Yeah, I'm excited... it looks like a wide open Pro Cup playoffs... White River, always the underdog, seem to always hassle the elite teams.

Dark Horse, thank you so much for the wholehearted support of the IPA... and thanks for the IPA promotion in your signature... you probably have gotten me a lot of viewers over the years.

Much appreciate you.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Saturday, September 23, 2056

2056 IPA DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game 2

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Sunday, September 24, 2056

2056 IPA DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game 3

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 25, 2056

2056 IPA DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game 4

your dedication to this is pretty incredible Eugene. The game writeups and all. I do that for the pennant race. You do this kind of detail all season long and have for years. Well done, sir!

GH

Thank you for the nice words... I appreciate your comments and that you check this out on a regular basis.

In reality, I just cover the IPA in general terms except for the playoffs... I do play out all the playoff games and recap the games in the news.

With 64 teams there is no way I could play and recap 32 games a day during the regular season... I just sim the regular season...but I do play out each day for my Southern Association replay... but it's just four games per day.

Actually, I made the IPA far too big... I should have stayed with 12 teams that I started with.

The IPA has really become more work that I want to do... but I continue to do it because I can't stop doing it... I love the league a lot... but I may be getting close to calling it a day and let the IPA ride off into the sunset.

I'm thinking of going back and restart my old All-Time All-Star Association... it was somewhat like your Alltime Baseball League except the players played for their original teams... not randomly assigned to fictional teams like your fine ABL... I just used the 16 original franchises.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Thursday, September 28, 2056

IPA PLAYOFFS RUN TRUE-TO-FORM
There were no upsets in the first round of the IPA Pro Cup playoffs... #1-ranked Midway prevailed over #3 Arlon, #2-rated Turon edged out #7 White River, #4 Middlefield whipped #5 Eastshore and #6 Taranto toppled #8 Waleska... the action progresses to a little higher level and intensity in the IPA League Championship Series, which start Saturday afternoon... in the Tycobbian Union LCS, the Turon Typhoons (96-58) will tangle with the Midway Wolves (101-53) at Joe Wolf Stadium for the first two games of the series... and in the Ruthlandian Union LCS, it will be the Middlefield Roosters (95-59) hosting the Taranto Tars (91-63) at Middlefield Park... both series are best-of-seven... and should be hotly-contested... no lead-pipe cinches in either matchup.

Turon has captured the most IPA trophies with four in its history, but none recently... the Typhoons were IPA champion in 2003, 2006, 2009 and 2018... they lost to Pro Cup champ Midway in the TU Finals in 2054... the Wolves have won two Pro Cups, in '53 and '54... last year the Middies reached the TU title series, but were beaten by underdog White River... Wynnamac was last year's IPA winner, but failed to beat Eastshore in the RU East this year... the Middlefield Roosters have also two Pro Cup titles, winning in 2005 and recently in 2052... the Taranto Tars only have one IPA Pro Cup trophy in their possession... long ago in 2015... but they made the Pro Cup Finals in 2053 when they were swept in four games by Midway... so there is a lot of Pro Cup experience among this year's challengers.

The Taranto Tars had the easiest task in first-round play, dominating the weak Waleska Westerners in a four-game sweep... Middlefield impressively handled talented Eastshore with ease, taking four out of five... Midway probably had the strongest opposition in round one... but the Wolves decisively beat a very good Arlon club in six games... Turon had the fight of its life before they subdued the scrappy White River Rascals in seven games.

So the four Pro Cup contenders are poised and ready to go... all of them think they are the best teams in the fray... and each one of them is capable and talented enough to bring home the Island championship to their town and fans.

In the Ruthlandian LCS Middlefield has its hands full... Taranto is solid on the hill with good starters and a good bullpen... and they are hitting homers, too... to get past the Roosters the Tars will have to continue to score runs... Middlefield's biggest problem is in its starting rotation... the loss of rookie mound sensation Rick Goldman (20-3) in July has really hampered them in the postseason... their #3 and #4 starters will have to really step it up against talented Taranto... don't sell the Tars short... they will make the Roosters work hard to get past them.

In the Tycobbian title series, Midway has really played well this season and they continued it into the postseason, dominating a fine Arlon squad... not too sure Turon can match Midway's mound staff or their bats... they had a tough time with the White River Rascals in the first round... but keep in mind, the Rascals in recent years have been underrated in the playoffs, but have stung several powerhouses along the way.

OK, we'll get stop straddling the fence and make our Pro Cup picks: Middlefield will edge Taranto in a tight series... just might go seven games... and Midway will top Turon in six games... the Wolves are my favorite to win it all this season... Midway will take its third Pro Cup trophy in the last four years.

Hope I didn't jinx my Pro Cup picks.

Deleted post... game didn't update the last game I played.

Will have to replay game 6 between Turon and Midway to get back on track.

It's so disappointing... Midway won the sixth game 3-2 in 14 innings... it really was an exciting and tense game.

I was really looking forward to the seventh-game finale.

No worry, it should be a fine Pro Cup Finals between Turon and Middlefield.

*

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Friday, October 6, 2056

PRO CUP FINALS VERY EVEN MATCH
The 56th edition of the Pro Cup Finals should be a good one... both participants are two of this year's elite powers and both have proved themselves worthy in rounds one and two of the playoffs... #2 ranked Turon will be challenged by #4 Middlefield in the best-of-seven IPA championship series... it looms to be one of the better matchups in recent years.

Both clubs are loaded with an arsenal of offense... it could be quite a shootout... runs have come easy and in abundance for the Middlefield Roosters, who paced the IPA with 895 runs in the regular season... Turon can also boast a high-powered attack with 806 runs... whoever gets the best pitching should win the Pro Cup trophy... the defense is about equal.

Middlefield has breezed into the Pro Cup Finals, taking care of a pretty good ballclub, Eastshore, in five games in the first round, then sweeping a talented Taranto team in the Ruthlandian title series... Turon had a tough and hard road to travel, fending off the White River Rascals in a tense seven-game series in round one and whipping the Pro Cup favorite Midway in the Tycobbian championship series in six games, five of them hotly-contested.

Pro Cup history is meaningless in assessing the Pro Cup clubs unless it is of a very recent nature... the Turon Typhoons will be seeking the fifth Pro Cup in the team's history and their first since 2018, while the Middlefield Roosters are in quest of Pro Cup number three... however, they won it in 2052 and still have a lot of those players still on the roster... the ones missing are three talented starters, Carroll Collier, Hollis Dale and Larry Wheelhouse... after successful careers all of them have since retired... James Long is the only returnee, along with the strong bullpen of Norm Coventry, Ken Willis and Yazzy Yastrzemski... the current crop of starters for the Roosters come way short of the Pro Cup champs.

This should be a very close series, going six or seven games... the offenses are fairly equal... give Turon a slight edge in the starting rotation with Bobby Reimer (20-14/2.48), Yancey Hedges (20-14/3.44) and rookie Judson Bacall (11-6/3.48)... Middlefield doesn't quite match up with that trio... ace James Long (20-9/2.21) certainly can... Scott Cole (19-13/3.53) is a good number two... but it really falls off with Cal West (9-9/5.01)... counter that with the Roosters getting the best of it in the bullpen with the Pro Cup returnees... Norm Coventry (1-2/1.21 ERA/24 saves/42 G), Yazzy Yastrzemski (7-2/2.33 ERA/7 saves/35 G) and Ken Willis (2-1/2.95 ERA/0 saves/28 G) have stood out this year... Turon's pen comes up short with Dickie Parmenter (7-9/3.46 ERA/12 saves/40 G), Nate Scottsdale (4-6/3.53 ERA/10 saves/35 G), Glenn Avery (5-0/2.39 ERA/2 saves/41 G) and Spunky Kinchlow (64/4.47 ERA/0 saves/37 G)... maybe call it a draw on the mound, too... the difference maker just might be home-run power... during the regular season the Roosters went deep 173 times (4th), while the Typhoons hit 139 out of the park (15th)... in the playoffs Middlefield has the edge 15 to 10... but I must add it is easier to home runs in smallish Middlefield Park... so we're back to square one.

Who's gonna win the 2056 IPA Pro Cup trophy?

My mind tells me Turon will win in seven games... they beat two fine teams to get to the Pro Cup Finals... then my gut feeling says Middlefield got by two talented teams, too... what the heck!... it's the Year of the Roosters, I think... so I'm going to pick the Roosters in seven games.

What do you guys and gals think? (EC likes to be PC... politically correct)

You're welcome to chime in and pick the winner here on the OOTPB Dynasty Forum.

To help you out I will give you all of the stats I can.