1997 Season in Review

The 1997 MLB Season was the very first season that introduced Interleague play, as well as the last season for the Milwaukee Brewers in the American League. It was also the first time in Major League History that the Wild Card team won the World Series. My idea behind this creation was to get some more teams and players into the pool. I chose the 1997 season basically at random but once i found out it was the first season of interleague play I figured what a great place to start. What this post is going to bring to you are the final four teams in the MLB Playoffs as well as each leagues MVP, Cy Young, and Rookie of the year. Take a trip down memory lane here with the 1997 season.

(Cy Young pitcher Roger Clemens, as done by David Bush. My version from my site official 97 set is later on in the article!)

Baltimore Orioles (98-64)

Line Up: A nice looking lineup starting with 4 straight 9 on bases to get the game rolling followed by their Gold Glove winner and power threat Rafael Palmiero. The rest of the lineup is decent for the back end of the lineup with their biggest weak point being their #9 hole with a 6 on base. While this lineup doesn't match up with some of the better line ups we have seen, they are probably middle of the pack. The team comes in directly at 5000 points.

Starters: This rotation could be the backbone of this team with three 5 control starters making it tough on lineups to get multiple runners on base at a time. Mike Mussina won the Gold Glove this season with Scott Erickson and Jimmy Key following him in the rotation it isn't hard to see how this team won 98 games with an average offense. 

Bullpen: Probably the best bullpen of the 4 teams you will see in this post and it all starts with 1997 MLB saves leader Randy Myers. The rest of the bullpen also has high control and as a theme for this team the pitching staffs control will keep base runners few and far between. 

Atlanta Braves (101-61)

Line up: The Atlanta Braves offense comes at you fast to start the game with Kenny Lofton following with another 10, a 9, and then four 8 on bases in which seems like a better lineup compared to the 1995 team that we saw represented in the showdown cup. The Braves don't have huge home run power but they can get the ball over the wall if needed from the middle of their order.

Starters: This Braves rotation is even better than what we just saw from the Baltimore Orioles and their 4th starter in Denny Neagle led the National League in wins this season. Greg Maddux with another amazing Greg Maddux card and same with Smotlz and Glavine. This starting rotation is just ridiculous to try and go against and makes you wonder how the Marlins pulled it off. 

Bullpen: The bullpen for the Braves leaves a lot t be desired but with the starting staff they have the bullpen should hope to only have to pick up and inning or two a come in with a lead. The Braves come in at 5670 points and can rely on some heavy pitching. Looking at this team I believe they will make some noise in the next Showdown Cup and are the superior team to the 1995 World Series squad. 

Cleveland Indians (86-75)

Lineup: The AL Central Champion Cleveland Indians come into the season with the worst record of the American League playoff teams. They took out the wild card by beating the New York Yankees before eliminating the Baltimore Orioles. The lineup strength is the middle of the order of Manny Ramirez, David Justice and Jim Thome who will be looking to get on base and drive in runs. When they can't clean the bases power hitting Matt Williams will look to bring them home. All star game MVP Sandy Alomar follows the heart of the order and starts the bottom third of the order with Brian Giles and Marquis Grissom. The lineup also has 2 gold glove winners in Omar Vizquel and Matt Williams.

Starters: The Cleveland Indians come in with the weakest rotation of the 4 teams being represented and it isn't really even close. Their Ace may be the 4th starter for the Orioles and probably not make the rotation for the Braves. This team relies heavily on its offense to do the job and the pitchers need to keep opponents below 5 runs as a goal for the firepower they have on offense. With two 2 control pitchers in the back end of their rotation they will need high dice rolls often but if they get them they can win some games. 

Bullpen: The Indians bullpen can pick up their starters when need be with three 4 control pitcher including closer Jose Mesa, whom is the main reason the Indians didn't win the World Series in game blowing the save in the 9th of Game 7. Mike Jackson is a great set up man and Paul Assenmacher can also get the job done for a nice 7-8-9 inning combo. The last member of the bullpen Eric Plunk will probably get thrown in emergency situations or blow outs only as the 2 control with a homer given up is not the desirable pitcher in a close game. The Indians come in at 4950 points just below the cut off point making them the lowest scored team so far. 

Florida Marlins (92-70)

Lineup: The Marlins lineup is a middle of the road line up that has balance. No less than a 7 on base will make up for the one 10 on base and to beat this team you need to pitch high numbers. Going into the World Series as the underdog the will play as one in showdown as well. The Gary Sheffield card is one of the rarest I have made with a huge walk rating few home runs and doubles. He will get on base but can anyone drive him in is the real question. This team lacks power but will have some speed on the bases led by World Series Game 7 hero Edgar Rentaria. I have always been a Luis Castillo fan mainly because of his original showdown card so I had to make a rookie Luis Castillo for this team as well so theres an extra card for the bench.

Extra Hitter

Starters: The starting staff is led by Kevin Brown with a dominant 5 control out through 16 and no double. Alex Fernandez will be a great second starter and much like the Indians the bottom two starters will make or break their team. Will you get low rolls with Livan Hernandez, or will you turn in a World Series MVP performance like he did that October. 

Bullpen: The Marlins bullpen starts strong with their setup and closer and are backed up by two decent relievers that can be placed in spot duty to get to the better part of the bullpen. This team without Castillo comes in at 4670 so they are the true underdog of the final four teams and this is another story of some good rolling at the right time can lead you all the way to a championship. 

American League Rookie of the Year

What a rookie season turned in by Nomar with 30 home runs, 11 triples and 44 doubles. He won the Rookie of the Year, Silver Slugger, was an All Star and finished 8th in the MVP voting all in his first season.

National League Rookie of the Year

Scott Rolen put together a good rookie season but compared to Nomar's it doesn't feel like it. He hit 21 home runs, with 35 doubles and won the Rookie of the Year in this campaign. 

American League Cy Young

Another dominant season from Roger Clemens, but this time he won the triple crown in the American League for pitchers. He won his 4th Cy Young and would go on to win it again the next year as well. He won 21 games and had 9 complete games being an All Star as well.

National League Cy Young

In Pedro's last season with the Expos he won his first Cy Young of his career before heading on over to Boston to win two more. He won 17 games this season as well as being an all star and putting uo a low 1.90 ERA and 13 complete games. 

American League MVP

Where to begin with this awesome AL MVP card for Ken Griffey Jr, he led the American League in home runs, 56 also a career high, and runs batted in, 147 also a career high. He was also an All Star, won the Silver Slugger, Gold Glove and MVP award.

National League MVP

Is it a coincidence we have another former Expo in this page, if you haven't checked out the "What If" Montreal Expos make sure you do so. Larry Walker won his only MVP of his career this season leading the National League in home runs with 49, and knocking 46 doubles off his bat as well and stealing 33 bases getting close to a 40/40/40 season. Larry just like Griffey also was an All Star, won the Gold Glove and the Silver slugger along with their MVP awards truly proving how Valuable these two truly were to their teams.