THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, June 1, 2037

TIGHT RACE IN RU WEST, SLIGO SLIGHT LEAD
The Ruthlandian West Division is one of the weaker divisions in the IPA, but it is always pretty competitive within... this year only the top two clubs have winning records... the Sligo Rovers have a one-game edge over preseason pick Fort Benton... in third place trailing by 4 games are Rocky Rapids and Forest City... last year's winner Colfax is tied with Middlefield for fifth and is 6 games out of first... even seventh place Volusia and last place Stoner are within striking distance and are only 8 games off the pace.

A two-team race was forecast and that's pretty much what's happening... only Sligo (28-24) and Fort Benton look like they will have winning seasons... Sligo had a solid May with a 16-12 mark to move up to first place ahead of Fort Benton, who slumped to 13-15... the Rovers are just an average team in the Ruthlandian Union, but they can score fairly well (11th) and have a little firepower with 61 HRs (6th)... Randall Steele (6-5/3.69) and Tom Pierson (4-3/3.95) are pretty good starters... newcomer Jeff Cooper (3-5/5.25) has been a disappointment... he has to have a good second half for the Rovers to win... Sligo has no big-time bats... the best ones are Denny Simmons (.304), Neil Mitchell (.302), Peder Svensson (.287) and Vasco Aguilar (.301).

The Fort Benton Defenders (27-25) have good stats, but they don't convert into a good record... they are batting a strong .280 (2nd) with 267 runs (6th), but have no power with only 34 HRs (31st)... the pitching is quite respectable with a 3.42 ERA (6th)... the Defenders have three quality starters in Tommy Baylor (8-3/2.59), Augie Marquis (6-3/2.75) and Jordy Raeburn (5-7/3.18)... the top run producers are D. D. Badeaux (.344), Mitch Hamilton (.349) and Hunter Glenholmes (.333)... Fort Benton gets the nod in the pennant hunt because of its good starters... the RU West winner will not get very far in the postseason.

The Rocky Rapids Snappers (24-28) are tied for third with Forest City... the Snappers played poorly in the first month of the season, but did fairly well with a 15-13 May... they are not really a very good team... mediocrity abounds... Randy McKenzie (5-5/3.47) and Randy Peters (3-3/2.96) are the most reliable starters... Joe Hughes is the best hitter with a .336 BA and 6 HRs... Crusher Derringer tops the club in RBIs with 33 and 6 HRs, while hitting .261.

The Forest City Lumberjacks (24-28) hit for average with a .273 BA (9th), but are just run-of-the-mill otherwise... Ted Dancer (4-1/3.33) leads the pitchers... in the batter's box the top bats are Bob Brisdon (.333), Ronnie Pollet (.324), Pistol Pete Picard (.310) and Hal Burton (.289).

Defending division champ Colfax (22-30) and Middlefield are deadlocked in fourth place, six games behind... the Blasters got a bad 8-16 start in April, but they perked up a bit with a 14-14 mark in May... they have a decent offense with a .276 BA (5th) and 261 runs (8th), but possess poor pitching with a 4.28 ERA (25th)... offensive leaders are Chet Penn, who is third in the IPA with a .399 BA... Penn was named the RU Player of the Month for hitting .516 with 5 HRs and 31 RBIs for May... other impressive bats are Gerry Sives (.356) and Kristian McEly (.316)... Randell Perkins leads the staff with an 8-5 record and has posted a 3.86 ERA.

The Middlefield Roosters (22-30) haven't fared well in the early going... after a poor April, the Roosters were only 12-16 in May... the offense is lackluster and the pitching is lousy... Brad Alexander (.295) leads the club with 14 HRs and 48 RBIs, while Tony Parsons is tops with a .320 BA and 44 runs... the best pitcher is Larry Wheelhouse (5-8/3.81)... all the other starters are over the 5.00 ERA mark.

The Volusia Vigilantes (21-31) are in seventh place, seven games back of first place Sligo... not a lot of talent on the V's... the best of the lot is pitcher Hector Vargas (6-3/1.81), along with LF Felipe Henriques (.305) and 1B Glenn Childress (.295).

In last place are the Stoner Stars (20-32)... they are 8 games back... the Stars suffer on the mound and are even worse at the plate... they have compiled a 4.03 ERA and are near the bottom in scoring (30th)... Larry Urban (4-3/3.31) and Mel Glosterman (3-3/3.00) are the only productive pitchers... and CF Don Cain (.327) and C Barry Swindell (.339) are the best batters.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, June 1, 2037

NH HAWKS 1ST IN TU NORTH, BUT CHALLENGED
Defending IPA titleholder North Hills just keeps on chugging along in the Tycobbian North Division... the Hawks have won it the last three years and also chalked up two Pro Cup crowns... and they are living up to preseason expectations with a two-game lead over the runner-up White River Rascals and three in front of Fairfax and Blue Lake, tied for third place... all alone in the fifth spot are the Mahaska Haymakers, who trail by 5 games... in sixth place are Luxora and Hartsdale, six games out, while resting in the basement are the Oxford Red Caps, 8 games off the pace of first place North Hills... the Hawks still have wonderful pitching and should be one of the favorites in the Pro Cup playoffs, if they can beat off several serious challengers in the TU North this season.

North Hills (31-21) played good baseball in May with a 16-12 mark... the Hawks depend on strong pitching and they deliver with a 3.20 ERA (2nd)... offensively they have enough to get by with a .276 BA (6th), but are only average in scoring runs (242/17th)... Frankie Lambert (9-2/2.23) leads the pitcher pack this year with help from David Michael (7-4/2.70), Jeff Owens (8-4/3.57) and Nelson Hooper (4-2/3.38)... Mikhail Romanovsky (.297) is the team leader with 15 HRs and 39 RBIs... Gerry Rice (.316), Kris Anastas (.301) and Ric Hamilton (.288) are the other dependable bats in the order... the Hawks big gun Adam Thurgood (.217) is struggling with his batting average, but is still a threat with 10 HRs and 31 RBIs.

White River (29-23) had a hot May with an 18-10 record to rise up from seventh to second... give the mound corps credit... vets Kenny Nikas (7-3/3.45) and Paul Sardini (6-4/3.31) are capable starters and they are getting help from 22-year-old J. C. Hudson (6-3/3.45)... the Rascals attack is anemic with a .245 BA and average power (17th)... but they do have some solid bats in Stevie Dee Daniels (.277) with 16 HRs and 35 RBIs, Davey Sloan (.282) with 9 HRs and 30 RBIs... and Buford Cross, who leads the club with a .320 BA... it's not likely White River will beat out North Hills, Fairfax and Blue Lake... they don't have the hitting.

The Fairfax Frogs (28-24) are tied for third with Blue Lake and has what it takes to pressure North Hills... the Frogs were 15-13 in May and possess a good offense with a .279 BA (5th), ranking 5th in scoring with 275 runs, but could use more long-distance hitting (48 HR-22nd tied)... they are average on the hill with a 3.87 ERA (15th)... vets Eric Kusek (.347), Gilbert Miles (.325) and Max Lebowitz (.320) are heading up the Frogs hit parade... vets Lucien Vachon (6-6/3.25), Steven McLeod (5-5/3.72) and Harold Dorman (5-5/3.91) lead the hurlers... Fairfax is not quite as good as North Hills, but it will be hard to shake.

The Blue Lake Blue Sox (28-24) are an improved club this season... they were second last year, but were 10 games behind North Hills... Blue Lake broke even in April at 12-12 and went 16-12 in May... the Blue Sox do well on the mound with an impressive 3.17 ERA (4th), but they have trouble putting runs on the scoreboard... the Blue Sox have only 226 runs (27th) and don't hit with power, having only 32 roundtrippers (31st), but they do hit for average (.275-7th)... Frankie Quinn (8-2/2.58), Pat Brown (5-3/2.58), Lee Price (5-3/2.97) and Sal Mays (6-4/3.34) are a good foursome... the Blue Sox need for 19-game winner Andre Montrose to regain his form of last year... so far he is 3-10 with a 4.02 ERA... should he have a better second half, Blue Lake will certainly give North Hills a run for its money... the leading batsmen are Jack Ryan (.351), Matt Thompson (.348), Elton Graff (.322) and Raddy Pajak (.300).

In fifth place are the Mahaska Haymakers (26-26), much improved over last year's last place finish... the Haymakers had a mediocre May at 13-15... offensively they hold their own with a .275 BA (8th), score well with 262 runs (8th) and are decent in HRs with 51 (20th-tied)... but only so-so on the mound with a 3.95 ERA (17th)... there is a shortage of good starters... only Valente Viero (5-4/3.08) has consistently done the job... the Haymaker lineup is a good one with Johnny Watts (.362), Anton Hymel (.333), Rocco Bertara (.321), John Fitzpatrick (.303) and Mikk Krukk (.289)... Mahaska is most likely still a second-division team... not up to the level of North Hills, Fairfax, Blue Lake and White River.

The Luxora Zorros (25-27) are tied with Hartsdale in sixth place in the TU North standings... after being 11-13 in April, they improved slightly to 14-14... the Z's are not forecast to be a contender this year, though they have some talented players in Gerry Hathaway, the TU Player of the Month, who batted .400 in May with 10 HRs and 29 RBIs... overall Hathaway is hitting .363 with 14 HRs and 39 RBIs... and Todd Dubbins has been a good bat with a .341 BA, 13 HRs and 41 RBIs... other offensive contributors are Kelvin Cassidy (.308), Ramiro Munos (.305) and Derrek Jackson (.308)... pitching is also better-than-average with a 3.74 ERA... as a team the Z's bat .269 (11th), are tied for 10th in scoring with 252 runs and are 11th in roundtrippers with 61... Luxora has two fine veteran starters in Benny DeVito (8-3/2.63) and Kent Halloran (5-6/2.48) and in closer Fernando Sanches (1-3/2.45/10 saves)... Sanches is tied for the IPA lead in saves with Scotty Price of the Sligo Rovers in the Ruthlandian West... the Zorros are a better team than some of the experts forecast... they might finish as high as fourth... last year they were seventh.

Not a lot is expected of the Hartsdale Hellcats (25-27), who were picked for the cellar this year in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES preseason poll... after a 13-11 mark in April, they dipped to 12-16 in May... the Hellcats are just a lackluster club with a .255 BA (22nd) and a 4.24 ERA (21st)... Freddie Whitaker (6-6/3.04) and Wayne Dawson (7-5/3.65) head up the starting rotation... the offensive leaders are Hayden Richardson (.383) with 13 HRs and 30 RBIs and Jeffrey Karkinos (.321) with 11 HRs and 27 RBIs.

The eighth place Oxford Red Caps (23-29) are very similar to Hartsdale, but have more firepower with 67 HRs (6th)... the team batting average is .258 (19th) and the team ERA is 4.25 (22nd)... the Red Caps were rated near the bottom in the preseason picks, which appears to be the most likely scenario... Cody Quackenbush (7-4/3.23) has been a standout on the mound, but he needs more help... Jayson French (.342) and Kerry Sterling (.302) are the best batters... they could use some help, too.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, June 1, 2037

TYPHOONS SURGE TO TOP OF TU SOUTH
There appears to be a lot of contenders in the Tycobbian South Division this season... Turon surged up from last to first with a brilliant 22-6 record in May that gave them a two-game lead over San Alejo and Arroyo Grande... there is a three-way battle for fourth with Summerland, Ginza and Colchester all five games back... Six of the division's eight clubs have winning records... in fact, all of the teams posted .500 or better records in May.

The Turon Typhoons (32-20) were a close third last year to Colchester... this season they were ranked fourth in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES preseason picks... the Typhoons have the best ERA in the IPA at 2.91 and are led by the remarkable 21-year-old rookie Nate Scottsdale (11-2/2.37), who was just honored with the Pitcher of the Month trophy... Scottsdale was 7-0 in May with a 2.62 ERA in 7 starts... he is tied with Dan Pitts of Elnora in the Ruthlandian Union for the most wins in the IPA... other top Turon twirlers are Russell Larsen (5-1/2.06) and Wes Brynnton (8-5/2.63)... the Typhoons batters are hot, too, with a .287 BA (4th), but they don't go deep very often with 47 HRs (25th-tied) and are only average in scoring runs (245 runs-14th tied)... leading the attack are C. C. Kingsford (.337), Guido Gervasio (.322), J. P. Trevenot (.304) and Little Mac McCurnan (.338)... Turon looks like they are in the race to stay.

The San Alejo Montaneros (30-22) were favored to win the division in the preseason balloting... they are currently tied with the surprising Arroyo Grande Suns for the runner-up spot... the Monties are strong in the batter's box with a .271 BA (10th) and on the scoreboard with 287 runs (2nd)... power-wise they are pretty good with 63 HRs (8th-tied)... Filipe Zamora (.333) and Charlie Wilberforce (.347) are the offensive leaders with help from Bubby Blackwell (.314)... Zamora and Sancho Cruz lead the club with 11 HRs apiece...Zamora tops the team with 42 RBIs, while Cruz (.242) has 41... Adrian Otero (.244) is third in homers with 10... outfielder Dusty Rogan (.330) missed most of May with a hamstring injury... he should be back in the lineup in early June... the pitching corps is not as productive as the offense with a 3.75 ERA (12th)... Barry Sexton (5-4/3.24), Tommy Smith (6-4/3.67) and Johnny Brown (6-6/3.80) are the most dependable starters... San Alejo has a lot of talent and should play a big part in the pennant race.

The Arroyo Grande Suns (30-22) have been also-rans most of the last ten years... the last two years found them in seventh place... the Suns were forecast again for the seventh spot in the standings in the preseason balloting... but lo and behold they went 18-12 in May and suddenly find themselves in the midst of the pennant race... the only question is will they continue to play like that... probably not... the Suns are batting .257 (21st), have pretty good power with 60 HRs (12th) and they score well with 265 runs (7th)... pitching-wise they are decent with a 3.97 ERA (18th)... but the bullpen is bad with a 4.79 ERA (27th)... Gregorio Oiviera tops the team with a .331 BA, 35 RBIs and 35 runs... he is second in HRs with 10... Johnny Hensley is batting .304 with 7 HRs, 30 RBIs and 35 runs... and Pip Gleason is first in homers with 12 and also has 35 RBIs, but is batting only .257... the Suns' starting four are pretty consistent: Mateus Castro (8-3/3.99), Matt Stevens (6-2/3.57), Monty Stratford (4-4/3.38) and Freddy Farentino (5-6/4.14), considering the small park they have to pitch in... anyone is a home-run threat in Capet Stadium.

Defending TU South champ Colchester (27-25) is tied for fourth with the Ginza Ninjas and Summerland Sunsets... the Elites are hanging close, just five games out... they were 15-13 in May... Colchester has a potent arsenal, ranking fourth in scoring with 279 runs, tied for eighth in homers with 63 and are batting .289 (2nd)... their Achilles' heel is on the mound with a horrible 4.70 ERA (30th)... Roy Watson (8-3/3.20) is the most reliable starter, along with Dan Scott (2-3/3.20/saves), who just moved from the bullpen to the starting rotation... Blake Barrister leads the Elites at the plate with 14 HRs, 31 RBIs and 27 runs, but is hitting just .247 for average... Chet Porter (.329) and Billy Christianson (.309) are the top batters and they get some help from Jasper Matthews (.299), Joey Rogers (.284) and Alejandro Vasquez (.275)... Colchester won the division last year with a high-powered offense and pretty fair pitching, but they are not as good this season on the hill or in the batter's box... the Elites were rated the fifth-best team in the preseason poll... that seems about right.

Ginza (27-25) was the second choice in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES preseason voting... the Ninjas are very much like Colchester with a .289 BA (2nd), 279 runs (4th), 63 HRs (8th-tied) and a very suspect 4.70 ERA (30th)... seven players are hitting over .300, paced by Ichiro Kazumi (.354), Dave Sulligent (.347), Whip Harrell (.336), Steve Daniels (.331), manager Sadaharu Uchiyama (.316), Randy Towns (.307) and Sogo Takagi (.302)... two others, Johnny O'Rorke (.287) and Scott Sparks (.281) are good with the sticks, too... Glenn Downing (6-4/3.58) has been the most dependable starter... vets Hollis Pace (6-7/4.49) and Emil Kaltenborn (6-5/4.35) have struggled a bit in the early going... for the Ninjas to contend for the division flag, it's crucial that Pace and Kaltenborn get things in gear and return to form... in May Ginza was 15-13.

Summerland (27-25) was picked to wind up in third place this year... they were 14-14 in May and feature pretty fair pitching with a 3.61 ERA (7th)... the Sunsets are in great need of offense... though they hit a decent .264 (15th), they don't produce many runs... they have scored only 224 runs (28th) and hit just 30 HRs (32nd), which is the worst in the IPA... Summerland's strength is in starters Freddi Rossi (6-5/3.05), Kim Kono (4-4/3.04) and Johnny Young (4-5/2.30)... Antonio Vasquez (.317), Norm Murdoch (.314) and Don Colby (.302) have been the best bats... it's not likely the Sunsets will repeat last year's strong second place finish... they are not the same ball club this year.

The seventh place Southport Sun Sox (25-27) were 14-14 in May and are just two games away from the .500 mark... not bad for a club that was predicted to finish in the basement... the Sun Sox don't do anything especially well... they sport a .253 BA (25th) and a 4.38 ERA (27th)... not a lot of talent in Southport... Chip Bickford (6-5/3.95) and Pat Kinney (.320) are the best of the lot... the Sun Sox will be near the bottom at season's end.

The Cape Coral Hurricanes (24-28) are in last place, but did break even at 14-14 in May... the baseball scribes placed them sixth in the preseason poll... the 'Canes don't have much power... only 48 HRs (22nd-tied), but they do hit for average with a .288 mark (3rd) and they can score (260 runs-9th), but the pitching is abysmal with a 4.55 ERA (28th)... Maxi Tselika (.322), Stan Ferguson (.316), Paul Law (.314) and William Snyder (.294) are the prime run producers... and Tommy Van Noord (7-4/3.34) is the only effective starter.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, June 1, 2037

EP PANTHERS LEAD TUCKS BY A GAME IN TU EAST
The cream has risen to the top in the Tycobbian East pennant race... East Point and Tuckanarra look like the only challengers as the High Mesa Cowboys came down-to-earth in May after being in a three-way tie for the top spot the first month of the season... the Panthers were 18-10 in May to take a one-game lead over second place Tuckanarra... the Blue Jays were 17-11 in the second month, while the Cowboys were bucked out of the saddle with a dismal 9-19 mark and tumbled down to fourth place, 9 games off the pace... Ozarka, the preseason favorite in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES poll, rebounded to third place after a poor opening month... the Naturals climbed up to the .500 mark, but are seven games behind East Point... the Nats posted a 16-12 record in the last month... the rest of the TU East are way below .500 and can pretty much forget about this year.

East Point (33-19) hits with power, can score and has very good starting pitching... however, a bad bullpen is their sore point... the Panthers have a formidable foursome in Dixie Brooks (7-3/2.71), Johnny Moore (7-3/2.54), Frank Blair (6-2/3.26) and Burton Cook (6-7/3.48)... they just need some help from the relief corps (6.51 ERA-31st)... Brooks and Blair could both reach the 200-win milestone this season... the IPA home-run leader Dean O'Donnell heads up a power-packed lineup that includes Karl Jankauskas (.226) with 14 HRs and 40 RBIs, and Tetsu Tanaka (.260) and Chris Cardinale (.234) with 10 each... O'Donnell has 19 with a .332 BA, 42 RBIs and 41 runs... Ricky Arnold (.329) is the only other .300 batter... the Panthers are hitting only .255 (23rd), but are number two in the IPA with 88 roundtrippers, topped only by Sugar Valley of the Ruthlandian East with 89... East Point is in it for the long haul and should give Tuckanarra and Ozarka a tussle for the division crown... Ozarka was the critics' choice with the Blue Jays second and the Panthers third... the stage is being set for a dynamite three-way battle for the flag and the playoff spot... the Tycobbian East should be a fan pleaser.

The Tuckanarra Blue Jays (32-20) have won the last three pennants by double-digit margins and they may be even better this year with improved hitting... the Tucks are tops in the IPA with a .291 BA and 302 runs and rank fourth in homers with 69... only Sugar Valley outscores them in the IPA... the Rattlers have rung up 339 runs... iconic slugger Lorne Evans is off to another fine season with a .327 mark, 15 HRs, 36 RBIs and 44 runs... John Paul has chipped in with 16 HRs, 35 RBIs and a .298 BA... steady Eddie Darby (.296) is still a solid defender and good contact hitter at age 34... Tuckanarra uses a lot of platoon players... Andy Pearson (.397), Nicky Weill (.295) and Cliff Winter (.317) are playing their roles well... vets Josh George (.258) and Spade Weldon (.263) have had slow starts this year... the team ERA is 3.32 (5th) with three strong veteran starters in Jeff Buttrum (6-4/2.38), Junior Bristow (8-3/2.80) and Bobby Reid (7-3/3.24).

The Ozarka Naturals (26-26) got off to a slow start, but improved in recently weeks... the Nats came in a distant second to Tuckanarra the last three years, but improved pitching is supposed to make them a serious challenger... the team ERA is a rock-solid 3.06 (3rd)... the club has a strong bullpen with a 2.30 ERA (3rd)... but they are not much offensively with a .266 BA (13th), only 39 HRs (28th) and 229 runs (24th-tied)... leading the mound staff are starters Glen Jenkins (7-6/2.40), Leon Bernard (5-5/2.38) and Zenon Metaxis (7-3/3.44)... not much in the way of bats... Gunnar Norheim (.333), Sid Elmore (.314) and Duffy Morrison (.314) are the club leaders, but none have any power... Ozarka was the preseason favorite, but they don't really look in the class of Tuckanarra and East Point... third place is the most likely finish... they just don't have much offense.

The High Mesa Cowboys (24-28) were really on a high in April, but flopped badly in May... in a month they have fallen from first to fourth and now trail by 9 games... maybe May was the real Cowpoke club... the pollsters put them in last place in the preseason guesses... they now rank near the bottom in batting (.250) and pitching (4.57 ERA) and could be headed for the cellar... the run producers are Corbett Brooks (.254) with 15 HRs and 37 RBIs, Michael Page (.281) with 13 HRs and 31 RBIs and Clay Johnston (.317) with 12 HRs and 33 RBIs... and Dean Harris (7-1/3.42) and Max Jung (7-6/4.26) lead the pitchers.

The fifth place Red Bluff Red Sox (20-32) don't do much except hit homers... they are third in the IPA with 86... David Kelso (.276) is the club leader with 18 HRs and 47 RBIs, which is tied for second in the IPA HR race and tied for fourth in RBIs... Gene Bates (.256) has 15 HRs and 36 RBIs, Fran Blanchard (.254) has 13 HRs and 30 RBIs and Garris Aiken (.269) has 10 HRs and 22 RBIs... Jimmy McMillan (7-3/3.15) and Bazuki Hasegawa (5-5/2.98) are the pitching leaders.

The South Fork Stallions (19-33), Midway Wolves and Hillsboro Blazers are tied for last place, 14 games back... the Stallions are hitting .260 (18th) with a 5.47 ERA (32nd)... Paul Sexton (.325) and Elton Jacoby (.312) are the club leaders at the plate... Chris Sorensen (5-5/3.90) is the only decent pitcher... looks like a long season for the Stallions.

Midway (19-33) is in the same boat as South Fork with a lot of mediocrity... the Wolves have a .254 team BA (24th) and a 4.37 team ERA (26th)... Bobby Dorignac (4-7/3.66), John Anderson (5-7/3.87) and Cary Snead (4-5/3.93) are fair pitchers... rookie Yuma Chandler is the one bright light on the team with a .391 BA in a parttime role... Chandler recently was made the full-time CF.

Hillsboro (19-33) is plain bad, too... with a horrific .227 BA (32nd), by far the worst in the IPA... and a 4.25 team ERA (25th)... Lucky Luciano (4-0/2.91) has been excellent in the bullpen... the only starter with an ERA under 4.00 is Lee Dixon (5-9/3.65)... Jurrien Bellini (.254) leads the team with 12 HRs and 34 RBIs, while Philip Stafford (.283) has the best BA with 9 HRs and 27 RBIs.

BSC BUCS BEST IN CRAZY TU WEST
It's wacky in the Tycobbian West Division this year... certainly not a pollsters' paradise... the good teams are bad and the bad teams are good... Bay St. Clair, rated the worst team in the preseason poll, has emerged as the top team and has run up a surprising five-game lead after two solid months of play... the Buccaneers may not be a flash in the pan... Kenwood and Arlon, both forecast for the second division, are running second and third with Denton City fourth... the second division is filled with so-called first division teams like preseason favorite La Claire and second-ranked Chicopee, who has dominated the division the last three seasons... Rolling Hills was picked to finish fourth and currently is in fifth place in the standings, tied with La Claire 10 games out of first... Bayview, the seventh choice in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES preseason poll, is 12 games behind and in seventh... while the Chicopee Braves, ranked second by the preseason experts, have been a big-time flop... they are in last place 15 games behind first place Bay St. Clair.

Bay St. Clair (34-18) jumped out to a 16-8 record in the first month of action and then kept it up with a fine 18-10 mark in May... so the Bucs apparently are for real... they are batting only .257 (20th), but can score enough runs to get by with 252 (20th-tied)... the Buccaneers are good on the hill with a 3.63 ERA... the starters are only fair with a 4.00 ERA, but the bullpen is strong with a 2.23 ERA (2nd)... Pete Cross (3-4/1.91/7 saves) and Sam Zale (1-0/0.49/1 save) anchor the relief corps... heading up the starters are two very good ones in Jay Callahan (7-1/2.67) and John Karlsen (8-4/2.60)... a little more help from starters three and four would really stabilize the Bucs' flag hopes... Cotton Cornwall is the club's leading hitter with a .336 BA... Ryan Dukes (.301) is the HR leader with 11... Milt Powers (.241) is tops with 36 RBIs and number two with 10 HRs... it would be a good Cinderella story if Bay St. Clair can pull off this huge upset in the Tycobbian West.

The Kenwood Wildcats (29-23) are also a team on-the-rise... improved bats and better pitching has made them a credible challenger... they are batting .269 (12th) with 224 runs (16th) and 63 HRs (8th-tied), along with a 3.66 ERA (10th)... Glen Murray (7-2/2.69), Freddy Gooch (6-3/3.61), Claude Watson (5-3/4.00) and Milt Cochrane (4-6/4.10) are the primary starters... topping the batting order are Clark Chamberlain (.345), Ricky Boyer (.337), Harry Tashina (.299) and Corky DiNozzo (.297)... the Wildcats may have staying power and just might wind up in the first division.

It's been 8 years since the Arlon Champions (26-26) had a winning season... they have pretty good pitching with a 3.59 ERA (6th), but rank near the bottom in offense (31st)... the pitchers have carried the club this year... Lanny Gray (4-5/2.81) has been the most effective starter with help from Emil Nowak (7-4/3.57) and Pat Stuyvesant (6-3/3.89)... Dale Greene has done well in relief with a 2-2 record, 1.82 ERA and 5 saves... Todd Benson (.295) and Mark Cameron (.293) are the most dependable hitters, but have no power... with it weak offense, it may be hard for Arlon to remain in the top three teams... sixth place seems more like it.

Fourth place Denton City (25-27), rated number four in the preseason poll, which was a disappointment because last season the Redbirds finished a strong second to champ Chicopee... they are pretty much the same ball club roster-wise, but two of their best starters Denny Mills (3-3/4.54) and Stephen Edwards (3-4/4.64) have not been the same pitchers... Mills was 22-7 last year with a 3.99 ERA and Edwards was 15-15 with a 3.63 ERA... Troy McIntosh (7-3/3.21) and Francisco Salcido (6-6/2.92) have been the most effective starters this season... Denton City has a solid core of hitters that have posted a .272 BA (9th), scored 266 runs (6th) and hit 68 HRs (5th)... leading the way have been Russ Foster (.347), Felton Welch (.320), Sammy Thornton (.301), Pete Doyle (.300) and Sam Carson (.288)... the Redbirds started the season off fine with a 14-10 mark, but slipped badly in May with an 11-17 record... the key to the season will be Mills and Edwards... they have to do much better in the second half of the season.

The Rolling Hills Reds (24-28) are fifth and 10 games off the pace, but they did improve to 15-13 in May after a bad first month... they are tied in the standings with preseason favorite La Claire ... the Reds don't have much on the ball and are just a mediocre team with three quality starters in Mike Daniels (8-2/2.68), Maury Cantrell (4-1/1.64) and Matthew Christianson (5-5/3.81) and a lousy bullpen with a 6.03 ERA (30th)... they don't hit for power... the best bats are Dino Manale (.344), Buffy Kowalczyk (.319) and Brian Davis (.312)... ranked fourth in the preseason poll, Rolling Hills will probably end up in the second division.

Preseason pick La Claire (24-28) started off the year well with a 15-9 record, running neck-and-neck with first place Bay St. Clair, but the Lynx faltered badly in May with a terrible 9-19 mark... it may be too early to give up on them since they still have three capable starters in Pat Kovacs (4-6/3.31), Tony Rossi (6-3/3.49) and Glenn Smith (2-4/3.13)... maybe they just had a bad month... the Lynx lack offense... Ernie Pryor (.303), Kris Wilson (.289) and Billy Holland (.267) are just adequate and nothing special... La Claire's hitting must pick up for them to be a contender... they can be better assessed after the All-Star Game.

As expected the Bayview Vikings (22-30) are in seventh place, just like the analysts predicted... they are 12 games back and headed nowhere... Jerry Culpepper (.292) tops the club with 13 HRs and is tied with Roy Ricks (.313) for the RBI lead with 30... Ricks has 11 roundtrippers... Vance Codsworth (6-4/2.38) leads the staff in wins and ERA... Kris Melgaard (4-3/3.17) has been effective, too.

Once-proud Chicopee (19-33) has crumbled this year and fallen from the penthouse to the outhouse... the Braves dominated the Tycobbian West, capturing the division the last three years with a high-powered attack that has suddenly dropped out-of-sight this year... the Braves have averaged hitting about .278 with 840 runs and 190 HRs per year... they are hitting a lowly .251 this year and are on target for only 657 runs and 165 HRs... the offense suffered a huge loss in early May when slugger Charley Kota hurt his shoulder and will be out until August... Kota was having a terrific season with a .379 BA, 6 homers and 17 RBIs in 26 games... no one on the team is having a good year offensively... and only pitchers Judd Hampton (6-3/3.80) and Ryan Ledbetter (5-6/3.75) have held done reasonably well... it would take a wholesale turnaround for the Braves to make fourth place this year... their string of titles will certainly be snapped this year.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, June 22, 2037

TYCOBBIAN STARS TANGLE WITH RUTHLANDIAN STARS TOMORROW
The votes are tallied and the players have been chosen -- all that's left is to "Play Ball"! It's time once again for the midyear classic where the league's premier performers come together to show their skill and talent. The All-Stars from the Ruthlandian Union and the Tycobbian Union are set to tangle tomorrow aftenoon at the Hawk's Nest in North Hills to determine which league stars are the best.

The TU All-Stars lead the series 24-12. They will be led by Lorne Evans of the Tuckanarra Blue Jays, who will be making his 10th appearance in the midsummer's classic. Bobby Gamble of Sugar Valley tops the RU All-Stars. He was selected for the fifth time this year. The only rookie to make it was pitcher Nate Scottsdale of the Turon Typhoons from the Tycobbian Union.

The roster for the Ruthlandian Union is:

SP Dan Pitts (ELN) (15-3/2.43)
SP J.J. Gillespie (CCR) (11-4/1.89)
SP Ken Arby (BEE) (12-5/2.42)
SP Arnie Cason (CL) (11-5/2.76)
SP Augie Marquis (FTB) (11-4/2.43)
SP Randell Perkins (CFX) (13-5/3.05)
MR Ray Owens (MDF) (2-2/0.94/10 saves)
C Angelo Rossi (TAR) (.319/19/48/40)
C Brad Alexander (MDF) (.275/18/61/40)
C Jan Kobak (ELN) (.316/10/42/35)
1B Bobby Scott (VLK) (.383/19/55/52)
1B Kristian McEly (CFX) (.307/14/59/44)
2B Johnny Petrak (ETS) (.400/13/54/51)
2B Roger Hobbs (SV) (.316/21/65/59)
3B Danny Bierhoff (ELN) (.356/14/49/35)
3B Marty Blankenship (STJ) (.278/21/55/53)
SS Gerry Sives (CFX) (.351/3/38/52)
SS D. D. Badeaux (FTB) (.344/11/32/55)
SS Cody Hanks (BEE) (.343/12/42/42)
LF Chet Penn (CFX) (.396/10/65/47)
LF Noel Martin (BP) (.345/17/50/62)
CF Bobby Meusel (BB) (.322/13/42/52)
CF Don Cain (STO) (.337/9/38/48)
CF Tony Parsons (MDF) (.314/12/36/55)
RF Bobby Gamble (SV) (.355/17/74/61)
RF Pat Dillon (CL) (.348/4/31/47)

The roster for the Tycobbian Union is:

SP Vance Codsworth (BAY) (11-4/2.42)
SP Frankie Quinn (BL) (12-2/2.43)
SP Johnny Moore (EP) (10-4/2.74)
SP Glen Downing (GIN) (8-5/3.05)
SP Dixie Brooks (EP) (12-4/2.94)
SP Nate Scottsdale (TUR) (13-4/2.88)
MR Fernando Sanches (LUX) (2-3/2.22/12 saves)
C Felton Welch (DC) (.323/16/69/37)
C Filipe Zamora (SA) (.327/15/60/44)
C Jon Paul (TUC) (.311/19/43/41)
1B Gerry Hathaway (LUX) (.322/19/46/48)
1B Hayden Richardson (HAR) (.377/15/39/37)
2B Jerry Culpepper (BAY) (.302/23/46/45)
2B Buffy Kowalczyk (RH) (.331/6/40/31)
3B Todd. Dubbins (LUX) (.324/20/58/44)
3B Elton Jacoby (SF) (.309/11/50/48)
SS Dean O'Donnell (EP) (.319/23/58/52)
SS C. C. Kingsford (TUR) (.346/12/47/47)
SS Ricky Boyer (KEN) (356/10/33/47)
LF Harry Tashina (KEN) (.292/12/49/42)
LF Jack Ryan (BL) (.354/2/28/43)
CF Sogo Takagi (GIN) (.320/14/50/56)
CF Corbett Brooks (HM) (.264/22/50/45)
CF J. P. Trevenot (TUR) (.288/10/33/49)
RF Lorne Evans (TUC) (.311/16/42/60)
RF Guido Gervasio (TUR) (.323/9/44/37)

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Wednesday, June 24, 2037

RU STARS WHIP TU STARS 4-2
Shaky defense gave the Ruthlandian All-Stars a 4-2 victory over the Tycobbian All-Stars in the 37th annual All-Star Classic played at the Hawk's Nest in North Hills... three infield errors in the fifth inning led to the winning runs... Danny Bierhoff (Elnora) and Bobby Gamble (Sugar Valley) homered for the victors, while Jerry Culpepper (Bayview) went deep for Tycobbia... Bierhoff was voted the game's Most Valuable Player... J. J. Gillespie (Cold Creek) got the win, but gave up three hits and a run in his two innings... the loss went to Vance Codsworth (Bayview), who gave up two unearned runs in the fifth... Ruthlandia used six hurlers in the game and Tycobbian seven... the RU Stars were outhit 10-7... SS Gerry Sives (Colfax) led them with 2 hits... CF Sogo Takagi (Ginza), C Felton Welch (Denton City) and Jerry Culpepper (Bayview) all had 2 hits apiece for the losers... Tycobbia is still way ahead in the series 24-13 in spite of Ruthlandia winning for the second straight year... last year's score was also 4-2.

Tycobbia took an early lead in the second on a solo homer by Culpepper... Ruthlandia's Bierhoff came right back and tied it up in the third with his home run... in the third Tycobbia again got the lead on a double by Takagi and two singles by Lorne Evans (Tuckanarra) and Welch... the decisive fifth was error-filled when Johnny Petrak (Eastshore) reached first on a miscue by Codsworth... a throwing error by catcher Felton Welch on Bobby Meusel's (Belair Beach) bunt put runners on second and third... first baseman Gerry Hathaway (Luxora) misplayed Bierhoff's grounder and allowed Petrak to tie the score at 2-2... Meusel scored when Marty Blankenship (St. John) grounded into a double play, giving the RU Stars a 3-2 edge... in the sixth Bobby Gamble went deep for the final score.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, June 30, 2037

3-TEAM TUSSLE IN RU NORTH, CATS ON TOP
The contenders have been pared down to three teams in the Ruthlandian North Division... after three months of play the Kilkenny Cats are in first place with a one-game margin over the LaGrange Sports and three ahead of the Taranto Tars... the Sports have won the last two seasons and four of the last five... last year it got down to just LaGrange and Kilkenny and the Sports won by two games.

Kilkenny (44-34) lost a little ground to LaGrange in June with a 14-12 record, while the Sports went 16-12... the Tars stayed alive with a 14-12 mark... the Cats have marvelous pitching with Fred Doyle (11-5/2.52), Dave Whitaker (10-7/2.65), Ted Flanagan (9-8/3.10) and James Crockett (9-6/3.32)... but lack offense... the pitching is strong enough for them to break the hold LaGrange has had on the division, but it won't be easy... the Sports never look good on paper, but they are proven winners.

LaGrange's (42-32) strong point is its veteran starting rotation: Walt Thurber (11-6/2.97), Mike York (10-6/3.46), Roland Oates (4-2/3.65) and Earl Perkins (4-1/3.77)... plus a solid bunch of batters: Fred Bird (.312), Russell Watkins (.275/16 HR), Vasco Aguilar (.321/10 HR), Charles Bacque (.265/11 HR), Chris Heffner (.303/9 HR) and Chris Charbonnier (.254/10 HR)... no one ever seems to have faith in the Sports except themselves... will they pull it out again for the third straight year and fifth time in seven?

Taranto (41-37) has been hanging tough with the long ball... the Tars are third in the RU with 108 roundtrippers... Wes Marlowe (.320/25 HR), All-Star Angelo Rossi (.320/22 HR) and Daryl Rhodes (.313/ 5 HR) are the main bats... Carmine Scalise (9-8/2.88) and Danny Darby (4-0/2.83) are quality starters... don't expect Taranto to finish any higher than third... they will fade in the hot Summertime... Kilkenny and LaGrange have much better pitching.

The Valmara Vipers (38-40) were in first place for most of the season, but they had a terrible month in June with a 8-18 record... and now have fallen to a three-way tie for fourth place... seventh place could be the Vipers' destiny... Valmara's pitching is atrocious with a 4.88 ERA (31st).

Ancona may be the best of the rest, followed by Far Mountain and Glasco... poor Ranford looks really bad and won't get out of the cellar this year.

WALESKA SLIM LEAD IN RU SOUTH
It's anybody's race in the tight Ruthlandian South this season... four teams - Waleska, Claxton, Belair Beach and San Dimas - are evenly matched... there is no clear-cut favorite... preseason pick Waleska has a slim two-game edge over Claxton, three up on Belair Beach and four better than San Dimas... Crystal Lake and St. John are still within striking distance, but not expected to contend... no chance for Valka and Grand City.

The Waleska Westerners (43-35) managed to hold on to the top spot with a 13-13 record this month... two very good starters Craig Nash (10-6/3.33) and Terry Richards (9-7/3.16) are pretty much carrying the Westerners this season... in years past they were known as an explosive team with the likes of Roy Hobbs and Loco Dillinger... it may be tough for Waleska to win the pennant unless the offense perks up quite a bit.

The runner-up Claxton Diamonds (41-37) had a good June with a 15-11 mark... they have fair pitching led by Vance White (12-5/3.65) and Stan Yudash (4-1/3.68)... but its the offense that makes the Diamonds shine... Jojo DeLucca (.309/21 HR/60 RBI/60 R) and Foxy Fuchs (.329/21 HR/64 RBI/62 R) have really sparkled this season, along with Gary Colton (.257/9 HR/55 RBI)... Claxton may have what it takes to win this season.

The third place Belair Beach Sunbirds (40-38) broke even in June with a 13-13 record... if the Sunbirds fly the RU South flag high this season, it will be their bats that do it... the mound staff is mediocre... only Calvin Carmichael (10-5/3.84) has been effective... leading the attack at the plate has been All-Star Bobby Meusel (.323/15 HR/47 RBI/56 R), Jackie Jackson (.306/9 HR/35 RBI/49 R), Larry Cole (.315/14 HR/41 RBI/43 R) and Jason Butler (.324/18 HR/50 RBI).

The fourth place San Dimas Rancheros (39-39) may be the best-balanced club in the RU South Division... Leonard Purkey (.293/8 HR/53 RBI), Hermie Goetz (.305/4 HR/42 RBI), Klaus Stordahl (.285/10 HR/34 RBI/53 R) and Denny Hendrix (.312/11 HR/40 RBI/47 R) are quality batters, while Seth Dawson (7-3/3.72) and Gil Arnaud (6-6/3.21) have been the most reliable pitchers... after going 15-11 in June, the Rancheros appear to be capable of challenging this season.

The Crystal Lake Crushers (37-41) ran one or two for most of the first two months of the season, but fizzled badly in June with a 9-17 record... they still have some good sticks in All-Star Paul Dillon (.352/4 HR/34 RBI/51 R), Big Sam Takota (.296/16 HR/53 RBI) and Stan Stanek (.303/14 HR/41 RBI) and some pretty good hurlers in vets All-Star Arnie Cason (11-6/2.80) and Douglas Merrill (4-3/3.23)... maybe the scribes were right when they picked the Crushers to finish sixth in the preseason poll.

What's wrong in St. John (36-42)?... the Crusaders are the defending division champ... last year they made it all the way to the Pro Cup Finals before losing in six games to North Hills... and this year they were forecast to battle for the RU South pennant... the Crusaders have had losing records in two of the three months this season, going 12-14 in June... still they possess a fine mound staff with Jeremy Kirk (12-8/3.15), Lou Gianakos (7-5/3.50), Vito Sanfratello (6-11/3.10) and Yancy Garrett (8-10/3.73)... St. John has a solid core of hitters, too, with the talent of All-Star Marty Blankenship (.289/23 HR/59 RBI/57 R) and Nicky Farrugia (.270/15 HR/64 RBI) and Art Kelley (.289/14 HR/48 RBI/47 R)... the Crusaders still could get back in the race and probably will... seven games is not hard to make up when you have half a season to go and the talent they have.

The Valka Blackhawks (32-46) are in seventh place and will likely remain so... they can't expect talented All-Star Bobby Scott (.381/22 HR/60 RBI/57 R) and Kenny Mitzusaka (.306/7 HR/31 RBI/40 R) to do it all by themselves.

The Grand City Cybercats (27-51) were bad even before they posted a horrendous 4-22 record this past month... Teddy Grantham (.329/13 HR/46 RBI/43 R) is the only bonafide threat in the lineup... and none of the pitchers are very good... Kenny Morrow is the best with a 6-6 mark and a poor 4.42 ERA.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, June 30, 2037

ELNORA MOVES AHEAD OF SV RATTLERS IN RU EAST
June was another great month for the Elnora All-Stars, who took over first place from Sugar Valley in the Ruthlandian East Division, the toughest race in the IPA... the All-Stars pulled ahead by two games over the powerful Rattlers... preseason favorite Cold Creek is still in the running, but is now six games off the pace... the Eastshore Elegants are 11 games back in fourth... the RU East looks like a three-team race.

Elnora (53-25) soared to the top spot with a red-hot 19-7 record in June and has the best record in the IPA, led on the hill by Dan Pitts (15-4/2.66), the IPA leader in victories... plus Tony Ryman (11-5/3.84) and Stan Kivas (8-5/3.06)... and in the batter's box by All-Star Danny Bierhoff (.356/16/53), All-Star Jan Kobak (.329/11/47), Clint Thomas (.301/11/49/47) and Akihiro Samurakami (.290/6/24/53)... Thomas just went down recently with a strained oblique muscle and will miss up to six weeks.

The Sugar Valley Rattlers (51-37) cooled off a bit this month with a 15-11 mark and slipped down to second place, trailing by just two games... the Rattlers have a high-octane batting order sparked by All-Star Bobby Gamble (.352/18/76/62), the RBI leader in the IPA with 76... with plenty of help from All-Star Roger Hobbs (.308/22/68/61), Tyler White (.239/22/60/50) and Richie Strickland (.266/15/29/65)... Juan Navarro (10-4/2.61), Jeremy Blanchardd (10-6/3.20) and Josh Wilkerson (12-5/4.15) head up the hurlers.

The Cold Creek Catamounts (47-31) were also 15-11 in June and lost ground in the pennant chase... the 'Cats are now six games behind, but they still possess one of the best starting rotations in the IPA with All-Star J. J. Gillespie (12-4/2.02), Rob Hutchins (12-6/3.39), Jules Capet (6-3/2.11) and Joey Baker (9-7/2.69)... however, they suffer some in the bullpen... and really are troubled at the plate... Wayne Kenney (.302/11/40), Pat Ellis (.306/10/33) and Jeremy Hall (.294/2/28) are the most dependable bats, but they lack punch and power... but as long as the hurlers hold up, Cold Creek will be a pennant threat.

The fourth-place Eastshore Elegants (42-36) had a losing month with a 12-14 record and have now fallen pretty far back... they are 11 games out of first... the Elegants have pretty fair pitching with Teddy Noble (12-7/3.78), Don Klingenberg (9-8/4.00) and Ramon Contreras (8-7/2.95)... offensively Johnny Petrak (.388/13/56/54) is having a great season and leads the IPA in BA and hits... but he has little help other than Paul Reed (.327/12/34/46) and Larry Romney (.277/7/48/39)... long-time star Scotty Lagrange is having an off-year with a .252 BA, but has hit 12 HRs and driven in 43 runs.

The Wynnamac Sundowners (41-37) have slumped since topping the division in April... now with two successive losing months, they are 12 games out and in fifth place... the Sundowners still have quality starters in Killara Bardo (11-7/2.98), Geoff Hobart (9-8/3.24), Paul Payton (6-6/3.44) and Ernie Hodges (8-9/3.39), but the offense is missing... Davy L'Amour (.275/15/58/48) and Darrell Donnelly (.285/6/34/55) provide what little scoring they have.

The sixth-place Beechwood Bobcats (40-38) still have a winning record, but June was a disaster with a 7-19 mark... numbers-wise the Bobcats are still a better-than-average club... All-Star Ken Arby (12-6/2.73) is still a tough competitor and the team's ace... the top Bobcat bats belong to All-Star Cody Hanks (.351/13/48/45), Eddie Wilson (.318/22/40/50) and Howie Baldwin (.282/23/57/64)... Baldwin is third in the IPA in scoring runs (64).

Even seventh-place Marston (39-39) has broken even this season, but the Nine are 14 games out of first... they were 14-12 in June... Jimbo McGinnity (3-4/1.76/10 saves) is a solid closer... the only consistent starter has been Barry Sexton (7-8/2.98)... the most productive hitters have been Stan Mila (.330/10/38/45), Marco Ameche (.286/15/39/37) and Lonnie Trekell (.291/13/40/41).

The Belle Plaine Musketeers (35-43) may be in last place, but they play pretty good baseball, breaking even in June with a 13-13 record... All-Star Noel Martin (.350/18/53/65) is having a super season and Boo Boudreaux (.290/23/57/51) is a strong threat, too... but the club doesn't have much in the batting order besides them... not much on the mound either... the most dependable are Phillippe Marchand (9-8/3.89) and Raul Carrasco (9-8/3.80).

3-TEAM RACE IN RU WEST, SLIGO ON TOP
It's a torrid three-team battle in the Ruthlandian West Division with the Sligo Rovers on top by a game over the preseason pick Fort Benton Defenders and four in front of the third-place Colfax Blasters, last year's flag winner... all three clubs really sizzled in June... Colfax was a blistering 21-5... and the Defenders and Rovers were almost as good at 19-7... the second half of the season should really be something.

Sligo (47-31) is led by a standout closer Scotty Price (2-3/2.01), the IPA leader with 16 saves... and by capable starters Randall Steele (11-7/3.05) and Tom Pierson (9-5/3.88)... offensively it's Denny Simmons (.320/12/44/58), Neil Mitchell (.307/8/34/58), Damon Klein (.319/6/38/31) and Peder Svensson (.276/11/40/32).

Runner-up Fort Benton (46-32) can do it all... score runs and tough on the hill... ranking second with a .279 BA and second with 408 runs... almost as good with a 3.21 team ERA (3rd)... All-Star D. D. Badeaux (.343/12/36/57) is the best stick on the club, but gets help from Mitch Hamilton (.321/0/21/47), Oscar Pendleton (.314/12/53/50) and Hunter Glenholmes (.300/4/34/38)... the top twirlers are All-Star Augie Marquis (12-4/2.47) and Tommy Baylor (11-6/2.84)... Flapper Bird (4-1/2.15) and Jordy Raeburn (9-9/3.03) are solid starters, too.

Colfax (43-35) has some gifted players, too... four of them made the All-Star team: pitcher Randell Perkins (14-5/3.08), LF Chet Penn (.378/11/68/50), SS Gerry Sives (.337/4/43/56) and 1B Kristian McEly (.299/14/63/45)... Penn is the number three hitter in the IPA with a .378 BA and also tied for third in runs batted in with 68... Perkins is second in the IPA to Dan Pitts of Elnora with 14 wins... Norm Harbison (9-9/2.67) has been a strong starter for the Blasters, too... and the bullpen has been excellent with a 2.74 ERA (2nd).

The rest of the RU West will probably be playing for fourth place at best... the Forest City Lumberjacks (38-40) and Middlefield Roosters (36-42) will have the best shot at it, followed by the Volusia Vigilantes (33-45) and Rocky Rapids Snappers (33-45)... the Stoner Stars (29-49) will probably come in eighth and last.

Forest City's best performers are Bob Brisdon (.296/8/44), Pistol Pete Picard (.316/8/36) and Ronnie Pollet (.308/4/32).

Middlefield has three All-Stars in closer Ray Owens (2-2/0.87/11 saves), CF Tony Parsons (.316/12/38/61) and C Brad Alexander (.274/18/64).

Volusia has two solid pitchers in Zack Dowdle (10-6/3.61) and Hector Vargas (8-8/2.50).

Rocky Rapids has limited talent... Duncan Musselwhite (.310) and Joe Hughes (.323) are the best batters and Nelson Carter (8-6/3.20) is the best pitcher.

Stoner is led on the mound by Jimmy Ellerbee (7-5/3.24) and Larry Urban (8-5/3.47)... and at the plate by Barney Swindell (.340/17/64) and All-Star Don Cain (.330/10/39/52)... Swindell is tied for fifth place in the IPA with 64 RBIs.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, June 30, 2037

BLUE SOX ON TOP IN TU NORTH
The defending IPA Pro Cup champion North Hills Hawks have a real dogfight on their hands in the tightly-bunched Tycobbian North Division if they hope to capture their third pennant in a row and try to repeat as the IPA champ... the Hawks have been overtaken by the Blue Lake Blue Sox, who have taken over first place... the Blue Sox top the Hawks by one game, are two better than third place White River and three up on fourth place Fairfax... Blue Lake got the best of the contenders in June with a 16-12 record... North Hills was just 12-14, while White River and Fairfax both broke even at 13-13.

Blue Lake (44-34) is strong on the mound with All-Star Frankie Quinn (12-3/2.52) and Pat Brown (7-3/2.59)... other fairly good arms are Lee Price (7-5/3.86), Sal Mays (8-8/3.64) and an improving Andre Montrose (7-12/3.85)... top hitters are All-Star Jack Ryan (.349), Joe Korman (.290), Matt Thompson (.336) and Elton Graff (.299).

North Hills (43-35) has two impressive starters in Jeff Owens (10-6/2.82) and David Michael (9-7/2.96)... other decent starters are Nelson Hooper (6-3/3.75) and Frankie Lambert (12-5/3.91)... the top Hawks average-wise are Kris Anastas (.302), Gerry Rice (.297) and Ric Hamilton (.279)... the main run producers are star Adam Thurgood (.255) with 17 HRs and 51 RBIs and Mikhail Romanovsky (.242) with 16 roundtrippers and 45 RBIs.

White River (42-36) has a good core of pitchers and hitters... sparked by 22-year-old J. C. Hudson (11-5/2.95) and veteran starters Kenny Nikas (9-7/3.78) and Paul Sardini (8-8/3.50) on the mound... Billy Trakas (2-2/2.89/11 saves) is the bullpen ace... and at the plate by Davey Sloan (.265/14/51/40), Stevee Dee Daniels (.266/18/41/37), Buford Cross (.323/12/35/49) and Zachary Kriger (.262/13/35/46).

Fairfax (41-37) is hanging close, just three games out of first place... veteran Lucien Vachon (9-7/2.75) is the Frogs' ace... and Harold Dorman (9-7/4.07) and Steven McLeod (7-9/3.84) have been fairly decent, but they have to be better for Fairfax to have a chance at the pennant... best bat performers have been Sonny Oliver (.296/11/43/43), Dorak Aranda (.275/7/47/33), Eric Kusek (.316/6/39/24) and Max Lebowitsz (.281/6/18/45)... it would really help if the bats perks up, too.

The Oxford Red Caps (38-40) might get into the mix, too... they got on the right track with a 15-11 mark in June... they do it with power... the Red Caps are second in homers with 119... Dalton Ward (.217) is the club leader with 24 HRs, followed by Alonzo Norris (.278) with 16, Jayson French (.303) with 12, Boyd Olsen (.310) with 12, and Donny Braun (.309) and Dennis Hartwig (.267) with 10 each... Oxford has a pair of solid pitchers, too... Cody Quackenbush is 11-6 with a 3.35 ERA and B. B. Dristoll is 7-4 with a 2.99 ERA... you might keep an eye on the Red Caps... a strong July and they will be serious challengers in the TU North.

The Hartsdale Hellcats (37-41) and only 7 games out with over two months to go in the season, but they are not expected to contend for the flag... the Hellcats are fated for the second division... on the mound Wayne Dawson is carrying the club with a 12-5 record and a strong 2.73 ERA... he has gotten some help from Hank Cooke (9-6/4.25) at times... only All-Star Hayden Richardson has been much of a threat... Richardson has been terrific with a .366 BA, 15 HRs and 40 RBIs... Jeffrey Karkinos (.301/12/35) and Robinson Alomar (.240/10/33) also have gone deep occasionally.

The Mahaska Haymakers (35-43) can score well, but don't have a lot of pitching... the Haymakers are also doomed to the second division... Anton Hymel (.323) leads the club with 15 HRs and 47 RBIs... Mikk Kukk (.284) also has 47 RBIs... Johnny Watts is the club leader with a .335 BA and also has 12 homers and 39 RBIs... Rocco Bertara (.307) and John Fitzgerald (.302) are also reliable batsmen... Valente Viero (7-7/3.73) is the only dependable starter and Kirk Stanley has looked good in relief with a 3-1 mark in 23 appearances... he has 4 saves.

The Luxora Zorros (33-45) are in last place, but they do have some talent... on the hill vets Kent Halloran (8-9/2.48) and Benny DeVito (9-8/3.15) have consistently pitched well and should have better records... offensively All-Star Todd Dubbins and All-Star Gerry Hathaway have excelled... Dubbins is batting .317 with 22 HRs, 60 RBIs and 47 runs, while Hathaway is hitting .309 with 21 HRs, 50 RBIs and 51 runs... 23-year-old Ramiro Munoz has chipped in with a .317 BA, 7 HRs and scored 55 runs.

FAVORED SAN ALEJO 4 GAMES UP IN TU SOUTH
The San Alejo Montaneros are in high spirits after a strong run in June that gave them a little daylight in the Tycobbian South Division pennant race... the Monties opened up a four-game lead over Turon, Summerland and Arroyo Grande... Ginza is still hanging close five games back... the others may be out of contention... Colchester and Cape Coral are tied for sixth and trail by 9 games... Southport is in the basement, a dozen games out.

Preseason favorite San Alejo (47-31) continued to play well and went 17-9 this month... the Montaneros are fairly well-rounded with a good offense and strong pitching... staff leaders are Tommy Smith (10-5/3.08), Lupe Olmedo (6-5/1.87) and Johnny Brown (9-7/3.46)... the offensive leaders are Charlie Wilberforce with a .348 BA, 8 HR, 29 RBIs and 55 runs... All-Star Filipe Zamora with a .316 BA, 15 HRs, 60 RBIs and 45 runs... and Sancho Cruz with 16 HRs, 55 RBIs, 43 runs, but just a .238 BA... the Montaneros will make a good run at the TU South flag... they are a good, sound club.

The Summerland Sunsets (43-35) had a good month, too, with a 16-10 mark... pitching is the name of the game in Summerland... starters Freddi Rossi (9-7/2.87), Johnny Young (6-8/2.55), Jayson Hallstrom (5-3/3.48) and Kim Kono (6-7/3.46) form a good rotation... closer Ronald Shaddock (5-4/2.09/5 saves) has been effective in the bullpen... however, the bats are pathetic with only 42 HRs (32nd) and runs are hard to come by (29th)... Antonio Vasquez (.310), Don Colby (.312), John Bedell (.282), Norm Murdoch (.283) and Eamon O'Toole (.276) provide what little offense the Sunsets have... it's unlikely they can overcome San Alego... Summerland just doesn't score enough to contend.

Arroyo Grande (43-35) split 13-13 during the month to stay within striking range of San Alejo... the Suns starters are quality arms... led by Matt Stevens (11-4/3.25), who is having a banner year... other dependables are Monty Stratford (8-7/3.53) and Freddy Farentino (7-9/3.80)... in the bullpen Cody Simmons has been a standout with a 5-3 record, 11 saves and a 2.51 ERA... Pip Gleason (.271) is the club leader with 18 HRs and 45 RBIs... Gregorio Oliviera (.281) has 10 HRs, 41 RBIs and 43 runs... Marty Sizemore (.281) has 4 HRs, 25 RBIs and 43 runs... and Johnny Hensley (.278) with 7 HRS, 37 RBIs and 42 runs... Arroyo Grande must find more offense to compete for the division crown... a first-division finish is the best they can hope for.

The Turon Typhoons (43-35) suffered a bad month in June with an 11-15 record... but they still have a fine pitching staff and should have a good season... the Typhoons are the most likely choice to be the main challenger to San Alejo because of better offense... All-Star C. C. Kingsford (.358/14/54/50), All-Star Guido Gervasio (.326/12/49/42), All-Star J. P. Trevenot (.288/11/35/54) can put some runs on the scoreboard... but the key to Turon's success is the impressive array of pitchers: starters All-Star rookie Nate Scottsdale (13-4/2.94), Russell Larsen (7-3/3.00), Wes Brynnton (8-9/3.26) and Clyde Engstrom (8-12/3.63), along with bullpen ace Ralph Fulton (2-1/1.93/9 saves).

One of the preseason favorites, the Ginza Ninjas (42-36), is a close fifth and only 5 games behind in the race... the Ninjas had a solid 15-11 record the last month... they are an explosive team with a .289 BA (2nd), score well with 415 runs (2nd) and go deep fairly well with 85 homers (14th)... the Ninjas pitching corps could be better, however... they have posted a 4.19 team ERA (23rd)... Ginza's top guns are All-Star Sogo Takagi (.322/15/55/61), Scott Sparks (.309/16/51/30), Dave Sulligent (.325/6/37/51), manager Sadaharu Uchiyama (.305/8/36/48), Steve Daniels (.330/5/35/32), Whip Harrell (.299/13/37/35) and Ichiro Kazumi (.333/2/24/32)... top pitchers are All-Star Glenn Downing (8-6/2.85), along with veterans Hollis Pace (10-10/4.12) and Emil Kaltenborn (9-5/4.23)... a high finish, second or third, is not out of the question for the hard-hitting Ninjas.

Last year's Tycobbian South winner Colchester (38-40) is currently tied for sixth with Cape Coral... the Elites had a poor 11-15 record in June... they are not playing like last year when they could score runs and hit homers... Colchester will probably be a second-division team this season... Blake Barrister is the club leader with 23 homers and 55 RBIs, but he is hitting only .258... Billy Christianson leads the team with a .352 BA, but he missed a month of the season with an injury... Chet Porter is batting .337 with 4 HRs, 30 RBIs and 28 runs... veteran Roy Watson (8-5/3.04) is the only effective hurler.

The Cape Coral Hurricanes (38-40) did fairly well in the month with a 14-12 mark... the 'Canes have a solid offense with a .286 BA (3rd), 387 runs (8th-tied) and 68 HRs (24th-tied)... but they are only mediocre on the mound with a 4.17 team ERA (22nd)... they might have an outside chance for the first division because of their good offense, sparked by Stan Ferguson (.332/16/57/45), William Snyder (.310/8/48/47), Joel Collins 9.303/3/37/37), All-Star Paul Law (.314/10/37/52) and Max Tselika (.290/7/28/30)... Tommy Van Noord (9-5/2.77), Mario Morales (6-9/3.22) and Norm Dawson (5-5/3.96) have been the most effective pitchers.

The Southport Sun Sox (35-43) are not a very good team... they hit only .251 (27th) and don't have a lot of pitching with a 4.29 team ERA (25th)... Gordon Forbes (6-2/3.93) and Clint Hays (6-5/3.90) are the mound leaders, while at the plate Pat Kinney (.304) has the best batting average... Craig Glennon (.233) has the most homers with 19, the most RBIs with 47 and the most runs scored with 49.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, June 30, 2037

TUCKS UP BY 3 IN TU EAST, EP PANTHERS 2ND
The Tycobbian East Division is pretty much playing out according to the preseason script... the top three clubs are Tuckanarra, East Point and Ozarka... the Blue Jays are the halfway leader with a three-game margin over the Panthers and nine up on preseason favorite Ozarka... the High Mesa Cowboys are a very distant fourth and trail by 18 games... as things are shaping up, it looks like a two-team race between Tuckanarra and East Point.

June was the Tucks' best month of the season with a 19-7 mark, which enabled them to increase their lead over East Point to three games... the Panthers were 15-11 in the month... Tuckanarra (51-27) is seeking its fourth division flag in a row... the mighty Blue Jays have it all except for a bullpen... they are hitting .293, best in the IPA... number two in the IPA with 437 runs, bested only by Sugar Valley's 455... seventh in HRs in the TU with 94 HRs... and third in team ERA with an impressive 3.32... excellent defense, too, with a .978 FA... but in the bullpen they are very poor with a 5.11 ERA (28th)... the Blue Jays have three outstanding starters in Junior Bristow (13-5/2.63), Bobby Reid (12-3/2.96) and Jeff Buttrum (9-4/2.48)... they also have plenty of talented hitters in All-Star Lorne Evans (.302/16/42/62), Andy Preston (.348/3/30/30), All-Star John Paul (.306/21/47/44), Nicky Weill (.300/5/32/25), Pancho Villa (.305/9/33/34)... other regulars Eddie Darby (.295/6/39/45), Spade Weldon (.281/9/33/41) and Josh George (.265/7/35/42) are no slouches either at the plate... it should be a thrilling second half in the Tycobbian East with the Tucks and the Panthers going at it tooth-and-nail... the TU East winner will be one of the top seeds in the Pro Cup playoffs, along with Elnora and Sugar Valley of the Ruthlandian Union and San Alejo of the Tycobbian Union.

The East Point Panthers (48-30) can match the Blue Jays in starting pitching and scoring (399 runs-4th)... have more power with 117 HRs (3rd)... but hit only .254 (25th) and also have a lousy reliever corps (6.18 ERA-32nd)... with four very capable starters All-Star Dixie Brooks (12-5/3.04), All-Star Johnny Moore (10-5/2.76), Frank Blair (8-3/2.87) and Burton Cook (8-9/3.29), the Panthers may have a better starting rotation than Tuckanarra... All-Star Dean O'Donnell is the biggest bat in the lineup with a .310 BA, 23 HRs, 59 RBIs and 52 runs... other longballers are Karl Jankauskas (.239) with 20 HRs and 60 RBIs and Tetsu Tanaka (.253) with 11 HRs and 30 RBIs.

Preseason favorite Ozarka (42-36) had another good month in June with a 16-12 record, but they are nine games behind Tuckanarra in third place... the Naturals have the best team ERA in the Tycobbian Union with a 3.05 ERA... but are ranked only 24th in scoring with 351 runs... not much in the power department either with 56 HRs (29th-tied)... the Nats will probably have to be satisfied with third place this year... Glen Jenkins (10-7/2.26) and Leon Bernard (8-6/2.72) have been outstanding as the 1-2 starters... Zenon Metaxis (9-5/3.64) and Teddy O'Shea (8-9/4.00) have been reliable in the 3-4 slots... Gunnar Norheim is the club leader with a .318 BA and 8 HRs... Duffy Morrison is batting .310, has 7 HRs and tops the team with 48 RBIs.

The rest of the TU East will have to settle for fourth place at best... High Mesa (33-45) is currently in fourth and 18 games off the pace, but will likely finish lower in the standings... the Cowboys were only 9-17 this month... Dean Harris (8-5/3.72) is the best of a poor pitching rotation... All-Star Corbett Brooks (.248) lead the club with 22 HRs, 50 RBIs and 45 runs... Michael Page (.273) has chipped in 16 roundtrippers and 40 RBIs... and Clay Johnston (.286) has clouted 14 out of the park and driven in 42 runs.

The Hillsboro Blazers (31-47) are fifth in the standings and 20 games back... the Blazers were 12-14 this month... they have one of the worst offenses in the IPA with a .236 BA... on the hill they are just average with a 3.98 team ERA (16th)... Lee Dixon (7-11/3.24) and Ralph Quick (6-8/3.65) are the most dependable starters, while the most reliable hitters are Jurrien Bellini (.247) with 20 HRs and 50 RBIs and Philip Stafford (.277) with 11 HRs and 35 RBIs.

The Midway Wolves (30-48) are sixth and 21 games out of first... they were 11-15 this month... Midway is not a very good team... Johnny Anderson (7-10/3.84) leads the club in wins... and Carl Dreux (4-5/3.75) has the best ERA... rookie CF Yuma Chandler tops the team with a .337 BA... Floyd Campbell (.292) has the most HRs with 10... Bennett Cardwell (.288) leads in RBIs with 44... and Yancey Tanner (.298) has the team high with 51 runs.

The South Fork Stallions (29-49) are tied for eighth place with Red Bluff, 22 games behind division leader Tuckanarra... the Stallions were only 10-16 in June, while the Red Sox were just 9-17... All-Star Elton Jacoby (.324/13/58/53) is having an outstanding season... other solid contributors have been Jess Wilkerson (.300/13/47/48), Keenan O'Dwyer (.314/10/26/47) and Scotty O'Sullivan (.288/12/28/34)... the only decent pitcher has been Chris Sorensen (8-8/4.00)... the other pitchers have ERAs mainly 5.00 or higher.

It's been a long season for the Red Bluff Red Sox (29-49)... they are near the bottom in everything with a .240 BA (31st) and a 4.60 ERA (31st)... the only thing the Red Sox can do is hit homers... they are first in the TU with 121 HRs and second in the IPA... Sugar Valley leads both leagues with 125 HRs... Gene Bates is the club leader with 21 HRs and 55 RBIs, but is hitting only .243... Fran Blanchard is second with 17 HRs and 47 RBIs and is batting .277... Jesse Shaw is tops in BA with .305 and in runs with 52... he also has 12 HRs... Ike Sweetwater is a reliable hitter with a .283 BA, 10 HRs, 38 RBIs and 48 runs... top pitchers are Jimmy McMillan (9-5/3.51) and Banzuki Hasegawa (7-10/3.22).

BSC BUCS FALTER, KENWOOD NEW TU WEST LEADER
The Bay St. Clair Buccaneers' bubble might have burst... after two solid months on top of the Tycobbian West Division, the Bucs shipwrecked in June with a 9-17 mark and slipped to second place, one game behind the new leader, the Kenwood Wildcats, who posted a 15-11 record... the West is wild again with four teams knotted up in third place, just four games out of first place... preseason favorite La Claire, third pick Denton City, along with sixth choice Arlon and seventh choice Bayview are still in the hunt.

Kenwood (44-34) is a good, all-around club with a .279 BA (5th), 383 runs (10th), 90 HRs (10th-tied) and a 3.80 team ERA (11th)... the best bats are All-Star Ricky Boyer (.365/11/35/53), All-Star Harry Tashina (.300/12/51/43), Clark Chamberlain (.363/9/36/36) and Corky DiNozzo (.320/14/40/42)... top twirlers are Freddy Gooch (10-4/3.13) and Glen Murray (10-6/3.13)... Claude Watson (8-4/4.15) and Milt Cochrane (8-7/4.31) are the number three and four in the rotation... the Wildcats are blessed with a good bullpen, which has compiled a 2.71 ERA (4th)... Kenwood looks to be the class of the TU West, but is not expected to be a factor in the Pro Cup playoffs... the Wildcats are not in the same class as Tuckanarra, East Point, Blue Lake, North Hills and San Alejo.

Bay St. Clair (43-35) is hoping to get back on track after a dismal June... the Bucs still have two quality starters in John Karlsen (11-7/3.30) and Jay Callahan (9-5/3.54)... to beat Kenwood Russell McIntosh (3-3/4.66) and Mac Shaw (4-2/3.48) are going to have to step it up in the number three and four spots... Cotton Cornwall (.323/12/50/31), Milt Powers (.265/15/51/47) and Ryan Dukes (.282/15/36/41) are going to have to get some offensive help at the plate, too.

The La Claire Lynx (40-38) had a miserable 9-19 May, but regrouped in June with a 16-10 to get back in the pennant chase... they are tied for third with Denton City, Bayview and Arlon, trailing by just four games... the Lynx are playing like an average team, not a pennant contender so far... they are batting .267 (10th), ranked 14th in scoring runs with 372, have hit 82 homers (17th) and have posted a pretty fair 3.86 ERA (13th)... Tony Rossi (8-6/3.73) and Glenn Smith (5-5/3.51) lead the starters, while Terry Baird (5-7/2.36/12 saves) is the best in the bullpen... the batters are only mildly productive, paced by Billy Holland (.283/13/46/44), who is the club leader in homers, RBIs and runs... the only other reliable hitter is Ernie Pryor with a .293 BA, 12 HRs, 37 RBIs and 33 runs.

The Denton City Redbirds (40-38) won 90 games last year and ran a very close second to division winner Chicopee... good things were expected this year... they started off with a good April, but slumped to 11-17 in May, but picked it back up in June with a 15-11 mark to get back in contention... the Redbirds have a potent attack with a .272 BA (7th), 396 runs (5th), 98 HRs (6th) and a pretty fair 3.95 team ERA (15th)... All-Star Felton Welch has been awesome with 70 RBIs, second in the IPA to Sugar Valley's Bobby Gamble, who has 76 in the Ruthlandian Union... Welch is batting .318 with 16 HRs... three other regulars in the lineup are batting over .300: Russ Foster .346 with 8 HRs, 27 RBIs and 43 runs... Sam Carson .305 with 16 HRs, 42 RBIs and 37 runs... and Sammy Thornton .302 with 3 HRs, 24 RBIs and 43 runs... Denton City has capable starters in Troy McIntosh (8-6/3.11), Francisco Salcido (8-9/3.59), Denny Mills (5-4/3.94) and Kevin Blevins (4-7/2.68), but needs some help in the bullpen,which has a 4.10 ERA (22nd)... the Redbirds appear to be one of the stronger teams in the division and could be a serious challenger once again this year.

The Bayview Vikings (40-38) really got hot in June with an 18-8 record to climb up from seventh to a tie for third... the Viks have three solid starters in All-Star Vance Codsworth (12-5/2.39), Christy Kane (10-9/3.32) and Kris Melgaard (6-3/3.44)... and three solid hitters in All-Star Jerry Culpepper (.293 BA), the IPA home-run king with 25 roundtrippers, 52 RBIs and 49 runs, Roy Ricks (.308 BA) with 13 HRs, 38 RBIs and 47 runs and Derek Jorstad (.262 BA) with 9 HRs, 32 RBIs and 49 runs... if these guys get some help, Bayview could be a serious challenger.

The Arlon Champions (40-38) posted a 14-12 record in June and stayed alive in the pennant run... the Champs have little in the way of offense with a .248 BA (29th), 53 HRs (31st), 322 runs (31st), but do have some pitching with a 3.65 ERA (9th)... the starting foursome are adequate, led by Lanny Gray (8-7/2.59), Pat Stuyvesant (8-5/3.96), Emil Nowak (9-7/4.18) and Frankie Gautier (7-8/4.20)... the relievers are better-than-average with a 3.34 ERA (10th)... the light-hitting Champions are led by Mark Cameron (.276), who tops the team with 10 HRs and 49 RBIs... Todd Benson is the club leader with a .283 BA, while Charley Hastings (.256) and Roland Duvernet (.236) top the team with 41 runs each... a lack of offense will keep Arlon in the second divison this year.

The Rolling Hills Reds (33-44) are 10 games behind Kenwood in seventh place... picked for fourth in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES preseason poll, the Reds haven't lived up to the billing... they will likely be hard put to stay out of the division basement... they did get pitching ace Jakob Wagner back... he has been out 11 months with an elbow injury... Wagner led the team with a 15-8 mark and a 3.03 ERA in 2036 when he was injured last August... this year's prime pitchers have been Mike Daniels (11-7/3.68) and Maury Cantrell (6-2/3.24).... Rolling Hills' best bats have been Dino Manale (.336/5/26/55), All-Star Buffy Kowalczyk (.323/7/44/34) and Brian Davis (.304/7/27/38).

After winning the TU West the last three years in a row with great firepower, the Chicopee Braves (32-46) have dropped off into oblivion... last year the Braves batted .278 (2nd), hit 203 HRs (5th) and scored 863 runs (2nd)... but not this year... Chicopee is hitting only .255 (22nd) with 333 runs (30th) and 81 HRs (18th-tied)... after two terrible months, things have gotten a little better of late... the Braves broke even in June with a 13-13 mark, but are 12 games behind in the pennant race... part of the downfall was the loss of slugger Charley Kota, last year's TU Golden Bat winner... he was lost after 26 games in early May with a shoulder injury and won't be back until August... Kota was batting .379 at the time of the injury with 6 HRs and 17 RBIs... no one has picked up the slack... in fact everybody is having an off-year so far with the bats... a .309 career batter, Kurt Gustavsen, is the club leader with a .285 BA, 12 HRs and 49 RBIs... Todd Goodwin, .293 lifetime BA, is batting only .257 with 7 HRs and 21 RBIs... he leads the team with 43 runs... and Alfredo Cobos, a .310 batter in his career, has dipped to .276 this season... Cobos has 9 HRs, 35 RBIs and 34 runs... pitching is off, too... Byron Wilson 13-10 last year is 0-5 this year and out of the starting rotation... ditto for Ryan Ledbetter 17-14 last year and 6-11 this year... 20-game winner Heyoka Chaska is only 4-11 this year with a 3.88 ERA, but still is the team's ace... Judd Hampton has been the only good starter this year with a 9-3 mark and a 3.35 ERA... Chicopee might muster up enough offense to move up a few spots in the standings... they have too much talent to remain at the bottom.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Friday, July 31, 2037

SPORTS & CATS IN RU NORTH DOGFIGHT
The LaGrange Sports got hot in July and moved ahead of the Kilkenny Cats in the Ruthlandian North Division by three games... Ancona is in the third spot in the standings, 6 games back... the Glasco Athletics and Far Mountain Redhawks are tied for fourth place... going into the final seven weeks of the season sixth place Taranto is only eight games out of first... LaGrange has won the division for the last two seasons and is a slight favorite to do it again... it looks like a repeat of last year when the Sports and Kilkenny battled down to the last few days of the season and the Sports won by two games.

LaGrange is set for the stretch run with four veteran starters... it will be tough to beat Walt Thurber (15-6/2.67), Mike York (15-8/3.55) and recent additions to the starting rotation Earl Perkins (8-4/3.47) and Ryan Janssen (6-9/3.04)... the Cats are also steep in pitching with Fred Doyle (16-7/2.30) and Dave Whitaker (12-11/2.39) heading up the staff, but the Sports have the better offense... LaGrange was 19-10 in July, while Kilkenny was only 14-15... odds are the Sports will pull away from the Cats in the last weeks of the season... good pitching bodes well for LaGrange in the postseason... Ancona, Glasco, Far Mountain and Taranto don't appear to be in the running for the pennant.

WESTERNERS TAKE CHARGE IN RU SOUTH IN JULY
The Waleska Westerners had a torrid 20-9 record in July to put some space between them and the rest of the pack in the Ruthlandian South... the Westerners now have a seven-game edge over runnerup Claxton and 8 over third-place San Dimas... the Diamonds were 15-14 for the month, while the Rancheros were 16-13... Waleska seems to be in control of the division.

Waleska has a solid rotation consisting of Terry Richards (13-9/2.90), Craig Nash (14-8/3.34) and Tony Haskell (13-9/3.94)... add in 20-year-old rookie Niles Nielsen (4-1/1.64) as a starter and you have a pretty fair foursome... after flourishing in the bullpen Neilsen now gets his chance in the regular rotation... offense is a problem for the Westerners should they make the Pro Cup playoffs.

The Claxton Diamonds have a lackluster mound corps, but they can hit the ball, led by Jojo DeLucca (.316) with 28 HRs, 81 RBIs and 80 runs... Foxy Fuchs (.318) with 25 HRs, 80 RBIs and 83 runs... and Ivan Krause (.255) with 20 HRs and 71 ribbies.

The San Dimas Rancheros are sparked by pitchers Seth Dawson (10-4/3.27) and Gil Arnaud (11-8/3.08) on the hill and at the plate by Leonard Purkey (.299/10/64/47), Klaus Stordahl (.301/16/50/71) and Denny Hendrix (.333/17/52/63).

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Friday, July 31, 2037

ALL-STARS STILL HAVE THE LEAD IN THE RU EAST
The Sugar Valley Rattlers have the best offense in the IPA, the Cold Creek Catamounts have the best mound staff, but the Elnora All-Stars still have first place in the Ruthlandian East... the All-Stars have a good mixture of both and a four-game margin over second place Sugar Valley and six games better than Cold Creek... still it's an open race for the RU East flag and the automatic spot in the Pro Cup playoffs, set to begin in late September... Elnora and Cold Creek were 18-11 this month, while Sugar Valley finished with a 16-13 mark... the All-Stars were up by only two games over the Rattlers at the beginning of July, while the Catamounts remained six games behind them.

Elnora has a strong staff with Dan Pitts (17-7/3.32), Stan Kivas (13-6/2.70) and Jeremy Sellers (12-9/3.49), all solid veterans... the All-Stars have some strong bats, too, with Danny Bierhoff (.331/22/77/56), Jan Kobak (.312/15/62/50) and Akihiro Samurakami (.310/8/33/71)... Elnora will be one of the favorites for the Pro Cup this season, along with defending IPA champion North Hills, Blue Lake, Tuckanarra, East Point and San Alejo, all in the Tycobbian Union... the All-Stars lead the IPA in victories so far, but they are going to have fend off Sugar Valley and Cold Creek first in the regular campaign to get their chance to shine in the postseason.

Sugar Valley has a slew of good bats, paced by superstar Bobby Gamble (.359) with 28 HRs, an IPA-leading 104 RBIs and 83 runs... rising star Roger Hobbs (.291) with 27 HRs, 85 RBIs and 77 runs... and Tyler White (.237) with 30 HRs, 79 RBIs and 69 runs... the Rattlers have some quality arms, too, with Juan Navarro (13-5/2.75), Christopher Dunsberry (11-4/3.05) and Jeremy Blanchard (13-10/3.62)... their ERAs are really inpressive considering the small park they have to play in.

It would be hard to name a better starting four than Cold Creek's J. J. Gillespie (17-6/1.96), Joey Baker (12-9/2.58), Jules Capet (10-5/3.04) and Rob Hutchins (13-10/3.71)... but the Catamounts are severely limited by the lack of an appreciable offense... they just don't generate many runs... catching Elnora this late in the season may be too big of a task for them.

The Ruthlandian East is chocked full of good ball clubs... six of them have winning records... Eastshore, Wynnamac and Beechwood will have to be happy to play for fourth place this year... seventh place Marston and last place Belle Plaine will just have to wait until next year.

3-WAY FIGHT IN RU WEST, SLIGO ON TOP
Very tight pennant races have been the norm the last few years in the Ruthlandian West Division... this year is no exception with a three-way tussle between first place Sligo, second place Fort Benton and third place Colfax... the Rovers have a two-game edge over the Defenders and four in front of defending champ Colfax... it should be a thrilling and exciting finish in the wild RU West... regardless of which team prevails, not a lot is expected in the Pro Cup travails... the RU West Division is considered one of the lesser divisions in the IPA... only three of the teams will probably post winning records.

The Sligo Rovers are a well-rounded team... they get by with pretty good pitching... Tom Pierson (15-6/3.69), Randall Steele (14-11/2.77) and Joey Hicks (8-4/3.14) are steady and reliable starting pitchers... and Scotty Price is one the best closers in the IPA with 21 saves, 1.84 ERA and a 3-3 record in 44 games... and the Rover bats are effective and above average with a .267 BA (13th), 521 runs (13th) and 119 HRs (8th)... Sligo has no real standouts at the dish... just a lot of reliable hitters like Denny Simmons (.314/13/53/74), Neil Mitchell (.297/10/42/74) and Damon Klein (.317/8/44/44).

On paper the Fort Benton Defenders look to be the class of the division with a .271 BA (5th), 534 runs (10th) and a 3.50 ERA (5th)... but they fall short with only 79 HRs (28th-tied) and in the bullpen with a 3.95 ERA (24th)... Augie Marquis (15-7/2.88), Tommy Baylor (15-8/3.07) and Jordy Raeburn (13-12/3.40) are a steady threesome... and the top bats are D. D. Badeaux (.316/13/43/70), Mitch Hamilton (.328/1/27/63) and Oscar Pendleton (.274/14/61/37).

The Colfax Blasters have a lot in common with Fort Benton with a .267 BA (11th), 537 runs (8th), 94 homers (22nd) and a 3.56 ERA (9th)... the difference is in the relief corps which has compiled a strong 2.44 ERA (2nd)... the Blasters go deep a little more often, too... Randell Perkins (18-6/3.27) is the ace with the most wins in the IPA... Perkins is tied with Frankie Quinn (18-4/2.53) of Blue Lake in the Tycobbian North... both have won 18 games this season... Nom Harbison (12-11/2.63) has been very effective, too, as the number-two man on the staff... the key hitters are Chet Penn (.376/19/91/73), Gerry Sives (.336/5/57/76), Kristian McEly (.294/24/83/63) and Mitch Fullerton (.291/16/66/62)... Penn is second in the IPA with a .376 BA, topped only by Johnny Petrak of the Eastshore Elegants with a .386 mark.

The remainder of the clubs in the RU West run from bad to mediocre and don't have a lot of talent or hope this year.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Friday, July 31, 2037

HAWKS FLY HIGH IN TU NORTH, BLUE SOX CLOSE
The North Hills Hawks are the prevailing IPA Pro Cup champions in quest of their fourth consecutive Tycobbian North Division crown, but there are several teams around that are going to make them earn it... a super July gave the Hawks the top spot in the standings... they went 19-10 and surpassed Blue Lake by two games... the Blue Sox were 16-13... North Hills expanded it lead over third place White River to 5 games... the Rascals were 15-14 for the month... the Fairfax Frogs in fourth place fell back six games after a 15-14 month... those three clubs are the most logical challenges to North Hills' hope for back-to-back Pro Cup trophies.

North Hills has rock-solid starters with Jeff Owens (13-9/2.77), David Michael (11-8/2.93), Nelson Hooper (10-6/3.36) and Frankie Lambert (12-5/3.70)... and some strong arms in the bullpen which has a 2.69 ERA (3rd)... and some reliable bats in Adam Thurgood, Gerry Rice and Kris Anastas... Thurgood is the club leader with 26 HRs, 67 RBIs and 63 runs, but he is batting only .277 for the year, well under his lifetime .313 BA... after a very slow April-May Thurgood's bat has really perked up... Rice is hitting .310 with 10 homers, 47 RBIs and 49 runs... and Anastas sports a .283 BA with 10 HRs, 47 RBIs and 46 runs... pitching is the Hawks' forte and it should see them through to another division title... a Pro Cup repeat is a far more difficult task, but the Hawks have the stuff to do it.

Blue Lake matches up well with North Hills except in the bullpen (15th) and in longballs (31st)... Frankie Quinn (18-4/2.53) has the most wins in the IPA along with Randell Perkins (18-6/3.27) of Colfax in the Ruthlandian Union... Quinn has plenty of help from Pat Brown (9-4/3.24), Sal Mays (10-6/3.64) and Lee Price (10-6/3.89)... the best bats are Jack Ryan (.337/4/38/52), Matt Thompson (.314/6/46/38), Joe Korman (.275/5/59/58) and Egon Ojamaa (.263/16/61/55)... the Blue Sox will make it tough for North Hills.

White River's mound staff keeps them in the race... J. C. Hudson (15-8/2.76) has really blossomed in his sophomore season... vets Paul Sardini (12-11/3.61) and Kenny Nikas (10-11/3.79) need to step it up to Hudson's level for the Rascals to be a pennant threat... Billy Trakas (4-3/3.69) has been inconsistent in the bullpen, but has rung up 17 saves, the third-best total in the IPA... the offense has been unproductive... Stevee Dee Daniels (.255) has 24 HRs and 56 RBIs and Davey Sloan (.238) has 18 HRs and 60 RBIs to lead the club... Buford Cross has the top BA with a .313 mark, 15 HRs and 49 RBIs... more offense is needed for the Rascals to get real serious in the race.

The Fairfax Frogs can put runs on the scoreboard, ranking third in runs with 547 and sixth in batting with a .277 BA, but they lack firepower with only 88 HRs (27th)... on the hill the Frogs are just average with a 3.82 team ERA (14th)... veteran Lucien Vachon (12-8/3.08) and youngster Harold Dorman (13-8/3.59) are the 1-2 starters... third-year man Leonard Crawford tops the club with a .362 BA... other .300 hitters are veterans Eric Kusek (.315) and Sonny Oliver (.311)... Dorak Aranda is batting .283 and leads the team with 72 RBIs... Oliver has 63 ribbies and a club high of 14 HRs... Fairfax is still within striking distance of first place, but will need better pitching to accomplish it.

Fifth place Oxford's home-run power makes them the best of the rest... they have clouted 156 HRs (2nd) this far... Dalton Ward (.230) leads the team with 28 HRs, followed by Alonzo Norris (.274) with 21... another plus for the Red Caps are two quality pitchers B. B. Dristoll (13-5/3.12) and Cody Quackenbush (13-10/3.73)... Oxford is 9 games behind in the race and too far back to make much noise in the pennant chase.

Mahaska, Hartsdale and Luxora have pretty much called it a season and will just be playing out the schedule... Mahaska has two pretty good talents in young shortstop Rocco Bertara (.317) and first sacker Johnny Watts (.343)... Wayne Dawson has had a fine year for Hartsdale with a 16-8 record and a 2.82 ERA... Hayden Richardson has led the Hellcats offense with 18 HRs, 50 RBIs and a .352 BA... the Luxora Zorros have several good performers in Kent Halloran (10-12/2.47), Benny DeVito (13-11/3.24), reliever Francisco Sanches (2-5/2.94/18 saves), Todd Dubbins (.313/26/79) and Gerry Hathaway (.297/28/67).

SAN ALEJO SHOOTS 6 GAMES AHEAD IN TU SOUTH
As each month has gone by in the 2037 season the San Alejo Montaneros have gotten better record-wise... in July they scorched everyone with a 20-9 mark to shoot six games in front of Turon and Summerland... the Typhoons and Sunsets played well at 18-11, but still fell two more games back in the standings... fourth place Ginza slumped to 14-15 and is now 11 games off the pace... six of the division's eight teams have winning records... fifth place Arroyo Grande and sixth place Cape Coral have posted better than .500 marks, but trail by 13 and 14 games respectively.

San Alejo is rollicking along with strong pitching and scoring ability... the Monties are fifth in runs with 545, tied for 11th with 121 HRs, batting .260 (18th) and sport a 3.29 team ERA (3rd)... Lupe Olmedo (12-6/2.20), Tommy Smith (13-9/3.06) and Johnny Brown (14-9/3.14) head up the starting rotation, while Filipe Zamora (.312/22/85/57) and Charlie Wilberforce (.327/14/47/73) are the team's main bats... San Alejo has the second-best record in the IPA, toppled only by Elnora in the Ruthlandian East with a 71-36 mark... the Monties are poised for a good run at the their second Pro Cup in their team history... they won it in 2032.

The Turon Typhoons are a talent-laden club with impressive pitching and better-than-average offense... they are batting .278 (5th), scored 523 runs (12th), hit 110 HRs (16th-tied) and chalked up a 3.33 ERA (4th)... the Typhoons also have a splendid bullpen that rates first in the league with a 2.24 ERA... Turon has four quality starters with Nate Scottsdale (16-6/3.06), Wes Brynnton (13-11/3.34), Russell Larsen (8-4/3.64) and Clyde Engstrom (12-14/3.57)... Ralph Fulton (3-2/1.52/10 saves) is the bullpen specialist... at the plate it's C. C. Kingsford (.354/19/80/70), Guido Gervasio (.335/18/72/64) and J. P. Trevenot (.299/17/48/75) leading the way... probable finish would be second place to San Alejo.

The Summerland Sunsets are long on pitching, but somewhat short on bats... they have registered a solid 3.46 ERA (7th) and a .267 BA (9th), but rank only average in scoring runs with 496 (16th-tied)... on the hill the leaders are Freddi Rossi (14-8/2.81) and Johnny Young (10-10/2.78)... bullpen leaders are Ronald Shaddock (6-5/2.11/7 saves) and Jayson Hallstrom (6-4/3.15/8 saves)... the most productive batters have been Antonio Vasquez (.319/5/53/65), John Bedell (.305/7/49/39) and Eamon O'Toole (.278/11/50/37)... third place is where the Sunsets will wind up... Turon is better on the mound and in the batter's box.

The Ginza Ninjas have a potent offense with a .281 BA (2nd), 552 runs (2nd) and 110 HRs (16th-tied), but has suspect pitching with a 4.15 ERA (20th)... they will contest for fourth place with Arroyo Grande and Cape Coral... playing manager Sadaharu Uchiyama (.306/10/49/61) has more good hitters than he can play at one time... Sogo Takagi leads the club in everything but BA... he has 22 HRs, 76 RBIs, 75 runs, while batting .313... Dave Sulligent has the best average with .318, followed by Steve Daniels with .316... Whip Harrell (.292/19/53/49) and Scott Sparks (.271/19/64/41) have added some long balls with 19 apiece... Emil Kaltenborn (13-6/4.56) and Hollis Pace (12-11/3.90) are the biggest winners, while Glenn Downing (11-9/2.96) has been the most effective... the Ninjas have a good shot at fourth place in the standings.

The Arroyo Grande Suns are just a run-of-the-mill team... the best starter is Matt Stevens (11-9/3.74) and the best reliever is Cody Simmons (7-4/2.17/14 saves)... Pip Gleason (.271/22/58/45) and Gregorio Oliviera (.281/16/54/56) are the best of the few at the plate.

The Cape Coral Hurricanes are outhitting everyone in the IPA with a .288 BA (1st) and rank second in runs with 558... only Sugar Valley of the Ruthlandian East outscores the 'Canes... the Rattlers are easily the highest scorer with 612 runs... but the Hurricanes have a mediocre 4.23 team ERA (23rd)... they should end up higher in the standings than Arroyo Grande... looks like fifth for Cape Coral and sixth for the Suns.

The Colchester Elites won the TU South last year with a powerful offense, but have fallen off tremendously this year and slumped to seventh place... Billy Christianson is the leading hitter in the Tycobbian Union with a .358 BA, but he missed a month of the season with an injury... Christenson has 9 HRs, 51 RBIs and 58 runs in 80 games... last year Blake Barrister blistered the league with a .311 BA, 49 HRs, 129 RBIs and 111 runs... this year his numbers so far have dropped to 30 HRs, 73 RBIs, 60 runs and a .264 BA... Christenson and Barrister have carried the team this year and gotten very little support... the lack of offense has taken its toll on the mound staff... Dan Scott (7-7/4.09) was a 22-game winner last season... Roy Watson (9-9/3/44) was a 19-game winner... Dave Lacoste (9-8/4.28) won 15 and Eduardo Rivera (12-14/3.63) chalked up 12 wins... what a difference a year makes.

Down at the bottom of the pile are the hapless Southport Sun Sox and rightly so... the eighth place Sun Sox are hitting just .247 (28th), rank 31st in scoring, 28th in homers and have posted a dismal 4.48 ERA (31st)... the only bright spot on the club is 22-year-old Gordon Forbes with a 10-4 record and a 3.67 ERA... it's been a poor season for all the rest.

THE ISLANIAN TIMES
Friday, July 31, 2037

TUCKS STILL ON TOP IN TU EAST
It was a strange month in the Tycobbian East... not a lot changed in the standings... the best record in July was 15-14, shared by Hillsboro, Midway and Red Bluff... the worst record went to High Mesa with a 13-16 mark... first place Tuckanarra still possesses a 3-game edge over runner-up East Point as both of the contenders carded 14-15 records this month... Ozarka is in third place and trails by nine games... the Nats were also 14-15 for the month... everybody else is fighting for the only first division spot still available - fourth place.

The Tucks were coming off three terrific months when they suddenly played just average baseball... still the Blue Jays are a dominating team with a .278 BA (4th), 546 runs (4th), 124 HRs (9th) and a 3.42 ERA (5th)... they are good defenders, too, with a .976 FA... the only apparent shortcoming is a bullpen with a 4.25 ERA (24th)... Tuckanarra's top hurlers are Junior Bristow (15-8/2.63), Bobby Reid (15-6/3.05) and Jeff Buttrum (10-8/3.33)... the top gun is IPA superstar Lorne Evans, who recently slammed his 500th home run... Evans is batting .298 this season with 24 HRs, 60 RBIs and 79 runs scored... John Paul has chipped in 23 roundtrippers with 56 RBIs, 55 runs and a .282 BA... average-wise Pancho Villa (.318) and Andy Preston (.303) lead the club... the Blue Jays are forecast to hold off East Point for the TU North title and then seek a fourth IPA Pro Cup championship.

East Point has solid pitching with a 3.48 ERA (8th)... good power and scoring with 149 HRs (3rd) and 524 runs (9th-tied)... but comes up short with a .254 BA (24th)... the Panthers have the best starters in the league with a 3.21 ERA... but the worst bullpen with a horrific 5.87 ERA (32nd)... four fine starters Frank Blair (13-4/2.29), Dixie Brooks (15-9/3.15), Johnny Moore (13-9/3.22) and Burton Cook (10-11/3.18) makes them a very tough team... main run providers are Dean O'Donnell (.273/25/71/62) and Karl Jankauskas (.246/26/72/59)... Tetsu Tanaka (.262) and Chris Cardinale (.242) don't hit much for average, but can go deep with 16 HRs each... the Panthers are a powerful team that could knock off Tuckanarra and go deep into the postseason playoffs.

The Ozarka Naturals were the preseason pick in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES poll at the beginning of the year, but they have not been able to stay up with Tuckanarra and East Point... they are all alone in third, nine games off the pace... the Nats have strong pitching with a 3.27 ERA (2nd), but a lackluster offense with only 429 runs (25th) and just 78 HRs (29th)... the top arms are Glen Jenkins (14-9/2.38), Zenon Metaxis (11-7/3.51), Teddy O'Shea (11-11/3.83) and Leon Bernard (9-10/3.08)... however, Ozarka's rotation is not equal to the Blue Jays and the Panthers... and the bats fall far short of the two prime-time teams... Duffy Morrison is the only reliable hitter in the batting order with a .293 BA, 12 HRs and 64 RBIs.

Hillsboro is tied with High Mesa for fourth, but they both have plenty of competition... the Blazers have no pitching except for two relievers Lucky Luciano (8-0/3.28) and rookie Cazzie Reier (3-1/2.73)... and not much at the plate except for Philip Stafford, who is batting a team high .302 with 58 RBIs... Jurrien Bellini is the club HR and RBI leader with 21 homers and 60 RBIs, but he is batting a lowly .233 for average.

The High Mesa Cowboys surprised everybody in the Islands by being in a three-way tie with Tuckanarra and East Point at the end of April... but it has been all downhill since... the Cowpokes are near the bottom with a 4.41 team ERA (29th) and a .241 team BA (32nd)... Dean Harris (10-8/3.22) and Max Jung (13-13/3.87) are the only decent starters... and the trio of Corbett Brooks (.253) with 27 HRs and 64 RBIs, Michael Page (.273) with 21 roundtrippers and 52 RBIs and Clay Johnston (.283) with 18 HRs and 56 RBIs provide most of the offense... the Cowboys' great season is slowly fading into the sunset.

The Midway Wolves are in sixth place, 20 games behind Tuckanarra with not much talent on the team... age may be finally catching up with future Hall-of-Famer Bobby Dorignac... at 36 he is only 8-14 with a 4.38 ERA... Dorignac is 308-215 in his 17 years with the Wolves... his lifetime ERA is a fabulous 2.88... for the last three years Dorignac has piled up at least 19 victories per season... Yancey Tanner is the only regular batting over the .300 mark... Tanner leads the club with a .305 average and 69 runs scored.

The seventh place Red Bluff Red Sox don't have any standouts this season, just a bunch of so-so so-and-so's with some power... they don't hit much for average (.244-31st), however, the Red Sox do lead the Tycobbian Union in homers with 160 (1st)... Sugar Valley in the RU East is the best in the IPA with 163... Gene Bates (.260) tops the club with 27, David Kelso (.277) has 23, Fran Blanchard (.262) 21, Garris Aiken (.257) and Jesse Shaw (.294) both have hit 18 out of the park, and Ike Sweetwater (.293) has belted 17 home runs... Banzuki Hasagawa (11-13/3.28) has the most wins on the squad and the best ERA... Jimmy McMillan (9-9/3.70) occasionally has a good game.

The basement-dwelling South Fork Stallions haven't had much to cheer about this year except Elton Jacoby with a team-leading .336 BA, 18 HRs, 76 RBIs and 74 runs... Jess Wilkerson has also chipped in with a .292 BA, 17 HRs, 60 RBIs and 62 runs... journeyman Mike Lambertini finally got his chance after two previous short trials in 2031 and 2037... in the last month the 30-year-old right-hander won 6 games and only lost once with an impressive 2.76 ERA.

CATFIGHT IN TU WEST, WILDCATS UP BY ONE OVER LYNX
Two members of the cat family are going at it in the Tycobbian West hot-and-heavy for the top spot... the Kenwood Wildcats still have the lead, but not much over the hard-charging La Claire Lynx... La Claire went on a 19-10 rampage and closed to wiithin one game of the Wildcats, who were a solid 16-13 for July... the Lynx were picked as the preseason favorite in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES poll... the Wildcats were rated number five in the balloting... tied for third place and four games back are Denton City and Bay St. Clair... the Redbirds posted a 16-13 mark, while the Buccaneers slumped to 13-16... the pennant battle is crowded with two other clubs in the running... Arlon is fifth, five games out and Bayview is sixth, six games off the pace... the Champions went 15-14 last month, while the Vikings were 14-15.

Kenwood has a robust attack with a .280 BA (3rd), 524 runs (9th-tied) and 130 HRs (7th) and pretty reliable pitching with a 3.58 ERA (9th)... the Wildcats have four .300 bats in the lineup, led by Ricky Boyer (.348/13/42/72), Clark Chamberlain (.331/10/44/44), Corky DiNozzo (.315/20/51/59) and Harry Tashina (.315/20/74/66)... top pitchers are Glen Murray (14-9/2.82), Claude Watson (12-6/4.30) and Milt Cochrane (10-10/4.00)... recent add to the rotation knucleballer Chuck Holland went 5-1 in 7 starts with an impressive 2.47 ERA in July... he could be an important key down the stretch.

La Claire has been the best team in the TU West the last two months... very similar to Kenwood with a .271 BA (7th), 544 runs (6th), 111 HRs (15th) and a 3.78 ERA (12th)... top performers on the mound are Pat Kovacs (10-10/2.86), Tony Rossi (11-6/3.71), rookie Glenn Smith (8-7/3.77) and Bruce Kinson (9-3/4.10)... leading the offense are Billy Holland (.278/15/56/65), Kris Wilson (.291/12/64/35), Jarrod O'Neal (.249/13/60/58), Rog Clemens (.305/11/46/34) and Weldon Waller (.313/8/40/40)... the pennant outlook is for a barnburner between Kenwood and La Claire down the stretch in the TU West.

Denton City and Bay St. Clair are deadlocked for third... the Redbirds are on the uptick in recent months, while the Bucs have cooled off after a great start... DC is hitting .266 (10th), scored 524 runs (9th-tied), hit 132 HRs (6th) and compiled a pretty fair 3.67 team ERA (10th)... the mound staff is led by Troy McIntosh (12-8/3.11), Francisco Salcido (13-11/3.22) and Kevin Blevins (8-9/2.47)... number four Stephen Edwards (9-7/4.05) is capable at times, too... the Redbirds are sparked at the plate by one of the top hitters in the IPA this year... Felton Welch has excelled with 25 HRs, 94 RBIs and a .321 BA... Welch leads the Tycobbian Union in ribbies... two other dependable bats are Sam Carson with a .297 BA, 21 HRs and 58 RBIs and Pete Doyle with 17 HRs, 67 runs, 45 RBIs and a .272 BA... Denton City may have to be satisfied with third place... they don't seem to have the overall talent of Kenwood and La Claire.

Bay St. Clair played heavenly in April and May, but have come down-to-earth in recent months... still they are hanging around just four games back in the race... if they can bring back the magic the last seven weeks in the season, they would really pull off a huge upset... the Bucs were picked to finish last this year... offensively they are adequate with a .261 BA (17th), 516 runs (13th), 115 HRs (13th), but not on the hill with a poor 4.40 ERA (28th)... John Karlsen (13-11/3.59) has been the only reliable starter... and Sam Zale (4-2/2.02) the only effective reliever... Cotton Cornwall (.313/18/64/47), Ryan Dukes (.298/22/47/60) and Milt Powers (.257/17/61/60) have been the most dependable batters... looks for the Buccaneers to continue the downward slide... it appears they were playing over their heads early in the year.

Fifth place Arlon has had a winning season so far, but doesn't have the stuff to be a serious contender in the TU West... the Champs only have average pitching and mediocre bats... in the pitching department, Emil Nowak (14-8/4.00) is the biggest winner, but Lanny Gray (10-12/3.21) and Dale Greene (6-6/3.18) have been more effective... leading a poor offense are Todd Benson (.295/4/39/54) and Mark Cameron (.273/16/69/54)... it's really somthing that Arlon has a winning record... they really don't have a lot of talent... sixth place is the most likely finish.

Bayview is in sixth place, only 6 games out of first, but doesn't have the pitching to compete for the division flag... but they can hit home runs and score pretty well, collecting 147 HRs (4th) and scoring 526 runs (8th)... the Vikings are just fair on the hill with a 3.99 ERA (17th)... the starting four are pretty good, but the bullpen is not very good... the starting four consists of Vance Codsworth (14-9/2.63), Christy Kane (11-13/3.20), the number one and two, plus Kris Melgaard (8-6/3.96) and Karl Magga (5-3/3.98) in the three and four slots... all of the relief corps have ERAs of 5.00 or more... Jerry Culpepper is the IPA HR king with 35 this year... he is hitting .295 with 76 RBIs and 66 runs scored... Roy Ricks is batting .313 with 23 HRs, 56 RBIs and 69 runs... despite a low .249 BA, Derek Jorstad has 17 HRs, 51 RBIs and 68 runs... fifth place might be the best the Viks can do this season.

The Rolling Hills Reds are seventh in the TU West standings, 10 games out... there is very little talent on the club... Mike Daniels (15-9/3.77) leads the club in victories... and 22-year-old Matthew Christianson (9-11/3.53) has the best ERA... Dino Manale (.326/7/41/75), Brian Davis (.306/11/38/53) and Buffy Kowalczyk (.298/8/54/43) are the most reliable bats... Rolling Hills appears to be better than poor Chicopee and shouldn't finish last.

It's been a terrible season for defending division champ Chicopee, which has gone from first to worst in one season... the Braves flopped miserably at the plate this year... only Kurt Gustavsen (.295/15/60/47) had a decent season... Judd Hampton (11-7/3.47) was the only reliable pitcher... mark them down for eighth place.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, August 31, 2037

LAGRANGE-KILKENNY NAILBITER IN RU NORTH
For the second successive season the LaGrange Sports and the Kilkenny Cats will go down-to-the-wire for the Ruthlandain North Division flag... the Cats had the best August with a 16-12 record, just a tare better than the Sports at 15-13... with 19 games remaining on the schedule LaGrange has a scant one-game edge... it's probably too late in the race for third place Far Mountain, 7 games out, and fourth place Glasco, 9 games off the pace.

WALESKA WAY AHEAD IN RU SOUTH
No contest in the Ruthlandian South... the Waleska Westerners are running away with it... they posted a sparkling 19-9 mark this month and expanded their lead to 13 games ahead of runnerup Claxton... the Diamonds dipped to 13-15 in August... the San Dimas Rancheros are 14 games back in third place, while Belair Beach is fourth and 20 games behind.

COLD CREEK SURGES AHEAD OF ELNORA IN RU EAST
In a remarkable month the Cold Creek Catamounts surged past Elnora in the Ruthlandian East by two games... the 'Cats trailed by six games at the end of July, but mounted a terrific 23-5 record to move past the All-Stars, which were only 15-13 for the month... third place Sugar Valley also notched a 15-13 mark and is six games behind the Catamounts... Cold Creek's superb pitching got even better as all four starters now have ERAs under 3.00... but the big bats of Elnora are still in the hunt and will not go down without a fight.

STILL 3-WAY FIGHT IN RU WEST
Three clubs are still tightly bunched in the Ruthlandian West pennant chase... preseason favorite Fort Benton climbed into first place on the strength of a 17-11 month, slipping by second place Colfax and third place Sligo by one and two games respectively... the Blasters were 18-10 in August, while former leader Sligo slumped a bit with a 13-15 record... the Rovers went into August with a one-game margin over the Defenders and four in front of the Blasters... the experts are saying this one is too close to call and could go down to the final day of the season.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, August 31, 2037

NH HAWKS FLYING HIGH IN TU NORTH
In August, the reigning Pro Cup champion North Hills Hawks took charge of the Tycobbian North Division with a 17-11 record to beef up its lead to six games over the Fairfax Frogs and the Blue Lake Blue Sox... the Hawks are 8 games in front of fourth place White River and Oxford... for the month the Frogs were 16-12 and the Blue Sox a disappointing 12-16... North Hills should be able to haul in its fourth straight diivision flag and get a shot at repeating as the IPA Pro Cup titleholder.. second place is up in the air with four teams in the fight.

GREAT 3-TEAM RACE IN TU SOUTH
Preseason pick San Alejo has not been able to shake the tennacious Turon Typhoon and Summerland Sunsets in the Tycobbian South Division... they closed the gap in August when the Typhoons chalked up an 18-10 record and the Sunsets went 17-11... first place San Alejo leveled off to 14-14, its worst month of the season... the Montaneros are now up by only two games over Turon and three over Summerland... it should be a great finish in the TU South this season.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, August 31, 2037

BLUE JAYS BOLT 8 GAMES AHEAD IN TU EAST
The perennial powerhouse Tuckanarra Blue Jays made shambles of the Tycobbian East Division with a super 21-7 August and bolted ahead of the East Point Panthers by 8 games... it's looks like the Tucks will win the division for the fourth time in a row and get the opportunity to pick up their fourth Pro Cup in the club's history... the Blue Jays have three overall titles, having won in 2023, 2024 and 2035... second place East Point played good baseball last month, but a 16-12 was not enough... the Ozarka Naturals have third all to themselves and fourth could go to any of the other five clubs in the division.

KENWOOD-LA CLAIRE CRUNCH IN TU WEST
In spite of losing two starters and a slugging catcher to the injury bug this season, the Kenwood Wildcats are still number one in the Tycobbian West Division and still have the preseason-favored La Claire Lynx right on their tails... the Wildcats registered a 17-11 mark this month and bolstered the lead to two games over the Lynx, which were 16-12... Kenwood just added starter Milt Cochrane (14-10/3.59) and standout catcher Corky DiNozzo (.315 BA-20 HRs) to the DL list... they had already lost ace Freddy Gooch (11-5/3.15) in July... La Claire also lost its rookie starter Glenn Smith (9-7/3.70) to injury... he will be out at least two months... the Denton City Redbirds are in the third spot in the standings and trail by seven games... Arlon is fourth, 9 games behind... and Bayview is fifth, 10 games out... with all of Kenwood's critical mound losses, the analysts say the TU West race is a toss-up between the Wildcats and the Lynx.

I'm gonna take a little time off from the IPA.

So don't worry if it drops off of page one.

I'll finish season 2037 in a couple of weeks.

See you then.

Nah, we aren't going to let this drop off of page 1.

Do you other readers know that this is the second-most viewed thread in dynasty report history? It's a timeless classic and extremely well done. A gold standard.