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1923 1924 1925
1924 Governor’s Cup Series
Game One: Los Angeles 10, Salt Lake City 2 at
Salt Lake City, Tue., Sept. 30, 1924
The Angels began the defense of their title with a rollicking
10-2 rout in front of a hostile crowd. Facing 20-game winner Andy
Cooper (20-8, 3.50), the Halos gave John Donaldson (16-15, 3.71)
all the support he would need in the top of the first, as center
fielder Turkey Stearnes and third baseman Ray Jacobs each
connected for two-run homers. Donaldson yielded a run in the
bottom of the frame on catcher Biz Mackey’s sacrifice fly, but
then settled down to blank the Bees over the next seven innings
before giving up a meaningless run in the ninth. By then Los
Angeles had built a nine-run cushion, with second baseman George
Scales adding a third two-run blast.
Game Two: Salt Lake City 29, Los Angeles 2 at
Salt Lake City, Wed., Oct. 1, 1924
If the Bees were embarrassed by their poor performance in the
opener, they atoned by delivering one of the most devastating
whippings of all time. They had already chased Angels’ starter
George Payne (15-6, 3.02) and built a comfortable 7-1 lead behind
Nip Winters (21-9, 3.76) when they came to bat in the bottom of
the sixth against Paul Fittery. Shortstop Wes Kingdon led off with
a home run (he hit three all year) which could have served as a
warning of things to come. Fittery failed to retire a batter;
eight men reached base against him and it was 13-1 when he left.
Enter Jim Scott, who retired just one the eight batters he faced;
Mackey’s grand slam chased him and made the score 22-1. Donaldson
came in to squelch the 15-run inning but stayed long enough for
the Bees to pound him for another seven runs. At the final
reckoning, Salt Lake City had pounded out 29 runs on 26 hits.
First baseman George Grantham went 5-7 with 5 runs and 5 RBI.
Mackey had 6 RBI.
Game Three: Salt Lake City 7, Los Angeles 4 at
Los Angeles, Fri., Oct. 3, 1924
Although the series had relocated to pitcher-friendly Washington
Park, the Bees acted like they were still in the mountain air,
walloping 20 hits to swamp the home team and take a 2-1 series
lead. The Angels struck first, with first baseman Jack Fournier
delivering a run-scoring single and Jacobs following up with an
RBI grounder in the fourth off Max Thomas (11-6, 4.31), but the
Bees immediately tied it in the next frame with Grantham and
second baseman Tony Lazzeri delivering RBI singles against Los
Angeles’ Charlie Root (12-10, 3.49). Salt Lake City broke it open
with a four-run seventh in which Mackey and third baseman Joe
Manger each hit triples; Manger’s plated a pair. Thomas needed
help from Dick McCabe to escape a ninth-inning Angels’ rally, but
when the dust had settled, the Bees had a 7-4 victory and a 2-1
series lead.
Game Four: Los Angeles 9, Salt Lake City 5 at Los
Angeles, Sat., Oct. 4, 1924
The home team struck early and often to pile up a lead large
enough to withstand a furious ninth-inning comeback attempt by the
visitors. Stearnes tripled home Scales and Jacobs singled home
Stearnes to tally two first inning runs off John Singleton (12-9,
5.69), and Willie Mitchell (17-13, 3.68) surrendered a meaningless
hit here and a meaningless hit there to shut the Bees out for
eight innings. The Angels exploded for six runs in the fifth,
highlighted by first baseman Jack Fournier’s two-run double, and
appeared to be on their way to an easy win, but after Mitchell
retired the first two batters in the ninth, he was unable to
retire a third, giving way after third baseman Joe Manger reached
on an error and pinch-hitter Tony Governor singled. Jim Middleton
was rudely greeted with a Grantham double, a triple off the bat of
right fielder Johnny Frederick, and a Mackey single. He then
walked Lazzeri and gave up a single to left fielder Crush Holloway
before finally retiring center fielder Cristobal Torriente to end
the threat and secure the series-tying victory.
Game Five: Los Angeles 7, Salt Lake City 6 at Los
Angeles, Sun., Oct. 5, 1924
It had been a series of dominating blowouts or games that were
well in hand before late rallies sparked some excitement but
ultimately fell several runs short. The pivotal Game Five, by
contrast, was a thriller that saw both teams make exciting
comebacks and remained thrilling right up to the final putout. The
Halos took a 2-0 lead off Ollie Mitchell (11-11, 5.38) on Jacobs’
two-run first inning two-bagger and made it 4-0 on back-to-back
RBI doubles by Stearnes and Fournier in the second. After another
Stearnes double added a fifth run in the fourth, Donaldson
appeared to have all the support he needed and then some, shutting
out the Bees though six. But the visitors came to life in the
seventh. Holloway singled and Donaldson walked Torriente and
Kingdon. Manger drilled a double in the gap to score two, and the
pinch-hitting Governor followed with a sacrifice fly. Grantham and
Frederick then followed with doubles to tie the score 5-5.
Donaldson got Mackey on a ground out, but Lazzeri then singled to
give the Bees the lead. It was short-lived, however; with two out
in the seventh left fielder Cedric Durst singled home Jacobs, and
it was 6-6. Donaldson managed a scoreless eighth, and in the
bottom of the frame shortstop Jake Stephens worked a lead off walk
against McCabe. The Halos called upon 44-year old Sam Crawford to
pinch hit, and the veteran took a called strike to allow Stephens
to steal second before lining a double down the first base line to
restore the lead. Pat Flaherty yielded two-out ninth-inning
singles to Lazzeri and Holloway, but got Torriente on a short fly
to left, and the Angels were a win away from repeating as
champions.
Game Six: Salt Lake City 6, Los Angeles 3 at Salt
Lake City, Tue., Oct. 7, 1924
Winters gave the Bees a desperately-needed clutch performance to
force a Game Seven. It didn’t start out quite the way he wanted,
as Scales homered to lead off the game, but his teammates quickly
turned the deficit into a lead with Frederick’s two-run bomb off
Payne in the bottom half of the first frame. The Bees struck again
in the second on Grantham’s two-run single, and the Angels
countered in the third with an RBI triple from Stearnes. From
there it remained a tight 4-2 game until the Angels tightened it
up some more in the eighth on Scales’ second solo shot of the day.
The Bees were not to be denied on this day, however, getting to
Flaherty in the bottom of the inning with four straight singles
and a Holloway double that left the score at 6-3, a margin that
Winters made sure held up as he induced Stephens to bounce into a
game-ending double play.
Game Seven: Los Angeles 12, Salt Lake City 11 at
Salt Lake City, Wed., Oct. 8, 1924
A third consecutive nail-biter, this one with typical Bonneville
Park fireworks, put the finishing touches on what turned out to be
a tight series. The Angels looked championship-worthy when they
jumped off to a 4-0 lead in the opening frame, capped by the
light-hitting Stephens’ three-run blast. By the end of their half
of the third they led 7-1 and the home crowd was desperate for a
Bees rally. They got one in the third, with three consecutive
doubles by Frederick, Mackey, and Lazzeri, followed by a two-run
blast by Torriente that made it 7-5. The Angels roared back in the
fourth with a two-run homer off the bat of Fournier, and when
Stephens hit his second round-tripper of the day, an
inside-the-parker in the sixth, it again looked like the Angels,
up 11-5, had it on ice. The Bees were far from finished. They
added a run in the sixth on a Mackey single, but immediately gave
it back in the seventh when right fielder Wally Hood homered. They
went to work on Fittery in the bottom of the inning as Kingdon
doubled and pinch-hitter Howard Lindimore singled him home, and
caught a break when Grantham reached on Fournier’s miscue.
Frederick followed with a two-run double to make it 12-9. The
lefty threw a scoreless eighth, but the Bees had one last gasp, as
Governor doubled with one out in the ninth and Frederick launched
a two-run, two out homer. After Mackey singled to put the tying
run on base, Angels’ skipper Marty Krug called for Flaherty, who
fanned Lazzeri on three pitches, locking up a second-consecutive
crown for Los Angeles.
Update: 9/29/24
The final six-game series of the season opened on Tuesday with
two teams still in the running for home field advantage in the
Governor’s Cup Series and an additional three teams still alive
for the second post-season berth. And then, rather suddenly, it
had all been decided by the final out on Thursday. On that day Los
Angeles defeated Vernon 2-1 in 14 innings, eliminating both the
Tigers and Portland, while Oakland fell 5-4 at San Francisco,
ending the Oaks’ hopes. Finally, Salt Lake City’s 8-3 victory at
Sacramento cemented the Bees’ status as the top regular season
team. They will host the Angels in Game One of the Governor’s Cup
Series on Tuesday. Salt Lake City’s final record was 89-65, six
games better than the Halos’ 83-71.
The Beavers (82-70) finished strong, sweeping Seattle, and wound
up in third, just a game behind Los Angeles. The Tigers (81-71)
won their final three to come in fourth, a game behind Portland,
and the Acorns (80-74) wound up in fifth, a game behind Vernon.
Sacramento finished at 77-77, San Francisco at 67-87, and Seattle
at 57-97.
Oscar Charleston of Portland was the final Player of the Week,
turning in a valiant effort as his club tried to stay alive. He
hit .615 with three home runs, ten runs scored and ten driven in.
Lefty O’Doul of the Seals was the biggest individual story of
the year, as he became the major league PCL’s first .400 hitter,
finishing at .403. Biz Mackey of the Bees was second in hitting at
.367 and the Rainiers’ John Beckwith came in third, at .363.
The Bees’ Tony Lazzeri led the league in home runs with 40,
topping the Oaks’ Buzz Arlett (29). There was a tie for third
between O’Doul and the Bees’ Johnny Frederick, who both hit 24.
Lazzeri also won the RBI crown with 150, besting Charleston (129)
and Frederick (117).
Cool Papa Bell of the Tigers led the loop with 66 stolen bases;
Clint Thomas of the Oaks swiped 44 while the Angels’ Turkey
Stearnes pilfered 41.
Bullet Rogan of the Beavers won the ERA crown by percentage
points over the Tigers’ Dick Redding. They were both credited with
a 2.54 mark. Claude Thomas of the Tigers was third, at 2.72. Rogan
and Redding also topped the league in victories with 23, while The
Bees’ Nip Winters posted 21. Redding took the strikeouts title
with 132, with Rogan (125) finishing second and the Oaks’ Reuben
Curry (115) coming in third.
Update: 9/22/24
A week remains. The Bees are in, the Solons are out, the Oaks
and Beavers need a lot of help, the Tigers need a great series and
a little help, and the Angels control their own fate.
Salt Lake City limped into a Governor’s Cup berth, losing five
of six this week, four of them to the team with the best chance of
facing them for the championship. But with a five-game lead over
the Angels with six to play, they’re a near lock to open the
Series at home and as the favorites.
Los Angeles rebounded from their brutal series in San Francisco
(in which they lost five of six) by beating the Bees four out of
five times at home. The Angels finish the season as the road team
in a six-game set against their park mates Vernon. Leading the
Tigers by three, they only need to beat them twice to eliminate
them. The Tigers are finishing strong, however, winning four of
six games this week, three of them against the reeling Oakland
Oaks, who have seen their post-season hopes fade considerably.
While the Tigers have the tough task of needing to beat the
Angels at least five times, the Oaks need to gain three on the
Angels and two on the Tigers—a most difficult straight to
fill, with the latter two playing each other. The Oaks still have
a shot to advance, but they probably need to win at least five or
six against San Francisco and hope the Angels/Tigers series breaks
right. Portland must sweep Seattle to stay alive, and they need
the two other relevant series to break perfectly.
George Kelly of Seattle was the Player of the Week, hitting .571
and driving in eight. Kelly is hitting .322.
The Seals’ Lefty O’Doul pushed his season’s average up to .409.
Update: 9/15/24
A week ago the Los Angeles Angels appeared to be on the brink of
cementing their second consecutive Governor’s Cup Series berth,
the first step towards defending their league championship. With a
five-game lead over their closest challengers, and a series at
home against the lowly San Francisco Seals, they seemed more than
likely to continue the dominant pace they had established during
the last four weeks, when they went 21-7.
The Seals were having none of it. They stunned the Halos by
taking five out of six; meanwhile third-place Oakland matched the
Seals’ performance by beating Seattle five times in six tries,
picking up four games in the standings in just seven days. The
Oaks’ post-season hopes have soared; they trail the suddenly
vulnerable Angels by one game.
Vernon is also right back in the thick of things, trailing Los
Angeles by four games (with a six-game set against their park
mates looming a week from now). Portland still has a whisper of a
chance, five games back with 12 to play, but Sacramento’s season
appears to have run its course; dropping five of six to the
Beavers, the Solons trail Los Angeles by eight games.
Meanwhile, it’s lonely at the top, and Salt Lake City wouldn’t
have it any other way. The Bees lead the Angels by eight games,
and have a chance to clinch home field advantage for the
Governor’s Cup Series this week.
The Player of the Week was Cool Papa Bell, the Vernon Tigers’
phenomenal second-year center fielder. Bell hit .560 to raise his
season’s average to .342. He leads all major leagues with 62
stolen bases.
Update: 9/8/24
Two teams, Seattle and San Francisco, were officially eliminated
from post-season considerations this week. Meanwhile, two other
teams continued to ride hot streaks towards what is looking
increasingly likely to be a Governor’s Cup Series meeting.
Salt Lake City had a near-perfect week, their lone setback being
a 15-4 drubbing at the hands of the Vernon Tigers. But the Bees
more than reciprocated, winning three one-run games and dealing
the pennant hopes of the Tigers, who are now six games out of
second place, a severe blow.
Second-place Los Angeles couldn’t quite match the Bees
win-for-win this week, and thus dropped a game in the standings to
the front-runners. Aside from that, it was mostly smiles around
the Angels clubhouse, as the defending champions increased their
lead over third-place Oakland to five games. The Halos don’t have
as clear a path to the post-season as the Bees do, but with just
18 games left to play, their lead over the rest of the field is
significant.
Heavy Johnson was the Player of the Week. The Vernon slugger hit
.519 with two home runs, eight runs batted in, and seven runs
scored. Johnson’s season average is .326.
Lefty O’Doul of San Francisco also had a big week, hitting .550
to raise his season’s average to .404. It’s been a disappointing
campaign for Seals fans, but a .400 season from a
pitcher-turned-left fielder would ease some of the pain.
Update: 9/1/24
The season has entered its final month, and the Salt Lake City
Bees are in the driver’s seat. The Bees own a five-game lead over
second-place Los Angeles, but most importantly, they lead the two
third-place clubs, Oakland and Vernon, by eight games. If Oakland
or Vernon win the rest of their games, the Bees could still
eliminate them by going 14-11 down the stretch.
The Bees won six of their eight games this week, scoring runs in
bunches as they usually do at home. Second baseman Tony Lazzeri
led the charge, hitting .517 with eight home runs and 18 RBI; a
more worthy performance for the Player of the Week award is hard
to imagine. Lazzeri now has 37 home runs, leading even the
Yankees’ Babe Ruth by a single clout.
The Angels were also having another dominant week before
Sacramento cooled them down with a doubleheader sweep on Monday,
but the Halos’ five wins over Portland (against just one loss) to
start the week put them in sole possession of second place while
putting the Beavers’ hopes of a fourth consecutive Governor’s Cup
Series appearance in serious jeopardy. The Beavers have fallen to
sixth place, seven games behind Los Angeles.
Sacramento is now in fifth place, six games behind the Angels,
but unlike Portland they have three games remaining against the
Halos, so they have a puncher’s chance. Anything less than a sweep
would make the Solons a long shot for post-season play.
Update: 8/25/24
Oakland avoided a sweep at the hands of Salt Lake City by
salvaging the final game of the series on Monday and then took
three out of five at home against Sacramento to pull within four
games of the first place Bees. But the Oaks now have company:
Los Angeles took four out of five at Seattle to match Oakland’s
66-55 record. The Angels have won ten out of their last eleven.
Vernon is still hanging around within striking distance, just
two-and-a-half games behind the Angels and Oaks. Portland is five
games out of second and Sacramento is six-and-a-half games away
from a post-season berth.
The Player of the Week was Salt Lake City’s Crush Holloway, who
hit .370 with three home runs and 14 runs batted in.
Update: 8/18/24
The rumors of the Los Angeles Angels’ demise seem to be
premature. The defending champions, in fifth place and reeling
after a brutal 1-6 stretch, bounced back with two wins in their
final three games at Salt Lake City and then met the challenge of
a grueling five-games-in-three days set at home against Portland
by taking all five. The Halos are now in third place, 5 1/2 games
behind the Bees but just a half-game behind second-place Oakland.
All is not paradise in Los Angeles, however; the club has lost
their leading hitter, second baseman George Scales (.322), for
approximately five weeks.
The Oaks had been riding high after cutting the Bees’ lead to a
game but after a dreadful 1-6 showing this week (with four of the
losses coming at the hands of Salt Lake City) their focus has
shifted to holding onto second place. As for the Bees, their
five-game cushion is the coziest it’s been in almost a month.
Vernon fell to fourth place but picked up ground on the Oaks;
the Tigers are just a game behind them while Portland, who dropped
to fifth, trails Oakland by 4 1/2 games.
The Bees’ Tony Lazzeri is the Player of the Week. Lazzeri hit
.407 with two home runs and nine runs batted in.
The Angels’ Clyde Beck hit three home runs at Salt Lake City on
August 11. Beck, a utility infielder in his third year with Los
Angeles, had no career home runs prior to last Monday’s outburst.
He drove in six runs and scored five in the Halos’ 22-12 rout.
Update: 8/11/24
The pennant race is starting to look a little more exclusive
after a poor performance this week by Los Angeles (1-5) and
Sacramento (2-5). The fifth-place Angels are now six games behind
the second-place team, and the sixth-place Solons are 9 1/2 games
out of second, and are now closer to seventh-place San Francisco
then they are to a post-season berth.
Fourth-place Portland began the week by dominating first-place
Salt Lake City, finishing off a six-game series that saw them on
the winning end five times, but the Beavers were only able to
follow it up with a split of the next four games at home against
the Seals. The Beavers are 4 1/2 games out of second. Third place
Vernon managed just a break-even week, but the Tigers are just
three games out of second and four games out of first.
Second-place Oakland had the best week (5-1), with wins against
significant opponents (Los Angeles and Vernon). The Oaks are a
game behind first-place Salt Lake City, who stumbled against
Portland before righting the ship with two wins in three games
against the Angels.
George Quellich of Portland was the Player of the Week. The left
fielder hit .545 with two home runs and 10 runs batted in.
Quellich is hitting .328.
The Oaks’ Reuben Curry was one out away from no-hitting the
Angels on Tuesday. Parry O’Brien, pinch-hitting for starting
pitcher Jim Middleton with two outs in the bottom of the ninth,
singled to spoil Curry’s bid. He retired the next hitter for a 4-0
shutout and his 12th win.
Update: 8/4/24
Oakland kept pace with Salt Lake City as each team turned in a
3-3 performance; the second-place Oaks trail the leaders by four.
As the trade deadline came and went, the Bees stood pat while the
Oaks picked up a couple of pitchers; Bill Prough joined the club
from Sacramento and Dick Niehaus came over from San Francisco.
Each hurler is expected to pick up some starts down the stretch as
the Oaks search for the winning combination.
Third-place Vernon also went 5-5 to remain a game behind
Oakland, but Los Angeles picked up a game on all three clubs and
are now just two games behind the Oaks. The two clubs finish their
final regular season matchup of the year this week with four at
the Angels’ Washington Park.
Portland and Sacramento, still within striking distance, are
four and six games behind the Oaks, respectively.
The Player of the Week was the Beavers’ Oscar Charleston, who
hit .429 with a pair of home runs, seven runs batted in, and seven
runs scored. He’s hitting .342 for the season.
Update: 7/28/24
Salt Lake City remains in first place, but on the heels of a
break-even week has yielded a game to Oakland, who went 4-2. The
Oaks now are in sole possession of second place as Vernon also
played .500 ball. The Tigers trail the Oaks by a game. Los Angeles
is three games behind Oakland, with Portland trailing the Angels
by a game and Sacramento trailing the Beavers by a game. Six teams
are still very much alive, fighting for two post-season berths.
Seattle regained seventh place by winning their last two games
while the Seals dropped theirs.
Oakland’s Duster Mails took Player of the Week honors by
throwing consecutive shutouts against Los Angeles and Sacramento.
In 20 starts, Mails is 10-9 with an ERA of 4.36.
Update: 7/21/24
The Salt Lake City Bees have taken control of the pennant race.
They went 4-2 this week and have opened up a five game lead over
Oakland and Vernon, who are tied for second. The Oaks also went
4-2, which allowed them to keep pace with the Bees and catch the
Tigers, who went 2-4. The Angels went 4-2 as well, and snuck past
Portland and Sacramento into fourth place, two games behind the
Oaks and Tigers. The Solons are really struggling this month with
14 losses in 20 games. Still, they sit just three games out of
that second Governor’s Cup Series berth.
San Francisco has quietly had the best two-week stretch of any
team in the league, going 9-4 and climbing out last place.
Seattle, at 34-56, has fallen into the cellar.
The Player of the Week was the Bees’ Cristobal Torriente. The
center fielder hit .520 to raise his season’s average to .346.
Johnny Frederick of the Bees has hit 41 doubles, a remarkable
total. He has 17 more than anybody else in the league and 11 more
than any other player in the majors.
Update: 7/14/24
Salt Lake City gained another game over second-place Vernon, and
now lead the Tigers by three games. The Tigers maintained their
two-game edge over third-place Oakland; elsewhere, things just got
tighter. Portland and Sacramento are now tied for fourth, just a
game behind Oakland and three behind Vernon, and sixth-place Los
Angeles is only four games out of second.
Although they lost more games than they won this week, the
Solons boast the Player of the Week, third baseman Jud Wilson.
Wilson hit .458, hit two home runs, scored nine runs and drove in
ten. The sophomore sensation is hitting .345 with nine home runs
this season. He also leads the loop with 62 bases on balls.
Update: 7/7/24
As the season reached the halfway mark, two teams caught fire
and those teams now appropriately sit atop the league standings.
Salt Lake City won five of six and Vernon won six of seven. The
Bees are 46-31 and lead the Tigers by two games. The Tigers hold a
two-game lead over third-place Oakland.
Sacramento ran into the red-hot Bees and fell to fourth place,
but the Solons trail the Oaks by just a game, Vernon by three.
Portland is in fifth place, trailing the Solons by a game and
Vernon by four, and Los Angeles, after taking a licking against
Vernon, trails the Tigers by six.
Vernon’s Frank Shellenback was the Player of the Week, tossing
shutouts against the Seals and Angels, raising his record to 10-6
and lowering his ERA to a league-leading 2.24. Andy Cooper of the
Bees leads all pitchers in victories with 13, and Bullet Rogan of
Portland leads in strikeouts with 69.
San Francisco’s Lefty O’Doul is the loop’s leading hitter at
.390, while Salt Lake City’s Tony Lazzeri leads in home runs and
RBI with 19 and 73 respectively.
Update: 6/30/24
Johnny Frederick of Salt Lake City won his third consecutive
Player of the Week trophy, this time compiling a .432 average with
with 3 home runs and 15 RBI. The Bees rode his hot streak right
into first place, temporarily cooling off a hot Vernon team with
three wins in the last four games of their series, and then
splitting a pair of doubleheaders with Seattle. Salt Lake City
leads Sacramento by a game and-a-half, as the Solons dropped three
out of four to Portland and two out of three to Los Angeles.
The Tigers rebounded from their poor showing at Salt Lake City
by beating San Francisco three times, and now sit two-and-a-half
games behind the league leaders and just a game behind Sacramento.
Oakland is just three games out of first; Portland trails the Oaks
by just a game, and Los Angeles is a game-and-a-half behind the
Beavers, five-and-a-half games out of first place.
Update: 6/23/24
In what might be interpreted as a changing of the guard, the
Portland Beavers had a chance to gain ground on both of the
league’s front runners this week, but the upstarts persevered.
Salt Lake City beat the Beavers three times in a quick
five-games-in-four-days set, and Sacramento swept a Sunday
doubleheader to begin a six-game series. The Solons are 37-25 and
remain in first, a game better than the Bees, while Portland has
dropped to sixth place, six games behind the league leaders.
The Vernon Tigers are generating some excitement as well,
trailing Sacramento by only three games. Vernon swept a five-game
series at Seattle, but then dropped a twin bill at Salt Lake City.
Oakland is four games off the pace and Los Angeles trails by five.
The Bees’ Johnny Frederick was the Player of the Week again,
hitting .533 with 3 home runs and nine runs driven in. On the
season, Frederick is hitting .385 with nine homers and 51 RBI.
Update: 6/16/24
Don’t tell the fans in San Francisco or, to a lesser extent,
Seattle, but the 1924 PCL pennant race is shaping up to be one for
the ages. Four games separate first and sixth place, and the top
six teams are all above .500.
Sacramento is still holding onto the top spot but it was a rough
week for the Solons, who dropped four out of five to Oakland. Salt
Lake City is a game-and-a-half-back after taking three out of five
against San Francisco. Just two games back are the Oaks, riding a
five-game winning streak. Portland dropped into a fourth-place tie
with Vernon after the Tigers beat them four times in their
five-game set. The two clubs are three-and-a-half games out of
first. Los Angeles went 4-2 and are two games above .500 for the
first time since May 6. The Angels trail Sacramento by four games.
The Rainiers, 8 1/2 games back, need a hot streak to get into
contention, and the Seals would need a miracle, now trailing the
Solons by 17 games.
The Player of the Week was Salt Lake City’s Johnny Frederick,
who pummeled San Francisco pitching to the tune of .625, while
driving in an amazing twelve runs and scoring seven. Frederick is
hitting .366 with six home runs and 42 RBI.
Update: 6/9/24
Sacramento is on a five-game winning streak, all five victories
coming at the expense of the hapless San Francisco Seals. The
Solons, at 31-19, now hold a three-game lead over Salt Lake City
and Portland.
The Bees and Beavers faced off in Salt Lake City, and the home
team looked strong in the first two games, winning by a total of
14 runs, but Portland came back to take four close ones in a row
to catch the Bees for a second-place tie. Harry Gardner pitched in
relief in all four of the Beavers’ victories, netting the decision
in three of them. Tis rather unusual feat earned him the Player of
the Week award.
Oakland, at 26-24, trails the second-place teams by two games,
while Los Angeles and Vernon have .500 records and trail the Oaks
by a game.
Update: 6/2/24
Here comes Portland. The Beavers took two from San Francisco and
four out of five at Oakland, and are now four games over .500 and
in third place, two-and-a-half games from the top spot. That spot
belongs to Sacramento, although the Solons had a lackluster 3-3
week. Second-place Salt Lake City lost their claim on the top spot
by going 2-3.
The Seattle Rainers are off to a poor start but third baseman
John Beckwith is blazing hot, having just nailed down Player of
the Week and Batter of the Month honors. Beckwith hit .462 in May,
.448 this week, and is at .383 for the season.
Buzz Arlett of the Oaks hit three home runs this week to take
over the league lead with 12. The Seals’ Lefty O’Doul is right
behind him with 11, and Tony Lazerri of the Bees is third in the
loop with 9.
Update: 5/26/24
Sacramento’s hot streak continued unabated as the Solons
completed a sweep at Portland and then took the first four games
of a six-game set at Seattle. Sacramento has won eleven straight,
all on the road, and at 23-14, the Solons are in first place,
percentage points ahead of 24-15 Salt Lake City.
It’s not exactly business as usual in the PCL so far this
season, with perennial also-rans Sacramento and Vernon in the
first division and the league’s last three champions—Los Angeles,
Portland, and San Francisco—all under .500.
Most puzzling is the continued struggles of the Seals despite
the stellar play of left fielder Lefty O’Doul. O’Doul has won
Player of the Week honors for the second time this season, hitting
.550 with three home runs and five runs batted in; the Seals,
meanwhile, went 2-4. O’Doul leads the league in batting at .415
and in home runs with 11, but the Seals are 12-25 and in last
place.
Update: 5/19/24
Salt Lake City remains in first place after after a 4-2 week.
The Bees struggled against Oakland, dropping two of the last three
games against them, but rebounded nicely, taking three straight at
Vernon. The Bees are 20-11 and hold a three-game lead.
The Oaks surged into second place by winning five straight—two
against the Bees and three against Seattle. Aiding their cause
significantly was left fielder Mule Suttles, who hit .522 and
bashed two home runs while driving in eight to capture Player of
the Week honors. Suttles is one of two players (Salt Lake City’s
Biz Mackey is the other) still maintaining an above-.400 batting
average.
The biggest surprise this week was the play of the Sacramento
Solons, who had the best performance of any team, winning six
games and losing just one. By victimizing the Vernon Tigers and
Portland Beavers the Solons leapfrogged over both teams in the
standings, and are tied with Oakland for second place with a 17-14
record.
Update: 5/12/24
Salt Lake City took back first place and leads Vernon by a game.
The 16-9 Bees went 4-2 this week, finishing a sweep of San
Francisco before dropping a pair to Oakland. The Tigers, at
15-10, stumbled to a 2-3 week, but they still lead all other
challengers by at least two games, with Portland and Seattle a
game above .500 and Oakland and Sacramento a game under. Los
Angeles and San Francisco are currently bringing up the rear.
The Bees’ Biz Mackey is the Player of the Week. He hit .450 with
two home runs, six runs scored, and seven runs batted in.
Amazingly, his batting average for the season went down.
He’s currently sporting a gaudy .459 mark.
Update: 5/5/24
The Vernon Tigers dropped a close game at Sacramento last Monday
and haven’t lost since. They topped the Solons in three successive
matchups and then took the first three contests in a six-game
series at home against Portland. The Tigers, at 13-7, are alone in
first place, a half-game in front of Salt Lake City.
At the other end of the standings are the San Francisco Seals,
six-and-a-half games out of first and seven games under .500. But
there’s at least one storyline that’s playing out favorably in the
City by the Bay: Lefty O’Doul’s transition from pitcher to
outfielder. O’Doul hit .435 with three home runs and eight RBI
this week to earn Player of the Week honors. For the season
Lefty’s hitting a lofty .397 and has yet to make an error in left
field.
The Los Angeles Angles and Seattle Rainiers are both 10-9 and
tied for third place, two-and-a-half games behind Vernon. Oakland
trails them both by a game, Portland by a half-game, and
Sacramento by two games.
Update: 4/28/24
Portland rode a 5-2 week into a first place tie with Salt Lake
City, but lost right fielder Bob Meusel in the process. The
slugger suffered a shoulder injury and is expected to miss about
four months. “Long Bob” was off to a good start, with a .385
average in seven games.
The Beavers also boasted the Player of the Week, center fielder
Oscar Charleston. “The Hoosier Thunderbolt” hit .483 with two home
runs, nine runs scored and seven runs driven in as the Beavers
took four out of five against San Francisco and split a
doubleheader at Los Angeles.
Oakland, Seattle, and Vernon all have 7-6 records and trail
Portland and Salt Lake City by a game.
1924 Opening Week
Could this be the Year of the Bees? With a record of 5-1, Salt
Lake City is alone in first place at the conclusion of the initial
series of the 1924 campaign. As usual, the Bees’ most effective
weapon was the long ball, with Tony Lazzeri, George Grantham, and
Johnny Frederick each contributing two home runs in the six game
set, and Biz Mackey adding a round-tripper of his own.
The Bees’ hot start came at the expense of Sacramento, a
perennial slow starter. But in spite of losing five out of six,
the Solons showcased the new season’s first Player of the Week in
third baseman Jud Wilson. Wilson hit .500 with 4 home runs, 8 runs
scored, and 7 RBI.
In other action, the defending champion Los Angeles Angels
dropped four out of six to the arch-rival Vernon Tigers, the
Oakland Oaks bested the San Francisco Seals four times out of six,
and the Portland Beavers and Seattle Rainiers battled to a draw.
1923 1924 1925
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