OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - ISLANDIAN PRO ALLIANCE (RUTHLANDIA and TYCOBBIA BASEBALL UNIONS)

Eugene Church · 07-30-2009, 10:00 PM

The Islandian Times

Wednesday, October 6, 2004

Pro Cup Series: Sugar Valley vs. Red Bluff
The Sugar Valley Rattlers and the Red Bluff Red Sox have made it all the way to the Islandian Pro Cup Series to play for the IPA championship. They did it by surviving a rigorous regular season and a demanding playoff system. Both clubs are primed and ready to win the Islandian Pro Cup, symbolic of the best professional baseball team in the Islands.

Sugar Valley will represent the Ruthlandian Union, while Red Bluff hails from the Tycobbian Union. National pride is at stake. For the next week the nation of Islandia will focus on baseball and little else. Ruthlandians will be pulling for the Rattlers and Tycobbians will be cheering for the Red Sox. All done with proper respect for one another most of the time.

Who is going to win? The team that makes the right pitch at the right time, comes up with the right hit at the right time or makes the right play at the right time. Most of the time that's how championship are decided. And sometimes the element of luck gets intermeshed and changes the results.

Checking out each team position by position here is how the experts assess each club.

Starters:
Edge goes to Red Bluff with Mila Mohoski (21-10 2.36) and Leonard Urban (18-13 2.77) and Frank Beaudoin (16-13 3.12). A very solid threesome, who have pitched even better in the playoffs. Urban (3-0 0.00) and Mohoski (2-1 2.19) have been excellent, while Beaudoin (3-0 3.41) has more than done his part.

Sugar Valley can't match the Red Sox starters. Gregg Neal (20-8 2.62) is their equal, but Anthony Glaser (20-13 3.70) and Jay Washington (12-8 3.32) are not as strong as the Rattler counterparts. Neal (2-1 2.25) has stood out in the postseason, but Glaser (3-0 3.62) and Washington (2-2 4.42) have struggled at times.

Bullpen:
Even. Neither team has the edge here. Red Bluff will depend on Perry Toefield (1-0 3.55) for long relief and John Dougherty (6-12 2.72) at closing time. In the playoffs Dougherty (0-2 2.08) has two saves and Toefield (1-1 4.26) has two saves.

Manager Gibby Bobkins has been operating with a bullpen committee with Dale Bixler (2-2 2.62), Hec Skurgan (3-3 4.17) and Frankie Jardine (3-1 4.30). In the postseason Bixler (1-0 0.00) with two saves has been his best with help from Skurgan (1-0 2.79), who has one save. Jardine (0-0 2.25) has been effective with one save. Ron Benson (16-14 4.42), a starter in the regular season, has not been effective in relief. He is 0-1 with a 6.35 ERA, but has one save.

Catcher:
Call it a draw between Virgil Carpenter (.249/16 HR/65 RBI) of Red Bluff and Slingshot McFall (.239/6 HR/58 RBI) of Sugar Valley. Carpenter hits with more power, but McFall has a great arm. Both are very capable defenders. McFall has a .996 FA and has thrown out 46% of the runners, while Carpenter has a .993 FA and has thrown out 43%. They are pretty even in the postseason. McFall is batting .273 with no home runs, 6 RBIs and has scored 4 runs, while Carpenter is hitting .255 with 2 HRs, 4 RBIs and 3 runs.

First Base:
The Rattlers have a decided offensive edge here with Ron Armstrong (.277/31 HR/108 RBI). Bucky Frizzell (.231/11 HR/62 RBI) had a very poor regular season and it has continued into the playoffs. Armstrong has 4 homers, 10 RBIs and is hitting .313 in the postseason. Defensively both handle the glove well with .996 FAs.

Second base:
Slight advantage to Red Sox Vern Gable (.287/5 HR/82 R) over Rattler rookie Casey Leeburn (.269/17 HR/79 RBI/70 R). Leeburn does hit with much more power, but Gable has a .982 FA to Leeburn's .977 FA, while Leeburn has better range. Gable hits for a higher average. In the playoffs Gable has been superb with a .362 BA, 1 HR, 6 RBIs and 10 runs. Leeburn is batting .304 with no homers, one RBI and 5 runs.

Third base:
Decided advantage for Sugar Valley's Jorge Vargas (.284/29 HR/94 RBI) over Red Bluff's Newt Lovell (.273/4 HR/59 RBI). Vargas has excelled in the postseason, too. He has a .298 BA, 3 homers, 8 RBIs and has scored 7 times to Lovell's .304 BA, no homers, 1 RBI and 5 runs scored. But Lovell is by far the better fielder with a .969 FA to Vargas' poor .933 FA.

Shortstop:
No contest. Flipper Bird of the Rattlers may be the best all-around player in the IPA. Bird (.305/30 HR/132 RBI/108 R) led the IPA in RBIs and is a Gold Glover with a .980 FA. He has been even better in the playoffs with a .345 BA, 3 HRs, 16 RBIs and 11 runs scored. He easily outdistances rookie Jeff Decker (.263/5 HR/41 RBI). Decker is a pretty dependable gloveman with a .977 FA. In the postseason Decker is hitting only .213 with no home runs, 4 RBI and has scored 4 times, but he has delivered several clutch hits.

Left Field:
Red Bluff's Tony Blundell (.294/28 HR/79 RBI/91 R) gets the nod because of his power and his great postseason performance over Sugar Valley's Bruno DiPirro (.291/5 HR/41 RBI/102 R). Blundell is hitting .367 in the playoffs with 5 homers, 13 RBIs and 11 runs scored to DiPirro's .327 BA, no homers, 4 RBIs and has scored 7 runs. However, DiPirro is the better fielder with a much better arm. DiPirro had a .978 FA in the regular season with 11 assists. Blundell has a .957 FA with just 6 assists.

Center Field:
The Rattlers Freddie Vaux (.292/8 HR/56 RBI/102 R) is the pick here over Stan Helmke (.245/15 HR/61 RBI/77 R) of the Red Sox. Vaux gets edge on defense with a .973 FA to .969 for Helmke. But Helmke has played like he did last year in the postseason with a solid .313 BA, 2 HRs, 8 RBIs and 9 runs scored. Vaux has hit only .250 in the playoffs with no homers, but has 7 RBIs and scored 11 times.

Right Field:
Give this one to the Red Sox because of Kris Grabowski (.287/19 HR/90 RBI), who might be the team's top performer. Grabowski is great with the glove with an outstanding .996 FA. In the postseason he has batted .280 with 1 home run, 6 RBIs and has scored 3 times. Frank Horak (.264/14 HR/56 RBI) plays right for Sugar Valley and is only fair with the glove with a .967 FA. In the playoffs he has hit well with a .417 BA, 1 roundtripper, 4 RBIs and has scored 8 runs.

Will it be Sugar Valley or Red Bluff? It really looks like Sugar Valley is the superior team. They have four outstanding position players to just two for the Red Sox. If good pitching is the deciding factor, then the Red Sox will win. Herculean efforts by Mohoski and Urban could make Red Bluff the winner. If hitting is the deciding factor, then the Rattlers are the better team. The baseball experts have made their prediction. According to the BNN poll the Rattlers will win the Pro Cup. The reason: top to bottom in their batting order is a good hitter. That's the way it looks on paper. Now let's see how it plays out on the diamond and in real life.

07-30-2009, 10:00 PM	#1163
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,690 Blog Entries: 1	The Islandian Times Wednesday, October 6, 2004 Pro Cup Series: Sugar Valley vs. Red Bluff The Sugar Valley Rattlers and the Red Bluff Red Sox have made it all the way to the Islandian Pro Cup Series to play for the IPA championship. They did it by surviving a rigorous regular season and a demanding playoff system. Both clubs are primed and ready to win the Islandian Pro Cup, symbolic of the best professional baseball team in the Islands. Sugar Valley will represent the Ruthlandian Union, while Red Bluff hails from the Tycobbian Union. National pride is at stake. For the next week the nation of Islandia will focus on baseball and little else. Ruthlandians will be pulling for the Rattlers and Tycobbians will be cheering for the Red Sox. All done with proper respect for one another most of the time. Who is going to win? The team that makes the right pitch at the right time, comes up with the right hit at the right time or makes the right play at the right time. Most of the time that's how championship are decided. And sometimes the element of luck gets intermeshed and changes the results. Checking out each team position by position here is how the experts assess each club. Starters: Edge goes to Red Bluff with Mila Mohoski (21-10 2.36) and Leonard Urban (18-13 2.77) and Frank Beaudoin (16-13 3.12). A very solid threesome, who have pitched even better in the playoffs. Urban (3-0 0.00) and Mohoski (2-1 2.19) have been excellent, while Beaudoin (3-0 3.41) has more than done his part. Sugar Valley can't match the Red Sox starters. Gregg Neal (20-8 2.62) is their equal, but Anthony Glaser (20-13 3.70) and Jay Washington (12-8 3.32) are not as strong as the Rattler counterparts. Neal (2-1 2.25) has stood out in the postseason, but Glaser (3-0 3.62) and Washington (2-2 4.42) have struggled at times. Bullpen: Even. Neither team has the edge here. Red Bluff will depend on Perry Toefield (1-0 3.55) for long relief and John Dougherty (6-12 2.72) at closing time. In the playoffs Dougherty (0-2 2.08) has two saves and Toefield (1-1 4.26) has two saves. Manager Gibby Bobkins has been operating with a bullpen committee with Dale Bixler (2-2 2.62), Hec Skurgan (3-3 4.17) and Frankie Jardine (3-1 4.30). In the postseason Bixler (1-0 0.00) with two saves has been his best with help from Skurgan (1-0 2.79), who has one save. Jardine (0-0 2.25) has been effective with one save. Ron Benson (16-14 4.42), a starter in the regular season, has not been effective in relief. He is 0-1 with a 6.35 ERA, but has one save. Catcher: Call it a draw between Virgil Carpenter (.249/16 HR/65 RBI) of Red Bluff and Slingshot McFall (.239/6 HR/58 RBI) of Sugar Valley. Carpenter hits with more power, but McFall has a great arm. Both are very capable defenders. McFall has a .996 FA and has thrown out 46% of the runners, while Carpenter has a .993 FA and has thrown out 43%. They are pretty even in the postseason. McFall is batting .273 with no home runs, 6 RBIs and has scored 4 runs, while Carpenter is hitting .255 with 2 HRs, 4 RBIs and 3 runs. First Base: The Rattlers have a decided offensive edge here with Ron Armstrong (.277/31 HR/108 RBI). Bucky Frizzell (.231/11 HR/62 RBI) had a very poor regular season and it has continued into the playoffs. Armstrong has 4 homers, 10 RBIs and is hitting .313 in the postseason. Defensively both handle the glove well with .996 FAs. Second base: Slight advantage to Red Sox Vern Gable (.287/5 HR/82 R) over Rattler rookie Casey Leeburn (.269/17 HR/79 RBI/70 R). Leeburn does hit with much more power, but Gable has a .982 FA to Leeburn's .977 FA, while Leeburn has better range. Gable hits for a higher average. In the playoffs Gable has been superb with a .362 BA, 1 HR, 6 RBIs and 10 runs. Leeburn is batting .304 with no homers, one RBI and 5 runs. Third base: Decided advantage for Sugar Valley's Jorge Vargas (.284/29 HR/94 RBI) over Red Bluff's Newt Lovell (.273/4 HR/59 RBI). Vargas has excelled in the postseason, too. He has a .298 BA, 3 homers, 8 RBIs and has scored 7 times to Lovell's .304 BA, no homers, 1 RBI and 5 runs scored. But Lovell is by far the better fielder with a .969 FA to Vargas' poor .933 FA. Shortstop: No contest. Flipper Bird of the Rattlers may be the best all-around player in the IPA. Bird (.305/30 HR/132 RBI/108 R) led the IPA in RBIs and is a Gold Glover with a .980 FA. He has been even better in the playoffs with a .345 BA, 3 HRs, 16 RBIs and 11 runs scored. He easily outdistances rookie Jeff Decker (.263/5 HR/41 RBI). Decker is a pretty dependable gloveman with a .977 FA. In the postseason Decker is hitting only .213 with no home runs, 4 RBI and has scored 4 times, but he has delivered several clutch hits. Left Field: Red Bluff's Tony Blundell (.294/28 HR/79 RBI/91 R) gets the nod because of his power and his great postseason performance over Sugar Valley's Bruno DiPirro (.291/5 HR/41 RBI/102 R). Blundell is hitting .367 in the playoffs with 5 homers, 13 RBIs and 11 runs scored to DiPirro's .327 BA, no homers, 4 RBIs and has scored 7 runs. However, DiPirro is the better fielder with a much better arm. DiPirro had a .978 FA in the regular season with 11 assists. Blundell has a .957 FA with just 6 assists. Center Field: The Rattlers Freddie Vaux (.292/8 HR/56 RBI/102 R) is the pick here over Stan Helmke (.245/15 HR/61 RBI/77 R) of the Red Sox. Vaux gets edge on defense with a .973 FA to .969 for Helmke. But Helmke has played like he did last year in the postseason with a solid .313 BA, 2 HRs, 8 RBIs and 9 runs scored. Vaux has hit only .250 in the playoffs with no homers, but has 7 RBIs and scored 11 times. Right Field: Give this one to the Red Sox because of Kris Grabowski (.287/19 HR/90 RBI), who might be the team's top performer. Grabowski is great with the glove with an outstanding .996 FA. In the postseason he has batted .280 with 1 home run, 6 RBIs and has scored 3 times. Frank Horak (.264/14 HR/56 RBI) plays right for Sugar Valley and is only fair with the glove with a .967 FA. In the playoffs he has hit well with a .417 BA, 1 roundtripper, 4 RBIs and has scored 8 runs. Will it be Sugar Valley or Red Bluff? It really looks like Sugar Valley is the superior team. They have four outstanding position players to just two for the Red Sox. If good pitching is the deciding factor, then the Red Sox will win. Herculean efforts by Mohoski and Urban could make Red Bluff the winner. If hitting is the deciding factor, then the Rattlers are the better team. The baseball experts have made their prediction. According to the BNN poll the Rattlers will win the Pro Cup. The reason: top to bottom in their batting order is a good hitter. That's the way it looks on paper. Now let's see how it plays out on the diamond and in real life.