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1978 ILLOWA LEAGUE |
W |
L |
PCT |
GB |
Manager |
World Series |
MVP |
Cy Young |
|
Davenport Fire |
97 |
64 |
.602 |
0 |
Don Smith |
Greg Luzinski |
Sparky Lyle |
|
|
Chicago Champions |
95 |
66 |
.590 |
2 |
Tedd Mallasch |
Illowa Champions |
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|
Gehlen J's |
85 |
76 |
.528 |
12 |
Nick Tegeler |
|||
|
Northside Hitmen |
81 |
80 |
.503 |
16 |
Chuck Lucas |
|||
|
Maquoketa Cardinals |
79 |
82 |
.491 |
18 |
Tom Reisdorph |
|||
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East Moline Bombers |
71 |
90 |
.441 |
26 |
Mike Bunch |
|||
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Quad Cities Thunderchickens |
69 |
92 |
.429 |
28 |
Dennis Jennings |
|||
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Merrionette Park Rocket-Fire |
67 |
94 |
.416 |
30 |
Dale Smith |
|||
|
644 |
644 |
| The race for first place in '78 was a tight one as the Fire
beat out the Champions by two games. With MVP and home run king Greg
Luzinski and Cy Young reliever Sparky Lyle the Fire squad was a
powerhouse. Luzinski totaled 104 homeruns for the past two
years. For the year, he had 58 along with 129 rbis. Newly
acquired Sparky Lyle had 23 saves with a 2.33 ERA.
Alas, it was the Chicago Champions who prevailed in the post-season and won the World Series. Here is Tedd Mallasch's account of what went down in '78: TWO
OUT OF THREE AIN'T BAD... For the 2nd time in his three years at the helm Manager
Mallasch guided the Chicago Champions to the Championship. The Champs finished two games behind the Davenport Fire, but
put it altogether in the playoffs to capture the title. Interesting note
that these two teams pulled off a blockbuster trade before the season, the
Champions sent 1978 MVP Greg Luzinski to the Fire in exchange for a young
catcher Gary Carter. Carter
would have a monster year for the Champs leading the team in 2B's, HR's,
& RBI's (42,41,134). Luzinski
never played for the Champs as the trade was actually a three way deal
involving the Bombers. The
Champs were a powerhouse launching 210 longballs, Jim Rice 35 and Ellis
Valentine 32 were the only other hitters to belt more than 30 home runs as
the lineup featured power up & down the order.
Workhorse Dennis Leonard completed 16 of his 35 starts finishing
with a 21-7 record. Elias
Sosa was the team's closer figuring in 24 victories in the
42 games in which he appeared.
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1978 IAL Hitting and Pitching Leaders |
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