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

Eugene Church · 04-04-2011, 12:19 AM

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 21, 2022

2022 Ruthlandian South Mid-Season Recap

CL Crushers Back On Top Of RU South
The Crystal Lake Crushers were the IPA Pro Cup champion two years ago, but they slipped to third last season and didn't make the playoffs. But Baby George has them back on the right track again this year. They are on top of the Ruthlandian South and have a 3-game edge over rejuvenated Waleska at the All-Star break. The Crushers and Westerners are the only clubs playing winning baseball in the division. Belair Beach is third and 8 games back, while last year's pennant winner Grand City and San Dimas are deadlocked for the fourth spot in the standings and trail by 9 games.

Crystal Lake's (41-28) pitching is beyond compare with a brilliant 2.64 team ERA, the very best in the IPA... Herman "Baby" George has an excellent starting rotation in former Golden Arm winner Duncan Welch (9-6 2.27), Ralph McCullough (10-5 2.85) and Johnny Sarkelaris (7-5 2.29) and there's no drop-off when he has to go to the pen... closer Roger Bishop (2-3) has registered 17 saves and put up a 2.38 ERA... Crystal Lake's biggest problem is a huge lack of offense, ranking 31st in scoring... 38-year-old 1B Phil Gravelli, an IPA all-time great, still swings a hefty bat with a .348 average, 6 homers and 34 RBIs... but he has very little help... a sure-fire Hall-of-Famer, Gravelli is the all-time IPA leader in games, RBIs, hits and home runs... he is nearing 4000 career hits and 700 homers with a .320 BA and over 2300 RBIs... George is desperate for some offense, a crucial item come playoff time.

It's been six years since McGraw Johnson's Waleska Westerners (38-31) have graced the first division... the Westerners are up from seventh last season... Johnson has good starters, great bullpen and pretty good hitting... award-winning superstud Roy Hobbs (.347 BA/14 HR) is at it again and carries the club with some help from rookie Wilson James (.307 BA/3 HR) and Val Saucier (.308 BA/1 HR)... Sammy Grimaldi (7-5 3.68) and Chet McNeil (7-5 3.50) are Waleska's best arms... mid-reliever Rick Durham (5-2 1.98) and closer Paul Norwood (3-4 2.25) head up the bullpen, that ranks first in the RU with a 1.99 ERA... Waleska probably won't overtake Crystal Lake, but they should stay near the top.

Good pitching has brought the Belair Beach Sunbirds (33-36) back to the first division after an absence of six years, but they are below .500... 10-year vet Denny Whitaker (10-4 2.57) and Dan Marconi (8-8 2.99) anchor the starters... Marty Pedroza needs some offense (.248 BA)... his best bats are Ray Pelligrini (.304 BA/10 HR) and rookie Mitch Mason (.272 BA/13 HR)... Belair Beach will battle it out with 5 other clubs for first-division rights and will end up anywhere from third to seventh.

Last year's RU South flag winner Grand City (32-37) has stumbled badly this year and has fallen back to a tie for fourth with San Dimas... both hitting and pitching has gone sour for the Cybercats manager Wade Joslin... especially the pitching (4.32 ERA)... closer Ralph Teague (1-1) has been superb with 13 saves and an very strong 1.80 ERA, but the rest of the bullpen has been poor... the only adequate starters Randy Andrews (7-8 3.53) and Jimbo Stearns (8-10 4.02)... last year's 21-game winner Clint Brewer has slumped to 5-7 with a terrible 5.72 ERA and 15-game winner Brent Sturgis is just 5-6 with a 4.31 ERA... Sturgis injured his arm in June and may miss the rest of the season... Grand City only has two high quality hitters: Ricky Rich (.324 BA/9 HR) and Jug Slavin (.314 BA/4 HR)... it's going to be a long season for the Cybercats... not the same team as last year.

Improved hitting and pitching has lifted the San Dimas Rancheros (32-37) from last place to fourth this season... skipper Ron Armstrong has Shannon White (12-3 2.96) leading the starting rotation and closer Raul Marroquin (3-1) heading up the relief corps... Marroquin has a splendid 1.21 ERA and 13 saves... Ray Ford (.305 BA/4 HR) and Hank Maddox (.326 BA/4 HR) are the most productive bats... despite the progress, it's unlikely the Rancheros will finish much higher than the middle-of-the-pack.

After taking two division titles in 2018-2019, Stacy Engel and his Claxton Diamonds (30-39) haven't shined much with 3 second-division finishes... this year could be even worse... the Diamonds in sixth place and 11 games off the pace... on the hill, only closer Tony Haverkamp (3-2) is having a good season with a fine 1.95 ERA and 15 saves... The rest of the mound staff are having dismal seasons.. topping out the hitters are league legend Mike Luzzatti (.329 BA/7 HR), who is an 11-time All-Star with almost 3000 hits, 558 homers and a lifetime .314 batting average... Engel, the old Perfessor, has several other top-notch talents in George McKay (.297 BA/14 HR), K. C. Moerdijk (.253 BA/13 HR) and Allen Lemay (.293 BA/5 HR)... Claxton could contend for third or fourth place with a little more pitching.

The seventh-place Valka Blackhawks (29-40) have stayed in the first division for the last six years because of fine pitching... but it's down this season and so are the Blackhawks... they are 12 games behind in the pennant race... manager Andrei Kokk has almost no hitting (.244 BA/48 HR) and suspect pitching (4.07 ERA)... Richie Jost (10-7 2.91) is by far the best Kokk has on the hill... Tomi Viikberg (.315 BA/6 HR) and Don Pontros (.256 BA/12) are decent batters.

2021 was a very good year for the St. John Crusaders (19-50) with a surprising second-place finish... Just as quickly as they rose up to the runner-up position in the RU South, they have tumbled back down into the depths of eighth place once again with the worst record in the IPA, 22 games back... manager Skinny Kisecawchuk was the RU Manager of the Year last year, but his pitchers have done a total about-face with a horrible 5.33 team ERA this season... 21-game winner Teddy Garson is just 5-8 with a 5.50 ERA, 19-game winner Pat Long is only 5-10 with a 4.15 ERA and 16-game winner Andre Haglund is a miserable 2-13 with an astronomical 7.54 ERA... team hitting is also quite sub-par with a .249 BA and ranked near the bottom (24th)... solid and reliable 13-year vet Vinny Sardisco (.306 BA/7 HR) and Marty Coleman (.305 BA/2 HR) lead the club's pathetic offense.

RU South Outlook: It should be Crystal Lake in a breeze with Waleska number two and Belair Beach a distant number three.

04-04-2011, 12:19 AM	#2444
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 36,084	*The Islandian Times* Tuesday, June 21, 2022 2022 Ruthlandian South Mid-Season Recap CL Crushers Back On Top Of RU South The Crystal Lake Crushers were the IPA Pro Cup champion two years ago, but they slipped to third last season and didn't make the playoffs. But Baby George has them back on the right track again this year. They are on top of the Ruthlandian South and have a 3-game edge over rejuvenated Waleska at the All-Star break. The Crushers and Westerners are the only clubs playing winning baseball in the division. Belair Beach is third and 8 games back, while last year's pennant winner Grand City and San Dimas are deadlocked for the fourth spot in the standings and trail by 9 games. Crystal Lake's (41-28) pitching is beyond compare with a brilliant 2.64 team ERA, the very best in the IPA... Herman "Baby" George has an excellent starting rotation in former Golden Arm winner Duncan Welch (9-6 2.27), Ralph McCullough (10-5 2.85) and Johnny Sarkelaris (7-5 2.29) and there's no drop-off when he has to go to the pen... closer Roger Bishop (2-3) has registered 17 saves and put up a 2.38 ERA... Crystal Lake's biggest problem is a huge lack of offense, ranking 31st in scoring... 38-year-old 1B Phil Gravelli, an IPA all-time great, still swings a hefty bat with a .348 average, 6 homers and 34 RBIs... but he has very little help... a sure-fire Hall-of-Famer, Gravelli is the all-time IPA leader in games, RBIs, hits and home runs... he is nearing 4000 career hits and 700 homers with a .320 BA and over 2300 RBIs... George is desperate for some offense, a crucial item come playoff time. It's been six years since McGraw Johnson's Waleska Westerners (38-31) have graced the first division... the Westerners are up from seventh last season... Johnson has good starters, great bullpen and pretty good hitting... award-winning superstud Roy Hobbs (.347 BA/14 HR) is at it again and carries the club with some help from rookie Wilson James (.307 BA/3 HR) and Val Saucier (.308 BA/1 HR)... Sammy Grimaldi (7-5 3.68) and Chet McNeil (7-5 3.50) are Waleska's best arms... mid-reliever Rick Durham (5-2 1.98) and closer Paul Norwood (3-4 2.25) head up the bullpen, that ranks first in the RU with a 1.99 ERA... Waleska probably won't overtake Crystal Lake, but they should stay near the top. Good pitching has brought the Belair Beach Sunbirds (33-36) back to the first division after an absence of six years, but they are below .500... 10-year vet Denny Whitaker (10-4 2.57) and Dan Marconi (8-8 2.99) anchor the starters... Marty Pedroza needs some offense (.248 BA)... his best bats are Ray Pelligrini (.304 BA/10 HR) and rookie Mitch Mason (.272 BA/13 HR)... Belair Beach will battle it out with 5 other clubs for first-division rights and will end up anywhere from third to seventh. Last year's RU South flag winner Grand City (32-37) has stumbled badly this year and has fallen back to a tie for fourth with San Dimas... both hitting and pitching has gone sour for the Cybercats manager Wade Joslin... especially the pitching (4.32 ERA)... closer Ralph Teague (1-1) has been superb with 13 saves and an very strong 1.80 ERA, but the rest of the bullpen has been poor... the only adequate starters Randy Andrews (7-8 3.53) and Jimbo Stearns (8-10 4.02)... last year's 21-game winner Clint Brewer has slumped to 5-7 with a terrible 5.72 ERA and 15-game winner Brent Sturgis is just 5-6 with a 4.31 ERA... Sturgis injured his arm in June and may miss the rest of the season... Grand City only has two high quality hitters: Ricky Rich (.324 BA/9 HR) and Jug Slavin (.314 BA/4 HR)... it's going to be a long season for the Cybercats... not the same team as last year. Improved hitting and pitching has lifted the San Dimas Rancheros (32-37) from last place to fourth this season... skipper Ron Armstrong has Shannon White (12-3 2.96) leading the starting rotation and closer Raul Marroquin (3-1) heading up the relief corps... Marroquin has a splendid 1.21 ERA and 13 saves... Ray Ford (.305 BA/4 HR) and Hank Maddox (.326 BA/4 HR) are the most productive bats... despite the progress, it's unlikely the Rancheros will finish much higher than the middle-of-the-pack. After taking two division titles in 2018-2019, Stacy Engel and his Claxton Diamonds (30-39) haven't shined much with 3 second-division finishes... this year could be even worse... the Diamonds in sixth place and 11 games off the pace... on the hill, only closer Tony Haverkamp (3-2) is having a good season with a fine 1.95 ERA and 15 saves... The rest of the mound staff are having dismal seasons.. topping out the hitters are league legend Mike Luzzatti (.329 BA/7 HR), who is an 11-time All-Star with almost 3000 hits, 558 homers and a lifetime .314 batting average... Engel, the old Perfessor, has several other top-notch talents in George McKay (.297 BA/14 HR), K. C. Moerdijk (.253 BA/13 HR) and Allen Lemay (.293 BA/5 HR)... Claxton could contend for third or fourth place with a little more pitching. The seventh-place Valka Blackhawks (29-40) have stayed in the first division for the last six years because of fine pitching... but it's down this season and so are the Blackhawks... they are 12 games behind in the pennant race... manager Andrei Kokk has almost no hitting (.244 BA/48 HR) and suspect pitching (4.07 ERA)... Richie Jost (10-7 2.91) is by far the best Kokk has on the hill... Tomi Viikberg (.315 BA/6 HR) and Don Pontros (.256 BA/12) are decent batters. 2021 was a very good year for the St. John Crusaders (19-50) with a surprising second-place finish... Just as quickly as they rose up to the runner-up position in the RU South, they have tumbled back down into the depths of eighth place once again with the worst record in the IPA, 22 games back... manager Skinny Kisecawchuk was the RU Manager of the Year last year, but his pitchers have done a total about-face with a horrible 5.33 team ERA this season... 21-game winner Teddy Garson is just 5-8 with a 5.50 ERA, 19-game winner Pat Long is only 5-10 with a 4.15 ERA and 16-game winner Andre Haglund is a miserable 2-13 with an astronomical 7.54 ERA... team hitting is also quite sub-par with a .249 BA and ranked near the bottom (24th)... solid and reliable 13-year vet Vinny Sardisco (.306 BA/7 HR) and Marty Coleman (.305 BA/2 HR) lead the club's pathetic offense. RU South Outlook: It should be Crystal Lake in a breeze with Waleska number two and Belair Beach a distant number three. Last edited by Eugene Church; 04-06-2011 at 01:20 AM.