Earlier this month, we introduced the next month-long series that I’ll be running, called Battle of the Yankee Decades! To see the introductory and explanation post for this series, check it out here.
Yesterday I announced the rules, seeding, and team rosters for each of the sixteen teams that were added into the tournament. Check that out here.
Today we begin the simulations in our Sweet Sixteen, with the 2000 Yankees at the 1927 Yankees in a Best-of-Three series!
Match-Ups:
The great thing about Out of the Park Baseball: 21 is that in these simulations, you can easily see which team is favored (when the logos are different).
As we’d expect, the 1927 Yankees (#1 Seed) greatly overmatch the 2000 Yankees (#16 Seed), as they hold the advantage in all but 4 line-up spots.
Game One:
The 1927 Yankees took the first game handedly from the 2000 Yankees, as George Pipgras went 8.0 IP allowing 1 run (earned), 6 hits, 3 walks, and 6 strikeouts shutting down the 2000 line-up handedly.
On the batting side, Lou Gehrig and Tony Lazzeri both had 2-RBI hits (a single and double respectively) in the bottom of the 5th inning, which provided all the run support they would need.
Game Two:
Herb Pennock did even better than Pipgras the day before, going 8.2 innings while allowing only 1 run on 4 hits, 0 walks, and collecting 5 strikeouts.
Derek Jeter had an RBI single to get the 2000 Yankees within a run in the top of the 6th inning, but a Tony Lazzeri 2-run single and a Earle Combs grand slam in the bottom half of the inning but the game away, leading the 1927 Yankees to a series win.
Series Statistics and MVP:
The 2000 Yankees didn’t have any stand-out players in the Best-of-Three series, as their best hitters only collected 1 hit (each going 1-3) and all of their pitchers- except one (Jeff Nelson)- allowed at least 1 run, with no notable the starting pitching not performance as well.
The 1927 Yankees, however, had a stand-out performance at the bat from Earle Combs, who went 6-7 with 1 HR and 4 RBI’s (all off a grand slam) over the two game series. Both starting pitchers played fantastic, as only one relief pitcher (Myles Thomas) needed to be used to total 1.1 innings over the two games.
The Sweet Sixteen Continues Tomorrow:
1956 Yankees (#9 Seed) @ 2009 Yankees (#8 Seed)!
