Great quote from perhaps the greatest right-hand hitter of all-time.
I recently read that Hornsby hit the ball harder than Babe did... he just hit line drives... Babe, of course, had an upper cut.

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Saturday, July 1, 2062

STILL 7 GOOD RACES AROUND THE IPA
The fans are getting their money's worth in the Islandian Pro Alliance this year... seven of the eight divisions are still alive and kicking... there isn't much of a battle in the Tycobbian North where Pro Cup champion Oxford is making shambles of it again this year... the Red Caps have shot ahead of Blue Lake by 10 and a half games at the three-month mark... Oxford has won the pennant by double digits the last two seasons and they are again terrorizing the competition... all the rest of the divisions are hotly contested.

There are a bunch of clubs making unexpected noise around the IPA circuit... surprise clubs are the Ancona Red Elephants (42-32), LaGrange Gators (42-33) and Taranto Tars (39-36) in the Ruthlandian North... favorites Valmara (38-36) and Glasco (35-40) have slumbered in the early going.

There's a redhot race going on in the Ruthlandian South this year with six clubs still contesting... the defending champ St. John Crusaders (44-31) are on top of the standings, but not by much... clinging close are the Waleska Westerners (42-32), Valka Blackhawks (41-34), Claxton Diamonds (40-35), Belair Beach Sunbirds (38-36) and Grand City Cybercats (37-38)... only 7 games separate all of them at the end of June.

The Wynnamac Sundowners (43-31) have captured the Ruthlandian East for the past two seasons and three of the last four... this year the Elnora Clippers (48-27) have jumped into the fray and are on top of the division by 4 and a half games... the Cold Creek Raccoons (39-36), Sugar Valley Rattlers (39-36) and Marston Nine (38-37) have winning records, but are not in the race right now.

Lots and lots of surprises in the Ruthlandian West this season... the pennant-winning Volusia Vigilantes have floundered a bit so far, trailing by 5 and a half games in fifth place behind the Rocky Rapids Snappers (43-32), Stoner Stars (41-34), Middlefield Roosters (40-35) and Sligo Rovers (39-36)... even the sixth place Colfax Blasters (36-38) are within striking distance of the top spot in the standings, just 7 games back in the race.

Over in the Tycobbian Union it's the High Mesa Mustangs, San Alejo Montaneros and Southport Sun Sox making waves... the Mustangs (49-26) lead the Midway Wolves (45-30) by 4 games in the TU East... and the Monties (48-27) and the Sun Sox (48-27) are doing quite well thus far in the TU South and have gotten a pretty fair lead... favorite and defending champion Turon (35-39) has tumbled badly below the .500 mark to fifth place, 12 and a half games behind... the third place Summerland Sunsets (42-33) are just six games off place and still a valid contender... 2062 has not been a good year for the Ginza Ninjas (38-37)... they are struggling in the fourth spot and are 10 games off the pace... last year's Cinderella club, the Arroyo Grande Suns (27-47) have fallen off the cliff, plunging all the way to seventh, after soaring to second place last year and almost winning the pennant.

There is a ding-dong dilly of a donnybrook going on the Tycobbian West with a three-team logjam... the favorite Rolling Hills Racers (46-28) are being challenged by the Kenwood Wildcats (45-30) and the Bayview Vikings (45-30)... the fourth place Denton City Redbirds (39-36) are still in the fight, too.

Still a good contest in the Tycobbian East, where upstart High Mesa (49-26) leads Midway (45-30) by 4 games... with the third place South Fork Stallions (42-33) only 7 games out and the Tuckanarra Tiger Cats (40-34) lingering 8 and a half games behind High Mesa.

Juggernaut and reigning Pro Cup titleholder Oxford is crushing all competition in the TU North... the Red Caps (52-23) have the best record in the IPA and a huge 10 and a half-game bulge over the distant runner-up Blue Lake Schooners (41-33) and the third place Mahaska Haymakers (41-34)... Oxford is rolling its fourth TU North Division crown in five years and could be headed for a repeat Pro Cup trophy... we can't wait for another possible matchup between the Red Caps and the Rolling Hills Racers, who are more than likely to meet in the Tycobbian Championship Series... the Racers forced Oxford to seven games last year in a rousing series with a fantastic finish.

We are just at the halfway point in the season with lots of games to be played... a good winning streak could get a lot of clubs back in the thick of things.

Isandian Pro Alliance Midseason Standings
Saturday, July 1, 2062
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IPA Ruthlandian Union Midseason Division Leaders
Saturday, July 1, 2062

IPA Tycobbian Union Midseason Division Leaders
Saturday, July 1, 2062

Ruthlandian Union Midseason Batting and :Pitching Leaderboards
Saturday, July 1, 2062

RU Batting Leaders
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RU Pitching Leaders
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Tycobbian Union Midseason Batting and :Pitching Leaderboards
Saturday, July 1, 2062

TU Batting Leaders
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TU Pitching Leaders
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Attachment 661010
Monday, July 17, 2062
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Attachment 661012
The Oxford Red Caps had the most honorees on the Tycobbian All-Stars with four... followed by the Mahaska Haymakers and High Mustangs with three apiece... Colfax and Elnora had three selections for the Ruthlandian All-Stars.
Leading the Tycobbian Union list for the most All-Star awards were Norishige Ito of the Midway Wolves with 9, Daryl Vale of Midway and Vincent McCloud of Denton City with 7 and Kagetoki Miyazaki of High Mesa with 5.
The leaders in the Ruthlandian Union were Donald Ray Mooney of Elnora, Carlos Silva of Volusia and Mickey Wilbur of Elnora, all with 4 selections... the only rookie chosen was 23-year-old Scoots Perez of Volusia
The oldest player on RU Stars was Mark Faber of St. John and Mickey Wilbur of Elnora, each age 35... Ito is the same age and is the eldest on the TU Stars... the youngest RU Star was Vince Norberg of Cold Creek at 20... Fairfax's Butch Longman was the junior choice on the TU Stars at 23.

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Attachment 661207
Sunday, October 1, 2062

STJ, V'S, RACERS AND RED CAPS REPEAT CHAMPS
Four of the favored clubs in the preseason poll have prevailed and repeated as division champions... the St. John Crusaders and Volusia Vigilantes were Ruthlandian winners, while the Rolling Hills Racers and Oxford Red Caps defended their titles in the Tycobbian Union... the four unlikely victors were the Far Mountain Redhawks and Elnora Clippers in the RU and the High Mesa Mustangs and Southport Sun Sox in the TU.
[Attachment 661210
Attachment 661211

1st Place
Attachment 661327
2062 Ruthlandian North Final Standings
Attachment 661328

FM REDHAWKS VAULT PAST VIPERS IN RU NORTH
Far Mountain was pretty much on top of the Ruthlandian North for the entire season... the Redhawks (86-68) beat back last year's champ Valmara (83-71) and LaGrange (82-72) in a close race decided by 3 games... the Gators were 4 games back... .. this was Far Mountain's first division crown since 2055... the Redhawks are aiming to bring home their fourth Pro Cup trophy... they won an unprecedented three in a row far back in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

The first place Far Mountain Redhawks were led by the offense of Curt Miley (.339, 13 HR, 53 RBI), Ox Gless (.292, 23 HR, 90 RBI), Oskar Neumann d(.343, 21 HR, 84 RBI and Luke Hazlett (.280, 16 HR, 89 RBI)... they scored 746 runs (9th) and hit 145 homers (5th-tied)... the most dependable pitchers were starters Benny Van (12-6, 3.24), Jeffrey Chandler (12-11, 3.93) and Derek Meijer (10-12, 3.24)... reliever Howie Haywood (17-12, 3.80) was also fairly reliable in the bullpen... defense less-than-average with a .975 FA.

Attachment 661329

2nd Place
Attachment 661330

Valmara Vipers (3 GB) wound up in the runner-up spot this year after winning the RU North four of the past six seasons... the offense was down greatly... .276 BA to .255 BA (26th)… no longer the explosive attack of the last few seasons with 151 HR (4th) and only 681 runs (20th-tied)... the Vipers led the league in scoring runs last year... pitching was just average with a 4.10 ERA (17th)... Timmy Benford (.327, 21 HR, 86 RBI) and Jud Gilbride (.260, 27 HR, 112 RBI) were the only good bats... on the hill Jozef Duczynski stood out with 20-10 and a stellar 2.26 ERA... Tony Joe Carnes was also reliable with a 19-12 mark and a 3.88 ERA... Kris Fourcade (1-4) was a strong closer with 30 saves and a fine 1.85 ERA in 42 relief appearances.

Attachment 661331

Third Place
Attachment 661333

The third place LaGrange Gators (4 GB) survived on its good pitching... 3.53 ERA (2nd) led by Chucky Beckman (14-8, 3.25), Spike Swearingen (11-7, 3.24) and Dave Loxley (12-11, 3.49)... offense was dismal... .251 BA (31st), 104 HR (18th), 666 runs (26th-tied)... poor defense with a .973 FA... bad August (10-18) put a huge dent in the pennant drive.

Attachment 661334

4th Place
Attachment 661336

The fourth place Taranto Tars (8 GB) could go deep, but didn't do much else with the bat or on the hill... 171 HRs (2nd), but only batted .248 (32nd), scored 676 runs (23rd) with a fairly good 3.72 ERA (8th)... very good defense with a .979 FA... 37-year-old Lenny Buisson (.297, 47 HR, 116 RBI) carried a big stick, first in the Ruthlandian Union in homers and fourth in RBIs, but he had no help whatsoever... Nico Croce stood out with a 14-13 mark and a standout 2.23 ERA... other quality starters were Alvio Sartori (10-4, 3.59), Filippo Endrizzi (14-11, 3.94) and Phil Castle (13-14, 3.69).

Attachment 661337

5th Place
Attachment 661338

Bad pitching killed fifth place Ancona's pennant hopes (10 GB)... no chance to contend with a 4.53 ERA (26th)... offense was average with 703 runs (17th)... with a fairly good .270 BA (13th)... and solid power with 145 HRs (5th-tied)... fielding was poor with a .973 FA... Franco Briganti was an All-Star left fielder... he hit .346 with 23 homers and 79 RBIs... Marcellus Dillaway had a solid season with a .315 BA, 18 roundtrippers and 86 runs batted in... not much help from others in the lineup... Yanni Bubas (16-12, 3.80) was the best starter by far... closer Kontos Christakis (1-3) was terrific in the closer spot with 34 saves and a microscopic 0.53 ERA in 49 games.

Attachment 661339

6th Place
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The Kilkenny Cats wound up sixth in the RU North (12 GB)... the Cats had a terrible offense... batted only .254 (28th), last in scoring with just 612 runs (32nd) and homers with only 56 (32nd)... pitching was good with a 3.61 ERA (5th) led by Dakota Elkins (15-9, 2.47), Billy Joe Wooster (13-10, 3.36) and Frankie Dark (11-15, 3.68)... Niles Bedford hit well with little power... .331 BA, 9 HRs, 74 RBIs... he was the only threat in the batting order... good defense with a .978 FA.

Attachment 661341

7th Place
Attachment 661342

The Glasco Foxhounds were rated a contender this season, but fizzled to seventh place (14 GB) by season's end... no offense with 625 runs (31st), pretty good for average with a .268 (17th), but just fair power with 111 HRs (16th)... however, the mound staff was pretty good with a 3.60 ERA (4th)... defense was better-than-average at .977 FA... the most productive bats were Rick Farns (.301, 15 HR, 64 RBI), Aidan Gifford (.310, 15 HR, 59 RBI) and Colin Carr (.279, 14 HR, 80 RBI)... but the starters were good ones with Monte France (17-10, 2.54), Evan Acklin (11-7, 2.09), Jonathan Burnett (12-13, 2.96) and Royce Blackstreet (11-12, 3.69).

Attachment 661343

8th Place
Attachment 661346

After winning the pennant in '60 and finishing third last year, the Ranford Bulls plunged to last place (21 GB)... bad pitching will do it every time unless you have a high-powered scoring machine... team ERA was 4.22 (18th)... just average with 686 runs (19th)... decent with 123 HRs (13th-tied)... with a poor .251 BA (30th)... the top run producers were Garry Galbreath (.329, 18 HR, 84 RBI), Jedd Blodgett (.263, 21 HR, 67 RBI) and All-Star catcher Glen Chambliss (.281, 17 HR, 71 RBI)... on the mound Zeppo Perrelli (12-2, 3.55) had a fine year... Marv Douglas (11-15, 3.81) and Barney Folse (12-10, 4.26) were just fair.

Attachment 661347

Hope you like the new format... takes a lot less time to recap the league... plus it gives you more information.