February 15th, 1934 - The 1934 Brooklyn Dodgers

The 1934 Dodgers are not yet the powerhouse they'll become once Branch Rickey arrives in the 1940s. Their closest brush to greatness in 1934 comes from their manager - Casey Stengel. Still, "dem Bums" will finish sixth at 71-81. The Dodgers have some decent hitters: Sam Leslie (1b), Buzz Boyle (of), Donny Taylor (of), and Len Koenecke (of). They only have one quality starting pitcher, though, Van Mungo, and one relief pitcher, Dutch Leonard. The rest of the pitching staff runs the gamut from subpar to awful. The Dodgers won't improve much over the next two years under Stengel, and he'll be replaced. At the end of the decade, Leo Durocher will take control.

February 14th, 1934 - The 1934 New York Yankees

The 1934 New York Yankees finished second in 1934 with a record of 94-60. Babe Ruth is at the end of his career. This is his last season in pinstripes. Next year he will be in Boston (NL). Still, he will appear in 106 games and have an exceptional year by any standards other than his own. Lou Gehrig (1b) and Bill Dickey (c) are the other big Yankee hitting stars in 1934. Lefty Gomez and Johnny Allen are the Yankees big starting pitchers, with Johnny Murphy coming out of the bullpen. The Yankees are in between World Series at this point. Having won it in 1932, they'll win it again from 1936 through 1939. The legendary Joe McCarthy is in his fourth year as the Yankees' skipper.

February 13th, 1934 - Transaction

Rice Signs with Indians for '34 Season
Braves also make moves

The Cleveland Indians announced today that they had offered Sam Rice a contract for the 1934 season, and that the veteran of 19 seasons with the Washington Nationals had accepted. Rice had played nearly every game in the Nationals outfield until 1932, when he playing time began to dwindle. The Nationals recently dropped Rice.

In other moves, the Boston Braves announced that they had picked up free agent Dick Barrett and had selected Pirates pitcher Steve Swetonic off waivers.

February 6th, 1934 - Transactions

Reds Pick Up Dazzy Vance Off Waivers

St. Louis Declined to Keep Pitcher

The Cincinnati Reds announced today that they had picked pitcher Dazzy Vance up off of waivers. Vance was a long time star pitcher for the Brooklyn ball club (as shown in picture) between 1922-1932, but played last season for St. Louis (NL), where he went 6-2 with a 3.55 ERA. St. Louis is heavy on quality pitching this year, and decided to release Vance.

February 5th, 1934 - Transactions

Phillies Purchase Allen Contract From Redbirds

Phillies officials announed today that they had purchased the contract of outfielder Ethan Allen from the St. Louis Cardinals. Allen had been a fixture in the Cincinnati Reds outfield in 1928 and 1929, but since being traded to the Giants in 1930 has played more of a utility role. Last season he played in St. Louis, where he hit .241/.280/.291. He is expected to play more of an every day role on the hurting Philadelphia (NL) team.