Earl Weaver's first term as manager of the Baltimore Orioles was a thing of beauty; fifteen years at the helm, and a winning team every year. Throw in five years of 100+ wins, four pennants, and a World Series, and it is one of the best records ever by a manager. This year, the Orioles won another pennant, and another World Series - but not with Earl managing. Weaver had been replaced in the off-season by Joe Altobelli, who led the Orioles to victory.

         Altobelli managed the Orioles for only 2 1/2 years, then was replaced midway through the 1985 season by... Earl Weaver. Unfortunately, Earl's second stint as Orioles manager wasn't as successful; he was replaced after the 1986 season, his first losing season as a manager.
        Meanwhile, in the West Division, the Chicago White Sox led the league in wins, and reached the playoffs for the first time since 1959. Their manager was Tony LaRussa, who achieved his first big success. The White Sox had two outstanding starting pitchers: Cy Young winner LaMarr Hoyt, who led the AL in wins for second straight year, and Richard Dotson, who emerged from obscurity to have the best season of his career.
        Looking over the numbers, my first reaction is that none of the starters were very impressive, and that the league's best pitcher was Dan Quisenberry. The Quiz saved 45 games, a new single-season record (that lasted until Dave Righetti saved 46 in 1986). Quisenberry pitched for 12 years, and never started a game. He was a submariner with exceptional control, and five times led the AL in saves. Quisenberry saved 244 games in his career; he was a key pitcher on the Royals' championship teams in 1980 and 1985.
        I think that if you were ever going to give a closer the Cy Young Award, this would be the year. Problem is, I'm not really sure who to take after Quisenberry. Hoyt has the wins, the innings, and the great control, but his ERA is unimpressive. Jack Morris and Dave Stieb both threw more innings and had better ERAs; Morris was at his peak as a power pitcher, setting a career high in strikeouts and leading the league for the only time.
        The ERA leaders were Rick Honeycutt and Mike Boddicker, neither of whom threw a lot of innings. Boddicker had a terrific rookie year for Baltimore; he was a great pitcher his first two years before settling down as an ordinary, reliable pitcher who won 134 games in 14 years. Honeycutt was a journeyman who usually lost more games than he won, but he had some good years, and seemed to hang on forever as a one-out left-handed reliever in the 1990's.
        I think that Jack Morris was the best of the starters; I'll take him after Quisenberry. After that, I have a choice of Hoyt, Dotson, Boddicker, Stieb, Scott McGregor, or one of the other relievers. I think Dave Stieb had the best numbers of the group, and given the choice, I would rather have him pitching than any of the other guys listed. Stieb led the Blue Jays to an 89-win season, their first winning record ever.