With three weeks left to play in the A to Z League regular season two of the divisions have clear leaders, while the other two are still very much in play.
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| Ted Williams |
Ted Williams of Wenatchee was named A to Z League player of the week for the week ending September 18. The Thumper batted .409 (9-for-22) for the week; he hit three home runs, drove in seven, drew 13 walks and scored nine runs. His OPS was 1.174. It was the second POTW award of the season for Williams, the first coming in mid-May. Other contenders for the recognition included Tris Speaker, who batted.452 with three home runs, eight runs scored, and nine RBI; Honus Wagner, who hit .457 (16-for-35) and scored eight runs; and Barry Bonds, who hit .429 with three homers, eight RBI, and nine runs scored.
Some highlights for the week:
September 12
Paul Waner, Bernie Williams, and Lou Whitaker had three hits each as Wenatchee piled up 16 hits in a 9-3 romp at Davenport and pulled within two games of Moses Lake in the East Division. Jeff Kent hit a three-run double in the sixth as Kelso beat Moses Lake 4-1. Gaylord Perry pitched seven solid innings and Pasco beat Quincy 4-2, moving within six games of Goldendale in the South Division. Howard Ehmke allowed just one run on two hits in seven innings as Ephrata whipped Goldendale 7-1. George Brett hit a three-run homer off Trevor Hoffman in the top of the ninth and Bainbridge Island won its seventh straight, beating Hoquiam 6-4 to remain 12 up on Renton in the Puget Division. Earl Averill hit a pair of two-run homers and Jake Arrieta pitched seven solid innings in Aberdeen's 6-1 win over Vancouver. George Foster and Carlton Fisk homered to lead Forks to a 7-2 win over Yakima. Reggie Jackson went 3-for-5 with a homer and four RBI and Jefferson County beat North Bend 9-4. Jackie Robinson hit a three-run homer during Renton's four-run third and the R's held on to beat Long Beach 6-4. Six Ocean Shores pitchers combined on a five-hitter, Mel Ott homered, and the O's blanked Snoqualmie 3-0. Roberto Clemente and Dave Concepcion both drove in three runs to lead Cashmere's 12-4 rout of Tumwater.
September 13
Bert Blyleven pitched a five-hitter and struck out eight and Bainbridge Island won its eighth in a row, beating Hoquiam 2-0 and maintaining a 12-game lead in the Puget Division. Kevin Appier allowed just two hits over seven innings and Joe Adcock hit a two-run homer in the sixth as Aberdeen topped Vancouver 3-0. Mike Krukow pitched seven solid innings, Kent and Charlie Keller homered, and Kelso beat Moses Lake 5-4. Wenatchee scored two in the top of the eleventh on RBI singles by Lou Whitaker and Willie Wilson and held on to beat Davenport 7-6, pulling within a game of Moses Lake in the East Division. Josh Gibson tripled with the bases loaded in the top of the 13th and Goldendale topped Ephrata 5-2, maintaining its six-game lead in the South Division. Emil Yde pitched a three-hitter, outdueling Chuck Finley, who allowed just four hits, and Yakima edged Forks 2-1. Phil Nevin hit a three-run homer to cap a five-run eighth, and North Bend came from behind to defeat Jefferson County 5-4. Cal Ripken, Jr.'s RBI single in the top of the ninth snapped a tie and Renton beat Long Beach 4-3. Satchel Paige allowed just two runs on six hits in his return from the injured list and Pasco topped Quincy 4-2.
September 14
Jeff Bagwell homered in the eighth and Cool Papa Bell smacked a pinch-hit, two-run shot in the top of the ninth and Bainbridge Island beat Hoquiam 3-2 for their ninth straight win. The Bees now lead Renton by 13 games and their magic number to clinch the Puget Division is 13. Jack Morris pitched six strong innings, Paul Molitor and Johnny Mize hit home runs, and Moses Lake clubbed Kelso 8-2, maintaining a one-game lead in the East Division. Wenatchee kept pace with Moses Lake, getting a seven-hitter from Early Wynn and homers from Ted Williams and Whitaker to beat Davenport 7-2. Aberdeen scored four in the bottom of the eighth, coming from behind to beat Vancouver 6-5 and stretching their lead in the Coast Division to eight games over Hoquiam. Goldendale maintained is six-game lead in the South Division, getting seven runs in three innings off Dock Ellis and rolling to an 8-4 victory over Ephrata. Pasco kept pace with the G's, getting a five-hitter from Billy Pierce and a 6-2 win over Quincy. Walter Johnson pitched a three-hitter and Jefferson County blanked North Bend 1-0. Long Beach scored four in the bottom of the seventh in a come-from-behind, 6-5 win over Renton. Hiromitsu Ochiai committed five errors, and Ocean Shores made a total of eight miscues leading to four unearned runs in a 6-5 loss to Snoqualmie. Tom Candiotti pitched a five-hitter and Roberto Clemente went 4-for-5 as Cashmere blanked Tumwater 9-0.
September 15
Willie Mays walked with the sacks full in the bottom of the 14th to force in the winning run as Moses Lake topped Kelso 5-4. Wenatchee scored a run in the top of the eleventh, but Andre Dawson hit a two-run shot in the bottom of the frame to win it for Davenport 8-7, dropping Wenatchee two games behind Moses Lake in the East Division race. Johnny Bench homered to give Bainbridge Island the lead in the top of the eighth, Bell knocked one in the ninth for an insurance run, and the Bees beat Hoquiam 8-6, their tenth straight win and the fourth defeat in a row for the H's. Fernando Valenzuela and three relievers combined on a four-hitter and Vancouver edged Aberdeen 2-1. Ephrata scored two in the seventh, getting the go-ahead run on a pinch single by Mark Ellis, and beat Goldendale 3-2. Pasco got home runs from Albert Pujols, Mike Piazza, Dave Parker, and Andy Pafko and beat Quincy 6-4, moving within five games of Goldendale in the South Division. Bob Feller pitched a five-hitter, Foster hit a three-run homer in the third, and Forks topped Yakima 6-1. Reggie hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth and Jefferson County came from behind to beat North Bend 4-3. Frank Robinson drove in five runs, two on singles, then, in the top of the ninth, a three-run homer, and Renton defeated Long Beach 8-5. Warren Spahn gave up just one hit--a solo homer by Ott in the first inning--and Ted Simmons hit a three-run homer during Snoqualmie's six-run third as the S's topped Ocean Shores 7-2. Roger Clemens allowed just three hits and no earned runs in seven innings and Cashmere beat Tumwater 3-1.
September 16
Jim Palmer took a shutout into the seventh inning, Vada Pinson had three hits, and Pasco won its sixth straight, beating Moses Lake 5-2 and pulling within four games of stumbling Goldendale in the South Division. John Donaldson pitched a one-hitter--a single by Hank Gowdy in the third--and Joe DiMaggio homered off Bob Gibson in the fourth and Davenport bested Goldendale 1-0. Tommy Bridges pitched a six-hitter, Barry Bonds and Brett homered, and Bainbridge Island won its eleventh in a row, topping Forks 8-1. Steve Carlton pitched seven strong innings and Cashmere beat Wenatchee 7-2, preventing the W's from gaining ground on Moses Lake in the East Division. Babe Adams pitched a seven-hitter, Dick Allen and Averill both drove in three runs, and Aberdeen routed Yakima 11-1. Hoquiam scored four in the top of the first, three of them on a home run by Todd Helton, and beat North Bend 4-3. Randy Johnson pitched a five-hitter, Chipper Jones hit a pair of homers, and Jefferson County blanked Renton 5-0. Speaker had four hits, Ron Santo drove in three runs with a triple in the eighth, and Snoqualmie battered Long Beach 8-2. Ted Kluszeseki hit two home runs, Al Kaline and Chuck Klein had one each, and Kelso routed Ephrata 12-2. Jose Valentin singled in the bottom of the tenth to score Robin Ventura with the winning run as Vancovuer edged Quincy 4-3.
September 17
Frank White hit a one-out, pinch homer in the bottom of the eleventh, giving Wenatchee a 4-3 win over Cashmere and moving them within one game of first-place Moses Lake in the East Division standings. Perry pitched a three-hitter, Pujols and Parker homered, and Pasco blanked Moses Lake 3-0 for their seventh straight win. Josh Gibson hit a pair of homers, Ken Griffey, Jr. hit his 44th, and Goldendale stayed four up on Pasco with a 7-4 win over Davenport. Barry Bonds hit a three-run homer in the first, Kevin Brown allowed just one run in 6 2/3 innings, and Bainbridge Island won its 12th straight, beating Forks 4-1 and reducing their magic number for clinching the Puget Division to nine. Jordan Zimmerman pitched a four-hitter, Kouji Yamamoto hit two solo homers, Carl Yastrzemski also drilled a solo shot, and Yakima blanked Aberdeen 3-0. Helton's two-run homer capped a four-run rally in the top of the ninth and Hoquiam came from behind to beat North Bend 5-4. Wally Joyner went 3-for-4 with a homer, double, and three RBI to lead Jefferson County past Renton 8-4. Tom Seaver pitched a two-hitter, Speaker drove in four runs, and Snoqualmie topped Long Beach 9-3. Fritz Ostermueller pitched a four-hitter and Ocean Shores clobbered Tumwater 9-2. Bob Knepper allowed just one run in eight innings and Kelso bested Ephrata 4-1.
September 18
Juan Marichal allowed just four hits over eight innings, two of them solo homers by Pinson, and Moses Lake beat Pasco 7-2. Wenatchee kept pace a game behind Moses Lake in the East Division, getting a first-inning grand slam from David Wright and holding on to beat Cashmere 5-4. Davenport scored three in the top of the first, two on a home run by Martin Dihigo, and made it hold up for a 3-2 win at Goldendale, which remained four games ahead of Pasco in the South Division. Bainbridge Island scored two in the bottom of the ninth on a triple by Wade Boggs and beat Forks 3-2 for their 13th win in a row. Aberdeen scored three in the top of the eighth on RBI doubles by Adcock and Bobby Avila and defeated Yakima 5-2. Gary Nolan allowed just one run on two hits over seven innings and Graig Nettles homered in North Bend's 5-1 win over Hoquiam. Renton scored five in the bottom of the eighth with the help of an error and a wild pitch and came from behind to beat Jefferson County 6-4. Willie Stargell slugged a two-run pinch homer in the bottom of the ninth to give Snoqualmie its fifth win in a row, a 3-1 decision over Long Beach. John Tudor notched his 14th win as Tumwater beat Ocean Shores 6-2. Masayuki Kakafu hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh and Kelso beat Ephrata 4-3. Dan Uggla hit a pinch, two-run homer in the top of the ninth to give Quincy a 4-3 win at Vancouver.
Injuries
Frank Linzy suffered a minor injury September 12 and will be out for a week or so. Clem Labine was called up to take Linzy's spot in the Long Beach bullpen. Justin Verlander suffered an injury September 13 that will keep him on the shelf for a couple of weeks. He went onto the injured list and Bob Veale, coming off the list, replaces him in the Vancouver rotation. John Tudor left his start September 18 with a sore forearm and may be finished for the season. Kevin Tapani was called up to take Tudor's spot in the rotation.