Hardball Retrospective – The Journey From Expansion to Competitive Team

In the comments section from one of my recent articles, “nocaBall” posed the following query: “I would like to ask your opinion of how many years it takes an expansion team to develop a complete team? I do not mean using players who were part-timers, or who pitched less than a full season, but a team comprised of mostly full-time players, or at least a platooned player, such as Ken Boswell was with the Mets in ’69. Which expansion team did it fastest, and what would you say the average number of seasons it took for an expansion team to be on par with the other teams?” I compiled my findings and shared the results in the GoogleDocs link below. # Seasons For MLB Expansion Teams To Become Competitive To summarize, the majority of MLB expansion franchises are able to field a competitive team within 9 to 12 years of their inaugural season. This conclusion is based on the research for my book, “Hardball Retrospective”. The Mets were the fastest expansion team to field a competitive ballclub, completing the task in 1969 (8 seasons from the inception of the franchise). The Angels were the largest outlier. While the Halos exceeded the PA and BFP requirements (see Methodology below) within 8 seasons, the franchise failed to transcend the league average WAR and Win Share marks until 1993 (32 seasons).

Methodology

In “ Hardball Retrospective ”, I reconstructed every team roster from 1901-2013 using players that signed their first Major League contract with each organization. Requirements are as follows:

• The “Original” player-roster team totals exceed 4000 PA and 4000 BFP.
• The total WAR and Win Shares for the “Originals” was greater than the league average for that particular season.

# Seasons For MLB Expansion Teams To Become Competitive

Legend: IS = Inaugural Season CT = First Year Fielding a “Complete” Team * CTdiff = difference (CT-IS) FY1 = First Year with OWAR and/or OWS above LeagueAverage FY1diff = difference (FY1-IS) FY2 = First Year with OWAR AND OWS above LeagueAverage FY2diff = difference (FY2-IS)

IS	TEAM	CT	CTdiff	FY1	FY1diff	FY2	FY2diff
1961	Angels	1969	8	1983	22	1993	32
1961	Senators II / Rangers	1975	14	1978	17	1978	17
1962	Colt .45’s / Astros	1969	7	1969	7	1972	10
1962	Mets	1969	7	1969	7	1969	7
1969	Royals	1977	8	1977	8	1977	8
1969	Pilots / Brewers	1978	9	1978	9	1979	10
1969	Expos / Nationals	1978	9	1978	9	1979	10
1969	Padres	1977	8	1978	9	1978	9
1977	Mariners	1986	9	1988	11	1989	12
1977	Blue Jays	1989	12	1990	13	1994	17
1993	Rockies	2003	10	2007	14	2007	14
1993	Marlins	2003	10	2003	10	2003	10
1998	Diamondbacks	2004	6	2006	8	2008	10
1998	(Devil) Rays	2007	9	2008	10	2008	10
	Mean	9	Mean	11	Mean	12.6
		Median	9	Median	9.5	Median	10
		Mode	9	Mode	9	Mode	10

(* – at least 4000 PA for batters and 4000 BFP for pitchers)

Terminology

OWAR – Wins Above Replacement for players on “original” teams OWS – Win Shares for players on “original” teams

Achieving Success

1969 “Original” New York Mets

OWAR: 44.9     OWS: 286     OPW%: .537     (87-75)

The 1969 Mets satisfied all of the requirements to progress from an expansion franchise to legitimate contender in an eight-year span (1962-69). The “Original” Mets claimed the NL Eastern Division title by three games over the Cubs. Tom Seaver (25-7, 2.21) achieved Cy Young honors and placed runner-up in the MVP balloting. “The Franchise” completed 18 of 35 starts, struck out 208 batsmen and led the circuit in victories. Jerry Koosman (17-9, 2.28) earned his second All-Star invitation and fashioned a career-best WHIP (1.058). Gary Gentry tallied 13 victories with a 3.43 ERA and a 1.168 WHIP in his inaugural campaign. Dick Selma aka “Mortimer Snerd” contributed 12 wins with an ERA of 3.68. Tug McGraw solidified the bullpen with 9 victories and 12 saves to complement his 2.24 ERA. Nolan Ryan whiffed 92 hitters in 89.1 innings spanning 10 starts and 15 relief outings. Cleon Jones supplied a .340 BA and merited his lone All-Star appearance. Eight-time Gold Glove winner Paul “Motormouth” Blair swatted 26 big-flies, nabbed 20 bags and scored 102 runs.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Cleon Jones	LF	6.31	29.97	Tom Seaver	SP	6.16	31.75
Paul Blair	CF	6.11	27.04	Jerry Koosman	SP	5.24	26
Ron Swoboda	RF	0.18	9.59	Gary Gentry	SP	1.37	15.24
				Dick Selma	SP	2.05	12.82
Mike Fiore	1B	2.52	15.17	Jim McAndrew	SP	0.58	7.89
Ken Boswell	2B	2.36	12.56	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Bud Harrelson	SS	1.34	14.33	Tug McGraw	RP	1.8	13.64
Kevin Collins	3B/2B	-0.18	2.04	Billy Wynne	SP	0.95	7.31
Duffy Dyer	C	0.45	2.69	Nolan Ryan	SP	0.27	6.2
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Jim Hardin	SP	0.56	6.19
Ed Kranepool	1B	0.77	7.74	Jerry Johnson	SP	-0.01	4.83
Rod Gaspar	RF	0.03	5.32	Steve Renko	SP	-0.27	4.41
Juan Rios	2B	-1.39	0.97	Don Shaw	RP	-1.11	0.59
Bob Heise	SS	0.11	0.52	Bob Johnson	RP	0.18	0.5
Jerry Morales	LF	-0.2	0.39	Jesse Hudson	RP	0	0.05
John Stephenson	C	-0.15	0.01	Bill Edgerton	RP	-0.47	0
				Danny Frisella	RP	-0.19	0
				Les Rohr	RP	-0.3	0

1977 “Original” Kansas City Royals

OWAR: 40.3     OWS: 246     OPW%: .598     (97-65)

1977 Royals secured the pennant and outlasted the Twins by a two-game margin. Kansas City paced the American League in OWAR and OWS. George Brett (.312/22/88) laced 32 doubles and registered 105 tallies. Al Cowens (.312/23/112) placed runner-up in the American League MVP balloting while recording personal-bests in runs (98), hits (189), triples (14), home runs and RBI. Ruppert Jones belted 24 big-flies and Frank “Smooth” White earned his first of eight Gold Glove Awards. Dennis Leonard (20-12, 3.04) finished fourth in the AL Cy Young vote and struck out a career-high 244 batsmen. Paul Splittorff fashioned a 16-6 record with a 3.69 ERA. Doug Bird ascended to the closer’s role and mustered 11 victories and 14 saves while Mark “Country” Littell added 8 wins and 12 saves.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Tom Poquette	LF	1.33	10.45	Dennis Leonard	SP	6	23.47
Ruppert Jones	CF	3.59	22.83	Paul Splittorff	SP	3.35	15.25
Al Cowens	RF	4.09	26.71	Greg Minton	SP	0.09	0.69
Steve Staggs	DH/2B	-0.63	4.81
	1B
Frank White	2B	1.58	12.49	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Rodney Scott	SS/2B	0.25	8.79	Doug Bird	RP	1.3	11.18
George Brett	3B	5.98	29.1	Mark Littell	RP	0.87	10.62
John Wathan	C	0.88	4.94	Bob McClure	RP	1.1	8.5
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Bobby Castillo	SW	0.07	0.72
Joe Zdeb	LF	-0.06	4.8	George Throop	RP	0.08	0.7
Jim Wohlford	LF	-0.42	3.24	Randy McGilberry	RP	-0.03	0.08
Clint Hurdle	RF	0.19	1.36	Gary Lance	RP	0.01	0
Sheldon Mallory	RF	-0.39	1.34	Tom Bruno	RP	-0.73	0
Willie Wilson	CF	0.14	0.92
U. L. Washington	SS	0.13	0.75
Ron Washington	SS	0.04	0.49
Jamie Quirk	DH	-1.28	0.36
Mark Williams	RF	-0.01	0.02

1978 “Original” San Diego Padres

OWAR: 46.6     OWS: 307     OPW%: .509     (82-80)

San Diego finished eight games behind Los Angeles for the 1978 National League Western Division title. Dave Winfield (.308/24/97) drilled 30 two-base hits and stole 21 bags. Outfield mate Gene Richards matched Winfield in batting average and pilfered 37 bases. Shortstop prodigy Ozzie Smith collected the 1978 NL Rookie of the Year Award primarily due to his proficiency on defense. “The Wizard of Oz” succeeded on 40 of 52 stolen base attempts. Mike Ivie contributed a .308 BA in a part-time role. Mike Caldwell (22-9, 2.36) placed runner-up in the Cy Young balloting, posted a career-best WHIP of 1.064 and led the League with 23 complete games. Randy Jones notched 13 victories with an ERA of 2.88.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Johnny Grubb	LF	2.89	19.05	Mike Caldwell	SP	7.97	27.99
Gene Richards	CF/LF	2.64	23.49	Randy Jones	SP	2.02	13.87
Dave Winfield	RF/CF	4.22	28.04	Bob Owchinko	SP	1.25	8.53
				Bob Shirley	SP	0.31	7.09
Mike Ivie	1B	1.31	13.41	Dave Freisleben	SP	-2.27	0
Tucker Ashford	2B/3B	0.04	3.79	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Ozzie Smith	SS	2.21	18.98	Mark Lee	RP	0.32	5.38
Bill Almon	3B	-0.62	7.88	Dan Spillner	RP	-0.3	4.32
Rick Sweet	C	-0.2	5.32	Dave Wehrmeister	RP	-0.18	0.02
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Juan Eichelberger	RP	-0.27	0
Jerry Turner	LF	1.09	8.18	Steve Mura	SP	-0.63	0
Broderick Perkins	1B	-0.44	2.46
Dave Roberts	C	-0.04	2.41
Don Reynolds	LF	0.08	2.23
Barry Evans	3B	-0.17	1.65
Jim Wilhelm	CF	0.18	1.07
Chuck Baker	2B	-0.21	1.04
Mike Champion	2B	-0.19	0.97
Bob Davis	C	-0.31	0.3
Tony Castillo	C	-0.08	0.14
Jim Beswick	RF	-0.27	0.06

1972 “Original” Houston Astros

OWAR: 54.7     OWS: 298     OPW%: .536     (87-75)

The ’72 Astros placed third in the National League West, only three games behind the Big Red Machine. Houston topped the Senior Circuit in OWAR. Joe L. Morgan topped the 50-stolen base mark for the first of five consecutive seasons. “Little Joe” paced the League with 122 runs, 115 walks and a .417 OBP. Cesar Cedeno (.320/22/82) led the NL with 39 doubles and commenced a streak of five straight Gold Glove campaigns. John Mayberry responded favorably to a full-time role, batting .298 with 25 jacks and 100 ribbies. Bob “Bull” Watson supplied a .312 BA and Doug “Red Rooster” Rader clubbed 22 round-trippers. Don Wilson delivered a 15-10 record with a 2.68 ERA and a WHIP of 1.147. Mound mate Larry Dierker crafted a 15-8 mark with a 3.40 ERA.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Bob Watson	LF	2.83	25.98	Don Wilson	SP	3.85	16.36
Cesar Cedeno	CF	6.56	33.39	Larry Dierker	SP	2.19	12.44
Rusty Staub	RF	1.31	12.29	Scipio Spinks	SP	2.17	9.64
				Ken Forsch	SP	0.22	5.59
John Mayberry	1B	3.81	27.21	Wayne Twitchell	SP	-0.56	5.05
Joe L. Morgan	2B	8.07	37.91	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Derrel Thomas	SS/2B	0.19	9.3	Dave Giusti	RP	2.26	12.57
Doug Rader	3B	2.59	19.46	Roric Harrison	RP	1.38	7.65
Jerry Grote	C	0.34	8.62	Tom Griffin	SW	1.03	6.27
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Chris Zachary	RP	1.13	4.65
Brock Davis	CF	0.35	4.82	Tom Burgmeier	RP	-0.82	1.57
Walt Williams	RF	0	4.81	Ed Acosta	RP	-0.92	1.34
Enzo Hernandez	SS	-0.98	4.32	Mike Cosgrove	SW	-0.14	0.18
Larry Howard	C	0	1.95	Bill Greif	SP	-2.88	0
John Bateman	C	-0.71	1.85	J. R. Richard	SP	-0.57	0
Sonny Jackson	SS	-0.45	1.69
Fred Stanley	SS	-0.02	1.67
Rich Chiles	LF	0.03	0.35
Cliff Johnson	C	0.05	0.24
Ivan Murrell	RF	-0.07	0.01

2008 “Original” Arizona Diamondbacks

OWAR: 38.3     OWS: 240     OPW%: .521     (84-78)

Arizona fell two games short of the Los Angeles Dodgers for the National League Western Division crown in 2008. Second-sacker Dan Uggla slammed 32 four-baggers and knocked in 92 baserunners. Carlos Quentin enjoyed his finest campaign, belting 36 round-trippers, driving in 100 runs and placing fifth in the MVP vote. Stephen Drew socked 44 two-base hits and 21 dingers. Jack Cust went yard 33 times and coaxed a League-best 111 bases on balls. Conor Jackson batted .300 with 31 doubles while Lyle Overbay contributed 32 two-baggers. Mark Reynolds launched 28 circuit clouts. Brandon Webb (22-7, 3.18) led the National League in victories and finished runner-up in the Cy Young balloting. Jose Valverde amassed 44 saves to lead the League. Future stars on the D-Backs roster included Justin Upton, Carlos Gonzalez and Max Scherzer.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Carlos Quentin	LF	3.93	22.75	Brandon Webb	SP	5.46	20.8
Scott Hairston	CF	0.82	9.61	Greg Smith	SP	1.81	9.12
Justin Upton	RF	0.92	10.55	Vicente Padilla	SP	1.22	7.55
				Jorge De La Rosa	SP	0.85	6.02
Conor Jackson	1B/LF	1.54	17.29	Max Scherzer	SP	1.14	3.86
Dan Uggla	2B	4.02	23.97	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Stephen Drew	SS	3.18	21.41	Jose Valverde	RP	1.01	13.17
Mark Reynolds	3B	1.24	13.34	Javier Lopez	RP	1.32	5.99
Chris Snyder	C	2.45	14.19	Tony R. Pena	RP	0.22	5.88
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Brian Bruney	RP	1.22	5.87
Jack Cust	LF	2.97	18.92	Lance Cormier	RP	0.39	4.23
Lyle Overbay	1B	2.53	14.75	Duaner Sanchez	RP	0.19	4.12
Rod Barajas	C	1.57	10.18	Micah Owings	SP	0.15	2.67
Miguel Montero	C	0.95	6.31	Garrett Mock	SW	0.34	1.85
Carlos Gonzalez	CF	0.16	4.97	Vladimir Nunez	RP	0.27	1.72
Chad Tracy	1B	-0.64	4.91	Brandon Medders	RP	-0.01	1.03
Alberto Gonzalez	SS	-0.21	2.73	Phil Stockman	RP	0.23	0.98
Emilio Bonifacio	RF	-0.39	2.07	Doug Slaten	RP	-0.21	0.92
Alex Cintron	SS	-0.08	2.04	Dustin Nippert	SP	-0.55	0.91
Robby Hammock	C	-0.16	0.58	Oscar Villarreal	RP	-0.6	0.49
Chris W. Carter	LF	0.02	0.43	Brian Gordon	RP	0.08	0.32
Wilkin Castillo	LF	-0.11	0.39	Edgar Gonzalez	SP	-0.34	0.31
Danny Richar	2B	-0.29	0.34	Greg Aquino	RP	-0.75	0
Brian Barden	3B	-0.06	0.05	Jason Bulger	RP	-0.5	0
Jamie D’Antona	1B	-0.13	0.02	Matt Chico	SP	-0.44	0
				Enrique Gonzalez	RP	-0.24	0
				Ross Ohlendorf	RP	-1.45	0
				Brad Penny	SP	-1.13	0
				Bill C. White	RP	-0.6	0

1979 “Original” Milwaukee Brewers

OWAR: 43.6     OWS: 251     OPW%: .554     (90-72)

The 1979 Brewers seized the American League Eastern Division title by a four-game margin over the Red Sox. Milwaukee led the Junior Circuit in OWS and OWAR. Darrell Porter (.291/20/112) registered 101 tallies and walked 121 times to top the leader boards. Sixto Lezcano produced a .321 BA with 28 jacks and 101 ribbies while earning his lone Gold Glove Award. “The Ignitor” Paul Molitor sparked the Brew Crew’s attack with 33 steals and a .322 BA in his sophomore season. “Stormin’” Gorman Thomas dialed long distance 45 times to lead the League while driving in a career-high 123 baserunners. Robin Yount contributed 26 doubles and Charlie Moore batted .300 in a limited role. Jim Slaton (15-9, 3.53), Lary Sorensen (15-14, 3.98) and Bill Travers (14-8, 3.89) solidified the starting rotation.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Sam Mejias	LF	-0.06	0.15	Jim Slaton	SP	3.24	16.02
Gorman Thomas	CF	3.21	25.87	Lary Sorensen	SP	2.76	15
Sixto Lezcano	RF	4.93	27.22	Bill Travers	SP	2.27	13
Dick Davis	DH	-0.49	5.2	Kevin Kobel	SP	1.16	7.87
	1B			Moose Haas	SP	-0.21	6.9
Paul Molitor	2B	4.31	26.76	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Robin Yount	SS	0.93	14.37	Jerry Augustine	RP	0.91	8.22
Jim Gantner	3B	0.49	6.15	Bill Castro	RP	1.3	7.25
Darrell Porter	C	6.12	32.66	Eduardo Rodriguez	RP	-0.05	3.59
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	George Frazier	RP	-0.44	0.86
Charlie Moore	C	1.67	13.43	Tom Hausman	SP	1.69	5.95
Fernando Gonzalez	2B	-0.92	4.26	Butch Edge	SP	0.03	1.96
Rick Auerbach	3B	0.09	2.17
Lenn Sakata	2B	0.26	1.26
Gary Holle	1B	-0.01	0.07
Jesus Vega	DH	-0.13	0

1979 “Original” Montreal Expos

OWAR: 53.9     OWS: 327     OPW%: .572     (93-69)

Montreal topped the National League in OWAR and OWS in ’79. The Expos sailed to the pennant by ten games over the Phillies. Gary “Kid” Carter (.283/22/75) embarked on a stretch of 10 consecutive All-Star selections. Larry Parrish produced a .309 BA with 39 two-base hits and 30 big-flies. Andre “The Hawk” Dawson blasted 25 long balls and pilfered 35 bags. Warren Cromartie laced 46 doubles and Ellis Valentine mashed 21 taters. Gary Roenicke swatted 25 four-baggers in part-time play while fellow outfielder Tony Scott registered 37 stolen bases. Tim “Rock” Raines made his Major League debut at 19 years of age. Steve Rogers (13-12, 3.00) topped the League with 5 shutouts. David Palmer (10-2, 2.64), Scott Sanderson (9-8, 3.43) and Dan Schatzeder (10-5, 2.83) were deployed effectively in various roles.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Gary Roenicke	LF	3.33	18.9	Steve Rogers	SP	3.78	16.61
Andre Dawson	CF	2.74	24.01	Dan Schatzeder	SP	3.31	13.13
Ellis Valentine	RF	0.4	14.41	David Palmer	SP	2.25	11.23
				Scott Sanderson	SP	1.89	10.21
	1B			Balor Moore	SP	0.01	5.7
Tony Bernazard	2B	0.6	2.56	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
	SS			Byron McLaughlin	SW	1.29	11.04
Larry Parrish	3B	4.07	27.34	Shane Rawley	RP	0.78	7.84
Gary Carter	C	5.25	28.95	Dale Murray	RP	-1.09	3.15
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Bill Atkinson	RP	0.22	2.08
Warren Cromartie	LF	3.28	17.18	Bill Gullickson	RP	0.02	0.14
Tony Scott	CF	1.21	13.93	Gerry Hannahs	SP	0.03	0.74
Barry Foote	C	1.58	12.2	Craig Minetto	SP	-2	0.47
Jerry White	RF	0.79	6.09	Bob James	RP	-0.21	0
Bombo Rivera	LF	0.55	5.17
Terry Humphrey	C	-0.22	0.21
Tim Raines	–	0	0

2008 “Original” Tampa Bay Devil Rays

OWAR: 46.4     OWS: 254     OPW%: .528     (86-76)

Tampa Bay fell five games short of Boston for the division crown but managed to clinch the American League Wild Card berth in 2008. The Devil Rays topped the circuit in OWAR. Josh Hamilton (.304/32/130) topped the leader boards in RBI and total bases (331). Melvin Upton swiped 44 bases and slashed 37 doubles. Aubrey Huff (.304/32/108) notched career-highs in doubles (48) and RBI. Evan Longoria (.272/27/85) merited Rookie of the Year honors. Jorge Cantu (.277/29/95) ripped 41 two-base hits and registered personal-bests in homers and runs scored (92). James Shields (14-8, 3.56) anchored the Rays’ rotation and Dan Wheeler (3.12, 13 SV) fashioned a WHIP of 0.995.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Delmon Young	LF	-0.22	14.68	James Shields	SP	3.58	14.99
B. J. Upton	CF	2.89	21.72	Andy Sonnanstine	SP	1.17	9.5
Josh Hamilton	RF/CF	3.29	25.62	Seth McClung	SP	1.5	6.13
Aubrey Huff	DH	3.34	21.67	Brandon Backe	SP	-0.62	2.23
Jorge Cantu	1B/3B	1.26	19.75	Jeff Niemann	SP	-0.26	0.37
Akinori Iwamura	2B	1.96	20.36	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
	SS			Dan Wheeler	RP	0.75	11.01
Evan Longoria	3B	4.29	21.07	Jose Veras	RP	0.69	5.15
Shawn Riggans	C	-0.01	2.81	Chad Gaudin	RP	-0.13	4.95
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Doug Waechter	RP	0.69	4.32
Carl Crawford	LF	0.8	10.57	Jason Hammel	SW	-0.28	3.18
Elijah Dukes	RF	1.62	10.41	Brian Stokes	RP	0.56	2.75
Edgar Gonzalez	2B	0.65	7.29	David Price	SW	0.39	1.41
Joey Gathright	CF	-0.83	4.37	Jeff Ridgway	RP	0.09	0.71
Fernando Perez	CF	0.53	2.43	Cedrick Bowers	RP	-0.53	0.08
Jonny Gomes	DH	-0.3	2.41	Lee Gardner	RP	-0.42	0
Rocco Baldelli	DH	0.25	2.34	Juan Salas	RP	-0.2	0
Toby Hall	C	-0.12	1.72
Matt Diaz	LF	-0.39	0.6
Paul Hoover	C	-0.32	0.34
Elliot Johnson	SS	-0.22	0.33
Wes Bankston	1B	-0.34	0.12
John Jaso	C	-0.12	0.1
Reid Brignac	SS	-0.1	0.1
Jason Pridie	LF	-0.06	0

2003 “Original” Florida Marlins

OWAR: 43.8     OWS: 260     OPW%: .522     (85-77)

Florida finished in a dead heat with Montreal for second place in the National League Eastern Division in 2003, only two games behind Atlanta. Edgar Renteria (.330/13/100) succeeded on 34 of 41 stolen base attempts and established personal-bests in hits (194), doubles (47) and RBI. Luis Castillo batted .314 and collected the first of three straight Gold Glove Awards. Alex “Sea Bass” Gonzalez drilled 33 two-baggers and lofted 18 long balls. Randy Winn laced 37 doubles, scored 103 runs and supplied a .295 BA. Kevin Millar recorded career-highs with 25 taters and 96 ribbies. Livan Hernandez (15-10, 3.20) led the circuit with 8 complete games and mound mate Josh Beckett added 9 wins along with a 3.04 ERA. Miguel Cabrera plated 62 baserunners in 87 games as a rookie in ’03.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Randy Winn	LF	2.56	19.31	Livan Hernandez	SP	6.33	21.08
Mark Kotsay	CF	2.15	14.21	Josh Beckett	SP	3.04	10.93
	RF			Claudio Vargas	SP	1.41	6.65
				Brian Meadows	SP	-0.27	3.12
Kevin Millar	1B	1.83	14.94	Nate Robertson	SP	0.05	1.32
Luis Castillo	2B	3.12	23.37	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Edgar Renteria	SS	4.62	25.78	Felix Heredia	RP	1.48	8.18
Miguel Cabrera	3B/LF	0.08	8.66	Michael Tejera	SW	0.01	3.19
Charles Johnson	C	1.25	11.6	Will Cunnane	RP	0.46	3.16
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Vic Darensbourg	RP	-0.36	0.26
Alex Gonzalez	SS	1.79	20.48	Hector Almonte	RP	-0.75	0
Billy McMillon	LF	0.62	5.12	Gary Knotts	SP	-1.05	0.73
Dave Berg	2B	-0.41	2.37	Blaine Neal	RP	-0.95	0
Mike Redmond	C	0.14	1.88	Kevin Olsen	RP	-1.13	0
Luis Ugueto	2B	0.01	0.21	Jason Pearson	RP	-0.54	0
Julio Ramirez	CF	-0.05	0

1989 “Original” Seattle Mariners

OWAR: 35.8     OWS: 242     OPW%: .543     (88-74)

The ’89 Mariners battled the Royals to a photo finish as Kansas City emerged with the division crown by a lone victory. Alvin Davis (.305/21/95) set personal-bests in BA and bases on balls (101). Harold Reynolds delivered a .300 BA and earned his second Gold Glove Award. Ivan Calderon crushed 34 two-base hits and Ken Griffey Jr. (.264/16/61) placed third in the Rookie of the Year voting. Third-sacker Edgar Martinez and first-year shortstop Omar Vizquel broke into the Seattle lineup. Mark Langston whiffed 235 batsmen and fashioned a 16-14 record with a 2.74 ERA. Mike Moore (19-11, 2.61) finished third in the Cy Young Award balloting and merited his lone All-Star appearance. Bud H. Black contributed 12 victories with a 3.36 ERA. The M’s allocated the eighth inning relief responsibilities to Lee Guetterman (2.45, 13 SV) while closer duties were primarily handled by Mike Schooler (2.81, 33 SV).  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Phil Bradley	LF	2.56	22.67	Mark Langston	SP	5.35	19.74
Ken Griffey Jr.	CF	1.59	14.24	Mike Moore	SP	4.78	18.69
Ivan Calderon	RF	1.71	17.65	Buddy Black	SP	4.06	15.22
Dave Henderson	DH/CF	2.42	18.29	Erik Hanson	SP	2.64	9.01
Alvin Davis	1B	4.06	23.25	Clay Parker	SP	1.61	6.8
Harold Reynolds	2B	4.13	20.59	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Spike Owen	SS	0.46	13.58	Lee Guetterman	RP	1.91	13.16
Darnell Coles	3B/RF	-0.9	8.26	Mike Schooler	RP	1.52	11.52
Dave Valle	C	1.3	8.31	Ed Nunez	RP	-0.82	2.09
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Rick Luecken	RP	0.21	2.01
Greg Briley	LF	1.68	11.87	Darrel Akerfelds	RP	-0.09	0.42
John Moses	RF	0.26	5.9	Bill Swift	SP	0.52	5.92
Jim Presley	3B	-1.07	5.15	Clint Zavaras	SP	-0.12	0.64
Omar Vizquel	SS	-0.83	3.2	Scott Nielsen	RP	-0.06	0.1
Donell Nixon	CF	-0.07	2.84	Mike Campbell	SP	-0.81	0
Edgar Martinez	3B	-0.46	2.57	Brian Snyder	RP	-0.2	0
Orlando Mercado	C	-0.39	0.65	Matt Young	SW	-1.52	0
Mickey Brantley	LF	-1.13	0.55
Bill McGuire	C	-0.18	0.54
Mario Diaz	SS	-0.9	0.47
Dave Hengel	LF	-0.44	0.2

2007 “Original” Colorado Rockies

OWAR: 42.0     OWS: 264     OPW%: .546     (88-74)

The Rockies paced the circuit in OWAR during the 2007 campaign. Colorado seized the National League Western Division title by a single game over San Diego. The runner-up for the NL MVP Award, left fielder Matt Holliday dominated opposition hurlers, belting 36 round-trippers and scoring 120 runs while topping the leader boards in batting average (.340), hits (216), doubles (50), RBI (137) and total bases (386). Troy Tulowitzki posted a .291 BA with 24 dingers, 99 ribbies and 104 runs scored which merited a second-place finish in the NL Rookie of the Year balloting. Todd Helton batted .320 and surpassed the 40-double plateau for the fifth straight season. Chone Figgins supplied a .330 BA and nabbed 41 bags. Brad Hawpe (.291/29/116) established personal-bests in home runs and RBI. Garrett Atkins contributed a .301 BA with 35 two-baggers, 25 taters and 111 RBI. Juan Pierre stole 64 bases in 79 attempts and delivered a .293 BA. Jeff Francis recorded a career-high 17 victories to lead the Rockies’ rotation. Manny Corpas saved 19 contests and fashioned a 2.08 ERA in his sophomore season.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Matt Holliday	LF	5	27.86	Jeff Francis	SP	4.75	14.01
Juan Pierre	CF	-0.19	13.82	Aaron Cook	SP	3.04	9.29
Brad Hawpe	RF	2.02	18.95	Jake Westbrook	SP	2.27	8.36
				Jorge Sosa	SP	1.15	5.82
Todd Helton	1B	3.83	22.88	Jamey Wright	SP	1.39	5.04
Craig Counsell	2B/3B	0.46	5.26	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Troy Tulowitzki	SS	4.69	25.09	Manny Corpas	RP	2.65	14.83
Chone Figgins	3B	2.92	19.47	Shawn Chacon	RP	1.33	5.91
Josh Bard	C	1.75	11.48	Sean Green	RP	0.42	5.39
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Justin Miller	RP	0.63	4.75
Garrett Atkins	3B	2.15	17.56	Justin Hampson	RP	0.72	4.26
Juan Uribe	SS	0.22	14	Ubaldo Jimenez	SP	1.03	4.14
Ryan Spilborghs	CF	0.69	8.19	Luis Ayala	RP	0.44	3.43
Chris Iannetta	C	0.27	4.1	Franklin Morales	SP	1.31	3.35
Cory Sullivan	CF	-0.09	2.98	Scott Dohmann	RP	0.73	2.66
Jeff Salazar	RF	0.06	2.93	Ryan Speier	RP	0.18	1.63
Ryan Shealy	1B	-0.95	1.13	Chin-hui Tsao	RP	0.1	1.24
Jeff Baker	1B	-0.74	0.83	John Thomson	SP	0.19	0.76
Seth Smith	RF	0.21	0.74	Alberto Arias	RP	-0.01	0.48
Neifi Perez	SS	-0.17	0.63	Darren Clarke	RP	0.09	0.19
Ian Stewart	3B	-0.1	0.45	Josh Newman	RP	0.01	0.1
Clint Barmes	SS	-0.24	0.3	Luke Hudson	SP	-0.3	0
Sean Barker	LF	-0.02	0.02	Jason Jennings	SP	-1.08	0
Joe Koshansky	1B	-0.12	0.02	Juan Morillo	RP	-0.18	0

1994 “Original” Toronto Blue Jays

OWAR: 29.7     OWS: 187     OPW%: .506     (82-80)

The ’94 Blue Jays placed third in the American League East behind the Red Sox and the Orioles. Jimmy Led paced the Toronto staff with a 17-4 mark along with an ERA of 3.27. Pat Hentgen fashioned a 13-8 record with a 3.40 ERA. Sidearm specialist Mark Eichhorn (6-5, 2.05) handled the setup chores. Jeff Kent (.292/14/68) proved power and average out the keystone position. John Olerud (.297/12/67) delivered a solid season after leading the American League with a .363 BA in the previous campaign. Geronimo Berroa (.306/13/65) seized a full-time role after bouncing between the minors and majors for several years. Derek Bell swiped 24 bases and produced a .311 BA.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Geronimo Berroa	LF/DH	2.34	13.39	Pat Hentgen	SP	4.71	15.22
Derek Bell	CF	1.19	10.87	Jimmy Key	SP	3.91	15
Mark Whiten	RF	1.59	12.56	Todd Stottlemyre	SP	2.91	9.7
Junior Felix	DH/RF	1.57	10.74	David Wells	SP	2.11	6.89
John Olerud	1B	2.1	13.43	David Weathers	SP	-0.73	3.64
Jeff Kent	2B	1.45	15.63	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Luis Sojo	SS/2B	0.59	4.52	Mark Eichhorn	RP	2.5	9.8
Tony Fernandez	3B	1.65	12.5	Tony Castillo	RP	2.09	8.2
Pat Borders	C	-0.38	3.86	Jose Mesa	RP	1.27	6.89
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Darren Hall	RP	0.98	5.79
Ryan Thompson	CF	2.12	9.83	Woody Williams	RP	1.09	4.78
Glenallen Hill	CF	1.44	8.98	Luis Aquino	RP	0.57	3.76
Pedro Munoz	LF	0.63	8.23	Graeme Lloyd	RP	0	2.95
Ed Sprague	3B	-0.66	6.01	Doug Linton	RP	0.04	2.82
Nelson Liriano	2B	-0.98	5.51	Steve Karsay	SP	1.01	2.48
Carlos Delgado	LF	-0.12	2.74	Willie Blair	RP	-0.21	2.1
Randy Knorr	C	0.34	2.28	Mike Timlin	RP	-0.1	1.85
Greg Myers	C	0.11	1.93	Xavier Hernandez	RP	-0.5	1.52
Domingo Cedeno	2B	-0.42	0.97	Vince Horsman	RP	-0.12	0.95
Tim Hyers	1B	-0.52	0.95	Dane Johnson	RP	-0.23	0.23
Alex S. Gonzalez	SS	-0.32	0.82	Denis Boucher	SW	-0.43	0.11
Tom Quinlan	3B	-0.11	0.37	Brad Cornett	SP	-0.37	0.03
Rob Butler	LF	-0.79	0.29	Scott Brow	RP	-0.87	0
Shawn Green	LF	-0.46	0.15	Aaron Small	RP	-0.07	0
Robert Perez	LF	-0.12	0.05	Paul Spoljaric	SP	-0.62	0
Rob Ducey	RF	-0.33	0.03
Greg O’Halloran	C	-0.11	0.02

1978 “Original” Texas Rangers

OWAR: 34.5     OWS: 209     OPW%: .458     (74-88)

The ’78 Rangers tied the White Sox for last place in the American League West. However the club met all of the criteria for becoming a viable team, albeit 17 seasons after joining the Junior Circuit as the second incarnation of the Senators. Jeff Burroughs (.301/23/77) paced the League in bases on balls (117) and OBP (.432). Jim Sundberg collected the second of six consecutive Gold Glove Awards for his defensive prowess. Bill Madlock produced a .309 BA and Roy Smalley III slammed 19 long balls. Bump Wills pilfered a career-best 52 bags in 66 tries. Rick Waits amassed 13 victories and fashioned an ERA of 3.20. Steve Comer’s inaugural season featured a 2.30 ERA with 11 wins covering 11 starts and 19 relief appearances.  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Jeff Burroughs	LF	3.25	26.62	Rick Waits	SP	2.64	14.45
Bobby Thompson	CF	0.38	3.19	Steve Comer	SP	2.59	12.76
John Wockenfuss	RF	-0.02	5.11	Jim Clancy	SP	1.49	10.35
Bump Wills	DH/2B	3.1	18.25	David Clyde	SP	0.11	5.56
Mike Hargrove	1B	2.22	15.91	Pete Broberg	SP	-0.99	4.21
Bill Madlock	2B	2.91	23.4	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Roy Smalley III	SS	4.27	21.49	Joe H. Coleman	RP	0.33	5.61
Roy Howell	3B	1.19	15.34	Steve Foucault	RP	0.04	2.47
Jim Sundberg	C	4.04	23.65	John Sutton	RP	0.28	2.31
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Len Barker	RP	-0.74	0.59
Mike Cubbage	3B	1.33	11.73	Jim Umbarger	SP	-0.9	2.05
Lenny Randle	3B	0.87	9.73	Danny Darwin	SP	0.04	0.61
Greg Pryor	2B	0.61	5.34	Paul Mirabella	SP	-0.37	0.52
Larry Biittner	1B	-0.89	4.94	Tommy Boggs	SP	-0.91	0
Ron Pruitt	C	0.24	3.75
Del Unser	1B	-0.56	2.21
Doug Ault	1B	0.26	1.93
Brian Doyle	2B	-0.49	1.1
Billy Sample	DH	0.2	1.02
Jim Mason	SS	-0.67	0.83
Tom Grieve	RF	-0.44	0.61
Gary Gray	DH	-0.13	0.5
Eddie Miller	CF	-0.11	0.08
LaRue Washington	2B	-0.04	0.07
Greg Mahlberg	C	-0.01	0.05
Pete Mackanin	1B	-0.05	0.03
Pat Putnam	DH	-0.47	0.02

1993 “Original” California Angels

OWAR: 39.3     OWS: 277     OPW%: .533     (86-76)

The Angels finally reached the promised land in 1993. It took the Halos 32 seasons to meet all of the requirements outlined above to reach a “competitive” state. California exceeded the “complete team” conditions in 1969 (only eight seasons after the club’s inception), yet the franchise failed to surpass the league average in OWS for another 14 years. The ’83 squad featured All-Star shortstop Dickie Thon (.286/20/79) and Richard Dotson (22-7, 3.23). The club struggled to transcend the American League OWAR mean for another decade. California finished the 1993 season only two games behind Texas. Tim “Kingfish” Salmon (.283/31/95) earned American League Rookie of the Year honors. Perennial Gold Glove-winning center fielder Devon White notched career-bests in runs scored (116) and two-base hits (42) while pilfering 34 bases in 38 attempts. Dante Bichette bashed 43 two-baggers and 21 long balls while posting a .310 BA. Wally Joyner equaled his personal-best with 36 doubles while backstop Brian Harper boasted career-highs in hits, home runs and RBI. Chad Curtis and Mark T. McLemore contributed 48 and 21 stolen bases, respectively. Future All-Star and eight-time Gold Glove Award winner Jim Edmonds made his Major League debut for the Angels on September 9, 1993. Chuck Finley (16-14, 3.15) topped the Junior Circuit with 13 complete games. The Halos’ robust bullpen starred Bryan Harvey (1.70, 45 SV) and Roberto M. Hernandez (2.29, 38 SV).  

STARTING LINEUP	POS	OWAR	OWS	ROTATION	POS	OWAR	OWS
Tim Salmon	RF	4.36	24.61	Chuck Finley	SP	4.9	18.94
Devon White	CF	4.47	21.28	Jim Abbott	SP	1.34	9.75
	LF			Frank Tanana	SP	1.03	7.07
Dante Bichette	DH/RF	1.71	19.35	Phil Leftwich	SP	1.5	5.13
Wally Joyner	1B	3.14	18.09	Kirk McCaskill	SP	-0.43	2.35
Mark McLemore	2B/RF	2.19	13.37	BULLPEN	POS	OWAR	OWS
Gary Disarcina	SS	-1.15	5.73	Bryan Harvey	RP	3.46	17.47
Damion Easley	3B/2B	1.15	8.38	Roberto Hernandez	RP	2.49	15.5
Brian Harper	C	1.27	15.66	Alan Mills	RP	1.45	9.45
BENCH	POS	OWAR	OWS	Joe Grahe	RP	0.86	7.28
Chad Curtis	CF	2.16	16.51	Mike Fetters	RP	0.25	4.25
Paul Sorrento	1B	1.03	13.23	Hilly Hathaway	SP	0.04	2.15
Erik Pappas	C	1	8.23	Scott Lewis	SP	0.3	1.61
Dickie Thon	SS	0.02	4.88	Mike Witt	SP	-0.13	1.23
Eduardo Perez	3B	-0.21	3.25	Brian Anderson	SP	0.17	0.63
Dick Schofield Jr.	SS	-0.15	2.43	Mike Cook	RP	0.08	0.47
Ruben Amaro Jr.	CF	0.44	2.29	Darryl Scott	RP	-0.22	0.42
Chris Turner	C	0.6	2.25	Marcus Moore	RP	-0.56	0.36
Tom Brunansky	RF	-0.6	1.56	Mark Holzemer	SP	-0.83	0
Doug Jennings	1B	0.17	1.46	Dennis Rasmussen	SP	-0.62	0
John Orton	C	0.05	1.03	Paul Swingle	RP	-0.37	0
J. R. Phillips	1B	0.17	0.87
Jim Edmonds	RF	-0.13	0.78
Larry Gonzales	C	0.06	0.24
Jeff Manto	3B	-0.23	0.09
Gus Polidor	3B	-0.04	0.02

References and Resources

Baseball-Reference James, Bill, with Jim Henzler. Win Shares. Morton Grove, Ill.: STATS, 2002. Print. Retrosheet The information used here was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Interested parties may contact Retrosheet at “www.retrosheet.org”. SABR Baseball Biography Project Sean Lahman Baseball Archive

About the Author

I am a New Jersey native with a passion for baseball, statistics, computers and video games who enjoys spending quality time with his family. “Hardball Retrospective”is available in paperback and digital ( Kindle ) format at Amazon.com. Supplemental Statistics, Charts and Graphs along with a discussion forum are offered at TuataraSoftware.com .Don Daglow (Intellivision World Series Major League Baseball, Earl Weaver Baseball, Tony LaRussa Baseball) contributed the foreword for Hardball Retrospective. The foreword and preview of my book are accessible  here . “Hardball Retrospective – Addendum 2014 to 2016”supplements my research for Hardball Retrospective, providing retroactive standings based on Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and Win Shares (WS) for each “original” team over the past three seasons (2014-2016). Team totals from 2010 – 2013 are included for reference purposes. “Addendum” is available in paperback and digital ( Kindle ) format at Amazon.com. “ Hardball Retroactive”,published in June 2018, is available in paperback and digital ( Kindle ) format at Amazon.com. A cross-section of essays that I penned for Seamheads.com along with my Baseball Analytics blog spanning nearly a decade touching on subjects including “Taking the Extra Base”, “General Manager Scorecard”, “Worst Trades”, “BABIP By Location” and “Baseball Birthplaces and the Retro World Baseball Classic”. Rediscover your favorite hardball arcade and simulations in “Play Retro Baseball Video Games In Your Browser” or take a deep dive into every franchise’s minor league successes and failures in relation to their major league operations in “Minors vs. Majors”. “Hardball Architects”examines the trades, free agent acquisitions, draft picks and other transactions for the 30 Major League Baseball franchises, divided into a 2-volume set (American League and National League). All key moves are scrutinized for every team and Sabermetric principles are applied to the roster construction throughout the lifetime of the organization to encapsulate the hits and misses by front office executives. “Volume 1 – American League Teams” is available in paperback and digital ( Kindle ) format at Amazon.com. “Volume 2 – National League Teams” is tentatively scheduled for publication in the spring of 2022.