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Thursday, October 12, 2062

4 FINALISTS SET FOR PRO CUP
Four teams are gone from the Islandian Pro Alliance playoffs and four winners remain... the Pro Cup favorite Rolling Hills Racers, fifth-pick Southport, sixth-rated Volusia and eighth-choice Far Mountain all made the first-round cut and are set to go in the IPA League Championship Series - round two of the Pro Cup playoffs... three highly-touted and talented clubs were gloriously upended... biting the diamond dust were juggernauts Oxford, Elnora and High Mesa.

In the Tycobbian Union title series it will be Rolling Hills hosting the Southport Sun Sox, the conquerors of the 2061 IPA Pro Cup champion Oxford Red Caps... and it will be the Far Mountain Redhawks traveling to tangle with the Volusia Vigilantes, last year's Pro Cup runner-up... the best-of-seven series will start this Saturday afternoon at the Midtown Base Ball Grounds in Rolling Hills and the Jailhouse in Volusia.

On the surface, this looks like Rolling Hills will roll to its fifth Pro Cup title... it's main challengers Oxford, Elnora and High Mesa have been eliminated... they were the second, third and fourth choices of winning the coveted IPA crown this season... however, examining the teams a little closer, the Sun Sox, V's and Redhawks are not going to roll over and play dead... first of all, Southport rallied to beat potent Oxford in a sizzling seven-game series... the Sun Sox had to come back from a 3-1 deficit... that is not an easy way to win a series... this is only the sixth time it has ever happened in 62 IPA seasons... secondly, spirited Volusia never seems to pay any attention to the Pro Cup polls that never give them much of a chance to win... just ask Wynnamac, St. John and Elnora if the Vigilantes are any good... they were all highly-ranked postseason victims of the V's the last two years.

Thirdly, I am personally sick and tired and greatly frustrated by the postseason prosnosticators missing the mark so much and so often... and I am personally sick and tired and greatly frustrated by yours truly, EC, being so wrong, so much and so often in the Pro Cup prognostications... so I have decided to consult the guru of all gurus, Carnac the Magnificent, and have the "renown mystic from the East", predict the Ruthlandian Union and the Tycobbian Union champions.

I have his predictions in my possession... his precious prognostications have been placed in a hermetically sealed envelope and have been kept in a mayonnaise jar in my refrigerator since noon today... no one has seen these precious prognostications until now... EC now proudly shares Carnac the Magnificent's precious hermetically-sealed IPA postseason predictions.

And just in case there are some scoffers out there that question the skill and veracity of Carnac the Magnificent -- Beware -- he has been known to put curses on unbelievers.

Carnac the Magnificent is impressed with the spunky and scrappy Volusia Vigilantes... they will dispose of the Far Mountain Redhawks in six games... the V's can score plenty of runs in spite of the fact they do not hit homers... they only had one roundtripper in first round play... however, they never run out of good hitters in their batting order... take a gander at what they did against Elnora in the first round... Clement Belliveau (.474 BA), Carlos Silva (.450 BA), Scoots Perez (.417 BA), Carlos Vaz (.407 BA), Bandy Barnwell (.308 BA) and Teddy Cornelius (.308 BA)... that is some kind of hitting... and they have just enough pitching with starters Dan Hunt (0-1, 4.09 ERA), Lonny Rinehart (1-0, 5.25 ERA) and Reynaldo Medrano (0-1, 4.26 ERA) and relievers Gustavo Clemente (1-0, 1.04 ERA) and Cloyd Queen (1-0, 3.00 ERA) to handle the Redhawks.

It will be tough for the Far Mountain staff to cool down Volusia's top guns at the plate... Benny Van (0-0, 5.56 ERA), Derek Meijer (1-0, 6.30 ERA) and Jeffrey Chandler (0-1, 5.40 ERA) don't seem to be up to it... but the Redhawks can bang the ball around the ballpark, too... they may be better than the prognostications show... they just might be right up there with the V's... note the Redhawks hit 6 out of the park in the first round... playoff standouts are Ox Gless (.429 BA), Luke Hazlett (.409 BA), Jarrick Beauchamp (.391 BA), Mack McKenley (.375 BA), Curt Miley (.286 BA) and Lew Aston (.364 BA)... it will be an exciting series... should you not believe Carnac the Magnificent, "May you have to walk a mile in the desert under a diseased camel."

As far as the Tycobbian title series, Carnac the Magnificent is going to buck the trends... Carnac the Magnificent would bet his best diseased camel that the Southport Sun Sox will be a radiant beam in the IPA playoffs and upset the number-one ranked Rolling Hills Racers in a seven-game series... and why would Carnac predict this, ye of little faith question?... because Southport has superior pitching... Roman Littrell (2-0, 1.59 ERA) just might get three starts against the high-scoring Racers... and he just might be able to win a couple of games... maybe even three... Jeff Moncriffe (1-1, 3.86 ERA) is a pretty good number-two starter... the Sun Sox should be able to get a fairly decent number three starter from the likes of Sandy Wilbur (0-0, 3.60 ERA), Jody Wales (0-0, 9.00 ERA) and Jake Shank (1-1, 7.20 ERA)... all of them were really solid in the regular season... plus Southport handled a very good club in the first round... Carnac the Magnificent thought Oxford would repeat as champion, but the Sun Sox staff chilled them down enough to beat them... and the bats were good enough, too, despite being outhomered 13-0... it wasn't baseball that won it... it had to be divine intervention... the series had to be decided by fate or karma or whatever... Keiland Forrester (.393 BA), Buzzy McGinnis (.393 BA) and Pee Wee Little (.321 BA) led the way and were aided by Perry Parkhill (.227 BA), Junior Evans (.227 BA) and Walt Walmsley (.172 BA) with critical hits and RBIs... can they do it again?...can they upset the Rolling Hills Racers?... will there be divine intervention again?... Carnac the Magnificent thinks so.

The key to Rolling Hills winning the series will be its starters... Vance Dillaway (1-0, 5.25 ERA), Bob Corcorane (1-0, 2.40 ERA) and Brownie Ashmore (1-1, 4.02 ERA) will have to do better this round... and in addition, closer Bob Gates (1-0, 5.40 ERA) and the bullpen will have to be better, too... at the plate the Racers are hard to beat -- top to bottom in the batting order -- nothing but tough outs -- Jameson Mulbert (.333 BA), Luca Palazzi (.353 BA), Mark Carmickle (.429 BA), Teddy Stonich (.231 BA), Jean-Luc Roubique (.258 BA), Hugo Sutton (.357 BA), Lee Fountain (.381 BA), Jimmy Brandini (.233 BA) and Jasper Bowling (.250 BA)... can Rolling Hills beat Southport? -- Yes -- but they can't beat fate or karma or whatever... the Southport Sun Sox will "sho nuff" prevail in seven games and will advance to the Pro Cup Finals.

And should there be any doubters and naysayers amongst you concerning Carmac the Magnificent's magnificent and precious playoff prognostications, "May the mighty winds of the Sahara blow an irate scorpion very high up your pants' leg."

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Sunday, October 15, 2062

RACERS, V'S VICTORIOUS IN TU, RU OPENERS
The Rolling Hills Racers and Volusia Vigilantes snatched victories from the Southport Sun Sox and Far Mountain Redhawks in the opening games of the IPA League Championship Series... both the Racers and V's used grand slams to take an early lead in the best-of-seven series, which will determine the Pro Cup participants for this year's overall IPA title.
In the Tycobbian Union Rolling Hills smacked Southport 6-2 and in Ruthlandian Union playoffs Volusia socked it to Far Mountain 7-3 in the first games of the series.

2062 Tycobbian Union League Championship Series - Game 1

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2062 Ruthlandian Union League Championship Series - Game 1

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Monday, October 16, 2062

RACERS WIN 2 FROM SOX, REDHAWKS, V'S SPLIT
Two games into the Islandian Pro Alliance League Championship Series, Pro Cup favorite Rolling Hills has rolled to two straight triumphs over the Southport Sun Sox in the Tycobbian Union... and the Far Mountain Redhawks and the Volusia Vigilanted deadlocked at one game apiece in the best-of-seven Ruthlandian Union series... the Rolling Hills Racers ripped Southport 12-2 yesterday afternoon and Far Mountain trounced Volusia 11-4... games three will be played in Southport and Far Mountain.

2062 Tycobbian Union League Championship Series - Game 2

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2062 Ruthlandian Union League Championship Series - Game 2

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Wednesday, October 18, 2062

RACERS NEAR SWEEP, V'S LEAD REDHAWKS
The Pro Cup favorite Rolling Hills Racers are riding high in the Tycobbian Union title series with a 3-0 lead... and Volusia is up 2-1 in the Ruthlandian Union League Championship Series... the Racers edged the Southport Sun Sox 4-3 yesterday and could wind up the series in a four-game sweep... Volusia trounced the Far Mountain Redhawks 9-3 with a scorching barrage of hits.

2062 Tycobbian Union League Championship Series - Game 3

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2062 Ruthlandian Union League Championship Series - Game 3

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Thursday, October 19, 2062

SUN SOX STAY ALIVE IN TU, V'S, REDHAWKS 2-2 IN RU
There were two tense-and-tight thrillers in the Island Pro Alliance yesterday... in the Tycobbian title clash Southport fought off elimination in a four-game sweep by the rampaging Rolling Hills Racers with a 3-2 triumph... the Sun Sox are still alive in the best-of-seven series, but just barely... winning four in a row against powerhouse Rolling Hills would really be something... in the Ruthlandian Union title series Far Mountain nipped the Volusia Vigilantes 3-2 and knotted the series at 2 games each.

2062 Tycobbian Union League Championship Series - Game 4

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2062 Ruthlandian Union League Championship Series - Game 4

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:eatpop:

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Friday, October 20, 2062

SUN SOX, REDHAWKS ALIVE, BUT TRAIL 3-2
"It ain't over, till it's over"... and "never say die"... Southport Sun Sox may be the underdogs in the IPA playoffs against powerhouse and Pro Cup favorite, Rolling Hills, but they are not playing like it... they stayed alive against the Racers and clipped them 3-1 in game five of the Tycobbian Union title series, narrowing their lead to three games to two in the best-of-seven affair... in the Ruthlandian Union Volusia outscored Far Mountain 11-8 to take a 3-2 lead in that series.

2062 Tycobbian Union League Championship Series - Game 5
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2062 Ruthlandian Union League Championship Series - Game 5
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Sunday, October 21, 2062

RACERS WIN TU TITLE, V'S FORCED TO 7TH GAME
Two dynamite games were played in the IPA playoffs... the #1-ranked Rolling Hills Racers were pushed almost to the limits by the 5th pick Southport Sun Sox in game six of the Tycobbian Union title series... finally the Pro Cup favored Racers rallied and triumphed 5-4 to take the series four games to two and will now get a chance to win an unprecedented 5th Pro Cup trophy... the Ruthlandian Union title series will indeed go to a full seven games after 8th-rated Far Mountain fought back and beat the 6th pick Volusia 6-5 in 10 innings.

2062 Tycobbian Union League Championship Series - Game 6
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2062 Ruthlandian Union League Championship Series - Game 6
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Monday, October 23, 2062

2062 PRO CUP SERIES: VOLUSIA VERSUS ROLLING HILLS
The high-scoring feisty Volusia Vigilantes eliminated the valiant Far Mountain Redhawks from the IPA playoffs with some solid pitching in the seventh and deciding game... the V's defeated the Redhawks 5-2 in the Ruthlandian Union Championship Series and will now advance to the IPA Pro Cup Finals against powerful Rolling Hills, the champion of the Tycobbian Union.

2062 Ruthlandian Union League Championship Series - Game 7
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Thursday, October 26, 2062

PRO CUP SHOWDOWN BETWEEN RACERS AND V'S
Have no idea of what it means, but did you know that last year in the IPA playoffs, the Rolling Hills Racers and the Volusia Vigilantes were eliminated by the eventual Pro Cup champion Oxford Red Caps... actually it could mean that both the Racers and the V's are pretty good ballclubs... they were beaten by the best last year and have played well enough in the 2062 season to make it back among the top echelon of elite IPA teams.

The 2062 Pro Cup Series is on tap beginning this Saturday afternoon in the Midtown Base Ball Grounds in Rolling Hills in Tycobbia... the hometown Racers will host the Volusia Vigilantes in game one of the best-of-seven series... it will be the Tycobbian Union champion against the Ruthlandian Union titlewinner... they will be battling for the revered and much-coveted Holy Grail of Islandian Pro Alliance baseball -- the IPA Pro Cup Trophy... it's a repeat of last year's finalists... a high-powered, high-scoring team versus and an underdog low-octane attack that can generate a whole lot of runs on the scoreboard... it has all the makings of a slam bam affair... playoff pollsters chose Rolling Hills as the top team in the postseason this year, while Volusia was rated the sixth-best team in the playoffs... last year the baseball gurus said the Vigilantes were the seventh-best team and they almost won the IPA crown.

Rolling Hills is seeking its record-setting fifth Pro Cup... the Racers were IPA champions in 2029, 2031, 2048 and 2060... Volusia won the very first Pro Cup in 2001, but hasn't won one since... although they were finalists last year, eventually losing to Oxford in six games... all six games were decided by one run... that's how tough the spunky Vigilantes played the IPA champion.

Rolling Hills, 102-52 this year, has the homefield advantage and will have the first two games at home... unheralded Volusia, just 88-68 for the year, will entertain the Racers at the Jailhouse for the third, fourth and fifth games... should they be needed, the final two games are slated for Rolling Hills... both clubs will use three starters... Volusia manager Tubby Tarkanian will use Dan Hunt (15-5, 2.75 ERA), Lonny Rinehart (11-13, 3.70 ERA) and left-hander Reynaldo Medrano (11-11, 3.30 ERA) in his playoff rotation, backed up by Cloyd Queen (11-6, 2.88 ERA) and Ron Beeman (18-7, 3.78 ERA, 18 saves, 73 games) in the bullpen... Rolling Hills skipper Billy Christianson will give the assignments to Vance Dillaway (17-5, 3.15 ERA), Bob Corcorane (9-2, 3.20 ERA) and Brownie Ashmore (14-5, 3.34 ERA)... his main relievers will be Clyde Akins (5-6, 4.30 ERA) and Rob Gates (12-6, 3.66 ERA, 14 saves, 48 games).

Offensively, both batting orders, top to bottom, are chocked full solid hitters... just about everybody in the lineups is hitting .300... the pitchers will not have an easy out anywhere... both Volusia and Rolling Hills can score runs... the Racers have more home-run power... Rolling Hills might have a slight edge in pitching... the starters are a little better... and the relievers more reliable... Volusia plays better defense... overall, the Racers are the favorite and should whip the Vigilantes in six games... however, the Vigilantes have upended a lot of good teams in recent seasons in the postseason... but, it would be miraculous if they pull it off this year... the Rolling Hills Racers are rolling good and should ramble home this year with its fifth Pro Cup trophy.

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Sunday, October 28, 2062

V'S 9TH-INNING RALLY TAKES PRO CUP OPENER
In lightning fashion, spunky Volusia turned defeat into victory in the opening game of the 2062 Pro Cup Series... trailing 3-1 going into their final bat, the Vigilantes came back and edged the Pro Cup favorite Rolling Hills Racers 4-3.

2062 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 1 (Best-of-Seven Series)
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Monday, October 30, 2062

V'S WIN AGAIN IN 13TH, TAKE 2-0 LEAD OVER RACERS
You would be hard pressed to find a more thrilling ballgame in the history of the IPA Pro Cup Series... Pro Cup longshot Volusia did it again... they zapped Pro Cup favorite Rolling Hills 12-10 in a 13-inning hitfest to take a huge 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

2062 IPA Pro Cup Series - Game 2

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