Infield: First baseman Steve Garvey (1969-87) was wonder to behold. He was handsome in a corporate sort of way, said all the right things without ever saying anything that was actually interesting and was the iconic image of the very fine 1970s Dodgers teams. He never missed a game, and he was consistent to the point of being ridiculous, rapping out 200 hits a year that invariably included 30 doubles, 20 homers and 100 RBI. He won an MVP and four Gold Gloves, and he was selected to 10 all-star games, including one in which he was chosen to start via a write-in campaign. The consistency continued in the postseason, too. He batted .338 in 222 postseason at-bats (.361 on-base, .550 slugging), and the breakdown was classic Garvey – in 11 playoff series, he hit .300 or better eight times (and if he had one more hit in the 1981 NLCS it would be a ninth .300 average). He was known as “Mr. Clean” because of his All-American image, and his teammates called him “Senator” because everyone assumed he would run for office after he was done playing baseball. Both of those images took a beating after he retired when it was revealed that he had cheated on his wife (a TV host who looked like a Barbie doll), fathered children with at least other women. His wife divorced him, then took her revenge by penning a scathing book that described him as an emotionally distant, mentally abusive lowlife whom she compared to Ted Bundy (and not in the good way). Shortstop Silvio Garcia was a Cuban who played in the Negro Leagues as well as in Mexico, Cuba and the Dominican Republic. He was an outstanding glove man and a speedy contact hitter, and he also did a fair amount of pitching, which could come in handy on this roster (in fact, he might be our closer). Shawn Gilbert (1997-2000) was a longtime minor-league utility guy who was primarily a bench player when he got up to the majors (51 career games, 51 career plate appearances, 51 career innings in the field, how’s that for symmetry?). He’ll be starting at second base for this team. Third baseman Stan Galle (1942) was a minor-league veteran who logged a few games for the Senators in 1942 (batting .111). He later coached for a quarter-century at Spring Hill College in Mobile, Ala., where the baseball field now bears his name.
Outfield: Right fielder Shawn Green (1993-2007) was a consistent .280 hitter who drew some walks, hit a lot of doubles and more than a few home runs, which led to four 100-run seasons and four 100-RBI seasons (they were actually the same four seasons, and they were sandwiched around one in which he scored 98 and drove in 99). On May 23, 2002, he went 6-for-6 with four home runs and a double, breaking the all-time record for total bases in a game. In left field, completing our duo of Jewish corner outfielders, is Sid Gordon (1941-55), another .280 hitter who drew walks and had some pop. Center fielder Sandy Griffin (1884-93) had one season as a regular and three seasons as a bench player, but he hit well enough and ran OK.
Catcher: Sidney Gautreaux (1936-37) was 5-foot-8 and 190 pounds, and they called him Pudge long before Fisk or Rodriguez. He was a .247 hitter, nothing special, but he’s our starter and he’ll be a workhorse because he appears to have been the only SG ever to strap on the catching gear at the major-league level.
Rotation: Steve Gromek (1941-57), the pride of Hamtramck, Michigan, won 123 games for the Indians and the Tigers. His career was evenly split between the rotation and the pen, and while he never won 20, he did win 19 at age 25 and 18 at age 34. In his only World Series appearance, for Cleveland in 1948, he pitched a complete game to beat Boston and Johnny Sain 2-1 in Game 4. Scott Garrelts (1982-91) spent more of his career relieving than starting, and he had 48 career saves, which would qualify him quite easily as the closer here, but we need him more in the rotation. He was a good pitcher, established in the majors by age 21, led the NL in ERA at age 27, but was done due to arm trouble before he turned 30. Skinny Graham (1924-29) went 11-22 in his career, but he did have a cool name. Sam Gibson (1926-32) pitched around the same time as Skinny and had a better career record (32-38). Seth Greisinger (1998-2005) was a high first-round draft pick out of University of Virginia, but he had Tommy John Surgery in his mid-20s and never got it together. When he was done in the majors, he pitched for a few years in Korea and Japan.
Bullpen: Sean Green (2006- ) gets the first shot at closing, which tells you that beyond Scott Garrelts there’s not a lot to work with here. Green spent a long time in the minors and came into 2011 with a career record of 10-11 and two saves, with a 4.38 ERA. Steve Grilli (1975-79) pitched a few years for Detroit and Toronto. He wasn’t very good, but he wasn’t awful either. Skip Guinn (1968-71) had a short career, and not a very good one. His real first name was Drannon, which goes a long way toward explaining why he would prefer to be called “Skip.” Samuel Gervacio (2009- ) pitched very well in 21 innings for the Astros in 2009 at age 24, but he got rocked in 2010 and is trying to work his way back to the majors. Sean Gallagher (2007- ) arrived in the majors young, and for that matter, he’s still young. He hasn’t shown much yet, but he’s got time, and he could eventually move into this team’s rotation. Steve Gerkin (1945) was your classic minor-league vet who got some work in the majors during World War II. When he puts some runners on base, the announcer can say, “Gerkin is in a real pickle.” (Rimshot.) Santiago Guzman (1969-72) appeared in 12 games, but he spread them out over four years. That’s what is known as “never catching on.”
Bench: Stan Goletz (1941) never appeared in the field in the majors. Five games, all as a pinch-hitter. On the upside, he had three hits, and a guy can do worse than a .600 career batting average. He was an outfielder and a pitcher in the minors, and he will definitely find work on this team. Scarborough Green (1997-2000) was an outfielder who had some speed but no stick. Sam Gillen (1893-97) was an infielder who could take over at shortstop whenever Silvio Garcia takes the mound. Sam Gentile (1943) also never appeared in the field, but he has a spot on this team if for no other reason that we need a Gentile to balance out Shawn Green and Sid Gordon. (Rimshot.) Steve (“Rock of”) Gibralter (1995-96) rounds out a bench that is paper-thin. He appeared in six games, came to the plate five times and played a total of nine innings in the outfield.
Manager: Sandy Griffin spent several years coaching and managing in the minors and managed briefly in the majors. He’ll get help from Stan Galle.
Outfield: Right fielder Shawn Green (1993-2007) was a consistent .280 hitter who drew some walks, hit a lot of doubles and more than a few home runs, which led to four 100-run seasons and four 100-RBI seasons (they were actually the same four seasons, and they were sandwiched around one in which he scored 98 and drove in 99). On May 23, 2002, he went 6-for-6 with four home runs and a double, breaking the all-time record for total bases in a game. In left field, completing our duo of Jewish corner outfielders, is Sid Gordon (1941-55), another .280 hitter who drew walks and had some pop. Center fielder Sandy Griffin (1884-93) had one season as a regular and three seasons as a bench player, but he hit well enough and ran OK.
Catcher: Sidney Gautreaux (1936-37) was 5-foot-8 and 190 pounds, and they called him Pudge long before Fisk or Rodriguez. He was a .247 hitter, nothing special, but he’s our starter and he’ll be a workhorse because he appears to have been the only SG ever to strap on the catching gear at the major-league level.
Rotation: Steve Gromek (1941-57), the pride of Hamtramck, Michigan, won 123 games for the Indians and the Tigers. His career was evenly split between the rotation and the pen, and while he never won 20, he did win 19 at age 25 and 18 at age 34. In his only World Series appearance, for Cleveland in 1948, he pitched a complete game to beat Boston and Johnny Sain 2-1 in Game 4. Scott Garrelts (1982-91) spent more of his career relieving than starting, and he had 48 career saves, which would qualify him quite easily as the closer here, but we need him more in the rotation. He was a good pitcher, established in the majors by age 21, led the NL in ERA at age 27, but was done due to arm trouble before he turned 30. Skinny Graham (1924-29) went 11-22 in his career, but he did have a cool name. Sam Gibson (1926-32) pitched around the same time as Skinny and had a better career record (32-38). Seth Greisinger (1998-2005) was a high first-round draft pick out of University of Virginia, but he had Tommy John Surgery in his mid-20s and never got it together. When he was done in the majors, he pitched for a few years in Korea and Japan.
Bullpen: Sean Green (2006- ) gets the first shot at closing, which tells you that beyond Scott Garrelts there’s not a lot to work with here. Green spent a long time in the minors and came into 2011 with a career record of 10-11 and two saves, with a 4.38 ERA. Steve Grilli (1975-79) pitched a few years for Detroit and Toronto. He wasn’t very good, but he wasn’t awful either. Skip Guinn (1968-71) had a short career, and not a very good one. His real first name was Drannon, which goes a long way toward explaining why he would prefer to be called “Skip.” Samuel Gervacio (2009- ) pitched very well in 21 innings for the Astros in 2009 at age 24, but he got rocked in 2010 and is trying to work his way back to the majors. Sean Gallagher (2007- ) arrived in the majors young, and for that matter, he’s still young. He hasn’t shown much yet, but he’s got time, and he could eventually move into this team’s rotation. Steve Gerkin (1945) was your classic minor-league vet who got some work in the majors during World War II. When he puts some runners on base, the announcer can say, “Gerkin is in a real pickle.” (Rimshot.) Santiago Guzman (1969-72) appeared in 12 games, but he spread them out over four years. That’s what is known as “never catching on.”
Bench: Stan Goletz (1941) never appeared in the field in the majors. Five games, all as a pinch-hitter. On the upside, he had three hits, and a guy can do worse than a .600 career batting average. He was an outfielder and a pitcher in the minors, and he will definitely find work on this team. Scarborough Green (1997-2000) was an outfielder who had some speed but no stick. Sam Gillen (1893-97) was an infielder who could take over at shortstop whenever Silvio Garcia takes the mound. Sam Gentile (1943) also never appeared in the field, but he has a spot on this team if for no other reason that we need a Gentile to balance out Shawn Green and Sid Gordon. (Rimshot.) Steve (“Rock of”) Gibralter (1995-96) rounds out a bench that is paper-thin. He appeared in six games, came to the plate five times and played a total of nine innings in the outfield.
Manager: Sandy Griffin spent several years coaching and managing in the minors and managed briefly in the majors. He’ll get help from Stan Galle.
No comments:
Post a Comment