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Eugene Church · 04-02-2011, 04:49 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2022 Ruthlandian Union North Mid-Season Recap

Tars On Top In RU North, Bulls and Vipers Close
It's been a tough year for the defending Ruthlandian North champs, the Ancona Red Elephants. Woes at the plate and on the hill have hampered Manny Mickens' club that has won the last two division titles. At the halfway point Taranto has taken over this year with its high-powered offense and leads by 3 games over the Ranford Bulls, 5 ahead of Valmara and 7 in front of fourth-place Ancona. Glasco is tied for fourth with the Red Elephants, both under the .500 mark. No one else in the division seems to be capable of contending in the pennant chase.

Taranto's (40-29) Tommaso Lazzorda still has a power-packed lineup with Augie Marshall (.305 BA/8 HR), Denny Zaffino (.326 BA/6 HR), Aron Ariello (.289 BA/8 HR), Arnie Kennedy (.269 BA/8 HR) and Phil Buckner (.306 BA/2 HR)... Jay Cervini has been the big man on the hill with a 10-3 record and a 3.34 ERA... closer Vance Waters (2-2) has stood out with 16 saves and a 2.79 ERA. Overall pitching is up in the IPA this season with fewer homers. The Tars have to get better pitching in the second half to win the flag... Otherwise Ranford and a slumbering Ancona may overtake them.

The Ranford Bulls (37-32) have always been near the top the last few years under manager Rick Fargnoli... this season he's getting a little better hitting and might be tougher over the long haul... Scotty Simmons (12-4 2.36) has been huge this season... closer Neil Walton (0-2 1.37) has posted 10 saves thus far... Jimmy Travis (7-7 3.25) and Archie Young (7-6 3.60) have been steady, too... Vic Scalzi (.355 BA/9 HR), Ed Ford (.327 BA/5 HR), Gordon Orr (.305 BA/4 HR) and Lee Henderson (.311 BA/4 HR) are the top bats... Bobby Novikov (.261 BA/16 HR) and Tyee Maska (.234 BA/12 HR) provide the long ball... the Bulls are a well-balanced club.

Pitchers Clem Carmouche (11-5 1.98) and Andros Bajek (9-6 3.95) are the prime reasons the Valmara Vipers (35-34) are in third place... and closer Frank Favazzo (1-3) has chalked up 10 saves with a super low 1.90 ERA... skipper Jet Kazmarek gets by with his pitching... the Vipers are weak with the bats... Radley Singleton (.267 BA/11 HR), Miron Burczyk (.285 BA/6 HR), Tim Tamiroff (.282 BA/7 HR) and Sonny Oliver (.297 BA/8 HR) provide what little offense there is.

Defending division crownbearer Ancona (33-36) hasn't played up to par this year... Manny Mickens' club is off to a weak start with a drop in pitching and offense... Pete Krohn (5-1 3.38), Spiros Zodiates (7-3 3.45) and Clete Dukas (6-6 3.34) head up the rotation with John Sharpe (1-2 0.49) in the bullpen... Todd Nasso (.282 BA/14 HR), Alekos Kotas (.284 BA/12 HR), Kenny Willard (.255 BA), Louie DiMucci (.254 BA/7 HR) and Ken Rutledge (.293 BA/7 HR) are the main run producers, but none of them are close to career averages... Mickens expects them to take off in the second half and bring home the RU North flag for the third year in a row.

Charles Darby in his second season in charge of the Glasco Athletics (33-36) has them playing much better because of the influx of some fine rookies... the A's were seventh in 2021, 30 games under .500... this year they are within 3 games of breaking even (33-36), a marked improvement because of the mound corps... starter and 20-year vet Davy McAdams (10-5 3.65) and a fine bullpen have lowered the team ERA from a lofty 4.90 last year down to a very respectable 3.71 this season... offensively Darby 19-year-old son, rookie 2B Eddie Darby, has been a godsend with a .320 BA, 6 HR, 42 RBIs and 56 runs scored (3rd in the RU)... vet Lee Sullivan chipped in with 54 RBIs, 8 homers and a .261 BA... another rookie 1B Garris Aiken has added 10 home runs and 38 RBIs with a .251 batting average.

The other clubs are not too far back... Kilkenny and LaGrange are tied for 6th, trailing by 8 games... Far Mountain is last and 9 games off the pace... Kevin McPhail has a strong reliever corps in Kilkenny (32-37), led by two rookies, Sherm Innis (5-3 1.85) and Cuzz Grandberry (1-2 1.35)... Grandberry has 15 saves... topping the Cats bats are Hal Hester (.320 BA/5 HR), Lyle Walker (.331 BA/1 HR) and rookie Michael Winter (.267 BA/8 HR)... the LaGrange Sports (32-37) suffer with a sky-high 4.74 team ERA... but Otto Kronvath has a few good bats with Jules Nicolet (.301 BA/9 HR), Rex Belisaire (.302 BA/4 HR) and Bryan Dale (.319 BA/1 HR)... just not much power... rookie Roger Simone is the club leader with 12 roundtrippers, but he is batting only .211... the proud Far Mountain Redhawks (31-38) with 8 division banners and 3 Pro Cups are having hard times... over the past six seasons manager Alex Groveland has seen them slip to the bottom of the barrel... vet starter Woody Crawford (10-6 3.11) is still solid as a rock and has gotten some help from rookie Jeff Cooper (8-7 3.35) this season... Erich Dumont (1-1 1.75) is doing a fine job closing games out... offensively, vet Tony Tanaka is having a career year with a .330 BA, 12 homers, 35 RBIs and 55 runs scored (5th-tied in RU)... Dan Hudson is also swinging a good bat with a .311 mark, 6 homers and 48 runs batted in... 16-year veteran Phil Stewart is hitting .317 with 4 homers... at age 41 long-time superstar SS Don Nichols has passed the baton to third-year man John Deville, who is fielding exceptionally and batting a solid .296 with 5 home runs and 40 RBIs... Nichols is still quite a hitter, batting .400 in a limited role.

RU Outlook: Ranford and Ancona will duke it out for the flag... the Bulls pitching give them the edge over the Red Elephants... Taranto's pitching problems will cause them to fade in the second half... nobody else is is the class of the division's top three teams... Valmara has enough pitching to finish fourth.

04-02-2011, 04:49 PM	#2443
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 36,096	*THE ISLANDIAN TIMES* Tuesday, June 21, 2022 2022 Ruthlandian Union North Mid-Season Recap Tars On Top In RU North, Bulls and Vipers Close It's been a tough year for the defending Ruthlandian North champs, the Ancona Red Elephants. Woes at the plate and on the hill have hampered Manny Mickens' club that has won the last two division titles. At the halfway point Taranto has taken over this year with its high-powered offense and leads by 3 games over the Ranford Bulls, 5 ahead of Valmara and 7 in front of fourth-place Ancona. Glasco is tied for fourth with the Red Elephants, both under the .500 mark. No one else in the division seems to be capable of contending in the pennant chase. Taranto's (40-29) Tommaso Lazzorda still has a power-packed lineup with Augie Marshall (.305 BA/8 HR), Denny Zaffino (.326 BA/6 HR), Aron Ariello (.289 BA/8 HR), Arnie Kennedy (.269 BA/8 HR) and Phil Buckner (.306 BA/2 HR)... Jay Cervini has been the big man on the hill with a 10-3 record and a 3.34 ERA... closer Vance Waters (2-2) has stood out with 16 saves and a 2.79 ERA. Overall pitching is up in the IPA this season with fewer homers. The Tars have to get better pitching in the second half to win the flag... Otherwise Ranford and a slumbering Ancona may overtake them. The Ranford Bulls (37-32) have always been near the top the last few years under manager Rick Fargnoli... this season he's getting a little better hitting and might be tougher over the long haul... Scotty Simmons (12-4 2.36) has been huge this season... closer Neil Walton (0-2 1.37) has posted 10 saves thus far... Jimmy Travis (7-7 3.25) and Archie Young (7-6 3.60) have been steady, too... Vic Scalzi (.355 BA/9 HR), Ed Ford (.327 BA/5 HR), Gordon Orr (.305 BA/4 HR) and Lee Henderson (.311 BA/4 HR) are the top bats... Bobby Novikov (.261 BA/16 HR) and Tyee Maska (.234 BA/12 HR) provide the long ball... the Bulls are a well-balanced club. Pitchers Clem Carmouche (11-5 1.98) and Andros Bajek (9-6 3.95) are the prime reasons the Valmara Vipers (35-34) are in third place... and closer Frank Favazzo (1-3) has chalked up 10 saves with a super low 1.90 ERA... skipper Jet Kazmarek gets by with his pitching... the Vipers are weak with the bats... Radley Singleton (.267 BA/11 HR), Miron Burczyk (.285 BA/6 HR), Tim Tamiroff (.282 BA/7 HR) and Sonny Oliver (.297 BA/8 HR) provide what little offense there is. Defending division crownbearer Ancona (33-36) hasn't played up to par this year... Manny Mickens' club is off to a weak start with a drop in pitching and offense... Pete Krohn (5-1 3.38), Spiros Zodiates (7-3 3.45) and Clete Dukas (6-6 3.34) head up the rotation with John Sharpe (1-2 0.49) in the bullpen... Todd Nasso (.282 BA/14 HR), Alekos Kotas (.284 BA/12 HR), Kenny Willard (.255 BA), Louie DiMucci (.254 BA/7 HR) and Ken Rutledge (.293 BA/7 HR) are the main run producers, but none of them are close to career averages... Mickens expects them to take off in the second half and bring home the RU North flag for the third year in a row. Charles Darby in his second season in charge of the Glasco Athletics (33-36) has them playing much better because of the influx of some fine rookies... the A's were seventh in 2021, 30 games under .500... this year they are within 3 games of breaking even (33-36), a marked improvement because of the mound corps... starter and 20-year vet Davy McAdams (10-5 3.65) and a fine bullpen have lowered the team ERA from a lofty 4.90 last year down to a very respectable 3.71 this season... offensively Darby 19-year-old son, rookie 2B Eddie Darby, has been a godsend with a .320 BA, 6 HR, 42 RBIs and 56 runs scored (3rd in the RU)... vet Lee Sullivan chipped in with 54 RBIs, 8 homers and a .261 BA... another rookie 1B Garris Aiken has added 10 home runs and 38 RBIs with a .251 batting average. The other clubs are not too far back... Kilkenny and LaGrange are tied for 6th, trailing by 8 games... Far Mountain is last and 9 games off the pace... Kevin McPhail has a strong reliever corps in Kilkenny (32-37), led by two rookies, Sherm Innis (5-3 1.85) and Cuzz Grandberry (1-2 1.35)... Grandberry has 15 saves... topping the Cats bats are Hal Hester (.320 BA/5 HR), Lyle Walker (.331 BA/1 HR) and rookie Michael Winter (.267 BA/8 HR)... the LaGrange Sports (32-37) suffer with a sky-high 4.74 team ERA... but Otto Kronvath has a few good bats with Jules Nicolet (.301 BA/9 HR), Rex Belisaire (.302 BA/4 HR) and Bryan Dale (.319 BA/1 HR)... just not much power... rookie Roger Simone is the club leader with 12 roundtrippers, but he is batting only .211... the proud Far Mountain Redhawks (31-38) with 8 division banners and 3 Pro Cups are having hard times... over the past six seasons manager Alex Groveland has seen them slip to the bottom of the barrel... vet starter Woody Crawford (10-6 3.11) is still solid as a rock and has gotten some help from rookie Jeff Cooper (8-7 3.35) this season... Erich Dumont (1-1 1.75) is doing a fine job closing games out... offensively, vet Tony Tanaka is having a career year with a .330 BA, 12 homers, 35 RBIs and 55 runs scored (5th-tied in RU)... Dan Hudson is also swinging a good bat with a .311 mark, 6 homers and 48 runs batted in... 16-year veteran Phil Stewart is hitting .317 with 4 homers... at age 41 long-time superstar SS Don Nichols has passed the baton to third-year man John Deville, who is fielding exceptionally and batting a solid .296 with 5 home runs and 40 RBIs... Nichols is still quite a hitter, batting .400 in a limited role. RU Outlook: Ranford and Ancona will duke it out for the flag... the Bulls pitching give them the edge over the Red Elephants... Taranto's pitching problems will cause them to fade in the second half... nobody else is is the class of the division's top three teams... Valmara has enough pitching to finish fourth. Last edited by Eugene Church; 04-06-2011 at 01:33 AM.