BASEBALL ’85 : A Lopsided League: : East Gets Even Tougher; : Royals Are Best in the West

It promises to be a year of extremes in the American League.

The West, for example, seems to be a division in which no team is capable of winning.

The East, by contrast, seems to be a division in which every team is capable of winning--except Milwaukee and Cleveland.

Already baseball’s toughest division, the East got even tougher when each contender made winter improvements in a bid to prevent another early runaway by Detroit.

Even the Tigers, who opened 35-5 on the way to 111 victories and a world championship, realized that standing pat could prove fatal.

They strengthened a rotation led by Jack Morris, Dan Petry and Milt Wilcox by trading third baseman Howard Johnson to the New York Mets for 26-year-old right-hander Walt Terrell, who worked 215 innings and won 11 games last year.

This is not a division for the timid or the intimidated.

Consider that:

--The Toronto Blue Jays, who won 89 games despite 34 losses traceable to the bullpen, traded for right-hander Bill Caudill, who was 9-7 with 36 saves at Oakland, and left-hander Gary Lavelle, who was 5-4 with 12 saves at San Francisco.

--The New York Yankees, whose 51-29 record after the All-Star game was baseball’s best, acquired an ignition system for an already potent offense in a trade with Oakland for Rickey Henderson.

--The Boston Red Sox, whose 69-53 record after May 20 was the same as Detroit’s, signed the versatile Bruce Kison and prevented what might have been a summer of rancor by extending the contracts of Jim Rice and relief ace Bob Stanley.

--The Baltimore Orioles, who finished fifth with an 85-77 record, which would have won the West, scrubbed a policy of growth from within and signed free agents Fred Lynn, Lee Lacy and Don Aase, strengthening the offense and bullpen.

Now?

Given the likelihood that Detroit will not repeat its 35-5 start, the temptation to pick bullpen enriched Toronto is irresistible.

In what should be a dynamite race, the Blue Jays now have enough relief to compensate for the 15 games by which Detroit beat them last year, and for the loss of key players during their winter of significant decisions.

In the woeful West, where a .500 record kept the Angels and Minnesota Twins in the race until the season’s final series, Kansas City is an obvious choice to repeat.

The Royals were 70-55 after mid-May, when a previously imprisoned Willie Wilson and a previously injured George Brett returned to the lineup.

A rebuilt pitching rotation that included one sophomore, Bud Black, and three rookies, Bret Saberhagen, Mark Gubicza and Danny Jackson, pitched with poise down the stretch and figures to improve.

Here’s a capsule preview, in order of preference:

WESTERN DIVISION

1. KANSAS CITY--You can talk about Brett and Wilson and the impressive young rotation, but the one person who separates Kansas City from the rest of the West is Dan Quisenberry. There’s not a comparable relief pitcher in the division. He had 44 saves last year and has averaged more than 30 for his five-plus seasons.

A three-way trade with Texas and Milwaukee brought veteran catcher Jim Sundberg, who should help with the continued development of the young pitchers. The Royals used six shortstops last year but will open with Onix Concepcion, who hit .282 in 90 games. One wonders if left fielder Darryl Motley (.284, 15 homers, 60 RBIs), right fielder Pat Sheridan (.283, 53 RBIs) and first baseman Steve Balboni (28 homers, 77 RBIs) can repeat.

2. MINNESOTA--Former owner Calvin Griffith had a last laugh as his comparatively anonymous and poorly paid Twins proved last year that they can play. Now they must prove they can play on the road. They were 47-34 in the Metrodome but just the opposite elsewhere.

The Twins’ continued advancement also hinges on:

--The ability of the reacquired Roy Smalley, a disappointment in New York and Chicago, to fill a void at shortstop.

--The need for more consistency from relief ace Ron Davis, who had 29 saves but wasted 15 other save opportunities.

--The bid by Ken Schrom, who was 15-8 in ’83 but 5-11 in an injury-plagued season last year, to help out a rotation of Frank Viola (18-12), Mike Smithson (15-13) and John Butcher (13-11).

--The comeback of catcher Dave Engle, who sprained his left wrist and went from a .330 batting average in the first half to .266 and no RBIs over the last two months.

3. CALIFORNIA--The Angels will open the season as an enigma. It is a team that requires positive answers to a multiplicity of questions if it is to compete.

There is still considerable ability here if:

--Age has not caught up with Reggie Jackson, Rod Carew, Bob Boone, Bobby Grich, Geoff Zahn, Tommy John and Ken Forsch.

--The offense can compensate for the departure of Fred Lynn by improved production from Gary Pettis, Dick Schofield and Boone.

--Donnie Moore provides the same relief he did last year in Atlanta.

--Mike Witt and Ron Romanick continue maturing.

--Forsch and John make successful returns to the rotation.

--Untested Pat Clements provides left-handed relief.

--There is enough depth to compensate for the customary array of injuries.

4. CHICAGO--The White Sox went from a division title and 99 wins in 1983 to a tie for fifth and 74 wins last year. They went from a league high 800 runs to a 12th-place 679 and a last-place .247 team batting average.

LaMarr Hoyt, Richard Dotson and Floyd Bannister, who were a combined 42-5 over the second half of ‘83, were a combined 12-26 over the second half of last year. The best reliever was Ron Reed, 0-6 with 10 saves.

The toast of Chicago in ‘83, the White Sox are now a distant second again to the Cubs, and it is difficult to see how they can regain either the city or the division.

The White Sox are banking on:

--A trade with San Diego in which they acquired shortstop Ozzie Guillen, third baseman Luis Salazar and left-handed starting pitcher Tim Lollar for the overweight Hoyt.

--The return to health of catcher Carlton Fisk, 37.

--The acquisition of relief pitcher Bob James from Montreal.

--The arrival of outfielder Daryl Boston, who was triple-A player of the year at Denver.

--The continued consistency of 15-game winner Tom Seaver, who is 40.

--A return to form by Dotson, Bannister, Britt Burns, Julio Cruz and Ron Kittle.

5. OAKLAND--The A’s are banking on trades.

They sent Caudill to the Blue Jays for a legitimate shortstop, Alfredo Griffin, and an outfielder, Dave Collins, with acknowledged offensive ability. Collins hit .308 and stole 60 bases.

They traded Henderson to the Yankees for a package that included Jay Howell, a promising relief pitcher who was 9-4 with seven saves.

And, they swapped Ray Burris, their top starter at 13-10, to Milwaukee for a reluctant 40-year-old, Don Sutton.

Can moves born of austerity create prosperity? Doubtful. The big problem is with a revolving-door rotation that contributed to baseball’s worst team earned-run average, 4.48, by completing only 15 games. Only the Brewers with 13 complete games had fewer. Where will the improvement come from? Everyone loves a mystery.

6. TEXAS--The signing of free-agent designated hitter Cliff Johnson will allow Manager Doug Rader to start seven players who have driven in 80 or more runs in a season. The Rangers also signed former Dodger Burt Hooton.

Still, this is a team that lost 94 games last year, finishing ninth in the league in hitting, sixth in pitching and 10th in defense. Only Charlie Hough among the returning pitchers had a winning record last season, 16-14.

And no matter how Rader aligns his keystone combination, it’s likely to be funnier than anything Mack Sennett produced.

7. SEATTLE--The Mariners produced a first last season while finishing sixth.

No team had ever boasted both the rookie of the year and the rookie pitcher of the year. Seattle did it with Alvin Davis, who batted .284 with 27 homers and 116 RBIs, and Mark Langston, who had a 17-10 record and a league-leading 204 strikeouts.

Outfielder Phil Bradley, who hit .301 in 124 games, also made an impressive debut. The Mariners’ dedication to farm growth is slowly paying dividends, but this remains a team troubled by questions of rotation depth, bullpen dependability and offensive consistency.

EASTERN DIVISION

1. TORONTO--Caudill and Lavelle did not come cheaply. The Blue Jays sacrificed Griffin and Collins for Caudill, then traded starting pitcher Jim Gott for Lavelle. They also lost designated hitter Johnson, signed by Texas as a free agent.

Tony Fernandez, long touted as the shortstop of the future, will finally get his chance to replace Griffin.

A rotation of Dave Stieb, Doyle Alexander, Luis Leal and Jim Clancy remains solid, despite Gott’s departure. Toronto may miss Collins’ speed, particularly on its own artificial surface, but first baseman Willie Upshaw, second baseman Damaso Garcia and outfielders George Bell, Lloyd Moseby and Jesse Barfield have displayed All-Star capability.

The pivotal factor for a team that was fourth in the league in runs scored and third in team batting last season is that it now has the late-inning protection that might have enabled it to catch the runaway Tigers.

2. DETROIT--The Tigers led the league in runs, home runs and team ERA. They had three Gold Glove winners on defense, and baseball’s best depth.

Now they have a solid fourth starter in Terrell and an apparent replacement for third baseman Johnson in rookie Chris Pittaro, who will platoon with Tom Brookens.

It is not easy to pick against the Tigers, but if 35-5 becomes a more realistic 25-15, it’s anybody’s, make that everybody’s, race.

3. NEW YORK--The Yankees were second in the league in team hitting and third in runs last season. Now that potent offense is strengthened by the addition of the talented Henderson, although he will be on the disabled list until mid-April with a sprained ankle.

New York’s fate, however, seems to rest with a rotation of Ron Guidry, Joe Cowley, John Montefusco, Phil Niekro and Ed Whitson. Can they get to Dave Righetti before the opposition gets to them?

4. BOSTON--Talk about offense! New Manager John McNamara has even more than he had during his early years as Sparky Anderson’s successor with the Big Red Machine.

The Red Sox led baseball in team batting with a .283 average, in home runs with 181, and in slugging percentage with .441. The production from Jim Rice, Tony Armas, Mike Easler, Wade Boggs and Bill Buckner seemed contagious. Catcher Rich Gedman had 24 homers and 72 RBIs. Second baseman Marty Barrett batted .303. Shortstop Jackie Gutierrez hit .263.

Boston may be more than just a factor, providing that McNamara’s decision to move left-hander Bob Ojeda to the bullpen pans out, and that a young rotation of Roger Clemens, Bruce Hurst, Dennis (Oil Can) Boyd and Al Nipper continues to improve. Nipper, however, will be sidelined until mid-April with ulcers.

5. BALTIMORE--Only in the AL East, of baseball’s four divisions, would the Orioles be picked this low. The addition of Lynn and Lacy to a lineup that includes Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken should provide Baltimore with the required offense. Lacy, however, will miss at least the first six weeks with torn thumb ligaments.

The big question concerns the depth of a pitching staff that has always been baseball’s deepest.

Jim Palmer is now into underwear full time, and Mike Flanagan is out until the second half because of an injury he suffered while playing basketball. The inconsistent Dennis Martinez (6-9) and rookie Ken Dixon (16-8 at Charlotte) will join Mike Boddicker, Storm Davis and Scott McGregor in the rotation. Aase provides a right-handed complement to left-hander Tippy Martinez, who pitched with a shoulder problem during most of the ’84 season.

6. CLEVELAND--The Indians were 75-87 overall but 58-58 after the June 1 trade in which Rick Sutcliffe went to the Cubs for outfielders Joe Carter and Mel Hall and pitcher Don Schultze. The Indians can weigh that second-half record and dream about how they would be competitive in the West, but they are still without hope in the East. There is little in the rotation after Bert Blyleven (19-7) and nothing in the bullpen after Ernie Camacho, who had 23 saves.

7. MILWAUKEE--George Bamberger, who left during the 1980 season, is returning as manager, but his Bambi’s Bombers are a distant memory.

The Brewers were last in the league in runs last season, when Ted Simmons, who is 35, Cecil Cooper, also 35, and Ben Oglivie, 36, failed to produce in customary fashion. Of course, there were fewer RBI chances for the heart of the order.

Paul Molitor, the prolific leadoff hitter, was sidelined after mid-April by an elbow injury that required the Tommy John tendon transplant. Robin Yount played in 160 games but was encumbered by a shoulder problem that required postseason surgery.

Molitor is back now, but Yount is still hurting some and is expected to replace Oglivie in left, leaving shortstop in the untested hands of Brian Giles.

American League FINAL ’84 STANDINGS

American League Western Division W L Pct. GB Kansas City 84 78 .519 California 81 81 .500 3 Minnesota 81 81 .500 3 Oakland 77 85 .475 7 Chicago 74 88 .457 10 Seattle 74 88 .457 10 Texas 69 92 .429 14 1/2

Eastern Division W L Pct. GB Detroit 104 58 .642 Toronto 89 73 .549 15 New York 87 75 .537 17 Boston 86 76 .531 18 Baltimore 85 77 .525 19 Cleveland 75 87 .463 29 Milwaukee 67 94 .416 36 1/2

THE ’85 PICKS American League Western Division Kansas City Minnesota California Chicago Oakland Texas Seattle Eastern Division Toronto Detroit New York Boston Baltimore Cleveland Milwaukee