I'll get busy creating the new free agents and work on the team rosters.

Season 2022 begins soon!

Thanks to all of you who visit this dynasty on a regular basis.

Much appreciate it.

I would also appreciate any suggestions on how to improve it.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2022 IPA Mid-Season Standings

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2022 Ruthlandian Union North Mid-Season Recap

Tars On Top In RU North, Bulls and Vipers Close
It's been a tough year for the defending Ruthlandian North champs, the Ancona Red Elephants. Woes at the plate and on the hill have hampered Manny Mickens' club that has won the last two division titles. At the halfway point Taranto has taken over this year with its high-powered offense and leads by 3 games over the Ranford Bulls, 5 ahead of Valmara and 7 in front of fourth-place Ancona. Glasco is tied for fourth with the Red Elephants, both under the .500 mark. No one else in the division seems to be capable of contending in the pennant chase.

Taranto's (40-29) Tommaso Lazzorda still has a power-packed lineup with Augie Marshall (.305 BA/8 HR), Denny Zaffino (.326 BA/6 HR), Aron Ariello (.289 BA/8 HR), Arnie Kennedy (.269 BA/8 HR) and Phil Buckner (.306 BA/2 HR)... Jay Cervini has been the big man on the hill with a 10-3 record and a 3.34 ERA... closer Vance Waters (2-2) has stood out with 16 saves and a 2.79 ERA. Overall pitching is up in the IPA this season with fewer homers. The Tars have to get better pitching in the second half to win the flag... Otherwise Ranford and a slumbering Ancona may overtake them.

The Ranford Bulls (37-32) have always been near the top the last few years under manager Rick Fargnoli... this season he's getting a little better hitting and might be tougher over the long haul... Scotty Simmons (12-4 2.36) has been huge this season... closer Neil Walton (0-2 1.37) has posted 10 saves thus far... Jimmy Travis (7-7 3.25) and Archie Young (7-6 3.60) have been steady, too... Vic Scalzi (.355 BA/9 HR), Ed Ford (.327 BA/5 HR), Gordon Orr (.305 BA/4 HR) and Lee Henderson (.311 BA/4 HR) are the top bats... Bobby Novikov (.261 BA/16 HR) and Tyee Maska (.234 BA/12 HR) provide the long ball... the Bulls are a well-balanced club.

Pitchers Clem Carmouche (11-5 1.98) and Andros Bajek (9-6 3.95) are the prime reasons the Valmara Vipers (35-34) are in third place... and closer Frank Favazzo (1-3) has chalked up 10 saves with a super low 1.90 ERA... skipper Jet Kazmarek gets by with his pitching... the Vipers are weak with the bats... Radley Singleton (.267 BA/11 HR), Miron Burczyk (.285 BA/6 HR), Tim Tamiroff (.282 BA/7 HR) and Sonny Oliver (.297 BA/8 HR) provide what little offense there is.

Defending division crownbearer Ancona (33-36) hasn't played up to par this year... Manny Mickens' club is off to a weak start with a drop in pitching and offense... Pete Krohn (5-1 3.38), Spiros Zodiates (7-3 3.45) and Clete Dukas (6-6 3.34) head up the rotation with John Sharpe (1-2 0.49) in the bullpen... Todd Nasso (.282 BA/14 HR), Alekos Kotas (.284 BA/12 HR), Kenny Willard (.255 BA), Louie DiMucci (.254 BA/7 HR) and Ken Rutledge (.293 BA/7 HR) are the main run producers, but none of them are close to career averages... Mickens expects them to take off in the second half and bring home the RU North flag for the third year in a row.

Charles Darby in his second season in charge of the Glasco Athletics (33-36) has them playing much better because of the influx of some fine rookies... the A's were seventh in 2021, 30 games under .500... this year they are within 3 games of breaking even (33-36), a marked improvement because of the mound corps... starter and 20-year vet Davy McAdams (10-5 3.65) and a fine bullpen have lowered the team ERA from a lofty 4.90 last year down to a very respectable 3.71 this season... offensively Darby 19-year-old son, rookie 2B Eddie Darby, has been a godsend with a .320 BA, 6 HR, 42 RBIs and 56 runs scored (3rd in the RU)... vet Lee Sullivan chipped in with 54 RBIs, 8 homers and a .261 BA... another rookie 1B Garris Aiken has added 10 home runs and 38 RBIs with a .251 batting average.

The other clubs are not too far back... Kilkenny and LaGrange are tied for 6th, trailing by 8 games... Far Mountain is last and 9 games off the pace... Kevin McPhail has a strong reliever corps in Kilkenny (32-37), led by two rookies, Sherm Innis (5-3 1.85) and Cuzz Grandberry (1-2 1.35)... Grandberry has 15 saves... topping the Cats bats are Hal Hester (.320 BA/5 HR), Lyle Walker (.331 BA/1 HR) and rookie Michael Winter (.267 BA/8 HR)... the LaGrange Sports (32-37) suffer with a sky-high 4.74 team ERA... but Otto Kronvath has a few good bats with Jules Nicolet (.301 BA/9 HR), Rex Belisaire (.302 BA/4 HR) and Bryan Dale (.319 BA/1 HR)... just not much power... rookie Roger Simone is the club leader with 12 roundtrippers, but he is batting only .211... the proud Far Mountain Redhawks (31-38) with 8 division banners and 3 Pro Cups are having hard times... over the past six seasons manager Alex Groveland has seen them slip to the bottom of the barrel... vet starter Woody Crawford (10-6 3.11) is still solid as a rock and has gotten some help from rookie Jeff Cooper (8-7 3.35) this season... Erich Dumont (1-1 1.75) is doing a fine job closing games out... offensively, vet Tony Tanaka is having a career year with a .330 BA, 12 homers, 35 RBIs and 55 runs scored (5th-tied in RU)... Dan Hudson is also swinging a good bat with a .311 mark, 6 homers and 48 runs batted in... 16-year veteran Phil Stewart is hitting .317 with 4 homers... at age 41 long-time superstar SS Don Nichols has passed the baton to third-year man John Deville, who is fielding exceptionally and batting a solid .296 with 5 home runs and 40 RBIs... Nichols is still quite a hitter, batting .400 in a limited role.

RU Outlook: Ranford and Ancona will duke it out for the flag... the Bulls pitching give them the edge over the Red Elephants... Taranto's pitching problems will cause them to fade in the second half... nobody else is is the class of the division's top three teams... Valmara has enough pitching to finish fourth.

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2022 Ruthlandian South Mid-Season Recap

CL Crushers Back On Top Of RU South
The Crystal Lake Crushers were the IPA Pro Cup champion two years ago, but they slipped to third last season and didn't make the playoffs. But Baby George has them back on the right track again this year. They are on top of the Ruthlandian South and have a 3-game edge over rejuvenated Waleska at the All-Star break. The Crushers and Westerners are the only clubs playing winning baseball in the division. Belair Beach is third and 8 games back, while last year's pennant winner Grand City and San Dimas are deadlocked for the fourth spot in the standings and trail by 9 games.

Crystal Lake's (41-28) pitching is beyond compare with a brilliant 2.64 team ERA, the very best in the IPA... Herman "Baby" George has an excellent starting rotation in former Golden Arm winner Duncan Welch (9-6 2.27), Ralph McCullough (10-5 2.85) and Johnny Sarkelaris (7-5 2.29) and there's no drop-off when he has to go to the pen... closer Roger Bishop (2-3) has registered 17 saves and put up a 2.38 ERA... Crystal Lake's biggest problem is a huge lack of offense, ranking 31st in scoring... 38-year-old 1B Phil Gravelli, an IPA all-time great, still swings a hefty bat with a .348 average, 6 homers and 34 RBIs... but he has very little help... a sure-fire Hall-of-Famer, Gravelli is the all-time IPA leader in games, RBIs, hits and home runs... he is nearing 4000 career hits and 700 homers with a .320 BA and over 2300 RBIs... George is desperate for some offense, a crucial item come playoff time.

It's been six years since McGraw Johnson's Waleska Westerners (38-31) have graced the first division... the Westerners are up from seventh last season... Johnson has good starters, great bullpen and pretty good hitting... award-winning superstud Roy Hobbs (.347 BA/14 HR) is at it again and carries the club with some help from rookie Wilson James (.307 BA/3 HR) and Val Saucier (.308 BA/1 HR)... Sammy Grimaldi (7-5 3.68) and Chet McNeil (7-5 3.50) are Waleska's best arms... mid-reliever Rick Durham (5-2 1.98) and closer Paul Norwood (3-4 2.25) head up the bullpen, that ranks first in the RU with a 1.99 ERA... Waleska probably won't overtake Crystal Lake, but they should stay near the top.

Good pitching has brought the Belair Beach Sunbirds (33-36) back to the first division after an absence of six years, but they are below .500... 10-year vet Denny Whitaker (10-4 2.57) and Dan Marconi (8-8 2.99) anchor the starters... Marty Pedroza needs some offense (.248 BA)... his best bats are Ray Pelligrini (.304 BA/10 HR) and rookie Mitch Mason (.272 BA/13 HR)... Belair Beach will battle it out with 5 other clubs for first-division rights and will end up anywhere from third to seventh.

Last year's RU South flag winner Grand City (32-37) has stumbled badly this year and has fallen back to a tie for fourth with San Dimas... both hitting and pitching has gone sour for the Cybercats manager Wade Joslin... especially the pitching (4.32 ERA)... closer Ralph Teague (1-1) has been superb with 13 saves and an very strong 1.80 ERA, but the rest of the bullpen has been poor... the only adequate starters Randy Andrews (7-8 3.53) and Jimbo Stearns (8-10 4.02)... last year's 21-game winner Clint Brewer has slumped to 5-7 with a terrible 5.72 ERA and 15-game winner Brent Sturgis is just 5-6 with a 4.31 ERA... Sturgis injured his arm in June and may miss the rest of the season... Grand City only has two high quality hitters: Ricky Rich (.324 BA/9 HR) and Jug Slavin (.314 BA/4 HR)... it's going to be a long season for the Cybercats... not the same team as last year.

Improved hitting and pitching has lifted the San Dimas Rancheros (32-37) from last place to fourth this season... skipper Ron Armstrong has Shannon White (12-3 2.96) leading the starting rotation and closer Raul Marroquin (3-1) heading up the relief corps... Marroquin has a splendid 1.21 ERA and 13 saves... Ray Ford (.305 BA/4 HR) and Hank Maddox (.326 BA/4 HR) are the most productive bats... despite the progress, it's unlikely the Rancheros will finish much higher than the middle-of-the-pack.

After taking two division titles in 2018-2019, Stacy Engel and his Claxton Diamonds (30-39) haven't shined much with 3 second-division finishes... this year could be even worse... the Diamonds in sixth place and 11 games off the pace... on the hill, only closer Tony Haverkamp (3-2) is having a good season with a fine 1.95 ERA and 15 saves... The rest of the mound staff are having dismal seasons.. topping out the hitters are league legend Mike Luzzatti (.329 BA/7 HR), who is an 11-time All-Star with almost 3000 hits, 558 homers and a lifetime .314 batting average... Engel, the old Perfessor, has several other top-notch talents in George McKay (.297 BA/14 HR), K. C. Moerdijk (.253 BA/13 HR) and Allen Lemay (.293 BA/5 HR)... Claxton could contend for third or fourth place with a little more pitching.

The seventh-place Valka Blackhawks (29-40) have stayed in the first division for the last six years because of fine pitching... but it's down this season and so are the Blackhawks... they are 12 games behind in the pennant race... manager Andrei Kokk has almost no hitting (.244 BA/48 HR) and suspect pitching (4.07 ERA)... Richie Jost (10-7 2.91) is by far the best Kokk has on the hill... Tomi Viikberg (.315 BA/6 HR) and Don Pontros (.256 BA/12) are decent batters.

2021 was a very good year for the St. John Crusaders (19-50) with a surprising second-place finish... Just as quickly as they rose up to the runner-up position in the RU South, they have tumbled back down into the depths of eighth place once again with the worst record in the IPA, 22 games back... manager Skinny Kisecawchuk was the RU Manager of the Year last year, but his pitchers have done a total about-face with a horrible 5.33 team ERA this season... 21-game winner Teddy Garson is just 5-8 with a 5.50 ERA, 19-game winner Pat Long is only 5-10 with a 4.15 ERA and 16-game winner Andre Haglund is a miserable 2-13 with an astronomical 7.54 ERA... team hitting is also quite sub-par with a .249 BA and ranked near the bottom (24th)... solid and reliable 13-year vet Vinny Sardisco (.306 BA/7 HR) and Marty Coleman (.305 BA/2 HR) lead the club's pathetic offense.

RU South Outlook: It should be Crystal Lake in a breeze with Waleska number two and Belair Beach a distant number three.

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2022 Ruthlandian East Mid-Season Recap

Sundowners Stun RU East, Huge Lead At Mid-Year
There's a good chance the season is over for most of the teams in the Ruthlandian East. In a stunning turnaround, the Wynnamac Sundowners have gone from seventh place last season to the top of the heap this year. At the All-Star break Matt Donnelly's charges have opened up a huge 9-game bulge over second-place Beechwood and Sugar Valley with fourth-place Cold Creek 14 games off the pace. It was expected that defending champ Sugar Valley, Eastshore and Beechwood would again contest for the pennant this year.

The Wynnamac Sundowners (47-22) have it all this season - great pitching and strong hitting... Donnelly has five .300 hitters in his potent batting order: All-Star 2B Liam Cadbury (.347 BA/16 HR), RF Bob Carr (.333 BA/9 HR), CF Ian Holmes (.316 BA/0 HR), All-Star 1B Pete Simmons (.311/14 HR) and LF Joey Eaton (.304 BA/10 HR)... on the hill the standouts are All-Star Lon Marshall (13-2 2.19), Jerry Meeks (10-5 3.05) and Jimmy Nichols (.9-3 3.41), plus Jim Norton (4-2) in the bullpen with 12 saves and a 1.42 ERA... Wynnamac hasn't made the playoffs since 2013... the Sundowners should be a strong challenger to win it all this season like they did in the Pro Cup season of 2008.

Defending division titlist, the Sugar Valley Rattlers (39-32), has seen its pitching and hitting slip some, but Gibby Bobkins still has the sluggers and leads the league with 101 homers... but he has lost 19-game winner Nick Moore for half the year... Moore is 9-6 with a 4.29 ERA and might return in the last month of the season... Benny McConnell (9-5 3.57) is the Rattlers only consistent starter... closer Fernando Vargas (0-3) has 13 saves with a 2.08 ERA... at the plate CF Randall Hawson (.280 BA/24 HR) is tied for the IPA home run lead, and along with All-Star 1B Dean Woods (.297 BA/21 HR), RF Terry Goudeau (.252 BA/15 HR) and SS Jack Sanderson (.272 BA/13 HR) lead the Rattler attack.

The Beechwood Bobcats (39-32) have three quality starters in rookie Frank Mullins (9-3 2.72), vets Billy Ray (8-5 3.63) and Ken DeGraw (7-8 3.15)... closer Jeff Lyons (4-3) does a solid job for manager Bret George with 12 saves and a 2.76 ERA... the Bobcats also have superstar CF and All-Star Vic Valenti (.319 BA/21 HR), who has to carry the offense... rookie Jojo Davis (.286 BA/3 HR) shows some promise and added a little bit to the offense.

The Cold Creek Catamounts (33-36) have made a modest resurgence... they have been a second-division club since 2012 and near the bottom for the last 3 seasons... skipper Trip Holmes has them in the fourth spot in the standings, but still they haven't reached the break-even mark and trail by 14 games... the Catamounts have fine pitching (3.48 ERA), but horrible hitting (.230 BA-32nd) and no power (32 HR-32nd)... Holmes' bullpen is one of the league's best (2.52 ERA-6th), sparked by All-Star closer Shannon Robinson (4-1), who has posted 15 saves at mid-season with an outstanding 0.75 ERA... starters Jon Howard (9-7 3.33), Kenny Mays (7-9 3.77) and rookie Mike Butler (5-8 3.44) all suffer from a lack of runs... rookie RF Carl Glick (.304 BA/7 HR) is Cold Creek's only productive bat.

The mighty Eastshore Elegants (32-37) are apparently no more - they are tied for fifth place, 15 games behind Wynnamac... Killer Brewster's boys are not the team they have been with 4 RU East flags, 2 second places and 2 Pro Cups since 2016... the formerly-dominant Elegants are just a less-than-ordinary team now with only fairly good pitching (3.69 ERA/13th) and atrocious hitting (.240 BA- 31st)... Melvin Key (9-6 3.42) and Bobby Matthews (9-3 3.43) are still capable starters, but Danny Siegfried (2-9 4.21) has dropped off the map this year at age 41... Siegfried was 20-13 last year with a fine 2.94 ERA... the relief corps is still quality with a 2.64 ERA (7th), headed up by closer Milt Campbell (3-3 2.57) with 15 saves... former All-Stars Gerry Garner (.263 BA/10 HR) and Stan Cuccinello (.248 BA/11 HR) have slumped badly this season... the future is not bright for Eastshore.

The mediocre Belle Plaine Musketeers (32-37) are tied with Eastshore in fifth place... manager Dave Torregrossa has two All-Star performers in SS Slick Hammill (.293/7 HR) and C Derek Roman (.322/6 HR)... plus a fine, young CF in Noel Norbert (.341/8 HR)... Rick Lafleur (6-7 3.09) and Lucien Record (7-7 3.97) are the best starters... bullpen specialist is Fabian Moreau (1-0), one of the top closer in the league with a 1.69 ERA and 11 saves.

Johnny Walters and his Marston Nine (30-39) had a good season last year with a third-place finish, but they have dropped way back in the pack this year to seventh place, 17 games behind... Anson Thomas tops the rotation with an 8-8 mark with a 3.27 ERA... All-Star CF Russ Woodward (.328 BA/16 HR) is really the only threat in the lineup... Woodward made the All-Star team for the fourth time this season.

The Elnora All-Stars (29-40) could be headed for its worst season in history... Sam Malone's club is in last place, 18 games out... Elnora doesn't have much of anything except good power with 75 homers, good for third place in the league... topping the list are RF Travis Glass (.320 BA/18 HR), 1B Michael Griffin (.284 BA/14 HR) and C Leon Carter (.310 BA/8 HR)... Malone lost his ace Hal Wilkinson to injury last September and he will likely miss all of this year... Wilkerson was 22-13 last season with a strong 2.97 ERA... Elnora sorely misses him.

RU East Outlook: Wynnamac looks too strong to falter in the second half... the Sundowners are the class of the RU East and one of the top clubs in the IPA... they should be a strong contender to take the Pro Cup... Sugar Valley and Beechwood will battle it out for the runner-up spot with the nod going to the Bobcats because of its superior mound staff.

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2022 Ruthlandian West Mid-Season Recap

Battle Rages In RU West, Rovers, V's And Roosters Duel
The defending Pro Cup champion Sligo Rovers ran away with the Ruthlandian West by 14 games last season, but not this year. The Volusia Vigilantes and Middlefield Roosters are taking them to task this year. The Rovers are still the top dog with a 2-game lead over Volusia, 4 ahead of Middlefield and 6 over the fourth-place Forest City Lumberjacks. The Colfax Blasters are fifth and 8 games behind the Rovers. Sligo is even better than last year, but so are the V's, Roosters, Lumberjacks and Blasters. It should make for a season-long battle in perhaps the strongest division in the IPA.

Eddie Keys has tremendous pitching in Sligo (45-24) with a splendid 2.72 team ERA (2nd)... his starters are superb, but the relievers are severely lacking with a 6.68 ERA (32nd)... All-Star ace Les Patterson (8-3 1.45) has been super and leads the IPA in ERA... All-Star Ralph Odakota (11-5 2.43), Sam Tate (8-5 2.34) and Luka Abromowitz (9-4 3.20) have been very impressive, too... leading the Rover bats are All-Star 3B Manny Alou (.303 BA/11 HR), 1B Johnny Lee Harder (.292 BA/11 HR) and LF Biff Blauer (.314 BA/3 HR)... rookie whiz 2B Garlin Delk (.289 BA/2 HR) has added a great glove and good bat.

The Volusia Vigilates (43-26) are hitting the cover off the ball with the likes of CF Joe DeLucca (.364 BA/9 HR), the RU leading hitter, C Ishmael Gomez (.332 BA/12 HR) and 1B Rafael Garza (.344 BA/1 HR)... SS Vince Wilson (.296 BA/7 HR) and LF Carlos Quintana (.272 BA/11 HR) are no slouches at the plate, either... All-Star Sixto Moreno (11-3 2.46), Rio Lobo (10-3 2.76) and Kent Elam (10-3 4.19) are the main pitchers... The V's are second with a strong .272 BA and third in scoring.

Bailey Norcross is in his second year as skipper of the Middlefield Roosters (41-28)... the Roosters were sixth last year because they lacked hitting... this year Norcross has a solid core of hitters, led by All-Star Allen Stewart (.326 BA/24 HR), who is tied for the IPA home run lead with Sugar Valley's Randall Hawson and Hillsboro's great rookie D'Andrew Gregory... other run producers are CF Tom Daniels (.301 BA/10 HR), RF Chuck Larkin (.280 BA/10 HR), C Rod Buckley (.326 BA/9 HR) and LF Vic Ivarsson (.284 BA/11 HR)... the Middlefield mount staff is solid, too, with Frank Dean (9-6 2.75) and Joe Schneider (7-6 3.26)... the Roosters are a fine all-around ball club with a .272 BA (5th), sixth in scoring and second in power with 96 roundtrippers (2nd)... on the hill, they are fifth with a 3.35 team ERA.

Rob Jackson has his Forest City Lumberjacks (39-30) bats booming again, up 20 points from last year's seventh-place finish... Forest City is 6 games off the pace in fourth place in the RU West... the 'Jacks top the RU with a .278 mark, tied with powerful Ozarka of the Tycobbian Union... but they only have average pitching with a 3.95 team ERA (20th)... the Forest City attack is paced by star 1B Andy Doiron (.311 BA/11 HR), 2B Stan Tipton (.359 BA/8 HR) and Rusty Hood (.335 BA/11 HR)... Jackson's son, rookie 2B Robert Jackson, Jr., has been a pleasant surprise, hitting .283 with 4 homers and doing a good job with the glove... on the hill Stephen Phillips (12-2 3.60) has been truly outstanding in his third year... long-time vet Tommy Zenon (9-3 3.30) is still solid at age 38 and rookie Norm Dawson (8-6 3.37) has given the Lumberjacks some quality starts this season... Forest City is in a tough division, but they are holding their own so far.

Since winning 7 RU West pennants in 9 years during the period 2008-2016, Clem Rogers and his Colfax Blasters (37-32) have been shackled in the second division... however, this year they are playing better than .500, but are still in the fifth spot in the standings with four fine teams ahead of them... Colfax is 8 games back and still in the hunt in theory, but not in reality... the Blasters just do not have the talent to seriously contend this season... 29-year-old Cliff James (10-1 2.86) is the only leftover from the glory years when Rogers had Ilya Szabo and Jimmy Joe Cartner to man the mound... After 19 years in the IPA, Szabo retired this year with a 327-210 record at age 42 and Cartner in 2019 with a 210-153 mark in 12 seasons... Colfax has Matt Pedersen (2-4) in the bullpen with 16 saves and a great 1.78 ERA in 26 games... rookie Glen Smith (.317 BA/11 HR) is the top hitter, along with 1B Doug Kirkwood (.318 BA/10 HR), veterans C Joe Alexander (.288 BA/8 HR) and LF Billy Garrett (.311 BA/9 HR).

The Rocky Rapids Snappers (32-37) continue to decline... after winning four pennants in a row from 2017-2020, Ryan Noland's team slipped to third last year and now to sixth, 13 games out... Junior Noland (8-8 3.64), Don Chaney (6-9 4.24) and Joe Anderson (5-8 4.14) are not the pitchers they were a few seasons ago... but 3B Paul Shelton (.280 BA/17 HR), CF Tiger Noland (.317 BA/4 HR), LF Rob Barton (.300 BA/3 HR) and 1B Don Timmons (.319 BA/7 HR) can still put runs on the scoreboard... the Snappers just don't have the pitching of the good old days... one huge plus this year is rookie phenom Angelo Nardone with 15 homers and a .332 batting average.

After two seasons in fourth place, the Stoner Stars (31-38) have dipped down to seventh place and trail by 14 games... skipper Benny Stern has quality pitching with two fine starters in Kirk Robbins (8-4 3.25) and Billy Chapel (8-7 3.76)... and an excellent closer in Lou Neuman (1-5), who has racked up 14 saves and an extraordinary 0.65 ERA... but the Stars are only average offensively in spite of All-Star LF Mike Jaffe (.353 BA/14 HR) being in the top five hitters... 3B Kendall Smith (.312 BA/0 HR) and CF Kevin Fisher (.304 BA/7 HR) are also productive hitters, but with no punch.

Manager Robbie Brooks guided the Fort Benton Defenders (30-39) to three successive first-division finishes from 2017-2019, but since have plunged to the bottom... the Defenders are eighth this season 15 games behind in the standings... Fort Benton is old... at 42 Tucker Dawes (6-7 4.05) is Brooks' best hurler... his best hitter is 41-year-old 2B Bobby Ritter (.322 BA/4 HR), now in his 22nd year... CF Ryan Smith (.276 BA/12 HR) and RF Joe Darwall (.286 BA/11 HR) supply the longballs.

RU West Outlook: Sligo is a super team and should prevail in the RU West and go deep into the Pro Cup playoffs with a good chance to repeat as IPA champs... Strong Volusia and Middlefield will give chase and stay close to the Rovers, but not win... Forest City is talented, too, and could be in the running for second place, along with Colfax... it should be an exciting second half in the RU West with the title going to Sligo.

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2022 Tycobbian North Mid-Season Recap

Hawks Fly High In TU North, Top Z's By 2
Both of the top two teams in the Tycobbian North are on the rise. First place North Hills has a 2-game margin at mid-year over the Luxora Zorros, 4 games up on third-place Hartsdale and 6 in front of fourth-place Ozford. The best two clubs from last season have fallen apart and tumbled to the bottom of the division. Last year's pennant winner and Pro Cup runner-up, the White River Rascals, are in the basement and runner-up Blue Lake is in the seventh spot.

North Hills (40-29) was fourth last year, the Hawks have improved on the hill and at the plate this season... manager Masaichi Okawa has three All-Stars leading the way: Lenny Danforth (10-2 2.45), RF Al Bowden (.314 BA/12 HR) and CF Steve Valverde (.309 BA/8 HR)... Ivan Glick (11-5 3.37) and Nicholas Reed (8-5 3.43) gives the Hawks two more quality starters to go along with closer Ben Garland (2-3), who has chalked up 12 saves and a strong 2.10 ERA... 1B Lou Hooper (.324 BA/13 HR) and 3B Rod Haynes (.275 BA/13 HR) give Okawa some good power in the line-up.

Luxora (38-31) is a team on the rise... last season the Zorros wound up seventh... improved work on the mound has made Luxora better... better scoring, too... Cristo Viaconte has two fine starters and a top-notch closer... All-Star Tiago Torres (10-5 1.67) has rebounded from an 8-22 mark with a 2.82 ERA last year with a brilliant season... Mike Boyce (7-4 2.53) also has come back from a 14-21 record last year... bullpen ace Jay Brewer (4-2) has 12 saves and an impressive 1.89 ERA... Lousy hitting really cost the mound corps last season... North Hills is more productive this time around at the plate... they still don't hit for average (.247-24th), but do score fairly well and hit with power... the Hawks are tied for fifth with 78 dingers and are 15th in scoring... sparking the attack are LF Jon Stafford (.255 BA/18 HR), C Jim Thorpe Chandler (.287 BA/14 HR), rookie CF Johnny Clark (.289 BA/13 HR) and 1B Johnny Brenner (.321 BA/10 HR).

Zim Donner is still the man-in-charge of the Hartsdale Hellcats (36-33)... Donner only has average hitting (.253 BA-20th) and pitching (3.77 ERA- 16th), but his offense does manufacture runs (7th)... rookie 3B Mike Houston (.305 BA/13 HR), 1B Johnny Scott (.278 BA/13 HR), All-Star SS Kendry Moulton (.306 BA/8 HR) and rookie Alex Martz (.301 BA/5 HR) are his most productive sticks... three veteran starters give Donner some credible pitchers... Bobo Boisseau (7-6 3.21), Jim Starks (7-8 3.46) and Tony Lane (4-2 3.28) are all steady starters... 24-year-old rookie southpaw closer Chris Marvin (1-2) has been a standout with 8 saves and a microscopic 1.14 ERA.

Mack Spencer has the Oxford Red Caps (34-35) on the move in the TU North with much better pitching (3.60 ERA-12th) and hitting (.269 BA-4th)... up from sixth last year to fourth place this year... Rick Hunt (2-2) has been very sharp in the closing role with 14 saves and a super 1.91 ERA... the starting rotation is only average, but the bullpen is solid (3.26 ERA)... best Oxford bats belongs to rookie Pat Bartz (.305 BA/9 HR), RF Mario Marquis (.279 BA/5 HR), SS Tom Perry (.272 BA/9 HR), LF Ron Berry (.298 BA/11 HR) and Ricky Mullen (.296 BA/9 HR).

The Fairfax Frogs (32-37) are in fifth place with very poor hitting (.236 BA-30th) and mediocre pitching (3.98 ERA/18th)... playing manager Dane Wesner's squad is 8 games off the pace... 32-year-old ace Ken Hill (5-9 2.90) is still as good as anybody in the IPA in his 13th season... Hill just doesn't get any run support... Hill is 225-172 with a standout 2.88 ERA in his career... Joe Hampton 97-4 3.95) and Curt Lansdale (3-6 3.23) are capable starters as well... closer Floyd Burnett (5-3) is having a fine year with 9 saves and a 2.96 ERA... the Frogs only have two productive bats... LF Sean Lawson has been terrific with a .355 BA and 13 homers, while 3B Sandy Coburn has chipped in with a .312 mark and 2 home runs... manager Wesner (.231 BA/7 HR) is nowhere near the great hitter he once was... lifetime Wesner is a .316 batter with 427 roundtrippers... Wesner has never been the same after a shoulder injury in 2014... until then he was the premier hitter in the IPA.

Sixth in the standings and 9 games back are the Mahaska Haymakers (31-38) of Rudy Tanussa... the Haymakers can make hay at bat, but not on the hill... they are sixth in team batting with a .268 mark and 9th in runs scored, but downright lousy with a 4.61 team ERA (31st)... Joey Wallace (10-5 4.84) and Denny Kozlovski (7-4 4.50) have winning records but lofty ERAs... Johnny Picou is 5-6 with a 4.55 ERA... All-Star C Bucky O'Brian (.340/11 HR), rookie 1B Paul Davies (.307 BA/10 HR) and RF Ross Burke (.302 BA/5 HR) are Tanussa's top threats.

The next-to-last Blue Lake Blue Sox (27-42) thrived last year on pitching, but they have floundered this season and given up almost a run per game more... the Blue Sox trail first place North Hills by 13 games... 19-game winner Nick Walker is 4-8 with a 3.95 ERA and 17-game winner Phil Wilkinson is 3-7 with an atrocious 8.09 ERA... Cobb Tyson's crew still has lots of trouble getting on the scoreboard, ranking 20th in scoring runs... 1B Randy Milne (.362 BA/3 HR) tops the team offensively with help from CF Gary Kerkorian (.311 BA/9 HR).

It's hard to believe the White River Rascals (26-43) have gone from the Pro Cup penthouse to the proverbial outhouse in such a short time... the Rascals are dead last and 14 games back... the mound corps has gone to pot with a 4.51 team ERA (27th)... only Ron Hendrix (8-9 2.82) and closer Arnie Montel (0-2) are strong and reliable... White River is last in the TU in runs... star 1B Marty Blake (.304 BA/14 HR) is the only threat in the lineup.

Tycobbian West Outlook: North Hills is the favorite at the All-Star Game break... it has better balance than Luxora... Hartsdale and Oxford will battle for third with the nod going to the Hellcats... none of the also-rans will be in the running.

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2022 Tycobbian South Mid-Season Recap

Ninjas Lead 4-Team Tussle In TU South
The Ginza Ninjas have never won the Tycobbian South in its 22-year existence, but this season they are thinking seriously about winning it. At mid-season Ginza has a narrow 2-game edge over the tough Arroyo Grande Suns, who have won the pennant the past two seasons. The always-strong Turon Typhoons are also lurking close by, just 5 games back in third place with the Colchester Elites 7 games off the pace in fourth place. In reality, it's only a three-team chase as the Elites simply don't hit well enough to stay up with the big boys.

Last season Ginza (44-25) ran a great race, especially playing without its superstar All-Star C Crash Davis, who missed over 100 games in 2021 with an injury... this year Davis has come back with a vengence and has led the Ninjas to a great first half with a .335 BA, 13 homers and 52 RBIs... but Davis is not doing it alone... He has a lot of help from 1B Johnny O'Rorke (.368 BA/16 HR) and the fine rookie RF Kenji Yamamura (.292 BA/14 HR)... O'Rorke has the top batting average in the IPA this year... Manager Huroko Uchiyama also has sensational pitching with a 2.92 team ERA (2nd)... heading up the rotation is Yutaka Yoshida (10-2 2.18), 14-year vet Joji Azuma (9-6 3.26) and rookie Ron Koehler (8-6 2.91)... Ginza also has a good number-four man in 43-year-old Julian Gilchrist (5-3 3.39), who just moved into the starting rotation in May... the bullpen is top-notch, too, headed up by All-Star closer Kakuzo Harimoto (4-1), who has registered 16 saves and compiled a standout 2.30 ERA... Uchiyama and his Ninjas have a tough task to dethrone Arroyo Grande, but they seem to be capable of knocking them off this year. It should be quite a race.

Manager Cyclone Cobb has the defending TU South champion Arroyo Grande Suns (42-27) near the top, in spite of losing star SS Andy Pearson (.321 BA/7 HR) in May with a knee injury... Pearson hopes to be back in July for the stretch run... the Suns do it with a high-powered offense... they are second with a .275 batting average, first in scoring and number two in homers with 88... Cobb's pitching is better-than-average with a 3.60 team ERA (11th)... top hitters include phenomenal rookie 1B Rusty Vizcarra (.292 BA/22 HR), who has burst on the scene with an IPA-leading 69 RBIs, All-Star LF Eduardo Villanueva (.332 B/11 HR), C Gary Troxell (.302 BA/12 HR) and RF Buddy Bechtel (.298 BA/15 HR)... Arroyo Grande has two stud starters in Sixto Zamora (10-5 2.63) and Ernie Matthews (9-5 2.92), along with talented closer Jason Patrick (3-3), who has saved 12 games and posted an excellent 1.66 ERA... no one is counting the Suns out... even without Pearson, they are a very gifted and strong club.

With 11 pennants and 4 Pro Cups, the Turon Typhoons (39-30) are never very far from the top of the Tycobbian South... this year they are third, but only 5 games out... Whitey Richburn has quite a ball club with strong pitching and hitting... the Typhoons are third in batting with a .272 mark, fifth in homers with 78 and sixth in scoring... on the hill the team ERA is 3.29 (7th)... Richburn's batting order is chocked full of fine hitters, topped by icon All-Star 1B Clyde Kingsford (.360 BA/18 HR), All-Star CF Mac McCurnan (.321 BA/11 HR), RF Dominick DiCaprio (.308 BA/11 HR) and 2B Marv Ferguson (.305 Ba/10 HR)... Turon's top twirlers are the legendary Nicky Engstrom (10-5 2.42), who made the All-Star team for the 9th time this year and has won 20 games in 10 of his 11 seasons... 41-year-old Ted Farentino (8-3 3.13) just keep on rolling along and racking up wins... Farentino went over 300 victories this year... Bobby Byrd (7-7 3.43) is also a quality pitcher... in the bullpen Turon still has Merle Studebaker (2-4), who has racked up 11 saves and put up an exceptional 1.50 ERA... Richburn needs another starter to step it up to the next level for the Typhoons to overtake Ginza and Arroyo Grande... Byrd and Bryan Wilkerson (7-7 4.57) will be crucial to their success.

The fourth-place Colchester Elites (37-32) haven't won the TU South since 2007 and it is not likely to change this season... Uncle Robbie Wilbertson has the pitching to compete, but not the bats... the Elites have a 3.32 team ERA (8th), but are batting only .255 (19th), 27th in scoring and 30th in homers with just 46... Colchester is also the best fielding team in the division with a fine .977 FA, tied for 5th in the league... top pitchers are Brian Britt (9-6 2.82), Jess Carpenter (7-6 2.78) and Tommy Tuckman (3.26)... the leading hitters are LF Douglas Tilford (.314 BA/10 HR) and 1B James McCall (.318 BA/9 HR)... journeyman Tilford has played in Colchester for 22 years with a lifetime .290 BA.

There is a 3-way tie for fifth place between San Alejo, Southport and Summerland, all are 10 games out... San Alejo (34-35) broke an 8-year string of last-place finishes last season with a four-place finish and 20 games over .500... the Montaneros are now back to being mediocre... last season's rookie sensation Jaime Miranda has flopped this year with a 6-8 mark and dismal 4.69 ERA... last season he was 19-10 with a 3.96 ERA... skipper Alberto Herrera's only strong starter is All-Star Trini Corona (10-3 2.58)... LF Warren Love (.309 BA/21 HR) and C Paul Bailey (.309 BA/10 HR) are his only dependable bats.

The Southport Sun Sox (34-35) won 90 games and came in second last year, but Charley Oscar's team has been a big disappointment in 2022... the Sun Sox are tied with San Alejo for the fifth spot in the standings, 10 games behind... Oscar's pitching is even better than last year's with a sparkling 3.05 ERA (3rd), but the scoring is way down, ranked 31st... Bob Montgomery (10-5 2.57) and Al Laclair (6-8 2.57) are excellent starters... and Rob Ricks (3-2) is a strong closer with 11 saves and a super-low 0.67 ERA... at the plate only Wayne Rutledge (.318 BA/7 HR) carry much of a batting average... all of the other regulars are .280 or less.

The Summerland Sunsets (34-35), guided by Will Hackett, have three quality starters in Steve Aaron (8-6 3.14), Denny Coulon (8-6 3.62) and Vince van Gogh (5-5 3.54), along with bullpen ace Leon Mullin (2-3) with 15 saves and a 2.93 ERA... Coulon is 42 and in his 22nd season... career-wise he has won 336 games and also lost 312 with a strong 2.92 ERA... but the Sunsets almost have no hitting... RF Brady Gilbert is the best of the lot by far with a .335 BA and 6 home runs... Summerland is last in the league with just 44 roundtrippers.

It's been 5 years since the Cape Coral Hurricanes (33-36) managed to finish in the first division... manager Huggy Miller's lads are batting a pathetic .236 (31st), while on the mound they are fairly good with a 3.67 team ERA (14th)... after winding up seventh the last three seasons, the Hurricanes have now slipped a notch into the cellar, 11 games back... at age 40 long-time ace Cody Burg retired leaving a big void in the rotation... in his 21 seasons Burg won more games and struck out more than anyone in IPA history... Lifetime Burg was 369-264 with a remarkable 2.79 ERA and 5250 strikeouts... but Miller has three youngsters in his pitching corps that are showing good promise: starters Karl Zenger (7-3 1.92), Ruben Kalkman (6-3 3.62) and closer Mike Rinaldi (3-0) with 9 saves and a great 0.73 ERA... rookie RF Bill James is the only bat with a .287 average, 6 homers, 40 runs and 22 RBIs... not much after him.

Tycobbian South Outlook: Probably just a two-team race between the current leader Ginza and defending champ Arroyo Grande with the nod to the Ninjas because of better overall pitching... Turon has the hitting, but falls short with only two quality starters... the Typhoons will come out third with Colchester fourth... the Elites are not at the same level as the top 3.

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2020 Tycobbian East Mid-Season Recap

Nats In TU East Lead Again
Perennial power Ozarka is again on top of the Tycobbian East. The Naturals have won the last eight division titles and 11 overall, appeared 13 times in the playoffs, but have yet to claim a Pro Cup. It's too close for comfort this year for them with Tuckanarra tugging at their tails, only 2 games back. The High Mesa Cowboys and Midway Wolves are tied for third and trail by just 3 games. Red Bluff is 6 games behind and in the fifth spot. The first-place Nats are not dominating the TU East this year as they have in the past.

As usual Ozarka (40-29) is number one in hitting (.278 BA) and pitching (2.91 ERA)... Joe Mac Carney's talented crew is also third in runs scored... heading his star-studded staff are All-Star Benny Osterman (12-4 2.31), Yuka Nawajuk (8-2 3.09) and Eddie Roberts (7-8 3.24)... fireballer Howard Hutch (6-5 3.80) is a good number four starter... the Nats capable closer Josh Carpenter (1-3) has saved 14 games thus far and has a 2.42 ERA... five .300 hitters bolster the batting order, paced by All-Star 3B Andre Dumas (.322 BA/16 HR), 1B Benny Rousseau (.324 BA/15 HR), CF Ryoma Nakayama (.308 BA/5 HR), SS James Couch (.303 BA/5 HR) and catcher T. C. Baranski (.304 BA/4 HR). RF Ken Mayberry (.299 BA/7 HR) and LF Jose Ordonez (.291 BA/3) are also within striking distance of the .300 mark, too... after failing five times in the finals in the last ten years, Carney and the Nats fans are hoping this will be the year for them to finally take the team's first Pro Cup trophy... odds are fairly good that Ozarka will get another shot at its first IPA crown.

The stars are out and really shining in Tuckanarra... The Tuckanarra Blue Jays (38-31) have had a re-birth because of a set of 23-year-old triplets - the Starr boys, Glynn, Quinn and Lynn... the rookies have taken the town by storm and almost single-handedly lifted the Blue Jays out of the basement and into the runner-up spot... manager Carlton "Lefty" Stevens is delighted and so are the fans... rookies Quinn Starr (8-6 2.78) and Glynn Starr (8-8 2.89) are southpaws and lead the starting rotation, while brother Lynn (.287 BA/13 HR) plays first base and is the team's top hitter... RF Danny Redd (.285 BA/4 HR) and LF Vince Di Lazzaro (.290 BA/9 HR) have chipped in some offense, too... Tuckanarra has the pitching (3.18 ERA/4th) to compete with Ozarka, but not the hitting (.246 BA-26th)... it will be tough for the Blue Jays to stay with the gifted Naturals for the entire season.

Frisky Franks has firepower in High Mesa (37-32)... his Cowboys are tied for third with Midway at mid-year... High Mesa tops the IPA with 102 home runs and is 4th in the TU in scoring, but suffers in the pitching department with a poor 4.43 team ERA (25th)... however starters Yancy Derringer (8-5 3.48) and Ronald Ward (9-6 3.73) are doing quite well, especially since they have to pitch in tiny Queen Ranch Stadium... 13-year vet closer Ed Galliano (3-1) has 10 saves and a very good 2.42 ERA... offensively the Cowpokes are sparked by IPA legend and All-Star Jack Elliott (.330 BA/18 HR), who leads both leagues with 61 runs... Elliott has been an All-Star 10 times, won the Golden Bat 9 times, 6 batting titles, 3 Golden Gloves and 2 MVPs in his illustrious career... the slugging first sacker is a lifetime .357 batter with 510 home runs... Elliott is getting lots of help this year from 2B Kenny Rivers (.336 BA/8 HR), SS Stephen Andrews (.306 BA/8 HR), Stephen's little brother rookie RF Bill Andrews (.257 BA/22 HR) and 3B Bill Riley (.331 BA/11 HR)... another quality starter would put High Mesa right up there with Ozarka... until then Franks will have to be satisfied with second or third place... the Cowboys won the Pro Cup in its first season in the IPA in 2002... they haven't made the playoffs since 2003.

The Midway Wolves (37-32) have quality pitching (3.24 ERA/6th), but are not much at the plate with a .247 BA (22nd)... however, the Wolves can go deep with 73 homers (7th)... skipper Cochise Chandler has his club close, just 3 games off the pace at the All-Star hiatus... four steady starters are at the heart of the Wolves... Bobby Dorignac (9-7 2.62), Motega Wolf (7-5 3.05), Dakota Dyami (10-4 3.81) and Joe Wolf Warner (5-5 3.47) are steady and solid... Chandler's youngest son LF Chitto Chandler (.300 BA/15 HR) is his top bat and he made the All-Star team for the first time this season... Chandler's oldest son C Jim Thorpe Chandler also made the All-Stars, but with Luxora... a third son, Maska, plays SS for his daddy and is hitting .276 with 6 homers this season... 2B Frank Reinhard (.305 BA/9 HR) is also a productive performer... it's doubtful Midway can contend with the Naturals because of faulty hitting... the Wolves may have to settle for third or fourth.

The Red Bluff Red Sox (34-35) soared high to second place last year with a wonderful 95-59 mark, but have come back down-to-earth this year... the Red Sox are in fifth place and trail by 6 games... poor pitching is the downfall... last season's Rookie of the Year Kris Kazlauskas has dropped from 22-10 with a 3.53 ERA to 6-9 and a 4.46 ERA... Grady Daggs, a 15-game winner last year is only 6-8 this season... manager Bucky Frizzell does have a superb closer in Rod Westfall (2-3), who has saved 8 games and posted a 1.35 ERA... however Westfall had 35 saves for the year in 2021... Red Bluff still packs some wallop in its batting order with the brilliant rookie and All-Star RF Corbett Brooks (.311 BA/19 HR), 3B James Mack (.260 BA/17 HR), All-Star 2B Jose Aguilar (.294 BA/8 HR) and C Jim Schubert (.291 BA/6 HR)... improvements from Kazlauskas and Daggs could move the Red Sox higher up in the race.

Skipper Rawhide Marshall's Hillsboro Blazers (31-38) are tied with South Fork for sixth in the TU East standings, 9 games back of first-place Ozarka... Marshall's team is headed nowhere this season, but he has several youngsters who have done wonders for the team... 22-year-old rookie and All-Star RF D'Andrew Gregory has put up extraordinary numbers and is number one in the TU with 24 homers and and 65 RBIs, while hitting at a .280 clip... 22-year-old 1B Larry Guichard (.304 BA/9 HR) now in his third year, has done well in his first full season as a regular... starter Pat Buettner (7-2 4.76) went out in June with an arm injury and will miss about another month... solid vets Yank Yoland (7-6 3.03) and Tom Edgar (2-11 3.22) give the Blazers two quality arms in the rotation.

South Fork (31-38) is managed by Duroche "Lips" Leon... the Stallions aren't headed anywhere this year and are 9 games out of first with average hitting (.255 BA/18th) and bad pitching (4.55 ERA-28th)... 12-year vet and 200-game winner Blackie Terranove (8-7 3.33) is still the ace of the mound staff at age 40... 25-year-old closer Solly King (3-0) hasn't allowed an earned run this year in 18 appearances and has saved 12 games... LF Patric Giles (.300 BA/12 HR), SS Teddy Nixon (.329 BA/8 HR) and vet CF Robby Michael (.316 BA/6 HR) are the bat leaders... 34-year-old Michael is a career .320 hitter in his 16 seasons with over 2500 hits and 260 roundtrippers.

It's been 13 years since the East Point Panthers (23-46) have made the playoffs... not likely this year either... the worst pitching staff (4.90 ERA-32nd) in the Tycobbian Union pretty much insure a last-place finish... the Panthers are 17 games in back of Ozarka... rookie Andy Charles (8-7 4.22) is the only decent starter manager Jesse Goodwin has... the only standout bats he has are 39-year-old 1B Bill McCann (.326 BA/13 HR) and 30-year-old SS Gil Rayfor (.335 BA/7 HR).

Tycobbian East Outlook: Nobody is on par with the Ozarka Naturals, who should pull away in the second half... Tuckanarra, High Mesa and Midway will fight it out for the runner-up slot... strong hitting could give the edge to High Mesa... Red Bluff could sneak into the first division with improved pitching in the second half.

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

202 Tycobbian West Mid-Season Recap

Bucs and Reds Tied In TU West
It's looking like a two-team affair in the Tycobbian West at the halfway mark in the season. Defending champion Bay St. Clair ran away with the division last year, winning by 11 games over Rolling Hills. Not so this season - the Reds are all even with the Buccaneers at the All-Star break. The rest of the teams are playing for third place. Right now Bayview and La Claire are tied for third and trail by 7 games.

The Bay St. Clair Buccaneers (41-28) are the favorites to win for the second successive season... manager Guy Rondre has won the division flag 5 times in the last 8 years... the Bucs hit very well with a .269 team batting average (5nd) and score well (2nd)... on the hill Rondre's rotation is ranked 13th with a 3.64 team ERA... late bloomer 39-year-old Don Yaden (10-2 2.96) is the ace of the staff with vet Marty Elenbaas (8-3 3.49) and rookie Augie Delpit (9-7 3.83) the number two and number three starters... the closer is Marv Thomas (3-3) with 7 saves and an impressive 1.62 ERA... 1B Jerry Todd (.362 BA/12 HR), rookie SS Van Kellner (.295 BA/9 HR), LF Florent Schoonmaker (.310 BA/5 HR), RF Don Smithers (.300 BA/9 HR) and CF Bill Howell (.294 BA/0 HR) lead the Buccaneer bats... Bay St. Clair always plays well in the postseason, despite playing in one of the weaker division in the IPA.

Matty Christianson has a quality ball club in Rolling Hills (41-28)... the Reds don't hit as well as Bay St. Claire, but they can hold their own with them... the Reds pitching corps is a little better than the Bucs... it looks like the pennant race will go down to the wire between the two... Rolling Hills' strong point is two fine starters in All-Star Errol Gaudet (12-3 2.48) and Sal Jordan (10-4 2.62)... the Reds do have a weakness in the relief corps and rank 24th in the league with a 3.87 ERA... by contrast Bay St. Clair is 2.98 (11th)... that could be a critical difference... Christianson's most productive players are RF Manuel Leon (.250 BA/13 HR), rookie SS Tony Ptacek (.294 BA/9 HR), C Dennis Johanson (.339 BA/1 HR), LF Donnie Lewis (.288 BA/3 HR) and 2B Mickey O'Malley (.272 BA/8 HR).

The Bayview Vikings and La Claire Lynx are tied for third... neither are playing .500 ball... both are lackluster teams, pretty much just average in hitting and pitching... Bayview (34-35), with Walter Johanssen still in command, has only one good starter and a good closer... Harald Turi (7-7 3.28) tops the starters and closer Ivar Bergmann (2-2 2.39) tops the relief corps with 15 saves and a strong 2.39 ERA... at the plate LF Hakon Lansvik leads with a .319 BA... CF Davey Krueger (.265 BA) leads with 13 homers and star 1B Stan Haddix (.268 BA), playing his 21st season at age 43, leads with 49 RBIs... Haddix is a lifetime .300 hitter with five different clubs.

There isn't a lot of talent in La Claire (34-35)... skipper Maka Bardinda's best is star 2B Flash Devlin (.291 BA/11 HR), who made the All-Star team for the 8th time this year... Devlin sports a career .330 average... other top players are RF Charlie Chapman (.325 BA/9 HR), SS Walt Cumby (.315 BA/4 HR), Manny Marchand (.286 BA/7 HR) and long-time superstar LF Zeppy Deshotel (.307 BA/1 HR), who is winding down a great career at age 38, but still swings a good bat in his 18th season... Deshotel is batting .313 lifetime with 468 homers and has made the All-Stars 9 times... on the hill Tommy Price (7-4 3.79) is the Lynx only dependable starter... closer Dana Price (0-4) does well with 13 saves and a 2.91 ERA... the Prices are not related.

The Denton City Redbirds and Kenwood Wildcats are both 9 games out in the race and in fifth place... Denton City (32-37) is woefully weak offensively with a .237 BA (29th)... on the mound Ford Whiteman's club is just average with a 3.99 team ERA (20th)... starter Wilcy Lord (6-5 3.05) and closer Rich Hopkins (0-3) are the top hurlers... Hopkins has 12 saves and a super 1.75 ERA... 20-year vet RF Todd Bryant (.304 BA/7 HR) is the best bat at age 39... 3B Mike Mackowiak leads the club with 13 HRs and 44 RBIs, but is batting just .216.

The Kenwood Wildcats (32-37) have Aaron Hankins at the helm... a very similar club to La Claire with a .240 BA (28th) and a 3.99 team ERA (19th)... Jody Gentry (9-6 2.47) and rookie Johnny Shaw (9-8 3.27) are the Wildcats best arms... closer Scott Bohn (1-1) has 11 saves and a very good 2.33 ERA... 40-year-old 1B Pat Farris (.316 BA/6 HR) and 21-year-old RF Nicky Carpenter (.312 BA/12 HR) provide most the Kenwood offense... Farris is in his 20th season and has posted a .315 career batting average... while playing for Marston in the Ruthlandian Union, Farris won the batting crown twice with a .362 BA in 2007 and .357 in 2010.

The Chicopee Braves (31-38) are next-to-last in the TU West and are 10 game behind in the standings... Harry Fleetwood's boys are batting only .257 (17th), but score pretty well and are ranked 14th... the Braves are not doing well on the mound with a poor 4.50 team ERA... Mackie Smith is Fleetwood's most reliable starter with a 9-6 record and a 3.81 ERA... closer Paul Quinn (2-1) has done well since taking over the closer role... he has 6 saves and an excellent 1.85 ERA... 38-year-old journeyman 3B Alan Jalenak, obtained in the off-season from Valmara, leads the club with a .325 BA... Jalenak has 7 roundtrippers and 38 runs batted in and made the All-Star team for the first time his career... 1B Jose Duran tops the team with 41 RBIs and 8 HRs, while batting at a .265 pace.

The Arlon Champions (27-42) won the pennant two seasons back, but they have been abyssmal since with a 7th-place finish last year and they are in the cellar this year, 14 games out of first... Gary Louis has a lousy team this year, one of the worst in the IPA with a .232 BA (32nd) and a 4.61` team ERA (30th)... second-year man Rick Parks (7-8 3.70) is his only effective pitcher... 18-year-vet CF Chucky Gilton (.273 BA/12 HR) is the only decent hitter in the line-up... talent is very sparse in Arlon.

Tycobbian West Outlook: It should be a close two-team battle between Bay St. Clair and Rolling Hills with the Buccaneers winning in the end... except for Arlon, the other five clubs will tangle for third place with Kenwood having the best chance because of its superior starting pitchers... there's not much difference between Bayview, La Claire, Denton City and Chicopee... all of them are weak teams.

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 21, 2020

2020 IPA All-Star Teams Selected, Game Set For Sligo Tomorrow
The defending IPA Pro Cup champion Sligo Rovers will host the annual All-Star Game at Silver Mountain Park tomorrow afternoon starting at 1:00 pm. The Tycobbian Stars leads the series 15-6 over the Ruthlandia Stars. Last year Tycobbia won 6-5 in 13 innings.

Ruthlandian All-Stars:

SP L. Patterson (SLI) 8-3 1.45
SP C. Carmouche (VLM) 11-5 1.98
SP L. Marshall (WYN) 18-13 2.19
SP S. Simmons (RAN) 12-4 2.36
SP R. Odakota (SLI) 11-5 2.43
SP S. Moreno (VOL) 11-3 2.46
SP D. Whitaker (BB) 10-4 2.57
CL S. Robinson (CCR) 4-1 0.75 15 Saves
SP S. White (SD) 12-3 2.96
C I. Gomez (VOL) .332/12 HR/.990 FA/5 PB/42% RTO
CL R. Marroquin (SD) 3-1 1.21 13 saves
C D. Roman (BP) .332/12 HR/.989 FA/7 PB/30% RTO
C W. Mason (GC ) .237 BA/6 HR/.990 FA/2 PB/40% RTO
1B D. Woods (SV) .297 BA/20 HR
1B A. Stewart (MDF) .326 BA/24 HR
1B P. Simmons (WYN) .311 BA/14 HR
2B L. Cadbury (WYN).347 BA/16 HR
2B E. Darby (GLS) .320 BA/6 HR
3B M. Alou (SLI) .303 BA/11 HR
3B P. Shelton (RR) .280 BA/17 HR
SS S. Hammill (BP) .293 BA/7 HR
SS H. Maddox (SD) .326 BA/4 HR
LF M. Jaffe (STO) .353 BA/14 HR
3B V. Scalzi (RAN) .355 BA/9 HR
LF T. Tanaka (FM) .330 BA/12 HR
CF R. Hobbs (WLK) .347 BA/14 HR
CF V. Valenti (BEE) .319BA/21 HR
CF R. Woodward (MAR) .328 BA/16 HR
RF T. Glass (ELN) .320 BA/18 HR
RF A. Marshall (TAR) .305 BA/8 HR

Tycobbian All-Stars

SP T. Torres (LUX) 10-5 1.67
SP Y. Yoshida (GIN) 10-2 2.18
SP B. Osterman (OZK) 12-4 2.31
SP N. Engstrom (TUR) 10-5 2.42
SP L. Danforth (NH) 10-2 2.45
SP E. Gaudet (RH) 12-3 2.48
SP B. Montgomery (SPT) 10-5 2.57
SP T. Corona (SA) 10-3 2.58
CL R. Hunt (OXF) 2-2 1.91 14 saves
CL K. Harimoto (GIN) 4-1 2.30 16 saves
C C. Davis (GIN) .335 BA/13 HR/.988 FA/2 PB/38.5 RTO
C B. O'Brian (MAH) .340 BA/11 HR/.980/4 PB/37% RTO
C J. Chandler (LUX) .287 BA/14 HR/.977 FA/38.1% RTO
1B J. O'Rorke (GIN) .987 FA/4 HR
1B C. Kingsford (TUR) .360 BA/18 HR
1B J. Elliott (HM) .330 BA/18 HR
2B F. Devlin (LC) .291 BA/11 HR
2B J. Aguilar (RB) .294 BA/8 HR
3B A. Dumas (OZK) .322 BA/12 HR
3B A. Jalenak (CHI) .325 BA/7 HR
SS T. Nixon (SF) .329 BA/8 HR
SS G. Rayfor (EP) .335 BA/7 HR
SS K. Moulton (HAR) .306 BA/8 HR
LF C. Chandler (MDW) .300 BA/15 HR
LF E. Villanueva (AG) .332 BA/11 HR
CF M. McCurnan (TUR) .321 BA/11 HR
CF S. Valverde (NH) .309 BA/8 HR
RF C. Brooks (RB) .311 BA/19 HR
RF D. Gregory (HIL) .280 BA/24 HR
RF A. Bowden (NH) .314 BA/12 HR

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, June 22, 2022

2022 IPA All-Star Game At Sligo

TU Stars Shine, Tame RU 5-2
The Tycobbian All-Stars continued their dominance over the Ruthlandian Stars with a 5-2 victory at Silver Mountain Park in Sligo... The TU has now triumphed in 16 of the 22 games... they limited the RU Stars to just 4 hits and collected 10 hits themselves... The TU All-Stars struck first with 3 runs in the top of the second on RF Al Bowden (North Hills) 2-run homer and 1B Johnny O'Rorke's (Ginza) RBI single... Ruthlandia got its first score in the bottom of the frame on a sacrifice fly by 3B Vic Scalzi (Ranford)... Tycobbia picked up another run in the top of the third when CF Mac McCurnan (Turon) drove in 3B Andre Dumas (Ozarka) on a 6-3 ground-out to make it 4-1... CF Steve Vaverde (North Hills) plated the final Tycobbian run in the eighth with a single... Ruthlandia rounded out the scoring with a run in the bottom half of the inning... 2B Eddie Darby (Glasco) walked to lead off the inning, moved to second on a ground-out and scored on a two-base throwing error... Lenny Danforth (North Hills) got credit for the win, but gave up a run in the second... the loss went to Ruthlandia's starter Clem Carmouche (Valmara), who was battered for 3 runs and 7 hits in his 2 innings... Bowden (North Hills) and O'Rorke (Ginza) were named the game's co-MVPs... Bowden had the game's only roundtripper and O'Rorke rapped 2 hits and the game-winning RBI.

The Islandian Times
Thursday, September 1, 2020

IPA Stretch Run Report
In the RU North, Ancona has passed mid-season leader Taranto going into September... the Red Elephants (75-62) lead Ranford (72-65) by 3 games and Taranto (71-66) by 4... Ancona has surged in the last six weeks, while the Bulls and the Tars have floundered.

In the RU South, the Crystal Lake Crushers have it in cruise control as they get ready for the Pro Cup playoffs... the Crushers (88-49) are 13 games ahead of second-place Waleska (75-62) and 18 in front of third-place Belair Beach.

The Wynnamac Sundowners will have play better down the stretch, if they hope to hold off the surging Beechwood Bobcats and Sugar Valley Rattlers... Wynnamac's (81-56) lead in the RU East has dwindled down to just 4 games over Beechwood (77-60) and Sugar Valley (77-60)... the Sundowners led by 8 games over the Bobcats and Rattlers at the All-Star break.

Over in the RU West, the defending Pro Cup champion Sligo Rovers still have a battle on their hands with the Middlefield Roosters... the Rovers (83-54) are 4 games up in the two-team pennant race... Volusia (74-63) has faltered in recent weeks and is 9 games off the pace.

The leader in the TU North is the Luxora Zorros (76-61)... The Z's hold a comfortable 7-game margin over first-half front-runner North Hills (69-68) and Hartsdale (69-68)... The Hawks held a slight 2-game lead over Luxora at mid-season... The Zorros got red-hot and overtook slumping North Hills.

It was a tight race in the TU South for the opening half of the season with the Ginza Ninjas holding a 2-game lead over the defending division winner Arroyo Grande and 5 over the Turon Typhoons... as predicted the Suns have roared to the top of the standings and now lead it by 5 games over the runner-up Typhoons (81-56)... Ginza (73-64) has fallen to the wayside and now rests in fourth place, 13 games out of first... third place belongs to the Southport Sun Sox (78-59), who have rallied in the second half of the season and are currently behind by 8 games.

In the Tycobbian East, Ozarka has fallen back in the pack after leading by 2 games at the halfway point in the season... so has the front-running Tuckanarra Blue Jays... Midway (80-57) has taken over the race with a 5-game edge over runner-up High Mesa (75-62)... 8 over Red Bluff (72-65) and Tuckanarra (72-65), who are tied for third... shockingly Ozarka (71-66) has slipped to fourth place and trails by 9 games.

The Rolling Hills Reds (84-53) have taken charge in the TU West with a 5-game edge over Bayview (79-58)... the Reds were even with defending division champion Bay St. Clair (70-67) at mid-year, but the Buccaneers have dropped completely out of the hunt and are now in third place and 14 games off the pace.

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 12, 2022

IPA Heads Into Last Week
Going into the final week of the season, two teams have clinched in the IPA. The other six have fairly safe leads unless they totally collapse. The first to win the pennant was the Crystal Lake Crushers (94-53), who are 15 games ahead in the Ruthlandian South. Waleska (79-68) is currently running second. The Midway Wolves (89-58) also easily secured a playoff spot by winning the Tycobbian East by 9 games. Red Bluff (80-67) is in second place.

The closest race is going on in the RU North, where defending champion Ancona (80-67) has a 3-game edge over second-place Ranford (77-70) and 5 over Taranto (75-72). Wynnamac (88-59) is 5 games in front of Beechwood (83-64) in the RU South and last year's Pro Cup winner Sligo (90-57) has a 5-game lead over Middlefield (85-62) in the RU West.

The best race going in the Tycobbian Union is in the TU South where Arroyo Grande (92-55) leads Turon (88-59) by 4 games with a week left in the season. In the TU North, Luxora (80-67) is up by 5 over runner-up Hartsdale (75-72) and Rolling Hills (90-57) tops Bayview (85-62) by 5 games in the TU West.

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, September 20, 2022

IPA Regular Season Over, Pro Cup Begins
Most pennant-winning clubs in the IPA breathed easily the last few days of the regular campaign. Only the Ruthlandian North went down to the final day of the season. The Ancona Red Elephants (84-70) survived a closing rush by the Ranford Bulls (83-71) to cop their third straight division title. The Bulls had won 7 in a row to gain a tie for the top spot, but lost the last game. Ancona whipped Middlefield 7-4 on the last day with the help of homers by Kenny Willard, Alekos Kotas and Louie DiMucci. Spiros Zodiates (16-8 3.40) toughed out an 8-hit win for the clincher. Ranford fell to Wynnamac and its fine pitcher Jerry Meeks 3-0. Meeks (20-13 3.24) stopped them on just 4 hits. It was Ancona's fourth title in 5 years.

No contest in the Ruthlandian South where the Crystal Lake Crushers outdistanced everybody and won the flag by a whopping 15 games. Crystal Lake (97-57) tied with Arroyo Grande of the Tycobbian South for the best record in the IPA. The Wynnamac Sundowners (93-61) pulled away down the stretch to whip the Beechwood (88-66) and the Sugar Valley Rattlers (84-70). Wynnamac bested the Bobcats by 5 games and the Rattlers by 9. In the RU West the defending IPA Pro Cup champion Sligo drew away from Middlefield in the last few weeks and won by 7 games. Sligo will be the overall favorite to win the Pro Cup with strong competition from Ancona of the Ruthlandian Union and the Arroyo Grande Suns and the Rolling Hills Reds of the Tycobbian Union. The Pro Cup playoffs are slated to get underway this Wednesday.

Luxora had the toughest task in the TU. In the closest divisional race, the Zorros (84-70) downed runner-up Hartsdale (80-74) by 4 games in the North division. That was the Z's fifth crown in the last six years. Arroyo Grande (97-57) nabbed the TU South with a 6-game margin over the Turon Typhoons (91-63), while in the West, Rolling Hills (96-58) rolled to a decisive 7-game edge over the second-place Bayview Vikings (89-65). In the TU East the Midway Wolves ran away with it in the end by 9 games over second-place Red Bluff (83-71).

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, September 20, 2022

Hobbs Is RU Swing King
No one hit Ruthlandian Union pitching at a better clip than Waleska's Roy Hobbs in 2022. Playing in 148 games this year's batting champ registered a .356 average with 230 hits, 35 home runs and 132 RBIs. This was the second year in a row the brilliant 29-year-old center fielder has claimed the award and the third time in his 10 years in the league. Hobbs is batting .355 over his entire career and he led the Westerners to their best record in the past six seasons as they wound up second to Crystal Lake in the RU South.

Marston's standout center fielder Russ Woodward was beaten out by 3 points as he batted .353 in 148 games with 38 homers and 116 runs batted. Another great center fielder came in a distant third with a .338 average. Joe DeLucca of the Volusia Vigilantes collected 21 roundtrippers, 87 RBIs and scored 109 runs in 146 game appearances. The V's came in fourth in their division.

High Mesa's Elliott Takes Home TU Batting Honors
Most players consider individual recognition less important than team success. Nevertheless, Jack Elliott admitted, "It always feels good to win an award." Yesterday, the 10-year veteran first baseman for the High Mesa Cowboys was officially recognized for winning the 2022 Tycobbian Union batting title with a .364 average. It's the 7th time Elliott has captured the batting crown. The 29-year-old slugger played in 154 games and finished the season with 206 hits, including 29 doubles, 9 triples and 51 home runs, batted in 133 runs and scored 143 times. Elliott led the IPA in runs scored and also has the highest lifetime batting average in the IPA with a .359 BA.

Elliot had a hot and heavy duel with an old rival,Turon's gifted first sacker Clyde Kingsford, and won by just two percentage points, .364 to .362. The 36-year-old Kingsford also played in 154 games, smacked 40 out of the park, drove in 122 runs and scored 105. The Typhoons wound up second to the powerful Arroyo Grande Suns in the TU South. Another first baseman Johnny O'Rorke of Ginza ended up third with a .339 BA, 100 RBIs and 33 home runs.

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, September 21, 2022

2022 IPA Elite 8 Series
(best-of-seven)

Rovers Favored Over Reds In IPA Pro Cup Playoffs
If the predictions are right, it will be the Sligo Rovers of the Ruthlandian Union going up against the Rolling Hills Reds of the Tycobbian Union in this year's IPA Pro Cup finals. In The Islandian Times annual poll the Rovers were named the favorite team in the playoffs and they are expected to capture a second consecutive Pro Cup crown. Rolling Hills was the second choice of the pollsters with Crystal Lake running third and Arroyo Grande fourth. Ancona came in fifth, Wynnamac sixth, Midway seventh and Luxora came in eighth and last.

Sligo has a good all-round club with superb pitching (2.77 ERA-2nd) and solid firepower (.265 BA-6th). Rolling Hills counters with good pitching (3.28 ERA/4th), great defense (.978 FA) and adequate hitting (.267 BA- 6th).

The IPA Pro Cup Elite 8 Series open this afternoon at four sites. In the Ruthlandian Union Crystal Lake will host Ancona, while Sligo is at home against Wynnamac. Over in the Tycobbian Union it will be Rolling Hills entertaining the Midway Wolves and Arroyo Grande tangles with the Luxora Zorros at the Suns ballpark.

The Islandian Times Poll Rankings
1. Sligo Rovers (RU)
Team Record: 95-59 (2nd)
Team BA: .265 (6th)
Team Scoring:785 runs (5th)
Team HR: 159 (4th)
Team ERA 2.77 (2nd)
Team Defense: .973 FA (10th-tied)

2. Rolling Hills Reds (TU)
Team Record: 96-58 (2nd)
Team BA: .267 (6th)
Team Scoring: 777 (5th)
Team HR: 140 (18th-tied)
Team ERA: 3.28 (4th)
Team Defense .978 FA (1st)

3. Crystal Lake Crushers (RU)
Team Record: 97-57 (1st)
Team BA: .253 (21st)
Team Scoring: 667 runs (25th)
Team HR: 113 (22nd-tied)
Team ERA: 2.66 (1st)
Team Defense: .971 FA (18th-tied)

4. Arroyo Grande Suns (TU)
Team Record: 97-57 (1st)
Team BA: .275 (2nd)
Team Scoring: 855 runs (1st)
Team HR: 220 (2nd)
Team ERA: 3.55 (10th)
Team Defense: .964 FA (32nd)

5. Ancona Red Elephants (RU)
Team Record: 84-70 (7th)
Team BA: .265 (5th)
Team Scoring: 788 runs (3rd)
Team HR: 170 (3rd)
Team ERA: 3.68 (11th)
Team Defense: .971 (18th-tied)

6. Wynnamac Sundowners (RU)
Team Record: 93-61 (
Team Batting: .263 (10th)
Team Scoring: 752 runs (11th)
Team HR: 123 (19th)
Team ERA: 3.25 (3rd)
Team Defense: .971 FA (18th-tied)

7. Midway Wolves (TU)
Team Record: 92-62 (3rd)
Team Batting: .259 (12th)
Team Scoring: 774 (6th)
Team HR:179 (4th)
Team ERA: 3.25 (3rd)
Team Defense: .973 FA (14th-tied)

8. Luxora Zorros (TU)
Team Record: 84-70 (7th)
Team Batting: .247 (25th)
Team Scoring: 690 runs (16th)
Team HR: 161 (6th)
Team ERA: 3.40 (8th)
Team Defense: .967 FA (26th-tied)

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, September 21, 2022

IPA Elite 8 Series Picks
The Crystal Lake Crushers are back again in the IPA Pro Cup playoffs after a year's absence. The 3rd-seeded Crushers won it all in 2020 under manager Herman "Baby " George and have a better team this year according to the experts. They drew a tough ball club in the RU Elite 8. The 5th-seeded Ancona Red Elephants (84-70) hit very well and have pretty fair pitching, while Crystal Lake (97-57) tied Arroyo Grande of the Tycobbian Union for the best record in the IPA this year. The Crushers have great pitching with three 20-game winners in veterans Duncan Welch (23-12 2.18), Ralph McCullough (20-9 2.56) and rookie phenom Dennis Taylor (21-9 2.41). In a super trade, the Crushers acquired star RF Augie Marshall from Taranto in August and now have him in the lineup to support all-time legendary 1B Phil Gravelli (.312 BA/21 HR/87 RBI) and 2B Greg Murphy (.312 BA/14 HR/61 RBI). Marshall (.293 BA/24 HR/97 RBI) is a much-needed addition and could be a crucial factor in the playoffs.

The key to the series is Manny Mickens' mound corps: Clete Dukas (17-14 3.29), Spiros Zodiates (16-8 3.40) and Hubie Croft (13-13 3.16). If they can stop the Crushers Big 3, Ancona has a shot at winning. The Red Elephants have one of the best attacks in the IPA with 3B Todd Nasso (.306 BA/32 HR/109 RBI), 1B Alekos Kotas (.301 BA/27 HR/125 RBI), LF Kenny Willard (.320 BA/27 HR/103 RBI) and SS Yanni Kouris (.303/10 HR/63 RBI).

Prediction: Pitching will prevail... Crystal Lake in 6 games... but it won't be easy... Ancona can hit with the best of them.

It will the defending Pro Cup champions, the Sligo Rovers (95-59), battling the Wynnamac Sundowners (93-61) in the other RU postseason match-up. Sligo is the top seed and favored to win the whole shebang again. Skipper Eddie Keys has standout pitching and rock-solid bats. They can hit with Ancona and pitch as well as Crystal Lake. Every regular has double-digit homers, led by 3B Manny Alou (.272 BA/29 HR/115 RBI), 2B Garlin Delk (.303 BA/15 HR/101 RBI), LF Biff Blauer (.322 BA/10 HR/91 RBI), C Sherman Albert (.253 BA/23 HR/81 RBI), RF Clell Renshaw (.289 BA/20 HR/80 RBI), 1B Johnny Lee Harder (.280 BA/21 HR/77 RBI). On the hill Sligo will go with Les Patterson (18-9 1.94), Ralph Odakota (20-11 2.49) and Luka Abromowitz (19-10 3.25) as starters. 24-game winner Sam Tate (24-9 2.42) will switch to the bullpen for the playoffs. Keys has a poor bullpen. That's the Rovers one weakness. Tate went to the bullpen because he has better control and also Abromowitz outpitched him in the playoff last year. Abromowitz was 3-0 with a 3.56 ERA, while Tate was 1-1 and 4.82.

Matt Donnelly's Wynnamac Sundowners are an unheralded 6th-seed by the prognosticators, but they do possess three fine starters in Lon Marshall (24-11 2.90), Jerry Meeks (20-13 3.24) and Dean Barber (15-9 2.88) and a talented closer in Jim Horton (6-6 2.05). Horton notched 25 saves this season. At the plate Wynnamac features four .300 hitters: 2B Liam Cadbury (.322 B/26 HR/103 RBI), RF Bob Carr (.318 BA/4 HR/73 RBI), LF Joey Eaton (.313 BA/20 HR/83 RBI) and CF Ian Holmes (.301 BA/0 HR/52 RBI/102 R). Star 1B Pete Simmons (.296 BA/21 HR/102 RBI) boasts a big bat, too. It really isn't as much of a mismatch as you would think.

Prediction: Sligo will prevail in six games, but the Sundowners will make them sweat.

In the Tycobbian Union it will be 2nd-seed Rolling Hills and 7th-seed Midway in one Elite 8 Series and 4th-seeded Arroyo Grande and 8th-seeded Luxora in the other series. Matty Christianson's Rolling Hills Reds (96-58) may be the best all-around team in the IPA with strong pitching, pretty fair hitting and excellent defense. The Reds will live and die with the offense. If RF Manuel Leon (.269 BA/29 HR/99 RBI), rookie SS Tony Ptacek (.275 BA/31 HR/93 RBI), LF Donnie Lewis (.295 BA/6 HR/73 RBI/106 R), 1B Mickey Greene (.264 BA/17 HR/83 RBI) and CF Mark Coker (.279 BA/19 HR/75 RBI) can hold up their end of the bargain, Rolling Hills can go far in the playoffs.

The Midway Wolves (92-62), guided by Cochise Chandler, are a talented team with strong pitching and good power. Motega Wolf (21-9 2.44) is the ace, although Dakota Dyami (25-8 3.45) led the club in wins. Bobby Dorignac (19-14 2.74) gives Midway another standout starter. Chandler's bullpen could be a problem. Offensively, the Wolves depend on LF Chitto Chandler (.299 BA/30 HR/101 RBI), 2B Frank Reinhard (.301 BA/27 HR/89 RBI), 3B Rob Gigler (.306 BA/13 HR/69 RBI) and RF Kyle Rigney (.270 BA/21 HR/70 RBI). Midway has good home-run power with 179 hit out of the park for the year. Rolling Hills hit 140 for the season.

Prediction: Both clubs have strong pitching... Rolling Hills is superb, while Midway is very good... offensively the two teams are fairly even... defensively, the advantage goes to Rolling Hills... it should be quite a series with the Reds taking it in six games.

Arroyo Grande (97-57) topped the Tycobbian Union in victories and tied Crystal Lake in the Ruthlandian Union for the IPA lead. Cyclone Cobb's Suns have a high-powered offense, the best in the IPA with a .275 BA, 220 homers and 855 runs, ranking second in all categories. The pitching is not on par with the offense. If the pitchers can keep the Suns in the ball game, the teams will go far in the postseason. Arroyo Grande needs strong efforts from Sixto Zamora (19-13 2.86), Ernie Matthews (22-11 3.31) and Cesar De Leon (23-9 4.03). Cobb's bullpen is in great hands with Jason Patrick (5-4), who racked up 26 saves with an extraordinary 1.10 ERA. And what a batting order the Suns have with rookie sensation 1B Rusty Vizcarra (.323 BA/58 HR/165 RBI), C Gary Troxell (.300 BA/38 HR/98 RBI), LF Eduardo Villanueva (.319 BA/30 HR/91 RBI), SS Andy Pearson (.315 BA/19 HR/70 RBI/85 R) and RF Buddy Bechtel (.288 BA/26 HR/62 RBI/80 R). Pearson missed 50 games in the season with an injury, but still put up healthy numbers.

Cristo Viamonte's lowly-regarded Luxora Zorros (84-70) rely on his mound staff. The Z's are never picked very high in the postseason polls, but they did upset highly-favored Arroyo Grande in 2020 in the opening series and gave perrenial power Ozarka fits in the TU Final 4 that year. Luxora's ace is Tiago Torres, one of the finest hurlers in the IPA. He can almost win a series by himself. Viaconte just needs one of the other two starters to step it up and knock off the Suns in a couple of games. Torres was 21-12 with 7 shutouts and a 2.12 ERA this season. It's up to Mike Boyce (19-13 3.01) and Valerio Lopes (17-12 3.47) deliver the goods and upset Arroyo Grande's apple cart. The Zorro bats are led by LF Jon Stafford (.265 BA/35 HR/103 RBI), CF Johnny Clark (.285 BA/31 HR/102 RBI), C Jim Thorpe Chandler (.273 BA/26 HR/81 RBI) and 2B Julio Canseco (.269 BA/19 HR/81 RBI). Good performances by Boyce and Lopes on the hill and by the Zorro hitters could pull a big surprise in the Suns series.

Prediction: Arroyo Grande has too much firepower... the Suns will win in six... Zamora, Matthews and Patrick should be able to put down the Z's offense.

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, September 21, 2022

Ruthlandian Union Elite 8 Series
(best-of-seven)

Sundowners Stop Sligo 3-1 In Opener
In the opening game of the Ruthlandian Elite 8 Series at Sligo, Wynnamac got magnificent pitching from Lon Marshall and Jim Horton, who stopped the hometown Rovers and defender Pro Cup champs 3-1 in 10 innings... 1B Pete Simmons' two-out double plated CF Ian Holmes with the go-ahead run in the top of the tenth... 2B Liam Cadbury followed with another double to score Simmons... Marshall (1-0) worked 9 innings, holding the hard-hitting Rovers to just 5 hits... Marshall fanned 8 and walked two for the win... closer Jim Horton registered the save with a scoreless bottom of the tenth... loser Les Patterson was also outstanding... he went all 10 innings with 10 strikeouts and a walk... the Sundowners got 10 hits off Patterson... Sligo got only 6 hits... CF Chris Michel had the game's only homer... he tied the game at 1-1 in the eighth to send it to overtime... game two will also take place at Silver Mountain Park in Sligo.

Welch Tosses 2-Hitter, Crushers Beat Ancona 3-0
The Crystal Lake Crushers are off-and-running in the RU Elite 8 Series... Duncan Welch (1-0) hurled a brilliant 2-hit shutout in the 3-0 triumph over the Ancona Red Elephants at Lakefront Park in Crystal Lake... Welch had 7 Ks and 4 walks... it was a scoreless duel until the last of the seventh between Welch and Clete Dukas, the 40-year-old Ancona ace... Crystal Lake tallied 3 unearned runs to beat Dukas... the winning run scored on an error by SS Yanni Kouris, who misplayed a grounder... two batters later 2B Tommy Gompers doubled in two more runs... Dukas (0-1) deserved better... he went the route and gave up 6 hits and no earned runs.

Tycobbian Union Elite 8 Series
(best-of-seven)

Torres Tremendous, 2-Hits Suns 8-0
On the road at Capet Stadium in Arroyo Grande, Luxora shocked the Suns 8-0 in the first game of the Tycobbian Elite 8 on Tiago Torres' splendid 2-hitter... the Z's zapped out 13 hits to totally demolish the Suns... C Jim Thorpe Chandler and 3B Robby Christianson each drilled 3 hits, while Chandler and LF Jon Stafford drove in 2 runs apiece... losing pitcher Sixto Zamora (0-1) was battered for 6 runs in 6+ innings... Luxora busted it open with 3 in the fourth inning and 2 more in the sixth.

Reds Top Wolves 6-3 In Game 1
At beautiful and picturesque Midtown Base Ball Grounds in Rolling Hills, the Reds topped the Midway Wolves 6-3 in game one of the TU Elite 8 Series... a 2-run homer by 1B Mickey Greene put the Reds in front 6-2 in the fifth and starter Errol Gaudet (1-0) made it stand up for the victory... Gaudet yielded 3 runs and 7 hits with 5 strikeouts and no walks in his 8 innings... closer Alfonso Gonzales worked a runless ninth for the save... Rolling Hills only got 5 hits, but they were enough... Wolves starter Dakota Dyami (0-1) suffered the defeat, surrendering all 5 hits and 6 runs in his 4 innings... in a terrible outing Dyami walked 6, while striking out 4.

Map of Islandia