Thursday, August 6, 2020

Diamond King Roundup: 1985

I am doing something a little different with this series. I have mentioned before that the Diamond Kings subset is one of my favorites of all time. The purpose of the subset is to highlight one player from each team who has made a big impact on the team. It is also true that sometimes the choices were a little suspect. I wanted to go through and look at the choices each year and determine which are the strangest choices. Then I will grade the picks in the context of the team, only. For this series, I only want to examine the years when there was one pick per team. In the mid 1990's, the set kind of went off the rails.

CHICAGO CUBS - RYNE SANDBERG
Sandberg was the N.L. MVP, an All Star and won both the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger as a second-baseman.  He led the league in runs (114) and triples (19) while notching 200 hits and a slash line of .314/.367/.520.  He slammed 19 home runs, drove in 84 and also stole 32 bases.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Yes, by a significant margin.  The next player on the Cubs was Cy Young winner Rick Sutcliffe, who was 16-1 with a 2.69 ERA and 155 strikeouts in 150.1 innings pitched.

GRADE: A.  Sandberg won the MVP and clearly deserved it.  He was the best player in the league, much less the team.

CALIFORNIA ANGELS - DOUG DECINCES
Third-baseman DeCinces hit .269/.327/.431.  He was second on the team in hits (147), runs (77) and RBIs (82) and third on the team in doubles (23) and home runs (20).

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  DeCinces was a vastly underrated player, but he did not have one of his better years in 1984.  Mike Witt was the WAR leader as he went 15-11 with a 3.47 ERA and 196 strikeouts in 246.2 innings.  The best hitter was probably Fred Lynn, who hit .271/.366/.474 with 23 home runs and 79 RBIs.  Lynn was previously a Diamond King.

GRADE: B.  This is fine.  DeCinces was good, just not really the best player on the team.  Witt would have been a better pick.

CHICAGO WHITE SOX - RICH DOTSON
Dotson was an All Star in 1984, coming off of a season in which he challenged for the Cy Young Award.  He led the team in ERA (3.59) and innings pitched (245.2).  He had a record of 14-15 for a bad team and struck out 120 while walking 103.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Dotson was the WAR leader, but his numbers were not super impressive.  Harold Baines would have been the better choice, as he had an identical WAR, while putting up impressive stats like a .304/.361/.541 slash line and 29 home runs and 94 RBIs.

GRADE: B+.  Donruss did not know what WAR was at the time, so it was kind of accidental that they got the WAR leader.  Baines would have been a slightly better pick with stats that would have jumped off the page at the time.

CLEVELAND INDIANS - BERT BLYLEVEN
Blyleven finished third in the A.L. Cy Young race.  Blyleven had a 19-7 record with a 2.87 ERA, leading the team in virtually every pitching category.  He threw 245 innings, striking out 170 and walking 74 and had 12 complete games and four shutouts.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Easily.  The only guy close was former Diamond King Andre Thornton who hit 33 home runs and drove in 99 runs with a line of .271/.366/.484.

GRADE: A.  Blyleven played for a lot of bad teams in his career, which was pretty much the only thing that made it take so long for him to get in the Hall of Fame.  

DETROIT TIGERS - LOU WHITAKER
Second-baseman Whitaker was second on the team in hits (161), runs (90) and batting average (.289).  He had an OBP of .357 and a slugging percentage of .407 while hitting 25 doubles, 13 home runs and 56 RBIs.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  This was a bit of an ordinary season for Whitaker, who was fifth on the team in WAR.  1982 Diamond King Alan Trammell hit .314/.382/.468 with 14 home runs and 69 RBIs.  Kirk Gibson hit .282/.363/.516 with 27 home runs and 91 RBIs.  And closer Willie Hernandez won both the Cy Young Award and the MVP for the American League when he led the league in games (80) and had a 9-3 record with a 1.92 ERA, 32 saves and 112 strikeouts versus 36 walks in 140.1 innings.

GRADE: C.  Whitaker had a decent season, but Trammell, Gibson or Hernandez should have been the Diamond King.  This is particularly interesting because Trammell was a bad choice when he was the Diamond King and Whitaker would have been better at that time.  I would say Hernandez would have been the most likely choice.

KANSAS CITY ROYALS - DAN QUISENBERRY
Quisenberry was second in the A.L. Cy Young race and third in the MVP race.  He was an All Star while leading the league in saves (44).  He had a 6-3 record with a 2.64 ERA, striking out 41 and walking just 12 in 129.1 innings.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  This is always a difficult question with a relief pitcher.  Quisenberry was a fantastic reliever for a little while and it says something that he finished so high in those awards votes.  But, Bud Black was the WAR leader with a 17-12 record, a 3.12 ERA and 140 strikeouts in 257 innings.  Quisenberry was fourth, a full win lower than Black.  So no, he was not the best choice.

GRADE: B+.  Quisenberry finished high in the awards races and thus, gives this pick some more legitimacy.  It just is not quite the best choice.

NEW YORK YANKEES - DON MATTINGLY
In his first truly full season, the Yankees first-baseman was an All Star while leading the league in hits (207), doubles (44) and batting average.  He hit .343/.381/.537 while leading the team in RBIs (110) and being second in home runs (23).  He finished fifth in the MVP vote.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Yes.  Mattingly was at the beginning of a span of years where he was one of the best players in the league.  Former Diamond King Dave Winfield is the runner-up, hitting .340/.393/.515 with 19 home runs and 100 RBIs.  

GRADE: A.  Mattingly was the best choice by a wide margin here.  

OAKLAND ATHLETICS - CARNEY LANSFORD
Lansford was the A's third-baseman and led the team in hits (179) and batting average.  He hit .300/.342/.439 with 14 home runs and 74 RBIs while stealing nine bases and scoring 70 runs.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No, but he's not a bad choice.  All of the better choices are former Diamond Kings.  Rickey Henderson hit .293/.399/.458 with 16 home runs, 58 RBIs and 66 stolen bases.  Dwayne Murphy hit 33 home runs with 88 RBIs.  Dave Kingman hit 35 home runs with 118 RBIs.

GRADE: B.  Lansford is a decent choice.  Donruss still did not like to repeat Diamond Kings at this point (which is stupid, but still), so he was the next one in line.     

TEXAS RANGERS - FRANK TANANA
Southpaw Tanana came back from a lost few seasons to post a 15-15 record and led the Rangers staff in ERA (3.25).  He pitched 246.1 innings, striking out 141 (both second on the team) and walked 81.  He threw nine complete games and one shutout.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  He led the team in ERA and was a nice comeback story, but was second on the staff (and fourth overall on the team) in WAR.  Former Diamond King Buddy Bell hit .315/.382/.458.  Center fielder Gary Ward hit .284/.343/.447 with 21 home runs and 79 RBIs.  Charlie Hough was 16-14 with a 3.76 ERA and 164 strikeouts.

GRADE: C.  Tanana was a nice story and had a good season, but he was the fourth-best player on the team.

TORONTO BLUE JAYS - WILLIE UPSHAW
Upshaw was second on the team in home runs (19) and third in RBIs (84).  He hit .278/.345/.464 with 158 hits, 79 runs, 31 doubles, nine triples and ten stolen bases.  

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  Upshaw was ninth on the team in WAR.  Former Diamond King Dave Stieb was 16-8 with a 2.83 ERA and 198 strikeouts.  The best hitter choice would have been Lloyd Moseby, who hit .280/.368/.470 with 18 home runs and 92 RBIs.  Cliff Johnson hit .304/.390/.507 with 16 home runs and 61 RBIs.

GRADE: C.  Upshaw is a somewhat weak choice with numbers that do not really jump off the page.  Moseby would have been the best choice, if you ignore former Diamond Kings.

ATLANTA BRAVES - CLAUDELL WASHINGTON
Despite only playing in 120 games, Washington was second on the team in home runs (17) and RBIs (61) while leading the team in stolen bases (21).  He hit .286/.374/.469 and had 62 runs and 119 hits.  Washington was an All Star in 1984.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  Dale Murphy did not win the MVP for the first time since 1981, but he did hit .290/.372/.547 with 36 home runs and 100 RBIs, while stealing 19 bases.  Of course Murphy had already been a Diamond King.  Rick Mahler was 13-10 with a 3.12 ERA in 222 innings.

GRADE: B.  Washington was the second-best hitter on the team, and probably would have been better with a full season.  Mahler's stats were not eye-popping, so it is not shocking that he was not the pick.  The best pick would have been Murphy, but Donruss was not repeating Diamond Kings yet.

LOS ANGELES DODGERS - MIKE MARSHALL
Marshall led the Dodgers in home runs (21).  The left fielder hit .257/.315/.438 and notched 127 hits, 68 runs, 27 doubles and 65 RBIs.  He was an All Star for the only time in his career in 1984.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  Alejandro Pena led the team in WAR when he went 12-6 with a 2.48 ERA (led the league) and struck out 135 in 199.1 innings.  Former Diamond King Pedro Guerrero was very good again when he hit .303/.358/.462 with 16 home runs and a team-leading 72 RBIs.  

GRADE: C.  Marshall was decent, maybe the second-best hitter, but he was mostly a one-dimensional slugger.  The Dodgers had a lot of great pitchers, with Pena being the best of the group.  He maybe should have been the selection.

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS - JOAQUIN ANDUJAR
Andujar finished fourth in the NL Cy Young vote by leading the league in wins (20), shutouts (four) and innings pitched (261.1).  He had a 20-14 record with a 3.34 ERA and notched 147 strikeouts versus 70 walks.  He was an All Star and also won a Gold Glove.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  There is an argument that he was.  He was not the team's WAR leader, in fact he finished fourth.  Two of the players above him were more due to their defensive abilities.  Neither Ozzie Smith (.257/.347/.337) nor Willie McGee (.291/.325/.394) were great hitters.  Bruce Sutter also had a higher WAR, as he had a 1.54 ERA in 122.1 innings and had a league-leading 45 saves.

GRADE: B+.  He's maybe not the most convincing of choices, but from a traditional stats perspective, Andujar is probably the best bet.  It is close with former Diamond King Bruce Sutter though, and oddly Sutter did not deserve it when he was the Diamond King.

BALTIMORE ORIOLES - CAL RIPKEN, JR.
Ripken followed up his MVP season with another All Star season.  He led the league in games played, on his way to eventually break the consecutive games streak.  Ripken hit .304/.374/.510 with 27 home runs, 103 runs, 195 hits and 86 RBIs.  He also won a Silver Slugger Award.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Ripken finished second to Eddie Murray in most offensive categories, but he was the best choice because he was the WAR leader and played a more demanding position.  Murray hit .306/.410/.509 with 29 home runs and 110 RBIs.

GRADE: A.  It is very close, just as it was the previous season when Murray was selected instead of Ripken.  This time though, Donruss made the better choice.

BOSTON RED SOX - JIM RICE
Rice was an All Star and won a Silver Slugger Award in 1984.  He hit .280/.323/.467 and was third on the team in home runs (28) and second on the team in RBIs (122).  He scored 98 runs (fourth on the team), and had 184 hits (third on the team).  He also notched 25 doubles and seven triples.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  The Red Sox had a loaded offense.  Among players with better numbers were Wade Boggs (.325/.407/.416, 203 hits), Dwight Evans (.295/.388/.532, 32 home runs, 104 RBIs), Mike Easler (.313/.376/.516, 27 home runs, 91 RBIs) and Rich Gedman (.269/.312/.506, 24 home runs, 72 RBIs).  Then there is Tony Armas, who led the league in home runs (43) RBIs (123), and total bases (339) and hit .268/.300/.531.  Armas probably should have been the pick, even though Boggs had the highest WAR.  Boggs and Evans were former Diamond Kings, but Gedman, Easler and Armas were not.

GRADE: C.  Rice was quite good, but that offense was loaded.  Somehow Donruss skipped over the league's home run and RBI champ.  Rice feels a little more like a career achievement Diamond King, though he was still a very productive player.

MILWAUKEE BREWERS - DON SUTTON
Sutton was the ace of the Brewers' staff, leading the team in most pitching categories.  He had a 14-12 record, and a 3.77 ERA in 212.2 innings pitched.  He struck out 143 and walked 51.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  1984 Diamond King Robin Yount was still the Brewers' best player, and by a significant margin at this point.  Yount hit .298/.362/.441 and led the team with 16 home runs, 80 RBIs and 14 stolen bases.

GRADE: B.  Yount was clearly a better player and Sutton's numbers were not incredibly impressive.  Sutton was probably the second best choice.

MINNESOTA TWINS - FRANK VIOLA
Viola became the ace of the Twins staff in 1984 and finished sixth in the Cy Young vote.  Viola went 18-12 with a 3.61 ERA in 257.2 innings pitched.  Viola struck out 149 and walked 73.  He led the team in most major pitching categories and threw ten complete games and four shutouts.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Probably not, but it is close.  Kent Hrbek had a huge season, hitting .311/.383/.522, and led the team with 107 RBIs and 80 runs while hitting 27 home runs.  Hrbek was the 1983 Twins Diamond King.

GRADE: B+.  Viola was definitely worthy, just not as much as Hrbek.

SEATTLE MARINERS - ALVIN DAVIS
Davis was the 1984 A.L. Rookie of the Year and was selected to the All Star Game.  He led the Mariners in most major offensive categories, including doubles (34), home runs (27), RBIs (116) and walks (97).  He hit .284/.391/.497.  He notched 161 hits and 80 runs.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Yes.  Davis had a huge season and was the team's WAR leader.  The next best choice was probably Mark Langston who went 17-10 with a 3.40 ERA and 204 strikeouts in 225 innings pitched.  

GRADE: A.  Davis had a terrific season and was the first Mariner to win a major award.

CINCINNATI REDS - MARIO SOTO
Soto was an All Star for the third season in a row in 1984 and finished sixth in the Cy Young vote.  He led the league in complete games (13) and had an 18-7 record, a 3.53 ERA and 185 strikeouts versus 87 walks in 237.1 innings pitched.  

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Yes.  The Reds were not a good team in 1984 and Soto was far and away their best player.  The runner-up is likely Dave Parker, who hit .285/.328/.410 and led the team in home runs (16) and RBIs (94).  

GRADE: A.  Kind of hard to screw up a team with only one standout player.

HOUSTON ASTROS - JOSE CRUZ
In a very rare achievement, Cruz led his team in every major offensive category: runs (96), hits (187), doubles (28), triples (13), home runs (12), RBIs (95), stolen bases (22) and total bases (277).  He also led in all three slash line categories (.312/.381/.462) and won a Silver Slugger.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Clearly.  Cruz was a one-man offense for the Astros.  The runner-up is possibly Terry Puhl, who hit .301/.380/.434.

GRADE: A.  Like the Reds, this was a hard team to mess up.  Cruz was far and away the best Astros player.

MONTREAL EXPOS - CHARLIE LEA
The France native was an All Star for the only time in his career.  He had a 15-10 record and led the team in victories, ERA (2.89), complete games (eight) and strikeouts (123).  He pitched 224.1 innings, second highest on the team.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  Former Diamond King Gary Carter was the Expos' best player as he hit .294/.366/.487 and led the team in home runs (27) and RBIs (106).  Tim Raines also had a great season, hitting .309/.393/.437 and leading the league in stolen bases (75), while only being caught ten times.

GRADE: C.  I sort of understand this one as Lea had a nice season and was an All Star.  He just was not the most worthy.  The Expos had several good hitters that had better seasons than Lea.

NEW YORK METS - JESSE OROSCO
Orosco was an All Star for the second time in 1984 and became the Mets' primary closer.  He had a 10-6 record with a 2.59 ERA, finishing fourth on the team in victories.  He saved 31 games while striking out 85 and walking 34 in 87 innings pitched.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  Orosco had a good year, but the Mets were a good, young team with a ton of standout talent.  Keith Hernandez was their best player as he hit .311/.409/.449 with 15 home runs and 94 RBIs.  Darryl Strawberry hit .251/.343/.467 and led the team in home runs (26) and RBIs (97).  Dwight Gooden won the Rookie of the Year when he went 17-9 with a 2.60 ERA and 276 strikeouts in just 218 innings.

GRADE: D+.  Orosco was good, but there were several better players.  Weirder still is that Strawberry and Gooden were massively popular players at this point and Donruss oddly did not take advantage of their popularity, instead opting for a reliever.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES - JUAN SAMUEL
In his rookie season of 1984, Samuel led the league in plate appearances (737), at bats (701), triples (19) and strikeouts (168).  He was an All Star and finished second in the Rookie of the Year vote.  Samuel hit .272/.307/.442 with 15 home runs, 69 RBIs and 72 stolen bases.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No, but I am okay with highlighting a rookie star.  Mike Schmidt was still the best player for the Phillies as he hit .277/.383/.536 with 36 home runs and 106 RBIs.  He led the league in both home runs and RBIs.

GRADE: B.  Samuel was a very impressive rookie star for the Phillies, even if he was not close to the best player on the team.

PITTSBURGH PIRATES - TONY PENA
Pena was an All Star for the second time in his career and also won his second Gold Glove Award in 1984.  The catcher hit .286/.333/.425 with 15 home runs and 12 stolen bases.  He led the team in runs (77, tied with Marvell Wynne) and RBIs (78).

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No, but he is damn close.  Rich Rhoden was the Pirates' best player by WAR as he went 14-9 with a 2.72 ERA and 136 strikeouts versus 62 walks in 238.1 innings pitched.  

GRADE: B+.  It is strange to consider that Pena used to be such a good hitting catcher.  I remember his final season in Boston when he hit .181.  Still he was the best hitter on the team, and the second best player overall.  Rhoden would have been a better pick, but Pena was damn good.

SAN DIEGO PADRES - TONY GWYNN
In his first full season, Gwynn finished third in the N.L. MVP vote, was an All Star and won a Silver Slugger.  He led the league in hits (213) and batting average with a slash line of .351/.410/.444.  He also hit five home runs and drove in 78 runs while stealing 33 bases.

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  Yes.  Kevin McReynolds was probably the runner-up for the N.L. Champions as he hit .278/.317/.465 and led the team in home runs (20, tied with Graig Nettles) and was second on the team with 75 RBIs.

GRADE: A.  Gwynn was terrific right away and was far and away the Padres' best player.

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS - BOB BRENLY
After years of toiling in the minors and limited success in the Majors, Brenly made his first All Star team in 1984.  The catcher hit .291/.352/.464 and hit 20 home runs and drove in 80 runs (third on the team in both categories).  

WAS HE THE BEST CHOICE?  No.  Chili Davis was the Giants' best player as he hit .315/.368/.507 with 21 home runs (tied for first) and 81 RBIs (second on the team).  

GRADE: B+.  This one is also very close.  Brenly probably gets some extra credit for basically coming out of nowhere.  

RECAP
BEST CHOICE:  I am going to go with Ryne Sandberg here.  Sandberg had a huge season to help lead the Cubs to the postseason and was an easy choice for MVP.

WORST CHOICE:  This is easily the best year for Diamond Kings so far.  There were not any really questionable choices.  I suppose the worst choice is probably Jesse Orosco just because Donruss for some reason ignored two of the hottest stars in the game in Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden.

BIGGEST SNUB:  Willie Hernandez?  I mean, he is surely the most unusual player to win both the MVP and Cy Young Award, but to go with an ordinary season by Lou Whitaker over him is sort of odd.  Dwight Gooden is another big snub.

WEIRDEST PICK, HISTORICALLY:  Charlie Lea.  Lea was basically washed up after the season due to injuries.  His career lasted just seven seasons and he pitched more than 200 innings twice.

No comments:

Post a Comment