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I will now get back to work on updating the 2074 team rosters.
Still got much to do... 52 more teams. |
20 of the 64 teams have been updated for the 2074 Islandian Pro Alliance season.
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YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Saturday, September 25, 2010 2010 Pro Cup Playoffs Begin Today Some clubs have coasted to make the playoffs -- others have scrapped tooth-and-nail to get here. After a long, sometimes seemingly endless regular season, it gets down to who can win a short series -- by hook or crook, talent or luck. That's what it takes to capture the Islandian Pro Alliance championship. The top teams will vie in the Pro Cup Series starting today. The defending Pro Cup champions, the Turon Typhoons, are back again trying to take the Islandian Pro Alliance title for the unprecedented fourth time. Last year the Typhoons came back from a 3-1 deficit to snare the Pro Cup from Far Mountain in seven games. Turon also had to go seven games to whip favored Denton City in the TU Final 4. Scribes Select Denton City-Colfax Pro Cup Finals The Islandian Times conducted a poll of the major baseball writers in the Islands and came up with these rankings. 1. Denton City Redbirds 2. Colfax Blasters 3. Far Mountain Redhawks 4. Turon Typhoons 5. Blue Lake Blue Sox 6. Ozarka Naturals 7. Waleska Westerners 8. Sugar Valley Rattlers Team Season Summaries: It was a runaway in the Tycobbian West for the second successive season. The Denton City Redbirds won 100 games and once again totally dominated the division, winning by 15 games over runner-ups Arlon, Bay St. Clair and Chicopee. Last season the Redbirds romped by a 12-game spread. Manager Ford Whiteman has a splendid ball team in almost all respects, pitching, hitting and power and they have been made the favorites to win this year's Pro Cup... The Denton City Redbirds (100-54) are average in only one area of the game... on defense they have a modest .972 FA... Whiteman's mound staff is number one in the league with a superb 3.20 team ERA, third with 185 home runs and fifth with a .273 BA... Mila Mohoski (26-11 2.54), Kimo Orlando (26-11 2.85) and Mike Danek (14-12 2.68) form a formidable starting rotation... at the plate Denton City's batting order is strong throughout... top hitters are RF Lavon Gooch (.285/32/105/105), CF Rod MacCormack (.283/22/94/94), 1B Mick Abbott (.312/26/95/96), SS Trevor Tomlinson (.289/13/40/86), 3B Jay Petit (.317/19/56/80) and LF Danny Nash (.343/17/56/62)... Nash and Petit were platoon players and Tomlinson missed two months with an injury... the Redbirds will tangle with Ozarka in the Elite 8 Series. Colfax Blasters (107-47) of the RU West totally dominated the league and set a new IPA record with 107 wins, breaking the old mark by 5... on paper Colfax should be a cinch to win the Pro Cup, but the scribes are forecasting the winner will come from the stronger league, the Tycobbian Union... they will have to fend off a determined bunch of Far Mountain Redhawks to get a shot at the overall Island championship... the Blasters were first in batting, pitching and fielding... they hit .276, had a 3.00 ERA and a .976 fielding average... Clem Rogers had two fantastic starters... Ilya Szabo and Jimmy Joe Cartner won 54 games and lost only 8 between them... they were both 27-4... In addition Szabo carded a magnificent 1.79 ERA to lead the IPA, while Cartner compiled a 2.86 ERA... starter #3 Jasper LaForge went 19-10 with a 3.35 ERA... and it didn't stop there - in the bullpen Dallas Somerville chalked up 26 saves with a great 2.01 ERA and a 7-8 record. The Blasters lived up to their names at bat, too... Leading the way offensively was four-time All-Star CF Ryan Raines with 28 homers, 122 RBIs, 108 runs and a .293 BA... Raines still run like the wind and plays center like a Gold Glover... He had plenty of help from LF Paul Coniglio with 30 home runs, 104 RBIs, 99 runs and a .290 BA... In 107 games RF Karl Heidelberg batted at the .311 mark with 10 homers, 50 RBIs and 90 runs scored... in 81 games 3B Mike Janocko was outstanding with a .344 average, 15 roundtrippers, 71 runs batted, while scoring 48... Colfax will meet Sugar Valley in the opening round of the playoffs. Last year Alex Groveland took Far Mountain to the Pro Cup finals and came within a hair of winning it... many think he has a better team this season... the Redhawks routed Colfax 4-1 in the 2009 Final 4 and will be no pushovers this season, despite Colfax's monstrous 107 victories...Far Mountain (93-61) took the flag and a spot in the Pro Cup playoffs with a good all-around ball club, good hitting, pitching, power and defense...Leroy Hill (24-10 3.13) and Boomerang Hines (24-10 3.17) were a dynamic duo on the mound staff... rookie closer Erich Dumont racked up 36 saves and led the league... the Redhawks were paced at the plate by 2B Duane Parsons (.312/38/133/105)... Parsons led the RU in RBIs and tied for the home run title with Scott Camden of Rocky Rapids... other solid hitters were SS Don Nichols (.302/19/96/108), rookie CF Xavier Sosa (.322/17/72/74) and C Otis Ott (.270/26/96/79). On paper the baseball experts never pick Turon to win the Pro Cup, but they have proved them wrong year after year... This year the gurus are singing another tune. They are rating the Typhoons as the fourth best team in deference to their three Pro titles... The Turon Typhoons (80-74) have a good core of talent and have won the TU South four times in the last five years and have taken three Pro Cups... they copped the TU South by 6 games with a .254 BA (23rd) with 122 home runs (22nd) and a 3.66 team ERA (10th)... Whitey Richburn's rotation was led by rookie star Nicky Engstrom who broke on the scene with a great 20-7 record with a very strong 2.40 ERA... veteran Freddi Speigel also stood out with a 21-10 mark and a 3.36 ERA... another very impressive newcomer was rookie Merle Studebaker (0-3), who racked up 24 saves and notched a solid 2.36 ERA... the Typhoons top hitters were 2B Alan Hansen (.295/0/28/103), CF Mac McCurnan (.279/23/85/87), 1B Johnny Carducci (.274/27/89/71) and LF Andy Porter (.279/14/70/71)... this year Turon will have to beat Blue Lake (92-64), Denton City (100-54) or Ozarka (88-66) to get a crack at its fourth Pro Cup... as in the past the Typhoons will be the underdog... they will go up against Blue Lake in the Elite 8 Series. Blue Lake won the RU North crown in a three-team playoff with place Mahaska and Oxford... manager Cobb Tyson's pitching carried the champion Blue Lake Blue Sox (92-64) to their first division title with a 3.46 team ERA (7th)... Justin Eckhardt (24-9 2.79), Pete Henry (20-14 3.01) and Pat Grange (15-8 3.34) were his prime starters with rookie closer Tony Reed (4-6 3.88) doing impressive work with 35 saves... the Blue Sox bats were just adequate with a .252 BA (22nd) and 155 home runs (9th) and were led by RF Ted Karno with 27 homers, 90 RBIs, 89 scores, while putting up a .264 BA... 2B Loren Babcock had 20 homers, 84 RBIs and scored 99 runs, CF Rick Hilliard hit .313 with 18 roundtrippers, 68 RBIs and 89 runs and LF Vic Gelder added a .283 BA, 22 home runs and 77 runs batted in. None of the other three teams are considered in the running for the Pro Cup. But looking back over the years, many times the experts overlooked the eventual Island champion... the baseball experts do not have a good batting average in picking the Pro Cup winners. Ozarka won the TU East in a tough struggle with Tuckanarra by three games... Joe Mac Carney's Ozarka Naturals (88-66) are a well-rounded ball club with a .264 team BA (10th) with a 135 roundtrippers (19th), very good pitching with a 3.42 ERA (4th) and solid fielding with a .975 FA... the Nats offense is paced by LF Vic Weinstein (.306/20/93/100), 2B Gil Lantz (.301/11/73/63), SS Nathan Ferrell (.266/24/95/80) and 3B Todd Chadwick (.258/25/91/113)... Carney has a fine starting rotation consisting of Emile Leduc (23-12 2.87), Tyrus Yokum (21-11 2.94), Philip Britt (17-12 3.42) and Karl Kleinert (17-11 3.92). McGraw Johnson finally won the RU South after the Waleska Westerners (85-69) finished third the past two seasons... Johnson has fashioned a fine club with solid pitching and excellent hitting... They posted a 3.55 team ERA (5th) and hit .267 (7th) with 135 home runs (16th)... Waleska has a rock-solid line-up with good players in each of the eight spots, sparked by RF Kippy Doyle with 26 homers and 103 RBIs, CF Harold Setser with a .325 batting average, 22 homers and 98 RBIs, LF Johnny Stratton with 14 roundtrippers, 14 home runs, 91 RBIs and a .301 BA, 3B Grant Betzer with a .318 BA and 111 runs and 1B Nat Mayakovsky with 16 homers, 89 RBIs and a .291 average... on the hill Johnson has some talent, too... Waleska starters are Wilson Whitmore (18-13 2.87), Ken Vakos (14-7 3.47), Lenny Milazzo (13-10 3.36) and Sammy Grimaldi (8-5 3.06). The Sugar Valley Rattlers (88-66) made the biggest turnaround in the RU East in 2010 as Gibby Bobkins' boys rose up from seventh place the previous season...the Rattlers were a good blend of offense and pitching and excellent on defense with a .981 fielding percentage, tops in the league... rookie Neil Howell (17-10 3.19), Jay Washington (19-16 3.60) and Connie Ehrlichmann (18-13 led the pitching corps... with a lot of help from closer Nickie Lynn (7-7 2.49), who registerd 30 saves... After a poor first half, Charles Darby (16-11 4.44) surged in the second half with an 11-6 record that really helped make the difference... Sugar Valley bats were sufficient with C Hal Stevenson (.276/28/100/87), CF Austen Conover (.293/4/78/94) and 2B Vic Chatelain (.301/2/78/71)... 1B Val Schlagel also contributed 22 homers, scored 93 times and hit at a .293 clip. The Islandian Times Saturday, October 9, 2010 2010 Pro Cup Begins Tomorrow, Favored Colfax Hosts Turon Three weeks ago the Islandian Pro Alliance playoffs started with the eight best teams in the Islands. That number has now dwindled down to just two. The Colfax Blasters will represent the Ruthlandian Union and the Turon Typhoons will be the Tycobbian Union standard bearer. The Blasters with Clem Rogers at the helm won a record-setting 107 games during the regular season and will be a solid favorite to take this year's Pro Cup, but will have to beat a team that has won more Pro Cups than anyone. Turon is the defending IPA champions and has won three titles in all. Whitey Richburn's Typhoons also won in 2003 and 2006. Turon has made five appearances in the postseason in its nine-year history. They were eliminated in the opening round in 2002 and 2008. This is the Blasters fourth time in the playoffs. They were knocked out in first round action in 2003 and 2008. Last year they reached the Final 4, but lost to Far Mountain. Colfax wound up 107-47 this year and broke the old IPA record of 102 victories set by San Alejo of the Tycobbian South in 2002. Turon was only 80-74 this year, but eliminated Blue Lake (92-62) and powerful Denton City (100-54) to get to the final round. The Typhoons suffered a major loss when rookie 20-game winner Nicky Engstrom was lost for the season in September due to an arm injury. His 20-7 record will be sorely missed by Richburn... In a poll by The Islandian Times, Denton City and Colfax were picked 1-2 to win the Pro Cup. Turon came in fourth in the survey, mainly because they have won it so many times. Rogers has a super starting rotation, headed up by two 27-game winners. Ilya Szabo was 27-4 with a brilliant 1.79 ERA and Jimmy Joe Cartner matched it at 27-4 with a fine 2.86 ERA. Number three in the starters is no slouch, either. Jasper LaForge chalked up a strong 19-10 mark with a fine 3.35 ERA. Turon's starters can't equal those regular season numbers. Richburn's best was Freddi Spiegel with a 21-10 record and a 3.36 ERA, followed by Anthony Nardone (14-20 3.77) and Jacques Lemaire, who was only 10-9 with an atronomical 4.57 ERA. However in the postseason the comparison is not as bad. Szabo (4-1 1.35) has been even better in the playoffs, while Cartner (1-1 3.10) and LaForge (1-1 3.24) have delivered quality starts. Both Nardone (2-1 3.15) and Lemaire (2-2 0.75) have stepped it up a bit, while Spiegel (2-1 5.17) has struggled at times. Give Colfax a decided edge in starting pitching. In the Blaster bullpen the veteran Dallas Somerville (7-8 2.01) had 26 saves during the year and has two saves in the postseason. Somerville hasn't allowed run in five games. Colfax rookie reliever Merle Studebaker (0-3 2.36) racked up 24 saves in the regular season. Studebaker has one save and a 3.18 ERA in the playoffs. Advantage to Colfax. Based on regular season stats Colfax is a much better hitting team with a .276 batting average with 144 home runs, while Turon countered with a .254 BA and 122 roundtrippers. Pretty much the same in the postseason. The Blasters have hit at a .280 clip with the Typhoons sporting a .238 average. Power is about even with Turon having a slight 8-6 edge in roundtrippers. CF Ryan Raines (.293/28/122/108) and LF Paul Coniglio (.290/30/104/99) are the prime movers in the Colfax line-up. At the plate the Typhoons depend on CF Mac McCurnan (.279/23/85/87), 1B Johnny Carlucci (.274/27/89/71) and 2B Alan Hansen (.295/0/28/103). The offensive edge goes to Colfax by a wide margin. Defensively Colfax is vastly superior with a .976 fielding average to only .971 for Turon. The vast majority of the Island baseball prognosticators are predicting a Colfax victory in the 2010 IPA Pro Cup finals. It looks like the Blasters will be victorious in six games. Too much pitching for the weak-hitting Typhoons to handle. The Islandian Times Sunday, October 10, 2010 2010 IPA Pro Cup Finals: Game One at Mountain View Stadium in Colfax Colfax Nips Turon 2-1 in 10, Coniglio Homers Twice What a game LF Paul Coniglio had in the opening game of the 2010 Pro Cup finals at Colfax's Mountain View Stadium... Coniglio (.250) homered in the seventh to tie the score at 1-1 and then sent the hometown fans home happy with a game-winning smash in the 10th... Colfax closer Dallas Somerville (1-0 0.00) got the victory with one scoreless inning, while his counterpart Merle Studebaker (0-1 4.77) only made one pitch in the game and Coniglio sent it soaring to hang the loss on Studebaker... Coniglio has hit five out of the park in the playoffs this year... The teams matched goose eggs on the scoreboard until the top of the sixth... Back-to-back errors put runners on first and third for the Typhoons... after an intentional walk to load the bases, 3B John Cottrell (.268) delivered a sacrifice fly to break up the scoreless game between Jim Joe Cartner of the Blasters and Jacques Lemaire of Turon... Both of them went nine innings with Cartner (1-1 2.15) holding the Typhoons to just two hits and no earned runs with five Ks... Lemaire (2-2 0.82) was on the mark, too, with five strikeouts, no walks and only three hits... there were only seven hits in the extremely well-pitched contest with Colfax getting four of the them... Turon played errorless ball, while Colfax committed two miscues. The Islandian Times Monday, October 11, 2010 2010 IPA Pro Cup Finals: Game Two at Mountain View Stadium in Colfax Colfax Wins Squeaker 4-3, Up 2-0 in Pro Cup The Colfax Blasters won another squeaker 4-3 over Turon to take a two games to none lead in the IPA Pro Cup Finals... it was another low-scoring affair with the hurlers having their way with the hitters... The winner Jasper LaForge fired eight strong innings and limited the Typhoons to just one run on four hits with five strikeouts and only two bases on ball... LaForge left the mound with 4-1 lead, but then closer Dallas Somerville (1-0 2.45) almost blew as he was tagged for two runs in the top of the ninth and finally escaped with his third postseason save... Colfax only got four hits off loser Freddi Spiegel (2-2 5.03), while Turon collected just six hits... The Typhoons broke on top 1-0 in the top of the third on CF Mac McCurnan's (.228) RBI single, only to have the Blasters regain it on RF Karl Heidelberg's (.560) two-run homer in the bottom half of the inning... Colfax tacked on a run in the fourth when LF Paul Coniglio (.268) doubled, moved over to third on a ground-out and rode home on 3B Mike Janocko's (.283) fly ball... The Blasters got their final run in the eighth on a fielder's choice by SS Bob Klostermann (.226)... Turon made it very close in the top of the ninth when Somerville loaded the bases on a single and two walks... The Typhoons got two runs on back-to-back sac flies by pitchhitters Jimmy Tremayne (.421) and PH Bobo Dyess (.100)... The losing pitcher Freddi Spiegel went the route, fanned four and walked four in a lackluster outing. The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 12, 2010 2010 IPA Pro Cup Finals: Game Three at Typhoon Stadium in Turon Turon Tops Szabo and Blasters 4-3, Now Trail By 1 In an almost do-or-die situation at home at Typhoon Stadium, Turon got back in the Pro Cup battle with a 4-3 triumph over the Colfax Blasters to cut their lead to two games to one in the best-of-seven series... To do it they had to beat one of the best pitchers in the IPA, Ilya Szabo... The Typhoons lit into the Colfax ace for three runs in the opening frame on an RBI double by CF Mac McCurnan (.246) and a two-run two-bagger by 3B John Cottrell (.271)... Colfax SS Bob Klostermann (.265) made it 3-1 with an RBI single in the top of the third... Szabo allowed another run in the Turon fourth when he misplayed a grounder for an error... LF Paul Coniglio (.267) narrowed the score to 4-2 in the fifth when he doubled in RF Karl Heidelberg (.500)... In the eighth CF Ryan Raines' (.231) solo homer chopped it to 4-3, but that was as close as Colfax could get... Closer Merle Studebaker pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to seal the decision for starter Anthony Nardone (3-1 3.19)... Nardone has been Whitey Richburn's most reliable starter in the postseason... his only loss was 2-1 to the Denton City Redbirds... Nardone worked eight innings, scattered eight hits and gave up three runs, but was shaky at times with six bases on balls... Turon pelted Szabo for 11 hits and was paced by Cottrell with two doubles, three hits by SS Mickey O'Malley (.328) and McCurnan with a pair of hits... Klostermann led the Blasters with two hits in three at-bats... In defeat, Szabo (4-2 1.69) struck out eight batters and issued three walks, while pitching a complete game. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 13, 2010 2010 IPA Pro Cup Finals: Game Four at Typhoon Stadium in Turon Turon Ties Pro Cup Up, Takes Colfax 5-3 The Turon Typhoons dropped the first two games of the IPA Pro Cup Series on the road, but have rebounded at home with two wins of their own to tie it at two games apiece... Jacques Lamaire (3-2 1.10) led the way at Typhoon Stadium with a standout eight-inning performance to trim Colfax 5-3 in game four of the best-of-seven series... Lemaire struck out 8, walked one and limited the Blasters to six hits, then gave way to closer Merle Studebaker with a 5-2 lead... Studebaker (0-1 4.70) staggered to his third playoff save when he was touched for a run before putting Colfax away... The Typhoons got the lead in the second inning on C Pete Kilgour's RBI double... Doubles by Colfax 2B Ilya Ivanchuk (.259) and RF Paul Coniglio (.266) evened it up at 1-1 in the third frame and 3B Mike Janocko (.302) put them ahead 2-1 with a homer in the fourth... Turon tied it in the 6th on RF Jack Brown's (.229) RBI single... An infield error and 2B Alan Hansen's (.207) two-bagger gave the Typhoons a 3-2 margin in the seventh... Turon increased it to 5-2 in the eighth on another infield error by the Blasters and Brown's RBI double and pinchhitter Raphael Semmes (.211) RBI single... Colfax wrapped up the scoring for the day with a run in the ninth on 1B Josh Jackson's (.185) sacrifice fly... Jimmy Joe Cartner (1-2 2.41) went the distance in defeat, allowed three earned runs on eight hits, fanned five and issued four free passes... Colfax was hampered by three errors... Hits were all even with each team collecting eight... Brown topped Turon with two hits and two runs batted in... SS Kevin Warren (.207) had three hits for Colfax and Janocko added two more. The Islandian Times Thursday, October 14, 2010 2010 IPA Pro Cup Finals: Game Five at Typhoon Stadium in Turon Turon Bombs Colfax 9-2, Leads Pro Cup 3-2 Turon playing in the friendly confines of Typhoon Stadium bombed Colfax 9-2 and now has the upper hand in the Pro Cup Finals with a three games to two lead... It was the Typhoons third consecutive home victory... Not only did Freddi Spiegel come up with his best postseason effort, but manager Whitey Richburn's bats were booming, too... The Typhoons lashed out 13 hits and Spiegel held Colfax to just four in an easy win... 1B Johnny Carducci (.238) homered with three hits, scored three times and drove in four runs... Rookie RF Jack Brown (.245) cracked a pair of hits and batted in two runs... and Spiegel (3-2 4.47) hurled a complete game and finished up with 8 Ks and four walks... Jasper LaForge (2-2 4.29) took the brunt of the battering as he allowed seven runs in two-plus innings... Turon broke a 1-1 tie in the third with a six-run uprising... The Pro Cup Series will now return to Colfax and Mountain View Stadium for the rest of the series... Turon needs one win in two games, while Colfax has to win them all... manager Clem Rogers has his 27-game winners Ilya Szabo (27-4) and Jimmy Joe Cartner (27-4) ready to go in the last two games... Turon's skipper Ashton "Whitey" Richburn will counter with Anthony Nardone (14-20) and Jacques Lemaire (10-9)... Should Turon pull off the upset of favored Colfax, it will the Typhoons fourth Pro Cup championship... Should the Blasters rally and win, it will be their first IPA title... Colfax is 7-1 at home in the postseason, while Turon is 4-4 in away games. The Islandian Times Friday, October 15, 2010 2010 IPA Pro Cup Finals: Game Six at Mountain View Stadium in Colfax Szabo Zaps Turon 5-0, Pro Cup Goes To 7th Game Colfax was on the brink of elimination in the Pro Cup Series and needed a win in the worst way and got it, compliments of its ace right-hander Ilya Szabo... The 31-year-old Szabo zapped the Turon Typhoons 5-0 to force a seventh and deciding game tomorrow afternoon in Colfax... Szabo (5-2 1.42) was almost flawless as he permitted only five singles, struck out six and gave up not one single base on balls in a masterful performance... Turon was not so fortunate as losing pitcher Anthony Nardone (3-2 3.65) continued to be plagued by wildness with eight walks... Nardone worked seven innings, gave up only four hits, but allowed all five scores... The game was scoreless for three frames when the Blasters erupted for four runs... Nardone walked four in the inning and forced in the first run of the game when he walked 2B Ilya Ivanchuk (.250) with two outs... then C Tino Leonetti (.225) emptied the bases with a three-run double... Colfax got its final run in the seventh when Leonetti got his second double of the game, went to third on a sac bunt and scored on a wild pitch... Tomorrow's Pro Cup finale will have 27-winner Jimmy Joe Cartner going for the Blasters and Jacques Lemaire (10-9) for the Typhoons... However in the postseason Lemaire has excelled with a 3-2 mark and a very strong 1.10 ERA... Lemaire has started four games and relieved three times... Cartner has made five starts with a 2.41 ERA and a 1-2 record. The Islandian Times Saturday, October 16, 2010 2010 IPA Pro Cup Finals: Game Seven at Mountain View Stadium in Colfax Colfax Trounces Turon 10-2, Wins Pro Cup The Colfax Blasters rallied to win the last two games of the Pro Cup Series to defeat the tough Turon Typhoons in seven games... Colfax trounced the Typhoons 10-2 in the 2010 championship finale, sparked by a 13-hit barrage and some fine pitching by Jimmy Joe Cartner... The Blasters power erupted with three roundtrippers... RF Paul Coniglio (.260) slammed a three-run homer in the opening inning, Cartner (.308) even hit a two-run shot in the fourth frame and LF Karl Heidelberg (.436) belted a two-run homer in the fifth... Coniglio paced all hitters with three hits and four RBIs... Heidelberg smacked a pair of hits and scored three times... Cartner (2-2 2.33) gave up 10 hits, but held Turon at bay with men on base... The Typhoons stranded 11 runners... Cartner walked three and whiffed seven, while going the distance... Jacques Lemaire (3-3 2.62) had a dismal day on the hill and caught the loss... Lemaire was ripped for eight runs in three-plus innings... He went to the showers trailing 8-0... This was Colfax's first IPA Pro Cup championship... Turon failed to get its fourth crown. Colfax manager Clem Rogers was elated with the Pro Cup and gave high praise to his team's comeback after trailing 3 games to 2, "Szabo and Cartner really came through for us in the final two games... plus our bats finally came alive." Later on Rogers complimented the Turon Typhoons, "Whitey's team gave us fits... We had to play our best ball of the season to beat them... Thank goodness, we had the homefield advantage in the series... we needed it." Richburn said he was proud of his club, "They are a tremendous bunch of guys who never quit no matter what... this one really hurts though... it would have been our fourth Pro Cup... we just got beat by a very fine team... Colfax deserved it... they gave us no chance in game six and game seven." The Islandian Times Sunday, October 17, 2010 Colfax's Szabo Hauls in Pro Cup MVP Trophy Every time the Pro Cup champion Colfax Blasters needed a critical victory in the IPA Pro Cup playoffs, Ilya Szabo stood tall on the hill and came through for them. Szabo is this year's winner of the Pro Cup Most Valuable Player Award. He racked up a 5-2 record in 7 starts with a superlative 1.42 ERA. Szabo fired two shutouts in the postseason, including a 1-hitter. The 31-year-old right-hander beat Turon in game six of the finals to tie the series at 3-3, won games four and seven in the Final 4 against Waleska and notched victories in game one and game four over Sugar Valley in first round games. Szabo was 27-4 during the regular season and led the entire IPA with a sensational 1.79 ERA. Teammates Paul Coniglio and Karl Heidelberg were second and third in the BNN balloting. Left fielder Coniglio was a vital bat in the Colfax arsenal with 6 homers and 13 runs batted in. Coniglio scored 12 times and hit .260 in the playoffs and delivered several game-breaking hits. Heidelberg played in right field and led all comers with a .436 mark. He belted 3 roundtrippers, drove in 10 runs and scored 11 times. Coniglio hit .290 during the season with 30 homers and 104 RBIs, while Heidelberg batted .311 with 10 home runs, 90 runs scored and 50 RBIs. |
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YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Tuesday, September 27, 2011 2011 Ruthlandian Union Final 4 Series Colfax-FM In RU Finals, Rated Toss-Up The Colfax Blasters and the Far Mountain Redhawks are rated even in the Ruthlandian Final 4 Series by the baseball prognosticators. Both Alex Groveland of Far Mountain and Clem Rogers of Colfax have solid ballclubs. During the regular season the Blasters had a slim 3-2 advantage in games. In the playoffs the Redhawks had the easier path with a surprising sweep of the Claxton Diamonds, while Colfax fought for their lives with a 4 games to 3 decision over the Sugar Valley Rattlers. Offensively Groveland's group has a slight edge. On the hill Rogers' rotation and relievers were the best in the IPA with a brilliant 2.86 team ERA. However, Far Mountain can match Colfax pitcher for pitcher in starters. Groveland has three outstanding hurlers in Boomerang Hines (22-12 2.85), Robby Kelly (12-7 2.76) and Leroy Hill (18-18 2.62). All three are 10-year veterans with over 150 lifetime wins each. Rogers has a strong staff, too, headed up by Ilya Szabo (19-11 1.95), Jimmy Joe Cartner (23-13 3.25) and Jasper LaForge (20-14 3.25). Things are pretty even in the bullpen as well. Both Far Mountain's closer Erich Dumont (5-6 1.42) and Colfax's main reliever Dallas Somerville (5-5 1.99) excelled in 2011. Somerville had 32 saves to Dumont's 28. On paper Redhawks hitters 3B Duane Parsons (.273/22/103/87), SS Don Nichols (.287/12/81/109), C Otis Ott (.271/25/91/77) and CF Xavier Sosa (.273/17/77/91) seem to have an edge over the Blasters LF Paul Coniglio (.311/27/109/95) and CF Ryan Raines (.281/25/74/93). On defense, the experts rate Far Mountain a little better than Colfax. The Redhawks had a .975 FA this year to .972 for the Blasters. Game 1 in the RU Final 4 Series is tomorrow. Colfax will host Far Mountain at Mountain View Stadium. It will be Jimmy Joe Cartner on the hill for the Blasters, opposed by Boomerang Hines for the Redhawks. 2011 Tycobbian Union Final 4 Series Frogs Get Nod Over Nats in TU Final 4 Both the Fairfax Frogs and Ozarka Naturals knocked off powerful opponents in first-round action. The Frogs squirmed past talented Turon in 7 games, while Ozarka stunned heavily-favored Denton City with a startling sweep. Island baseball analysts have chosen Fairfax in the Tycobbian Final 4 because of its superior pitching and hitting. No one is giving the Nats much of a chance. However, no one gave them a chance in the Elite 8 Series against the DC Redbirds. In head-to-head action during the regular season the Frogs won 3 of the 5 games. Frog manager Harry Buckley is blessed with a talented pitching corps. Wally Tidwell (22-10 2.74), Joe Hampton (21-8 2.95) and Ken Hill (17-12 3.16) really shined this year as starters. Joe Mac Carney's mound staff is not as strong. Ozarka's starting threesome are Tyrus Yokum (21-10 3.76), rookie Eddie Roberts (18-9 3.51) and Emile Leduc (13-12 3.52). The Naturals have the edge in the bullpen with Billy Krsnich (3-2 2.49), who moved into the closer role late in the season. Fairfax uses Gino Carmazzo (14-16 4.47) as its finisher. Carmazzo started most of the season, but has been superb with 4 saves in the postseason. He has yet to surrender a run in the playoffs. Both ballclubs can score with Fairfax sporting more home run power. One of the premier IPA hitters paces the Frogs. LF Dane Wesner had another great season and almost won his second Triple Crown award. Wesner batted .342 with 47 homers, 127 RBIs and 104 runs scored. He also got substantial support from 1B Chancey Quibedeaux (.280/23/74/130) and SS Wes Hickox (.278/25/104/81). But Carney can put a productive batting order together, too. Ozarka boasts a gifted 3B Todd Chadwick, who had outstanding numbers with a .323 batting average, 29 roundtrippers, 126 RBIs and 116 runs during the season. The Nats LF Vic Weinstein (.315/93/82) and SS Nathan Ferrell (.300/18/81/92) had some punch in their bats, too. Defensively Fairfax and Ozarka are strong with .978 FA and .977 fielding percentages respectively. The opening game of the TU Final 4 is tomorrow afternoon at the Frog Pond in Fairfax. The Frogs Tidwell and the Naturals Yokum will have mound honors. The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 4, 2011 FM Redhawks Pro Cup XI Favorites Over Ozarka Nats Both Far Mountain and Ozarka have breezed through the playoffs thus far. The Redhawks are 8-1 in the postseason and the Naturals are almost as good at 8-2. The baseball analysts have pinned the favorite label on Far Mountain in Pro Cup XI, citing much stronger pitching, both starting and relieving. Manager Alex Groveland has three solid veterans in Boomerang Hines (22-12 2.85), Robby Kelly (12-7 2.76) and Leroy Hill (18-18 2.62). Joe Mac Carney's starters can't compare to that threesome. Ozarka has Tyrus Yokum (21-10 3.76) and standout rookie Eddie Roberts (18-9 3.51), but he needs help from Emile Leduc (13-12 3.52). Leduc had struggled in the postseason so far with a 1-1 mark and a poor 6.75 ERA. Carney has decided to put Phillip Britt (14-15 3.58) in the number 3 slot. In the playoffs Far Mountain has had tremendous pitching with a 1.85 team ERA. Hines is 3-0 with a microscopic 0.73 ERA, Kelly is 2-0 and 2.65 and Hill is 1-0 and 4.26. The Redhawks relief corps of Erich Dumont (0-0 0.00), Hummer Romig (1-0 0.00) and Milos Annensky (1-1 2.09) has only given up one earned run in 14 innings, a 0.63 ERA with 3 saves. By contrast Ozarka's starters will carry a 4.20 ERA into the finals and the bullpen has posted a 3.32 ERA. Roberts has been solid with a 3-0 record and a 3.13 ERA, Yokum is 3-1 with a 3.94 ERA and Leduc (1-1) has been disappointing with a sky-high 6.75 ERA. Closer Billy Krsnich has been super with 4 saves in 6 appearances and has not been scored upon. Neither has Abe Lemon (0-0 0.00) in 4 games. Both offenses can put runs on the scoreboard. As a team Far Mountain is batting .313 in the postseason, while Ozarka is hitting at a .292 clip. They are even in homers with 7 apiece. The Redhawks are led by LF Phil Stewart with a .472 mark, RF Lucky Collins at .394, 2B Ken Wasik with a .379 average, SS Don Nichols with .326 and CF Xavier Sosa is hitting for a .308 average. Collins is the top RBI man with 11 with Wasik, Nichols and Sosa having 7 each. Stewart tops the team with 8 runs scored. The Nats are sparked at the plate by LF Vic Weinstein with a .385 batting average and 11 runs scored, RF Chris Pruitt hitting .382 with 11 RBIs and 8 runs, SS Nathan Ferrell at .378 and has scored 10 times and 1B Al Wesner sports a .303 average with 8 RBIs. The old adage applies according the BNN prognosticators. Good pitching will beat good hitting. This year's Pro Cup Finals will give us the answer in about a week. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 5, 2011 2011 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 1 at Ozarka FM Trims Ozarka 4-2 In Pro Cup Opener, Kelly Wins Well, the experts were right in the opening game of the IPA Pro Cup Finals - good pitching beats good hitting... Robby Kelly (3-0 2.08) fired another strong game and beat Ozarka 4-2 at Ellie Ewing Field... He held the Nats to just 6 hits, struck out 2, walked 3 and allowed only one earned run... Kelly outpitched Tyrus Yokum (3-2 3.96), who was plagued by wildness... Yokum also went the route, permitted just 6 hits, but walked 8 batters... Ozarka opened up the scoring in the last of the second on Yokum's (.308) RBI double that drove in 1B Al Wesner (.270)... Wesner had gotten aboard on an infield error... Far Mountain tied it in the fourth on 2B Keith Wasik's sacrifice fly... The Redhawks added single runs in the fifth when SS Don Nichols' grounded into a double play and in the sixth when C Otis Ott solo homered to go ahead 3-1... Nats CF Rick McLeod (.286) doubled in the seventh and scored on 2B Gil Lantz's (.273) base hit... This made it a 3-2 game... In the ninth Far Mountain stretched it to 4-2 on LF Phil Stewart's (.462) two-bagger and Nichols' (.326) RBI single. The Islandian Times Thursday, October 6, 2011 2011 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 2 at Ozarka Ozarka Edges FM 2-1, Rookie Roberts Evens Series Game 2 in the Pro Cup Finals was a classic pitching duel with the rookie getting the best of the old pro... Ozarka's Eddie Roberts, a 22-year-old southpaw, tossed a masterpiece in edging Far Mountain's 35-year-old Boomerang Hines 2-1 to even up the series at one game apiece... The Naturals finally broke a scoreless tie in the last of the 8th on 2B Gil Lantz's (.271) two-run double... The Redhawks threatened in the top of the 9th against closer Billy Krsnich... With one away SS Don Nichols tripled (.320) and scored on 3B Duane Parsons' (.174) ground-out to cut the lead to 2-1... After C Otis Ott (.256) singled, Krsnich retired CF Xavier Sosa (.289) for the third out to wrap up the victory... Roberts (4-0 2.32) registered his 4th postseason win by holding Far Mountain to just 3 hits in 8 innings, while fanning 9 and walking none in a brilliant performance... Krsnich (0-0 1.42) chalked up a shaky save, his 5th in the playoffs this year... Hines (3-1 1.00) was also outstanding in defeat, his first of the postseason... Hines worked a complete game, allowed only 4 hits, struck out 4 and gave up 2 bases on balls... With a split of the two games in Ozarka, the Pro Cup Series will now switch to Far Mountain for the next 3 games. The Islandian Times Friday, October 7, 2011 2011 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 3 at Far Mountain Nats Nudge Redhawks 8-7 in 11, Now Lead Series The never-say-die Ozarka Naturals pulled out a dramatic comeback with an 8-7 triumph on the road over Far Mountain at Sky High Stadium to take the lead in the Pro Cup Series two-games-to-one... Trailing 7-4, the Nats battled back to tie the score at 7-all in the top of the 8th, then they won it in the 11th inning when LF Vic Weinstein tripled off Milos Annensky and scored on pinchhitter Lenny Payne's (.000) sac fly... Annensky (1-2 2.84) was the losing pitcher... He permitted 1 run and only 1 hit in his two innings... Taking the win was closer Billy Krsnich (1-0 1.08), who held Far Mountain without a run in the 9th and 10th frames... Emile Leduc (1-1 6.16) notched the save for Ozarka, although the Redhawks first two batters to face him got hits... pinchhitter Kelly Baxes (.500) doubled and SS Don Nichols (.327) singled him to third... Then SS Nathan Ferrell saved the game with a sensational double play... Leduc got the final out of the game when he induced the dangerous Otis Ott to ground out and end the game... The tying run was left stranded at third base. After dominating pitching in the first two games, the bats came alive today with 21 hits in all, 12 for Far Mountain and 9 for the Naturals... Ferrell (.313) and Weinstein (.340) homered for the winners... Ferrell tied the game at 4-4 with a 2-run clout in the sixth, while Weinstein (.340) belted a 3-run job in the 8th to deadlock it 7-7 and send it to overtime... Weinstein led the Nats with 4 RBIs... Redhawk CF Xavier Sosa (.306) went deep twice and drove in 4 runs... C Ott (.277) also drilled a solo roundtripper and had 2 runs batted in. Game 1 starters will go at it once again in game 4... It will be Robby Kelly for Far Mountain and Tyrus Yokum for Ozarka... Kelly won that one 4-2... Kelly was 12-7 with a 2.76 ERA in the regular season, while Yokum was 21-10 with a 3.76 ERA... in the postseason Kelly has been terrific with a 3-0 mark and a 2.08 ERA... Yokum is 3-2 with a 3.96 ERA. Ozarka is unbeaten on the road in the postseason with 6 successive victories... Games 4 and 5 will be at Sky High Stadium in Far Mountain, where the Redhawks are 5-1... they are 4-2 out of town... The Naturals are only 4-3 when they play at home at Ellie Ewing Stadium. The Islandian Times Saturday, October 8, 2011 2011 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 4 at Far Mountain Ozarka Crushes FM 10-3, Close To Pro Cup Title The surprising Ozarka Naturals did it again... They crushed Far Mountain 10-3 in game 4 of the IPA Pro Cup Series and are now the odds-on favorite to take the Island baseball crown... Ozarka has won all 7 of its road games in the playoffs... The Nats now are in the driver's seat with a 3 games to 1 lead in the best-of-seven series... One more win and Joe Mac Carney and his crew will be the 2011 IPA champions... Ozarka pounded out 12 hits off 3 Redhawk pitchers, led by LF Vic Weinstein (.364) with 3 hits, including two doubles and a home run... Weinstein scored 3 times and batted in 4 runs, giving him 12 for the postseason... SS Nathan Ferrell (.340) also delivered 3 hits, scored three runs and drove in one... and 1B Al Wesner (.255) chipped in two RBIs... Carney needed a good game from Tyrus Yokum and he got it... Yokum (4-2 3.40) only surrendered one earned run and hurled a complete game... He was touched for 9 hits, fanned 3 and walked 4... Robby Kelly (3-1 3.24) was hit hard and lost for the first time in this year's playoffs... The Nats battered Kelly for 7 runs and 8 hits in 7-plus innings... Ozarka took charge of the game in the fourth with 4 runs... They led 4-2 after 4 and really went to work with one run in the seventh, 3 in the eighth and 2 more in the ninth. The Islandian Times Sunday, October 9, 2011 2011 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 5 at Far Mountain Pro Cup Ain't Over Yet, Redhawks Rout Nats 14-4 There's still a lot of life in the Far Mountain Redhawks, who stepped up to the plate and routed Ozarka 14-4 in game 5 of the Pro Cup Series to stave off elimination in the best-of-seven series... Alex Groveland's Redhawks now trail 3 games to 2 and will have to go on the road to come back and win it... It was Ozarka's first loss in 8 away games this postseason... Far Mountain cracked 16 hits in the win and were sparked by CF Xavier Sosa (.328) with 5 RBIs, 3B Duane Parsons (.254) with 3 and 1B Fran Grzanka (.265) with a pair of runs batted in... Grzanka hit a two-run blast to give the Redhawks a 3-2 lead in the second frame... Sosa's grand slam highlighted an 8-run fourth... Boomerang Hines (4-1 1.17) breezed to the victory, permitting 4 runs and 5 hits... Ozarka's superb rookie Eddie Roberts (4-1 4.41) had a terrible day and was pelted for 9 runs and 10 hits and was sent to the showers in the fourth. In 2009 Far Mountain piled up a 3-0 lead in the Pro Cup Finals and lost it to the Turon Typhoons, who staged a tremendous comeback and won 4 in a row to take the trophy... The Redhawks know it's possible for a team to come back and win... They just hope it's them this year. The Islandian Times Monday, October 10, 2011 2011 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 6 at Ozarka Pro Cup Tied 3-3, FM Redhawks Rip Ozarka 17-1 The Pro Cup Finals is all knotted up at 3 games apiece... Far Mountain ripped Ozarka for the second day in a row, forcing a 7th and deciding game tomorrow afternoon... The Redhawks went on a 6-homer and 17-hit rampage and walloped the Naturals 17-1 in game 6 at Ellie Ewing Stadium in Ozarka... CF Xavier Sosa, RF Hank Burleigh and 3B Duane Parsons all slammed two home runs each to totally trounce Ozarka... Burleigh (.333) batted in 5 runs, Sosa (.355) had 4 RBIs and Parsons (.266) drove in 3 in the runaway win... The Redhawks Leroy Hill (2-0 4.29) fired a fine game as he stopped the Nats on one run and 7 hits, while fanning 7 and walking none... The loss went to surprise starter Rene Gautier (1-1 6.14), who was ripped for 9 runs in 2-plus innings... Manager Joe Mac Carney is still looking for a number 3 starter and gave Gautier a shot at it and he failed miserably... Far Mountain piled up a 10-0 lead after the first three frames and never looked back. Robby Kelly (3-1 3.24) will get the call for Far Mountain tomorrow afternoon and Tyrus Yokum (4-2 3.40) will be on the mound for Ozarka. This will be the third time they have faced each other in the series... Kelly won game one 4-2, while Yokum was the winner in game four 10-3. During the regular campaign Kelly was 12-7 with a 2.76 ERA and Yokum was 21-10 with a 3.76 ERA. The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 11, 2011 Attachment 858166 FM Pro Cup Champs, Nips Nats 7-6 in 11 Innings The IPA Pro Cup champions for 2011 are the Far Mountain Redhawks, who made an unbelievable comeback... Down 3 games to 1 to Ozarka after 4 games the Redhawks won the final 3 games of the series to cop the crown for the first time in club history... Far Mountain triumphed 7-6 in a hard-fought, seesaw affair that went 11 innings... LF Phil Stewart (.382) got aboard on a botched grounder by SS Nathan Ferrell, was sacrificed to second by CF Xavier Sosa (.343) and he scampered home on 3B Duane Parsons (.290) game-winning single... Boomerang Hines (5-1 1.11) got the win with 2 and two-thirds scoreless innings of relief... Hines, normally a starter, was pressed into service after only 2 days' rest... Phillip Britt (0-1 4.91) was tagged with the loss even though the only run he gave up was not earned... Britt had come on in the top of the 11th... The Nats racked up 16 hits in defeat to 13 for the winners. Robby Kelly started for Far Mountain and Tyrus Yokum was on the hill for the Nats... Ozarka did well out of the gate with 2 runs in the first frame on RBI singles by RF Chris Pruitt (.270) and 1B Al Wesner (.276), but the Redhawks tied it up 2-all with single runs in the second and third... 1B Fran Grzanka (.263) doubled in a run and CF Sosa got the tying run in when he grounded into a double play... The Naturals regained the lead 3-2 in the last of the third when Wesner drove in another run with a base hit... Far Mountain rebounded with 3 runs in the sixth on C Otis Ott's (.295) solo homer and SP Kelly's (.200) 2-run single... That got rid of Yokum, who surrendered 5 runs and 7 hits in 6 innings, but two of them were unearned... In the top of the 8th the Redhawks added another run to go in front 6-3 on RF Lucky Collins' (.357) double, a Kelly sacrifice and a Stewart single... The Nats CF Rick McLeod (.333) narrowed the gap to 6-4 in the bottom half of the inning with an RBI single that plated LF Vic Weinstein (.373), who had a lead-off single and advanced to second on a ground-out and was sacrificed to third... Ozarka had to come up with two scores in the last of the ninth to stay alive and they did it with an RBI double by Ferrell and Wesner's single to force overtime. Stewart and Parsons had 3 hits each to led Far Mountain, while Ozarka was paced by Ferrell, Wesner and McLeod, all with 3 hits apiece... Wesner had 3 RBIs in the game. Accessing the series to the press Redhawk manager Alex Groveland stated, "Coming in it was supposed that the team that got the best pitching would be the winner... turned out the thing that won it for us was our hitting in the last three games." The Nats skipper Joe Mac Carney said, "Our pitching fell apart in the last three games... that was the decisive factor... we hit well enough to win it, if we had gotten better pitching." The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 12, 2011 Hines Acclaimed Pro Cup MVP In close balloting good pitching won out on good hitting to decide the IPA Pro Cup Most Valuable Player. Far Mountain's stylish southpaw Boomerang Hines led the Redhawks to their first Pro Cup title with a 5-1 record and a brilliant 1.11 ERA. Hines edged out teammates Xavier Sosa, Lucky Collins and Phil Stewart for the honor. Hines made 6 starts and had 5 complete games with 2 shutouts. His only loss came in a 2-1 decision. Hines also contributed a critical win in relief in the 7th game. He worked 2 and two-thirds scoreless innings in the 11-inning victory. CF Sosa had a marvelous postseason, too. He batted .343 with 6 homers, 20 RBIs and 12 runs scored. RF Lucky Collins hit .357 with 12 RBIs, 10 runs and 5 stolen bases and LF Stewart compiled a .382 batting average with 2 roundtrippers, 9 runs driven in and scored 16 times. Ozarka's fine LF Vic Weinstein was fifth in the vote. Weinstein had a .373 average with a pair of home runs, 13 RBIs and 18 runs in the playoffs. |
Please note the above logos for Far Mountain, the IPA and Ozarka were not done until quite a few years later... in 2007 (real life date) all we had in OOTP at this time was bare-bone basic logos... you can see the line score of Game 7 and see how sparse the graphics were... I think it was 2015 (real life time) that all of the great graphics designers did all 64 teams for me... I gave them specific instructions and details for most of them... it was an unbelievable project.
And do you know why I started the graphics project... because one of you viewers posted that the IPA Dynasty needed good logos, jerseys and graphics... I will have to try to find out who suggested this... he has my eternal thanks. knuckler did the Far Mountain logo, I did the IPA logo and Le Grange Orange did a super job on the Ozarka Naturals... he used an Ozarka bottled water logo for it. Thank goodness for the graphics gurus... they have made my IPA graphically beautiful here on the Dynasty Forum... and have truly made it wonderful to play out games. I can never thank the graphics designers enough. And a special thanks to the viewer who suggested the addition of graphics. |
EC, you didn't say who actually won in 2010 above here, it seems to me. And you don't evidently have logos currently posted for the two teams who were in that year's Pro Cup Finals, it seems, either. Perhaps you could put the logos for those two teams you have closest to the era of the IPA in question, if the team names were the same between the 2010 season and when you got the needed logos for them, if you didn't already have logos for them in relation to that season? Just a thought here, that's all. CD out.
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Thank you, CD... really appreciate you proofing my dynasty report... you are really good at catching my errors and mistakes.
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Hey, folks... go back to the YESTERDAY IN THE IPA 2010 season recap... I fixed it and posted all of the information about the 2010 postseason playoffs.
Scroll back a few posts...see post 8703. |
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Now if I could just be able to get back to working more on my various literary projects, especially Lighting Up the Darkness, for instance, that would be great. But I've largely been stuck on them for a while. I like doing graphics and all, at least a little, to be sure. But I'd still rather be writing and/or studying any number of things in the Bible more than doing graphics and all, I think, if and when possible and all, most definitely.
Hopefully, one day, Lord willing, in the near future, I'll actually be able to get LUtD done completely, one way or another, somehow, even when it comes to the final draft of it. But that doesn't appear likely to happen anytime in the next few months, at best, right now to me, unfortunately. I'll actually be thirty years out of high school in early June, but unless I get really inspired and all, there's probably no chance I'll finish LUtD's entire manuscript's first draft, at least, by then, I think. I was hoping to have the final draft done for the entire manuscript by then, but that's extremely unlikely now, to be honest. Glad I could help you out here, for sure, in any case. I'll try to keep a sharp eye out for any more potential accidental booboos, too, EC, so that they can be taken care of when needed, as best as I can, you know. But I also hope my eye isn't sharp enough to somehow cut anyone, so to speak, of course. Hahahahaha. CD out. |
24 of 64 team active rosters and reserve rosters have been updated.
Only... I repeat... only 40 mo' to go. |
Hope the Freemans do fairly well this next season in your IPA, EC. GC and AG are coming to the end of their respective careers very soon indeed, it seems, in jg2977's IPA. We now have begun seeing the second generation of Freemans play in his IPA along with a few new rivals of the Freemans in it, as well. And more Freemans and more rivals are likely to appear within the next 10 or so seasons for it, come to think of it. I'm really looking forwards to seeing what the next generation of Freemans can do in it, for sure. CD out.
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3 Attachment(s)
YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Wednesday, September 19, 2012 Pro Cup XII Begins Today, FM-Cape Coral Finals Forecast The Islandian Pro Alliance "Second Season" begins this afternoon at four sites around the Islands with the defending Pro Cup champions, the Far Mountain Redhawks, favored in the Ruthlandian Union, while the Cape Coral Hurricanes are picked to win the Tycobbian Union. Overall, the baseball experts are giving the nod to Far Mountain to take its second Pro Cup in a row. However, first they will have to go through some tough competition from Sligo and Belair Beach in the RU to get there. Cape Coral has the major task of knocking off last year's Pro Cup finalists, the Ozarka Naturals, who lost in a heartbreaking 7-game series with the Redhawks. The 2012 Pro Cup Elite 8 playoffs get underway today. In the Ruthlandian Union Far Mountain will be at home for the first two games against the Belair Beach Sunbirds and the powerful Sligo Rovers host the Cold Creek Catamounts. Over in the Tycobbian Union it will be the Cape Coral Hurricanes entertaining the North Hills Hawks in games one and two and the Arlon Champions traveling to Ozarka. The Islandian Times Wednesday, September 19, 2012 Far Mountain, Cape Coral Favorites In Pro Cup Playoffs The defending Pro Cup titleholders are forecast to reign supreme in Islands baseball once again. The Far Mountain Redhawks (96-58) of Ruthlandia won more games than anybody this season and are the number one choice to win it all in 2012. The Redhawks won it division by 12 games. The Cape Coral Hurricanes (90-64) posted the most victories in the Tycobbian Union and are the prime favorites represent that league in the Pro Cup finals. The Hurricanes had to subdue the Turon Typhoons to make the playoffs, edging them by just two games. Turon has been in the Pro Cup finals four times and has won it on three occasions. Both contenders have solid all-around ballclubs with strong pitching, good hitting and power, plus excellent defense. Alex Groveland has a talented team in Far Mountain. The Redhawks led the IPA with a phenomenal 2.88 team ERA, were second in the RU with a .272 batting average and did well in the scoring department with 742 runs (11th) and 125 homers (17th). Defensively they handled the gloves well with a fine .976 fielding average (3rd tied). Huggy Miller has some gifted players in Cape Coral, but not as strong on paper as Far Mountain. The Hurricanes have good pitching with a 3.43 ERA (7th), outstanding defense with a .977 FA (1st tied) and quality hitting. Cape Coral batted .258 (17th), scored 718 runs (11th) and showed adequate power with 142 homers (14th). Both clubs have quality relievers. Groveland's relief corps posted an impressive 3.10 ERA (5th), Miller's chalked up a very good 3.18 mark (8th). The Islandian Times Wednesday, September 19, 2012 The 2012 Pro Cup Playoffs By The Numbers The 2012 IPA Pro Cup will be won on the field, but it's still interesting to look at who is the best team on paper. --------------------------------------- *** Ruthlandian Union *** --------------------------------------- Far Mountain Redhawks (96-58) Batting: .272 BA (2nd) Scoring: 742 runs(11th) Power: 125 HR (17th) Team ERA: 2.88 (1st) Starters ERA: 2.85 (1st) Bullpen ERA: 3.10 (5th) Defense: .976 FA (3rd-Tied) Sligo Rovers (95-59) Batting: .270 BA (5th) Scoring: 790 runs (3rd) Power: 143 HR (12th) Team ERA: 3.18 (2nd) Starters ERA: 3.15 (2nd) Bullpen ERA: 3.34 (10th) Defense: .971 (23rd-Tied) Belair Beach Sunbirds (89-65) Batting: .263 BA (13th) Scoring: 742 runs (11th-Tied) Power: 163 HR (4th) Team ERA: 3.28 (3rd) Starters ERA: 3.24 (3rd) Bullpen ERA: 3.43 (11th) Defense: .976 FA (3rd-Tied) Cold Creek Catamounts (79-75) Batting: .252 BA (23rd) Scoring: 720 runs (16th) Power: 128 HR (16th) Team ERA: 3.77 (12th) Starters ERA: 3.60 (9th) Bullpen ERA: 4.52 (29th) Defense: .969 FA (29th-Tied) ----------------------------------- *** Tycobbian Union *** ----------------------------------- Cape Coral Hurricanes (90-64) Batting: .258 BA (17th) Scoring: 718 runs (11th) Power: 142 HR (14th) Team ERA: 3.43 (7th) Starters ERA: 3.47 (7th) Bullpen ERA: 3.18 (8th) Defense: .977 FA (2nd-Tied) North Hills Hawks (89-65) Batting: .246 BA (26th) Scoring: 645 runs (30th) Power: 90 HR (32nd) Team ERA: 3.40 (6th) Starters ERA: 3.40 (6th) Bullpen ERA: 3.40 (13th) Defense: .975 (11th-Tied) Ozarka Naturals (88-66) Batting: .272 BA (4th) Scoring: 796 (2nd) Power: 144 HR (12th) Team ERA: 3.69 (16th) Starters ERA: 3.84 (18th) Bullpen ERA: 3.10 (5th) Defense: .976 FA (4th-Tied) Arlon Champions (82-73) Batting: .249 BA (25th) Scoring: 683 (20th) Power: 143 HR (13th) Team ERA: 3.49 (8th) Starters ERA: 3.55 (11th) Bullpen ERA: 3.22 (9th) Defense: .976 (4th-Tied) The Islandian Times Sunday, September 30, 2012 Redhawks Favored In Pro Cup Series History has repeated itself, at least in the IPA. For the second year in a row it will be the Far Mountain Redhawks doing battle against the Ozarka Naturals for Islands professional baseball supremacy. This is the first time in the league's history this has happened. The Pro Cup Series begins tomorrow afternoon at Sky High Stadium in Far Mountain. Last year in an epic struggle the Redhawks had to win the last three games to capture the title. Most of the baseball experts have put the defending champs in the favorite's role, although Ozarka has a lot of supporters as well. The two clubs are fairly even in most categories. They both hit well for average and power and play good defense. The difference is in the pitching, where Far Mountain has the edge. Alex Groveland's Redhawk rotation compiled a strong 2.88 team ERA (1st), while Joe Mac Carney's Nats posted a 3.69 mark (16th). One huge thing in Ozarka's favor is that Far Mountain will not have 22-game winner and last year's Pro Cup MVP Boomerang Hines. He was lost in September with rotator cup issue. That could be the equalizer. Groveland will use Robby Kelly (18-8 3.19), Wayne Baxley (13-7 3.14) and rookie Woody Crawford (10-6 3.19) as his starting threesome with Erich Dumont (2-7 3.11) as his closer. Baxley is 3-0 with a 1.67 ERA in the postseason this year. Kelly is 3-1 with a 3.15 ERA and Crawford is 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA. Carney's starters will be Eddie Roberts (18-8 2.94), Emile Leduc (18-11 3.63) and Rene Gautier (5-5 3.99). Roberts is unbeaten in the playoffs with a 2-0 mark and a 1.74 ERA. Leduc is 1-1 with a 2.70 ERA and Gautier is 1-0 in one start with a 1.13 ERA. Gautier was inserted into the rotation when Billy Krsnich (12-16 3.77) was in effective in first round games with 7.82 ERA. Both managers break into big smiles when they talk about their hitters and they both are loaded with them. Far Mountain is led by SS Don Nichols (.302/17/99/97), C Otis Ott (.306/21/96/68), 3B Duane Parsons (.283/19/88/106), LF Phil Stewart (.306/7/62/91) and CF Xavier Sosa (.275/20/58/107). Ozarka's top batters are 3B Todd Chadwich (.320/22/95/122), LF Vic Weinstein (.325/16/86/116), SS Nathan Ferrell (.301/19/85/75), C Todd Pepper (.315/11/71/87) and 2B Gil Lantz (.314/19/65/81). Last year hitting decided the outcome. The forecast is more of the same this season. However, both skippers, Groveland and Carney, think the pitchers will make or break each club. The Islandian Times Monday, October 1, 2012 2012 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 1 Ozarka Outscores Far Mountain 10-7 In Pro Cup Opener The Ozarka Naturals and the Far Mountain Redhawks took up where they left off last year with another thrilling slugfest in this year's Pro Cup opening game at Sky High Stadium in Far Mountain. The Nats rallied from a 6-5 deficit with 5-late inning scores to overwhelm the Redhawks 10-7. They blasted 4 out of the park and collected a dozen hits. LF Vic Weinstein (.289) smashed 2 homers and 1B Al Wesner (.238) and PH Rick McLeod (.200) each got one to lead the winners. A 3-run eighth and a 2-run ninth sparked the victory. Far Mountain tried hard to stay in the game with 13 hits and led 6-5 after 7 innings. Redhawk CF Xavier Sosa (.457) had 3 hits, including his 4th playoff roundtripper. Neither starter was effective. Ozarka's Eddie Roberts (3-0 2.61) was ripped for 12 hits and 6 runs in 7 innings, but got the win anyway. Closer Luther Hatch (1-1 1.80) pitched the last two innings for the save and gave up a run in the ninth. Robby Kelly (3-0 3.15) was a little better for Far Mountain as he was touched for 5 runs in 6 innings and departed with the score tied at 5-5. Erich Dumont (0-1) got the loss as he was slammed for 3 runs in the decisive 8th. The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 2, 2012 2012 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 2 Baxley and Zavala Spark FM Redhawks To 7-2 Win, Pro Cup Even At 1-1 Powerful Far Mountain got back on track with some good pitching and timely hitting to trim Ozarka 7-2 in game 2 of the 2012 Pro Cup Series. Wayne Baxley (4-0 1.75) hurled another strong game to even up the best-of-seven series at one game each. He stopped the hard-hitting Naturals on 2 runs and 6 hits to win his 4th consecutive postseason game. RF Julian Zavala (.372) continued to blister pitchers in the playoffs as he walloped a grand slam homer and batted in 5 runs to give him 17 RBIs in the postseason. Zavala was the main reason Emile Leduc (1-2 3.95) went down to defeat. Leduc was shellacked for 5 runs in just two innings and surrendered Zavala's grand slam. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 3, 2012 2012 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 3 FM Leads Pro Cup, Redhawks Edge Nats 6-5 In Game 3 Game 3 in the Pro Cup Series was a back-and-forth thriller at Ellie Ewing Stadium in Ozarka. Defending Pro Cup champs, the Far Mountain Redhawks, parlayed crucial hits with good relief pitching to best the Ozarka Naturals 6-5 and nudge ahead 2 games to 1 in the series. Redhawk SS Don Nichols tied the score 5-5 with a lead-off homer in the top of the seventh. With two outs and nobody on, CF Xavier Sosa doubled and scored the game-winning run on a single by 1B Fran Grzanka. Nats starter Rene Gautier (1-1 4.30) had a rough outing as was rapped for 6 runs and 11 hits in his 6-plus innings, while reliever Jesse Hughes (1-0 4.50) claimed the win. Hughes allowed a run in two innings. Erich Dumont and Hummer Romig held Ozarka scoreless over the last two innings to protect the victory. FM starter rookie Woody Crawford was wild with 8 walks in 5 innings. He was tapped for 4 runs and 5 hits. Crawford left trailing 4-3. The Redhawks leaped ahead in the first on C Otis Ott's 3-run shot. Ozarka came back in the last of the first with 2 runs on SS Nathan Ferrell's (.176) roundtripper. The Naturals tied it 3-3 in the fourth when C Todd Pepper (.224) doubled, move over to third on a sacrifice and scored on 3B Todd Chadwick's (.305) ground-out. Nats LF Vic Weinstein (.302) led off the fifth with double and after 3 walks by Crawford was forced in for a 4-3 lead. FM rebounded to even it a 4-all in the sixth on a Sosa (.434) double and an RBI single by Grzanka. Chadwick manufactured the go-ahead run for Ozarka in the bottom of the frame when he walked, was bunted to second, stole third and came in to score on a ground-out by Weinstein. That make it 5-4 in favor of the Nats. Far Mountain lashed 14 hits and was led by Grzanka (.261) with 4-5 and 2 RBIs, Ott (.347) with 2-5 and 3 RBIs and Nichols (.417) with 3-5. Ozarka only had 7 hits and were paced by RF Chris Hughes (.280) and 1B Al Wesner (.265) with a pair of hits each. The Islandian Times Thursday, October 4, 2012 2012 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 4 FM Slips By Ozarka 5-4 In 10 Innings, Up 3-1 In Pro Cup It was another tense tussle between Far Mountain and Ozarka in the Pro Cup Series. The Redhawks slipped by the Nats 5-4 in 10 innings to take a big three games to one bulge in the best-of-seven series. One more Far Mountain triumph and it will give the Redhawks their second straight Pro Cup trophy. No team in IPA history has won two Pro Cups in back-to-back years. It was another hard-fought affair highlighted by a gritty performance by winning pitcher Robby Kelly, who worked 9 innings. Kelly (4-1 3.31) allowed 4 runs and 11 hits, struck out 4 and issued 2 walks, but still beat the Naturals with the help of closer Erich Dumont. Dumont retired the side in order in the last of the tenth to seal the verdict for Kelly. Eddie Roberts (3-0 3.00) started for Ozarka and in a shaky outing tossed 7 innings, gave up 4 runs and 7 hits with 7 Ks and 5 walks. Far Mountain pounced on Roberts for a 4-0 lead in the top of the third, highlighted by 3B Duane Parsons' (.245) 3-run double and C Otis Ott's (.365) RBI hit. Ozarka got single runs in the fourth and sixth frames on RBI doubles by C Todd Pepper (.226) and RF Chris Hughes (.296). Kelly was cruising along and apparently on his way to victory when he was jolted by back-to-back blasts by LF Vic Weinstein (.310) and SS Nathan Ferrell (.196), which tied the score at 4-4 and sent it to overtime. A walk and balk and a double won the game in the tenth. With two away and nobody on base, CF Xavier Sosa (.418) worked a walk, went to second on a balk by reliever Philip Britt and rode home on Phil Stewart's (.365) game-winning two-bagger. Britt (2-1 3.52) worked one inning and shouldered the loss. Parsons and Ott were the top bats for Far Mountain with 3 hits and 2 hits repectively. The Redhawks were outhit by the Naturals 11-9. Ozarka's Weinstein, Ferrell and Hughes all had 2 hits and an RBI. The Islandian Times Friday, October 5, 2012 2012 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 5 FM Redhawks Back-To-Back Pro Cup Champs The Far Mountain Redhawks roared through the IPA Pro Cup playoffs to cop their second straight Island championship. They disposed of the Ozarka Naturals in 5 games, outlasting them 14-9 in the finale. The Redhawks boast a devastating line-up chocked full of talented bats that averaged over 7 runs a game in the postseason. Manager Alex Groveland had good pitching, too. His staff put up a fine 3.14 ERA and had an overall 12-2 record. The decisive factor in the series was hitting. Far Mountain's explosive offense was just too much for Ozarka to overcome. In the finale they unloaded 4 homers - the Nats got none. The Redhawks bombed Emile Leduc for 7 runs in the first 4 innings, but Ozarka miraculously rallied with 4 in the fifth and took the lead 9-8 with 5 more runs in the sixth. However, Far Mountain came right back and regained the lead 10-9 in the top of the seventh on 1B Fran Grzanka's (.278) sac fly and PH Phil Alston's (.222) single, then disposed of the Naturals with a 4-run outburst in the top of the ninth to haul in the IPA Pro Cup trophy for the unprecedented second year in a row. No team had ever done that before in the league's 12-year existence. Far Mountain mauled Ozarka pitching for 18 hits. CF Xavier Sosa (.450) had a marvelous game with 4 hits, including 2 home runs, double and a single. Sosa drove in 3 and scored 4 times. LF Phil Stewart (.351) and 2B Phil Alston also had 3 RBIs each. SS Don Nichols (.379) and Alston chipped in 2 more circuit blasts and C Otis Ott (.394) collected 3 hits and scored 3 times. RF Julian Zavala (.351) smacked 3 hits and batted in a pair of runs, giving him 19 RBIs in the playoffs. Sosa had 6 roundtrippers and 14 runs batted in. The Nats got 5 gifted runs from the poor Redhawk defense to stay in the game. Far Mountain committed 4 errors, but its powerful bats overcame them. Ozarka got 11 hits, but didn't get any homers. Manager Alex Groveland got excellent relief work. After starter Wayne Baxley gave up 9 runs in 5-plus frames, 4 relievers blanked the Naturals over the next 3 and two-third innings. Jesse Hughes (2-0 4.15) notched the win by getting the final out in the sixth. Hummer Romig (0-0 5.40), Erich Dumont (0-1 7.36) and Milos Annensky (0-0 0.00) each worked an inning and held the Nats hitless. For the series Far Mountain hit for a .312 batting average with 8 home runs and 37 runs. Ozarka batted .276 with 7 homers and 27 runs scored. Pitching was not the strong point of either team. The Redhawk staff registered a 4.69 ERA in the Pro Cup Finals, while the Naturals had an atrocious 7.43 ERA. Alex Groveland told reporters, "Obviously our club had an outstanding postseason with the bats... and it was extraordinary in the Pro Cup Series. We got pretty fair pitching considering how well the Nats handle the bats. They are a tough club to beat... they never give up." Ozarka skipper Joe Mac Carney said, "We just got beat by a tremendous offensive team that came into the series with their bats blazing and they got even better. We did our best to stay with them, but came up second-best for the second straight season. I'm disappointed we didn't win, but we still had a hell of of season. We're going to go out and get us some pitchers and come back next year and win it all." The Islandian Times Saturday, October 6, 2012 Redhawks Sosa Named Pro Cup MVP It was the year of the hitter in the 2012 IPA Pro Cup Series. This year's Most Valuable Player Award went to Far Mountain's fine center field Xavier Sosa, who led the Redhawks to their second straight Island championship. Sosa pounded postseason pitching for a .450 batting average with 7 doubles and 6 home runs. Sosa scored 20 runs and batted in 14. Last year he came in second in the postseason MVP voting to pitching teammate Boomerang Hines... Hines missed the Pro Cup playoffs this year due to bad rotator cup... Hines was injured in early September... he excelled this season with a 23-14 mark and a fine 2.55 ERA. Right fielder Julian Zavala finished second in the vote. He led Far Mountain with 19 RBIs. Zavala batted .351 with 3 doubles, 1 triple and 3 homers. The third spot in the MVP balloting went to catcher Otis Ott of the Redhawks, who hit .393 with 4 roundtrippers, 12 runs batted in and 13 runs scored. Pitcher Wayne Baxley wound up in the fourth spot in the selection process. Baxley was 4-0 with 4 complete games in the playoffs. SS Don Nichols was fifth as he batted .379 with 4 home runs, 11 RBIs and 10 runs. Robby Kelly was the sixth choice with a 4-1 mark and a 3.31 ERA, followed by left-fielder Phil Stewart, who was seventh in the poll. Stewart batted .351, scored 15 times, had 9 RBIs and went deep once. |
The Islandian Times
Sunday, October 14, 2012 FM's Robby Kelly MVP In RU The Far Mountain Redhawks won more games than anyone in the IPA this season and was one of the prime reasons was pitcher Robby Kelly, who racked up a 22-8 record to pace them to their fourth consecutive RU North pennant. For his excellent season Kelly hauled in the Ruthlandian Union Most Valuable Player Award for 2012. The 35-year-old right-hander completed 23 of his 36 starts and compiled a 2.38 ERA, third-best in the league. Kelly led the entire IPA with 6 shutouts. This was the first time Kelly has claimed the MVP honor. He also was selected as the best pitcher in the RU and took the Golden Arm trophy this year. Outfielder Jet Kazmarek is the only player to win the award twice. He won in successive seasons in 2002 and 2003 while playing for Valmara. Two very fine batters finished second and third in the BNN MVP poll. Golden Bat winner Mike Luzzatti was the runner-up. The Claxton Diamond first baseman worked over RU pitching to the tune of 40 homers, 124 RBIs, 116 runs and a .332 batting average. Sligo's splendid left-fielder Fred Collins came in third with another fine year. He batted .332 in leading the Rovers to the RU West crown. Collins totaled 28 homers, 96 RBIs, scored 110 times and stole 30 bases. Terranova's Terrific Year Nets TU MVP It was the year of the pitcher as far as the major awards in the IPA. South Fork's Blackie Terranova was also a double winner like Kelly. Not only did he win the Golden Arm Award, the 30-year-old righty took home the Tycobbian Union Most Valuable Player trophy. Terranova was 25-6 with a .2.59 ERA and almost single-handedly won the TU East title. Sadly however, because of poor offense, the Stallions fell 2 games short of the pennant. It really is amazing that Terranova won that many games with such poor run support. The only player to ever win the MVP twice in the TU was Fairfax's star left fielder Dane Wesner, who was picked in 2010 and 2011. Two sluggers were Terranova's main competition. East Point's second baseman and Golden Bat winner Jesse Goodwin wound up a very close second with 50 home runs, 138 RBIs, 114 runs, while hitting at a .333 clip. Goodwin paced the IPA in homers and RBIs. Rookie phenom Clyde Kingsford was third in the close 3-way race. The Turon first sacker hit .330 with 38 home runs and 127 runs batted in. |
Been busy with real life lately... haven't been able to spend a lot of time on revamping the Islandian Pro Alliance team rosters and reserve rosters.
I will make it a priority to take care of this so the 2074 IPA season can begin. I think I still have 40 teams to update. |
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YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Tuesday, September 17, 2013 IPA Pro Cup Playoffs Begin Tomorrow A playoff baseball game has a surreal atmosphere. Fans become one, roaring in unison at a great play and sharing the grief at blown opportunity. Victory and defeat play out in a rainbow of colors, sounds, smells and feelings. Islandian Pro Alliance playoff baseball is a memorable experience. What is it like? Ask the 10-year-old sitting with his dad as he plucks a foul ball out of the air. Ask the veteran slugger who hits that walk-off home run. Ask the manager in the big game after coming from 10 games back to win the pennant. Ask the countless number of legends who have flourished or those greats who never won the big one. Or tomorrow, ask any of the rookies what it's like to play in one of the Elite 8 Series showdowns: St. John Crusaders versus Far Mountain Redhawks, Forest City Lumberjacks versus Wynnamac Sundowners, Denton City Redbirds versus Tuckanarra Blue Jays and Fairfax Frogs versus Turon Typhoons. The Islandian Times Wednesday, September 18, 2013 Times Poll Picks Far Mountain In 2013 Pro Cup Series The Islandian Times polled all of the major sportswriters and broadcasters and announced the Far Mountain Redhawks as the favorites to win the 2013 IPA Pro Cup. Manager Alex Groveland talented club has brought home the coveted trophy the last two years. Far Mountain's biggest competition is expected to come from the Turon Typhoons, who have captured 3 Pro Cups in their history. However the Redhawks and Typhoons can look for the Tuckanarra Blue Jays and the St. John Crusaders to have a big say in the eventual champion. They were the third and fourth choices respectively. The voters gave Far Mountain and Turon the edge because of stronger pitching, plus successful postseason experience. Turon has won the Pro Cup the most, three times, while making the postseason 7 times. Far Mountain has appeared in the playoffs 7 times and won the Pro Cup twice. Only one other of this year's representatives has ever won the Pro Cup previously. The Wynnamac Sundowners copped it in their only playoff appearance. That was in 2008. Denton City has been in postseason on 7 occasions, but has never won the overall crown. Tuckanarra and Fairfax have played in the playoffs 5 and 4 times respectively and Forest City has made the Pro Cup playoffs 3 times. The Islandian Times 2013 Pro Cup Poll 1. Far Mountain (93-61) 2. Turon (95-59) 3. Tuckanarra (100-54) 4. St. John (87-67) 5. Fairfax (87-67) 6. Wynnamac (87-68) 7. Denton City (83-71) 8. Forest City (85-69) Team Batting Average 1. Turon .272 1. Tuckanarra .272 3. Denton City .267 4. Fairfax .265 4. St. John .265 6. Wynnamac .263 7. Far Mountain .258 8. Forest City .254 Team Home Runs 1. Forest City 171 2. Denton City 164 3. Turon 161 4. St. John 129 5. Wynnamac 123 6. Fairfax 122 7. Far Mountain 121 8. Tuckanarra 108 Team Runs 1. Turon 882 2. St. John 790 3. Denton City 759 4. Wynnamac 734 5. Fairfax 712 6. Forest City 714 7. Tuckanarra 709 8. Far Mountain 668 Team ERA 1. Tuckanarra 2.92 2. Turon 3.11 3. Far Mountain 3.18 4. Wynnamac 3.26 5. Fairfax 3.33 6. Forest City 3.35 7. St. John 3.63 8. Denton City 3.90 Team Fielding Average 1. Fairfax .977 2. Far Mountain .975 2. Tuckanarra .975 2. Denton City .975 2. Forest City .975 6. St. John .972 6. Wynnamac .972 8. Turon .970 The Islandian Times Tuesday, September 24, 2013 RU And TU Final 4 Slated For Tomorrow The IPA Pro Cup Final 4 Series will begin tomorrow afternoon in Far Mountain and Tuckanarra. In the Ruthlandian Final 4 the Wynnamac Sundowners will challenge the defending Pro Cup champion Far Mountain at Sky High Stadiun in the opener of the best-of-seven series, while Tuckanarra will host the Fairfax Frogs at Central Park Stadium. Both games will start at 1:05 pm in the afternoon. During the regular season Wynnamac took four of six games from the Redhawks and the Blue Jays thumped the Frogs four times out the six they played. Far Mountain has won 3 Pro Cups in its history, the last two years in a row. The Sundowners claimed one title in 2008, while the Frogs and the Blue Jays are still looking for their first Pro Cup trophy. All four clubs are coming off strong wins and are primed to do battle. Far Mountain is the favorite over Wynnamac and Tucknarra is picked to take Fairfax. Both ballclubs feature good hitting with excellent pitching and are forecast to meet for the Island crown in the Pro Cup Finals. The Redhawks paced the Ruthlandian Union with 95 wins, while Tuckanarra piled up 100 victories in the Tycobbian Union. The Final 4 match-ups are shaping up to be something truly special as all of the participants have fine ballclubs. It wouldn't be big surprise to see the underdogs playing for the title. Wynnamac has fine pitching and Fairfax has a well-rounded team, adept at all aspects of the game. In the Elite 8 Series Far Mountain mauled St. John in four straight, Wynnamac topped Forest City four games to one, Tuckanarra took care of Denton City and Fairfax upset Turon, both winning in six games. The Frogs were the only underdog to win as the Typhoons were favored to contend with Far Mountain in the Pro Cup finals. Neither the Redhawks, nor the Blue Jays should take their opponents lightly. The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 1, 2013 Redhawks Seeks 3-Peat Against Blue Jays In Pro Cup Finals The Far Mountain Redhawks are back again, again and again. For the unprecedented third year in a row the Redhawks have returned to the IPA Pro Cup Finals and are favored slightly by most experts to take the crown. However, they are playing a team that is no slouch when it comes to winning and beating good teams. Ashton "Whitey" Richburn's Tuckanarra Blue Jays topped the IPA with 100 victories this season and they have whipped two fine clubs to get to the finals. The 2013 Pro Cup Series is shaping up to quite a battle between two superb pitching corps. Far Mountain chalked up 93 wins and had the best season record in the RU. This is the first time in IPA history that the teams with the best regular season records have ever played in the Pro Cup Finals. Far Mountain is the defending Pro Cup champion. The Redhawks have won for the past two years. Groveland had the best mound staff in the Ruthlandian Union with a 3.18 ERA, but Richburn's Blue Jays were the best in the entire IPA with an extraordinary 2.92 ERA. Neither club is an offensive powerhouse. Far Mountain batted .258 (14th) with 121 homers (26th) and 668 runs (22nd), while Tuckanarra totes a .272 batting average (5th), but hit only 107 home runs (31st) and scored 709 times (16th). Defensively, they look about equal with .975 fielding averages. The Redhawks have raced through the postseason without a loss. They swept the St. John Crusaders and the Wynnamac Sundowners and have posted 8 straight victories. Far Mountain has been unstoppable at the plate with a startling .333 batting average. They have also raised their play to a higher level in the postseason with an outstanding 2.46 team ERA. The Tuckanarra staff has its work cut out for them. The Blue Jays possess a 3.14 playoff ERA and have hit well with a .278 mark. Power numbers show the Redhawks with a 9-4 advantage in homers. The Blue Jays are 8-4 overall in the playoffs as they defeated two tough teams, the Turon Typhoons and the Fairfax Frogs. Turon was the favorite to win the Tycobbian title and oppose Far Mountain in the finals. The Blue Jays are 5-1 at home and will get the home field advantage because of winning the most games this season. They were 58-19 at home this past season and 42-35 on the road. The Redhawks were 49-28 on their home field and 44-33 away. Look for these players to be the prime performers during the series. For Far Mountain it will be starters Woody Crawford (23-9 2.49), Boomerang Hines (14-5 2.53) and Robby Kelly (19-16 3.17), along with relievers Rich Burton (14-4 2.47) and Jesse Hughes (2-3 3.08). At the plate 3B Duane Parsons (.293/27/106/92) and SS Don Nichols (.293/20/82/89/23 SB) are Groveland's top bats. CF Xavier Sosa has really turned it on in the postseason with a .400 batting average, 3 homers and 17 RBIs. He missed half the season with a groin injury and batted only .244 with 7 home runs and 37 RBIs in 88 games. Tuckanarra will be led by its ace Titus Bristow (25-9 2.04), who was number one in the IPA in ERA and 8 shutouts. Delaney Elliott (20-14 2.69) and Roy Spence (19-13 3.71) will be the number two and three starters. Offensively the Blue Jays best bats are rookie RF Danny Redd (.329/9/83/88/36 SB), SS Wayne Snider (.312/13/73/72) and CF Earl O'Brien (.305/13/65/104/44 SB). The BNN prognosticators are giving the edge to Far Mountain because of its Pro Cup success and experience, plus they are playing extremely well on the mound and at the plate. It should be a whale of a series. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 2, 2013 2013 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game One at Central Park Stadium in Tuckanarra FM Redhawks Victorious In Magnificent Opener, Nips Tucks 3-2 In 14th All the predictions pointed toward an epic Pro Cup Series between two very talented teams and the opening game proved to be just that. Far Mountain and Tuckanarra went at it for 14 magnificent innings and it was finally decided on a home run by RF Julian Zavala (.333). The Redhawks nipped the Blue Jays 3-2 to go one-up in the best-of-seven series. It was the 9th postseason win in a row for the defending Pro Cup champion Redhawks. Both starters lived up to their billing. FM's Boomerang Hines and Tuckanarra's Titus Bristow both departed after 9 innings with the score tied at 2-all. Bristow was especially strong as he limited the Redhawks to just 4 hits. Hines was touched for 9. Far Mountain helped its cause with 3 double plays. Pitching was superb in the game. FM's Jesse Hughes and Rich Burton blanked the Blue Jays over the final 5 frames with Burton (1-0 0.00) getting the win. In a brilliant performance he retired all 9 batters he faced and fanned 4 of them. Tuckanarra's Stephen Eubarinja and Yuka Nawajuk were terrific as well. Eubarinja allowed no runs in the 10th and 11th and losing pitcher Nawajuk (0-1 1.08) only allowed one hit in three innings and struck out 5. Zavala's home run was the only hit off Nawajuk. The Blue Jays outhit the Redhawks 12 to 6. This was only the second time in the postseason Far Mountain was held under 10 hits. Far Mountain scored first on 2B Jim Rhodes' (.300) RBI single in the top of the second. Tuckanarra came back and knotted it at 1-1 in the fourth when C Yoshi Motsuzuki (.385) doubled, advanced on a grounder and scored when 2B Milt Sims (.209) grounded out. The Redhawks regained the lead on CF Xavier Sosa's (.361) double, SS Don Nichols' (.282) single and a sac fly by 3B Duane Parsons (.444). The Blue Jays evened the score at 2-2 in the last of the eighth on Motsuzuki's RBI fly after singles by 1B Erik Vayda (.250) and LF Dan Hill (.226) put runners on second and third. Motsuzuki leads Tuckanarra with 10 RBIs in the postseason. The Islandian Times Thursday, October 3, 2013 2013 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game Two at Central Park Stadium in Tuckanarra Redhawks Beat Blue Jays Again, 10th Straight Playoff Win The defending Pro Cup champion Far Mountain Redhawks are unbeaten on the road, unbeaten at home and unbeaten in the playoffs this season. Alex Groveland's crew bumped off Tuckanarra 8-6 for its 10th straight postseason victory. This time it was the bats that prevailed. The Redhawks registered 11 hits and were sparked by SS Don Nichols (.302) with 3 RBIs and 2 hits and LF Phil Stewart (.186), who scored three times and batted in a run. 1B Fran Grzanka (.349) cracked a solo homer for the winners. Trailing 3-2 Far Mountain put 3 runs on the scoreboard in the fourth and 3 more in the sixth frame to do away with Tuckanarra. The Blue Jays made it close with single runs in the seventh, eighth and ninth. Robby Kelly (3-0 2.42) posted the victory. He struggled at times, but went 8 innings, allowed 11 hits and 5 runs, while fanning 7 and issuing 3 bases on balls. Jesse Hughes (1.29) got his 3rd playoff save despite giving up a run in his only inning, the ninth. The Blue Jays collected 12 hits to 11 for the Redhawks. Loser Delaney Elliott (2-3 5.18) had a dismal start and was rocked for 5 runs in his 5 and two-thirds innings. SS Wayne Snider and rookie sensation RF Danny Redd made it close. Snider (.271) homered and drove in 4 runs with 3 hits, while Redd (.421) had a perfect 4-for-4 day at the plate and scored 4 times. The Islandian Times Friday, October 4, 2013 2013 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game Three at Sky Mountain Stadium in Far Mountain FM Redhawks Romp To 11th In A Row, Bomb Blue Jays 10-2 in Game 3 No team has ever dominated the Pro Cup playoffs like the Far Mountain Redhawks. They bombed the Tuckanarra Blue Jays 10-2 for their 11th straight triumph in a row. Far Mountain has not lost a single game this postseason. The Redhawks rattled the fences at home in Sky High Stadium for 16 hits and were paced by RF Julian Zavala (.364) with 4-for-5 and 2 runs scored, CF Xavier Sosa (.395) with 2-for-4 and 3 RBIs and SS Don Nichols (.326) with 2-for-3 and 2 RBIs. Even starting pitcher Woody Crawford (.429) stroked a hot bat with 3 hits and scored twice. Crawford (3-0 3.38) worked a solid complete game for his 3rd playoff victory. Crawford permitted only 2 runs and 7 hits, but did walk 4. Roy Spence (3-1 3.35) suffered his first defeat of the postseason. He was tagged for 9 hits and 6 runs in just 4+ innings. LF Earl O'Brien (.274) and CF Gilberto Montenegro (.200) provided Tuckanarra weak offense with two solo homers. The Islandian Times Saturday, October 5, 2013 2013 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game Four at Sky Mountain Stadium in Far Mountain FM Redhawks Sweep Tuckanarra In A 3-Peat The powerful Far Mountain Redhawks quickly disposed of the Tuckanarra Blue Jays in a four-game sweep to win its unprecedented 3rd IPA Pro Cup in a row. Far Mountain has played in 4 of the last 5 Pro Cups. The Redhawks wrapped it with a thrilling 3-2 win, highlighted by Fran Gzanka's clutch seventh-inning 3-run homer. Boomerang Hines (4-0 2.05) continued his postseason brilliance by outpitching tough Titus Bristow (2-3 4.10). Hines worked 8 innings, limited the Blue Jays to 6 hits, struck out 4 and walked 2 for his 14th career playoff victory. He has lost only 4 games overall with a very impressive 1.74 ERA. Closer Jesse Hughes held Tuckanarra without a run in the ninth, although he was tagged for a pair of two-out singles and had the tying run on third, when he struck out the final batter. Except for the Grzanka clout Bristow (2-3 4.10) was outstanding. In all he gave up 8 hits and 3 runs and went all the way. 1B Fran Grzanka (.333) led the Redhawks with 2 hits and C Yoshi Motsuzuki (.354) had two hits for the Blue Jays. Tuckanarra snapped a scoreless tie with 2 runs in the top of the sixth. LF Dan Hill (.250) tripled in the first run, then scored on Motsuzuki's base hit. Statistically in the Pro Cup Series, Far Mountain dominated Tuckanarra. The Redhawks had a decisive edge with a .275 batting average to .254 for the Blue Jays. It was even more pronounced with a splendid 2.20 ERA to a very poor 4.87 for Tuckanarra. Far Mountain outscored them 24-12 in the four-game series. Winning manager Alex Groveland told the press, "Good things happen when you pitch like we did and hit like we did. My guys have played flawlessly the last three years. Going 12-0, 12-2 and 12-4 in the playoffs against the best teams in the IPA really says something. We weren't too bad in 2009 either, when were 11-7 and let Turon come back from a 3-1 deficit in the finals." Blue Jay skipper Carlton "Lefty" Stevens commented, "We had our chances in game one and game four when we lost by a run each time. The other two games we were just outgunned. It obvious that Far Mountain is a great team. When you have been in the Pro Cup four of the last five seasons and won three of them, that's says it all. I guess if you have to lose, it best to do it to a great team." The Islandian Times Sunday, October 6, 2013 Redhawks CF Sosa Pro Cup MVP Again For the second year in a row the IPA Pro Cup MVP went to Far Mountain's fine center fielder Xavier Sosa. He always seems to turn it up a notch or two in the postseason. In a poll by The Islandian Times Sosa beat out three teammates for the honor. Sosa drove in 20 runs to lead everyone in the Pro Cup playoffs. He batted .391 with 3 homers and also scored 11 runs to lead the Redhawks to their third Pro Cup title in succession. Sosa won it last year, too. Finishing number two in the balloting was Boomerang Hines, who was 4-0 in the postseason with an excellent 2.05 ERA. Closer Jesse Hughes was third. He worked in 6 games and compiled a 1-0 mark with a great 1.13 ERA and 4 saves. Robby Kelly was next in the poll with a 3-0 record and a strong 2.42 ERA. Hines, who was the Pro Cup MVP in 2011, missed the playoffs last year because of injury, but came back strong this year. Sosa hit .450 with 6 roundtrippers, 14 RBIs and 20 runs to win the award last season. The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 14, 2013 Sundowners Meeks RU MVP Choice Without Jerry Meeks the Wynnamac Sundowners would not have won the RU East crown this season. Meeks had a superlative 22-6 season with a brilliant 2.04 ERA and now has been awarded the Ruthlandian Union Most Valuable Player trophy given out annually by The Islandian Times. He was just recently chosen the best pitcher in the league and received the Golden Arm Award. Meeks struck out 197 batters in 306 innings, completed 14 games in 39 starts and had 4 shutouts in a marvelous year. Meeks is 27 years old and a five-year vet. He has an overall 68-38 won-loss record with a 2.75 ERA. Meeks told reporters, "This was a special year. The Sundowners won the pennant and I helped them do it. It really is nice to get acknowledged this way. It's truly an honor to get this award." Forest City's talented left fielder Joe Judlin was second in the poll. He played a huge part in leading the Lumberjacks to a surprise pennant in the RU West. They had been sixth the previous year. 31-year-old Judlin hit at a .320 pace with 35 home runs, 115 RBIs and 102 runs and provided much of the 'Jacks offense. This year's RU Golden Bat winner Hal Stevenson came in third in the MVP vote. The superstar catcher for the Sugar Valley Rattlers knocked 49 homers, batted .311, drove in 134 runs and scored 109 times. Stevenson topped the league in home runs and RBIs. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 15, 2013 Elliott Is TU MVP, Sweeps Major Awards Jack Elliott is "Mr. Baseball" this season in the Tycobbian Union and also in the entire Islandian Pro Alliance. The High Mesa rookie first baseman swept all of the major awards. First, he was named to the Golden Glove team, next came the Rookie of the Year and Golden Bat and now Elliott has been acclaimed the TU Most Valuable Player. The 20-year-old record-smashing slugger put up astronomical numbers in his first year in the IPA. Elliott broke the home run record with 61, led the TU in runs scored with 134 and was second with a .355 batting average and third in RBIs with 144. No other rookie has ever approached those stats. His great year sparked the Cowboys in their rise from sixth to second in the TU East. Cowboys manager Frisky Franks commented at the press conference, "I don't think anyone envisioned what Jack has done. We knew he was a very talented and gifted player, but did not expect him to do what he has done this year. He has been truly amazing." Elliott told reporters, "Hey, I know I'm a good ballplayer and I have always excelled, but never in my wildest dreams did I think I would hit like I have this year." Another rookie wound up second in the MVP poll, conducted annually by The Islandian Times. Pitcher Jeff Russell was the main reason Denton City won the TU West. Russell had a terrific year with a 21-9 record and a 2.90 ERA. He made 39 starts and completed 16 of them with 3 shutouts. Turon's fantastic first baseman Clyde Kingsford paced them to the TU South championship. The second-year player and last year's Rookie of the Year was even better this season with 46 homers (4th) and an IPA-leading 147 RBIs, while hitting .316 and scoring 117 runs. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 8, 2013 FM's Groveland Acclaimed RU Skipper Of The Year Many times a manager with the best teams gets bypassed when it comes to winning awards. Some voters think they just have a good team year-after-year and win the league title by default because of talented players. It happened to Far Mountain's Alex Groveland for quite a few years in the past. He finally won it last year. Guess what? They gave Groveland the Ruthlandian Union Manager of the Year Award for the second straight season and he richly deserved it. The Redhawks had the most victories in the RU with a 93-61 record and took the pennant in the RU North. The poll is conducted by The Islandian Times. Groveland is now even up with Colfax's Clem Rogers for the most Manager of the Year awards with a pair each. Rogers captured the trophy in 2009 and 2010. "This award is a true honor and a testament to the perseverance of our players and staff," Groveland said in a release. "As a team, we overcame several obstacles to put together a successful season." Dickie Billings of the St. John Crusaders was Groveland's biggest competitor. His club rose up from a lowly seventh place and copped the crown in the RU South with an 87-67 mark, an improvement of 19 games over the previous season. The Elnora All-Stars went from sixth to second in the RU East and lost out to Wynnamac by single game. Manager Zoggy White guided his team to a 16-game jump from 2012 with an 86-69 record. White was the number three votegetter in annual poll. Ranking fourth in the balloting was Forest City's Rob Jackson. His Lumberjacks climbed from 7th place in the RU West to the top spot with an 85-69 mark, up 11 games over last season. IPA Manager of the Year Ruthlandian Union 2004 Foxy Jimison- LaGrange 2006 Stacy Engel – Claxton 2007 Manny Mickens – Ancona 2008 Robbie Jackson – Forest City 2009 Clem Rogers – Colfax 2010 Clem Rogers – Colfax 2011 Eddie Keys – Sligo 2012 Alex Groveland – Far Mountain 2013 Alex Groveland – Far Mountain The Islandian Times Thursday, October 9, 2013 Tucks' Stevens TU's Top Manager Actually it is quite simple to win the manager of the year award, all you have to do is win a hundred games and you'll get it for sure. Just ask this year's Tycobbian Union Manager of the Year, Carlton "Lefty" Stevens, first-time recipient of the annual honor given by The Islandian Times. The only problem with that philosophy is winning the hundred games. But Stevens and his Tuckanarra Blue Jays did just that in an outstanding 100-54 season and captured the TU East pennant with ease. The Blue Jays climbed up from fifth place to first place, a remarkable 27-game turnaround over 2012. "One guy doesn't win an award like this," Stevens said in a conference call. "The Tuckanarra Blue Jays won this award." Turon's Ashton "Whitey" Richburn was the runner-up to Stevens. Turon is a gifted team season-after-season, but Richburn piloted them to a super 95-69 record and regained the TU South title back after a year's absence. This was 7 games better than 2012. It's a mighty tough task to improve once you reach the 90-win level on a consistent basis like Richburn. Frisky Franks and his High Mesa Cowboys rode high in the saddle this year with an 88-66 mark. They rose up from sixth place to second place in the tough TU South with an 18-game improvement in their record. Franks was the third highest votegetter in the poll. IPA Manager of the Year Tycobbian Union 2004 Huggy Miller – Cape Coral 2006 Gary Louis – Arlon 2007 Matty Christianson – Rolling Hills 2008 Gary Louis – Arlon 2009 Ashton "Whitey" Richburn – Turon 2010 Cobb Tyson – Blue Lake 2011 Harry Buckley – Fairfax 2012 Hub Carlson – North Hills 2013 Carlton "Lefty" Stevens – Tuckanarra |
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Is there an option to show stats for the previous season on the team home screen? If not, there should be. |
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Go to the Team Home Page > Lineups > Split > (then choose "None" for the current season stats... or "Time Frame" for a selected time period like "Last Week", "Last Year"... or "2 Years Ago".
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YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Wednesday, September 24, 2014 8 Teams Begin Quest For 2014 Pro Cup The regular season set the stage and pruned down the number of title contenders. Now the clubs that made the cut will go at it on the diamond in the 2014 Islandian Pro Alliance playoffs. It's the first step in the race to win the Pro Cup Series trophy. The Elite 8 Series starts today with 8 clubs set to battle in the Elite 8 Series. All series will be best-of-seven. The Far Mountain Redhawks are the defending IPA Pro Cup titleholder and are back again. Manager Alex Groveland is on a quest for his fourth straight Pro Cup and his Redhawks are the odds-on favorites to do it, but they will have to go through two strong clubs to get there. The Colfax Blasters and the Belair Beach Sunbirds will not be an easy task for Far Mountain. In the Ruthlandian Union Elite 8 the Redhawks will host tough Belair Beach and the Blasters will entertain the unheralded Marston Nine. Over in the Tycobbian Union there is no clear-cut favorite. The Turon Typhoons are a veteran team with three Pro Cups, however the Midway Wolves, Kenwood Wildcats and Hartsdale Hellcats had to beat out some talented teams to win their division crowns. Turon played in the weakest division and was not really challenged in the regular season. The Typhoons will be at home against Hartsdale and Kenwood will travel to play Midway in the TU Elite 8. The Islandian Times Wednesday, September 24, 2014 Scribes and Broadcasters Pick Far Mountain In Pro Cup Poll If the "folks in the know" know what they are talking about, the Far Mountain Redhawks will capture an unprecedented fourth Pro Cup in a row. In The Islandian Times annual Pro Cup poll Far Mountain was selected as the favorite to win it all again this year. The Redhawks are forecast to whip Colfax in the RU Final 4 and the Midway Wolves are expected to upend 3-time Pro Cup winners, the Turon Typhoons, in the TU Final 4. In a hotly-contested Pro Cup Finals Far Mountain is expected to prevail over the Wolves. Pro Cup Poll 1. Far Mountain... Alex Groveland still has great starters with Boomerang Hines (22-11 2.41), Robby Kelly (21-10 2.56) and Woody Crawford (22-10 2.66) and a club that is loaded with experience, especially Pro Cup experience... 2B Duane Parsons (.310/25/110/85) and SS Don Nichols (.307/19/92/105) provide the offense... topped the IPA with a 96-58 record... 9th playoff appearance. 2. Colfax... Clem Rogers has two great starters in Ilya Szabo (23-8 1.75) and Jimmy Joe Cartner (25-8 2.56) combined with a fine relief corps... could dethrone Far Mountain if bats produce... best ones are CF Ryan Raines (.294/22/77/84), RF Paul Coniglio (.293/17/72/66), 2B Ilya Ivanchuk (.306/15/72/88) and LF Tony Tanaka (.265/18/67/100)... a close third in victories with a 94-60 record... The Blasters have one Pro Cup in their history... they defeated Turon in seven games in 2010. 3. Midway... first-time playoff team... starters could rival Redhawks... Cochise Chandler has some good ones... Motega Wolf (20-11 2.86), Sherm Jarvis (21-13 2.96) and Johnny Parker (12-9 2.87)... Strong bullpen with closer Dom Vilaggio (8-6 1.93), who had 34 saves... backed up by Lloyd Tatoke (6-0 2.33)... bats must produce for Wolves to win Pro Cup... CF Johnny Lee (.328/32/84/99) and LF Dylan Stevenson (.299/25/92/100) can't do it alone... led Tycobbian Union with a 94-60 mark. 4. Turon... Whitey Richburn still has a fine club with quality pitching and a strong attack... they are making postseason appearance number 9 this season... 1B Clyde Kingsford (.311/39/129/112) and CF Mac McCurnan (.292/28/114/109) carry a lot of clout in the line-up... Nicky Engstrom (24-10 2.44) can go toe-to-toe with anyone, but the Typhoons are not as deep at starting pitching as the other clubs... James Stuart (19-11 3.77) and Jacques Lemaire (17-8 3.64) always seem to step it up in the postseason... If they do, the Typhoons can compete with anybody... winning Pro Cups is a tradition in Turon... they have won 3 Pro Cups and almost a fourth one in 2010, when they blew a 3-1 lead and lost to Colfax. 5. Belair Beach... Marty Pedroza doesn't have a flashy ball club with a bunch of big names, but the Sunbirds score runs and pitch well... they were 95-59, the second-best record in the IPA... top pitchers are Nasty Naymick (19-11 3.21), Denny Whitaker (21-15 3.32) and Wally Green (19-5 3.67)... Closer Groot Tenbrook (5-4) carded 37 saves, tops in the TU, with a 2.76 ERA and just might be the Sunbirds MVP this year... best bats are LF Ron Dizon (.256/27/91/80) and CF Tom Bennett (.283/12/56/103)... 1B Denny Gray is now the full-time 1B... In 65 games he batted .299 with 14 homers and 47 RBIs. 6. Hartsdale... Zim Donner is top-heavy with hitters, but lacks pitching... All he has is starter Ronnie Jernigan (21-10 3.02) and closer Ben Clermont (5-5) with 29 saves and a 2.68 ERA... The Hellcats are really dangerous with the bats with 1B Tom Brabant (.333/36/116/101), SS Jud Turchin (.318/29/83/102), 3B Kendry Moulton (.302/34/104/86), RF Mac Faulkner (.294/24/76/94) and LF Woody Crow (.287/85/98)... as a team Hartsdale hit 191 homers (3rd-tied)... posted an 84-71 record... last playoff appearance was 2009. 7. Kenwood... not enough pitching and hitting to challenge this year... Aaron Hankins only has one quality starter in Connie Gavagan (18-13 3.05), but he has two excellent bullpen specialists... closer Rick Brickell (3-7) has saved 24 games with a 2.66 ERA, while middle reliever Sol Yakis is 10-2 with a 2.99 ERA in 52 relief appearances... The Wildcats depend on RF Dennis Riley (.320/19/87), 3B Brad Walker (.290/14/78), C Gene Verbick (.284/14/74) and LF Jimmy Brewer (.286/22/71) for run production... Kenwood hasn't been in the playoffs since 2002, its first season in the IPA... 86-68 is the best record in team history... made postseason only one previous time in 2002. 8. Marston... The Nine won more games this season than they ever have with an 87-67 mark, mainly with their hitting... Marston led the IPA with a .279 BA... Top batsmen were 3B Jimmy Holman (.337/33/120/93), CF Russ Woodward (.317/23/91/91), LF James Yardley (.294/30/94/67), RF Richie Mazzone (.306/18/72/102) and 1 B Pat Farris (.347/11/64/64)... Marston hasn't won a Pro Cup since 2001 and its been 8 years since they last played in the playoffs... Johnny Walters has two solid pitchers and a fine reliever... Hunk Sweitzer (22-5 2.91) had a career year... Zippy Hodge (20-17 3.08) is a very capable number two man... in the pen Bob Daniel (5-6) has stood out with 30 saves and a 2.67 ERA. The Islandian Times Tuesday, September 30, 2014 2014 IPA Elite 8 Series FM Reign Over, Belair Beach Wins Elite 8 All good things must come to an end... Far Mountain's tremendous run of three consecutive Pro Cup titles has ended at the hands of the inspired Belair Beach Sunbirds, who won a classic 2-1 masterpiece in the seventh game of the RU Elite 8 Series... Both starting pitchers went the distance and neither deserved to lose it... Sunbird Denny Whitaker (2-0 1.80) bested Redhawk Boomerang Hines (0-2 2.63) in a thrilling match... Far Mountain took the lead in the second frame on C Otis Ott's (.231) solo shot and Hines made it stand up until the fatal sixth... CF Billy Martz led off with a single and scored on C Little Jake Bungarooba's triple to knot the score at 1-all... Bungarooba was the goat yesterday when he blew the game on a passed ball, but he was the hero today... Bungarooba scored the winning on 1B Denny Gray high bounder to second base... closer Groot Tenbrook nailed down the game by shutting down the Redhawks in the ninth... Belair Beach has another tough task against the Colfax Blasters in the RU Final 4 Series. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 1, 2014 IPA Final 4s Start Today in Belair Beach And Turon It's the round of four in the IPA Pro Cup playoffs. The Belair Beach Sunbirds will host the Colfax Blasters in the Ruthlandian Final 4 and the Turon Typhoons will entertain the Kenwood Wildcats in the Tycobbian Final 4. They will be a best-of-seven series with the winners pitted against one another for Islandian pro baseball supremacy. Belair Beach gets the favorite role in the RU, while Turon gets the nod in the TU. The Sunbirds upset the powerful Far Mountain Redhawks, who had triumphed in the last three Pro Cups. Colfax knocked off the Marston Nine in the Elite 8 Series. The Typhoons, who have 3 Pro Cup titles, whipped Hartsdale to advance to the Final 4 and the Wildcats, making only its second postseason appearance, upended highly-rated Midway in the Elite 8. The Islandian Times Monday, October 6, 2014 2014 IPA Pro Cup Final 4 Series Sunbirds Fly By Colfax, Whitaker Cinches Series It's been a long wait, but Belair Beach has finally made it to the Pro Cup Finals... Denny Whitaker shut out Colfax 3-0 in game 6 to win the RU Final 4 Series four games to two... Whitaker (3-0 2.45) limited the Blasters to just 4 hits, struck out 6 and walked 4... Rodger Wright (1-1 5.88) pitched well in defeat as he yielded only two earned runs and 7 hits in a complete-game performance... the Sunbirds got to him for single runs in the first, third and fourth frames... Belair Beach will play the winner of the Turon-Kenwood TU Final 4 for the Island championship... the Sunbirds have never advanced this far in the IPA playoffs. Kenwood Knocks Out Turon 9-7 In Game 6 It will be the Kenwood Wildcats and the Belair Beach Sunbirds in the 2014 IPA Pro Cup Finals... The Wildcats came from behind to eliminate the Typhoons 9-7 in game 6 of the TU Final 4 to win the series in six games... Turon jumped ahead 4-1 in the fifth, but Kenwood fought back and tied it 4-4 in the seventh and then erupted for 5 runs in the eighth to take a commanding 9-4 lead and held off a scary ninth-inning rally by the Typhoons... Turon outgunned them 14 to 10... For the second day in a row Tank Tucker notched the win with a perfect seventh inning... Sol Yakis also picked up the save for the second successive day with ninth-inning relief... the Wildcats had many heroes at the plate... RF Dennis Riley (.318) and 2B Paul Lassak (.375) had 2 RBIs apiece... and 3B Brad Walker (.306) had 2 hits, scored twice and batted in a run... CF Vince Palmer (.280) smacked 3 hits and scored 2 runs... leading the losing Typhoons were RF Andy Porter (.325) with a pair of hits and 3 RBIs, 1B Clyde Kingsford (.311) with 3-5, 2 runs and an RBI and SS Matt Madison (.391) with 2-4 and 2 runs scored... Turon starter Jeb Stuart (2-1 3.91) sustained the loss... Stuart was shelled for 5 runs in 7 innings. The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 7, 2014 BB Sunbirds Favored In 2014 Pro Cup The 2014 IPA Pro Cup Finals begin tomorrow at Bayside Park in Belair Beach. Except for this season both qualifiers have fared poorly in the postseason. In previous years the Belair Beach Sunbirds have made the playoffs five times and never gotten out of the first round. The Kenwood Wildcats have made only one prior postseason appearance in 2002 and were knocked out in the first round. However, this year they find themselves playing for all the marbles. One of them will win its first Pro Cup. Odds-makers have given the nod to the Sunbirds. Manager Marty Pedroza's club was 95-59 during the regular season, second best in the Ruthlandian Union, while Aaron Hankins' Wildcats were only 86-68, which was a distant third in the Tycobbian Union. Baseball analysts say Belair Beach has beaten two powerhouses in 3-time Pro Cup champ Far Mountain and Colfax and has proven to be a top-flight team. The baseball soothsayers qualify their pick by saying Kenwood has proven its worth with victories over Midway and Turon this postseason. Turon has three Pro Cup trophies in its history and came very close to winning a fourth. So the Wildcats have good credentials this season. Belair Beach has a good offense, fair power, good starters and an excellent closer, while Kenwood has a good offense, decent power, good starters and great relievers. Both clubs are excellent defensively. The forecast is for a hard-fought series with the Sunbirds prevailing. Belair Beach's top performers are starters Denny Whitaker (21-15 3.32)), Wally Green (19-5 3.67) and Nasty Naymick (15-10 3.21) and closer Groot Tenbrook (5-4 2.76) with 37 saves. At the plate LF Ron Dizon (.256) led the team with 27 homers and 91 RBIs. CF Tom Bennett (.283) had 12 home runs and scored 104 runs. Kenwood standouts are starters Connie Gavagan (18-13 3.05) and Sammy Shaw (18-12 3.59). In Hankins' superb bullpen are Tank Tucker (9-3 2.76), Sol Yakis (10-2 2.99) and closer Rick Brickell (3-7 2.66) with 24 saves. Yakis and Tucker may get starting assignments in the finals in place of number three starter Todd Combs (14-19 3.46), who has had a rocky postseason. Offensively the Wildcats don't have a star, but they possess a solid bunch of batters throughout the line-up, led by RF Dennis Riley (.320) with 19 homers and 87 RBIs, LF Jimmy Brewer (.286) with 22 roundtrippers and 71 runs batted in and 3B Brad Walker (.290) with 14 long balls and 78 RBIs. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 8, 2014 2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 1 Belair Beach Bombs Kenwood 8-2 in Opener At Bayside Park in Belair Beach, the Sunbirds bombed Kenwood with 14 hits and a pair of homers in the 8-2 victory in game one of the IPA Pro Cup Series... strong hitting combined with strong pitching made it easy for manager Marty Pedroza's club... Nasty Naymick (3-1 1.65) continued to excel in the playoffs... He stopped the Wildcats on 3 hits and didn't allow an earned run in a complete-game performance... Naymick struck out 7 and walked 3 in an impressive outing... RF Billy Martz (.397) and LF Ron Dizon (.298) both homered and drove in 2 runs... CF Tom Bennett (.288) added 3 hits and 2 runs batted in... Sammy Shaw (2-1 4.45) took the loss, allowing 6 runs and 9 hits in 2+ innings. The Islandian Times Thursday, October 9, 2014 2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 2 Wildcats Down Sunbirds 8-6, Series Even In game two of the IPA Pro Cup Series both teams had their aces on the mound, but it didn't matter much to the hitters... Kenwood outscored Belair Beach 8-6 to even the series at one game apiece in the best-of-seven set... It was a seesaw affair... the Sunbirds went in front 2-0 in the first on LF Ron Dizon's third playoff homer... the Wildcats countered with single runs in the second and third innings and added two more in each of the fifth and seventh, building up a 6-2 lead... but that didn't hold as Belair Beach tied it up in the last half of the inning on Dizon's fourth playoff home run, a bases-loaded blast... 2B Duncan Renwick got the game-winning hit in the top of the eighth, a two-run single. Tank Tucker (3-0 4.15) got the win as he came on in the seventh and got the final out of the inning... Rick Brickell finished up with 2 perfect innings and got his 4th save... The loss went to Groot Tenbrook (2-2 4.50), who came on in the eighth and allowed 2 runs... Kenwood's top pitcher Connie Gavagan started, but was ineffective... Gavagan was tagged for 6 runs and 8 hits and departed in the seventh... Belair Beach's best hurler Denny Whitaker had a rough outing, too... Whitaker permitted 6 runs and 6 hits and exited in the seventh. 3B Brad Walker (.321) led the Wildcats at the plate with 3-3 and 2 runs scored... Walker belted 2 doubles and a triple... RF Dennis Riley (.302) had a 2-run homer and C Gene Verbick (.260) drove in 2 runs for the winners... Dizon sparked the Sunbirds with his 2 roundtrippers and 6 RBIs... Both clubs had 8 hits each. The Islandian Times Friday, October 10, 2014 2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 3 BB Sunbirds Trounce Kenwood 8-2, Lead Pro Cup 2-1 For game three the IPA Pro Cup Series switched to Olde Towne Grounds in Kenwood, but it didn't help the homestanding Wildcats... the Belair Beach Sunbirds continued to thrive at the plate with 12 hits and an 8-2 triumph to take a two to one edge in the series. Belair Beach got a fine start from Wally Green, too... Green (2-3 1.91) worked 7 strong innings, fanned 10 and held Kenwood to 1 run on 6 hits... closer Groot Tenbrook finished up, but allowed a run in his 2 innings, an eighth-inning clout by LF Jimmy Brewer (.182)... loser Sol Yakis (0-1) was routed after 2 innings... Yakis was ripped for 6 runs and 7 hits... It was Yakis' first start of the year... He made 52 relief appearances in the regular season and was very effective... Skipper Aaron Hankins is still looking for a good start from someone... all his starters have been battered so far in the series. Belair Beach's top bats today belonged to 3B Zippy Parks (.341) with 3 hits, 2 runs and 2 RBIs, RF Billy Martz (.358), who drove in 2 runs with his 4th postseason home run and LF Ron Dizon (.333) with a pair of hits and 2 runs scored... RF Dennis Riley (.333) topped the Wildcats with 3 hits. The Islandian Times Saturday, October 11, 2014 2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 4 Dizon's HR Lifts Sunbirds To 3-1 Lead In Pro Cup In Kenwood, Ron Dizon of the Belair Beach Sunbirds broke the hearts of the Wildcat fans with a dramatic 2-run homer in the top of the eighth to win game 4 of the IPA Pro Cup Series 3-2... the triumph put the Sunbirds in the driver's seat with a big three-games-to-one edge in the best-of-seven series... It was Dizon's 5th roundtripper in the postseason playoffs and gave him 15 RBIs... Dizon (.345) drove in all 3 runs... He grounded out in the third and plated CF Tom Bennett, who led off the inning with a double... In the sixth RF Dennis Riley (.328) homered and put Kenwood ahead 2-1... Nasty Naymick (4-1 1.74) continued his playoff brilliance... Naymick held the Wildcats to 4 hits and 2 runs in 8 innings and fanned 6... Slim Mosley picked up his first save in the postseason by striking out 2 of the 3 batters he faced in the ninth... Bennett (.329) led the Sunbirds with 3 hits... Loser Sammy Shaw (2-2 4.10) went the route, struck out 7 and walked 1 and was tagged for 11 hits, but was tough with men on base. The Islandian Times Sunday, October 12, 2014 2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 5 Gavagan Fires 1-Hitter, Kenwood Still Alive Trailing 3 games to 1 and with their backs to the wall, the Kenwood Wildcats rose to the occasion and staved off elimination in the IPA Pro Cup Series with a 5-2 decision over Belair Beach in game 5 at Olde Towne Grounds in Kenwood... The Wildcats backed up Connie Gavagan's sizzling 1-hitter with 3 home runs... 3B Zippy Parks (.327) got the only Sunbird hit with an RBI single in the ninth... Gavagan (3-0 3.09) weakened in the ninth and walked 4, but closer Rick Brickell saved it for him... It was Brickell's 5th save in the playoff this year... He got the final out of the game with the bases loaded... 3B Brad Walker (.324), LF Jimmy Brewer (.196) and 1B Xavier Rocha (.234) all had solo homers to pace the Wildcats... Denny Whitaker (3-1 3.33) suffered his first postseason lost this season... Whitaker surrendered 5 runs and 11 hits in 7 innings. The Islandian Times Monday, October 13, 2014 2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 6 Pro Cup Tied 3-3, Kenwood Slams Sunbirds 13-8 The 2014 Pro Cup Series is all tied up a 3 games apiece after Kenwood demolished Belair Beach 13-8 in game 6 at Bayside Park in Belair Beach... the Wildcats bashed 21 hits, sparked by 2B Duncan Renwick (.357) with 4 hits and 2 RBIs, C Gene Verbick (.292) with 3 hits and 2 runs batted in and SS Bob Snyder (.232) with 2 hits and 2 RBIs... LF Jimmy Brewer (.218) also delivered 3 hits, including a solo homer, and scored 3 times... In defeat 1B Denny Gray (.259) had a 3-run smash and LF Ron Dizon (.328) drove in a pair of runs with his 6th playoff home run... Kenwood led 6-3 after 3 innings, increased it to 8-3 in the top of the fifth, only to have the Sunbirds surge back to knot the score at 8-8 after 6 frames... The Wildcats regained the momentum and roared back with 5 in the last three innings for the win... Sol Yakis (1-1) got the victory, in spite of allowing 2 runs in his 1+ innings... Todd Combs and Rick Brickell saved the day by blanking Belair Beach on 1 hit in the final 3 innings... Combs worked a 1-2-3 seventh and Brickell shut them out in the last two frames. The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 14, 2014 2014 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 7 Wildcats Win 2014 Pro Cup In 7 Games Down 3 games to 1, the never-say-die Kenwood Wildcats came back and won the final 3 games to win the 2014 IPA Pro Cup... The Wildcats won game 7 by the score of 3-1 behind some fancy pitching by Sammy Shaw (3-2 3.57), who stopped the Belair Beach Sunbirds on 1 run and 4 hits in 8 impressive innings... closer Rick Brickell (1-1 3.75) notched his 6th playoff save by setting the Sunbirds down in order in the ninth... This was manager Aaron Hankins and Kenwood's first ever Pro Cup. The Wildcats had to beat Nasty Naymick to take the crown... Naymick (4-2 1.94) was tough in the postseason... Naymick allowed 3 runs on 8 hits and left in the ninth... Kenwood scored first with a run in the top of the third... 1B Xavier Rocha (.259) walked, moved to second on an error by Naymick and scored on 2B Duncan Renwick's (.367) base hit... In the bottom of the fifth Belair Beach knotted the score at 1-1... singles by 3B Zippy Parks (.283) and 1B Denny Gray (.258) placed runners on second and third... Parks scored on SS Ron Nossek's (.250) fly ball... A walk, a sacrifice bunt and a single by Shaw (.077) produced a 2-1 lead for Kenwood in the top of the seventh... Wildcat RF Dennis Riley's (.307) 4th playoff four-bagger provided an insurance run in the eighth. At the post-game press conference winning skipper Aaron Hankins told reporters, "It's been a long time coming, but we finally won a Pro Cup for the great fans in Kenwood. Our pitching had not been very good in the first six games... we really needed a good outing today and Sammy gave it to us. He was absolutely amazing, holding the Sunbirds to just four hits and one run." The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 15, 2014 Kenwood's Gavagan Pro Cup MVP In a hotly-contested poll, Connie Gavagan, Kenwood's fine pitcher, nudged out teammate Dennis Riley for the IPA Pro Cup Most Valuable Player Award. Gavagan led the Wildcats to the Pro Cup championship with a 3-0 record and a 3.09 ERA. Gavagan won several of the crucial "must win" games. Riley, the Kenwood right fielder, batted .307 and led the club with 4 homers and 14 RBIs during the postseason. 32-year-old Gavagan was the choice of 30 writers and sportscasters, while Riley received 28 votes. The most valuable player in the Pro Cup playoffs is selected each season in a poll conducted by The Islandian Times. Belair Beach's mound standout Nasty Naymick (4-2 1.94) came in third in the balloting with 24 votes, followed by Sunbird left fielder Ron Dizon, who led the playoffs with 6 home runs and 17 RBIs. Dizon had a .324 batting average. He was named on 23 ballots. The only other player to get votes was Belair Beach's right fielder Billy Martz, who was fifth in the poll. Martz had a .341 batting average, 4 homers, 13 RBIs and scored 16 runs. Martz received 20 votes. The Islandian Times Monday, October 20, 2014 Szabo And Burg 2014 IPA MVPs The Islandian Pro Alliance announced the BNN Most Valuable Player Awards for the 2014 season. Both winners have already been recognized with the Golden Arm Awards. Ilya Szabo of the the Colfax Blasters was the MVP recipient in the Ruthlandian Union and Cody Burg was honored with the Tycobbian Union MVP. Szabo led the Blasters to the RU West title with a standout 23-8 record and topped the league with a brilliant 1.75 ERA. Szabo has been the ERA leader three times in his career. The 35-year-old right-hander also paced the league with 7 shutouts. This is Szabo's second MVP crown. He has also taken the RU Golden Arm trophy twice. Lifetime Szabo has compiled a 220-110 record with a remarkable 2.36 ERA. Taranto's slugger Augie Marshall was Szabo's biggest challenger. Marshall batted .327 for the second place Tars in the RU North and ranked at the top of the league with 49 homers and 146 RBIs. Young Kyle Ferguson, Kilkenny's 25-year-old hurler, rated third in the BNN poll, was 24-8 with a 2.04 ERA in his second season in the IPA. Ferguson had the second-best ERA. The Cats wound up fourth in the tough RU North. Burg has won most games in IPA history with an overall 252-151 mark in his 14 seasons. This year the 32-year old Hurricane ace registered a 25-12 record and fanned 288 batters in 310 innings and collected the Tycobbian Union MVP award for the first time. He has been named the Golden Arm winner on three occasions. Burg has been the TU strikeout king a remarkable 11 times. His 2.41 ERA was the best in the TU. It's the fifth time Burg has ranked number one in that category. Despite Burg's great year, Cape Coral finished fifth in the TU South this year. Two hard-swinging first sackers gave Burg the most competion. Turon's Clyde Kingsford led the Typhoons to the TU South flag and was the number two votegetter. Kingsford batted .311, slammed 39 home runs and drove in 129 runs. High Mesa's Jack Elliott, the TU Golden Bat winner for the second year in a row, was third in the balloting. Elliott's Cowboys were third in the TU East race. He had another massive season with a .342 batting average (3rd), 51 homers (1st), 141 RBIs (1st) and scored 129 runs (2nd). Elliott came up 2 points short in the batting race and just barely missed out on the Triple Crown. The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 21, 2014 Best Skippers Honored By IPA, FM's Groveland And Midway's Chandler Winners The top IPA managers for 2014 have been selected by BNN. This year's best are Far Mountain's Alex Groveland in the Ruthlandian Union and Midway's Cochise Chandler in the Tycobbian Union. Groveland's Redhawks captured their sixth consecutive RU North title and recorded the most wins in the IPA with a 96-58 mark. Groveland won the award for the third straight year. Chandler led his Wolves to the playoffs for the first time in history with a league-best 94-60 record. Midway rose up from 4th place in 2013. Chandler is a first-time winner. In the Ruthlandian Union, Belair Beach's Marty Pedroza was second to Groveland in the poll. His Sunbirds won the RU South with a 95-59 record. Marston's Johnny Walters was number three. The Nine climbed from 4th to first in the RU East. The other votegetters were Boo Ladrieux of Belle Plaine in fourth place and Rocky Rapids' Ryan Noland. The Musketeers jumped from 6th to second in the RU East and the Snappers went from 5th to second in the RU West with a 91-63 mark, which was the fourth-best record after powerhouses Far Mountain, Belair Beach and Colfax. Over in the Tycobbian Union, the runner-up to Chandler was Zim Donner of the Hartsdale Hellcats in the TU North, who went from last place to first place in just one year. Third in the polling was Kenwood's Aaron Hankins. His Wildcats moved from 3rd in the TU West to first and returned to the postseason for the first time since 2002. Turon's Whitey Richburn came in fourth. The Typhoons were again pennant winners in the TU South with a 93-61 record, second in victories to Midway's 94. |
Going to do some serious work on the 2074 roster updates tonight.
I need to take some advice from Nike... great advice... JUST DO IT! |
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I have a problem in the IPA... there are not a lot of young players 18-21... the teams seem to have players mainly 25 and older, both on the active rosters and reserve rosters... the 18-21 on the reserve rosters are never promoted to the active rosters. Guess I will post a thread on the OOTP Discussions Forum and see if there is a setting to get more younger players into the league. jg2977, do you have this problem? |
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It couldn't hurt to ask on the discussions forum and see what answers you get. |
I'm tired... 35 of 64 teams done... I been placing 18 and 19-year-old free agents on the teams to try and infuse youthful impact players.
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YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Tuesday, September 22, 2015 2015 Pro Cup Playoffs Start Tomorrow, TU's Ozarka Favored Powerful Ozarka of the Tycobbian Union got the nod over heavy-hitting Taranto of the Ruthlandian Union in The Islandian Times Pro Cup poll. Baseball experts chose the Naturals over the Tars because of superior pitching. Both clubs have heavy timber and can score runs. Ozarka led the IPA with a .289 team batting average and it also ranked high with a 3.12 ERA. Taranto batted .275 to led the RU, but only posted a 4.06 ERA (26th). In the Tycobbian Elite 8 Series, which get underway tomorrow at 4 locations around the Islands, Ozarka will host the hard-hitting Bay St. Clair Buccaneers at Ellie Ewing Stadium. It will be Mahaska at home against the visiting Cape Coral Hurricanes. Over in the Ruthlandian Elite 8 Taranto will be at home at the Palazzo di Sport, entertaining the Claxton Diamonds. The other Elite 8 match-up will be Colfax and Marston at Legends Field in Marston. The baseball prognosticators are at odds on what it takes to win the IPA Pro Cup. Does good pitching really beat good hitting? If that theory prevails Colfax will whip Marston and Claxton will knock off Taranto in the RU. Colfax has marvelous pitching with a 2.84 team ERA that easily topped everybody in both leagues. Claxton has the pitching edge over Taranto. The Diamonds put up a 3.76 ERA (12th) to the Tars mediocre 4.06 EAR (26th). Colfax wasn't given much support in the poll because of its poor offense. The Blasters batted only .247 (28th) and had difficulty scoring. They ranked 28th in runs. The forecast calls for Taranto and Colfax to play for the Ruthlandian Union title in the Final 4. In The Islandian Times poll, Ozarka will beat Bay St. Clair in the Elite 8 because the Nats hit as well as they pitch. The Bucs can score, but are weak on the mound with a 4.16 ERA (24th). The Cape Coral Hurricanes are expected to defeat the Mahaska Haymakers because of better hitting. The 'Canes hit .265 (9th) to the Haymakers .257 (15th). Mahaska has slightly better pitching 3.22 ERA (3rd) to 3.46 ERA (6th) for Cape Coral. If the poll is accurate it will be Ozarka and Cape Coral in the Tycobbian Final 4. The Islandian Times Pro Cup Poll 1. Ozarka (99-55)/.289 BA (1st)/763 runs (5th)/173 HR (7th)/3.12 ERA (1st)/.972 FA 2. Taranto (93-61)/.275 BA (1st)/885 runs (1st)/219 HR (1st)/4.06 ERA (26th)/.976 FA 3. Cape Coral (90-64)/.265 BA (9th)/732 runs (13th)/142 HR/21st)/3.46 ERA (6th)/.979 FA 4. Colfax (91-63)/.247 BA (28th)/648 runs (28th)/113 HR/(17th-tied)/2.84 ERA (1st)/.972 FA 5. Marston (92-62)/.269 BA (5th)/742 runs (10th)/129 HR/19th-tied)/3.51 EERA (6th)/.976 FA 6. Mahaska (83-71)/.257 BA (15th)/692 runs (18th)/128 HR (24th)/3.22 EERA (3rd)/.973 FA 7. Claxton (88-66)/.268 BA/7th)/734 runs (13th)/157 HR (5th)/3.76 ERA (12th)/.978 FA 8. Bay St. Clair (86-68)/.273 BA (5th)/761 runs (8th-tied)/174 HR (6th)/4.16 ERA (24th)/.976 FA The Islandian Times Tuesday, September 29, 2015 IPA Final 4s Begin Today Holy Cow! What's going on the 2015 IPA Pro Cup playoffs? Three of the top four rated teams didn't make it out of the first round Elite 8. Most surprising of all, was the team picked to win it all, fell to the wayside. The powerful Ozarka Naturals took it on the chin and lost to the upstart Bay St. Clair Buccaneers, the team deemed least likely to win the Pro Cup this season. Taranto was the only highly-ranked club to make it to the Final 4. The Tars were chosen the second-best team in the Islands by the baseball journalists and broadcasters in The Islandian Times poll. They whipped Claxton, which was selected seventh. Sixth-ranked Mahaska knocked off Cape Coral, the number three team in voting. And the Marston Nine defeated the Colfax Blasters. Marston went into the playoffs rated fifth, while Colfax was number four. Oddsmakers have made Taranto the favorite over Marston in the Ruthlandian Final 4, while the Bay St. Clair-Mahaska match-up is a toss-up for the Tycobbian league title. The Tars are forecast to beat the Nine and meet the Buccaneers in the IPA Pro Cup Finals for the Island championship. Taranto has an awesome batting order and decent pitching. Bay St. Clair hits well, too, but its pitching is suspect. Both Marston and Mahaska have the capability to contend with Taranto and Bay St. Clair. Mahaska pitching is outstanding, while Marston is a well-rounded ball club with good bats and good pitching. The IPA Final 4 gets underway today with Taranto hosting Marston at the Palazzo di Sport and Bay St. Clair entertaining Mahaska at Shoreline Park. The Tars dominated Marston in the regular season with five wins in six games. The Mahaska Haymakers were 4-2 in the season series with Buccaneers. The Islandian Times Monday, October 5, 2015 2015 IPA Pro Cup Finals High-Scoring Finals, Tars And Bucs Battle Get warm and stay ready in the bullpen, Taranto and Bay St. Clair both have a wealth of hitters and put runs on the scoreboard. This year could be the highest-scoring Pro Cup in history. Neither the Tars, nor the Buccaneers have an abundance of pitching. The 2015 IPA Pro Cup Finals start tomorrow afternoon at Taranto's Palazzo di Sport, one of the smallest venues in the IPA. The Tars have the homefield advantage in the best-of-seven series. Both ball clubs are making their debuts in the IPA finals. Tommaso Lazzorda's Tars had a monstrous year with 219 home runs, topping the IPA in most offensive categories. Guy Rondre's Bucs are quite capable, too, but not as potent as Taranto. The clubs are about even on the hill except for Jimmy Mosley (16-4 2.98) and Vito Incardona (13-7 3.26). They give the Tars the edge as far as starters go. Chris Van Arden (11-6 3.13) and Lloyd Weber (19-12 4.02) are the Bucs best hurlers. Both clubs have problems in the relief corps. Defensively they both are good with the gloves and about equal with .976 fielding averages. Taranto is a strong favorite to hit their way to the IPA crown, but don't dismiss Bay St. Clair too quickly. They surprised powerful Ozarka in the Tycobbian Final 4. The Naturals were picked to win it all in the IPA this season by the baseball experts. Not only did Ozarka hit very well, they had excellent pitching, too. It didn't matter to the Buccaneers, they didn't pay any attention to the experts, who voted Bay St. Clair least likely to win the Pro Cup this year in The Islandian Times poll. Guy Rondre's Bucs finished last in a field of 8 teams. Taranto was rated number two in the poll. Everybody in Lazzorda's line-up is a threat. Taranto had 8 players with 10 or more homers, led by RF Augie Marshall (.323 BA/47 HR), LF Arnie Kennedy (.309 BA/34 HR) and CF Miles Rogers (.365 BA/20 HR). However, Bay St. Clair has a couple of sluggers in 1B Gerry Fields (.332 BA/46 HR) and SS Jimmy Sawyer (.307 BA/30 HR), along with some excellent contact hitters in LF Bruno DiPirro (.307 BA), 2B Bud Walker (.314 BA), RF Alejandro Feliciano (.296 BA) and C Vince Herbert (.289 BA). It should be a highly-entertaining series. I'm going to pick Bay St. Clair in an upset in seven games. Taranto Tars (93-61) .271 BA (1st) 885 runs (1st) 219 HR (1st) 4.06 ERA (26th) .976 FA (3rd tied) Bay St. Clair Buccaneers (86-68) .273 BA (5th) 761 runs (8th) 174 HR (6th) 4.16 ERA (24th) .976 FA (5th) The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 6, 2015 2015 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 1 At Taranto Tars Trounce Bucs 10-4 In Pro Cup Opener Living up to their press, the Taranto Tars trounced Bay St. Clair 10-4 at the tiny Palazzo di Sport in the first game of the 2015 IPA Pro Cup championship series... The Tars bashed 4 home runs and 16 hits en route to an easy win over the Buccaneers... Bay St. Clair stayed close until the sixth and trailed only 5-4, but Taranto put them away with a 4-run explosion in the bottom half of the frame... 1B Augie Marshall (.375), 2B Ed Miles (.261), LF Arnie Kennedy (.275) and 1B Pietro Skrmetta (.196) went deep for the winners... Skrmetta drove in 3 runs for the Tars... Kennedy, Miles and 3B Wayne Pounders (.314) batted in 2 each... the Bucs got 8 hits off Vito Cardona (3-1 4.08), who allowed 8 hits, struck out 7 and walked 3 in a good performance at the Palazzo di Sport... CF Todd Bryant (.298) homered for the Buccaneers... Chris Van Arden (2-2 5.00) was battered for 12 hits in 5+ innings... He was slammed for 7 runs. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 7, 2015 2015 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 2 At Taranto Taranto Shells Bucs Again, Wins 10-0 The shell-shocked Bay St. Clair Bucs will be happy to get out Taranto and the Palazzo di Sport... for the second day in a row the Tars bombed the Buccaneers 10-0 to go up by two games in the best-of-seven affair... Not only did Taranto rack up 17 hits, but Jimmy Mosley (2-2 3.92) hurled a splendid shutout, stopping Bay St. Clair on 7 hits... Mosley issued 2 walks and fanned 7 batters... LF Arnie Kennedy (.291) homered for the second day in a row and batted in 4 runs... Kennedy now has 4 home runs in the playoffs and has driven in 16 runs... CF Bryan Miles (.227) also parked one in the stands for the Tars... RF Augie Marshall (.404) collected 3 hits and drove in 2 for the winners... Lloyd Weber (2-2 5.66) took the brunt of the beating, routed for 8 runs in just 3 innings... manager Guy Rondre is hoping a change of venue will give his Bucs a better chance... the series switches to Shoreline Park for game three tomorrow afternoon... also games four and five, if the Pro Cup Series goes that far. The Islandian Times Thursday, October 8, 2015 2015 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 3 At Bay St. Clair Tars Top BSC 6-3, Possible Pro Cup Sweep The Bay St. Clair Buccaneers got back home to the friendly confines of Shoreline Park, but that didn't change anything in the IPA Pro Cup Series... the powerful Taranto Tars racked up their third win in a row and are now within one game of sweeping the Bucs... Chazzie DiBartolo (4-0 4.10) whipped them 6-3 despite giving up 10 hits... Taranto ran up a 6-0 lead before Bay St. Clair could get on the scoreboard in the seventh.. the Tars managed only 7 hits, but it was enough... they took advantage of 6 walks by the Bucs pitchers.. 3B Wayne Pounders (.333) led the way with two hits and a two-run homer... the Bucs outhit the Tars, but to no avail... C Vince Herbert (.264) and CF Orlando Macias (.333) got late-inning homers for the Buccaneers. The Islandian Times Friday, October 9, 2015 2015 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 4 At Bay St. Clair Bucs Finally Win, Edge Tars in 11th Guy Rondre finally got some good pitching and it paid off with a 4-3 triumph in game four of the IPA Pro Cup... Chris Van Arden and Sean Lawrence combined for the 11-inning victory over the Taranto Tars to keep Bay St. Clair alive the best-of-seven series... the red-hot Tars still have a huge three games to one bulge... Van Arden went 9 effective innings and held the powerful Tars to 3 runs on 9 hits and Lawrence (1-0 0.00) logged two scoreless innings for the win... The Bucs got the game-winner when RF Orlando Macias (.385) singled in pinchrunner Bird Dog Burgdorf... Randy Petri (0-1 3.68) was the losing pitcher... He relieved in the 11th... starter Vito Incardona and closer Anthony Zinacola both pitched effectively for Taranto... each team notched 10 hits... the Bucs put two on the board in the first and added another in the fifth to go up 3-0... the Tars rallied with one in the seventh and 2 in the eighth to send the game into overtime... there was only one roundtripper in spacious Shoreline Park... Taranto 2B Ed Miles (.263) hammered one out. The Islandian Times Saturday, October 10, 2015 2015 IPA Pro Cup Finals - Game 5 At Bay St. Clair Tars Slam Bucs 13-5, Win First Pro Cup Taranto proved they can hit the ball out of the park any place and anywhere... the Tars boomed 4 out of Shoreline Park and slammed the Bay St. Clair Buccaneers 13-5 to win the 2015 IPA Pro Cup in just five games... it was Tommaso Lazzorda and the Tars first ever IPA championship. Taranto showed they meant business by blasting the Bucs for 8 runs in the first frame... RF Augie Marshall (.375) and LF Arnie Kennedy (.304) sparked the rampage with 4 RBIs each... Marshall hit 2 homers and Kennedy and 1B Pietro Skrmetta (.279) belted one apiece... Marshall and Kennedy rapped 5 each in the postseason, while Skrmetta had 4... Bay St. Clair's CF Todd Bryant (.328) and LF Bruno DiPirro (.344) went deep, but the Bucs couldn't get any closer than 9-4 in the third... Taranto sent them reeling with 3 more runs in the top of the fourth for an 8-run lead. Jimmy Mosley (3-2 4.13) came up with another important win... Mosley surrendered 5 runs and 8 hits, but was good enough to win... Surprise starter Don Yaden (0-1) sustained the loss and had to endure the terrible first inning... Guy Rondre gave Yaden the start in hopes that he could slow down the Tars the plate and get the Buccaneers back into the series... Yader was an effective reliever during the season with a 6-1 record in 51 games. Lazzorda lauded his entire team, saying, "Everybody on the club contributed... the hitters get the press and the glory, but my pitchers did a fine job, too... actually we won because of our pitching... it's not easy to pitch in a place like the Palazzo di Sport and stay sane." He added, "When you have as many good bats as I do, it makes my job a breeze... If there has ever been a better hitting team in the IPA, I have never seen them." Bay St. Clair's Guy Rondre was greatly disappointed in losing the Pro Cup. He told the press, "I really thought we could beat anybody after we knocked off Ozarka." The Islandian Times Sunday, October 11, 2015 Marshall and Kennedy Pro Cup MVPs The 2015 IPA Pro Cup Series was a hitter's delight. Consequently the Most Valuable Player Award went to a pair of prolific hitters: Augie Marshall and Arnie Kennedy of the champion Taranto Tars shared the award. The two sluggers demolished Bay St. Clair pitching and sparked the Tars to the IPA crown in five games. Marshall, the 21-year-old right fielder, hit .375 in the playoffs with 5 home runs, 18 RBIs and 18 runs scored, while 27-year-old left fielder Arnie Kennedy rapped 5 out of the park, drove in 20 runs, scored 16 times and posted a .304 batting average. Each one of them delivered crucial hits at various times in the postseason. Chazzie DiBartolo played a big part in the Tars title run with a fine 4-0 record and was the only other votegetter in the poll. The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 21, 2015 Bobcats Valenti Captures RU MVP He's only 23 years old with just three years in the IPA, but Vic Valenti has gotten better every season. The Beechwood center fielder put up some fabulous numbers in 2015 to capture the Ruthlandian Union Most Valuable Player honors. Valenti topped the league with a .383 batting average, rapped 45 homers, drove in 120 and scored 119 runs. Rocky Rapids pitcher Donnie Chaney was the runner-up for the award. Chaney led the IPA with 26 victories. He lost 12 games and compiled a very impressive 2.36 ERA. Taranto slugger Augie Marshall came in third in the vote. Marshall paced the RU with 47 home runs and 131 RBIs, while registering a .323 batting average. He also scored 109 times. The Islandian Times Thursday, October 22, 2015 Turon's Kingsford Proclaimed TU's MVP The Turon Typhoons sensational first baseman Clyde Kingsford again stood out in the Tycobbian Union and came away with the 2015 Most Valuable Player Award. The remarkable Kingsford was one of the keys to Turon's second-place finish in the TU South. He led the entire IPA with 140 runs batted in, hit .321, smacked 45 home runs and scored 104 runs. Mahaska's splendid southpaw Joey Wallace was second in the balloting. Wallace led the Haymakers to the TU north pennant with a 23-9 record and 2.05 ERA. Third in the poll was High Mesa's tremendous Jack Elliott, who was the IPA home run leader with 56. Elliott also had the TU's best batting average at .363 and just barely missed the Triple Crown by 5 RBIs, ranking third in the league. The Islandian Times Friday, October 28, 2015 Tars Lazzorda Nabs RU Top Skipper Award It has been quite a few years since anyone but Far Mountain claimed the RU North. This year Tommaso Lazzorda guided his Taranto Tars to a magnificent season and toppled the Redhawks in a sterling duel by 3 games. Taranto was 93-61, while Far Mountain was 90-64. This is the first time Lazzorda has won the honor. Stacy Engel was the runner-up in the poll as his Claxton Diamonds shot up from seventh place to the top spot in the RU South with an 88-66 record. Marston's Johnny Walters was in the third spot. His Nine took another RU East crown with a 92-62 mark. Far Mountain's Alex Groveland wound up fourth in the voting. He did a great job considering he lost his number one pitcher to retirement and almost overcame the loss. Carney Wins TU Best Manager Award Joe Mac Carney mastermind the Ozarka Naturals rise from fifth to first this season in the Tycobbian Union and has been selected the Manager of the Year. Under Carney the Nats were 99-55, which was the best record in the IPA this year. He is a first-time winner of the award. Coming in second in the voting was Huggy Miller of the Cape Coral Hurricanes. He engineered a division title in the TU South with a 90-64 record. The 'Canes had finished fifth the previous season. Bay St. Clair's Guy Rondre was rated third in the poll. His Buccaneers climbed up from fifth to first in the TU East with an 86-68 mark. |
I got a few more team rosters updated today... 42 of 64 teams have been done now.
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YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Wednesday, September 21, 2016 Pro Cup Begins Tomorrow, FM Redhawks Favored It's Pro Cup time in the Islands - the time when all the best teams go head-to-head on the diamonds until only one is left - the number one pro baseball team in Islandia. The playoffs start tomorrow afternoon at four sites... last year's IPA champion Taranto did not make the postseason this year and will not be back to defend their title... the Tars defeated the Bay St. Clair Buccaneers in 5 games last year... the Bucs did not the playoffs this year, either. In the Ruthlandian Union Elite 8 Series the Far Mountain Redhawks will be home hosting the Belair Beach Sunbirds and the Colfax Blasters travel to play the Eastshore Elegants. The Redhawks had the best record against the other division winners in regular season match-ups with a 10-8 record, Colfax was 8-7, Eastshore 7-8 and Belair Beach was 5-7. In the Tycobbian Union Ozarka Naturals will be entertaining the Bayview Vikings and the Turon Typhoons will be on the road against the North Hills Hawks. During the season Ozarka posted the best overall mark against the other three challengers. The Nats were 10-7, Bayview 9-8, North Hills 8-9 and Turon 7-10. In the annual Pro Cup poll conducted by The Islandian Times, the nod goes to Far Mountain of the Ruthlandian Union to emerge the Pro Cup champion this year. Overall Ruthlandia has an 8-7 edge over Tycobbia in the yearly competition. The Redhawks (89-65) have a veteran team that has been there before and won three Pro Cups, more than any other club. Ozarka (105-49) was rated the best team in the Tycobbian Union. The Naturals won 105 games this season, the most in the IPA. The Turon Typhoons (92-62) were third in the poll. They have won two Pro Cups in their history and are back with a solid team again. The Eastshore Elegants (96-58) topped everybody in the RU in victories and are rated the fourth-best team in the playoffs. They are returning to the postseason after a 13-year absence with a well-balanced club that can do everything well. Picked fifth in the balloting were the Bayview Vikings (95-59). The Viks have not been to the playoffs since 2007. Coming in sixth in the vote were the Belair Beach Sunbirds (87-67), an experienced team that lost out to Pro Cup champion Kenwood just two years ago. The Colfax Blasters (93-62) were picked the seventh-best in the balloting and are the only other team with a Pro Cup title. They won it in 2010 over Turon. Colfax has the best pitching in the IPA, but haven't done well in the postseason lately because of weak hitting. Same thing this year. The Blasters are not likely to challenge for the title. The North Hills Hawks (92-62) were ranked last in the poll and the least likely to nab the Pro Cup this year. North Hills hasn't had much playoff success in its history. It shows only one playoff appearance in 2012. The experts say the Hawks are a good club, but don't have the overall talent of the other teams. The baseball analysts have spoken, now it's up to teams and the players to decide the 2016 Pro Cup champion. Naturally games are not won in the paper, they are won on the field. |
YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Sunday, September 25, 2016 2016 IPA Pro Cup Elite 8 Series Ruthlandian Union Elegants Stun Colfax 3-2, Sweep Elite 8 It was a day Eastshore back-up catcher Todd Sheppard will long remember and Colfax pitcher Cliff James will not soon forget... in the top of the ninth, Sheppard stepped to the plate with his team behind 2-0, two runners on and two outs and he sent a long drive into the stands to put Eastshore up 3-2 in game four of the RU Elite 8... that set the stage for reliever Jack Wilson to finish off the Blasters and he did... this stunning end gave the Elegants a sweep over Colfax in the Ruthlandian Union Elite 8... Eastshore won all four games and will now await the winner of the Belair Beach Sunbirds and the Far Mountain Redhawks... Elegant starter Danny Siegfried (2-0 1.59) tossed a strong game, going 8 innings, yielding only 2 runs and 6 hits... James hurled brilliantly until the fatal homer by Sheppard... James (0-2 2.57) allowed 7 hits in defeat... 1B Ricky Rose (.455) was Colfax's best bat with 3 hits. The Islandian Times Monday, September 26, 2016 2016 IPA Pro Cup Elite 8 Series Ruthlandian Union FM Finishes Off BB Sunbirds, Advances To Final 4 Favored Far Mountain made quick work of the Belair Beach Sunbirds and finished them off four games to one in the Ruthlandian Union Elite 8, gaining sweet revenge after the Sunbirds spoiled their chance for a 4th consecutive Pro Cup title two seasons ago... Bobby Snow (2-0 3.94) tossed a 4-2 victory in game 5, throwing 8 strong innings with 4 Ks and 3 BBs... Snow gave up 2 runs on 8 hits... Jesse Hughes (1.80) got his 3rd save with a runless ninth, although he permitted 2 hits... the tying runs were on second and third when Hughes got the third out... Rik Flippen (1-1 2.00) went the route in defeat, giving up 8 hits and only 2 earned runs... the winning runs came in the seventh when LF Tom Bennett botched a fly ball and allowed two runs to score, putting the Redhawks up 4-1... RF Julian Zavala (.412) led Far Mountain with 2 hits and 2 runs scored... RF Ron Dizon (.316) had 3 hits for the Sunbirds with 2 RBIs and a home run... Far Mountain, the Pro Cup favorite, will play the Eastshore Elegants for the RU pennant in the Final 4. Both clubs are powerful and it should be quite a series... the Elegants swept Colfax in the Elite 8... prognosticators say the outcome is a toss-up. Tycobbian Union Typhoons Triumph Over Hawks 3-2, Farentino Winner It's all over in the Turon-North Hills TU Elite 8 Series... the Typhoons dumped the Hawks four games to one, winning 3-2 behind the sharp pitching of vet Ted Farentino, who eliminated North Hills in game 5... Farentino (2-0 1.59) permitted 2 runs on 8 hits, whiffed 4 and issued just one walk in his 8 innings... closer Merle Studebaker came on in the ninth and did his job, setting down the Hawks in order for the save... Turon scored runs in the first two frames for a 2-0 edge... North Hills came back with singletons in the third and fifth to tie it up at 2-all... Typhoon RF Jack Brown (.263) won it with an RBI single in the seventh... Turon only got 5 hits in the game to 8 for the Hawks... Lenny Black (0-2 6.00) lost it, yielding 3 runs on 5 hits in 7 innings. The Islandian Times Tuesday, September 27, 2016 2016 IPA Pro Cup Elite 8 Series Tycobbian Union Nats Knock Viks Out Of Playoffs It looked like Bayview would force a seventh game in the TU Elite 8 series with Ozarka... Bayview's Georgie Fambreau was cruising along with a 3-0 lead after 5 innings, but the Naturals reared up and took charge in the late innings for a 7-5 victory that wrapped up a spot for them in the TU Final 4 against the talented Turon Typhoons... Ozarka beat Bayview 4 games to 2... Winner Eddie Roberts (2-0 5.93) labored, but toughed it out... Bayview tagged him for 3 runs in the first on LF Davey Krueger's RBI single and 3B Karl Benson's (.222) 2-run double... Roberts then settled down and shut the Vikings out until the ninth... Roberts took a 7-3 lead into the final frame, but was slammed for 3 hits and two runs... Dennis Purcell came in from the bullpen and got the final out with the tying runs on base... Fambreau (0-1 5.00) was charged with the loss, working 7 innings and permitting 7 runs and 8 hits... 1B Benny Rousseau (.360), C Frank Kiffin (.269) and CF Ryoma Nakayama (.500) sparked the Ozarka 9-hit attack with two hits apiece... LF Davey Krueger (.478) and 2B Tommy Shore (.444) led Bayview with 2 RBIs each... Ozarka, which won 105 games in the regular season, is a slight favorite over Turon in the Final 4. The Islandian Times Wednesday, September 28, 2016 Round Of 4 Starts Tomorrow In Eastshore And Ozarka So far the baseball experts have been right on the money. The top four picks in The Islandian Times Pro Cup poll have made it to the IPA Pro Cup Final 4, which is slated to begin tomorrow afternoon. Fans will have a heyday as all of the teams are pretty much even. Each best-of-seven series should be hotly-contested with no clear-cut favorites. In the Ruthlandian Union upstart Eastshore will host perennial power Far Mountain at Kraft Stadium. The Redhawks are favored because they have won the Pro Cup three times and still have quite a few veterans around that won it in 2011, 2012, and 2013. No other team in the IPA has that many titles. However, the Elegants led the RU this season with a 96-58 record, while Far Mountain chalked up an 89-65 mark. The clubs battled to a draw in the regular season with each winning three games. Eastshore has never been a Pro Cup champion. In fact, the Elegants rarely have made the playoffs. Their last appearance was 13 years ago in 2003. At a glance, Eastshore should be a slight favorite in the Final 4, but most scribes are leaning toward the battle-hardened Redhawks. It will be Ozarka and Turon in the Tycobbian finals. Games one and two will be at Ellie Ewing Stadium in Ozarka. The Naturals topped the IPA with a 105-49 record and bested the Typhoons three games to two during the season. Turon was 92-62 on the year. They have won two Pro Cups in their history, while the Nats have been finalists twice, but never won. Ozarka is being given the favorite's role, but the Typhoons always play well in the Pro Cup competition and could sneak up on the powerhouse Nats. |
I have updated 48 of the 64 IPA teams for the new 2974 season.
Sorry for taking so long... it takes me an hour to update the active roster and the reserve rosters for a team. The 2074 Islandian Pro Alliance season should begin in about a week or so. I think I will try playing two seasons back-to-back, 2074 and 2075, and just see what type of rookie class the AI creates... in the past most of the rookies don't have the ratings to play in the IPA...they just sit on the reserved rosters and age and never make the active rosters. Why doesn't the AI purge and get rid of weak players?... why doesn't the AI retire aging players that are no longer performing well?... It will keep an aging, underperforming player for 2-3 years... I have to retire them. Revising rosters each season and creating free agents just takes too much time... I have to find another way to do it. |
YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Sunday, October 2, 2016 2016 IPA Pro Cup Final 4 Series Ruthlandian Union Eastshore Sweeps FM, Pro Cup Bound For the first time in their history, the Eastshore Elegants are headed for the IPA Pro Cup... They toppled perennial power Far Mountain in a four-game sweep, whipping them 6-3 in game four despite being outhit 13 to 9... the powerful Elegants won their 8th playoff game in a row... they also swept Colfax in the previous round... rookie Danny Siegfried (4-0 1.64) bent, but didn't break... he allowed 11 hits and 3 runs in his 8 innings, but walked none... reliever Paul Walker closed out with a runless ninth to seal the verdict... Robby Kelly (0-3 6.45) caught the loss for the Redhawks, giving up 4 runs and 7 hits in 7 innings... a 3-run first did Kelly in... although Far Mountain managed to tie it up 3-3 after 5 innings... the Elegants regained the lead with a run in the sixth and finished the Redhawks off with 2 more in the top of the ninth... RF Stan Cuccinello (.303) sparked Eastshore with 3-5 and 3 RBIs... 2B Travis McCormick (.182) led Far Mountain with 2 hits and 2 RBIs... SS Don Nichols (.323) also added 3 hits... Manager Killer Brewster will have to wait a few days for his opponent... Turon and Ozarka are still going at it in the Tycobbian Union Final 4. Tycobbian Union Turon Ties Nats With Comeback Win 7-6 "It ain't over 'til it's over" is a well-known adage in baseball parlance and it came to past today at Typhoon Stadium in Turon... Ozarka had its way until the seventh inning... the Nats posted a 6-1 lead and seemed destined to go up 3-1 in the best-of-seven series, but Turon had other ideas... the Typhoons jumped all over starter Benny Ostermann in the final 3 frames and came away with a 7-6 triumph to deadlock the TU Final 4 at 2 games apiece... 1B Clyde Kingsford's (.441) single made it 6-5, followed by RF Jack Brown (.343) with a 2-run walk-off game-winning triple off losing pitcher Dennis Purcell (1-2), who came on in the ninth with a 6-4 lead, but couldn't stop the Typhoons... Reliever Marshall Price (1-0) got the win with a 1-2-3 ninth... Turon had a 13-10 hit advantage and were led by Brown with 3 hits and 2 RBIs... SS Andy Hansen (.353) went 3-4 and scored twice... and 2B Matt Madison (.395) and C Cory Moore (.250) had 2 hits and 2 RBIs each... CF Ryoma Nakayama (.471) and 1B Benny Rousseau (.400) paced the Naturals with 3 hits apiece... Nakayama had a homer and 3 RBIs, while Rousseau homered and drove in one run. |
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I wonder what would happen if we added two or three levels of minor leagues to our games. As for aging, declining players whose skills are below that of replacement players sitting on rosters and not retiring, I'm not sure why that is. Maybe there's just not an abundance of talent to fill 64 teams in your IPA world. |
That just might solve your problems here, I think, you two, or at least help lessen them, somehow. Sure, it might mean you have at least twice as many teams, if not more, and might make your saves larger, on average, and all. But maybe it would be a good idea to incorporate some minor leagues into your game, or a promotion/relegation system of some sort.
EC, you already have experience with running a promotion/relegation-type system here. So maybe you should consider trying to use that kind of experience with your IPA, at least to a degree. Perhaps you could create a new league and relegate teams every season, until you get the IPA down to a more manageable level. Once you've relegated at least 8 to 16 teams to a lower level, if not more, then you can perhaps create a third league, and repeat the process, until you are sufficiently satisfied with the sizes of the leagues in question. In EC's case, if he ultimately wants to shrink the size of the top league by 75 percent, he can use this process as needed and as possible and desired to do so as quickly or as gradually as he might wish and all, I think, until he has four equally-sized overall leagues that have the same number of teams in them that were present until the Expansion Era in Major League Baseball, if that is what he wishes to be the case here. Talk more later, as time permits and all, I'm quite sure. Lord willing and all, of course, that is, you know. Thank you for your time and attention and all here, EC and everyone else who follows this thread. That's all for this post here, at least, I think, then. CD out. |
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The talent is there... teams have very good players on the reserve rosters that never get promoted to the active rosters. I really don't understand how the game handles rosters. |
I intend to stay with 64 teams with no promotion and relegation.
All I need to do is get an influx of 18 to 21-year olds that are impact players. This should solve the problem. I am going to complete the rosters in the next day or so... only have about 12 teams to update, then I will play the 2074 and 2075 seasons and see how the rookie classes from each year perform. |
2074 and 2074 seasons, EC? Don't you mean the 2074 and 2075 IPA seasons? As for just how the game often handles teams' rosters, I might strongly suggest that you ask around, for I'm quite sure that there are many people around these forums, including the developers, who might just know quite a bit about how it often handles them. I wouldn't mind seeing more comments along those lines from others around here, either, I think. CD out.
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I made it read 2074 and 2075... thanks.
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YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Sunday, October 3, 2016 2016 IPA Pro Cup Final 4 Series Tycobbian Union Nats Win 5-2, Lead Typhoons 3-2 In Series Ozarka busted up a tense 2-2 ballgame with 3 in the top of the ninth to win game five 5-2 to take a three-games-to-two lead in the TU Final 4... the Naturals need only one more victory to qualify for the IPA Pro Cup and the Island championship... 1B Benny Rousseau (.400) doubled in the tiebreaker and 2B Todd Chadwick chipped in two more insurance runs with a single... Both clubs got good starts from Wayne Gates and Ted Farentino... Gates worked into the eighth for Ozarka and allowed 2 runs and 9 hits, fanned 7, but issued 4 walks... Farentino went 8 for Turon and permitted just 2 runs and 9 hits... Wayne Haren (1-0) got the win... he got the last two outs in the eighth after two errors and a walk loaded the bases on Gates... Marshall Price (1-1) suffered the loss... the Nats jolted him for 3 runs in the ninth... 3B Andre Dumas (.298) had 3 hits to lead Ozarka at the plate... Dumas got his 3rd playoff home run, a solo shot in the third... 3B Mickey O'Malley (.314) collected 3 hits for the Typhoons... CF Mac McCurnan (.225) had the team's only home run... 1B Clyde Kingsford (.436) and SS Andy Hansen (.389) both had 2 hits apiece. |
YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Tuesday, October 4, 2016 2016 IPA Pro Cup Final 4 Series Tycobbian Union Roberts Blanks Turon 5-0, Nats Win in 6 Games The Ozarka Naturals are returning to the IPA Pro Cup Finals... they knocked off Turon in six games to win the Tycobbian Final 4... Eddie Roberts hurled a standout game in blanking the Typhoons 5-0 at Ellie Ewing Stadium in Ozarka... Roberts (4-0 3.52) checked them on just 3 hits, all singles, struck out 8 and walked nobody in a masterpiece... the Nats bats rapped out 11 hits led by RF Ken Mayberry (.302), C Frank Kiffin (.296), CF Ryoma Nakayama (.429) and SS James Couch (.229), all with a pair of hits... Mayberry drove in 2 runs... 3B Andre Dumas (.275), 1B Benny Rousseau (.396) and Couch batted in one run each... James Stuart (0-2 3.47) was the loser... he surrendered 5 runs in 7 innings... Now Ozarka will take on a very talented Eastshore for the IPA overall crown... it should be quite a series and a great match-up... experts are saying it's a toss-up... both teams are loaded. |
YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 5, 2016 2016 IPA Pro Cup Finals Pro Cup Rated Toss-Up, Eastshore And Ozarka Battle For only the second time in IPA history the teams with the best records in the regular season will be matched up in the Pro Cup. It will be the Ozarka Naturals and the Eastshore Elegants in this year's Pro Cup Series. Joe Mac Carney's Nats won 105 games in the Tycobbian Union this season, while Killer Brewster's Elegants paced the Ruthlandian Union with 96 wins. The only other time this happened was in 2013 when Far Mountain bested Tuckanarra. The baseball experts have labeled this series a toss-up. Both Ozarka and Eastshore had to beat fine teams to get here. The Naturals whipped a fine Turon club in six games and the Elegants swept the Far Mountain Redhawks, the overall favorite to take the crown this year. Eastshore is unbeaten in 8 games this season. They have swept both series they have played. Ozarka has a decided advantage in offense and defense. The Naturals posted a remarkable .287 BA, scored 828 runs, hit 170 homers and had a .977 FA. Eastshore batted .267, scored well with 801 runs, homered 155 times, but did not field well with a poor .967 FA. On the hill, it was pretty close with the Elegants getting the edge in the bullpen. Ozarka compiled a great 3.02 team ERA to 3.14 ERA for Eastshore. Closer Jack Wilson (5-5 1.09) gives the Elegants a big plus. The starters are just about equal. Carney has three impressive starters in Benny Ostermann (25-6 2.58), Wayne Gates (24-13 2.82) and Eddie Roberts (16-5 3.00). Wayne Haren (9-7 2.93) will handle the closer role in the finals for the Naturals. He recently took over the chores from the ineffective Dennis Purcell (17-7 3.60). Purcell started most of the season, but handled the closer role in the playoffs. Rookie Danny Siegfried (26-8 2.25) heads up Brewster's rotation. His number two and three guys are Eddie Lance (20-9 3.38) and Melvin Key (16-14 3.64). Key got the postseason call over Al Froelich (20-15 3.63), who gives up too many long balls. Both batting orders are packed with quality hitters. Ozarka's 3B Andre Dumas (.359/45/123/114) is an elite hitter and 1B Benny Rousseau (.316/34/99/84) is a just a level below. C Frank Kiffin (.320/14/91) and 2B Todd Chadwick (.301/19/92/99) give the Nats two more strong bats. Add in LF Vic Weinstein (.278/9/57/82), RF Ken Mayberry (.295/2/48/80) and CF Ryoma Nakayama (.274/14/77/79) and you have a potent line-up. Eastshore can't match Ozarka at the plate, but they can score runs. The Elegants top bats belong to 2B Gerry Garner (.300/26/97/79), RF Stan Cuccinello (.273/24/76/80), 3B George Alford (.266/23/94/75), CF Larry Lowe (.283/13/60/102) and SS Gil Lantz (.281/11/58/64). Statistically you have to give the edge to Ozarka, but Eastshore has defied the odds before. But I don't think it will happen this time. Take Ozarka in six games because of better hitting, pitching and defense. |
I been feeling a little badly the last few days... went to the doctor today and he said it's acid reflux... he said he thought he could take of it with some medication... I will take it for two weeks and he will check me out in three weeks... he thinks that will take care of it... it is not a major problem... but it made me feel lousy with nausea, heartburn and indigestion... it has really sapped my energy... all I want to do is stay in bed and sleep.
I got up and got busy today. I got busy today on the 2074 team rosters and reserve rosters... I have completed 58 of the 64 teams... should be starting the season sometime next week. |
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As always, I try to keep you in my prayers and thoughts as often as I can, for sure, EC. I sincerely hope that our Lord heals you soon, according to His will and all, you know. And preserves your life until it is time for us to rise from this world and finally meet Him face-to-face at His return, if that is His will, of course. CD out.
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Special thanks to my two good buddies, jg2977 and CD.
Appreciate your concern and prayers. Much better today... still kind of weak... want to sleep all the time and do nothing... yesterday afternoon I worked on the IPA rosters... I feel better if I focus on some project rather than just sit and moan and groan about the way I feel. I will complete the IPA rosters this afternoon... just 6 more teams to go. |
YESTERDAY IN THE IPA
The Islandian Times Thursday, October 6, 2016 IPA Pro Cup Final Series Elegants Win Pro Cup Opener, Edge Nats 5-4 in 13 Everything pointed to a great Pro Cup Series this year... two evenly-matched powerhouses... and that just what the fans got in game one of the best-of-seven series at Ellie Ewing Stadium... Eastshore and Ozarka battled 13 long innings before the Elegants emerged the winner 5-4... Eastshore is unbeaten in 9 games in the playoffs this season... SS Gil Lantz (.484) worked a one-out walk and then scored the winning run on a double by 2B Gerry Garner (.342)... closer Jack Wilson (1-0 2.45) notched the victory with 5 strong relief innings... Wilson allowed a run in the ninth that sent the game into overtime, but he blanked the Naturals the final 4 frames... Howard Hutch, the third pitcher used by manager Joe Mac Carney, was the loser... Hutch (1-1 2.45) came on in the 13th. Eastshore scored first with a run in the opening inning on an RBI single by Garner... the Elegants made it 2-0 in the third on an RBI ground-out by RF Stan Cuccinello (.256)... Ozarka replied with 3 in the fourth for a 3-2 lead... LF Vic Weinstein (.240) doubled in two and CF Ryoma Nakayama (.426) singled in another... the Elegants regained the lead in the sixth on 3B George Alford's (.229) single and 1B Vic Keller's (.172) double... it stayed 4-3 until the last of the ninth when Nakayama tied it up with a double. Each team socked 8 hits apiece... 26-game winner Danny Siegfried went 8 strong innings for Eastshore and allowed 3 unearned runs on just 3 hits... 25-game winner Benny Ostermann worked 9 fine innings for the Nats and yielded 4 runs and 5 hits, but only 1 run was earned... Wayne Haren performed very well, too, with 3 shutout innings for Ozarka... Eastshore benefited from 3 double plays... not a good day for the gloves... the Elegants committed 3 miscues and the Nats made 2 errors. Offensively Gerry Garner led the Elegants with 3-6 and 2 RBIs, including 2 doubles... CF Larry Lowe (.179) scored two runs for the winners... Weinstein and Nakayama paced Ozarka with 2 hits each and 2 runs batted in. |
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