ARAIGBB Starting 1974 Season Soon!

The 1974 Major League Baseball season. The Oakland Athletics won their third consecutive World Series, defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers four games to one.

Two notable personal milestones were achieved during the 1974 season. 

The first came on April 8, when Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves blasted his 715th career home run, breaking the all-time career home run mark of 714 set by Babe Ruth. Aaron would finish his career with 755 home runs, a record that would stand until Barry Bonds broke it in 2007. 

The second milestone came on September 10, when the St. Louis Cardinals' Lou Brock stole his 105th base off pitcher Dick Ruthven and catcher Bob Boone of the Philadelphia Phillies. This broke the single-season stolen base record of 104, set by Maury Wills in 1962. Brock stole 118 bases, a record that would stand until 1982, when Rickey Henderson stole 130.

1974 MLB season
League	Major League Baseball
Sport	Baseball
Duration	April 4 – October 17, 1974
Draft
Top draft pick	Bill Almon
Picked by	San Diego Padres
Regular season
Season MVP	AL: Jeff Burroughs (TEX) NL: Steve Garvey (LA)
Postseason
AL champions	Oakland Athletics
AL runners-up	Baltimore Orioles
NL champions	Los Angeles Dodgers
NL runners-up	Pittsburgh Pirates
World Series
Champions	Oakland Athletics
Runners-up	Los Angeles Dodgers
Finals MVP	Rollie Fingers (OAK)

Oakland A's Capture 1973 World Series Title

Game 1 Messersmith vs Holtzman

LA drew first blood in top of 1st as Lopes and Paciorek both reached base and scored. Oakland C Fosse got one of the runs back with a homer in 2nd, Oakland scratched out tying run in 5th, and walks to first 2 A’s batters of 6th led to Oakland taking a 4-2 lead they would not relinquish.

Ace relived Rollie Fingers, fresh off a dominating performance in the ALCS, pitched scoreless baseball in the 6-7-8 innings before Horacio Pina came in to lock down the game for A’s in the 9th.

Oakland 1-0

Game 2 Osteen vs Hunter

Reggie Jackson hit a solo homer in the 2nd to give A’s the lead, and that was all they ultimately would need as Hunter went 8 2/3 of shut out ball before Fingers came on in the 9th to get Steve Garvey on a 2-out groundout with runners on 2nd and 3rd. A’s scored 6 runs total against the goose egg for the Dodgers.

Oakland 2-0

Game 3 Sutton vs Holtzman

Neither team scored until LA broke through in the bottom of the 5th as Buckner and Russell led off the inning with singles and scored. Lead was short lived, as A’s 2B Dick Green cleared the bases with a 2-out double and then scored on Sal Bando’s hit to give the A’s a 4-2 lead. Dodgers clawed back one of the runs in the bottom of the 6th, then the tying run in the 7th as Fingers relived Holtzman with Garvey on 1st but allowed a run-scoring double to Joe Ferguson. Neither team would score again until the 11th, when Charlie Hough’s knuckleball wasn’t working. A’s got 3 runs in the 11th powered by a Reggie Jackson double and singles from Dick Green, Sal Band, and Ray Fosse. Dodgers didn’t go gently, however, as Davey Lopes singled and scored on Garvey’s double to make it 7-5. With their two best relievers already used, Oakland turned to spot starter/long reliever Glenn Abbott to preserve the game. Abbott promptly walked Tom Paciorek and Joe Ferguson to load the bases with no outs, and the A’s were in danger of losing the game. Ron Cey flew out while Garvey held 3rd, and then Willie Davis grounded into a double play to end the game.

Oakland 3-0

Game 4 Messersmith vs Blue

Not much suspense in Game 4, as Oakland got a run on 3 singles in the 2nd, added runs in 5th (Rudi HR), 6th (lead off double, bunt, sac fly), and 7th (Band HR) to take a 4-0 lead. Fingers came in in 6th to squelch an LA rally attempt, and other than a single run in the 8th LA went quietly.

Oakland 4-0

Notable performances:

Several A’s hitters excelled, led by Rudi (.375 avg, 1.037 OPS), Jackson (.632 slug), Fosse (.375 avg, .916 OPS), and Band (.922 OPS). Catfish Hunter went 8 2/3 scoreless in his only start, and Fingers pitched 9 2/3, struck out 10, and allowed only one unearned run as her appeared in all 4 games.

Davey Lopes paced the Dodgers with a .444 OBP, but no other hitter even reached an .800 OPS. Dodgers pitching was subpar throughout, as only relievers registered an ERA below 4.50. 

1973 ALCS - Oakland Advances to World Series After Defeating Baltimore in a 5 Game Slugfest

Game 1- Blue vs Palmer

Oakland started out hot as they scored 3 runs in each of first 2 innings, with Sal Bando hitting a 2-run homer in the 2^nd. The Orioles Got 1 in the 1^st and 2 in the 2^nd, and then loaded the bases with 1 out in the 3^rd. That was enough for the Oakland manager, who sent Vida Blue to an early shower and called on Rollie Fingers to face the ever-dangerous Bobby Grich. Fingers induced a double play ball to quell the threat. Bando homered again in the 5^th, and A’s C Ray Fosse homered in the 7^th as the A’s scored enough to keep this one out of reach despite the Orioles ultimately plating 6 runs. Sal Bando went 3-4 with 4 runs, 2 homers, and 3 RBI and Reggie Jackson went 3-4 with 4 RBI. Fingers went 4 innings in relief, although he gave up 3 runs, and Horacio Pina picked up the save. A’s up 1-0.

Game 2- Hunter vs McNally

This time the Orioles jumped out to an early lead as they scored 5 in the 1^st. Catfish was ^th and 6^th to close the gap to one, as Hunter settled in after the 1^st. A’s got a couple runners on in the 8^th to threaten, but DH Deron Jonson flied out to kill the rally. Johnson would go a horrific 1 for 18 in the series with 9 Ks. Orioles pitcher Bob Reynolds locked down 8^th and 9^th to pick up the save. All tied 1-1.

ridiculously homer prone this year, and he gave up a 2-run blast to O’s second batter Rich Coggins to get things started. The A’s got 2 runs in the 5

Game 3- Holtzman vs Cuellar

Both teams got on board early, as after 2 the game was knotted at 2-2.  Grich and Don ^thas Paul Blair tripled and scored, but the A’s strung together 3 singles to tie the game in the 8^th. The A’s would threaten continuously over the next few innings, but could never plate the elusive winning run. In the top of the 13^th, Orioles C Andy Etchebarren drew a walk from an exhausted Rollie Fingers. Pinch runner Al Bumbry scored on a Bobby Grich single, and while the A’s got a runner to second in the bottom of the 13^th Deron Johnson struck out and Angel Mangual grounded out to finish the game (Johnson and Mangual combined to go 1 for 30 in the series). O’s firemen Grant Jackson pitched shutout ball in the 12^th and 13^th to take the win. Orioles lead 2-1.

Baylor homered for the Orioles, and Bando doubled and scored for the A’s. Orioles got another run in the 6

Game 4- Blue vs Palmer

A’s again hit Palmer hard, as they jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first as Bando hit a 3-run ^th, as Earl Williams hit a 2-run homer in the 5^th and singled home Grich in the 6^th. In the 7^th, Brooks Robinson blasted a homer to give the Orioles a 5-3 lead. In the bottom of the 8^th, PH Jesus Alou hit a 2-out homer to tie the game as the A’s fought valiantly to avoid dropping 3 in a row. In the top of the 9^th,  Earl Williams walked and was replaced by pesky PR Al Bumbry. Brooks Robinson plated Bumbry with the go-ahead run, and the A’s prospects looked dim. In the bottom of the 9^th, 2b Dick Green reached first on an Eddie Watt error and advanced to 2^nd on a Campaneris walk. Joe Rudi struck out, bringing the red hot Sal Bando to the plate with 2 out. Bando hit a 3-run walk off homer to keep the A’s alive. Bando drove in 6 of the 8 A’s runs for the game, as he again hit 2 homers in the game. All tied 2-2.

homer. Orioles tied the game in the 6

Game 5- Hunter vs Alexander

Orioles went with starter Doyle Alexander, who limited the A’s to one run for 3 innings and then was lit up. A’s Gene Tenace and Ray Fosse both homered in the 4-run 4^th, and Tenace homered again in the 5^th as the A’s scored another 3 runs. Orioles scored a run in the 7^th and 2 more in the 8^th to draw within 3, but the A’s lead was too much to overcome. A’s win 3 games to 2.

This series was exciting and evenly matched. Series MVP was Sal Bando (.522 avg with 4 HR and 10 RBI), but Reggie Jackson (.400 avg, 2 HR) and Gene Tenace (.556 avg, 3 HR) were also stellar performers. Rollie Fingers threw 11 innings in relief. Baltimore’s Paul Blair hit .429 and Williams had 2 HR in losing cause.

Congrats to Glenn on a well-played series.

1973 NLCS - Dodgers sweep Redbirds in 3 straight. All close games

Special thanks to Bruce Thomas for making it a fun and entertaining series.  We spent the whole series chit-chatting on DISCORD.  Nothing better than h2h for the strategy and the relationships.  Our topics bounced around between 1970's baseball, the '51 Dodgers, M*A*S*H and who knows what.  Bruce had the underdog Redbirds who won the NL East with a .500 record.  Still all 3 games were tight, especially game 3, where he was up 4-1 and the Dodgers won it in the 9th with a 2 run shot by Willie Davis to put the boys from Hollyweird up 5-4.

GAME 1:

Sutton outlasts Gibby, who was chased late in the game.  The game was tied at 2 after 4, but the Dodgers realized this was 1973's version of Gibby and not 1968's and they scored 3 runs off him over the next 2 innings to stake Sutton to a lead he wouldn't relinquish.  Bill Russell was 4-4 on the day with a run and an RBI out of the 7 hole.  Sutton notched the CG win and no one bellyached about his 125 pitches thrown :)

GAME 2:

Messersmith looked like a Cy Young winner out-dueling Rick Wise.  LA scored all of their runs in the bottom of the 2nd thanks to 2 hits and 3 walks off of Wise.  Messersmith scattered 4 hits and gave up one run thanks to a Davey Lopes error and a WP by Andy himself.  STL's best chance to get Messersmith was in the 6th.  Teddy Simmons hit a deep drive that Davis flagged down against the wall with one out.  Torre and McBride followed with 2 out singles, but Kenny Reitz ended the threat with a weak pop up to 3-Dog.  Messersmith cruised the rest of the way.

GAME 3:

As mentioned earlier STL took a 4-1 lead into the 9th but Hrabosky and Pena couldn't hold down the fort.  Without a doubt 3-Dog is the Series MVP hitting .417 and having the game winning 2 runs shot.  Can't forget Bill Russell who hit .583.  Jim Brewer got the save with a shaky 9th, but we'll take it.  Doug Rau got the win after pitching a scoreless 8th in relief of Claude Osteen, who was roughed up early, but righted the ship to survive.

League Championship Series - 1973

League Championship Series DUE ASAP
Date	1973 Schedule	Home Manager

National League Championship Series
6-Oct	St. Louis @ Los Angeles	Marc Weiss
7-Oct	St. Louis @ Los Angeles	Marc Weiss
8-Oct	Los Angeles @ St. Louis	Bruce Thomas
9-Oct	Los Angeles @ St. Louis	Bruce Thomas
10-Oct	Los Angeles @ St. Louis	Bruce Thomas
American League Championship Series
6-Oct	Oakland @ Baltimore	Chad Weyenberg
7-Oct	Oakland @ Baltimore	Chad Weyenberg
9-Oct	Baltimore @ Oakland	Bill Schneider
10-Oct	Baltimore @ Oakland	Bill Schneider
11-Oct	Baltimore @ Oakland	Bill Schneider

Orioles Finish Season With 108 Wins - Take 3 of 4 From Tribe

GAME 1:

Game MVP:Al Bumbry

Memorial Stadium     Time 3:12, 77ø, Wind: 5 MPH Left to Right     Night Game
Sep 28, 1973           1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1973 Cleveland         0 0 1   0 0 0   2 2 0      5  8  2
1973 Baltimore         1 0 0   1 1 2   1 0 -      6 11  1

Cleveland                      IP  H  R ER HR  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf  GSc
Tidrow L(14-23)               5.2  9  5  4  0  3  4  121  74  47   4.76  27   80(75)   +   34
 Lamb                         1.1  1  1  1  1  1  1   23  15   8   4.57   6   90(90)
 Hilgendorf                   1.0  1  0  0  0  2  2   32  19  13   4.04   6   70(75)   +
                              8.0 11  6  5  1  6  7  176 108  68   4.56  39

Baltimore                      IP  H  R ER HR  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf  GSc
Palmer, J W(29-4)             5.0  2  1  1  0  3  2   81  48  33   2.26  20   70(75)       58
 Watt H(4)                    2.1  5  3  3  0  0  1   42  29  13   2.50  12   55(60)
 Jackson, G S(11)             1.2  1  1  1  1  0  2   25  18   7   1.98   6   55(70)   +
                              9.0  8  5  5  1  3  5  148  95  53   3.14  38

Recap

Bal 1st: Scored 1 run on a hit, and an error.
Bal      Tommy Davis hit a grounder scoring 1 to take the lead.  Cle  0 Bal 1.
Cle 3rd: Scored 1 run on 2 walks.
Cle      Oscar Gamble hit a grounder scoring 1 to tie the score.  Cle  1 Bal 1.
Bal 4th: Scored 1 run on 3 hits.
Bal      Brooks Robinson singled scoring Baylor to take the lead.  Cle  1 Bal 2.
Bal      Bobby Grich singled, hit streak now 11.
Bal 5th: Scored 1 run on 2 hits.
Bal      Paul Blair singled scoring Bumbry.  Cle  1 Bal 3.
Bal 6th: Scored 2 runs on a hit and 2 walks.
Bal      Frank Baker tripled scoring 2.  Cle  1 Bal 5.
Cle 7th: Scored 2 runs on 3 hits.
Cle      Oscar Gamble doubled scoring 2.  Cle  3 Bal 5.
Bal 7th: Scored 1 run on a hit and one walk.
Bal      Jim Fuller hit a solo HR(2).  Cle  3 Bal 6.
Cle 8th: Scored 2 runs on 2 hits.
Cle      Dave Duncan hit a 407 foot 2 run HR(14).  Cle  5 Bal 6.
Bal 8th: Failed to score on a hit, 2 walks and an error.

Bal  Al Bumbry: 3 for 5, double, triple.

Bal  Jim Palmer pitched a great 5 innings for the win: 1 earned run, 2 
     hits, 3 BB, 2 K. He's 29-4 on the year!
Bal  Grant Jackson pitched the final 1.2 innings to record save number 
     11.
Cle  Dick Tidrow pitched 5.2 innings and took the loss: 4 earned runs, 
     9 hits, 3 BB, 4 K. He drops to 14-23 on the season.

===================

GAME 2:

GWRBI-Baylor
Game MVP:Don Baylor

Memorial Stadium     Game 2 (Game 1 - Bal 6, Cle 5)     Time 2:56, 64ø     Night Game
Sep 28, 1973           1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1973 Cleveland         0 1 0   0 0 2   3 2 0      8 13  0
1973 Baltimore         4 0 0   0 1 4   1 0 -     10 11  0

Cleveland                      IP  H  R ER HR  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf  GSc
Wilcox L(7-7)                 5.1  9  9  9  0  4  2  111  68  43   3.63  28 125(118)       12
 Johnson,J                    1.2  2  1  1  0  0  1   24  17   7   7.03   6   80(75)
 Sanders, K                   1.0  0  0  0  0  0  0    9   6   3   0.93   3   55(64)   +
                              8.0 11 10 10  0  4  3  144  91  53   4.60  37

Baltimore                      IP  H  R ER HR  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf  GSc
Alexander, D W(15-7)          5.1  6  3  3  1  2  2   82  53  29   3.25  23 125(135)       44
 Reynolds H(9)                1.1  4  3  3  0  0  0   28  15  13   2.81   8   60(60)s --
 Hood H(2)                    0.1  0  0  0  0  0  1    9   7   2   2.34   1   75(75)
 Watt                         1.1  3  2  2  1  0  1   24  20   4   2.77   7   20(20)s  -
 Jackson, G S(12)             0.2  0  0  0  0  0  0    8   5   3   1.95   2   20(20)s --
                              9.0 13  8  8  2  2  4  151 100  51   3.17  41


Recap

Bal 1st: Sent 8 batters to the plate scoring 4 runs on 2 hits and 3 walks.
Bal      Don Baylor hit a fly ball scoring 1 to take the lead.  Cle  0 Bal 1.
Bal      Merv Rettenmund doubled scoring Coggins.  Cle  0 Bal 2.
Bal      Enos Cabell scored on a WP by Wilcox.  Cle  0 Bal 3.
Bal      Doug DeCinces hit a fly ball scoring 1.  Cle  0 Bal 4.
Cle 2nd: Scored 1 run on 2 hits.
Cle      Ted Ford singled scoring Smith.  Cle  1 Bal 4.
Cle 5th: Failed to score on a hit and 2 walks.
Bal 5th: Scored 1 run on 2 hits.
Bal      Don Baylor singled scoring Cabell.  Cle  1 Bal 5.
Cle 6th: Scored 2 runs on 2 hits.
Cle      Buddy Bell hit a 2 run HR(18).  Cle  3 Bal 5.
Bal 6th: Sent 7 batters to the plate scoring 4 runs on 5 hits.
Bal      Mark Belanger singled scoring Crowley.  Cle  3 Bal 6.
Bal      Bobby Grich doubled  scoring 1.  Cle  3 Bal 7.
Bal      Bobby Grich doubled scoring 2.  Cle  3 Bal 8.
Bal      Rich Coggins singled scoring Grich.  Cle  3 Bal 9.
Cle 7th: Sent 7 batters to the plate scoring 3 runs on 4 hits.
Cle      Oscar Gamble tripled scoring 2.  Cle  5 Bal 9.
Cle      Chris Chambliss hit a grounder scoring 1.  Cle  6 Bal 9.
Bal 7th: Scored 1 run on a hit.
Bal      Don Baylor scored on a WP by Johnson.  Cle  6 Bal 10.
Cle 8th: Scored 2 runs on 3 hits.
Cle      Ron Lolich hit a solo HR(5).  Cle  7 Bal 10.
Cle      Walt Williams doubled scoring Duffy.  Cle  8 Bal 10.

Cle  Ron Lolich: 1 for 2, HR.
Cle  Walt Williams: 3 for 4, double.
Bal  Rich Coggins: 3 for 4.

Bal  Doyle Alexander pitched 5.1 innings to earn the win: 3 earned 
     runs, 6 hits, 2 BB, 2 K. He moves to 15-7 on the season.
Bal  Grant Jackson pitched the 9th to earn his 12th save.
Cle  Milt Wilcox pitched poorly for 5.1 innings and took the loss: 9 
      earned runs, 9 hits, 4 BB, 2 K. He's now 7-7 on the year.
===============
GAME 3:

Game MVP:Tom Timmermann
Injury:Williams,W (today only) Baylor (today only)

Memorial Stadium     Time 2:43, 77ø, Wind: 4 MPH Left to Right     Day Game
Sep 29, 1973           1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1973 Cleveland         1 2 0   1 0 3   0 2 1     10 15  2
1973 Baltimore         1 0 1   0 0 0   0 0 0      2  4  2

Cleveland                      IP  H  R ER HR  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf  GSc
Timmermann, W(9-5)            9.0  4  2  2  0  1  2  133  94  39   4.58  33 135(134)       72
                              9.0  4  2  2  0  1  2  133  94  39   4.58  33

Baltimore                      IP  H  R ER HR  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf  GSc
McNally L(19-13)              5.1 11  7  6  0  1  1   89  63  26   3.50  30   85(75)   -   20
 Watt                         2.1  2  2  2  1  1  1   32  19  13   2.97   8   20(27)s
 Jackson, G                   1.1  2  1  1  0  0  3   25  18   7   2.06   6   20(22)s
                              9.0 15 10  9  1  2  5  146 100  46   3.21  44


Recap

Cle 1st: Scored 1 run on 2 hits, and an error.
Cle      Buddy Bell singled scoring Spikes to take the lead.  Cle  1 Bal 0.
Bal 1st: Scored 1 run on a hit.
Bal      Bobby Grich doubled, hit streak now 13.
Bal      Rich Coggins hit a fly ball scoring 1 to tie the score.  Cle  1 Bal 1.
Cle 2nd: Scored 2 runs on 3 hits.
Cle      Ted Ford singled scoring 2 to take the lead.  Cle  3 Bal 1.
Bal 3rd: Scored 1 run on 2 hits.
Bal      Rich Coggins singled scoring Grich.  Cle  3 Bal 2.
Cle 4th: Scored 1 run on 2 hits, and an error.
Cle      Charlie Spikes hit a fly ball scoring 1.  Cle  4 Bal 2.
Cle 6th: Sent 7 batters to the plate scoring 3 runs on 4 hits and one walk.
Cle      Charlie Spikes singled scoring Duffy.  Cle  5 Bal 2.
Cle      Chris Chambliss walked scoring Ragland.  Cle  6 Bal 2.
Cle      John Ellis hit a fly ball scoring 1.  Cle  7 Bal 2.
Cle 8th: Scored 2 runs on a hit and one walk.
Cle      Jack Brohamer hit a 2 run HR(4).  Cle  9 Bal 2.
Cle 9th: Scored 1 run on 2 hits.
Cle      Dave Duncan hit a fly ball scoring 1.  Cle  10 Bal 2.

Cle  Jack Brohamer: 1 for 1, HR, 2 RBI.
Cle  Frank Duffy: 3 for 5, double, 2 runs.
Bal  Bobby Grich: 2 for 4, double, triple, 2 runs.

Cle  Tom Timmermann pitched a solid complete game for the win: 2 
     earned runs, 4 hits, 1 BB, 2 K. He's 9-5 on the year.
Bal  Dave McNally pitched poorly for 5.1 innings and took the loss: 6 
     earned runs, 11 hits, 1 BB, 1 K. He drops to 19-13 on the year.
===================
GAME 4:

GWRBI-Grich
Game MVP:Bob Reynolds

Memorial Stadium     Game 2 (Game 1 - Cle 10, Bal 2)     Time 2:33, 81ø, Wind: 6 MPH Out To CF     Day Game
Sep 29, 1973           1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1973 Cleveland         0 0 0   0 0 0   0 0 0      0  3  3
1973 Baltimore         0 0 0   0 1 0   0 0 -      1  4  1

Cleveland                      IP  H  R ER HR  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf  GSc
Kekich L(2-7)                 6.1  3  1  1  0  6  4  115  69  46   9.08  28 120(118)       61
 Sanders, K                   1.2  1  0  0  0  0  0   19  13   6   0.79   6   50(55)   -
                              8.0  4  1  1  0  6  4  134  82  52   4.56  34

Baltimore                      IP  H  R ER HR  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf  GSc
Cuellar W(20-14)              5.0  2  0  0  0  3  4   70  45  25   4.01  21 130(128)       64
 Garland H(3)                 2.1  1  0  0  0  1  2   31  19  12   3.00   9   60(60)s  -
 Reynolds S(7)                1.2  0  0  0  0  1  1   18   9   9   2.75   5   60(60)s  -
                              9.0  3  0  0  0  5  7  119  73  46   3.19  35

Orioles Clinch AL East!

With 17 games remaining in the regular season the Baltimore Orioles have clinched an AL East title for the 4th time in the last 5 years.  The Orioles last trip to the ALCS found the team getting edged out by the Oakland A's in 5 games in 1971.  Oakland currently holds a slim 1/2 game lead over the White Sox in the AL West.

With solid pitching (currently 2nd in the ARAIGBB with a 3.11 team ERA) and a batting lineup that could terrorize anyone (currently 1st in ARAIGBB with a .274 team batting average), the O's are looking to make 1973 the year to win it all. 

Time will tell to see what Baltimore manager Earl Weaver will do with his lineup for the remaining games in the regular season, but you can bet this quote from Earl might give some insight on what he is thinking, "I wanted no part of losing. Why play if you can't beat the other guys more often than they beat you?" Earl Weaver