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Eugene Church · 04-24-2011, 10:37 PM

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, October 6, 2022

CL Crushers Team To Beat In Pro Cup
According to The Islandian Times poll of sportswriters and broadcasters around the Islands, this year's IPA Pro Cup Finals is a very even match-up. Crystal Lake of the Ruthlandian Union has the better starting pitching, but Midway of the Tycobbian Union is no slouch either. The Crushers have two left-handed starters and a southpaw closer. Midway has been known to have difficulty against lefties. Many analysts feel the Wolves can match the Crushers overall on the hill because of stronger relievers. Offensively the edge goes to Midway. The Wolves have more quality hitters and more power than Crystal Lake. In the final balloting a slight majority of the press still favored the Crushers and their superb starters.

Two years ago Duncan Welch (23-12 2.18) and Ralph McCullough (20-9 2.56) led Crystal Lake to an upset Pro Cup title and now they are back again, but this time as the favorite. Welch picked up where he left off in 2020. He's 4-0 with a 1.29 ERA in the postseason this year, while McCullough is 2-1 with a 2.32 ERA. Midway will counter with two fine starters of its own. Motega Wolf (21-9 2.44) and Bobby Dorignac (19-14 2.74) both had ERAs far below 3.00 this season and especially low in the playoffs this year. Wolf is 1-0 with a 1.08 ERA in 4 starts, while Dorignac is even better with a 3-0 mark and 1.04 ERA. The series may come down to the number three starters, Dakota Dyami (25-9 3.45) for Midway and Vic Bauer (9-2 2.36) for Crystal Lake. Dyami is 2-1 and 3.27 in the playoffs, while Bauer is 1-0 with a 2.53 ERA.

Manager Baby George relies on Phil Gravelli (.289 BA/1 HR/9 RBI), Greg Murphy (.390 BA/3 HR/10 RBI), Tommy Gompers (.313 BA/0 HR/6 RBI) and Augie Marshall (.286 BA/1 HR/5 RBI) for his scoring. For skipper Cochise Chandler his team depends on Kyle Rigney (.386 BA/0 HR/2 RBI), Sammy Murphy (.351 BA/1 HR/4 RBI), CF Johnny Lee (.316 BA/3 HR/8 RBI) and 3B Rob Gigler (.314 BA/0 HR/2 RBI) for his offense. During the regular campaign the Wolves outhomered the Crushers 179 to 113. In the Pro Cup playoffs Midway has 8 roundtrippers and Crystal Lake has gone deep 7 times.

It looks like this will be a hotly-contested affair and could go 7 games. Both teams have played outstanding baseball in the postseason. Crystal Lake whipped powerhouses Ancona and Sligo in six games each, while Midway dominated powerful Rolling Hills and Arroyo Grande, taking four out of five from each of those teams. Midway certainly has not played like a sixth-seeded team. Crystal Lake was rated the third-best team in the playoffs.

04-24-2011, 10:37 PM	#2483
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,899	*The Islandian Times* Wednesday, October 6, 2022 CL Crushers Team To Beat In Pro Cup According to The Islandian Times poll of sportswriters and broadcasters around the Islands, this year's IPA Pro Cup Finals is a very even match-up. Crystal Lake of the Ruthlandian Union has the better starting pitching, but Midway of the Tycobbian Union is no slouch either. The Crushers have two left-handed starters and a southpaw closer. Midway has been known to have difficulty against lefties. Many analysts feel the Wolves can match the Crushers overall on the hill because of stronger relievers. Offensively the edge goes to Midway. The Wolves have more quality hitters and more power than Crystal Lake. In the final balloting a slight majority of the press still favored the Crushers and their superb starters. Two years ago Duncan Welch (23-12 2.18) and Ralph McCullough (20-9 2.56) led Crystal Lake to an upset Pro Cup title and now they are back again, but this time as the favorite. Welch picked up where he left off in 2020. He's 4-0 with a 1.29 ERA in the postseason this year, while McCullough is 2-1 with a 2.32 ERA. Midway will counter with two fine starters of its own. Motega Wolf (21-9 2.44) and Bobby Dorignac (19-14 2.74) both had ERAs far below 3.00 this season and especially low in the playoffs this year. Wolf is 1-0 with a 1.08 ERA in 4 starts, while Dorignac is even better with a 3-0 mark and 1.04 ERA. The series may come down to the number three starters, Dakota Dyami (25-9 3.45) for Midway and Vic Bauer (9-2 2.36) for Crystal Lake. Dyami is 2-1 and 3.27 in the playoffs, while Bauer is 1-0 with a 2.53 ERA. Manager Baby George relies on Phil Gravelli (.289 BA/1 HR/9 RBI), Greg Murphy (.390 BA/3 HR/10 RBI), Tommy Gompers (.313 BA/0 HR/6 RBI) and Augie Marshall (.286 BA/1 HR/5 RBI) for his scoring. For skipper Cochise Chandler his team depends on Kyle Rigney (.386 BA/0 HR/2 RBI), Sammy Murphy (.351 BA/1 HR/4 RBI), CF Johnny Lee (.316 BA/3 HR/8 RBI) and 3B Rob Gigler (.314 BA/0 HR/2 RBI) for his offense. During the regular campaign the Wolves outhomered the Crushers 179 to 113. In the Pro Cup playoffs Midway has 8 roundtrippers and Crystal Lake has gone deep 7 times. It looks like this will be a hotly-contested affair and could go 7 games. Both teams have played outstanding baseball in the postseason. Crystal Lake whipped powerhouses Ancona and Sligo in six games each, while Midway dominated powerful Rolling Hills and Arroyo Grande, taking four out of five from each of those teams. Midway certainly has not played like a sixth-seeded team. Crystal Lake was rated the third-best team in the playoffs. Last edited by Eugene Church; 06-02-2023 at 09:12 PM.