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Eugene Church · 09-25-2010, 09:56 PM

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 21, 2015

2015 Tycobbian West Final Recap

BSC Bucs Win TU West, Chicopee And Arlon Fold
In a pressure-cooker finish the Bay St. Clair Buccaneers got hot the last week of the season and won the Tycobbian West for the second time. They last won it in 2002. The Bucs took the title by winning its last four games of the season, while Chicopee flopped and lost its final four games, blowing a 2-game lead with just four to go. The Arlon Champions came in a close third, 3 games off the pace and Bayview and defending Pro Cup titleholder Kenwood tied for the fourth spot in the standings, just 7 games out. Top to bottom the TU West was filled with quality teams. It was the most competitive division in the IPA.

Guy Rondre's Bay St. Clair Bucs (86-68) pretty much hit their way to the pennant with a .273 BA (5th), 761 runs (8th-tied) and 174 roundtrippers (6th)... Rondre had just enough pitching to win by an eyelash over Chicopee... the Buccaneers compiled a 4.16 ERA (24th)... they were solid on defense, too, with a fine .976 FA... four .300 hitters paced the attack: 1B Gerry Fields (.332 BA/46 HR/133 RBI/97 R), SS Jimmy Sawyer (.307 BA/30 HR/92 RBI/96 R), LF Bruno DiPirro (.307 BA/9 HR/52 RBI/104 R) and 2B Bud Walker (.314 BA/8 HR/47 RBI/101 R/31 SB)... Chris Van Arden (11-6 3.13) and Lloyd Weber (19-12 4.02) led the pitching staff.

The Chicopee Braves (84-70) hit the skids when it mattered most - when the division flag was up for grabs... Harry Fleetfoot's Braves collapsed and dropped the last six games and ended up 2 games behind winning Bay St. Clair... Chicopee relied almost entirely on its mound corps... the Braves had a strong 3.16 team ERA (2nd), but had trouble scoring with a .256 BA (21st) and only 85 homers (31st)... 37-year-old ace Desmond Quartermain particularly suffered... Quartermain had a spectacular 2.09 ERA, yet finished with a 15-17 record... 37-year-old Tommy Ruffin stood out with a 20-12 mark and a 3.24 ERA... 23-year-old Scotty Simmons notched a fine 15-9 record with an impressive 2.54 ERA... in the bullpen Rich Taylor (8-5) saved 27 games and had a 2.37 ERA... at the plate LF Big Boy Gianata (.260 BA) had 11 homers and 87 RBIs, RF Matty McDermott scored 91 runs, batted .274, had 50 RBIs and stole 43 bases... the home run leader was C Ivan Burkholder with just 16... Burkholder batted in 73 runs and scored 70 times.

Arlon also faded in the final days of season, dropping four of its last six games... Gary Louis and his third place Arlon Champions (83-71) stayed close with a solid pitching rotation that consisted of Tony Zaretti (19-8 3.25), who had his best season by far at age 35 and 15 years in the league... 38-year-old journeyman Happy McManus (16-13 3.42) has his best season after 15 years in the league... 34-yer-old Charley Gordon (12-8 3.50) has his best year, too... and long-time ace Armando Cruz (16-18 3.67) pitched well at age 33... Louis lost his closer Johnny Rabelais during the stretch drive due to injury... the normally reliable Rabelais had an off-year with a poor 0-7 record and a high 3.74 ERA, but did register 28 saves... Supplying most of the offense was the talented LF and veteran star Rocco Belasario (.304 BA/31 HR/108 RBI/103 R), along with youngster RF Scott Connor (.308 BA/25 HR/67 RBI/103 R).

The defending IPA Pro Cup champion Kenwood Wildcats (79-75) suffered a dismal season after the euphoria of the 2014 title run... Aaron Hankins' club just didn't hit like they did last season and dipped to a fourth place tie with Bayview, 7 games back... starters Sammy Shaw (17-12 3.52), Connie Gavagan (14-20 3.10) and Todd Combs (15-16 3.33) pitched well enough, but the relievers and batters let them down... closer Rick Brickell (2-5) saved 25 games, but saw his ERA balloon from 2.66 last year to 4.05 this year... LF Dennis Riley (.302 BA/29 HR/111 RBI/83 R) had no help this year... Riley had to carry the club on his shoulders alone... the Wildcats hit .270 last season and only .246 (30th) this year... Kenwood is still one of the best fielding clubs in the IPA with an outstanding .981 FA.

Walter Johanssen got improved pitching and the Bayview Vikings (79-75) jumped from seventh last year to a tie for fourth this year... Bayview always can score runs because of the friendly fences at Downtown Plaza Stadium, but this year the batters got some help from the pitchers, who lowered the team ERA from 4.50 in 2014 to 4.05 (20th) this season... the Viks best arms were Rick Prichard (15-14 3.03) and Norm Roy (15-15 3.51)... and Georgie Fambreau (19-9 4.34), who had his best year since winning 20 games in 2010... Bayview's batting order was full of fine hitters... at 27 LF Davey Krueger (.311 BA/48 HR/110 RBI/101 R) is rapidly building a good case for being one of the better hitters in the IPA... giving him lots of help were 3B Kris Benson (.312 BA/32 HR/94 RBI/85 R), RF Tommy Ruffin (.259 BA/27 HR/101 RBI/73 R) and 1B Stan Haddix (.310 BA/24 HR/73 RBI/96 R).

Perennial power and 6-time division champion Denton City (76-78) fell below .500 for the first time since 2002 and plunged from second place in 2014 down to sixth in 2015... the Redbirds finished 10 games behind in the pennant race... a bad 4.38 team ERA (28th) was the culprit for skipper Ford Whiteman... all-time ace 35-year-old Mila Mohoski (21-12 2.99) still is a potent force on the hill and is second in the IPA with 266 victories in his 14 years... only Cody Burg of Cape Coral has more with 270... young Jeff Russell (17-11 3.75) did well in his third season and still shows good promise... three batters provide most of the Redbirds runs: long-time star 3B Jay Petit (.313 BA/19 HR/86 RBI/91 R)... Petit has over 1000 RBIs and 1000 runs in his 13-year career... reliable and dependable 14-year vet LF Rod MacCormack (.272 BA/25 HR/89 RBI/91 R), who has gone over the 1200 mark in runs scored and batted in almost 1100... and solid 1B Maury Duncan (.289 BA/23 HR/88 RBI/74 R)... 23-year-old C Pete Gibbs (.301 BA/17 HR/71 RBI) provides another good bat and fine defense.

Manager Matty Christianson's Rolling Hills Reds (74-80) came in seventh this season, but only 12 games back of the leader... the Reds haven't been in the postseason since their first two years in the IPA in 2002 and 2003 when the top two and top four clubs of each division were allowed in... Rolling Hills has never won the division title... Christianson's top players are pitchers Sal Jordan (17-15 2.86) and J. R. Beresford (16-15 3.41)... his top position players 3B Clay Hoffman (.293 BA/38 HR/102 RBI/77 R) and CF Donnie Lewis (.314 BA/5 HR/52 RBI/98 R).

The LaClaire Lynx (70-84) of Rip Calkin have never made the playoffs in the team's 15-year history... for the fourth time in the last six seasons they came in last... the Lynx were seventh the other two years... Calkin's crew hit well with a .262 BA (12th) and 170 homers (8th), but were pathetic in the pitching department with a 4.39 ERA (29th)... 40-year-old Doug Lyons (19-13 3.54) was LaClaire's only quality pitcher... the Lynx's top bats belonged to 22-year-old 3B Flash Devlin (.318 BA/34 HR/110 RBI/101 R), who has HOF potential... long-time super stud CF Zeppy Deshotel (.291 BA/22 HR/89 RBI/96 R), who has a good chance at being a Hall-of-Famer... Deshotel is a lifetime .307 hitter with 1100 runs scored and almost 1100 RBIs in his 11 years in the IPA... and 33-year-old RF Taro Nakanishi, who only hit .255, but cracked 27 out of the park and drove in 100 runs.

09-25-2010, 09:56 PM	#1996
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,695 Blog Entries: 1	The Islandian Times Monday, September 21, 2015 2015 Tycobbian West Final Recap BSC Bucs Win TU West, Chicopee And Arlon Fold In a pressure-cooker finish the Bay St. Clair Buccaneers got hot the last week of the season and won the Tycobbian West for the second time. They last won it in 2002. The Bucs took the title by winning its last four games of the season, while Chicopee flopped and lost its final four games, blowing a 2-game lead with just four to go. The Arlon Champions came in a close third, 3 games off the pace and Bayview and defending Pro Cup titleholder Kenwood tied for the fourth spot in the standings, just 7 games out. Top to bottom the TU West was filled with quality teams. It was the most competitive division in the IPA. Guy Rondre's Bay St. Clair Bucs (86-68) pretty much hit their way to the pennant with a .273 BA (5th), 761 runs (8th-tied) and 174 roundtrippers (6th)... Rondre had just enough pitching to win by an eyelash over Chicopee... the Buccaneers compiled a 4.16 ERA (24th)... they were solid on defense, too, with a fine .976 FA... four .300 hitters paced the attack: 1B Gerry Fields (.332 BA/46 HR/133 RBI/97 R), SS Jimmy Sawyer (.307 BA/30 HR/92 RBI/96 R), LF Bruno DiPirro (.307 BA/9 HR/52 RBI/104 R) and 2B Bud Walker (.314 BA/8 HR/47 RBI/101 R/31 SB)... Chris Van Arden (11-6 3.13) and Lloyd Weber (19-12 4.02) led the pitching staff. The Chicopee Braves (84-70) hit the skids when it mattered most - when the division flag was up for grabs... Harry Fleetfoot's Braves collapsed and dropped the last six games and ended up 2 games behind winning Bay St. Clair... Chicopee relied almost entirely on its mound corps... the Braves had a strong 3.16 team ERA (2nd), but had trouble scoring with a .256 BA (21st) and only 85 homers (31st)... 37-year-old ace Desmond Quartermain particularly suffered... Quartermain had a spectacular 2.09 ERA, yet finished with a 15-17 record... 37-year-old Tommy Ruffin stood out with a 20-12 mark and a 3.24 ERA... 23-year-old Scotty Simmons notched a fine 15-9 record with an impressive 2.54 ERA... in the bullpen Rich Taylor (8-5) saved 27 games and had a 2.37 ERA... at the plate LF Big Boy Gianata (.260 BA) had 11 homers and 87 RBIs, RF Matty McDermott scored 91 runs, batted .274, had 50 RBIs and stole 43 bases... the home run leader was C Ivan Burkholder with just 16... Burkholder batted in 73 runs and scored 70 times. Arlon also faded in the final days of season, dropping four of its last six games... Gary Louis and his third place Arlon Champions (83-71) stayed close with a solid pitching rotation that consisted of Tony Zaretti (19-8 3.25), who had his best season by far at age 35 and 15 years in the league... 38-year-old journeyman Happy McManus (16-13 3.42) has his best season after 15 years in the league... 34-yer-old Charley Gordon (12-8 3.50) has his best year, too... and long-time ace Armando Cruz (16-18 3.67) pitched well at age 33... Louis lost his closer Johnny Rabelais during the stretch drive due to injury... the normally reliable Rabelais had an off-year with a poor 0-7 record and a high 3.74 ERA, but did register 28 saves... Supplying most of the offense was the talented LF and veteran star Rocco Belasario (.304 BA/31 HR/108 RBI/103 R), along with youngster RF Scott Connor (.308 BA/25 HR/67 RBI/103 R). The defending IPA Pro Cup champion Kenwood Wildcats (79-75) suffered a dismal season after the euphoria of the 2014 title run... Aaron Hankins' club just didn't hit like they did last season and dipped to a fourth place tie with Bayview, 7 games back... starters Sammy Shaw (17-12 3.52), Connie Gavagan (14-20 3.10) and Todd Combs (15-16 3.33) pitched well enough, but the relievers and batters let them down... closer Rick Brickell (2-5) saved 25 games, but saw his ERA balloon from 2.66 last year to 4.05 this year... LF Dennis Riley (.302 BA/29 HR/111 RBI/83 R) had no help this year... Riley had to carry the club on his shoulders alone... the Wildcats hit .270 last season and only .246 (30th) this year... Kenwood is still one of the best fielding clubs in the IPA with an outstanding .981 FA. Walter Johanssen got improved pitching and the Bayview Vikings (79-75) jumped from seventh last year to a tie for fourth this year... Bayview always can score runs because of the friendly fences at Downtown Plaza Stadium, but this year the batters got some help from the pitchers, who lowered the team ERA from 4.50 in 2014 to 4.05 (20th) this season... the Viks best arms were Rick Prichard (15-14 3.03) and Norm Roy (15-15 3.51)... and Georgie Fambreau (19-9 4.34), who had his best year since winning 20 games in 2010... Bayview's batting order was full of fine hitters... at 27 LF Davey Krueger (.311 BA/48 HR/110 RBI/101 R) is rapidly building a good case for being one of the better hitters in the IPA... giving him lots of help were 3B Kris Benson (.312 BA/32 HR/94 RBI/85 R), RF Tommy Ruffin (.259 BA/27 HR/101 RBI/73 R) and 1B Stan Haddix (.310 BA/24 HR/73 RBI/96 R). Perennial power and 6-time division champion Denton City (76-78) fell below .500 for the first time since 2002 and plunged from second place in 2014 down to sixth in 2015... the Redbirds finished 10 games behind in the pennant race... a bad 4.38 team ERA (28th) was the culprit for skipper Ford Whiteman... all-time ace 35-year-old Mila Mohoski (21-12 2.99) still is a potent force on the hill and is second in the IPA with 266 victories in his 14 years... only Cody Burg of Cape Coral has more with 270... young Jeff Russell (17-11 3.75) did well in his third season and still shows good promise... three batters provide most of the Redbirds runs: long-time star 3B Jay Petit (.313 BA/19 HR/86 RBI/91 R)... Petit has over 1000 RBIs and 1000 runs in his 13-year career... reliable and dependable 14-year vet LF Rod MacCormack (.272 BA/25 HR/89 RBI/91 R), who has gone over the 1200 mark in runs scored and batted in almost 1100... and solid 1B Maury Duncan (.289 BA/23 HR/88 RBI/74 R)... 23-year-old C Pete Gibbs (.301 BA/17 HR/71 RBI) provides another good bat and fine defense. Manager Matty Christianson's Rolling Hills Reds (74-80) came in seventh this season, but only 12 games back of the leader... the Reds haven't been in the postseason since their first two years in the IPA in 2002 and 2003 when the top two and top four clubs of each division were allowed in... Rolling Hills has never won the division title... Christianson's top players are pitchers Sal Jordan (17-15 2.86) and J. R. Beresford (16-15 3.41)... his top position players 3B Clay Hoffman (.293 BA/38 HR/102 RBI/77 R) and CF Donnie Lewis (.314 BA/5 HR/52 RBI/98 R). The LaClaire Lynx (70-84) of Rip Calkin have never made the playoffs in the team's 15-year history... for the fourth time in the last six seasons they came in last... the Lynx were seventh the other two years... Calkin's crew hit well with a .262 BA (12th) and 170 homers (8th), but were pathetic in the pitching department with a 4.39 ERA (29th)... 40-year-old Doug Lyons (19-13 3.54) was LaClaire's only quality pitcher... the Lynx's top bats belonged to 22-year-old 3B Flash Devlin (.318 BA/34 HR/110 RBI/101 R), who has HOF potential... long-time super stud CF Zeppy Deshotel (.291 BA/22 HR/89 RBI/96 R), who has a good chance at being a Hall-of-Famer... Deshotel is a lifetime .307 hitter with 1100 runs scored and almost 1100 RBIs in his 11 years in the IPA... and 33-year-old RF Taro Nakanishi, who only hit .255, but cracked 27 out of the park and drove in 100 runs. Last edited by Eugene Church; 09-25-2010 at 11:25 PM.