Standings

Speed of Play Results:                   Super Fast

Generate Boxscore:                       Yes

Boxscore Format:                           Expanded

Generate Scoresheet:                   Yes

Output to:                                      File

The Cleveland Indians triumphed in 92 contests to pace the American League in victories. Boston edged New York and Seattle to claim the Wild Card in the Junior Circuit. The Tribe battled the Red Sox while the division-leading Angels and Orioles clashed in the opening round of the playoffs. Over in the Senior Circuit, the Braves cruised to the N.L. East title and the Astros finished only two games out in the Central to secure the Wild Card entry. The remaining divisional crowns were claimed by the Reds and the Dodgers.

PTP/DMB did not automatically schedule the playoff rounds, so it was necessary to play the games using Exhibition mode. The user must refer to the injury and fatigue reports if they wish to utilize those data points from the end of the regular season. Injured players on playoff-bound teams included Javy Lopez (ATL), Mark Lewis (CIN), Dave Hansen (LAD) and Rudy Seanez (LAD). All with the exception of Hansen, who suffered an injury during a brawl on September 25, were expected to be available for the Championship Series if their clubs advanced to that round.

ATL – Lopez 10 games 9/30                          E. Perez

CIN – Lewis 10 games 9/29                           E. Owens

LAD – Hansen 25 games 9/22                      Treadway

LAD – Seanez 6 games 9/30                         Fe. Rodriguez

AL Division Series – Cleveland sweeps Boston, 3 games to none

CLE 13 @ BOS 1

CLE 6 @ BOS 3

BOS 7 @ CLE 8

AL Division Series – California defeats Baltimore, 3 games to 1

CAL 10 @ BAL 6

CAL 7 @ BAL 8

BAL 0 @ CAL 2

BAL 0 @ CAL 5

NL Division Series – Houston defeats Atlanta, 3 games to 1

ATL 1 @ HOU 2

ATL 2 @ HOU 3

HOU 4 @ ATL 6

HOU 2 @ ATL 1

NL Division Series – Cincinnati sweeps Los Angeles, 3 games to none

CIN 3 @ LAD 2   

CIN 10 @ LAD 5

LAD 4 @ CIN 9

AL Championship Series – California defeats Cleveland, 4 games to 1

CAL 2 @ CLE 3

CAL 7 @ CLE 6

CLE 4 @ CAL 5

CLE 2 @ CAL 5

CLE 4 @ CAL 8

NL Championship Series – Houston defeats Cincinnati, 4 games to 3

HOU 0 @ CIN 5

HOU 4 @ CIN 0

CIN 4 @ HOU 1

CIN 2 @ HOU 8

CIN 2 @ HOU 3

HOU 5 @ CIN 6

HOU 4 @ CIN 2

The Baltimore skipper twice pinch-hit Gregg Zaun for Cal Ripken Jr. in the late innings of close games during the Orioles – Angels playoff series. While I’m sure that the virtual Gregg Zaun was both shocked and thrilled to have this opportunity, it detracted from the “realism” of the game in process. In the fifth game of the American League Championship Series with the Tribe trailing 8-4 in the top of the ninth, the Cleveland manager elected to send Tony Pena up to the plate for leadoff hitter extraordinaire, Kenny Lofton. Granted, southpaw Bob Patterson just entered the contest but I’d rather take my chances with the table-setting All-Star to start a late-inning rally than my veteran backup catcher.

World Series

The Halos prepared to take on the ‘Stros at the Astrodome with the World Series trophy at stake. California’s ace left-hander Chuck Finley finished his warm-ups in the bullpen while Shane Reynolds strolled to the mound for the hometown team. Brian L. Hunter wreaked havoc on the base paths to register the first run for the Astros. He singled, stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and slid under the tag at home plate following a hard grounder to short by Craig Biggio. Reynolds escaped a bases-loaded jam in the visitor’s sixth and the score remained 1-0. Reynolds helped his own cause with a 2-run single to right in the seventh, knocking Finley from the contest. Derek Bell delivered a base hit against Mike James to knock in the Astros’ fourth run of the inning. Todd Jones relieved Reynolds to commence the top of the eighth and pinch-hitter Spike Owen greeted him with a two-bagger off the wall in center field. Jones quickly rebounded by striking out Tony Phillips, Jim Edmonds and Tim Salmon in succession.  Rex Hudler rapped a single with two outs on the ninth. Tony Eusebio blocked a Jones’ offering in the dirt. It skipped a few feet away from him but he pounced on it and proceeded to gun down Hudler as he tried to advance to second for the final out of the game. Reynolds and Jones combined for the 4-0 shutout and the Houston faithful roared with approval as their ballclub assumed the 1-0 advantage in the Series.

Veteran hurlers Mark Langston and Doug Drabek received the starting nods in Game 2 for the Angels and the Astros, respectively. Garret Anderson slapped a base hit leading off the second inning and advanced ninety feet when Drabek drilled Rex Hudler with an inside fastball. A subsequent wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position. Greg Myers hit a fielder’s choice to Craig Biggio, plating Anderson with the Halos’ first tally of the Series. Tony Phillips tapped a little dribbler down the third base line which stopped on the infield grass in fair territory, scoring Hudler. In the home half of the same frame, Craig Shipley singled, stole second and scored easily on a double off the bat of James Mouton. Drabek blooped a base hit into right field to drive Mouton home with the tying run. Langston issued consecutive walks to Biggio and Jeff Bagwell later in the inning to force in a run. Derek Bell followed with a two-run base knock and Houston held a 5-2 advantage. Eusebio ripped a two-base hit to increase the lead to 6-2. Langston exited the contest in favor of right-hander Shawn Boskie. California’s offense came right back against Drabek in the third. Anderson singled and moved up to second base on a balk. Hudler delivered a base hit to cut the lead in half at 6-3. Gary DiSarcina slashed a single to right-center which sent Drabek to the showers. Houston skipper Terry Collins summoned Jim Dougherty from the bullpen.  Jorge Fabregas, batting for Boskie, laced a single down the right field line which knocked in Hudler and sent DiSarcina scurrying over to third. Phillips drilled a double up the gap in left-center to reduce the ‘Stros lead to 6-5. Collins signaled for Dougherty to issue an intentional walk to Jim Edmonds, loading the bases for Tim Salmon. “Kingfish” roped a line drive to center but Brian L. Hunter tracked it down. Portsider Brian J. Anderson entered the match as the Astros prepared to bat in the bottom of the third. “Antic” held Houston in check with a couple of scoreless frames. Doug Brocail relieved Dougherty in the fifth and promptly yielded a game-tying round-tripper to Myers. John Habyan allowed four singles in one-third of an inning as Houston reclaimed the lead in the home half of the fifth by a score of 8 to 6. Eusebio hammered a two-run single back through the box against Mike Butcher in the sixth to extend the lead to 10-6. Collins elected to bring in his closer, Todd Jones, to start the top of the eighth inning. He gave the fans a scare when J.T. Snow lofted a deep fly ball to center with two on and two outs, but Hunter flagged it down at the warning track. In the ninth, Anderson and Hudler opened with successive singles. Jones bounced one in the dirt which ricocheted off Eusebio’s chest protector and rolled towards the dugout as both baserunners advanced. Myers turned on a Jones’ heater and deposited it deep in the right field seats for a three-run blast, cutting the Angels’ deficit to one run. Jones recovered to strike out DiSarcina and retire pinch-hitter Chili Davis on a lazy fly ball to left. Bagwell booted Phillips’ grounder to keep the Halos’ hopes alive with two down in the ninth. Edmonds hit a high hopper back to the mound, which Jones gloved and fired to first to secure the victory. Both teams boarded flights bound for the Golden State with the Astros up two games to none.

The Angels were counting on Jim Abbott to put one in the win column after the club dropped consecutive games at the Astrodome. Houston countered with fellow left-hander Greg Swindell. California broke through in the bottom of the third when Gary DiSarcina crushed a three-run blast into the left field bleachers. Tim Salmon socked a two-run double into the left-center field gap, giving the Halos a 5-0 lead in the fifth. Jim Dougherty came on to replace Swindell and face the top of the Angels’ batting order in the home half of the seventh. He got into a bit of a jam but induced a 6-4-3 double-play grounder off the bat of Chili Davis. Abbott continued to put zeroes on the scoreboard until he yielded to Troy Percival in the ninth after allowing a leadoff two-bagger to pinch-hitter Tony Eusebio. Craig Shipley cracked a single to left and then Luis Gonzalez lofted an opposite-field, three-run circuit clout down the left field line! The Angels lead was trimmed to 5-3 so Lee Smith began to warm up in the bullpen just in case Percival got into any further trouble. Dave Magadan hit a harmless fly to left and Percival threw his blazing heater past John Cangelosi and Brian L. Hunter as California celebrated their triumph in Game 3.

Both teams elected to go with a three-man rotation, so Game 4 featured a rematch of Shane Reynolds and Chuck Finley. Tony Phillips ignited the Angels offense when he led off the bottom of the first with a wallop into the right-field seats. Reynolds held the Halos hitless through the next four frames but Finley kept Houston off the board as well. Gary DiSarcina started the sixth with a base knock and Jim Edmonds crushed a two-run shot into the second deck in right to provide Finley with a 3-0 cushion. Chili Davis contributed a solo swat in the seventh. Houston went quietly in the ninth as California knotted the Series at two games apiece. Finley was credited with a six-hit shutout as his teammates greeted him with handshakes and high-fives on the mound after he recorded the final out.

Houston had the Halos on the ropes immediately in Game 5. After retiring Brian L. Hunter on a grounder to Gary DiSarcina, Mark Langston allowed three consecutive singles to Craig Biggio, Jeff Bagwell and Derek Bell to put the ‘Stros ahead, 1-0. An errant curveball plunked Tony Eusebio to load the bases. Mindful of Langston’s atrocious outing in Game 2, I made a call down to the bullpen and advised my coach to have Shawn Boskie begin to loosen up. I didn’t want the game to get out of hand before the Angels had a chance to bat. Craig Shipley lifted a medium fly ball to center which Jim Edmonds caught but it was deep enough to allow “Bagpipes” to tag up and score. Langston escaped further damage when James Mouton grounded out to shortstop. Doug Drabek issued a walk to Tony Phillips but the Angels failed to advance him in the bottom of the first. Langston yielded three more hits and a walk in the following frame including an RBI knock by Hunter. Boskie entered the contest with the sacks juiced, only one out and California trailing 3-0. Bell hit into a fielder’s choice, plating the fourth run for Houston. Tony Eusebio tapped a slow roller towards second. Rex Hudler gloved it and fired to first to retire the side. Biggio rapped a double into the left field corner, scoring John Cangelosi, who hit a two-bagger of his own leading off the fourth. Bagwell subsequently drilled another two-base hit down the left field line to drive in Biggio as the ‘Stros built a 6-0 lead. Bell clubbed a 2-run dinger over the fence in right-center and the rout was officially on. Mike Bielecki relieved Boskie with two down in the visitor’s fourth and the Halos behind 8-0. He immediately botched an easy grounder back to the box, allowing Mouton to reach base and keep the inning alive. Orlando Miller drew a walk to load the bases, but Cangelosi mercifully popped out to DiSarcina. Garret Anderson got the Angels on the scoreboard with a two-base knock into the right-center field gap, driving in Chili Davis and sending J.T. Snow to third. Hudler subsequently smacked a two-run single and the previously silenced crowd began to perk up. After Greg Myers whiffed, DiSarcina and Hudler perfectly executed a hit-and-run to place runners at first and third with two away. Phillips coaxed another free pass to put ducks on the pond. Edmonds singled up the middle to register a pair of tallies. The Angels had clawed their way back into the contest and Tim Salmon strolled to the plate representing the tying run! Drabek reached back for something extra and he induced a check-swing ground ball to Biggio. Houston had been in command moments earlier but now clung to a tenuous 8-5 advantage after four frames. Hunter led off the fifth with a single, stole second and came home on Bell’s single off John Habyan. Snow cut off the throw home and gunned down Bell trying to sneak into second. Anderson dropped a can of corn to left off the bat of Shipley which proved costly later in the inning. Miller greeted reliever Mike Butcher with base hit to left, scoring Shipley. Cangelosi walked to load the bases. Snow bailed the Angels out with a superb 3-2-3 double play! Eusebio launched a three-run shot over the wall in right-center off Butcher in the seventh to restore the previous 8-run lead for the Astros. Houston padded the score when Biggio commenced the ninth with a solo shot to left and Eusebio delivered an RBI single later in the inning. Doug Brocail hurled a pair of scoreless frames to close out the 15-5 blowout. The clubs travelled back to the Lone Star State with the Astros needing just one more victory to secure the title.

Portsiders Jim Abbott and Greg Swindell squared off in Game 6 and both pitchers put up goose eggs early. Abbott ran into some trouble in the fifth as the ‘Stros loaded the bases with two outs, prompting a call to the bullpen. Shawn Boskie came in to face Derek Bell, gaining the platoon advantage (Bell batted .410 versus left-handers in ’95). The move paid off as Jim Edmonds camped under Bell’s shallow fly ball to center to close out the frame. In the top of the seventh, successive two-baggers by Gary DiSarcina and pinch-hitter Damion Easley finally broke up the dual shutout. Terry Collins immediately responded with a double-switch, replacing Swindell on the bump with Dave Veres and inserting Derrick May in left field. Tony Phillips skied one a mile high and Orlando Miller settled under it for the first out. Collins summoned the lefty, Dean Hartgraves, to pitch to Edmonds. Another good move, as Edmonds grounded to short and Easley remained anchored to the bag at second. The Astros’ skipper ordered an intentional pass to Tim Salmon. Snow coaxed a base on balls, putting ducks on the pond. Garret Anderson hit a slow roller to Jeff Bagwell to end the threat. Luis Gonzalez, batting for May, crushed a one-out solo shot to right field to knot the score at 1-1 off Halos’ reliever Mike James. Doug Brocail pitched a scoreless eighth for Houston. James rebounded to strike out Bagwell, Bell and Rick Wilkins in succession during the home half of the inning. Spike Owen, batting for James, flared a base hit into left field to open the top of the ninth. Phillips drew a walk but Edmonds whiffed and Salmon popped up to short. Craig Shipley caught Snow’s foul fly and the contest drifted to the bottom of the ninth, tied at 1-1. Troy Percival drilled pinch-hitter John Cangelosi who promptly swiped second. That decision backfired for Houston as it allowed for an intentional walk to Gonzalez. Percival blew away Brian L. Hunter with a blazing heater as he struck out the side. Collins placed another call to the bullpen after Brocail worked a pair of scoreless frames. Todd Jones strolled to the mound to do battle with the lower half of the California batting order. He sandwiched a couple of strikeouts around a medium fly ball to center by Rex Hudler. Percival survived a scare in the bottom of the tenth. Bell took a walk with two outs and pilfered second base. Rick Wilkins drove one deep to center but Edmonds hauled it in at the warning track. In the eleventh, pinch-hitter Tony Eusebio sent Edmonds to the fence with two outs but again the ‘Stros came up just short. Veteran reliever Mike Henneman picked off Chili Davis with two down in the top of the twelfth. California countered with Lee Smith in the home half of the twelfth. The Astros committed their own base running blunder in the bottom of the frame when Hunter was caught stealing second with two down and Bagwell at the dish. Two innings later, the Angels nailed Ricky Gutierrez attempting to pilfer second with two outs. Henneman finally tapped out after putting up three zeroes as Jim Dougherty took the mound in the top of the fifteenth. Salmon legged out an infield hit when Bagwell fielded a grounder in the hole between first and second but Dougherty failed to cover the bag in time. California’s last reserve position player, Jose Lind, batted for John Habyan. He tried to sacrifice Salmon over to second base but popped up to the pitcher. Anderson ripped a single to center and “Kingfish” advanced to third with one away. Hudler lofted a fly ball to center which Hunter caught but he was unable to throw Salmon out as the Angels assumed the lead, 2-1. Mike Bielecki got the call in the bottom of the fifteenth to face Gonzalez followed by the top of the order. He fielded Gonzalez’ dribbler up the third base line and threw him out. DiSarcina made a diving stop of Hunter’s bounding ball up the middle and fired to first in time for the second out. Reviewing the platoon splits again, the Angels’ manager made one more call to the bullpen. Mike Butcher versus Craig Biggio – Butcher carved him up with an inside fastball for strike three! California survived 2-1 in 15 innings and the exhausted teams would lock horns again in less than 24 hours with the World Series trophy hanging in the balance.

Houston struck quickly in the first as staff aces Chuck Finley and Shane Reynolds dueled for the third time in the Series. Brian L. Hunter led off the contest with a clean single to center. He swiped second and advanced to third on Greg Myers’ errant throw. Craig Biggio collected an RBI on a ground out to shortstop. Myers redeemed himself with a two-base knock to start the visitor’s third and he scored on a ground-rule opposite-field double off the bat of Gary DiSarcina. Reynolds bobbled a comebacker by Finley, putting runners at the corners with no outs. Tony Phillips reached on an infield hit to shortstop, scoring DiSarcina. After Jim Edmonds went down on strikes, Tim Salmon’s bloop single down the left field line knocked in Finley and sent Phillips scurrying over to third. J.T. Snow ripped a base hit between first and second. Phillips trotted home but Salmon was cut down at third by a laser peg from Derek Bell. Back-to-back base knocks by Garret Anderson and Rex Hudler sent Reynolds to the showers with the Halos ahead, 5-1. Jim Dougherty was called upon to stop the bleeding as the Houston faithful voiced their displeasure. Myers, batting for the second time in the inning, laced a single over a leaping Biggio to keep the carousel turning. DiSarcina tapped a slow roller to Dougherty, who wheeled and fired to first for the final out of the inning. Snow swatted a solo shot to left field leading off the fifth as the Angels advantage increased to 7-1. Derek Bell doubled in a run and Tony Eusebio hammered a two-run single as the Astros chipped away at the deficit in the home half of the fifth. Craig Shipley drilled a two-bagger and Eusebio evaded the tag to make it 7-5. Mike James relieved Finley and promptly issued a walk to James Mouton. Orlando Miller knotted the score at 7-7 when he slapped a two-run double in the right field corner. The mood in the stadium did a complete 360 as the fans were on their feet and cheering for the ‘Stros again! Pinch-hitter Phil Plantier drew a base on balls but James got Hunter on a fly ball to Edmonds to end the onslaught. Dave Veres entered the contest for Houston and he retired the side in order. Eusebio plated the go-ahead run on a sinking liner to left, scoring Biggio as the Astros assumed the lead, 8-7. Dean Hartgraves twirled a scoreless seventh as the outs ticked away on the Angels’ campaign. Bob Patterson picked off Miller but yielded a two-out triple to Hunter in the bottom of the seventh. Troy Percival walked Biggio and Jeff Bagwell to load the bases but he recovered to induce a ground out to second by Bell to maintain the one-run deficit. Terry Collins called upon Todd Jones to record the final six outs of the season. He pitched a clean eighth inning and stomped off the mound to rile up the crowd. Percival held Houston at bay in the bottom of the eighth. Chili Davis, relegated to pinch-hitting duties in the National League ballpark, went down swinging against Jones to open the ninth. Phillips clubbed Jones’ 1-2 offering deep towards the gap in right-center field. Hunter raced back to the warning track but the ball reached the seats. The crowd sat in stunned disbelief as Phillips circled the bases and touched home plate to knot the score at 8-8! Edmonds laced a single between first and second, bringing “Mr. Angel” to the dish. Salmon stepped into the box and connected on a 1-0 fastball, sending it into orbit towards right-center. Hunter could only watch as the ball easily cleared the wall for a 2-run blast! The Angels dugout erupted in unison while Jones screamed into his glove. Damion Easley, batting for Percival, whacked a single to center. Anderson socked a double to left-center to drive in another run. Collins finally replaced Jones with Doug Brocail. Hudler hit a bounding ball to Bagwell and slid head-first to beat him to the bag. Myers delivered a single to right as Hudler scooted to third and Anderson jogged home for a 12-8 Angels’ advantage. DiSarcina mercifully ended the frame for Houston when he grounded into a 6-4-3 double play. Lee Smith took the mound in an attempt to register the last three outs. Biggio flew out to Salmon at the warning track in right and the Angels stormed the field in celebration of their hard-fought victory! Garret Anderson hit safely in every game and registered 13 hits in 32 at-bats (.406 BA) to secure World Series MVP honors.

World Series Results:

CAL 0 @ HOU 4

CAL 9 @ HOU 10

HOU 3 @ CAL 5

HOU 0 @ CAL 4

HOU 15 @ CAL 5

CAL 2 @ HOU 1 (15)

CAL 12 @ HOU 8

Diamond Mind Baseball (Windows) – Version 12

I purchased Diamond Mind Baseball through the company’s website and downloaded the free DMB Encyclopedia as well. I searched the web for custom / homebrew user-created seasons and located several file repositories:

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/fansofdmb/homebrew-season-repository-with-version-11-files-t5397.html

https://github.com/fishinnabarrel/dmb-homebrew/tree/master/Compilations

For the purposes of this review, I chose the All-Time Greats created by Keith Hemmelman. DMB v12 allows you to import databases from any of the prior Windows versions (v8 through v11) so I followed the instructions to convert the files from version 11 to 12. I selected View – Roster/Manager Profile and then chose the first team on the list (Anaheim Angels). The user is presented with the following tabs: Roster, Pitching, Saved Lineup, Depth Chart, Mgr Tendencies, Player Tendencies and MP Report.

I reviewed the lineups, rotations and relievers preferences for each team and made several adjustments. For the organizational settings I decided to utilize the designated hitter in both leagues but otherwise kept the default rules intact (using the pre-2020 rules for extra innings, for example). I made a backup of the organization and proceeded to play through the schedule one month at a time, modifying the active rosters, lineups and pitching depth charts along the way to account for injuries and ineffectiveness.

All-Star Break

standings (American League)

batting leaders (American League)

pitching leaders (American League)

standings (National League)

batting leaders (National League)

pitching leaders (National League)

Regular Season standings, leaders, etc.

standings (American League)

batting leaders (American League)

pitching leaders (American League)

American League index (Individual, Team Totals, etc.)

standings (National League)

batting leaders (National League)

pitching leaders (National League)

National League index (Individual, Team Totals, etc.)

When the regular season ended, I backed up my files again and prepared for post-season action. DMB permits multiple playoff scenarios and allows the user to configure the contestants for each round, generate the schedule, incorporate planned days off, etc.

The Orioles travelled to New York to battle the Yankees in the American League Wild Card game. Baltimore’s ace Jim Palmer was on the bump for the O’s while the Bronx Bombers countered with “Louisiana Lightning”, Ron Guidry. “Diamond” Jim Gentile put the visitors on the board with a big fly into the right-center field bleachers in the top of the second. Roger Maris laced a laser shot into the lower deck in right to knot the score at 1-1 leading off the home half of the second. The Orioles reclaimed the lead with two outs in the visitor’s third when George Sisler reached on a two-base error by Graig Nettles and scored on a Brady Anderson double. “Joltin’ Joe” DiMaggio clubbed a three-run jack into the stands in left field to stake the Pinstripers to a 4-2 advantage in the bottom of the fourth. Pat Dobson relieved Palmer after “Cakes” yielded back-to-back singles to open the fifth. Following a strikeout of Tony Lazerri, Nettles atoned for his fielding miscue when he crushed a three-run shot into the Yankees’ bullpen to extend the Bombers’ lead to 7-2. Derek Jeter sliced a triple into the right field corner and DiMaggio’s subsequent single registered another tally. Ken Williams got one run back for the O’s with a blast deep into the lower deck of the right field seats to start the top of the sixth. Jeter booted a hot grounder off the bat of Gentile and the Orioles’ capitalized when Cal Ripken Jr. lined a base hit down the left field line for a single. Guidry held an 8-4 advantage as he induced Chris Hoiles to pop up to the “Yankee Clipper” in shallow left-center for the final out of the sixth. Brad Brach was announced as the new pitcher for Baltimore. The right-hander retired nine of the ten Yankees that he faced to keep his team in the game but the O’s still trailed by four runs entering the ninth inning. Ripken Jr. ripped a one-out double up the gap in left-center. “Gator” retired Brooks Robinson on a slow roller to third to secure the victory for the New Yorkers.

The Cardinals and Giants squared off in the National League Wild Card match. Juan Marichal got the nod for the hometown squad while Bob Gibson earned the start for the Redbirds. Willie McCovey broke up the pitcher’s duel in the fourth with a solo blast into the right field seats. The “Dominican Dandy” held the Cards in check until the top of the eighth when pinch-hitter Jesse Burkett led off the frame with a screaming liner that just cleared the wall in right to knot the score at 1-1. Jason Isringhausen replaced “Hoot” on the hill and he retired the Giants in order in the home half of the eighth. Robb Nen entered the contest to commence the top of the ninth. He yielded a one-out single to Mark McGwire and issued a base on balls to Albert Pujols with two away. Joe Medwick tattooed a low, inside heater deep to left field for a three-run bomb! The Cardinals skipper summoned “The Mad Hungarian”, Al Hrabosky, to protect the lead. Buster Posey collected his third hit of the game with two outs, but Jeff Kent grounded out to Rogers Hornsby as the stunned crowd exited the Polo Grounds as the Giants were eliminated from the playoffs.

The Tigers claimed a 5-4 victory in Game 1 of their divisional series. The starting pitchers did not figure in the decision as Justin Verlander and Pedro J. Martinez both failed to make it through 5 innings. Detroit’s backstop Johnny Bassler led off the sixth inning with an opposite-field wallop that easily cleared the Green Monster. Ty Cobb snapped a 5-5 tie in the seventh frame as the Tigers prevailed and returned to Motown with a 2-0 advantage in the series. Boston rebounded with a 4-3 win at Navin Field in Game 3 on the strength of eight solid innings by Cy Young. A slugfest ensued in Game 4 with the score knotted at 11-11 at the end of nine innings. Fred Lynn capped a 5-run outburst by the Sox in the top of the tenth with a grand salami and the visitors sent the series back to Boston with the 16-12 triumph. Verlander bested Martinez 4-2 in the deciding game at Fenway Park.

The Athletics scored in every inning except the fifth as they pummeled the Yankees 14-6 to kick off the other A.L. divisional matchup. Five A’s registered three hits each including Jimmie Foxx. “Double X” contributed a pair of long balls and knocked in six runs. Roger Maris belted two round-trippers and Derek Jeter rapped four safeties in a losing effort. New York dug a deeper hole as the Athletics battered Jack Chesbro (6 IP, 15 ER), calling the Yankees’ decision to carry only nine hurlers in the short series into question.  Rickey Henderson and Reggie Jackson launched two homers each and five A’s recorded 3 RBI. Dave Stewart pitched into the ninth inning and Dennis Eckersley notched the save as Philadelphia swept New York to advance to the A.L. Championship Series with a convincing 7-4 win over Lefty Gomez.

Wrigley Field served as a launching pad for the Braves in their Game 1 triumph over the Cubbies as the squad clubbed seven circuit clouts including two apiece by Chipper Jones and Javy Lopez. Chicago evened their series with a 7-4 decision. Both teams swatted four big-flies apiece but John Clarkson went the distance for Chi-Town. Chipper Jones’ fourth inning single was the lone knock against Jake Arrieta as the Cubs assumed a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series with an 8-0 whitewashing. John Smoltz whiffed seven in 8 2/3 innings of work while Lopez produced 3 two-baggers, a tater and 4 RBI to keep the Braves’ hopes alive in a 9-2 drubbing of the Cubs. Greg Maddux twirled a complete game and racked up 8 strikeouts as Boston defeated Chicago 10-2 in the fifth and final contest in the divisional round.

Stan “The Man” Musial racked up three hits and Mark McGwire went yard in the opening tilt between the Cardinals and the Dodgers at Ebbets Field. Duke Snider connected on a two-run, walk-off shot to right field off Jason Isringhausen to knot the series at one game apiece. McGwire drilled a game-ending dinger off Hung-Chih Kuo, one of four circuit clouts for the Redbirds in Game 3 as St. Louis outlasted Brooklyn, 7-6. Bob “Hoot” Gibson outpitched Dazzy Vance and the Dodgers at Sportman’s Park to propel the Cardinals into the N.L. Championship round.

A’s southpaw Mark Mulder scattered 10 hits over 8 innings in the opening game of the American League Championship Series as Philadelphia cruised to a 10-2 victory over Detroit. “Bucketfoot” Al Simmons contributed a pair of long-distance dedications and drove in 4 runs. The second match was tied 4-4 going into the ninth when the Athletics cobbled together 3 hits and a couple of bases on balls against Tigers’ closer John Hiller. Dennis Eckersley allowed one tally in the bottom of the ninth but preserved the 6-5 triumph. Detroit handed Philadelphia their first playoff defeat in Game 3. Miguel Cabrera clubbed a game-tying two-run jack in the eighth. The Tigers scratched out a run in the eleventh and the trio of Frank Lary, Mark Fidrych and John Hiller flummoxed the A’s with 8 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. The word “slugfest” fails to adequately describe Game 4 at Shibe Park as the Motor City Kitties outlasted the Athletics by a final score of 27-24 in 14 innings! Hank Greenberg cranked three long balls in a 5-for-7 effort while plating 9 baserunners. Both teams emptied their respective bullpens and ended up using the projected Game 5 starters, forcing them to shuffle their rotations. Cecil Fielder mashed a 3-run tater as Denny McLain and Willie Hernandez bested Mark Mulder and the Athletics 4-3 as Detroit assumed a 3-2 advantage in the series. The action returned to Navin Field but the hometown crowd fell silent when “Double X” Jimmie Foxx annihilated a John Hiller offering with two outs in the eighth inning of Game 6. The two-run bomb propelled Philadelphia to a 4-3 triumph as Catfish Hunter earned the victory and Keith Foulke notched the save with two hitless frames. “Prince” Hal Newhouser twirled a four-hit shutout in Game 7 to send the Motown squad to the World Series. Cecil Fielder’s two-RBI base knock capped a three-run uprising against Philadelphia ace Lefty Grove and the Tigers never looked back on the road to a decisive 4-0 victory in the finale.

St. Louis trailed 9-6 heading into the top of the ninth in Game 1 of the NLCS, but the Braves bullpen imploded as Craig Kimbrel and John Rocker yielded 5 hits and a walk en route to a 10-9 defeat. Redbirds’ third-sacker Joe Torre plated the go-ahead run on a two-out infield single. Hugh Duffy rapped four extra-base hits including a solo homer as Boston prevailed 9-3 to even the series at one game apiece. St. Louis second-sacker Rogers Hornsby registered a 5-hit effort in Game 3 including a couple of four-base knocks as the Cards cruised to a 9-3 triumph. John Tudor contributed 8 innings of 6-hit ball. Greg Maddux and Bob Gibson locked horns in a pitcher’s duel in the fourth contest. Jim Edmonds coaxed a leadoff walk against “Mad Dog” in the ninth. Craig Kimbrel entered the game and yielded a base on balls followed by back-to-back singles to Joe Medwick and Yadier Molina as Boston suffered their third loss in the series. Kid Nichols hurled a 5-hit complete game and Wally Berger recorded 3 hits including a dinger and 5 RBI as the Braves routed the Cardinals, 15-1 to keep Boston’s hopes alive. In Game 6 the Braves were on the brink of elimination, trailing 4-1 entering the home half of the ninth. Al “The Mad Hungarian” Hrabosky served up a three-run clout to Javy Lopez and Jason Isringhausen surrendered a two-run walkoff wallop off the bat of Dale Murphy as Boston survived, 6-4. John Tudor and John Smoltz pitched seven innings of three-run ball but both skippers turned the game over to their respective bullpens in the eighth frame. Fred “Crime Dog” McGriff hammered the game-winner, a two-run opposite-field clout off Isringhausen in the bottom of the eighth. Craig Kimbrel retired Willie McGee on a liner to left fielder Rico Carty to seal the deal as the Braves prevailed 5-3 and advanced to the World Series. 

Boston and Detroit lined up their respective aces, Greg Maddux and Justin Verlander, to start the opener in the final round. After the pre-game festivities concluded, Detroit promptly registered the first run of the contest on back-to-back doubles by Sam Crawford and Hank Greenberg. Tommy Holmes rocked a two-bagger off the base of the right field wall, moved to third on a wild pitch by Verlander and scored easily on a slow roller off the bat of Henry Aaron to tie the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the first. Crawford cracked another two-bagger with one away in the visitor’s sixth and Greenberg slapped a single into right field to plate the go-ahead run. “JV” was in cruise control until two outs in the seventh when Bobby Lowe sent a curveball high and deep over the fence in right for a solo shot to even the score at 2-2. Hugh Duffy hammered a long fly to left-center that soared over the wall leading off the home half of the eighth as the Braves assumed the lead, 3-2. Craig Kimbrel fanned two of the three Tigers he faced in the ninth to secure the save.

Denny McLain got the nod in Game 2 for Detroit while Boston countered with Charles “Kid” Nichols. Hugh Duffy led off the bottom of the first with a single, swiped second and came around on a base hit by Chipper Jones. The Tigers battled back to tie the game in the top of the second when Norm Cash laced a double off Eddie Mathews’ glove and later scored on an Alan Trammell sacrifice fly. Jones drove in his second run of the contest with a two-out double in the home half of the frame as Herman Long sprinted around the base paths and dove in safely just under the tag by Bill Freehan. The Braves suffered a severe blow when Hank Aaron was injured running out a grounder to first. Fred McGriff replaced “Hammer” on defense in the top of the fourth. Trammell laced a two-out knock to plate Norm Cash as Detroit evened the score again. Wally Berger and Brian McCann belted back-to-back jacks to center off McLain with two gone in the sixth as Boston reclaimed the lead, 4-2. McLain served up a gopher ball to Long leading off the seventh. The Tigers’ skipper made the move to the bullpen, summoning Frank Lary to face the top of the order for the Bostonians. Duffy greeted the right-hander with a double and trotted home on a triple off the bat of Tommy Holmes. Jones hit a little dribbler up the first base line. Hank Greenberg hoped it would roll foul but the ball came to a stop in fair territory. Holmes crossed home plate effortlessly and the Braves extended their advantage to 7-2. Detroit had failed to record an out in the inning as the heart of the Boston order eagerly took their practice swings. Lary settled down and induced a pair of fly outs to right, but Berger blasted one out to deep left-center. Mark Fidrych, the third Tigers’ hurler to take the mound in the seventh, mercifully got McCann on a ground out to shortstop to end the frame with his club trailing 9-2. Buzz Capra entered after Nichols issued a free pass to Sam Crawford to begin the eighth inning. Greenberg grounded into a double play but Cash deposited one deep into the right-field seats. Cobb legged out a three-base hit in the visitor’s ninth to cut the Braves’ lead to 9-4 but Capra got Harry Heilmann on a two-hopper to third for the final out.

The series shifted to Motown and “The Georgia Peach” was determined to make his presence known. He led off the bottom of the first with a base knock, swiped second and third on consecutive pitches, and then dashed home on a Harry Heilmann grounder to the right side of the infield to give Detroit the 1-0 lead.  Cobb drove John Smoltz to distraction in the third to generate the Tigers’ second run of the ballgame. After reaching first on a fielder’s choice, he safely stole second despite a pitchout by the Braves. The home plate umpire called a balk on Smoltz, moving Cobb up ninety feet. Heilmann laced a single to left to complete the sequence. The Motor City Kitties proceeded to load the bases on a ground-rule double off the bat of “Wahoo” Sam Crawford and a free pass to Hank Greenberg. Smoltz dug in, reached back for a little extra, and whiffed Norm Cash for the final out to keep the Braves’ deficit at two. Johnny Bassler rapped a base hit to start the fifth frame for the Bengals and Cobb drove him in with a three-bagger up the right-center field gap. Heilmann plated Cobb with a sharp line drive past a diving Eddie Mathews. The Braves’ pen began to stir with their club trailing by four tallies but “Smoltzie” escaped the threat without any further damage. Detroit scratched across another run in the sixth on consecutive base hits by Miguel Cabrera and Charlie Gehringer followed by an error by Mathews and a a fielder’s choice. Phil Niekro replaced Smoltz as the menacing Cobb peered in from the on-deck circle. Boston’s skipper wisely elected to issue a free pass with first base open. “Knucksie” got Heilmann to fly out to left field. Meanwhile “Prince” Hal Newhouser was dominating the opposition, yielding only a pair of safeties through seven frames. The Tigers tacked on three runs in the seventh against Niekro, so Boston summoned right-hander Johnny Sain for a mop-up appearance. Jeff Blauser slashed an RBI double up the alley in right-center to end Newhouser’s bid for a shutout. Hugh Duffy and Rico Carty followed with successive infield hits, plating Blauser to make it an 8-2 game. Alan Trammell botched an easy grounder by Chipper Jones to load the bases for the Braves. Willie Hernandez relieved Newhouser and got Javy Lopez on a high chopper to the “Mechanical Man”, Gehringer, to retire the side. Boston began the top of the ninth with three straight hits off Hernandez including a two-bagger by Dale Murphy to cut the Tigers’ advantage to 8-3. John Hiller entered the contest as the hometown fans tried to spur their ball club to victory. Murphy raced home and Fred McGriff moved up to second on Davey Johnson’s worm-burner to shortstop. Pinch-hitter Bobby Lowe flew out to Cobb for out number two, but Duffy ripped a single up the middle to pick up McGriff for Boston’s fifth run. Hiller’s full count delivery to pinch-hitter Wally Berger caught too much of the plate and it sailed over the left field fence for a two-run dinger! Chipper Jones strolled to the plate with a chance to tie the score. He lofted a can of corn to center… Cobb settled under it and made the catch, and the Tigers’ fans breathed a collective sigh as the club barely held on for an 8-7 triumph.

Detroit was aggressive on the base paths early in Game 4. Ty Cobb cracked a single off Tom Glavine in the bottom of the first and Harry Heilmann walked. The Tigers executed the double steal to perfection against Glavine and his battery-mate Javy Lopez. Sam Crawford’s slow roller to short allowed Cobb to score easily from third. In the second frame, Cobb lined a two-out single to left and Charlie Gehringer barely evaded Lopez’ tag at home as Detroit added to their lead. Mickey Lolich grooved a four-seamer to Eddie Mathews who deposited the ball deep in the right-field seats to knot the score at 2-2 in the third. One inning later Wally Berger laced a single up the middle and Jeff Blauser just beat Cobb’s rifle throw from center as Boston assumed the 3-2 advantage. Gehringer commenced the home half of the fourth with a two-base knock to deep right-center and Alan Trammell followed with a shallow single to left, placing runners on first and third with no outs. Dale Murphy gloved Bill Freehan’s lazy fly ball to right but subsequently fell down, allowing the “Mechanical Man” to tag up and score without a play at the plate. Lopez crushed a long ball after Mathews walked leading off the fifth, putting the Braves back on top 5-3. That was the final straw for Lolich’s outing as the Tigers’ skipper summoned Frank Lary from the bullpen. Cecil Fielder smoked a hot grounder to Blauser in the bottom of the fifth for an infield hit, scoring Hank Greenberg and cutting the Boston lead to one run. Glavine hit the showers after issuing a free pass to Gehringer to load the bases. Gene Garber got the call in the perilous situation. Trammell sliced the ball towards the right field corner. Murphy made the catch but Miguel Cabrera tallied the tying run on the sacrifice fly and Fielder moved up to third. Freehan grounded out to second but the match was again even at 5-5. Ralph Garr, batting for Blauser, ripped a double down the right-field line to start the sixth. Lary buckled down and retired the top of the Boston order. Niekro ceded the mound to John Rocker after yielding a walk to Gehringer and a single to Trammell to begin the home eighth. Norm Cash, batting for Freehan, sent one to the warning track in left. Berger snagged it but Gehringer tagged up and advanced to third. Boston elected to issue an intentional walk to “The Georgia Peach”. The sacks were juiced for Heilmann with one out and the go-ahead run standing only ninety feet away from home plate. “Slug” hammered a two-base knock to the right-center field gap, plating all three Detroit baserunners as the hometown team took command of the ballgame, 8-5. “Wahoo Sam” lashed a liner over the mound and into center field to drive in another run. Willie Hernandez held the Braves in check for two innings and remained on the bump to start the visitor’s ninth. After a one-out base on balls to Chipper Jones, Detroit elected to bring Jim Bunning into the contest. He whiffed Mathews and got Lopez on a three-hopper to Gehringer for the final out as the Tigers picked up their second straight victory to even the series at 2-2.

Norm Cash clubbed a solo circuit clout in the bottom of the second off Greg Maddux to put Detroit on the scoreboard in Game 5. The Tigers loaded the bases with no outs in the third on a single, walk and a fielding error by Bobby Lowe. Harry Heilmann ripped a single to center to plate one run. “Mad Dog” buckled down and escaped further damage with an assist from Tommy Holmes, who gunned down Johnny Bassler when the Tigers’ backstop tried to tag up and score on Hank Greenberg’s fly ball to right. In the fourth inning, Charlie Gehringer lined a two-base hit up the gap in right-center, plating Cash with Detroit’s third run. Boston finally got to Verlander with four successive singles to open the seventh. Fred McGriff registered the first tally but Wally Berger was cut down at home when Bassler blocked the plate upon receiving the throw from Heilmann. Hugh Duffy stepped to the dish and promptly connected on a three-run shot with silenced the hometown crowd and put the Bostonians ahead, 4-3! That signaled the end of Verlander’s outing as Jim Bunning was summoned from the ‘pen. He retired Holmes on a ground out to Greenberg and then proceeded to load the bases on a Chipper Jones double followed by a throwing error by third baseman Miguel Cabrera and a hit by pitch. Luckily for the Tigers’ faithful, the right-hander froze Fred McGriff on an inside fastball to get out of the jam with Detroit only trailing by a lone run. Maddux left the contest in favor of John Rocker. The fire-balling left-hander whiffed a pair of Tigers in the seventh. Boston added to their lead on a two-out line drive single to center by Holmes. Ty Cobb pegged Herman Long attempting to advance from first to third, the second Braves’ baserunner to be snuffed out on the base paths in the last two frames. The Tigers came roaring back after Gene Garber relieved Rocker with one down in the eighth. Gehringer and Alan Trammell rapped back-to-back doubles to narrow Boston’s lead to 5-4. Bassler’s single to shallow center placed runners on the corners with two away. Detroit knotted the score at 5-5 when Garber uncorked a wild pitch while battling Cobb. Boston’s skipper elected to walk “The Georgia Peach” and then he called upon Buzz Capra to deal with Heilmann. Eddie Mathews backhanded a hot smash off Heilmann’s bat, whirled and threw to second base for the force out. John Hiller opened the visitor’s ninth and Jones greeted him with a blast to the left field warning track which was snared by “Wahoo” Sam Crawford. Hiller walked Mathews but got two more fly ball outs to retire the side. Crawford was injured trying to leg out an infield hit leading off the bottom of the ninth. Craig Kimbrel jogged in from the bullpen to relieve Capra. Greenberg reached on an error by Long and shocked everyone when he swiped second. However, this allowed Boston to walk the left-handed hitting Cash in favor of Cabrera. Kimbrel won the battle, striking out “Miggy” and getting the “Mechanical Man” on a pop-up to Mathews. Al Kaline replaced Crawford in right field and the game proceeded into extra innings. Berger strolled to the plate, dug up and walloped a deep fly into the left-field seats leading off the top of the tenth. Kimbrel remained on the hill in the bottom of the tenth as Detroit sent Al Wingo up as a pinch-hitter for Trammell. Wingo drilled a base knock past a diving stab by Bobby Lowe. Lou Whitaker batted for Bassler and hit into a fielder’s choice for the first out. Cobb’s liner to right sent “Sweet Lou” scurrying to third. Kimbrel appeared to be tiring so Johnny Sain came into the contest with runners on first and third, one out and a very tenuous 6-5 lead. Heilmann smacked a liner back to the box. It ricocheted off Sain and bounced over to Mathews, but he had no play. Whitaker scored and the game was tied 6-6! The potential winning run was perched at second base and Kaline sauntered from the on-deck circle to the batters’ box for his first at-bat of the day. He flared a little liner over second base and Duffy quickly raced in to grab it on one hop. Cobb tried to score but Duffy’s throw beat him to the plate and Lopez applied the tag! Sain still had to contend with Greenberg with runners on first and second, two out. “Hammerin’ Hank” worked the count full before whiffing on a breaking ball. Dale Murphy, batting for Holmes, lined a single between first and second to start the eleventh. Hitting from the right side against Hiller, Jones followed with an opposite-field hit to set the Braves up with first-and-third, nobody out. Mathews coaxed a base on balls to load ‘em up. Frank Lary got the call and struck out Javy Lopez with the sacks juiced. “Crime Dog” lofted a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Murphy and sending Jones to third. Berger grounded into a force play. Cash walked to commence the bottom of the eleventh. George Kell pinch-ran and dashed to third on Cabrera’s base knock to left-center. Gehringer reached on an infield hit as Kell scored. Detroit was in the driver’s seat with runners on first and second with nobody out. Phil Niekro, Boston’s last arm in the bullpen, was called upon to prevent his team from being swept at Navin Field. “Knucksie” froze Wingo with a floater for out # 1. Tigers’ backstop Bill Freehan hit a lazy fly ball to right fielder Murphy and then Niekro completed his Houdini act by inducing Cobb to pop up to Mathews. Ralph Garr, batting for Lowe, tapped a little dribbler in front of home plate and beat the throw from Freehan for an infield hit leading off the visitor’s half of the twelfth frame. Mark “The Bird” Fidrych relieved Lary. The “Roadrunner” was erased on a fielder’s choice as Long narrowly avoided rapping into a double play. Duffy split the gap in left for a two-bagger and the relay was just a tad late as Long slid into home with the go-ahead run. Murphy muscled a base hit into right but Kaline nailed Duffy at the dish, the third baserunner kill for Detroit in the game, to keep the score at 8-7. Cobb dropped Jones’ liner to center but Murphy inexplicably held up initially at second and failed to score on the play. Mathews made the play academic when he slashed a two-run triple to the wall in left-center, plating Murphy and Jones to give the Braves a 10-7 cushion. Detroit’s manager slowly walked to the mound to get Fidrych as Willie Hernandez jogged in from the bullpen. Lopez unloaded on Hernandez’s first offering. Cobb just turned and watched as the ball landed in the center field bleachers, over 464 feet away from home plate! Detroit fans sat in disbelief as their club imploded while the chance to take a commanding lead in the World Series disintegrated. McGriff mercifully flew out to Kaline. Niekro retired the side in order as the Braves prevailed by a final score of 12-7. The teams headed back to Beantown with the World Series outcome in the balance.

Detroit came out swinging in Game 6 as Ty Cobb and Harry Heilmann delivered consecutive singles of Kid Nichols before the crowd settled into their seats. Al Kaline, replacing the injured Sam Crawford in right field along with the coveted third slot in the batting order, slapped an infield hit to load the bases. “Hammerin’ Hank” Greenberg lifted a shallow pop fly to the shortstop Herman Long for the first out. Norm Cash coaxed a base on balls, forcing in the first run of the contest. Miguel Cabrera sliced a long fly to the warning track in right, just missing a grand slam. Heilmann tagged up and scored while Kaline advanced to third. Charlie Gehringer ripped a single through the hole in the right side of the infield and the Braves’ bullpen became a beehive of activity as a “3” went up on the scoreboard for the visiting club. Alan Trammell grounded out to second and Nichols remained in the game by a thread. Hugh Duffy lofted a high pop fly down the right field line. Gehringer raced back and nearly made a spectacular grab but the ball clinked off his glove at the last moment and Duffy was credited with a double. Chipper Jones laced a single through the left side to drive in Duffy. Greenberg walloped a four-bagger leading off the top of the third inning as Detroit extended their advantage to 4-1. Phil Niekro got the nod after Nichols issued a free pass to Cobb to start the fourth. “The Georgia Peach” tried to swipe second base but a strong throw by Brian McCann combined with a sweet scoop and tag by Bobby Lowe cut him down. Heilmann followed with a single and Kaline crushed a two-run shot over the left field wall as the Tigers took a 6-1 lead. “Knucksie” yielded a walk to Greenberg along with back-to-back safeties by Cabrera and Gehringer as the Tigers’ lumber crew continued to mash the Braves’ offerings. The Boston skipper reluctantly trudged to the mound, took the ball from Niekro and handed it over to Johnny Sain. Trammell’s high chopper to Lowe mercifully ended the inning. The home team capitalized on an error by the Tigers’ shortstop which allowed Eddie Mathews to safely reach base leading off the bottom of the seventh. McLain served up a two-run gopher ball to the red-hot Wally Berger as Boston crept within striking distance at 7-3. Fred “Crime Dog” McGriff made it back-to-back jacks with a long fly over the wall in center, ending McLain’s night earlier than he anticipated. Detroit made the call to the ‘pen and Jim Bunning trotted to the mound. He retired the next three Braves in order. The Motor City Kitties called upon Mark Fidrych to pitch in the eighth with a three-run lead. Jones dialed long-distance with a solo blast to right-center with two away in the inning to cut the Tigers’ lead to 7-5. Buzz Capra relieved Sain (4 1/3 scoreless innings of relief) after a leadoff walk to Cash to begin the visitor’s ninth. Cabrera was looking to add to his three knocks but the submarine-throwing Capra induced “Miggy” to rap into a 4-6-3 double play. “The Bird” returned to his perch atop the mound as the home ninth got underway. Berger grilled Fidrych’s 2-0 offering to left-center and Heilmann just turned and watch the ball soar over the fence. Boston now trailed by a lone run. McGriff rocked one to deep center but Cobb flagged it down for out #1. McCann hit a worm burner to Trammell for the second out and Fidrych caught pinch-hitter Dale Murphy looking on a 2-2 fastball on the inside corner. Detroit collectively exhaled as the squad held on for a 7-6 triumph. The Series would be decided in 24 hours.

The pesky Ty Cobb was up to his usual antics in Game 7. He worked a walk against John Smoltz leading off the contest and nabbed second. Taunting Smoltz on every pitch, Cobb zoomed around the bases on Hank Greenberg’s sharp single to right as Detroit struck first. “Smoltzie” appeared to be rattled as he hung a curveball to Norm Cash that was promptly deposited into the right-field seats for a two-run dinger. Boston wasted no time in responding as Tom Glavine and Buzz Capra began to loosen up in the bullpen. Miguel Cabrera hit a lazy fly ball to left for the third out but the Braves had their work cut out for them. “Prince Hal” Newhouser allowed a pair of baserunners but escaped the first frame with a zero on the scoreboard. Smoltz settled in and retired the bottom of the lineup in order. In the home half of the second with one away, Fred McGriff legged out a three-bagger that landed in the right-center field gap and rolled all the way to the wall. Davey Johnson drilled a hard grounder through the left side for an RBI base knock – his first hit of the Series. Smoltz plunked Cobb with an 0-2 fastball to commence the third inning. Al Kaline singled to left after Harry Heilmann whiffed and then Greenberg took a free pass to load the bases. Tom Glavine relieved Smoltz with the lefty Cash due up. Boston fans were up in arms when the umpire called “ball four” to Cash which forced in a run. The hometown team trailed 4-1 and the bags were full of Bengals. “Miggy” took care of that with a liner past a diving Eddie Mathews and into the left field corner, scoring a pair to give Detroit a 6-1 advantage. Charlie Gehringer belted the next offering from Glavine high and deep over the center field fence for a three-run blast, and the rout was on! The Braves’ faithful vehemently booed as the manager marched briskly to the mound to remove Glavine in favor of Capra. Alan Trammell rudely welcomed the right-hander with a loud triple up the gap in left-center. Cobb produced a two-out single to left. Trammell trotted home easily with the Tigers’ tenth run but “The Georgia Peach” hurt himself on the play and Detroit replaced him on the base paths with Al Wingo. Heilmann crushed a triple to the opposite field as Wingo scampered around the bags to register the eighth run in the inning as the Tigers took an 11-1 lead! Kaline finally ended the frame with a fly out to left but the Boston faithful were stunned by the outburst. Newhouser issued back-to-back walks with one out in the third and the “Mechanical Man” botched a routine grounder to put ducks on the pond. The southpaw buckled down and whiffed Javy Lopez and McGriff to escape the jam. Gehringer swatted a two-run big fly in the top of the fourth to extend the Tigers’ advantage to 13-1. Phil Niekro was summoned in the fifth for some mop-up work. “Hammerin’ Hank” Greenberg clouted a two-run job of his own off “Knucksie”. Three batters later, Gehringer blooped a single to center for his sixth RBI of the day. Trammell collected his third hit and drove in another run as Detroit now led 17-1. Bill Freehan joined the hit parade and Gehringer slid in under the tag for another tally. The Tigers batted around again and Niekro’s 37^th pitch of the inning retired Wingo on a ground out to second. Gene Garber hurled a scoreless sixth for the Braves and the fans reacted with sarcastic applause. Detroit’s skipper removed Newhouser after five innings and nine strikeouts. Frank Lary walked McGriff and yielded a single that ticked off Kaline’s glove, allowing the “Crime Dog” to dash over to third. Pinch-hitter Herman Long rapped into a fielder’s choice as McGriff safely touched home plate to cut the deficit to 16. Hugh Duffy drew a base on balls which ended Lary’s stint on the hill in favor of Mark Fidrych. Cabrera made a nice play on Wally Berger’s high chopper to third and Rico Carty lifted a routine fly to left. Trammell whacked an RBI double in the seventh. John Rocker replaced Garber in the eighth and gave up a triple off the bat of Heilmann. Kaline drove in Detroit’s 20^th run of the game with an RBI groundout to shortstop. Berger’s bloop single off John Hiller in the home half of the eighth plated a pair. The Tigers’ manager finally unloaded his bench in the ninth. Carlos Guillen coaxed a walk by John Rocker. Craig Kimbrel came on and surrendered a single to pinch-hitter “Sweet” Lou Whitaker and a sacrifice fly by Trammell. Hiller put the final nail in the coffin, setting Boston down quietly in the ninth to complete the absolutely crushing 21-4 defeat. Detroit reveled in the middle of the diamond. Charlie Gehringer (.467/2/11) accepted the World Series MVP trophy. In a losing effort Wally Berger batted .462 with 6 round-trippers and 12 RBI.

Playoff Results

AL Wild Card – BAL 4 @ NYA 8

NL Wild Card – SLN 4 @ NYN 1

AL Divisional Round – NYA(4th seed) @ PHA(1st seed)

1 – NYA 6 @ PHA 14

2 – NYA 8 @ PHA 18

3 – PHA 7 @ NYA 4

AL Divisional Round – DET(3rd seed) @ BSA(2nd seed)

1 – DET 5 @ BSA 4

2 – DET 6 @ BSA 5

3 – BSA 4 @ DET 3

4 – BSA 16 @ DET 12 (10)

5 – DET 4 @ BSA 2

NL Divisional Round – SLN(4th seed) @ BRK(1st seed)

1 – SLN 5 @ BRK 4

2 – SLN 2 @ BRK 4

3 – BRK 6 @ SLN 7

4 – BRK 2 @ SLN 3

NL Divisional Round – BSN(3rd seed) @ CHC(2nd seed)

1 – BSN 12 @ CHN 7

2 – BSN 4 @ CHN 7

3 – CHN 8 @ BSN 0

4 – CHN 2 @ BSN 9

5 – BSN 10 @ CHN 2

AL Divisional Round – DET(3rd seed) @ PHA(1st seed)

1 – PHA 10 @ DET 3

2 – PHA 6 @ DET 5

3 – DET 6 @ PHA 5 (11)

4 – DET 27 @ PHA 24 (14)

5 – DET 4 @ PHA 3

6 – PHA 4 @ DET 3

7 – PHA 0 @ DET 4

NL Divisional Round – SLN(4th seed) @ BSN(3rd seed)

1 – SLN 10 @ BSN 9

2 – SLN 3 @ BSN 9

3 – BSN 3 @ SLN 9

4 – BSN 2 @ SLN 3

5 – BSN 15 @ SLN 1

6 – SLN 4 @ BSN 6

7 – SLN 3 @ BSN 5

World Series – DET(3rd seed) vs. BSN(3rd seed)

1 – DET 2 @ BSN 3

2 – DET 4 @ BSN 9

3 – BSN 7 @ DET 8

4 – BSN 5 @ DET 9

5 – BSN 12 @ DET 7 (12)

6 – DET 7 @ BSN 6

7 – DET 21 @ BSN 4

Note – ratings below for Diamond Mind Baseball 12 – deduct 1 point for Pursue the Pennant 5 / Diamond Mind Baseball 6 (1 point for graphics)

Ratings

Graphics – [2] – The DOS versions of Diamond Mind Baseball are strictly text-based while the Windows editions include the ability to import ballpark images. The DOS editions display the pertinent game information using white text on a blue background by default (you can change this in the setup options). The game screen is divided into eight sections. The batting team’s lineup and current batter’s statistics consume two boxes in the upper left corner. The mid-left square serves three different purposes: offensive and defensive play selection, followed by the play-by-play commentary. A small rectangle in the upper right notifies the manager(s) of any bullpen activity. A large box in the middle-right displays the defensive alignment and the corresponding fielding ratings for those individuals. The bottom slice of the screen shows the defensive and offensive strategy choices (during the play-by-play commentary), scoreboard, and balls/strikes/outs. The Windows editions are a slight variation on the same theme. The center of the screen contains (from top to bottom): the scoreboard, offense/defense/play-by-play results, and a field diagram with the defensive players and ratings. The user can toggle between visitor/home lineups and visitor/home reserves in the left column while the right side reveals batter and pitcher “stat cards”. At the top left corner of the screen below the menu bar, you can choose between the Main (game view), Boxscore, Scoresheet and Game Log. DMB 12 allows the user to customize the font size along with the text, highlight and background colors for the various game screen sections.

Sound – [1] – There are no sound effects in Diamond Mind Baseball.

Strategy – [5] – In addition to specifying a human or computer manager for a particular game, you have four granular options: starting lineups, substitutions, game tactics, running/throwing. For example, I can choose for both teams to have a human manager with regards to selecting the starting lineup, but the computer can handle the other tasks for one or both teams. Defensive options are comprised of normal, infield in, in at the corners, guard lines, hold runner and play behind runner. Defensive shifting is not implemented as of version 12. Offensive strategies encompass the typical options: swing away, bunt, hit and run, steal. However the bunt play contains several nuances. If you opt to bunt with no runners on base it automatically becomes a bunt for a hit attempt. If there is a runner on third (but a non-bases loaded situation) the manager is asked whether or not to send the runner from third home. A “yes” response increases the risk if the batter is unable to make contact with the ensuing pitch. DMB prompts the user to update their defensive lineup after substituting for a batter in the previous inning. You can also toggle the bullpen warm-up rule on or off depending on your preferences. If selected, the user must choose to warm up a pitcher and wait for two at-bats before that pitcher’s status changes to “Ready”, otherwise the reliever may be ineffective for the first batter or two that he faces. A pitcher that is warmed up more than four times in a game will become “Tired”. This forces the manager to prepare for the possibility of using a pitcher before visiting the mound and replacing the current hurler.

Artificial Intelligence – [5] – The computer manager conducted player substitution and strategic moves accurately. Diamond Mind Baseball provides a complex weather modeling system which you may wish to incorporate in your replays. If you choose to utilize this option, the weather can influence the offensive levels, pitcher fatigue and plays on the field (players slipping or mishandling a wet ball). Hurlers may not return after a long rain delay. The forecast will affect the opening/closing of the roof in ballparks with a retractable roof. The attention to detail is extremely evident once you’ve completed several series and peruse the game logs and scoresheets. Pitcher fatigue, injuries, percentage of events that occur based on the era and ballpark all play a major role in Diamond Mind’s ability to accurately simulate a baseball game or an entire season.  The latest version features recent MLB rule changes and regulations, allowing the user to implement no-pitch intentional walks, the extra-inning “ghost” runner, home plate collision rule and limit the ability to move position players into pitching roles. You may also specify the minimum number of days that injured batters and pitchers must remain out of action while spending time on the injured list. DMB 12 also includes a “Netplay” option which enables head-to-head play with another DMB user over the Internet. This requires both participants to be running the same version of DMB on their computers and a bit of local firewall configuration.

Box Score – [5] – PTP/DMB offered one of the best box score options in the 1990’s and the current version maintains this level of excellence. DMB 6 introduced the ability to view a newspaper-style box or an expanded box score. Scoresheets allow the user to view detailed play-by-play information. You can elect whether you wish to save box scores, game logs and scoresheets when you configure your league in version 12 (DMB 6 only permits storing of box scores).

Rosters – [5] – Flexibility is the key to roster management in any game. DMB 6 introduced the Trade function and the capability of track combined and team-specific statistics for each player.  Every franchise can accommodate up to 60 players on their rosters. You can add free agents, release players, promote to the active roster or move a player to the farm (minor league) team. The current version of DMB adds the ability to place an individual on the Injured List and activate those players when they become healthy enough to contribute to the ball club. The Draft function in later editions grants the capacity to create entire leagues from scratch or a conduct a partial draft in which teams carry a number of players over from a previous season and the balance are selected from the draft pool. You can trade draft picks, add optional (supplemental) picks, undo an incorrect selection, save a draft in progress and generate reports.

Statistics – [5] – Twenty different report types and nearly 100 standard reports are included in DMB 12. Additionally the user can customize the reports and save the configuration for future report generation. You can select from the actual (real-life) statistics or the results generated during a season replay. Depending on the report type, you can toggle through various tabs such as primary, secondary, analytical, vs RHP / vs LHP (for batters) and start / relief (for pitchers). Users can generate an entire website for their league reports with DMB 12. The DOS-based versions allow you to print the output or save reports to disk.

Usage/Injuries/Ejections – [5] – The injury rule can be configured for one of three possible choices: None, Random and Injury Rating. “Random” does not take a player’s injury rating into account. Ejections can occur during games and you will be prompted to substitute for the player(s) who were tossed from the contest. Player usage can be managed in several ways. Manager profiles allow you to place limits on position player and pitchers to ensure that they don’t exceed their real-life at-bats or innings.

Ballparks / Park Factors – [5] – A very detailed accounting of each ballpark is possible with DMB. Version 12 accommodates some additional aspects such as city name, time zone, universal ID, image file name (you can provide your own 600×600 JPEG ballpark images). DMB 6 and 12 both incorporate general and physical data such as the park name, stadium type (outdoor/dome/both), surface (grass/artificial turf), amount of foul territory, distance and fence height. Weather patterns encompassing rain frequency, average temperature and wind speed, and fluctuations during the season further enhance the realism as do the park factors based on right- and left-handed rates for singles, doubles, triples and home runs.  

Commentary – [3] – I feel like the play-by-play is not as descriptive and imaginative as some of the competition in the text-based gaming genre. It gets the job done but doesn’t paint a picture in your mind’s eye. Here’s an example of the play-by-play in DMB 12: “here’s Hugh Duffy again.. one hit so far today.. the infield at double play depth.. 3-2, Verlander comes home.. Duffy hits one well to left and that ball is outta here.. a good fifteen feet over the wall! A home run for Duffy! Duffy is 2 for 4 with 1 HR, 3 RBI. SCORING: HR.3-H;1-H.”

Scale:  Ratings from 1 (worst) to 5 (best)

Pursue the Pennant / Diamond Mind Baseball (DOS) – Total Score: 40 out of 50

Diamond Mind Baseball (Windows) – Total Score: 41 out of 50

Observations

The Diamond Mind Baseball series excels in almost every phase of the game. The attention to detail and amount of research that Tom Tippett and company poured into this product over the years is clearly evident. My lone nitpick is that the commentary could use some more flavor. I highly recommend Diamond Mind Baseball if you are a fan of text-based simulations and are looking to squeeze out every extra ounce of realism in your replays.

Please add a comment below if you spent a significant amount of time and/or have any recollections of Pursue the Pennant and Diamond Mind Baseball.  

Screenshots

Pursue the Pennant 5

Diamond Mind Baseball 6

Diamond Mind Baseball 12

Articles in the Series

	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – SSI Computer Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review –Computer Statis Pro Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Avalon Hill Pro Manager / Major League Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pure-Stat Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Monday Morning Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Radio Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Full Count Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball II – III – IV
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa’s Ultimate Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – APBA Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Front Page Sports Baseball ’94 – ’96 – ’98
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – ESPN Baseball Tonight
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Hardball 3-4-5-6
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pursue the Pennant – Diamond Mind Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pro League Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – 4 – Old Time Baseball

Additional Links

Play a demo of Pursue the Pennant v4.04 in your browser -> https://archive.org/details/PTPDEMO

Diamond Mind Baseball – Tapatalk Discussion Forum -> https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/dmbforum/

Diamond Mind Baseball newsletters (1999-2015) -> https://diamond-mind.com/blogs/newsletters/

Custom / Homebrew Seasons for Diamond Mind Baseball ->

https://github.com/fishinnabarrel/dmb-homebrew/tree/master/Compilations

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/fansofdmb/homebrew-season-repository-with-version-11-files-t5397.html

Pursue The Pennant

Teverbaugh, Rick. “Sports Scoreboard”. Computer Gaming World. Volume 38, June-July 1987. p40.

https://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_38.pdf

Widner, Duane E. “Baseball is the Numbers”. Computer Gaming World. Volume 71, May 1990, p20-21. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_71.pdf   

Gindin, Jim. “Baseball: Diamonds Are A Fan’s Best Friend”. Computer Gaming World. May 1995. p62. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_130.pdf

Diamond Mind Baseball

Gindin, Jim. “By the Numbers: Diamond Mind Isn’t Pretty, But It Deserves a Turn At Bat”. Computer Gaming World. December 1997. p342. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_161.pdf

McCauley, Dennis. “Atop the Mound: Baseball Slides Head-First Into Your PC”. Computer Gaming World. July 1996. p78. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_144.pdf

PC Magazine Staff. “Diamond Mind Baseball 9”. PC Magazine. June 1, 2005. https://www.pcmag.com/archive/diamond-mind-baseball-9-152807

Simeone, Jonathan. “Reviewing Diamond Mind Baseball”. April 27, 2020.

https://www.jonathansimeone.com/2020/04/27/reviewing-diamond-mind-baseball/

Todd, Brett. “Diamond Mind Baseball 9 Review”. Gamespot. May 17, 2006.

https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/diamond-mind-baseball-9-review/1900-6099585/

Bill (no last name given). “Product Review: DMB”. What Is Baseball. “ June 12, 2019.

https://whatisbaseball.com/product-review-dmb/

https://www.mobygames.com/game/windows/diamond-mind-baseball-80

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPtuFFhIqZ4 Diamond Mind Baseball v11 video by idjester

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6qt9E7WddY Diamond Mind Baseball v11 video by Baseball Demos

Diamond Mind Baseball v12 Enhancements -> https://diamond-mind.com/pages/version-12-enhancments

About the Author

I am a New Jersey native with a passion for baseball, statistics, computers and video games who enjoys spending quality time with his family.

“Hardball Architects – Volume 1 (American League)“, published in July 2020 and
“Hardball Architects – Volume 2 (National League)”, published in April 2022, examine the trades, free agent acquisitions, draft picks and other transactions for the 30 Major League Baseball franchises, divided into a 2-volume set. Both books are available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. All key moves are scrutinized for every team and Sabermetric principles are applied to the roster construction throughout the lifetime of the organization to encapsulate the hits and misses by front office executives. Team performances are analyzed based on transaction type with graphs depicting the WAR (Wins Above Replacement) in every decade. Individual results for each player-transaction is charted over the duration of their stint with the franchise. Every team chapter includes All-Time Rosters and Single-Season Leaders based on transaction type. The Team Trade Record chronicles the WAR and WS (Win Shares) accumulated by players acquired in comparison to those traded to opposing teams. The opening chapter is devoted to the Evolution of the General Manager and incorporates a discussion with former Dodgers GM Fred Claire (along with former Angels and Red Sox GM Mike Port and current Reds GM Nick Krall in Volume 2) on a variety of front office topics.

“Hardball Retroactive”, published in June 2018, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com.  Hardball Retroactive is a modest collection of selected articles that I have written for Seamheads.com along with my Baseball Analytics blog since 2010. Exclusive content includes the chapter on “Minors vs. Majors” which assesses every franchise’s minor league successes and failures in relation to their major league operations.

“Hardball Retrospective” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. Supplemental Statistics, Charts and Graphs along with a discussion forum are offered at TuataraSoftware.com. In Hardball Retrospective, I placed every ballplayer in the modern era (from 1901-present) on their original teams. Using a variety of advanced statistics and methods, I generated revised standings for each season based entirely on the performance of each team’s “original” players. I discuss every team’s “original” players and seasons at length along with organizational performance with respect to the Amateur Draft (or First-Year Player Draft), amateur free agent signings and other methods of player acquisition. Season standings, WAR and Win Shares totals for the “original” teams are compared against the real-time or “actual” team results to assess each franchise’s scouting, development and general management skills.

Don Daglow (Intellivision World Series Major League Baseball, Earl Weaver Baseball, Tony LaRussa Baseball) contributed the foreword for Hardball Retrospective. The foreword and preview of my book are accessible here. 

“Hardball Retrospective – Addendum 2014 to 2016” supplements my research for Hardball Retrospective, providing retroactive standings based on Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and Win Shares (WS) for each “original” team over the past three seasons (2014-2016). Team totals from 2010 – 2013 are included for reference purposes. “Addendum” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. 

Hardball 3

Hardball 3

Publisher – Accolade

Release Year – 1992

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Hardball 4

Hardball 4

Publisher – Accolade

Release Year – 1994

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Hardball 5

Hardball 5

Publisher – Accolade

Release Year – 1995

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Hardball 6

Hardball 6

Publisher – Accolade

Release Year – 1998

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Review

This entry will focus on the later iterations of the Hardball series (editions three through six) as the original Hardball! along with the sequel  (Hardball II) were purely built around the arcade aspects of baseball with no tactical (manage-only) mode to speak of.

Hardball 3

Hardball III incorporates the capacity to import teams from Tony La Russa’s Ultimate Baseball or Earl Weaver Baseball II. I opted to import the All-Time Teams from TLUB and found that they were missing players who were still active when the product was released. I updated those rosters in order to include those players, objectively selecting their best seasons (through 1990). After making a backup copy of my revised league file and selecting the appropriate stadium for each team (initially all teams defaulted to Dodger Stadium), I chose the Schedule option and decided to “Simulate” the first week of the season. Every game took about 7 to 10 seconds to complete. You can simulate one week’s worth of games at a time so each week finished in about 15 minutes. The simulated contests are displayed as an in-progress box score. However I don’t see an option to view the box scores (or league leaders) after the games are over. You can only check the standings and it’s necessary to edit rosters and click on individual players to view their simulated stats. When setting up the rosters, you are limited to one lineup. I did not see any bench players utilized in the American League given the presence of the designated hitter and no option to enable injuries. In spite of the lack of a DH in the National League, the managers all conspired against the use of pinch-hitters and defensive substitutes as well. At the season’s halfway point, the computer selected players for the “Stars” game. The 25-man rosters were chock full of all-time greats. No relievers were chosen for either squad. I opted to manage the American League entry (the “Accolade” team) while the computer handled the National League crew (the “Mindspan” team). As I reviewed the options for full-game mode, I realized that “one pitch mode” was omitted. There is no way to swap defensive positions during a game and you receive no warning when a defender is playing out of position.

Steve Carlton (12-3, 2.37) took the mound for the Senior Circuit. He yielded consecutive singles to Rod Carew and Harry Heilmann and then whiffed Al “Bucketfoot” Simmons for the first out. Hank Greenberg laced a liner to right to load the bases. George Brett smacked one over Bill Terry’s head to plate Carew with the first run of the contest. “Joltin’” Joe DiMaggio followed with a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Heilmann. Al Kaline delivered an opposite-field safety to reload the bases with two outs. Rudy York lofted a lazy fly ball to center as “Lefty” escaped with merely a two-run deficit. Mickey Lolich (13-2, 2.61) strolled to the hill and promptly retired 3 Hall of Famers (Honus Wagner, Rogers Hornsby and Bill Terry) in succession. Lolich breezed through four innings with relative ease before encountering trouble in the fifth. He allowed four consecutive singles as Wagner drove in the first run for the National League squad. After retiring Hornsby on a liner back to the pitcher, Terry delivered a two-run base knock up the gap in right-center. Wagner swiped third base but Lolich got out of the jam when he snared Chuck Klein’s liner.  Rudy York and Cal Ripken, Jr. supplied back-to-back hits to mount a threat in the top of the sixth. However pinch-runner Nap Lajoie was caught napping when Carew’s hot smash was snared by Hornsby, who turned and fired to second to complete the double play. Roger Clemens replaced Lolich with one away in the bottom of the sixth. Hack Wilson greeted the “Rocket Man” with an opposite-field single. Clemens caught Joe Torre’s liner back to the box and nearly doubled Wilson off first base. He got Joe Medwick on a fly ball to right to end the frame. Wilbur Cooper relieved Carlton to commence the top of the seventh. Simmons, Greenberg and Brett slashed successive safeties. “The Yankee Clipper” strolled to the dish and scalded a hot smash towards Wagner. “The Flying Dutchman” snatched it on the fly and flipped to Hornsby for a double play. Babe Ruth batted for Kaline with two outs and runners at the corners. “The Bambino” came up short, as his line drive was easily grabbed by Klein in shallow right. Ruth trotted out to the mound to face the National Leaguers in the home half of the seventh. He set down the side in order. Earl Battey led off the eighth with a solid single to center. Carew coaxed a base on balls with one out. Heilmann hammered his fourth safety of the game to load the bases. Wagner handled Simmons’ grounder to short and fired home for the second out. The bases remained juiced for Greenberg. Cooper induced “Hammerin’ Hank” to loft a high fly to center field for the final out of the inning. “The Sultan of Swat” sliced through the heart of the Senior Circuit’s batting order like a hot knife through butter. Cooper remained on the mound as Brett, DiMaggio and Ruth were due to bat for the American Leaguers in the top of the ninth. “Mullet” and DiMaggio rapped base hits to right-center field. The fans were on their feet as Ruth sauntered to the plate. Ruth worked the count full before drawing a base on balls. No outs, bases loaded, top of the ninth… and Cooper is still on the mound.  Al Rosen pinch-hit for Battey and hit a slow roller to the right side. It skipped under a diving Hornsby into right field as Brett crossed the plate with the tying run! A walk to Ripken forced home the go-ahead run. Carew hit into a fielder’s choice, scoring Ruth as the American League increased their advantage to 5-3. Wagner left his feet to snag a hot liner by Heilmann. Simmons launched a three-run blast into the left-center field bleachers, giving his club a five-run cushion. Greenberg ripped a single down the left field line and Brett followed with another base knock. Hornsby booted a grounder off the bat of DiMaggio to register another tally. Ruth mercifully sliced a foul pop to third to end the rally. Bob Feller jogged in from the bullpen and set down Wilson, Torre and Medwick to close out the contest as the Americans defeated the Nationals with a final score of 9-3.

Standings at the All-Star Break HB3

I proceeded to simulate the remaining regular season games. The Tigers topped the Majors with a record of 108-54 to outpace the Yankees by a five-game margin. The Twins secured a division crown by three games over the Athletics. In a pair of tightly contested divisions, the Phillies squeaked past the Cardinals by a single game while the Giants survived challenges from the Reds and the Dodgers.

Final Standings – Regular Season HB3

I scanned each team’s roster to check out the simulated stats for individuals since the League Leaders option is omitted from Hardball III. Here are some noteworthy numbers. As far as I could tell, none of the bench players were utilized at all and some relievers were barely used.

Playoff results –

Detroit defeated Minnesota, 4 games to 3. San Francisco defeated Philadelphia, 3 games to 2. I elected to manage the underdog Giants while Hughie Jennings was tabbed to skipper the Tigers.

The World Series commenced in the Motor City with the visiting Giants batting against the Tigers’ ace, southpaw Mickey Lolich. Willie Mays coaxed a two-out walk in the first frame and advanced to third on a solid single to right off the bat of Willie McCovey. Mel Ott drilled a hot grounder up the middle but Charlie Gehringer gloved it and flipped to Alan Trammell covering the bag at second to retire the side. Juan Marichal set down the Tigers in order in the home half of the first. Hank Greenberg led off the bottom of the second with a ringing single to center field. Sam Crawford ripped a one-hopper to “Laughing” Larry Doyle, who lunged forward to tag Greenberg as he attempted to advance to second, then tossed over to first baseman Bill Terry to complete the double play. Gehringer pummeled an offering from Marichal over the left-center field fence leading off the bottom of the fourth to plate the first run of the Series. Detroit loaded the bases in the fifth against the “Dominican Dandy” on a pair of singles sandwiched around an error by Doyle. Harry Heilmann clubbed a two-out grand slam into the upper deck and the crowd roared in approval! Mel Ott got the Giants on the board with a solo blast that nearly landed on the roof with two down in the top of the sixth, ending Lolich’s bid for a shutout. Marichal cruised through the sixth inning but he was replaced by left-hander Gary Lavelle following a leadoff double in the seventh by Rudy York (his second two-base hit of the game). The southpaw got out of the jam when Freddie Lindstrom made a leaping grab behind third base of an opposite-field liner by Cobb and Gehringer flew out to “Stretch” in left-center field. The “Say-Hey Kid” crushed a mammoth home run deep into the upper tank in center field with one out in the top of the eighth, cutting the Tigers’ margin to 5-2. Lolich rebounded to finish the frame with successive line drive outs by McCovey and Ott.  “Toothpick” Sam Jones entered the match to face the middle of the Detroit batting order. Greenberg greeted him with a sharp single to center but he was immediately erased when Bill Terry snared a foul liner off Crawford’s bat and then stepped on the bag to complete the twin-killing. Lolich sauntered to the mound in the top of the ninth to face Frankie Frisch, batting for Walker Cooper. Hoping to spark a rally, “The Fordham Flash” laced a liner over Gehringer’s outstretched glove for a base hit to right field. Lindstrom stroked a 1-0 pitch from Lolich towards the left field seats.. the ball barely cleared the wall for a two-run blast. The home team clinged to a 5-4 lead and the fans went silent.  Mark Fidrych replaced Lolich and Roger Bresnahan stepped to the dish, batting for Travis Jackson. The fleet-footed backstop ripped a double up the left-center field gap on the first offering from the “Bird”. Kevin Mitchell grounded to short and Alan Trammell tried to cut down Bresnahan when he broke for third. The runner reversed course and both runners were safe. The count ran full to Doyle before he whiffed. Terry cuffed a single that fell just in front of Crawford but the runners played it safe to make sure the ball wasn’t going to be caught, so Bresnahan had to stop at third base. The bases were loaded with one out in the ninth as Mays settled into the batter’s box. Mays rapped a base hit over Trammell’s head, scoring Bresnahan. Tie ballgame! Cobb quickly retrieved the ball and fired it home as the Giants’ third-base coach wisely held Mitchell up at third. Crawford made a shoestring catch of McCovey’s liner for the second out, with Mitchell again staying anchored to third. Jennings finally decided to bring John Hiller into the contest to relieve Fidrych with Ott at the plate with a 2-1 count. Ott fought off several tough pitches before lining out to Greenberg. Al Kaline delivered a base hit to right field to start the ninth against Jones as Giants’ closer Frank Linzy heated up in the ‘pen. George Kell rapped a two-hopper to Lindstrom, who fired to Doyle to force Kaline at second. Kell beat the relay to first. York supplied his third hit of the day, a frozen rope to right that almost allowed Ott to gun down Kell at second base. Manager Bain signaled to the bullpen and Linzy jogged to the mound. Trammell responded with a base knock into right field but Ott gathered it quickly and fired home as Detroit’s coach opted to hold the runner Kell at third. One out in the bottom of the ninth, bases full of Tigers with Cobb (0-for-4) coming to bat. San Francisco brought their infield in, respecting Cobb’s speed. After fouling off several pitches, Linzy stuck an inside fastball past the “Georgia Peach” for a rare and much-needed strikeout! Gehringer grounded out to first and the game advanced into extra innings. Frisch drew a base on balls to begin the tenth frame and then promptly pilfered second. Hiller struck out Lindstrom and retired the next two batsmen. Greenberg rapped a one-out safety to right against Linzy in the home half of the tenth. Lefty Johnny Antonelli came in to face Crawford, who grounded up the middle for a force out at second. “Wahoo Sam” took off on Antonelli’s first pitch to Kaline and easily swiped the bag. Kaline connected on the next pitch, sending Mays back towards the warning track in center. The ball glanced off his glove and Crawford steamed home with the winning run!

Christy Mathewson and Denny McLain opposed each other in Game 2. Larry Doyle kicked off the affair with a ringing two-bagger into the right field corner. Bill Terry sliced a base hit to left but Doyle had to hold up at second to ensure that the low liner evaded the third baseman, so he only advanced one base. McLain struck out Willie Mays on three pitches. Willie McCovey plated Doyle with a solid base hit to left. With a 2-2 count on Mel Ott, McLain made consecutive attempts to pick Terry off at second, to no avail. The right-hander whiffed “Master Melvin” on the next pitch and got Freddie Lindstrom on a bounding ball to first baseman Hank Greenberg to escape further damage. Mathewson allowed a two-out single to Harry Heilmann and generated a trio of line-drive outs in the bottom of the first. McLain served up a solo shot to Walker Cooper with one out in the second to give San Francisco a two-run cushion. Al Kaline and George Kell delivered back-to-back safeties, placing runners on first and third with one down in the home half of the second inning. “Big Six” retired Rudy York on a shallow fly but Alan Trammell plated the run with a base knock that landed in front of Ott. Ty Cobb remained hitless in the Series after lining out to Doyle and the Tigers trailed 2-1 after two. San Francisco extended their lead with three successive one-out base hits in the top of the third. Travis Jackson’s slow roller squirted under Charlie Gehringer’s glove and Will Clark steamed home from second base. Doyle delivered a base knock up the middle to load the bases for Terry. McLain induced a grounder to Trammell who flipped to the “Mechanical Man” for the force out at second base, but Detroit now trailed 3-1. Crawford tried to ignite the Tigers’ offense with a walk and a stolen base leading off the home half of the fourth. Kaline drilled a single past Jackson and into center fielder. Crawford froze initially, assuming the liner would be caught, so he advanced only one base. Jackson booted Kell’s bouncer to short, allowing Crawford to breeze home as the Tigers closed the margin to 3-2. With runners on first and second and no one out, Mathewson took a deep breath and a slow walk behind the mound to compose himself. “Stonewall” Jackson made up for his miscue when he made a diving stab of Rudy York’s low liner and quickly fired to Doyle to complete the double play! Mathewson grooved a fastball to Trammell, who deposited the ball into the right-field seats for a two-run dinger. Detroit assumed the lead, 4-3, as Mathewson kicked the dirt in disbelief. Cobb finally ended his slump with an opposite-field two-bagger up the gap in left-center field. San Francisco’s bullpen began to stir. Terry prevented further damage when he dove headlong into foul territory to snare a looping liner off Gehringer’s bat. Ott and Lindstrom strung together consecutive two-out hits in the fifth, but Cobb snared a sinking liner by Clark to close out the frame. Mathewson yielded three consecutive base hits with two outs in the fifth, prompting the manager to emerge from the dugout and signal to the bullpen. Johnny Antonelli extinguished the blaze when Lindstrom scooped up a two-hopper off the bat of York and stepped on third base. Detroit took a 5-3 lead in the sixth on a two-out double by Gehringer followed by a single to center by Heilmann. Sam Jones relieved Antonelli and swiftly retired Greenberg on a liner back to the mound. McLain found his mojo and carved up the Giants’ lineup through eight innings. Trammell drew a free pass to start the ninth against Jones. Successive singles by Gehringer and Heilmann brought Greenberg to the dish. “Hammerin’ Hank” delivered a solid single to left as Trammell trotted home with an insurance run. Mike F. McCormick entered to oppose the left-handed hitting Crawford. “Wahoo Sam” ripped a one-hopper to Doyle who fired home to nail Gehringer for the second out. Kaline slashed an opposite-field knock between first and second, scoring Heilmann as the Tigers opened up a four-run advantage. Kell lofted a long fly ball to center which Mays flagged down for the final out of the frame. McLain headed for the showers and Mark Fidrych took his warmup tosses. Frankie Frisch batted for Doyle and coaxed a walk on four pitches. Terry nearly grounded into a double play as he barely outran the relay to first. Mays rapped into a force out at second. “The Bird” flummoxed McCovey as the slugger was caught looking at a change-up on a full count. The teams headed to the “City by the Bay” to resume the Series with San Francisco trailing, two games to none.

The winds were swirling at Candlestick Park as “Iron Man” Joe McGinnity prepared to square off against “Wabash” George Mullin. In the bottom of the first, Mullin got himself into hot water when he loaded the bases with a pair of walks sandwiched around a Willie Mays single. Orlando Cepeda delivered a base hit to right field to plate Bill Terry with the first run of the contest. Freddie Lindstrom had similar ideas and sliced a Mullin offering towards the right side but a leaping grab by first baseman Hank Greenberg extinguished the Giants’ rally. San Francisco threatened again in the second inning as Walker Cooper and Bill Terry supplied base knocks and the “Say Hey Kid” coaxed a base on balls with two away. A diving catch in foul territory by George Kell saved Mullin’s bacon as Willie McCovey could only stare down the third base line in disbelief. Lindstrom lunged into foul ground to snare a liner off the bat of Ty Cobb with two gone in the top of the third, whipping “The Georgia Peach” into a frenzy. Mel Ott coaxed a walk and “Lindy” ripped a one-out double down the left field line. Cooper lofted a long sacrifice fly to center as Ott tagged up and easily trotted home. Mullin punched out Travis Jackson for the final out of the frame, again limiting the damage to a lone tally. “Laughing” Larry Doyle led off the fourth with a base on balls. Terry and Mays followed with successive safeties, placing ducks on the pond for McCovey. Mullin was holding on by a thread but Detroit’s manager Jennings remained confident in his right-hander as no one stirred in the bullpen. “Stretch” slapped a screaming liner right at Harry Heilmann for the first out and Doyle bluffed but decided to stay at third. Ott knocked in the run with a ringing opposite field single. Kell booted a potential double-play ball off the bat of Cepeda, allowing Terry to cross home plate with the fourth run for San Fran. In yet another Houdini act, Mullin retired Lindstrom and Cooper to keep the Tigers within striking distance. McGinnity worked around a couple of two-out safeties by Alan Trammell and Cobb to maintain a shutout through five frames. Mark Fidrych began to stretch and toss a few pitches down in the Detroit ‘pen. Mullin’s struggles continued as he issued a free pass to Doyle and yielded a single to Terry with one away. The rally was snuffed out when Mays lined to Greenberg for an unassisted double play. Jennings finally relieved Mullin when Fidrych took the mound for the third straight game in the home half of the sixth. “The Bird” walked Cepeda with two outs in the inning and gave up successive singles to Lindstrom and Cooper as the Giants added to their advantage. Batting for Jackson, Kevin “World” Mitchell slapped a base hit to right but Heilmann hastily fired to the catcher to hold the runners at bay. Doyle strolled to the plate with the sacks juiced. “Laughing Larry” fouled off a couple of inside fastballs and then stroked the next offering into left field for a single, with all of the baserunners moving up ninety feet. Terry drilled his fourth hit of the day just in front of Heilmann and San Francisco extended the lead to 7-0. The crowd roared in approval as Mays stepped up to the plate. Jennings called down to the bullpen and Dizzy Trout sprang up from his seat to start warming up. Fidrych snared a line drive back through the box to mercifully douse the fire as Mays stranded three runners on base. McGinnity gave up back-to-back hits with two outs in the visitor’s seventh but he got Charlie Gehringer on a grounder to Doyle. Trout came on in relief of Fidrych to commence the bottom of the seventh. Heilmann smoked a double into the right field corner leading off the eighth. Greenberg laced a line drive through the hole between short and third but Heilmann inexplicably dove back into second, perhaps thinking that Lindstrom would make an amazing play to his left to trap the sinking liner. San Francisco’s bullpen stirred and Rube Marquard began to play catch with Roger Bresnahan. Detroit finally plated a runner when “Wahoo” Sam Crawford punched a two-bagger up the left-center field gap. McGinnity received a rousing ovation and he doffed his cap as he exited in favor of Marquard. Al Kaline worked the count full before striking out. Kell flew out just shy of the warning track in right field, but Greenberg elected not to challenge Ott’s arm. Rudy York’s two-out single brought “Hammerin’ Hank” home and the Tigers continued to chip away at the Giants’ lead. McCovey raced in and grabbed a soft liner off the bat of Trammell for the third out. Frank Linzy worked around a Gehringer safety to record the last 3 outs of the contest including a strikeout of “Hammerin’ Hank”. Final score: Giants 7, Tigers 2. San Francisco would look to even up the Series the following day at Candlestick Park.

Southpaws Carl Hubbell and Hal Newhouser received the starting nods for their respective ball clubs in Game 4. The Giants ripped three straight singles with two outs in the bottom of the first but “Prince Hal” eluded harm when Orlando Cepeda grounded into a force play at second base. Freddie Lindstrom and Walker Cooper delivered consecutive base knocks in the second inning and Travis Jackson successfully sacrificed to move both runners into scoring position. Frankie Frisch, substituting for Larry Doyle against the left-handed Newhouser, lined an opposite-field single to right to plate “Lindy” with the first tally of the match. Bill Terry followed with a slap hit that curled underneath George Kell’s glove for another hit, scoring Cooper. Willie Mays got jammed with a Newhouser fastball and rolled over to shortstop where Alan Trammell scooped and fired to Kell to force the lead runner. Willie McCovey whiffed but the home team had a 2-0 advantage. Travis Jackson swatted a three-run blast over the chain-link fence in left field with two down in the third to extend San Fran’s lead to 5-0. The G-Men continued to bash Newhouser’s offerings an inning later as Terry and McCovey thumped a pair of base knocks. Terry darted home and McCovey bolted to third when Mel Ott’s single scooted underneath Harry Heilmann’s glove for an error. Cepeda sliced another hit towards the right field line to deliver “Stretch” and move Ott up to second. Despite a fully-rested bullpen with the exception of Mark Fidrych, Detroit’s skipper Hughie Jennings elected to permit the pummeling to proceed. At this point Newhouser had surrendered 7 runs and allowed the opposition to rack up 13 safeties. Lindstrom flared a single into shallow center to load the bases. Mercifully Cooper rapped into a tailor-made 4-6-3 double play and the Tigers jogged back to their dugout only behind by seven runs. Hubbell got into hot water in the fifth, putting ducks on the pond after serving up a pair of singles to Sam Crawford and Al Kaline followed by a one-out walk to Rudy York. Trammell drove in the Tigers’ first run with a line-drive single into right field. Ty Cobb slapped a worm-burner towards Frisch who fired home to force out Kaline. Charlie Gehringer lashed a one-hopper to Lindstrom who took three steps to his right and stepped on third base for the last out of the inning. The Giants’ lumber crew licked their chops when Newhouser ambled to the mound for the bottom of the fifth. Jackson and Frisch whacked back-to-back hits but Jackson got a little overconfident and was nearly doubled off the bag at second when Cobb raced in to snare a liner off Terry’s bat. Mays and McCovey rapped into fielder’s choices as Newhouser notched his second goose egg of the day. Jackson absolutely obliterated an inside fastball from “Prince Hal” for a three-run wallop into the upper deck in left as the Giants padded their lead. Obviously the algorithm for the computer AI to consider removing the current pitcher is flawed as the bullpen remained idle in spite of 10 runs and 18 hits produced by the home club. Frisch sliced one to the opposite field with Heilmann and Cobb converging in deep right-center but the ball bounded off the warning track and the wall before Heilmann corralled it. Frisch pulled into second base with a stand-up double. Newhouser wanted to hide but Jennings wouldn’t budge from his perch in the visitors’ dugout. Terry lofted a lazy long fly to center and “The Georgia Peach” camped underneath it to record the third out of the inning. Jack Morris relieved Newhouser to begin the bottom of the eighth and he contributed a goose egg to the scoreboard. Detroit was unable to muster any offense as the “Meal Ticket” was in complete command. “King Carl” whiffed Kaline to complete a masterful four-hit, one-run effort to knot the series at two games apiece.

The aces returned to the mound in Game 5 as Denny McLain matched up against Christy Mathewson. McLain put a pair of runners aboard in the home half of the first but he wriggled out of trouble when Mel Ott grounded into a force play, shortstop to second base. “Wahoo” Sam Crawford laced a double to the opposite-field up the left-center field gap to start the visitor’s second. Al Kaline’s shallow single to right placed runners at the corners with nobody out. Freddie Lindstrom made a brilliant diving stab of George Kell’s line drive in foul territory for the first out, nearly doubling off Crawford in the process! Detroit struck first as Rudy York delivered a clean hit to left field as Crawford jogged home. “Matty” was clearly struggling with his control as Alan Trammell worked the count full before drawing a walk to load the bases. Ty Cobb smashed a liner directly at Larry Doyle, who snared it and fired over to Travis Jackson covering second base to double York off the bag. Crawford coaxed a leadoff walk in the fourth and stole second with one out. He got a little bit greedy and broke for third two pitches later. Walker Cooper fired a perfect peg and Lindstrom applied the tag. The botched stolen base attempt proved costly when Kell drove the next pitch to the right-center field wall for a two-base knock. York slapped a safety to right, barely over the outstretched glove of Doyle, advancing Kell to third. The Tigers failed to capitalize when Ott made a shoestring catch of Trammell’s sinking line drive. In the subsequent inning Detroit made another crucial mistake on the base paths. Cobb spanked a single to right field to start the fifth and promptly pilfered second base. “The Georgia Peach” broke for third and Cooper’s throw was right on the money. Heilmann followed with a single up the gap in left which would have easily scored Cobb. Instead, “Big Six” escaped unscathed when Jackson went up the ladder to snare a sizzling line drive off the bat of Hank Greenberg. San Francisco finally mounted a rally against McLain in the bottom of the fifth, putting ducks on the pond with a walk and a pair of singles. Doyle went down on strikes. Bill Terry got a hold of an inside fastball but it hooked foul at the last moment. He drove the next pitch into right-center for a base hit, plating Lindstrom and Cooper as the Giants took a 2-1 lead. The pitchers remained locked in a duel into the eighth. Ott stroked a two-out base hit and pinch-runner Roger Bresnahan stole second in broad daylight. McLain struck out Lindstrom on three pitches to send the game into the ninth. “Matty” strolled to the hill while the Giants got Gary Lavelle and Frank Linzy ready down in the ‘pen. On a 2-0 delivery, Kaline drilled the ball off the top of the chain-link fence in left for a leadoff double. Kell swung over the top of a 2-2 curveball for the first out. York rapped a bullet back through the box which deflected off Mathewson’s glove and rolled behind the mound for an infield hit as Kaline held up at second. Linzy entered to face Trammell with two on and one away. The shortstop hacked at an 0-1 fastball and poked a looping liner towards right fielder Ross Youngs, who had just entered the game as a defensive replacement. Youngs dashed in and made a running catch to preserve the game for San Fran. Cobb pounced on the next offering from Linzy and slapped it into right for a base hit. Kaline got a late jump and had to hold up at third. The Giants’ skipper leapt from his perch in the dugout and sprinted to the mound where he proceeded to signal for the left-hander, Lavelle, to face Charlie Gehringer. Lindstrom nearly ended the contest with another fielding gem but the foul fly by “The Mechanical Man” landed just out of his reach. With the count 2-1, Lavelle threw one low and outside. Gehringer reached out and slashed a low liner towards third. Lindstrom gloved it cleanly for the final out as the home crowd cheered wildly. The Giants were heading back to Motown ahead 3 games to 2.

Detroit players and fans remained upbeat in spite of the San Francisco sweep as Mickey Lolich prepared to even the Series while Giants’ right-hander Juan Marichal attempted to put the finishing touches on a World Championship season. Both pitchers traded zeroes for the first three frames. Willie Mays blasted an opposite-field wallop into the upper deck in right-center leading off the fourth inning. San Francisco extended their lead to 2-0 when Freddie Lindstrom deposited a fastball from Lolich in the vicinity of May’s big fly to commence the top of the fifth. Two outs later, Frankie Frisch turned on an off-speed delivery and crushed it into the upper tank in left-center. Hank Greenberg lined a clean single to left to break up Marichal’s no-hit bid leading off the home half of the fifth. “Wahoo” Sam Crawford followed with a base hit up the middle. The Tigers’ faithful started to make some noise to spur on the hometown team. Al Kaline went down on strikes but George Kell scratched out an infield hit to load the bases. Greenberg tagged up and scored on a sacrifice fly to right off the bat of Rudy York, cutting the visitor’s advantage to 3-1. Alan Trammell lined out to his counterpart as the “Dominican Dandy” escaped the jam. Ty Cobb and Charlie Gehringer supplied back-to-back base knocks to start the sixth. Greenberg ripped a one-out single through the left side of the infield. Cobb had to hold up briefly at second and he had to scamper to third as Willie McCovey quickly retrieved the ball. Bases loaded and only one away for Crawford as the Giants’ bullpen began to stir. The left fielder hit a dying quail to center which dropped in front of Mays for a base hit, plating Cobb. Marichal whiffed Kaline for the second out and Kell lined out to “Lindy” at third to quell the rally. Gary Lavelle relieved Marichal in the bottom of the seventh after Detroit began the inning with successive singles by York and Trammell. Cobb delivered a base hit to right but York slammed on the brakes after making the turn at third. On a full count with ducks on the pond, Gehringer watched as Lavelle’s offering was called a ball to force home the tying run! Sam Jones jogged in from the bullpen and promptly struck out Harry Heilmann for the first out. The Tigers took the lead when “Hammerin’ Hank” lofted a medium-deep fly ball to left, which allowed Trammell to score easily. “The Georgia Peach” was gunned down attempting to pilfer third base but the Giants now trailed, 4-3. Jones yielded a pair of safeties along with a walk but Mike F. McCormick got “The Georgia Peach” on a fly ball just in front of the warning track in left to retire the side. Lolich sauntered to the mound to face the heart of the San Francisco batting order in the top of the ninth. He snared a hot liner off the bat of the “Say Hey Kid” for out #1. “Stretch” stroked a single to center and Roger Bresnahan entered the game as a pinch-runner. In a daring move, Bresnahan broke for second and slid safely under the tag for a stolen base. Greenberg dove into foul territory to snare a line drive by Ott for the second out. Lolich sat Orlando Cepeda down on three pitches to complete the Tigers’ comeback victory and force a seventh game, winner-take-all matchup on the following day.

The stage was set for an epic battle at Tiger Stadium as George Mullin and “Iron Man” Joe McGinnity drew the starting assignment for their respective teams. San Francisco threatened almost immediately as Bill Terry rocked a long one-out single to right and Mullin walked Willie Mays on four straight pitches. Consecutive strikeouts by Willie McCovey and Mel Ott elicited cheers from the hometown fanatics. Pitching carefully to Ty Cobb, McGinnity issued a leadoff walk.  After Charlie Gehringer went down on strikes, Harry Heilmann split the gap in left-center for a two-base knock. Cobb had ideas but wisely held up at third. Hank Greenberg grounded out weakly to second baseman Larry Doyle. Cobb bluffed towards home but did not advance. Sam Crawford was retired on a one-hopper to third, so both clubs failed to score in the first despite placing runners in scoring position. The pitcher’s duel raged into the fifth frame. Will Clark delivered a one-out single to right and Frankie Frisch pinch-ran for him. “The Fordham Flash” wasted no time, taking off for second on Mullin’s next offering to Walker Cooper. The umpire flashed the “safe” sign and Frisch dusted himself off. Cooper laced a base hit to left which dropped right in front of Crawford but the ferocious liner prevented Frisch from advancing. Travis Jackson whiffed but Doyle came through with a clutch single to center, scoring Frisch for the first run of the game. Terry followed with a ground ball base hit between first and second. Cooper took a wide turn but reluctantly returned to the third base bag. The “Say Hey Kid” dumped a bases-loaded single in front of Heilmann in shallow right to drive in Cooper with the second tally of the inning for the visitors. “Stretch” had an opportunity to blow the game wide open, but he bounced weakly into a 6-4 force out. The Tigers rallied in the home half of the fifth. Rudy York and Alan Trammell supplied successive singles. York scored and Trammell advanced to third when Trammell’s hit deflected off Mays’ glove for a two-base error. McGinnity caught Cobb looking at an off-speed offering for strike three. “The Mechanical Man” rapped a line drive into center field, sending Trammell home with the tying run. Greenberg hammered a two-out single to left which prompted action in the Giants’ bullpen. Doyle gloved a hot liner off Crawford’s bar to keep the game even. George Kell put Detroit ahead with an opposite-field screaming line drive that just cleared the top of the fence in right-center. The Tigers’ faithful roared in approval! Cooper led off the top of the seventh with a booming single that landed between Cobb and Heilmann. Roger Bresnahan substituted for Cooper on the base paths and immediately nabbed second base on a straight steal. Jackson lined into a 4-6 double play as Bresnahan was caught too far off the bag. Carl Hubbell replaced McGinnity on the mound to oppose the top of the lineup. Cobb nearly beat out a two-hopper to the third baseman. Gehringer got a hold of Hubbell’s screwball and deposited the ball into the right-center field bleachers to extend the Tigers’ lead to 4-2. Dizzy Trout entered the match in relief of Mullin to commence the top of the eighth. After Terry struck out looking, Mays absolutely demolished Trout’s slider and broke into a slow home run trot as the ball settled into the upper deck. Detroit maintained a one-run advantage as “Stretch” took a couple of practice cuts in the on-deck circle before proceeding to the plate. McCovey worked the count full before taking a base on balls. Orlando Cepeda sprinted down to first as San Fran brought another pinch-runner into the game. Ott launched a rocket off the left-field wall but Cepeda tripped as he rounded the bag and had to hold up at second. Freddie Lindstrom ripped a hard grounder towards third. Kell smothered the ball, sprang to his feet and then couldn’t decide where to throw it. All of the runners were safe and the Giants had the bases loaded with only one out! On a 3-2 pitch, Frisch lined back to Trout and Ott was nearly doubled off second base. Bresnahan smashed one up the middle but Trout lept and grabbed it for the final out of the frame. Trammell supplied an insurance run when he singled to right with two on and two outs in the bottom of the eighth. John Hiller inherited a two-run lead as he trotted to the mound in the top of the ninth. Matt D. Williams, batting for Jackson, flew out to Cobb for the first out. Doyle lofted a routine fly to center and Cobb corralled it. The Tigers’ fans were on their feet. Terry looked at a called strike three over the outer half of the plate. Bedlam ensued as the players met in a dogpile near the mound and the stadium security was overwhelmed by spectators. The home team emerged victorious in every Series matchup!

Hardball 4

Hardball 4 only permits importing and exporting of Hardball 4 team files, so there is no method to bring in leagues or teams from Hardball 3 or competitor’s products. This edition is similar to its predecessor with the addition of the League Leaders option being among the few product enhancements to speak of, at least in terms of the simulation aspects. The manager is still unable to create more than one lineup or swap defensive positions and the game is missing a “one-pitch” option so the manage-only mode can be a bit tedious. Utilizing the 1994 MLBPA Players Disk, I set out to re-create the ’94 campaign without all of the acrimony surrounding the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Electing to use the default lineups and starting rotations, I simulated the first half of the schedule (one week at a time).

Standings at the All-Star Break HB4

The All-Star Break appeared on the calendar and I chose to manage the American League in the Mid-Summer Classic. The algorithm to select the All-Star batters and lineups functioned as expected. However I found that both AL and NL pitching staffs did not include any relievers. While managing the All-Star contest, I noted several differences between Hardball 3 and Hardball 4. When the players ran out to the field, the umpires followed suit. As the running on/off the field takes about 30 seconds every half-inning, you can press the SPACE bar after Al Michaels wraps up the post-inning scoring update to skip ahead to the start of the next inning. Depending on the batter’s handedness, the center fielder moves slightly towards left or right field. After a strikeout, I noticed that the infielders threw the ball “around the horn” left-handed (?!) That doesn’t speak well for the QA testing – any casual baseball fan should know that it’s an extremely rare occurrence for an infielder (other than a first baseman) to throw lefty. Not to mention that I’m playing with patch #2 installed… nobody noticed this? Another issue that should have been addressed – an at-bat should not be charged when a batter hits a sacrifice fly. While managing against the computer in the All-Star Game and World Series, I noted that the AI often replaced a pitcher during the middle of an at-bat. This situation is a very rare occurrence in the Majors and usually limited to substitution of an injured hurler. On a brighter note, kudos to Brian Shaw for the funky soundtrack!

Ramon Martinez (12-7, 3.42) squared off against Dennis Martinez (14-0, 4.05). Ramon struck out the side in the top of the first.  Dennis walked the bases loaded in the first but escaped without yielding a run after striking out Darren “Dutch” Daulton. The computer appeared to adjust his management style specific to the All-Star Game as he warmed up relief pitchers in the third inning of a scoreless match. John Dettmer relieved Dennis Martinez and got the final out of the frame and then David Cone entered the contest in the fourth. “Coney” issued free passes to Moises Alou and Kevin Mitchell. Subsequently he plunked Daulton to put ducks on the pond with nobody out. Randy D. Johnson and Steve Karsay began to stir down in the ‘pen. Ken Caminiti coaxed a base on balls after working the count full. Cone kicked the mound in disgust as Alou jogged home with the first run of the game. Shawon Dunston, the free-swinging never-walking shortstop, drew a walk and the carousel continued. That was the end of Cone’s disastrous outing as Karsay strolled in from the bullpen. Wally Joyner made a leaping stab of a Bip Roberts’ liner to prevent a hit and Marquis Grissom lined out to shortstop to retire the side. Somehow the National Leaguers notched a couple of runs while remaining hitless through four frames.  Consecutive safeties by Roberto Alomar, Robin Ventura and Mike Stanley in the top of the fifth provided the first tally of the day for the Junior Circuit. Karsay got into trouble in the fifth, allowing back-to-back singles to Tony Gwynn and Jeff Bagwell followed by a base on balls to Alou. Kevin Mitchell took a couple of practice cuts in the on-deck circle and then calmly walked up to the plate as the American League skipper raised his left arm to signal for the southpaw, Randy D. Johnson. “World” took four straight pitches off the plate to force in another run. Daulton flew out to shallow right field in foul ground and the runners were unable to advance. Caminiti whiffed but Dunston delivered a pair with a single down the left field line. Roberts lifted a can of corn to left which Albert Belle settled under for the final out, but the Senior Circuit now held a 5-1 advantage after five frames. Belle crushed a two-out, two-run jack into the right-center field bleachers to close the margin to 5-3. One inning later, Chili Davis laced an opposite-field safety to deep left field and John Valentin tripled up the right-center field gap to drive home the fourth run for the AL squad. Lofton’s sacrifice fly to left-center scored Valentin with the tying run. Roger Clemens relieved the “Big Unit” to commence the bottom of the seventh and he retired the side in order. Joey Hamilton relieved Ramon Martinez in the top of the eighth after Wally Joyner sliced an opposite-field double that bounced off the left-center field wall. Alomar grounded out to short to end the threat. Grissom led off the home eighth with a booming double in the left field corner and he swiped third with one away and Bagwell at the dish. Scott Kamieniecki relieved Clemens and got Bagwell on a medium fly to left. Grissom inexplicably failed to challenge Belle’s arm and stayed glue to the third base bag. Alou lined a two-out single to deep left, scoring Grissom with the go-ahead run. Mitchell hammered a two-base knock which Belle briefly bobbled, allowing Alou to cruise home with an insurance tally. Jimmy Key entered the contest and struck out Daulton to prevent further damage but the NL held a 7-5 lead heading to the top of the ninth. Hamilton set the American Leaguers down in order, inducing a two-hopper to shortstop by pinch-hitter Carlos Baerga to finish the game.

Reviewing the league leaders at the All-Star Break, it was curious to note such “speedsters” as J.T. Snow (49), Spike Owen (45) and Dave Clark (42) among the stolen base leaders. The regular season leaders upon the conclusion of the season featured the usual suspects (Otis Nixon, Barry Bonds, Vince Coleman, Rickey Henderson, etc.) but the team totals were blown way out of proportion. Every team in the league pilfered more than 350 bases and San Francisco claimed the crown with 527 successful swipes! For the sake of comparison, Kansas City projected to lead the Majors with 197 stolen bases using the actual statistics from 1994 (pro-rated to 162 games) while the Mets would have finished with a paltry 35!

The pennant races in the six divisions gave many teams hope for a playoff run as all the second place teams were within three wins of the divisional leaders. The Orioles edged the Yankees by one game to win the American League East. The Indians finished with the best record in the Junior Circuit with 97 victories while the Athletics secured the Western Division title while barely finishing over .500 at 82-80. Over in the Senior Circuit, Montreal and Houston seized their division titles with 93 wins apiece. The Dodgers reached the 90-win mark to outpace the Padres by a five-game margin. The Yankees and Reds secured playoff berths as the Wild Cards in their respective leagues.  Oakland outlasted Baltimore, 3 games to 2 while the Bronx Bombers upended the Tribe in 5 games to advance to the Championship Series. In the National League, Montreal swept Los Angeles and Cincinnati took 3 of 4 from the ‘Stros. The Yankees and A’s split a pair in the Big Apple and then the Pinstripers outpitched the Green and Gold back in Oaktown. The Expos lost two contests in the Queen City but stormed back to triumph in four straight, punching their ticket to the World Series.

Final Standings – Regular Season HB4

Yankee Stadium was filled to capacity as Scott Kamieniecki took his warm-up tosses. Marquis Grissom ignited the Expos’ offense with a base hit followed by a pair of stolen bases. Cliff Floyd grounded out to shortstop but Montreal notched their first tally when Moises Alou hit a sacrifice fly to deep center field. New York answered back in the home half of the first against Pedro J. Martinez. Luis Polonia singled, advanced to second on a liner to center off the bat of Don Mattingly, and scored when Danny Tartabull lifted a wind-blown pop fly that evaded Sean Berry’s glove just beyond the cut of the infield behind third base. Tartabull wandered too far off the first base bag on Paul O’Neill’s line drive to right and he was doubled off when Larry Walker fired a perfect laser to Floyd. “Pedro el Grande” served up a couple of solo shots by Mike Stanley and Mike Gallego in the bottom of the second as the Bronx Bombers seized a 3-1 lead. New York kept Martinez on the ropes as Pat F. Kelly laced a single to left and Polonia roped a two-bagger into the right field corner. Wade Boggs lined out to right for the second out, but Mattingly mashed a three-run opposite-field tater. The Yankee fanatics were jubilant as Tartabull and O’Neill produced back-to-back safeties, knocking Pedro from the game in favor of long reliever Gil Heredia. Stanley collected his second hit of the inning to drive in Tartabull. Bernie Williams flied out to right to close out the rally with the New York squad ahead by 6. Polonia slapped another two-base hit into the left field corner with two outs in the third and Boggs blasted a two-run dinger into the right field bleachers. Behind 9-1 with two away in the home half of the fifth, southpaw Kirk Rueter was called upon to face the top of the order. The pesky Polonia drilled a hot smash under Mike Lansing’s outstretched glove for his fourth hit of the game. Rueter plunked Boggs in the shoulder and both benches jawed at each other. “Donnie Baseball” hammered another single to increase the Yankees’ advantage to 10-1. Buck Showalter sent Kamieniecki to the showers after pitching 5 innings of 1-run ball. Sterling Hitchcock entered the contest and promptly set down the ‘Spos in order. Tim Scott poured gasoline on the fire in the seventh as the Yankees loaded the bases, tallied a run on a base hit by Mattingly, and brought the house down with a Tartabull grand salami. Jeff Shaw got torched in the eighth inning for three runs as the scoreboard displayed 18 runs for the hometown team. Kamieniecki and Hitchcock scattered seven hits over nine frames as the Expos were outplayed and overmatched in the opener.

Veteran left-hander Jimmy Key squared off against Ken Hill in Game 2. New York picked up right where they left off in the previous contest, battering Hill with four base knocks in the first five at-bats to take a 1-0 lead. Mike Stanley stepped to the dish and deposited an 0-1 curveball well beyond the fence in left for a grand slammer! Hill pawed at the mound while the Yankees batted around. Bernie Williams singled and Pat F. Kelly belted a two-out double to bring Luis Polonia to the plate for the second time in the first inning. Gil Heredia and Kirk Rueter hurriedly fired warm-up tosses down in the Expos bullpen. Polonia slapped a two-run single to right and the rout was officially on as the Bombers went ahead by seven. Wade Boggs lined out to first-sacker Randy Milligan as a dejected Hill headed slowly towards the visitor’s bench. Gil Heredia relieved Hill to commence the bottom of the second. He yielded four hits over 1 2/3 innings but did not allow a run. Kirk Rueter trotted in from the bullpen and retired Boggs on a grounder to first baseman Randy Milligan. Montreal attempted to rally in the visitor’s fourth as Key allowed base hits by Wil Cordero and Larry Walker. Lenny Webster broke the ice with a two-out single to right field as Cordero raced around and slid under Stanley’s tag. Rondell White lined out to shortstop but the Expos were on the board, trailing 7-1. Don Mattingly singled to right leading off the home half of the fourth inning and the Montreal manager leapt from his perch in the corner of the dugout, sprinted to the pitcher’s mound and waved his right arm. The outfield gates swung open and Tim Scott sprinted in to become the fourth Expos hurler to partake in the contest. Danny Tartabull hit a bullet to left which Moises Alou corralled on the first bounce. After Paul O’Neill lined out to deep right, Stanley dialed long-distance and connected on a blast that landed halfway up the left-center field bleachers. Williams belted a low change-up into the right field seats as the Pinstripe squad extended their advantage to 11-1. Key finally tired a bit in the eighth. He gave up back-to-back singles to Milligan and Mike Lansing. Polonia dropped a routine fly to left-center off the bat of Marquis Grissom, allowing Milligan to cross home plate and placing runners on second and third with nobody out. Moises Alou lashed a one-out base hit to right field, driving in Lansing with the Expos’ third run of the day. Key whiffed Walker and got Sean Berry to ground into a 6-4 force play to end the inning. Montreal mounted another rally with three consecutive hits to start the top of the ninth. Lansing’s laser to shortstop was caught by Randy Velarde. Grissom’s base knock to right landed directly in front of defensive replacement Daryl Boston, scoring the Expos backstop, Lenny Webster. Cordero bounced back to the box and Key fired home to initiate a 1-2-3 game-ending double play. The Bombers secured the 11-4 victory and both teams prepared to fly North of the Border to continue the Series.

Olympic Stadium was filled to capacity as the visiting Yankees enlisted Melido Perez in their quest for a third straight victory while Montreal countered with left-hander Jeff Fassero. In the bottom of the third, Perez got into a bases-loaded jam after yielding a couple of hits along with a walk to Cliff Floyd. Expos’ left fielder Moises Alou rapped a two-base hit that eluded Danny Tartabull, normally the Bombers’ DH, as two runs crossed the dish. Larry Walker followed with a three-run rocket that just cleared the right field fence. After getting absolutely demolished in the Big Apple, Montreal finally had something to cheer about! Wil Cordero drilled a two-base knock off the left-field wall and Darrin Fletcher knocked him in with an opposite-field single as the Expos opened up a 6-run cushion. Steve Howe entered the game with no outs in the third after Marquis Grissom led off the inning with a double to deep left. Alou walked and Cordero hammered a two-out single to left field to drive Grissom home. Fassero left the game after four innings having allowed three hits and no runs. Tim Scott, appearing in his third straight contest, yielded a run when pinch-hitter Luis Polonia blooped a base hit into center to knock in Randy Velarde. Bernie Williams delivered a solid single to left to put ducks on the pond and Wade Boggs drew a walk on a 3-2 pitch to force in a run. Mel Rojas replaced Scott and extinguished the threat when Don Mattingly smoked one to right that Walker snagged in front of the warning track. Yankees’ skipper Buck Showalter called upon left-hander Sterling Hitchcock to hold the Expos in check. Mike Lansing greeted him with a single and Rojas slapped a base knock over the shortstop’s glove and into shallow left field. Grissom hit a scalding liner past Boggs but Lansing was only able to advance one base. The sacks were juiced and Lenny Webster was announced as the pinch-hitter. The belting backstop blasted a base hit between Velarde and Boggs. The ball ticked off Tartabull’s glove for an error and Montreal’s third base coach waved Rojas around. The two-run safety pushed the Expos’ advantage to 9-2. Velarde made a diving stop and potentially saved at least one run on a grounder by Alou. However Walker connected on a long drive into the right-field bleachers to give the home team a 10-run lead! Cordero cranked the next pitch just inside the left field foul pole as New York was in full meltdown mode. Tartabull’s misadventures in left field continued as he turned a Berry base hit into a two-bagger. Lansing flew out to left field to finally conclude the frame but the Pinstripe crew now trailed 13-2. Rojas endured control problems as he plunked a pair of Bombers including pinch-hitter Daryl Boston with the sacks full. Jeff Shaw strolled in from the pen and swiftly induced a double-play grounder and a harmless fly ball to right to prevent any further damage. Showalter summoned Bob Wickman to the mound as both managers inserted reserves into the lineup. Montreal tacked on a run in the bottom of the sixth when Rondell White’s single to left plated Juan Bell. The combination of Shaw, Butch Henry, Gil Heredia and John Wetteland shut New York down in the final frames as the Expos closed out a 14-3 victory.

Jim Abbott took his turn on the mound while Montreal brought Pedro J. Martinez back on three day’s rest for Game 4. The Yankees were eager to get on the scoreboard following their Game 3 debacle. The visitors rapped four base hits in their first five at-bats against “Petey” to take an early 1-0 lead. Abbott worked in and out of a bases-loaded jam in the home half of the first. Paul O’Neill knocked in a run with a single in the visitor’s third. Moises Alou turned on an inside cut fastball and sent a high drive into the left field bleachers with two out and no one aboard in the home third to cut the Yankees’ advantage in half. Larry Walker hammered a single up the middle and then New York’s outfield adventures continued as Luis Polonia misplayed Wil Cordero’s fly ball to left into a two-bagger as Walker raced all the way around from first to knot the scoring at 2-2. Lenny Webster reached on an error when his hot smash deflected off third baseman Wade Boggs’ glove. Martinez was lifted for pinch-hitter Juan Bell after yielding nine hits in three innings. Bell responded with a single down the left field line but Abbott pulled another Houdini act and the game remained tied at 2. Gil Heredia got the nod in long relief and entered in time to face the heart of the Bronx Bombers’ batting order. Don Mattingly laced a single to center but he was gunned down on a broken hit-and-run play. Sterling Hitchcock replaced Jim Abbott as the home team prepared to bat in the bottom of the fourth.  The hometown team responded with three straight singles. Sean Berry struck out but Lenny Webster cleared the bases with a deep drive into the upper deck in left, staking the ‘Spos to a 6-2 lead. One inning later, Moises Alou tattooed a Steve Howe heater into the left-center field seats for a two-run job. The lower half of the lineup scratched out three hits against the portsider. Showalter called on Bob Wickman to staunch the bleeding but Mike Lansing drilled a base hit into left to plate another run. Lou Frazier, batting for Kirk Rueter, got drilled by an inside fastball by Wickman to force home another run. Marquis Grissom put a charge into the next pitch but Polonia flagged it down at the warning track for the final out. Montreal fans were on their feet as their team took the field in the seventh inning, eight runs ahead of the vaunted Yankees squad. The Expos’ skipper signaled for Jeff Shaw. Bernie Williams lashed an RBI single on a hit-and-run play with two outs in the frame. Alou absolutely annihilated a Wickman offering with one away in the home half of the seventh, sending a rocket down the left field line just inside the foul pole for his third round-tripper and fifth base knock of the contest! Walker subsequently slashed a double up the right-center field gap for his fourth hit of the game. Polonia picked up his teammate with a fine sliding catch of a line drive off the bat of Freddie Benavides and he caught Walker too far off second base for an inning-ending double play. Shaw served up an opposite-field wallop to Mike Gallego with one down in the eighth. Tim Scott twirled a scoreless ninth as the Expos triumphed 11-4 and evened the series at two games apiece.

The momentum has swung in Montreal’s direction and Yankees were feeling the pressure to turn things around as Game 5 got underway. Ken Hill cruised through the top of the first and his teammates spotted him a two-run cushion when Wil Cordero delivered a bases-loaded single to left field. Scott Kamieniecki suffered control issues, plunking a pair of batters and yielding an RBI base hit to Sean Berry in the home half of the second inning. Hill turned in a defensive gem when he caught Mike Stanley’s line drive back to the box, whirled and fired to first to double off Paul O’Neill in the top of the third. Darrin Fletcher’s sky-high pop-up inexplicably landed just beyond the line delineating the back of the infield (perhaps Wade Boggs lost it in the lights?) Sean Berry turned on a Kamieniecki breaking ball and swatted it deep into the left-field seats for a two-run shot to extend Montreal’s advantage to 5-0 in the bottom of the third. Buck Showalter made the call to the bullpen and selected Sterling Hitchcock to relieve Kamieniecki as the home team prepared to take their hacks in the bottom of the fourth. The Yankees’ skipper was conferring with his coaches in the corner of the visitor’s dugout when Marquis Grissom belted the lefty’s first offering into the left field seats. Moises Alou drilled a one-out double, pilfered third base and tallied another run on a Larry Walker’s single to right field. Hill ran into some trouble with two outs in the fifth as he served up a hard-hit two-bagger into the left field corner by Stanley followed by a pair of walks to Mike Gallego and Pat F. Kelly. Matt Nokes, pinch-hitting for Hitchcock, hammered a two-run base knock that dropped in front of Walker. Luis Polonia’s subsequent single drove in Kelly and precipitated another relief outing for Gil Heredia as Hill was sent to the showers. Boggs lined out to the pitcher to kill the rally but the Yankees were within striking distance at 7-3. The Expos loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the seventh inning against Pinstripers’ reliever Bob Wickman. Mike Lansing looped a safety that landed just in front of Polonia and everyone moved up 90 feet. Juan Bell, batting for Heredia, ripped a single down the right field line. O’Neill swiftly corralled it to prevent two runs from scoring, but the ‘Spos now led 9-3 and Wickman had yet to retire a batter in the frame. Showalter’s pitching coach finally placed a call down to the ‘pen and Paul Gibson quickly began to warm up. Wickman found his mojo as he settled down and escaped the inning without further incident. Montreal tacked on a run in the home eighth when Walker greeted Gibson with a titanic blast into the upper deck in right field for the Expos’ twentieth hit of the game. Tim Spehr raked a two-bagger into the left field corner with one away and he came around on a single to left by Lansing. Tim Scott relieved Butch Henry to start the top of the ninth as his club held a comfortable lead, 11-3. He allowed three straight singles and then the Expos gifted the Bombers a run when Alou dropped Stanley’s routine fly ball to left. Gallego smacked a base hit down the line in left to plate O’Neill. Scott issued a bases-loaded walk to Kelly as New York moved within striking distance at 11-6. The exasperated Expos’ skipper relieved Scott of his duties as Mel Rojas jogged in from the ‘pen. John Wetteland was waiting in the wings. Still no one out as Danny Tartabull was announced as the pinch hitter. Another bases-loaded walk forced home the Yankees’ seventh run of the contest. Rojas finally got the first out of the inning on a shallow fly to left by Polonia. Boggs bounced one to Cordero who fired home to get the second out. Mattingly cut the Expos’ lead to 11-8 with an opposite-field knock. John Wetteland was summoned in a save situation, two outs and the sacks full. Paul O’Neill silenced the crowd when he crushed Wetteland’s first pitch over the center field fence for a grand slam! Suddenly New York was on top, 12-11. The Yanks scratched out three successive singles to precipitate the Expos’ fourth pitching change of the inning. Jeff Shaw got the final out when Kelly lined out to Lansing. Showalter handed the ball to Xavier Hernandez with his ball club ahead, 12-11 in the bottom of the ninth and facing the top of the Montreal batting order. Boggs snared a line drive off Grissom’s bat and Cliff Floyd lofted a can of corn to O’Neill. Down to their final out after holding an eight-run lead, Alou sent a long drive to left but Polonia collected it at the warning track. New York players and coaches gathered near the mound to high-five each other while the Montreal players and fans alike sat in stunned disbelief. The Series returned to the Big Apple with the Yankees in control, 3 games to 2.

A couple of southpaws were slated to start Game 6 at Yankee Stadium. Jimmy Key took his warmup tosses for the hometown team while his opponent, Jeff Fassero, began to throw lightly in the visitor’s bullpen. The Expos recorded the first tally of the day when Mike Lansing and Moises Alou delivered back-to-back opposite-field doubles with one out in the opening frame. Alou curiously broke for third on Key’s first pitch to Larry Walker and a strong peg from Mike Stanley cut him down for the second out. This proved costly when “Booger” ripped a base hit to right on the subsequent offering. Wil Cordero lined out to the pitcher and the ‘Spos had an early lead. Bernie Williams was stranded on first following a leadoff knock in the bottom of the first. Key and Fassero dueled into the fourth when Montreal’s bats came to life. Alou rocked a leadoff double off the right field wall and Cordero laced a one-out single which was swiftly retrieved by Paul O’Neill. Sean Berry drove in Alou with a base knock. The Yankees answered in the bottom of the fourth with back-to-back walks by Don Mattingly and Stanley followed by an O’Neill single down the right field line. Jim Leyritz coaxed a base on balls to put ducks on the pond. Fassero plunked Gerald “Ice” Williams on the left hand to force home the tying run. The Expos’ manager made the call to the bullpen and Jeff Shaw jogged in to take his warm-up tosses. Randy Velarde worked the count to 2-2, and then drilled the ball towards third base. Berry made a leaping attempt but just missed snagging the hard-hit liner. O’Neill scampered home with the Bombers’ third tally of the frame. Pat F. Kelly turned on an inside heater and smacked it down the left field line for another RBI single. Mattingly stepped up to the plate and laced a two-out, two-run single to right and Stanley’s looping fly to center plated another run. Danny Tartabull lined out to mercifully end the inning, but Yankees sent twelve men to the plate and turned a 2-0 deficit into a 7-2 advantage. Lou Frazier and Marquis Grissom slashed successive singles against Key to start the fifth. Lansing grounded into a fielder’s choice but Alou clubbed a one-out double up the right-center field gap to cut the Yanks’ lead to 7-4. Leyritz swatted a two-run big-fly into the bullpen in the bottom of the seventh off Butch Henry. “Ice” hit a frozen rope into the same spot for back-to-back blasts, effectively putting the icing on the cake and whipping the hometown fans into a frenzy. Mel Rojas poured gasoline on the fire when he served up a three-run gopher ball off the bat of Bernie Williams that landed 25 rows into the right field seats. The crowd went absolutely bonkers as the Yankees padded their lead and were only six outs away from another trophy! “Ice” blasted his second round-tripper of the match in the eighth off Kirk Rueter. This one sailed over the bullpen and into the left-center field bleachers. Down to their final three outs, the Expos sent rookie outfielder Rondell White to the plate to pinch-hit for Randy Milligan. White slashed a single to center which prompted Buck Showalter to emerge from the dugout. He signaled for the left-handed veteran Steve Howe, allowing his ace Jimmy Key to walk off the field to a standing ovation. Frazier took an inside change-up on a full count to draw a base on balls. Grissom bounced into a fielder’s choice as Kevin Elster threw to third in time to eliminate the lead runner. The hometown fans let out a collective groan as Lansing and Alou coaxed back-to-back walks to force in a run. Montreal wasn’t going down without a fight. Walker made his way to home plate after Sterling Hitchcock was pressed into action to face the Expos’ cleanup hitter. “Booger” drove the ball to the base of the wall near the 399-foot designation in left-center field. Two runs crossed the dish as the Yankees lead was sliced to 14-7. Cordero lined out to Hitchcock for out # 2. Berry ripped an 0-1 offering towards third base but Leyritz timed his leap perfectly and snared the hot liner. The Yankees dog-piled near the back of the mound and Showalter pumped his fist in the air triumphantly as the Bronx Bombers added more hardware to the trophy case!

Hardball 5

I launched Hardball 5, selected the League Play menu and immediately noticed several upgrades to the product. The manager has the option to create lineups vs. RHP and LHP along with the ability to propose trades and sign players off the waiver wire. I’m running version 5.13 and have the 1996 MLBPA Players Disk installed which utilized 1997 Opening Day lineups. The graphics engine remains essentially unchanged from HB4 (the facelift would come in the next release). Perusing the team rosters, lineups, etc., I made a few minor corrections and opted to sim the entire season. You can choose to simulate the entire season or one week at a time. I enjoy checking the League Leaders and Standings every month, so I clicked Simulate Week. The box scores flashed hurriedly across the display and the entire week’s worth of contests completed in less than ten seconds!  Repeating this process until I reached the All-Star break, I reviewed the results to that point prior to playing the “Stars” game. In terms of realism, the majority of the leaderboards and statistics appeared to fall within the realm of possibility with two exceptions – stolen bases and reliever’s innings pitched. Andres Galarraga had 44 stolen bases at the halfway point (the top 10 base-stealers all had 40+ steals) and multiple closers pitched more than 75 innings. Managing the Mid-Summer Classic, I instantly noted several improvements: one pitch mode, the ability to proceed to the next half-inning without watching the defensive run off the field, and the infielders were now throwing with their right arms. The current pitcher displays a stamina bar instead of the pitch count. However the bullpen screen shows the number of pitches thrown. The baserunner window(s) received an upgrade as the runner’s last name and speed rating are shown.

Standings at the All-Star Break HB5

Bret Saberhagen earned the starting assignment for the American League while Greg Maddux got the nod for the National League squad. Both pitchers cruised through their first inning of work. Mike Piazza put the Senior Circuit on the board with a titanic blast into the upper tank at Camden Yards. “Sabes” yielded a gopher ball to Greg Vaughn in the fifth frame as Roger Clemens began to get loose down in the bullpen. “Rocket” entered the contest in the top of the sixth with his ballclub behind 2-0. He allowed a single to Jeff Bagwell but induced Henry Rodriguez to hit into an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play. Maddux was masterful, twirling a perfect game through 7 2/3 innings before Jim Thome clubbed a solo shot over the “Hit It Here” sign in center field. That was the only blemish against “Mad Dog” as he cruised to victory, 2-1.

Seattle dominated the American League with 108 victories to finish 29 games ahead of Texas in the Western Division. Cleveland and Boston claimed their divisions by healthy margins while Baltimore earned the Wild Card with the only remaining record over .500 in the Junior Circuit. Cincinnati tallied 104 wins to top the National League as Atlanta and Los Angeles paced their divisions with slimmer margins. Florida attained Wild Card status with 89 triumphs. Harold Baines collected the AL batting title by a single point over Brian S. Giles (.330 to .329) while Cubs’ backstop Tyler Houston grabbed the NL crown with a .324 mark. Jim Edmonds rapped 65 doubles to lead the Majors. Dante Bichette (Rockies) and Ken Griffey, Jr. (Mariners) tied for the big league home run title with 47 circuit clouts apiece. All-Star starters Greg Maddux (19-4, 1.85) and Bret Saberhagen (19-3, 1.75) paced their respective leagues in victories while Rick Aguilera and Billy Wagner notched 47 saves. The teams with the most wins were ousted in the playoffs as the Orioles bested the Mariners and the Marlins outlasted the Reds. The Braves and Indians were also eliminated in the divisional round by the Dodgers and Red Sox, respectively. In the championship round, Florida upset Los Angeles in 6 games while Boston prevailed, 4 games to 1 in their tilt with Baltimore to set the stage for the World Series.

Final Standings – Regular Season HB5

Fenway Park was filled to capacity as Game 1 got underway with Bret Saberhagen slated to start against Kevin J. Brown. The Red Sox drew first blood as Shane Mack doubled off the Green Monster to knock in Reggie Jefferson in the bottom of the second. In the third frame, Mike Stanley rapped one just over the outstretched glove of Moises Alou. The ball clanked off the top of the scoreboard and John Valentin scooted home with the Sox’ second tally. “Sabes” baffled the Marlins into the sixth when Gary Sheffield crushed a long ball into the center field bleachers to cut the BoSox lead in half. The Marlins mounted a threat in the top of the eighth when pinch-hitter Cliff Floyd slapped a single to center and Luis A. Castillo bunted for a hit. Saberhagen managed to escape without allowing the tying run to score, inducing a pop-fly to shortstop, a fielder’s choice and a shallow fly out to right. He allowed a two-out single to Alou in the ninth, but John Valentin snared Jim Eisenreich’s low liner to shortstop for the final out as Boston held on for the 2-1 victory.

Right-handers Tom Gordon and Alex Fernandez received the starting assignment for their respective clubs in Game 2. Each hurler posted zeroes through three innings. Jeff Conine connected on a long fly to left-center that cleared the Green Monster leading off the visitor’s fourth. Mike Stanley knotted the scoring at 1-1 with a mammoth blast over the left field wall in the bottom of the sixth. Gordon pitched eight solid innings while Fernandez lasted nine before turning the game over to the bullpen. Multiple relievers held the opposition in check until the bottom of the 14^th inning, when Reggie Jefferson sent the fans into a frenzy with a deep drive into the right-center field bleachers off Pat Rapp. The Red Sox achieved their second straight 2-1 win and hopped on their flight to South Florida up 2 games to none.

Southpaw Al Leiter took the mound for the Marlins while knuckleballer Tim Wakefield got the nod for the Sox. Rudy Pemberton launched a long ball over the left field scoreboard to put Boston ahead 1-0 in the top of the second inning. Wakefield perplexed the Fish, holding them hitless until Gregg Zaun led off the sixth with a bloop single down the right field line. In the bottom of the seventh, Gary Sheffield roped a two-base hit up the left-center field gap and advanced to third on Bobby Bonilla’s base hit. Jeff Conine knotted the scoring at 1-1 when he lined a single that barely evaded a leaping attempt by shortstop Nomar Garciaparra. Cliff Floyd, batting for Zaun, slashed a safety to center and Conine dove headfirst to record the go-ahead run. Luis A. Castillo connected on a knuckleball that failed to break and deposited the pitch over the center field wall for a three-run jack. Leiter left the game after finishing the eighth inning. Mark Hutton fired a scoreless ninth to secure the “W” for Florida.

Bret Saberhagen and Kevin J. Brown came back on three days’ rest to compete for their respective clubs in Game 4. Tim Naehring initiated the scoring with a line-drive single down the left field line which drove Mo Vaughn home with two out in the third. The aces battled each other until the eighth when Brown tired, yielded back-to-back singles and exited in favor of Jay Powell. Wil Cordero drilled a base hit to left that skipped under Moises Alou’s glove, allowing Vaughn to lumber around third and slide safely across home plate. “Sabes” was cruising along with a four-hit shutout through eight frames but he was lifted for pinch-hitter Reggie Jefferson in the top of the ninth. Heathcliff Slocumb nailed down the 2-0 victory and the BoSox regained command of the Series, up 3 games to 1.

Boston and Florida traded zeroes into the fifth inning in Game 6. Darren Bragg lined a solo shot to right off Alex Fernandez to put the Red Sox ahead, 1-0. Tom Gordon stymied the Marlins, taking a one-hitter into the seventh until Gary Sheffield uncorked an opposite-field blast into the bleachers in right-center. Bobby Bonilla stepped up to the plate and belted a long ball into the same location as “Flash” turned and watched in disbelief. Mark Hutton relieved Fernandez in the top of the eighth with the Fish leading 2-1. Mo Vaughn ripped a two-out single into right field but Hutton got Reggie Jefferson on a line out to the second baseman to retire the side. Robb Nen started to get loose in the bullpen as Gordon remained in the game to face the bottom of the Marlins’ batting order. Florida was unable to get the ball out of the infield, so Nen jogged in to take the mound in the ninth. The Marlins’ fans were on edge, hoping their ballclub would be able to hang on and force a return to Beantown. Tim Naehring flied out to left but Troy O’Leary grounded a hard single to right past a diving Luis A. Castillo. Bragg, who had homered earlier in the contest, drilled a line shot to the exact same spot but the second-sacker picked it clean this time. Mike Stanley grabbed a bat off the rack and strolled to the dish to pinch-hit for fellow backstop, Bill Haselman. O’Leary swiped second but Stanley was now in the hole with a count of no balls, two strikes. Nen looked in for the sign, reared back and threw a high heater. Stanley’s eyes lit up.. he swung and connected, took a few steps towards first and watched the ball sail over the left field scoreboard. The Red Sox dugout went ballistic as Stanley circled the bases. Boston reclaimed the advantage, 3-2! Pinch-hitter Jeff Frye and Nomar Garciaparra reached on consecutive singles but John Valentin popped up to shortstop to end the frame. Heathcliff Slocumb took over on the mound as the Marlins were three outs from defeat. The top of the order came up to bat. Devon White hammered a fastball into the left-center field gap and slid safely into second for a two-base hit. Edgar Renteria legged out an infield hit to shortstop but White wisely held up at second. “Sheff” lofted a harmless pop fly to shortstop for out # 1. Bonilla laced a base hit to left that landed right in front of Jefferson. Both runners were only able to advance ninety feet. Florida fans were now on the feet, the fate of their season in the hands of their first baseman, Jeff Conine. “Mr. Marlin” calmly took a few practice swings and then stepped into the batters’ box. He hit Slocumb’s 1-0 offering on the ground towards second. Running from first base, Bonilla crossed in front of John Valentin. The ball skipped under his glove and into right field. White scored and Renteria streaked around third and scored without a throw to give the Marlins a 4-3 comeback victory!

Flutterballer Tim Wakefield and veteran left-hander Al Leiter prepared for their Game 6 starts down in the Fenway Park bullpens. The managers huddled with the umpires at home plate exchanging lineup cards and the festivities commenced. Both pitchers twirled a clean first inning and Jeff Conine collected the first hit of the day on a sharp single up the middle. In the home half of the second, Mike Stanley coaxed a base on balls. Inexplicably Stanley attempted to steal but Gregg Zaun’s peg was on the money and Stanley was out by a wide margin. The boneheaded move cost his club a run when Wil Cordero clanked a long single off the Green Monster and Reggie Jefferson swatted a two-out, two-run big fly later in the frame. Wil Cordero lofted a towering drive that cleared the Monster in left-center with two down in the fourth to extend the Sox advantage to 3-0. Wakefield was spinning a three-hit shutout through 7 2/3 innings and just posted back-to-back strikeouts when Boston skipper Jimy Williams emerged from the dugout. He reached the mound, signaled for his closer Heathcliff Slocumb, patted Wakefield on the back and sent him off the field to a standing ovation. Zaun lined out softly to the shortstop. Pat Rapp relieved Leiter in the bottom of the eighth inning to oppose the lower third of the Red Sox batting order. He whiffed Nomar Garciaparra with a runner in scoring position to keep Florida within striking distance. The Marlins failed miserably in their final at-bats, dribbling three consecutive weak grounders that were gobbled up by the Boston tandem of Garciaparra and John Valentin. The Beantown faithful stormed the field when Valentin flipped to Mo Vaughn for the last out of the Series as the Sox outlasted the Fish, 4 games to 2!

Hardball 6

Using modern hardware I was able to install and run Hardball 6 on a Windows 98 virtual machine in VirtualBox. The audio and visual enhancements were welcome but long overdue. Greg Papa replaced Al Michaels in the broadcast booth. New league play options included toggling whether injuries can occur and the ability to create manager profiles. This version came with 1998 MLB rosters utilizing statistics from 1997. I started a new season in League Play and simulated games (one week at a time) through the All-Star Break. Each week’s worth of contests resolved in under five seconds. Stolen base frequency remained problematic. Craig Biggio topped the Majors with 62 stolen bases which would be expected given his speed rating of 99! Fifteen players swiped at least 45 bags in the first half of the simulated season. The box scores never evolved from the bare minimum in terms of statistics. In fact the game fails to denote the winning and losing pitchers (or saves for that matter) nor does it log extra base hits, stolen bases, caught stealing or errors by individual fielders. 

Standings at the All-Star Break HB6

The Mid-Summer Classic pitted Randy Johnson against Darryl Kile at Coors Field. Roberto Alomar led off the contest with a double down the right field line but he was stranded without advancing further. Craig Biggio pounded a two-base hit up the left-center field alley and moved to third on a single between first and second off the bat of Henry Rodriguez. The “Big Unit” got Ellis Burks on a shallow fly to center which pinned Biggio to the bag at third. Andres Galarraga’s hard grounder up the middle plated the runner and moved “Oh Henry” up ninety feet. The third Rockies’ All-Star to bat in the frame, Larry Walker, roped a two-base hit into the right field corner. Rodriguez scored to give the Senior Circuit the 2-0 lead with only one out. Chipper Jones’ long sacrifice fly to center allowed the “Big Cat” to trot home with the third run of the inning. Johnson paced around the mound, angrily fired the rosin bag into the area behind the mound and then returned to the rubber to glare in at the next batter, Jeff Reed. Consecutive hits by Reed and Royce Clayton tallied another score as the American League’s bullpen began to stir. Johnson retired Kile on a lazy fly ball to left field but the National League held a 4-0 advantage after one inning. Dan Naulty relieved Johnson and pitched a scoreless frame in the bottom of the second. Dave Justice laced a two-out double in the third, sending Ivan Rodriguez to third. Kile buckled down and got Ken Griffey Jr. on a can of corn to his counterpart, Burks. The National Leaguers load the bases against Jaret Wright in the home half of the third, but Kile bounced weakly into a fielder’s choice at second for the last out. Alex Rodriguez followed successive singles by Matt Stairs and Cal Ripken with a booming double that one-hopped the fence in left-center, driving in the first run for the AL squad. Wright was lifted for a pinch-hitter so Bret Saberhagen assumed pitching duties in the bottom of the fourth. Walker drilled a two-base knock and Jones delivered a single into left-center field to increase the NL advantage to 5-1 against southpaw Arthur Rhodes in the seventh. Jon Nunnally added an RBI single in the eighth and Mark Wohlers set the American Leaguers down in order to secure the 6-1 victory.

Atlanta broke away from the pack to claim the National League Eastern division title with 112 victories as the second-place Mets finished 26 games behind. Colorado hit the century mark in wins to secure the NL West while St. Louis edged Houston for the crown in the NL Central. The Astros seized the NL Wild Card spot. The Junior Circuit divisional winners (Baltimore, Cleveland and Seattle) tallied 90+ victories. The Yankees and Blue Jays triumphed in 90 contests apiece, tying for the AL Wild Card but the playoff schedule listed New York as Baltimore’s opponent in the Division Series. I’m not sure how Hardball 6 broke the tie (sorry Toronto fans!) In a best-of-five series, the Yankees bested the Orioles 3-2 while the Mariners defeated the Indians, 3 games to 1. The Braves advanced with a sweep of the Astros and the Rockies survived their matchup with the Cardinals, 3 games to 2. In the League Championship Series, the Yankees prevailed in six games over the Mariners while the Braves outlasted the Rockies in seven to set the stage for a rematch of the 1996 World Series.

Final Standings – Regular Season HB6

I signed on as the Braves’ skipper to match wits against Joe Torre and the Bronx Bombers. Setting my lineup for Game 1 at fabled Yankee Stadium, I settled in the virtual visitor’s dugout as David Cone took his warmup tosses for New York. John Smoltz sat next to pitching coach Leo Mazzone, absorbing some last-minute counsel as the Series got underway. The pair of aces dueled in the early innings, matching zeroes on the scoreboard through the second frame. Keith Lockhart legged out a triple when the right fielder Paul O’Neill missed a diving attempt at his low liner. Chipper Jones followed with a two-bagger into the right field corner, plating Lockhart with the first run of the Series. “Coney” whiffed Ryan Klesko but Smoltz took a 1-0 lead to the hill. Michael Tucker played Jorge Posada’s routine fly ball down the right field line into a triple with one out in the bottom of the third. “Smoltzie” got out of the jam when Lockhart snared a line drive off the bat of Scott Brosius and Derek Jeter hit a can of corn to the center fielder, Andruw Jones. Chuck Knoblauch laced a triple up the left-center field gap to lead off the fourth but the Pinstripers failed to capitalize as Smoltz induced a couple of line-outs and a ground ball to first. Atlanta loaded the bases against Cone with two down in the visitor’s fifth but Andres Galarraga popped up to Posada. New York knotted the score at 1-1 on consecutive singles by Tim Raines and Posada followed by a Brosius double up the gap that rolled to the wall in left-center.  After an intentional pass to Jeter, Smoltz extracted himself with a shallow fly to center and a fielder’s choice ground ball to Lockhart. Tucker crushed an opposite-field three-base hit beyond the outstretched glove of Raines with one away in the sixth. Cone jammed Andruw Jones, who skied a foul pop fly that Brosius gathered as he brushed up against the tarp near the third-base seats. Former Yankees’ outfielder Gerald “Ice” Williams lifted a routine fly to left and the score remained tied. Tino Martinez smoked a Smoltz offering that one-hopped the center field wall for a two-base hit. O’Neill singled and Chili Davis followed with a double to right-center, scoring Martinez with the go-ahead run. Smoltz exited and Alan Embree escaped the frame on a shallow fly ball and a double play grounder. The Yankees padded their lead in the bottom of the seventh. Embree yielded three hits and gave way to right-hander Mike Cather. Davis rapped a single to right-center to plate Bernie Williams. “Rock” Raines supplied a bloop double that eluded Andruw Jones. Posada grounded out to first but the Bombers now held a 5-1 advantage. Galarraga ripped a rocket over Bernie Williams’ head and lumbered into third base with the leadoff triple to begin the eighth inning. Unfortunately his teammates stranded him at third base. Cone retired the Braves in order to close out the contest as New York prevailed.

Joe Torre awarded the Game 2 starting assignment to southpaw Andy Pettitte while Atlanta countered with Greg Maddux. Both aces held the opposition scoreless through three frames. Chipper Jones led off the visitor’s fourth with a solo blast into the bullpen. Ryan Klesko teed off against Pettitte in the top of the fifth, crushing a 484-foot circuit clout into the center field bleachers. In the bottom of the seventh, Andruw Jones dove and came up empty on a Bernie Williams’ liner down the line. The ball rolled to the warning track and Williams ended up on third base with a stand-up triple. “Mad Dog” induced a ground ball to shortstop, an infield fly and a pop-up to right field to maintain a 2-0 lead. Scott Brosius finally got the Bombers on the board with a wallop into the left-field seats but New York still trailed Atlanta, 2-1 with two outs in the eighth. Maddux whiffed Derek Jeter to send the game to the ninth with the starting pitchers remaining on the hill. After Pettitte sliced through the heart of the Braves’ batting order, the Braves’ skipper called upon Mark Wohlers to lock down the game. Wohlers complied with his manager’s wishes, retiring Tino Martinez on a sky-high pop-up to end the contest. The series shifted to Hotlanta tied at one game apiece.

Atlanta claimed an early lead in Game 3. After Tom Glavine posted a scoreless frame in the top of the first, the Braves’ offense went to work against fellow left-hander David Wells. “Boomer” yielded a bases-loaded sacrifice fly to Andruw Jones. Ryan Klesko followed with a base hit to center to place ducks on the pond again. Gerald “Ice” Williams drilled a comebacker through the box and into center field to plate Chipper Jones. A fielder’s choice ended the threat but the Yankees trailed 2-0 after one inning. Glavine laced a double to center leading off the bottom of the second. Javy Lopez crushed a two-bagger to deep center beyond the reach of Bernie Williams with two away in the third, extending Atlanta’s advantage to 3-0. Chuck Knoblauch broke up Glavine’s shutout with a solo jack down the left field line to commence the top of the fourth inning. Gerald Williams delivered a long single to center in the fifth, driving home Javy Lopez to give the Braves a three-run cushion again. Graeme Lloyd relieved Wells to start the sixth and supplied two scoreless innings. Derek Jeter belted a long fly into the left-field seats to cut the Braves’ lead to 4-2 with two down in the eighth. The Yankees called on Mariano Rivera in the bottom of the eighth and Curtis Pride entered the game as a pinch-hitter for Glavine. Pride whiffed and Keith Lockhart popped out to third base. Chipper Jones took “Mo” deep with a line shot over the fence in right-center. The hometown fans went wild as Atlanta increased their advantage to 5-2 while closer Mark Wohlers warmed up in the ‘pen. The Yankees went down in order against Wohlers in the ninth with Lockhart gloving Paul O’Neill’s soft liner for the last out.

New York skipper Joe Torre brought David Cone back on short rest while Atlanta opted for portsider Denny Neagle in Game 4. The Yankees took the lead in the top of the second on three consecutive hits by Paul O’Neill, Scott Brosius and Tim Raines. A two-out double by Derek Jeter plated Brosius and then Chuck Knoblauch produced a base hit to deep center to drive home a pair. Neagle regrouped and struck out Bernie Williams but when the dust settled, the Braves trailed by four tallies. The Bombers continued to pummel Neagle in the following frame and Dennis Martinez was summoned from the bullpen after a Brosius’ single plated the fifth run. In the visitor’s fourth, Jeter and Knoblauch clubbed back-to-back two-base hits to increase the NY advantage to 6-0. Pinch-hitter Eddie Perez ripped a two-run triple that split the defenders in the left-center field gap to break up “Coney’s” shutout with one down in the bottom of the fifth. “Rock” beat out a potential double-play grounder in the seventh with the sacks full, pushing across another tally for the Yanks. Tony Graffanino made things interesting with a pinch-hit RBI double in the ninth, but Cone retired Gerald Williams on a liner to Jeter to secure the 7-3 victory.

John Smoltz and Andy Pettitte squared off in Game 5. Pettitte extracted himself from a no-out, bases loaded jam in the second inning. Gerald Williams hit into a force play at home plate for the first out.  Rafael Belliard’s fly ball to left was too shallow to allow Javy Lopez to tag up and score. “Smoltzie” grounded out to second to end the frame. Belliard injured himself running the bases when he singled in the fourth following a two-bagger off the bat of Ryan Klesko. The game paused after prompting “Injury – Belliard” then launched the lineup screen so I could insert a replacement (Walt Weiss). Derek Jeter stepped to the dish with ducks on the pond and two outs in the seventh. He got ahold of an inside breaking ball from Smoltz and curled it just inside the left field foul pole for a grand salami! New York tacked on a run in the eighth against relievers Alan Embree and Kevin Millwood. The Pinstripers blew the game open with three in the visitor’s ninth, courtesy of a Tino Martinez double and a two-run single by Tim Raines off Millwood. Pettitte retired the Braves in order to close out an 8-hit shutout as the Yankees wrapped up the 8-0 victory and headed home with a 3-2 advantage in the World Series.

The New York faithful packed Yankee Stadium to watch their beloved Bombers as the ball club attempted to seize yet another World Series trophy. David Wells was on the bump for the Yankees while the Braves countered with “The Professor”, Greg Maddux. The Yanks placed runners on second and third in the home half of the second on a single by Paul O’Neill and a two-bagger up the right-center field gap off the bat of designated hitter Chili Davis. Maddux somehow escaped without allowing a run when Tim Raines flew out to shallow right, Jorge Posada whiffed and Scott Brosius popped up to short. Wells worked himself into a similar situation in the top of the fourth. Javy Lopez led off the frame with a safety and Ryan Klesko blasted a double that one-hopped the wall in right-center, putting runners on second and third. Torre ordered an intentional walk to Gerald Williams, loading the bases for the Braves’ backup backstop, Eddie Perez (Lopez was in the lineup as the DH today). A short fly ball to right was not deep enough to allow Lopez to tag up. Managing in a must-win game, Atlanta’s skipper summoned Danny Bautista off the bench to bat for Rafael Belliard. No dice – Bautista popped up weakly to the third baseman Brosius for the final out of the inning and the contest remained scoreless.  O’Neill took care of that with a two-run clout deep into the right field seats, giving the Yankees an early lead against the “Mad Dog”. Atlanta battled back with a leadoff hit by Klesko in the sixth followed by a long double by “Ice” Williams. “Boomer” was up to the task, retiring Perez on a soft fly to center, Walt Weiss on a foul fly to third and Tony Graffanino on a line drive to short. The Yankees were only nine outs away from a World Series championship. Chuck Knoblauch and Bernie Williams rapped back-to-back doubles in the bottom of the eighth to extend New York’s advantage to 3-0. That was all for Maddux, as Alan Embree was called upon to face the lefties in the middle of the Yankees’ batting order. The southpaw was up to the task, inducing a couple of fielder’s choices and whiffing Chili Davis. Wells took a shutout into the ninth and faced the top of the Braves’ lineup. The Yankees’ faithful were on their feet. The crowd roared when Jeter fielded a two-hopper and threw out Tony Graffanino for the first out. Chipper Jones lined one back to Wells for out # 2. Bernie Williams glided into right-center to snag Andres Galarraga’s liner and the Yankees’ bench and bullpen emptied onto the field to join the celebration as New York secured another World Championship! Scott Brosius (.455/1/4) was awarded the World Series MVP trophy.

Ratings

Note – ratings below for Hardball 6 – deduct 1 point for Park Factors and 4 points for Statistics in Hardball 3; deduct 1 point for Rosters and Commentary and 2 points for Sound and Injuries in Hardball 3 and 4; deduct 1 point for Sound in Hardball 5

Graphics – [5] – Ballparks are beautifully rendered throughout the series and the player animations are relatively smooth, aside from the aforementioned left-handed throwing middle infielders and third basemen that went uncorrected for several revisions of the software. The graphics engine remained unchanged for versions 3 through 5 before getting a 3-D makeover in Hardball 6. You can view the instant replay before the next pitch is thrown and save highlights, but your options are restricted to normal, fast speed or frame-by-frame. With the exception of Hardball 6, you cannot view the highlights from different angles. In that version you may select from several batting and fielding camera angles prior to the delivery of a pitch. Batting camera options include behind the mound, behind home plate or “both” (which shows the view from behind the mound while you are pitching and behind home plate when you’re batting). Fielding camera shots consist of normal, press box, ground level, crane shot and random.

Sound – [4] – The earlier versions offer some basic sound effects when the batter makes contact or when a fielder catches a ball. You can toggle background music on/off during the game. I found the looping tune to be a distraction; however the lack of crowd noise was perceptible. The programmers corrected this oversight in Hardball 5. Organ music at the appropriate intervals and crowd reactions highlight the aural enhancements in version 6.

Strategy – [4] – Granular infield and outfield positioning can be deployed to optimize your defense against the tendencies of the current batter. You can also choose from an array of pre-set defenses such as Outfield In, Outfield Right, Outfield Left, Infield In, Double Play Depth, Guard Lines, and Hold Runner or you may leave the fielders in their standard locations. The user needs to track player substitutions as the game will not warn you when someone is playing out of position. Otherwise your options as the skipper are fairly straightforward. Depending on the current game situation, you can signal to your batter to take a pitch or bunt. If there are runners aboard, you can opt to hit-and-run, steal, double steal or attempt a squeeze play. Defensively, you can issue an intentional walk and if there are baserunners you can call for a pitchout or a pickoff attempt.

Artificial Intelligence – [2] – Managerial moves were handled properly in the games that I played against the computer. However the decisions surrounding base running and throwing to the correct bases left much to be desired. Even in Hardball 6, the computer was caught stealing third at least four times. On defense with a runner on second, the AI opted to go for the lead runner on a ground ball numerous times. 

Box Score – [1] – In-game box scores are fairly limited and you cannot review box scores at a later date. You can’t see extra base hits, stolen bases, caught stealing, hit batsmen or sacrifices for batters while the pitching statistics omit walks, earned runs, hit batsmen, wild pitches, etc. Fielding stats don’t exist on an individual level in the box scores. The omission of standard categories from the box score can only be described as intentional based on the fact that it was never corrected throughout the lifespan of the series. When the game is over, you are unable to review box scores at all.

Rosters – [4] – Player movement between teams is non-existent in Hardball 3 and 4, and you are limited to the 25-man active roster (no reserves or injured list). Roster construction is greatly enhanced in later editions of the game. Trades are permitted and free agents can be signed. You can move a player between the active roster and minors. Injured players can be transferred to the disabled list. Player names and ratings can be edited but real-life statistics cannot be changed in version 5 and 6, which is strange because this option was available in the earlier editions. Hardball 6 includes a Draft function.

Statistics – [5] – Hardball 3 did not allow users to view League Leaders as the compilation of statistics was completely neglected. However, this omission was rectified in Hardball 4. Versions 4 through 6 offer a plethora of options for viewing and sorting 40 stats based on fielding position, highest/lowest, specific league or team, and individuals/team totals. Split stats such as vs. RHP/LHP, home/away, etc. are logged. Hardball 4 and 5 offer the option to print the results and Hardball 6 adds the ability to export the data to a file.

Usage/Injuries/Ejections – [3] – The ability to toggle injuries on/off was included in versions 5 and 6.  Ejections do not exist as far as I can tell. I noticed that pitcher usage was tracked when I played the World Series (usually the starting pitchers required several days off between starts). I did not observe any reference to fatigue for batters.

Ballparks / Park Factors – [3] – All of the contemporary stadiums at the time of each game’s release are included and rendered in fine detail. While you are unable to modify stadium dimensions, you may alter a park’s wind, surface, temperature and humidity in Hardball 4 through Hardball 6.

Commentary – [2] –Al Michaels anchors the in-game commentary through Hardball 5. As version 6 received a substantial makeover, Greg Papa provided a fresh batch of dialogue. for the sixth edition of the game “PR Echo” is an interesting effect that was included in Hardball 5 and 6 though I’m not sure I would want to listen to an entire game in that mode. The play-by-play includes the ballplayer’s names in versions 5 and 6 whereas the prior issues only identified them by position.  

Scale:  Ratings from 1 (worst) to 5 (best)

Hardball 3 – Total Score: 23 out of 50

Hardball 4 – Total Score: 28 out of 50

Hardball 5 – Total Score: 33 out of 50

Hardball 6 – Total Score: 34 out of 50

Enhancements and Features

Observations

The Hardball series evolved from strictly arcade fare to a product that accommodated action and simulation / manage-only diehards alike. The end result, particularly Hardball 6, delivers plenty of eye and ear candy but falls short in the simulation department. Quirks that remained unresolved over multiple iterations detract from the overall experience.

Please add a comment below if you spent a significant amount of time and/or have any recollections of Hardball 3 through Hardball 6.

Screenshots

Hardball 3

Hardball 4

Hardball 5

Hardball 6

Articles in the Series

	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – SSI Computer Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review –Computer Statis Pro Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Avalon Hill Pro Manager / Major League Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pure-Stat Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Monday Morning Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Radio Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Full Count Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball II – III – IV
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa’s Ultimate Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – APBA Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Front Page Sports Baseball ’94 – ’96 – ’98
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – ESPN Baseball Tonight
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Hardball 3-4-5-6
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pursue the Pennant – Diamond Mind Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pro League Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – 4 – Old Time Baseball

Additional Links

Play Hardball III in your browser -> https://archive.org/details/msdos_HardBall_III_1992

Hardball III – IBM PC – Playthrough

Hardball III Interactive Code Wheel –https://www.oldgames.sk/codewheel/hardball-3

Hardball 4 patch 2 -> https://archive.org/details/swizzle_demu_HB4

Gindin, Jim. “Double Play: Turn Two With Reviews of Hardball IV and ESPN Baseball Tonight”. Computer Gaming World. April 1995. p132, 134, 136. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_129.pdf

Gindin, Jim. “Baseball: Diamonds Are A Fan’s Best Friend”. Computer Gaming World. May 1995. p62. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_130.pdf

Gindin, Jim. “Back to the Bullpen: Accolade’s Hardball 5 is More a Changeup Than a Fastball”. Computer Gaming World. January 1996. p274, 276. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_138.pdf

Jones, George. “Holiday Top 100: Sports”. Computer Gaming World. December 1995. p110. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_137.pdf

Kaiafas, Tasos. “Strike Six (HardBall 6 Review)” . Computer Gaming World. August 1998. p208. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_169.pdf

Rogers, Win. “Sights and Sounds of the Summer Game – Al Michaels Announces Hardball III”. Computer Gaming World. August 1992. p78-79. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_97.pdf

https://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/hardball-iii

https://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/hardball-4

https://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/hardball-5

https://www.mobygames.com/game/windows/hardball-6

https://youtu.be/XLblVUzR9p4 Hardball 3 gameplay video by Squakenet

https://youtu.be/nPjraYeR-14 Hardball 4 gameplay video by Squakenet

https://youtu.be/yITytcP20bc Hardball 5 gameplay video by Squakenet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1qu2M4Z38I Hardball 6 gameplay video by Darkhour’s Retro PC Games

Hardball 3 manual (PDF) ->

https://www.gamesdatabase.org/Media/SYSTEM/Microsoft_DOS/manual/Formated/HardBall_III.pdf

About the Author

I am a New Jersey native with a passion for baseball, statistics, computers and video games who enjoys spending quality time with his family.

“Hardball Architects – Volume 1 (American League)“, published in July 2020 and
“Hardball Architects – Volume 2 (National League)”, published in April 2022, examine the trades, free agent acquisitions, draft picks and other transactions for the 30 Major League Baseball franchises, divided into a 2-volume set. Both books are available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. All key moves are scrutinized for every team and Sabermetric principles are applied to the roster construction throughout the lifetime of the organization to encapsulate the hits and misses by front office executives. Team performances are analyzed based on transaction type with graphs depicting the WAR (Wins Above Replacement) in every decade. Individual results for each player-transaction is charted over the duration of their stint with the franchise. Every team chapter includes All-Time Rosters and Single-Season Leaders based on transaction type. The Team Trade Record chronicles the WAR and WS (Win Shares) accumulated by players acquired in comparison to those traded to opposing teams. The opening chapter is devoted to the Evolution of the General Manager and incorporates a discussion with former Dodgers GM Fred Claire (along with former Angels and Red Sox GM Mike Port and current Reds GM Nick Krall in Volume 2) on a variety of front office topics.

“Hardball Retroactive”, published in June 2018, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com.  Hardball Retroactive is a modest collection of selected articles that I have written for Seamheads.com along with my Baseball Analytics blog since 2010. Exclusive content includes the chapter on “Minors vs. Majors” which assesses every franchise’s minor league successes and failures in relation to their major league operations.

“Hardball Retrospective” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. Supplemental Statistics, Charts and Graphs along with a discussion forum are offered at TuataraSoftware.com. In Hardball Retrospective, I placed every ballplayer in the modern era (from 1901-present) on their original teams. Using a variety of advanced statistics and methods, I generated revised standings for each season based entirely on the performance of each team’s “original” players. I discuss every team’s “original” players and seasons at length along with organizational performance with respect to the Amateur Draft (or First-Year Player Draft), amateur free agent signings and other methods of player acquisition. Season standings, WAR and Win Shares totals for the “original” teams are compared against the real-time or “actual” team results to assess each franchise’s scouting, development and general management skills.

Don Daglow (Intellivision World Series Major League Baseball, Earl Weaver Baseball, Tony LaRussa Baseball) contributed the foreword for Hardball Retrospective. The foreword and preview of my book are accessible here. 

“Hardball Retrospective – Addendum 2014 to 2016” supplements my research for Hardball Retrospective, providing retroactive standings based on Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and Win Shares (WS) for each “original” team over the past three seasons (2014-2016). Team totals from 2010 – 2013 are included for reference purposes. “Addendum” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. 

IBM PC version

ESPN Baseball Tonight

Publisher – Sony Imagesoft

Release Year – 1994

Platforms – IBM PC

Credits

Programmer Interview

Don Daglow and the Stormfront Studios team collaborated with Sony Imagesoft on this title. He replied to a series of questions about the ESPN Baseball Tonight – PC version.

DB – Please tell me about the ESPN Baseball Tonight. Who proposed the development of this title and how did the Stormfront team along with Sony Imagesoft determine which features to keep or omit from the “Tony La Russa Baseball 2” engine? Were any features specifically added or removed in order to differentiate the products?

DD – We created the ESPN National Hockey Night game for Sony, and they were looking to build a sports line across all the major leagues that ESPN supported. We agreed to do a modified version of Tony La Russa Baseball for them to publish under the ESPN brand. We met and mutually agreed on which features to keep — they wanted a simpler game that didn’t feel like a La Russa clone. I’m afraid I don’t remember the details.

DB – Were any design choices implemented in order to mimic the console versions? While there is a “sim” component to the game, it feels like the product was catered towards arcade play.

DD -That’s accurate — the ESPN brand is about showing all the action, so what we today would call more of a console style game was the target. I don’t remember the degree to which we used the Sega Genesis version of La Russa as a template.

DB – Comparing this title to other baseball simulations, I immediately noticed the omission of box scores along with the ability to view scores or results from completed games. Was this a direct result of gearing the title towards the casual gamer?

DD – Yes, this was to be more about the gameplay of the moment rather than the long term of how stats could guide strategy. We also wanted to keep a clear differentiation between the titles.

DB – Were there any features left on the cutting room floor due to time constraints or deadlines?

DD – None that were frustrating enough for me to remember them now after 30 years.

DB – Did you or any Stormfront team members have the opportunity to interact directly with any of the on-air talent or crew from the ESPN Baseball Tonight show?

DD – No, that was handled by the team at Sony. Publishers doing this themselves when working with outside studios was already the norm in the 1990s.

Review

In the same vein as the Earl Weaver and Tony La Russa Baseball games, ESPN Baseball Tonight is a hybrid as it offers the opportunity to play an arcade-type baseball game or manage a simulation with human or computer opponents. However it differs greatly from EWB and TLBB as a number of core features that I would consider must-haves in a competent baseball sim are either de-emphasized or stripped entirely from this effort. For these reasons I strongly considered omitting ESPN Baseball Tonight along with Accolade’s later Hardball releases from my “Retro Review” series. I ultimately decided to include them for the sake of completeness while noting the differences between these entries versus pure baseball simulators.

Cranking up the game in Dosbox, the audio and video segments catch your attention immediately as the Baseball Tonight theme song blares through your computer speakers. The mouse-driven main menu facilitates batting practice, trades, viewing player statistics, league play and exhibition play. Selecting the League Play option, I immediately noted the inability to edit or manipulate my roster. As far as I can tell, there is no way to create new players or teams nor is there an option to modify existing rosters except for the “Trade Player” module. This frustrated me to no end when I purchased the title back in 1994 but I was determined to forge ahead and attempt to simulate a season. Moving on to lineup creation, you can create a default lineup and defensive positions for each team, but you don’t get to select different batting orders based on the pitcher’s hand. The default lineups and pitching rotations are riddled with mistakes. A few examples – rookie catcher Chris Turner (86 plate appearances) batting leadoff for the ’93 Angels or Jeff Bagwell hitting atop the Astros’ order instead of third or fourth. If the batting orders were computer-generated, those algorithms needed more fine-tuning to improve the realism.

Box scores?  They don’t exist in this game – at all! Understanding the desire to craft a more action-based (arcade-like) game, I’m perplexed by this omission. In hindsight, perhaps a feasible compromise would have been the inclusion of a standard box score without all of the bells and whistles of the expanded (USA Today-style) box scores. While hardcore users would likely miss the detailed record of each game, my assumption is that the casual hardball fan would want the option to peruse the results of the contest. Given the available storage mediums at the time, I would expect at least the option to save box scores to a hard drive. This missing feature along with the lack of a player editor nearly led me to exclude the game from my review list.

Quirks – I found that it’s possible to substitute a pitcher into the game after he’s been removed. After the regular season ended, I selected the Start Playoffs option in the schedule. Then I realized that I forgot to grab screenshots of the final regular season league leaders. Too late! Those statistics are wiped out. During the playoffs I noticed that the graphic displaying the current batter’s statistics failed to calculate batting average correctly (all hitters were listed with a .000 BA). It is possible that a subsequent patch remedied some of these issues but I was unable to locate this file a quarter-century after the game was released.

1993 Season Replay

ESPN Baseball Tonight game comes with the 1993 and 1994 seasons, so I decided to simulate both seasons using the default lineups and pitching staff configurations with injuries enabled. Working in chronological order, I selected “Start New Season” from the main menu, chose 1993 from the available leagues and reviewed the settings (DH for the American League, number of games in each playoff round, etc.) I browsed ahead on the schedule, choosing a game just prior to the All-Star Break (July 16) and all of the games up to that point were simulated in under 15 seconds!

For the Mid-Summer Classic, I opted to use rosters based on the simulated stats up to that point in the season. The results were an interesting mix of players that I expected to make the team (Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey Jr., Tony Gwynn, Greg Maddux) along with a group that hadn’t quite reached All-Star status during their careers (Mike Pagliarulo, Troy Neel). The contest was held in Baltimore at the new home of the Orioles, Camden Yards. The National Leaguers jumped out to a 4-0 advantage in the opening frame but the home team returned fire with 3 runs of their own. Fred “Crime Dog” McGriff rocked a pair of home runs including a grand slam and Lenny “Nails” Dykstra added a 3-run blast as the Senior Circuit opened up a 14-3 lead with a 10-run third inning against AL starter Ben McDonald and Kevin Tapani. “Junior” followed singles by Kenny Lofton and Roberto Alomar with a deep drive into the center field seats in the bottom of the fifth to help the American Leaguers close the gap to 15-9. Twice in the fifth inning, Roberto Alomar fielded a ground ball with runners on first and second. He stepped on the bag and proceeded to throw to third (the runner was safe both times) instead of wheeling and throwing to first. This move cost the American League All-Stars a pair of runs. Griffey mashed a two-run tater to center after Alomar walked with two outs in the fifth, running the score to 17-11 after five complete frames. Wayne Housie, apparently batting .984 on the season (?), replaced Barry Bonds in the NL lineup and knocked in one of the six runs that they tallied against David Cone and Jesse Orosco in the top of the sixth. Every pitcher yielded multiple hits and runs although I have no way to document this (no option to view box scores?). The game concluded with Pedro Martinez on the hill for the National League. Griffey was caught stealing third with two outs and his team trailing by 12 runs! Guess he wanted to catch an early flight back to Seattle after this debacle. The final score (25-13!) appears, Dan Patrick signs off and you are promptly returned to the main menu. Besides the lack of a box score to peruse after the fact, this would have been a great place to deliver a highlight reel or a “scores from around the league” segment.  

I had the computer simulate the remaining regular season contests along with the Championship Series in both leagues. The Braves swept the Phillies and the White Sox outlasted the Orioles to advance to the World Series. I elected to manage Atlanta while Gene Lamont skippered the Southsiders.  The team’s aces squared off in Game 1 – “Black” Jack McDowell on the hill for the hometown Pale Hose against the “Professor”, Greg Maddux. “Neon” Deion Sanders led off the game with a deep drive to center. Sensing a three-base hit, he sprinted out of the box but Lance ”One Dog” Johnson dove at the last moment and made an incredible over-the-shoulder catch for the first out of the contest! Jeff Blauser ripped a single to center and Fred McGriff followed with a two-base knock, placing a pair of runners in scoring position for the heart of the Braves’ order. Dave Justice beat out a slow roller to short which allowed Blauser to score. Ron Gant walked to load the bases and Terry Pendleton delivered McGriff on a sacrifice fly to center. McDowell nearly escaped the threat when Joey Cora gloved Mark Lemke’s weak roller towards second, but Gant snuck into second before Cora’s throw reached Ozzie Guillen. Damon Berryhill cashed in a pair of runs with a two-run double up the left-center field gap. Maddux lifted a pop-fly into short right field which landed between Cora and the right fielder, Ellis Burks, extending Atlanta’s lead to 5-0. Sanders popped out in foul ground on the third base side as an exasperated McDowell finally retired the side. Johnson doubled to left-center field to kick off the home half of the first inning. Tim “Rock” Raines laced a rocket to left but Johnson wisely held up at third with his squad behind by 5 runs. Frank Thomas aka “The Big Hurt” knocked in the first ChiSox run with a hot smash to left field. Robin Ventura coaxed a base on balls to bring Burks up to the dish with the sacks juiced. Lemke snared a soft liner up the middle for out #1. Maddux exhaled and then proceeded to whiff the Sox mustachioed backstop, Ron Karkovice. Cora uncorked a long fly to right, driving Justice to the warning track and sending the home crowd into a brief frenzy before the ball settled into the right fielder’s glove for the third out of the frame.  Donn Pall relieved McDowell in the fifth after he yielded his 12^th hit of the game to put runners on second and third with no outs. Justice delivered an RBI groundout to increase Atlanta’s advantage to 6-1. The Sox scratched across a run in the bottom of the ninth but Kent Mercker extinguished the threat with a punch-out of third baseman Robin Ventura.

Tom Glavine took the hill against Alex Fernandez in Game 2. Ron Gant doubled to center to drive home Otis Nixon with the first run of the contest. Terry Pendleton ripped a two-base hit off the base of the right field wall in the fourth, scoring Dave Justice all the way from first base. Chicago tied the score in the bottom of the fourth. Frank E. Thomas tripled to center field to plate Lance Johnson. Tim Raines followed with a single back through the box. “Neon” Deion Sanders laced an opposite-field double down the left field corner as the Braves reclaimed the lead in the visitor’s fifth. Atlanta tacked on a run in the sixth when Ellis Burks booted Damon Berryhill’s single and then made an errant throw to third which skipped past Robin Ventura, allowing Mark Lemke to score. Norberto Martin lofted a pinch-hit sacrifice fly to pull the Pale Hose within a run in the bottom of the seventh. “One Dog” Johnson delivered the tying run with a sharp single to left, knocking Glavine out of the game. Thomas greeted Steve Bedrosian with a two-bagger up the left field gap and Johnson scooted around the bases to give the ChiSox the lead, 5-4. Pendleton blooped a base hit against Fernandez and Lemke blistered a double up the right-center field gap. Sox manager Gene Lamont summoned reliever Donn Pall who promptly escaped from the frame when Sid Bream hit a foul pop to third and Nixon grounded out to Ventura. In the top of the ninth, Roberto Hernandez yielded a leadoff single to Sanders. Fred McGriff lashed a safety between first and second, sending “Neon Deion” to third with nobody out. Gant coaxed a walk to load the bases. Justice whiffed but Pendleton came through with a base hit that dropped in between the right fielder (Burks) and the second baseman (N. Martin) to knot the game at 5-5. Hernandez was lifted in favor of veteran right-hander Jose DeLeon. Lemke hit a can of corn to Johnson, but McGriff tagged up and slid safety under the tag as the Braves regained the advantage, 6-5. The White Sox came to bat in the home half of the ninth. Mike Stanton got two quick outs but Johnson dunked a base hit into right field just over the outstretched glove of Lemke. Greg McMichael entered the match and got Thomas to bounce a one-hopper to Pendleton, who fired wildly to second. With the tying run only 90 feet away and the potential winning run standing on second, McMichael was ordered to issue an intentional pass to Tim “Rock” Raines. Robin Ventura strolled to the dish with the sacks juiced and the home crowd was whipped into a frenzy. Unable to find the strike zone, McMichael hurled four consecutive balls to walk Ventura as the White Sox tied the game at 6-6. Jay Howell jogged in from the pen. Burks got the green light on a 3-0 offering and smashed a hot grounder up the middle. Jeff Blauser fielded and flipped to Lemke for the second out. The relay throw appeared to nab Burks but the umpire ruled “safe!” and the ballgame ended with the Sox claiming a 7-6 victory! Atlanta argued vehemently and lodged a formal protest with the League, but to no avail.

The Series was knotted at one game apiece and I fully expected the action to move southeast to Atlanta. Apparently the schedulers did not agree with me as I fired up Game 3 to find the White Sox listed as the home club. John Smoltz got the call for the Braves while the ChiSox countered with Wilson Alvarez. Smoltz exited the contest after injuring himself warming up in the top of the second. He was later diagnosed with sore ribs and ruled out for the remainder of the series. Southpaw Kent Mercker replaced “Smoltzie” on the bump. The contest remained a pitcher’s duel into the bottom of the sixth when Mercker loaded the bases on walks and Chicago pushed a run across on a fielder’s choice as Jeff Blauser tried for a 6-4-3 double play instead of throwing home for the force play. Alvarez held the Braves hitless through six frames but manager Gene Lamont removed him due to a high pitch count. Veteran righty Jose DeLeon came on in relief and issued a base on balls to pinch-hitter Javy Lopez. After striking out Ryan Klesko (who batted for reliever Jay Howell), third-sacker Robin Ventura made a diving stab of a line drive off the bat of Otis Nixon to preserve the no-no with one out in the seventh. Blauser followed with a slow roller to shortstop Ozzie Guillen for an infield hit and Fred McGriff rapped a base hit up the middle to load the bases. Ron Gant busted out the boom-stick, launching a long ball to right field for a grand slam! DeLeon recovered to retire David Justice on a fly ball to right, but Atlanta suddenly held the 4-1 advantage. Side-arming right-hander Greg McMichael entered the game and retired the Sox in order to secure the victory as Atlanta went ahead two games to one.

Game 4 – wait, now we’re in Atlanta?! Yes, the Series has finally shifted to Georgia albeit one game later than expected. The young left-hander, Steve Avery, took the ball for the Braves while veteran right-hander Tim Belcher got the nod for the ChiSox. Terry Pendleton tomahawked a two-run shot over the right-center field fence to stake Atlanta to an early lead in the bottom of the second. Belched yielded a 442-foot blast into the center field bleachers by “Neon” Deion Sanders leading off the fifth frame. Avery worked his way out of a jam in the top of the seventh. With Sox on the corners, the southpaw whiffed pinch-hitter Bo Jackson and retired Ozzie Guillen on a harmless comebacker. Mark Lemke tallied an insurance run against reliever Jose DeLeon in the bottom of the eighth when he beat out an infield hit to short, scoring Fred McGriff. Steve Bedrosian twirled two hitless innings to close out the contest, combining with Avery to shut out Chicago. The Pale Hose managed only three hits against Avery and trailed Atlanta 3-1 in the Series with the top of the each club’s respective rotations set to square off in Game 5.

Otis Nixon’s fleet feet contributed to Atlanta’s first run of the game as he legged out an infield single to the shortstop, swiped second and advanced to third when Mike Lavalliere’s throw sailed into center field. Jeff Blauser promptly laced a liner to left and Nixon trotted home. “Black” Jack McDowell retired the heart of the Braves’ order to escape further damage.  The swift center fielder smacked a single to his opposite number in the second frame to knock in Terry Pendleton. Chicago loaded the bases against Greg Maddux in the top of third but only mustered a lone tally on a fielder’s choice. Fred McGriff launched a long ball to left-center leading off the home half of the third and the bottom of the Braves’ batting order tacked on three additional runs for a 6-1 lead. Sox skipper Gene Lamont displayed no sense of urgency as he left McDowell on the mound instead of seeking an assist from his relief corps. Chicago battled back in the fifth, scoring a pair on a fielder’s choice groundout by Joey Cora and a long double over Nixon’s head off the bat of Ozzie Guillen. Maddux departed with a 6-3 advantage after hurling 108 pitches in 5 1/3 innings while McDowell lasted five frames, replaced by Pete Smith and Jose DeLeon, respectively. In the top of the seventh, the Sox crept closer on a two-base knock by Ellis Burks and a single by Cora. Southpaw Mike Stanton jogged in from the ‘pen to take over for Smith. He induced a harmless pop fly by Guillen and then Lamont signaled for Bo Jackson to pinch-hit for Lavalliere. Atlanta countered with right-hander Jay Howell. On a 1-2 delivery, the slugging former multi-sport star swung and missed, and the inning ended when Damon Berryhill gunned down Cora attempting to steal second! Dave Justice plated a couple of insurance runs with a two-run single off Donn Pall in the bottom of the eighth. Ron Gant ripped a base hit to left and Pendleton followed with a hot smash up the middle as the Braves took a commanding 10-4 lead. Atlanta emptied the bench with defensive changes in the ninth. Greg McMichael pitched the final inning and got Guillen on a fly ball to right field for the last out of the Series. The Braves celebrated their victory and took turns hoisting the World Series trophy high above their heads as their fans hollered enthusiastically.

Ratings

Graphics – [4] – The batter/pitcher matchups, ball-in-play camera angles and animations are patterned closely after the Tony La Russa Baseball series. An instant replay option allows the user to review the previous play in super-fast, regular speed or frame-by-frame, but only from the original angle (you can’t switch cameras, zoom in/out, etc. like EWB2 or the FPSBB series). A scroll option facilitates access to sections of the ballpark which were not in the original shot (left or right field corners, or the outfield scoreboard / upper deck).  In-game menus are accessible via the ESC key and the on-screen statistical displays look similar to the ESPN broadcasts from that era.

Sound – [3] – The crowd will boo or cheer at the appropriate intervals and there is an ambient crowd noise throughout the game. The sounds of the crack of the bat and the ball popping into the mitt are realistic.

Strategy – [3] – Standard options are available here. Bases empty choices are limited to pitching around the batter or issuing an intentional walk. With a runner on base, the defense can elect to pitchout or toggle the hold runner / play off the bag option in addition to the pitch around and intentional walk selections. On offense, with no runners on base, the only option is to take a pitch. Once you have baserunner(s), your variety increases: steal, double steal and hit & run. You can customize the defensive positioning for each fielder after every pitch or leave them at their default locations. Double-switch rule is offered along with the usual substitution options. There is no indication when a replacement is playing out of position.   

Artificial Intelligence – [1] – The computer manager usually replaced his pitcher at the appropriate instances. However on several occasions the AI waited until the score was fairly lopsided before pulling the trigger. A number of offensive player substitutions were questionable such as swapping out a veteran or star player in a tight contest for a youngster with hardly any big league experience.

Box Score – [1] – There are no box scores available during or post-game.

Rosters – [1] – Player names and statistics are licensed from the 1993 and 1994 seasons. Unfortunately you are unable to edit rosters, draft players or create your own teams. The trade function is the only means of transacting player movement in this game.  If player ratings exist, there is no way to edit them.

Statistics – [2] – In league play, you can display the historical statistics for the given season or the simulated stats through the current (scheduled) date. No advanced or split stats here – your options are constrained to at-bats, runs, hits, doubles, triples, home runs, RBI, stolen bases and batting average for offense while the pitching side shows wins, losses, ERA, saves, innings pitched, complete games, strikeouts, walks and shutouts. The user can switch between individual and team leaders. There is no ability to print or export results.

Usage/Injuries/Ejections – [1] – Injuries (on/off) are listed in the menu although I don’t recall encountering any notifications during the game in which I managed. Pitcher stamina appears to be tracked based on the comments below the current pitcher’s name when you visit the mound. Without having access to the manual, I’m not sure if ejections are possible and whether player usage is monitored during league play.

Ballparks / Park Factors – [2] –

The game comes with 15 ballparks (circa 1994) and a generic stadium. Graphics are rendered in sufficient detail. I’m not certain if park factors come into play. In the stadium selection screen, I noted that temperature, wind, humidity and altitude are documented along with each park’s dimensions.

Commentary – [2] – Dan Patrick handles the play-by-play commentary while Chris Berman hosts the pre- and post-game show. Player names are not implemented so Patrick refers to them by position – “Now batting, the center fielder…” Of course strikeouts are described with Patrick’s trademark call – “The whifffffffff”.

Scale:  Ratings from 1 (worst) to 5 (best)

ESPN Baseball Tonight – Total Score: 20 out of 50

Observations

Although it was derived from the fine Tony La Russa Baseball series, ESPN Baseball Tonight is not intended for serious simmers. Only recommended for a quick fix of nostalgia from the classic intro theme music to Dan Patrick’s dry delivery.

Please add a comment below if you spent a significant amount of time and/or have any recollections of ESPN Baseball Tonight.

Screenshots

Articles in the Series

	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – SSI Computer Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review –Computer Statis Pro Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Avalon Hill Pro Manager / Major League Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pure-Stat Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Monday Morning Manager
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Radio Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Full Count Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – MicroLeague Baseball II – III – IV
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa’s Ultimate Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Earl Weaver Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – APBA Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball II
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Front Page Sports Baseball ’94 – ’96 – ’98
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – ESPN Baseball Tonight
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Hardball 3-4-5-6
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pursue the Pennant – Diamond Mind Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Pro League Baseball
	Retro Computer Baseball Game Review – Tony La Russa Baseball 3 – 4 – Old Time Baseball

Additional Links

SABR Stay at Home – Don Daglow

Play ESPN Baseball Tonight in your browser -> https://archive.org/details/msdos_ESPN_Baseball_Tonight_1994

ESPN Baseball Tonight – Gindin, Jim. “Double Play: Turn Two With Reviews of Hardball IV and ESPN Baseball Tonight”. Computer Gaming World. April 1995. p132, 134, 136. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_129.pdf

ESPN Baseball Tonight – Gindin, Jim. “Baseball: Diamonds Are A Fan’s Best Friend”. Computer Gaming World. May 1995. p62. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_130.pdf

ESPN Baseball Tonight – Jones, George. “ESPN Baseball Tonight: Chris Berman Charisma, Tony La Russa Design”. Computer Gaming World. February 1995. p132, 134. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_127.pdf

https://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/espn-baseball-tonight

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWJOEk66K9o ESPN Baseball Tonight preview from IE (Interactive Entertainment, video by fmvgamer2010

The Sega Genesis manual (PDF) for ESPN Baseball Tonight ->

https://r.mprd.se/Sega%20CD/Manuals/ESPN%20Baseball%20Tonight%20(U).pdf

About the Author

I am a New Jersey native with a passion for baseball, statistics, computers and video games who enjoys spending quality time with his family.

“Hardball Architects – Volume 1 (American League)“, published in July 2020 and
“Hardball Architects – Volume 2 (National League)”, published in April 2022, examine the trades, free agent acquisitions, draft picks and other transactions for the 30 Major League Baseball franchises, divided into a 2-volume set. Both books are available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. All key moves are scrutinized for every team and Sabermetric principles are applied to the roster construction throughout the lifetime of the organization to encapsulate the hits and misses by front office executives. Team performances are analyzed based on transaction type with graphs depicting the WAR (Wins Above Replacement) in every decade. Individual results for each player-transaction is charted over the duration of their stint with the franchise. Every team chapter includes All-Time Rosters and Single-Season Leaders based on transaction type. The Team Trade Record chronicles the WAR and WS (Win Shares) accumulated by players acquired in comparison to those traded to opposing teams. The opening chapter is devoted to the Evolution of the General Manager and incorporates a discussion with former Dodgers GM Fred Claire (along with former Angels and Red Sox GM Mike Port and current Reds GM Nick Krall in Volume 2) on a variety of front office topics.

“Hardball Retroactive”, published in June 2018, is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com.  Hardball Retroactive is a modest collection of selected articles that I have written for Seamheads.com along with my Baseball Analytics blog since 2010. Exclusive content includes the chapter on “Minors vs. Majors” which assesses every franchise’s minor league successes and failures in relation to their major league operations.

“Hardball Retrospective” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com. Supplemental Statistics, Charts and Graphs along with a discussion forum are offered at TuataraSoftware.com. In Hardball Retrospective, I placed every ballplayer in the modern era (from 1901-present) on their original teams. Using a variety of advanced statistics and methods, I generated revised standings for each season based entirely on the performance of each team’s “original” players. I discuss every team’s “original” players and seasons at length along with organizational performance with respect to the Amateur Draft (or First-Year Player Draft), amateur free agent signings and other methods of player acquisition. Season standings, WAR and Win Shares totals for the “original” teams are compared against the real-time or “actual” team results to assess each franchise’s scouting, development and general management skills.

Don Daglow (Intellivision World Series Major League Baseball, Earl Weaver Baseball, Tony LaRussa Baseball) contributed the foreword for Hardball Retrospective. The foreword and preview of my book are accessible here. 

“Hardball Retrospective – Addendum 2014 to 2016” supplements my research for Hardball Retrospective, providing retroactive standings based on Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and Win Shares (WS) for each “original” team over the past three seasons (2014-2016). Team totals from 2010 – 2013 are included for reference purposes. “Addendum” is available in paperback and digital (Kindle) format at Amazon.com.