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Eugene Church · 09-12-2009, 09:18 PM

The Islandian Times

Monday, June 20, 2005

Sunbirds Soar to 6-Game Lead in RU South
The Ruthlandian Union South is playing out true-to-form halfway through the season with the favored Belair Beach Sunbirds up by six games at the All-Star hiatus. Valka is number two, while Claxton is seven games off the pace in third place and San Dimas is fourth, 10 games out.

Belair Beach (45-28) is the class of the division with a splendid 2.94 ERA and a .272 team batting average. Manager Marty Pedroza has a wealth of talent with strong pitching from starters Slim Mosley (13-2 2.60), Ray Watson (12-2 3.24) and Tiny Lindgren (9-7 2.06). Mosley and Watson were named to the RU All-Stars. In the bullpen Johnny Spears (1-2 2.59) has chalked up 14 saves and worked in 26 games.

In addition, the Sunbirds have a bunch of standout sticks in 1B Phil Gravelli (.339/19 HR/49 RBI/51 R), 3B Mike Janocko (.298/8 HR/46 RBI/43 R), C Little Jake Bungarooba (.320/6 HR/34 RBI/38 R), RF Matty McDermott (.317/5 HR/32 RBI/45 R) and 2B Art Parker (.310/1 HR/38 RBI). LF Nicky Swift also chipped in 13 homers and 36 RBIs, but has hit only .238 on the year. The outlook is for Belair Beach to claim its second straight South title. No one has the pitching to challenge them.

The Valka Blackhawks (39-34) are piloted by Jaan Kurus, who has three quality starters in rookie Keith Cline (6-2 2.22), Darryl Vannoy (8-5 3.03) and hardluck Bobby Karu (6-9 2.31). The Blackhawks also have a very good closer in Tommy Ruffin (3-2 2.92), who has saved 10 games, while making 33 relief appearances. Kurus' pitching corps is rated third in the division with a 3.52 ERA, beaten out by first place Belair Beach and fifth place St. John (3.48 ERA).

Valka has a very well-balanced line-up with all eight of the regulars batting between .267 and .304, led by the fine rookie SS Bobby Stroud (.299/8 HR/47 RBI) and 3B Buddy Petrisko (.284/5 HR/43 RBI). As a team the Blackhawks sport a .261 mark, good enough for third place in the division. Only Belair Beach (.272) and fourth place San Dimas (.267) are better. Kurus' crew began the season poorly with an 11-14 record in April, but soon regrouped for an impressive 28-20 record over the past two months. The Blackhawks will have to hit better and score more runs to overtake Belair Beach, but second place and a playoff spot is possible.

Claxton manager Stacy Engel recently lamented to the press, "My boys can hit the ball, but so can the opposition. We need a couple of pitchers to step it up and we'll be alright." The Diamonds (38-35) had a very good April (15-10), but have tailed off to 23-25 over the past two months. But they still are in third place in the RU South, one game out of second and six out of first. Claxton's strong point is the long ball. They are the top club in the division with 84 homers and rank third in runs scored with 332. First place Belair Beach has outscored everybody (366), followed by fourth place San Dimas (338). The Diamonds are hitting .258 (6th) as a team. Engel's line-up is sparked by veteran LF Dixie Baker (.335/16 HR/51 RBI), who is having his best season ever. Crackerjack CF Jackie Faust (.244/12 HR/53 RBI/45 R), rookie SS Carl Deaver (.255/10 HR/30 RBI/49 R) and 2B Bobby Ritter (.297/7 HR/27 RBI/45 R) are also producing runs.

On the hill, Engel needs improvement (3.92 ERA) and is rated 4th in that category. Engel has a quality foursome in his rotation with Terry Kuznetsov (9-7 4.19), Gino Franchi (7-3 3.62), Doug Torvik (7-7 3.34) and Ken Wade (4-0 2.73). Middle relief is poor and closer Tom Dahl (2-3 4.02) has had a so-so season thus far. In the battle for the last playoff spot, Claxton is stronger than Valka in firepower, but the Blackhawks are superior in pitching (3.52 ERA). The nod goes to Valka.

Paco Banderos' San Dimas Rancheros (35-38) kicked off the year in grand style with a 16-9 mark in April, but have faltered drastically since with a 19-29 record and have slipped down to the fourth spot in the standings and 10 games back. Long relief is Banderos' sore point (5.09 ERA). Overall San Dimas has put up a dismal 4.30 team ERA (6th). Banderos has an All-Star hurler in Zippy Hodge (10-6 3.15) and a solid closer in Cleve Skinner (3-3 2.35), who has registered 10 saves and appeared in relief 26 times.

It has been San Dimas' offense that has led the way. The Rancheros are batting .267 as a team, good for second place behind Belair Beach (.272). All-Star 1B Johnny Carducci (.273/23 HR/70/50) is one of the IPA's elite sluggers. He is the top run producer in the league. Also aiding the attack are RF Goose Garlin (.272/14 HR/39 RBI), CF Dennis Jones (.307/4 HR/39 RBI), 2B Cyclone Cobb (.297/1 HR/21 RBI/51 R/36 SB) and 3B Domingo Rios (.278/8 HR/32 RBI). It's not likely San Dimas can stay in the first division. St. John is playing better right now and should overtake them. Fifth place may be the best the Rancheros can do.

St. John leaped from out of nowhere two years ago to take the RU South title, but then dropped back to fifth place last season. Not much was expected this year. Another lackluster season was the prediction by the BNN scribes. The Crusaders, managed by Dickie Billings, performed poorly the first two months (21-33), but have recently caught fire and gone 13-6 in June, mainly due to some very fine pitching. They currently hold fifth place, 11 games behind. If it stays this way, St. John could climb up to fourth, maybe third place before the year's end.

Billings has so many quality starters, he can't used them all as much as he would like. St. John has the second-best team ERA (3.48) in the division. Sterling Eccles (9-5 3.26) and Zach Simon (7-9 2.71) are the workhorses. George Martz (3-3 2.54) has looked good as the Crusaders #3 starter, while Adam Chirra (4-6 3.22), Karl Ladendorf (3-2 2.76) and Kris Garvik (0-1 2.19) are vying for the #4 slot in the pitching rotation. The Crusaders have a capable closer, too. Paul DeJohnette (3-2 3.27) has saved 11 games and appeared in 27 games.

St. John has a fairly good .260 batting average (4th-tied) with 65 homers (3rd). Billings has four rookies on his line-up card, headed by C Phil Lakos (.286/9 HR/38 RBI), 2B Rod Burzik (.281/11 HR/37 RBI), 3B Sully Hull (.300/6 HR/31 RBI) and Clayton Luck (.277/10 HR/23 RBI/47 R). The Crusader frosh are outperforming the veterans.

The Waleska Westerners (33-40) are led by one of the best managers ever in the Islands, at least in the company leagues. However, McGraw Johnson has not been very successful in the IPA. The Westerners have made the playoffs only one time in their four-year history, back in 2003. Things are not boding well this year. Waleska is wallowing 12 games back in sixth place and its prospects are not too good for anything better. Johnson is simply short of talent. That's the plain truth.

Waleska has the worst ERA (4.37) in the RU South and is tied for fourth in hitting (.260) with little power, just 53 home runs (6th). Gary Hill is the Westerners ace with an 11-4 record, but a high 4.42 ERA. Johnson's top batters are LF Big Hoss Burkhalter (.313/18 HR/53 RBI/41 R), All-Star rookie CF Harold Setser (.304/8 HR/52 RBI/46 R) and RF Charley Williamson (.308/3 HR/30 RBI).

It looks like another long, long season for manager Torry Joseph of the Grand City Cybercats (29-44). They held their own for the first two months of the campaign with a 25-29 record, but have now gone into the tank with a dismal 4-15 mark in June to fall down to seventh place, 16 games off the pace. Lucky that Crystal Lake is in the division, otherwise it would be the basement for the Cybercats.

Joseph only has two dependable pitchers. Starter Frankie Novikov (6-8 2.94) and closer Bill Berglund (5-2 1.21). With better run support Novikov could easily be 11-3 and on the All-Star team. Berglund has been excellent in his 29 relief appearances. Three position players have stood out for Grand City: rookie 1B Jason Albright (.304/16 HR/52 RBI), CF Russ Baumer (.351/5 HR/32 RBI/36 R) and the veteran RF Teddy Giacone (.264/10 HR/34 RBI).

Legendary home run hitter Baby George has the infamous honor of managing the worst team in IPA history. The Crystal Lake Crushers have never remotely lived up to their name and have finished in the basement the last three seasons. Their best year was 2002 when they ended up in seventh place. This season is no different. Crystal Lake (23-50) is in last place, way down in the RU South cellar, 22 games off the lead with no light at the end of the tunnel.

Tony Hartwig (3-11 3.19) and Tony Tipton (4-4 3.54) are George's top hurlers and 3B Nelson Tolliver (.287/10 HR/29 RBI) and LF Ben Butler (.239/12 HR/29 RBI) are his best batters.

09-12-2009, 09:18 PM	#1204
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 36,123	The Islandian Times Monday, June 20, 2005 Sunbirds Soar to 6-Game Lead in RU South The Ruthlandian Union South is playing out true-to-form halfway through the season with the favored Belair Beach Sunbirds up by six games at the All-Star hiatus. Valka is number two, while Claxton is seven games off the pace in third place and San Dimas is fourth, 10 games out. Belair Beach (45-28) is the class of the division with a splendid 2.94 ERA and a .272 team batting average. Manager Marty Pedroza has a wealth of talent with strong pitching from starters Slim Mosley (13-2 2.60), Ray Watson (12-2 3.24) and Tiny Lindgren (9-7 2.06). Mosley and Watson were named to the RU All-Stars. In the bullpen Johnny Spears (1-2 2.59) has chalked up 14 saves and worked in 26 games. In addition, the Sunbirds have a bunch of standout sticks in 1B Phil Gravelli (.339/19 HR/49 RBI/51 R), 3B Mike Janocko (.298/8 HR/46 RBI/43 R), C Little Jake Bungarooba (.320/6 HR/34 RBI/38 R), RF Matty McDermott (.317/5 HR/32 RBI/45 R) and 2B Art Parker (.310/1 HR/38 RBI). LF Nicky Swift also chipped in 13 homers and 36 RBIs, but has hit only .238 on the year. The outlook is for Belair Beach to claim its second straight South title. No one has the pitching to challenge them. The Valka Blackhawks (39-34) are piloted by Jaan Kurus, who has three quality starters in rookie Keith Cline (6-2 2.22), Darryl Vannoy (8-5 3.03) and hardluck Bobby Karu (6-9 2.31). The Blackhawks also have a very good closer in Tommy Ruffin (3-2 2.92), who has saved 10 games, while making 33 relief appearances. Kurus' pitching corps is rated third in the division with a 3.52 ERA, beaten out by first place Belair Beach and fifth place St. John (3.48 ERA). Valka has a very well-balanced line-up with all eight of the regulars batting between .267 and .304, led by the fine rookie SS Bobby Stroud (.299/8 HR/47 RBI) and 3B Buddy Petrisko (.284/5 HR/43 RBI). As a team the Blackhawks sport a .261 mark, good enough for third place in the division. Only Belair Beach (.272) and fourth place San Dimas (.267) are better. Kurus' crew began the season poorly with an 11-14 record in April, but soon regrouped for an impressive 28-20 record over the past two months. The Blackhawks will have to hit better and score more runs to overtake Belair Beach, but second place and a playoff spot is possible. Claxton manager Stacy Engel recently lamented to the press, "My boys can hit the ball, but so can the opposition. We need a couple of pitchers to step it up and we'll be alright." The Diamonds (38-35) had a very good April (15-10), but have tailed off to 23-25 over the past two months. But they still are in third place in the RU South, one game out of second and six out of first. Claxton's strong point is the long ball. They are the top club in the division with 84 homers and rank third in runs scored with 332. First place Belair Beach has outscored everybody (366), followed by fourth place San Dimas (338). The Diamonds are hitting .258 (6th) as a team. Engel's line-up is sparked by veteran LF Dixie Baker (.335/16 HR/51 RBI), who is having his best season ever. Crackerjack CF Jackie Faust (.244/12 HR/53 RBI/45 R), rookie SS Carl Deaver (.255/10 HR/30 RBI/49 R) and 2B Bobby Ritter (.297/7 HR/27 RBI/45 R) are also producing runs. On the hill, Engel needs improvement (3.92 ERA) and is rated 4th in that category. Engel has a quality foursome in his rotation with Terry Kuznetsov (9-7 4.19), Gino Franchi (7-3 3.62), Doug Torvik (7-7 3.34) and Ken Wade (4-0 2.73). Middle relief is poor and closer Tom Dahl (2-3 4.02) has had a so-so season thus far. In the battle for the last playoff spot, Claxton is stronger than Valka in firepower, but the Blackhawks are superior in pitching (3.52 ERA). The nod goes to Valka. Paco Banderos' San Dimas Rancheros (35-38) kicked off the year in grand style with a 16-9 mark in April, but have faltered drastically since with a 19-29 record and have slipped down to the fourth spot in the standings and 10 games back. Long relief is Banderos' sore point (5.09 ERA). Overall San Dimas has put up a dismal 4.30 team ERA (6th). Banderos has an All-Star hurler in Zippy Hodge (10-6 3.15) and a solid closer in Cleve Skinner (3-3 2.35), who has registered 10 saves and appeared in relief 26 times. It has been San Dimas' offense that has led the way. The Rancheros are batting .267 as a team, good for second place behind Belair Beach (.272). All-Star 1B Johnny Carducci (.273/23 HR/70/50) is one of the IPA's elite sluggers. He is the top run producer in the league. Also aiding the attack are RF Goose Garlin (.272/14 HR/39 RBI), CF Dennis Jones (.307/4 HR/39 RBI), 2B Cyclone Cobb (.297/1 HR/21 RBI/51 R/36 SB) and 3B Domingo Rios (.278/8 HR/32 RBI). It's not likely San Dimas can stay in the first division. St. John is playing better right now and should overtake them. Fifth place may be the best the Rancheros can do. St. John leaped from out of nowhere two years ago to take the RU South title, but then dropped back to fifth place last season. Not much was expected this year. Another lackluster season was the prediction by the BNN scribes. The Crusaders, managed by Dickie Billings, performed poorly the first two months (21-33), but have recently caught fire and gone 13-6 in June, mainly due to some very fine pitching. They currently hold fifth place, 11 games behind. If it stays this way, St. John could climb up to fourth, maybe third place before the year's end. Billings has so many quality starters, he can't used them all as much as he would like. St. John has the second-best team ERA (3.48) in the division. Sterling Eccles (9-5 3.26) and Zach Simon (7-9 2.71) are the workhorses. George Martz (3-3 2.54) has looked good as the Crusaders #3 starter, while Adam Chirra (4-6 3.22), Karl Ladendorf (3-2 2.76) and Kris Garvik (0-1 2.19) are vying for the #4 slot in the pitching rotation. The Crusaders have a capable closer, too. Paul DeJohnette (3-2 3.27) has saved 11 games and appeared in 27 games. St. John has a fairly good .260 batting average (4th-tied) with 65 homers (3rd). Billings has four rookies on his line-up card, headed by C Phil Lakos (.286/9 HR/38 RBI), 2B Rod Burzik (.281/11 HR/37 RBI), 3B Sully Hull (.300/6 HR/31 RBI) and Clayton Luck (.277/10 HR/23 RBI/47 R). The Crusader frosh are outperforming the veterans. The Waleska Westerners (33-40) are led by one of the best managers ever in the Islands, at least in the company leagues. However, McGraw Johnson has not been very successful in the IPA. The Westerners have made the playoffs only one time in their four-year history, back in 2003. Things are not boding well this year. Waleska is wallowing 12 games back in sixth place and its prospects are not too good for anything better. Johnson is simply short of talent. That's the plain truth. Waleska has the worst ERA (4.37) in the RU South and is tied for fourth in hitting (.260) with little power, just 53 home runs (6th). Gary Hill is the Westerners ace with an 11-4 record, but a high 4.42 ERA. Johnson's top batters are LF Big Hoss Burkhalter (.313/18 HR/53 RBI/41 R), All-Star rookie CF Harold Setser (.304/8 HR/52 RBI/46 R) and RF Charley Williamson (.308/3 HR/30 RBI). It looks like another long, long season for manager Torry Joseph of the Grand City Cybercats (29-44). They held their own for the first two months of the campaign with a 25-29 record, but have now gone into the tank with a dismal 4-15 mark in June to fall down to seventh place, 16 games off the pace. Lucky that Crystal Lake is in the division, otherwise it would be the basement for the Cybercats. Joseph only has two dependable pitchers. Starter Frankie Novikov (6-8 2.94) and closer Bill Berglund (5-2 1.21). With better run support Novikov could easily be 11-3 and on the All-Star team. Berglund has been excellent in his 29 relief appearances. Three position players have stood out for Grand City: rookie 1B Jason Albright (.304/16 HR/52 RBI), CF Russ Baumer (.351/5 HR/32 RBI/36 R) and the veteran RF Teddy Giacone (.264/10 HR/34 RBI). Legendary home run hitter Baby George has the infamous honor of managing the worst team in IPA history. The Crystal Lake Crushers have never remotely lived up to their name and have finished in the basement the last three seasons. Their best year was 2002 when they ended up in seventh place. This season is no different. Crystal Lake (23-50) is in last place, way down in the RU South cellar, 22 games off the lead with no light at the end of the tunnel. Tony Hartwig (3-11 3.19) and Tony Tipton (4-4 3.54) are George's top hurlers and 3B Nelson Tolliver (.287/10 HR/29 RBI) and LF Ben Butler (.239/12 HR/29 RBI) are his best batters.