GOWDY 65 PROJECT: SEASON COMPLETE, PLAYOFF REVIEW

                                      MAYS COULD WIN TRIPLE CROWN 
 
                                                            525/988/1513

PROJECT FORMAT 

180 games split over 9 chapters  using a king of the hill format.
Top 6 teams go to the playoffs.
Playoffs: King of the Hill format 
Teams are seeded 1 through 6.
The higher the seed, the more losses it takes for them to be eliminated:
Team 6: 1 loss
Team 5: 2 losses
Team 4: 3 losses
Team 3: 4 losses
Team 2: 5 losses
Team 1: 6 losses


CHAPTER 9 NOTES 

180 games are in the books and the following teams have qualified for the 6 playoff teams: 

1. Milwaukee  23.9
2. Cincinnati   17.9
3. Los Angeles 15.8 
4. San Francisco 13.9
5. Detroit 11.9 
6. Washington 11.9 

Pittsburgh and California just missed with 10-9 records. 


PLAYOFF NOTES 

The playoffs will continue to use the King of the Hill format.  The contenders need to lose the following number of games to be eliminated from the playoffs. 

Washington 1 
Detroit 2 
San Francisco 3 
Los Angeles 4 
Cincinnati 5 
Milwaukee 6 

The schedule will go as many round as necessary until only 1 team survives.  Round 1 will go worse to first, round 2 first to last , round 3 middle teams out , etc. 

SCOUTING REPORTS ON THE PLAYOFF CONTENDERS 

Hitting stats are based on OBP/SLG/OPS  HR-RBI-SB 
Pitching stats are based on  W-L or (SV)  ERA  K-BB 

MILWAUKEE BRAVES (1)  
23-9 regular season 
6-3   record against playoff teams 

League Rankings 

2nd in OPS
2nd in ERA

Top Hitters 

Joe Torre 404/644/1048  11 HR 32 RBI 
Hank Aaron 386/548/935  7HR 25 RBI 
Felipe Alou  388/492/881   4 HR 10 RBI 
Rico Carty  317/509/825    6 HR 17 RBI 

Tony Cloninger  6-1  2.40  38-17
Ken Johnson      4-1  1.65   39-6 
Wade Blasingame 1-2  3.14 28-16 

Chi-Chi Olivio  4 SV  2.84  11-6
Dan Osinski      $ SV   2.16  6-3  


Usually the MLB playoffs are described as the tournament of randomness but the Gowdy 65 project provides some additional protection for top performers during the regular season.   The Braves are the favorites to go all the way.  The only apparent weakness is the end of the rotation but rotations go from 4 man to 3 man rotations so that weakness should be less of a factor than it was during the regular season. 


CINCINNATI REDS  (2) 
17.9 regular season 
2.5   record against playoff teams 
League rankings: 
1 OPS 
12  ERA 

This team is capable of wiping out the competition by simply outscoring every opponent.  Just take a look at the top hitters: 

Rose 524/551/1075    0-14-0 
De. Johnson 360/566/926   6-21-0 
Tommy Harper 367/450/817  2-11-6
Gordy Coleman 400/637/1037  5-14-0 
Tony Perez  324/697/1020  3-9-0 

The problem is the pitching staff has some depth problems which may explain the 2-5 record against playoff contenders.  The ace of the staff could win the Cy Young Award.  Jim Maloney (6-1) 1.88  (72-21)  can shut down any opponent but Ellis and Joey Jay may struggle against top notch lineups.  Jim Duffalo  ( 4 Saves -- 0.89 ERA) has been a pleasant surprise but the lack of pitching depth could be the Reds downfall.  


LOS ANGELES  (3) 
15.8  regular season 
6-3    record against playoff teams 

League Rankings 
7th OPS 
10th ERA 

This team is full of surprises.  I am not sure what is more surprising, how low the team ranks in ERA, how high the team ranks in OPS or the 6-3 record against playoff contenders.  

What is not surprising is the dynamic duo of Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale.  Koufax  (3-2  2.19  51-13) and Drysdale ( 4-1  3.42 28-8)  can always shut down any team which is the primary reason the Dodgers won the 1965 World Series.   Do not under estimate the bullpen.  Jim Brewer has 5 saves and a 0.00 ERA while Ron Perranoski has 2 saves and a 2.08 ERA.  

Starting pitching is like a hot goal tender in the NHL Stanley Cup.  If Koufax and Drysdale stay hot, the Dodgers could go all the way. If not , the lack of power in the lineup is very troubling.  Even Maury Wills and his league leading 15 SBs can not save the Dodgers if Koufax and Drysdale fail to deliver. 


SAN FRANCISCO  (4) 
13.9 regular season 
5-4   record against playoff contenders 

League Rankings 
 
1 ERA 
4 OPS 

Willie Mays is a one man wrecking machine.  The Say Hey kid is on the verge of winning the sabermetric triple crown with a 525/988/1513 slash line.  Willie McCovey ( 371/552/923) and Tom Haller (397/433/830) provide additional firepower.  

Giant fans are beaming with pride with their #1 ranking in ERA.  Take a look at the rotation: 

Juan Marichal  2-3   3.63  37-5 
Bob Shaw          4-1   2.66   26-9 
Ron Herbel        2-1   1.52   18-3 

Bullpen is top notch: 

Bobby Bolin   2 SV  0.55  11-4 
Bob Priddy     2 SV  0.00   8-0 

The lower half of the starting lineup provides defense but little offense but most teams have that problem.  The key to the Giants success is how far Willie Mays can take the team. 


DETROIT TIGERS  (5) 
11.9 regular season 
5-4   record against playoff contenders 

League Rankings 
5  ERA 
10  OPS 

Lolich (3-0  1.75  29-7 ) and McLain (3-2  3.31  29-9)  lead the rotation while Fred Gladding (2 SV  0.00   5-0 ) is the shut down closer.  A major problem is the usual hitting  leaders are under performing except for Kaline (399/564/962) and McAuliffe (388/534/923).  The under performers need to turn things around or it could be an early exit for the Tigers. 


WASHINGTON (6) 
11.9 regular season 
1.4   record against playoff contenders 

League Rankings 
5 OPS 
11 ERA 

The Senators are the surprise team of the contenders.  Washington used an early 11-3 record and held on to reach the playoffs.   3 hitters fueled the early success:

Don Lock  299/500/709 
Dick Nen   456/514/970
Woody Held 343/516/859

The 3 man rotation is a little thin:

Pete Richert  2-1  2.92  30-16
Mike McCormick   2-2  2.13   13-5 
Phil Ortega  1-1  4.43  11-11 

Marshall Bridges  4 SV  3.21 11-4  is a decent closer.  

The 1-4 record against contenders points to a quick end to this Cinderella story. 

Inside Pitch continues to provide tons of fun and excitement.  This project is a blast.   Playoff update to follow.  I will try to attach final season stats to the facebook posts.