Week 4 Summary (May 9, 1938

Boston (AL) Player/Manager
Joe Cronin

Week Four of the 1938 BBW replay is in the books, and even after the leaders in both standings had tightened up in Week Three, they have tightened up even more in Week Four. The other thing worth noting from this past week is that in Week Three, there were 52 games played (one tie), whereas in Week Four, there were a total of 33 games played (two ties). The weather has been a major disruptor in every team's schedule so far, and while it is nice to get an extra day off here and there, every game not played now is a game that will have to be made up at a later date, and these later dates are starting to add up. There were no doubleheaders played in either of these past two weeks, so everyone knows what is coming.

In the AL, St. Louis remains in first place, 1.0 games ahead of Boston and 1.5 games ahead of New York. The Browns are fighting tooth and nail to hold on to their top spot, but that is what it is going to take if they wish to remain there. Boston is a good team, but behind the Red Sox is the team that everyone fears. Like the shark in the movie Jaws (insert ominous music), the Yankees are slowly circling their foes, just waiting to strike when the time is right.

Detroit sits in fourth place, 3.0 games out of first, and while their powerful offense is always ready to strike, their pitching staff may not be up to the task of carrying them to a championship. Close behind the Tigers are Cleveland and Washington, and their worst enemy is the fact that they will have to climb over the teams in front of them to move up the standings. Perhaps St. Louis will cool off and move down the standings, but the other three teams are all solid.

1938 Boston Red Sox

In the NL, New York remains in first, but only by the slimmest of margins. They maintain a 0.5 games lead over second-place Pittsburgh, with Chicago sitting in third, the Cubs trailing the top two only by a matter of percentage points. The Pirates had three consecutive days off this past week due to weather, and of course, we don’t know if games actually played on those dates would have helped Pittsburgh or not, but it is true that if you are playing well, you don’t want to miss opportunities to keep playing when you are winning. The Cubs ended the week on a five-game winning streak, enabling them to crawl up the standings into a virtual tie with the Giants. New York is still the team that is the favorite in the NL, but having two teams breathing down their neck will keep them on their toes.

Rookie right fielder Enos Slaughter actually hit eight homeruns in 1938, but with nine homerun to date, his early-season power surge has helped propel the Cardinals into fourth place, just ahead of the shaky Brooklyn Dodgers. Behind these two are the Cincinnati Reds, winners of their last three, who finally may be able to make their own move up the standings.

American League Statistical Leaders:

Batting Average: Bill Dickey (NYY, .417), Hal Trosky (CLE, .400), Marv Owen (CWS, .400), George McQuinn (STB, .393)

Runs Scored: Frank Crosetti (NYY, 29), Red Rolfe (NYY, 26), Beau Bell (STB, 25),

Runs Batted In: Bill Dickey (NYY, 31), Hank Greenberg (DET, 28), Rudy York (DET, 27)

Hits: Buddy Lewis (WAS, 39), Cecil Travis (WAS, 38), Frank Crosetti (NYY, 36), Zeke Bonura (WAS, 36)

Doubles: Doc Cramer (BOS, 9), Cecil Travis (WAS, 9), Lou Gehrig (NYY, 8), Jimmie Foxx (BOS, 8)

Triples: 8 Players tied with 3, 11 players tied with 2

Homeruns: Rudy York (DET, 7), Ken Keltner (CLE, 7), Hank Greenberg (DET 7), Beau Bell (STB, 7)

Walks: Red Rolfe (NYY, 22), Hank Greenberg (DET, 21), Lou Gehrig (NYY, 21)

Pitching: Lefty Grove (BOS, 6-0, 1.46), Red Ruffing (NYY, 5-0, 3.38), Bobo Newsom (STB, 4-0, 2.32), Monte Pearson (NYY, 4-0, 2.25).

National League Statistical Leaders:

Batting Average: Ripper Collins (CHC, .510), Paul Waner (PIT, .440), Arky Vaughan (PIT, .423), Mel Ott (NYG, .400)

Runs Scored: Mel Ott (NYG, 25), Arky Vaughan (PIT, 22), Ripper Collins (CHC, 21)

Runs Batted In: Ripper Collins (CHC, 21), Enos Slaughter (STC, 21), Gus Suhr (PIT, 20)

Hits: Ripper Collins (CHC, 52), Paul Waner (PIT, 37), Frank McCormick (CIN 35)

Doubles: Harry Craft (CIN, 9), Billy Herman (CHC, 9), Johnny Rizzo (PIT, 8), Ripper Collins (CHC 8)

Triples: KikI Cuyler (BRO, 5), Johnny Mize (STC, 5), Ripper Collins (CHC 5)

Homeruns: Enos Slaughter (STC, 9), Mel Ott (NYG, 9). Hank Leiber (NYG, 5), Harry Craft (CIN, 5), Ripper Collins (CHC, 5)

Walks: Dolph Camilli (BRO, 16), Emmett Mueller (PHI, 15), Johnny Mize (STC, 15), Stan Hack (CHC, 5)

Pitching: Jim Tobin (PIT, 5-1), Dizzy Dean (CHC, 4-0), Carl Hubbell (NYG, 4-0)

Note: Is there any doubt that Chicago's Ripper Collins is the NL MVP of the season so far? His name is all over the leader boards, his team is in serious contention, and many of his hits and RBI's have come in critical situations for the Cubs.

I peeked ahead at the upcoming schedule and Week Five starts off with a continuation of the light schedule, but full game play resumes before the end of the week, and the Memorial Day Doubleheader extravaganza will be upcoming in Week Six. Both leagues have quite a few games to make up for yet, but until then, all you can do is play what is on the schedule. So, let's go play!