A to Z League Update: East Division

We're 98 games into the the A to Z League's 168-game season and our quest to determine which letter is better. We'll be taking a quick look this week at all of the teams and division races. Today: the East Division.

The East is the tightest division race in the A to Z League, with three teams currently within a game of each other at the top of the standings. Moses Lake and Wenatchee are tied for first, and Cashmere is third, a mere game behind.

Moses Lake had begun to build a bit of a lead in the division, but they've had a tough couple of weeks. Their win July 31 over Ephrata snapped a six-game losing streak that included being swept at Cashmere. The C's, on the other hand, are on a six-game winning streak and have won nine of their last eleven. And Wenatchee has won three in a row and nine of ten since getting swept in a four-game series at home against Goldendale.

MOSES LAKE: 58-40, tied for the lead in the division

Mickey Mantle

Moses Lake is fourth in the league in runs scored and seventh in homers, even though each of its Hall of Fame-caliber outfielders is under-performed to a degree. Mickey Mantle has been solid, putting up a .923 OPS and leading the team with 23 home runs and 79 RBI. Stan Musial has an .825 OPS and has 17 homers and had knocked in 60, though he's batting just .268. Willie Mays leads the club in runs scored with 81, but he's batting just .247, OPS .742, though he has 22 homers.

Manager Connie Mack has been giving increased playing time at first to Eddie Murray over Johnny Mize. The Big Cat has just a .741 OPS and nine homers in 245 at-bats, while Murray has an .815 OPS and eight homers in 177 trips to the plate.

The M's ERA is 13th in the league and has gone up a bit. Pedro Martinez turns out to be somewhat hitable after all. He still has good numbers--9-2, ERA of 2.85, which is eighth in the league--but he's 0-1 in his last six starts and has logged a 6.33 ERA in that stretch. Greg Maddux has passed Pedro as the club's top winner; he's 10-7 and 3.42.

WENATCHEE: 58-40, tied for the lead in the division

Ted Williams

Wenatchee has scored 522 runs in 98 games to lead the league. A lot of that has to do with one Theodore Samuel Williams. The Splendid Splinter leads the A to Z League in batting (.364), on-base percentage (.494), and OPS (1.417). He's got a real shot at the triple crown; he's second in the loop in home runs with 35, and fourth in RBI with 79.

The W's are fourth in the league in ERA. David Wells has enjoyed the run support and is 11-2 with a 3.49 ERA. Adam Wainwright is 8-2 and 3.63, and Bob Welch is 5-3 and 3.02.

CASHMERE: 57-41, third place, 1 game back

Eddie Collins

The C's have a good balance going; they're fifth in the league in ERA and sixth in runs scored. While they're only 15th in home runs they're second in OBP and fourth in OPS.

Ty Cobb and Eddie Collins typically bat one-two for Cashmere, and they set the table with amazingly similar stats. Both are hitting .325. Cobb has the slightest of edges in OBP (.377 to.373), SLG (.493 to .491) and OPS (.870 to .864). Miguel Cabrera leads the club with 15 home runs and Oscar Charleston is the RBI leader with 64.

Roger Clemens spent a couple of stints on the injured list but has still managed to log seven wins and an ERA of 2.66, third in the league. Bartolo Colon (7-3, 3.13) and Steve Carlton (7-6, 4.07) have also been effective.

DAVENPORT: 49-49, fourth place, 6 games back

Don Drysdale

The D's are eighth in the league in ERA behind a big three of Don Drysdale (10-7, 3.29), John Donaldson (8-3, 2.94), and Dizzy Dean (7-4, 3.29). The bullpen has been shaky at times. Closer Edwin Diaz has saved 25 games, but he's also 4-8 with a rather high ERA of 5.68.

Davenport needs more runners on base. They are third in the league in home runs but only tenth in runs scored. Their big three at the plate are Joe DiMaggio (22 HR), Andre Dawson (21), and Martin Dihigo (20). Manager Leo Durocher would like to find more playing time for Larry Doby. That might be helped by the versatility  of Dihigo, who can play pretty much anywhere. He has split his time between third and first, and also made 13 starts on the mound. That may end soon, as he's 4-8 and has an ERA of 4.75.

EPHRATA: 45-53, fifth place, 13 games back

Dock Ellis

Ephrata is eighth in both homers and runs scored in the A to Z league, led by the Evanses. Darrell has slashed .241/25/71 with 69 runs and an OPS at .815. Dwight is .257/21/58 with 71 runs and an OPS at .821.

The pitching: not so good. They're 17th in ERA in the 22-team league. Dock Ellis is the big winner at 11-4 and his ERA is 3.72. Yutaka Enatsu has been a solid contributor, at 8-7 and 3.08. The back end of the rotation has been weak, though. Ephrata has given 19 starts to pitchers with ERAs north of 5.

QUINCY: 35-63, sixth place, 23 games back

Chase Utley

Quincy is last in runs, last in homers, and 16th in ERA. Chase Utley has been the one standout; he leads the club in OBP, OPS, doubles, homers, and RBI. His slash line is .290/14/60.

Kazuhisa Inao is the club's top pitcher at 10-6 and he has a 3.64 ERA.

There's a notion that Ichiro wants out of Quincy, even though it offers unlimited opportunity. Ichi apparently told beat writer James Isaminger that, "If I ever saw myself saying I'm excited playing in Quincy, I'd punch myself in the face, because I'm lying." Ichiro is playing for the Quirks because, frankly, they needed the help, and because the Snoqualmie club, Ichiro's other option in the A to Z League, was stacked in the outfield with the likes of Tris Speaker, Willie Stargell, Duke Snider, Gary Sheffield, and Al Simmons. Stay tuned.