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Eugene Church · 12-04-2011, 10:23 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, September 19, 2028

2028 Tycobbian West Final Recap

La Claire Nabs First TU West Flag
Until this season the closest the La Claire Lynx had ever come to winning the Tycobbian West was a second-place finish in 2008... Well, this year they finally won it... otherwise the Lynx were never closer than 7 and a half games... the long-suffering La Claire fans will now know what its like to have their team competing for the IPA Pro Cup... this season La Claire ran up a good 8-game lead by the All-Star Game and then held off the fast-finishing Kenwood Wildcats by 5 games... third place went to Rolling Hills... the Reds had taken the crown the past three seasons, but came up 10 games short this year... the Arlon Champions were a distant fourth and trailed by 16 games.

Manager Zeppy Deshotel and his La Clair Lynx (94-60) had the second-best record in the Tycobbian Union this year, shooting up from fifth place in 2027... the Lynx had average hitting with a .260 BA (15th) and good offense with 752 runs (11th) and excellent power with 207 home runs (5th)... just average pitching with a 4.05 ERA (14th)... All-Star LF Carroll Candy led the club with a .305 average, 39 home runs and 118 RBIs... Candy has a bad shoulder and will miss much of the playoffs... he could be back by the Pro Cup Finals... all-time IPA great and All-Star 3B Flash Devlin, a 12-time All-Star, topped the team with 105 runs and 108 walks, while batting .297 and driving in 78 runs... other steady producers were RF Kelly Chambelain (.277/28/57/101), 1B Jess Swain (.283/19/80/88) and 2B Norm Petitjean (.279/25/80/63)... Pat Kovacs (23-11/3.10) had an exceptional season with 391 strikeouts, a new IPA record... Kovacs easily broke Howard Hutch's mark of 353, set in 2026... Alvar Vickers (21-13/4.41) also notched 20 victories.

The Kenwood Wildcats (89-65) messed around until halfway through the regular season, 15 games behind in fifth place, but manager Aaron Hankins lit a fire underneath them and they blazed through the second half in torrid fashion with a 51-22 record... a .280 team BA (2nd) and a solid offense (775 runs-5th) carried the club, but the Wildcats lacked power, hitting just 103 HRs (32nd)... on the mound the starters were effective with a 3.85 ERA, but the relief corps was lacking, being tagged for a lofty 4.41 ERA (24th)... Kenwood was led at the plate by All-Star SS Jeff Lang with a .346 BA, 17 HR, 111 RBI and 102 runs, RF Babe Hankins with a .321 mark, 17 HR, 99 RBI and 93 runs and 3B Eric Hollister, who batted .280 with 23 roundtrippers, 99 RBI and 91 runs... LF Hank Lunsford hit .277 and scored 101 runs... backups OF Jesus Hernandez hit .367 with 6 homers, 50 RBIs and scored 66 times in 94 games and CF Matthew Hankins, the skipper's younger son, had 9 HR, 57 RBIs and a .319 BA in 102 games... Wildcat ace Jody Gentry (21-16/2.74) had a fine comeback season at age 34 after going a horrible 8-25 in 2027, but suffered an undetermined injury in his last start in September... Claude Watson was the number two man with a 20-8 mark and a 4.10 ERA.

Despite being 10 games out of first and in third place, the talented Rolling Hills Reds (84-70) still had a good season... statistically they might have been the best team in the league... Matty Christianson's club hit .274 (4th) and scored 772 runs (6th)... however the Reds lacked power, hitting just 128 homers (29th-tied)... they were strong on the hill with a 3.65 team ERA (3rd), especially in the bullpen where they compiled a 2.42 ERA (1st)... All-Star Errol Gaudet led the staff with a 21-13 record and a 3.15 ERA... All-Star Johnny Brown also chipped in with an 18-10 mark with a 3.57 ERA... Rolling Hills best bats were 1B Billy Christianson (.322/16/114/110), LF Pat Webb (.304/31/125/95), RF Bobby McConnell (.322/5/41/92) and CF Scotty Yiska (.279/19/68/107)... it's surprising the Reds didn't win their fourth consecutive division title... I guess stats don't always tell the truth.

The Arlon Champions (78-76) were just an average ballclub and ended up in fourth place... Rocco Belasario's Champs were 16 games out of first... they batted .255 (17th), had some clout with 181 home runs (13th) and posted a 4.04 team ERA (13th)... Dorsey Peters (19-9/4.11) and Stan Svoboda (18-12/4.34) were the best arms... top bats were 1B Artie Anderson with 38 roundtrippers, 108 runs batted in and a .271 BA... 2B Ryan Hicks had a solid season with a .311 BA, 23 HR, 97 RBI and 86 runs... CF Del Carpenter batted .268 with 21 HR, 81 RBI and 78 runs... SS Johnny Madigan scored 109 runs, but hit just .257 for average.

Fifth place Bayview (75-79) has not made the postseason since 2016 and hasn't made the first division in the last six seasons... skipper Chancey Quibedeaux's Vikings hit well with a .270 BA, 750 runs (12th) and 190 homers (9th-tied), but could use some help on the hill, mainly in the bullpen (5.05/30th)... Tommy Wynn (21-14/3.78) was the club leader on the mound, while in the batter's box it was All-Star RF Wayne Kenney with an excellent year, batting .351 with 38 home runs, 113 RBIs and scored 96 runs... 20-year-old rookie LF Roy Ricks sparkled with a .306 BA, 24 HR, 87 RBI and 103 runs... other solid hitters were CF Knut Valen (.282/25/77), 1B J. R. Hawkins (.267/22/74/84), SS Bobby Nordahl (.283/18/75/81) and C Wesley Cash (.245/25/82/73).

After third place finishes the last two seasons, the Chicopee Braves (69-85) fell to sixth place and 25 games back... Chicopee has never made the playoffs in its 27 years in the IPA... the Braves have come very close four times, in 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2020... manager Harry Fleetfoot had good bats with a .266 BA (10th), 758 runs (9th) and 187 HR (11th), but pitiful pitching with a 4.89 team ERA... the Braves big bats belonged to RF Charlie Jensen (.305/36/104/110), 1B Gary Burchfield (.314/27/86/76), LF Sakima Shaman (.282/33/92/105), 2B Takota Littlefeather (.281/11/65/102), SS Robby Johnson (.280/15/73/55) and C Vinny Anderson (.250/21/84/63)... Fleetfoot's most effective pitcher was Frank Mullins with a 17-15 record, but a high 4.47 ERA.

The Bay St. Clair Buccaneers (68-86) eight-game string in the first division came to an end this season... the Bucs fell out of sight to seventh place, 26 games out... Guy Rondre's mound staff let him down badly this season as they soared to a 4.25 ERA, up from 3.04 the year before... the loss of Eddie Lasky (4-8 4.59) in late May didn't help things... 36-year-old Lasky is 247-213 in 16 seasons, twice a 20-game winner and the TU Pitcher of the Year in 2023 with a 25-8 mark... Lasky is also a 5-time Golden Glover... Rondre did have two decent starters in vet Greg Moss (17-15/3.25) and rookie Danny Darby (12-9/3.39), who replaced Lasky on the roster in June... the Buccaneer batting order had four 30-homer hitters: LF Chris Blanton (.265/39/95/90), 1B Jerry Todd (.309/36/96/78), RF Neil Lamont (.255/35/89/83) and 2B Terry Adams (.293/32/74/83).

The cellar-dwelling Denton City Redbirds (56-98) were probably the worst club in the IPA this year... manager Lavon Gooch's team ranked near the bottom in almost all categories, chalking up a .235 BA (32nd) and a 5.02 ERA (31st)... Glenn Hamilton (12-24/3.74) was the only decent pitcher in the rotation... none of the batters hit well... the best of the lot was RF Don Smithers with 21 homers and 61 RBIs, but he hit just .239 for average... that's how bad the Redbirds were this season... it's been 15 years since Denton City was in the playoffs.

12-04-2011, 10:23 PM	#2865
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,906	*THE ISLANDIAN TIMES* Tuesday, September 19, 2028 2028 Tycobbian West Final Recap La Claire Nabs First TU West Flag Until this season the closest the La Claire Lynx had ever come to winning the Tycobbian West was a second-place finish in 2008... Well, this year they finally won it... otherwise the Lynx were never closer than 7 and a half games... the long-suffering La Claire fans will now know what its like to have their team competing for the IPA Pro Cup... this season La Claire ran up a good 8-game lead by the All-Star Game and then held off the fast-finishing Kenwood Wildcats by 5 games... third place went to Rolling Hills... the Reds had taken the crown the past three seasons, but came up 10 games short this year... the Arlon Champions were a distant fourth and trailed by 16 games. Manager Zeppy Deshotel and his La Clair Lynx (94-60) had the second-best record in the Tycobbian Union this year, shooting up from fifth place in 2027... the Lynx had average hitting with a .260 BA (15th) and good offense with 752 runs (11th) and excellent power with 207 home runs (5th)... just average pitching with a 4.05 ERA (14th)... All-Star LF Carroll Candy led the club with a .305 average, 39 home runs and 118 RBIs... Candy has a bad shoulder and will miss much of the playoffs... he could be back by the Pro Cup Finals... all-time IPA great and All-Star 3B Flash Devlin, a 12-time All-Star, topped the team with 105 runs and 108 walks, while batting .297 and driving in 78 runs... other steady producers were RF Kelly Chambelain (.277/28/57/101), 1B Jess Swain (.283/19/80/88) and 2B Norm Petitjean (.279/25/80/63)... Pat Kovacs (23-11/3.10) had an exceptional season with 391 strikeouts, a new IPA record... Kovacs easily broke Howard Hutch's mark of 353, set in 2026... Alvar Vickers (21-13/4.41) also notched 20 victories. The Kenwood Wildcats (89-65) messed around until halfway through the regular season, 15 games behind in fifth place, but manager Aaron Hankins lit a fire underneath them and they blazed through the second half in torrid fashion with a 51-22 record... a .280 team BA (2nd) and a solid offense (775 runs-5th) carried the club, but the Wildcats lacked power, hitting just 103 HRs (32nd)... on the mound the starters were effective with a 3.85 ERA, but the relief corps was lacking, being tagged for a lofty 4.41 ERA (24th)... Kenwood was led at the plate by All-Star SS Jeff Lang with a .346 BA, 17 HR, 111 RBI and 102 runs, RF Babe Hankins with a .321 mark, 17 HR, 99 RBI and 93 runs and 3B Eric Hollister, who batted .280 with 23 roundtrippers, 99 RBI and 91 runs... LF Hank Lunsford hit .277 and scored 101 runs... backups OF Jesus Hernandez hit .367 with 6 homers, 50 RBIs and scored 66 times in 94 games and CF Matthew Hankins, the skipper's younger son, had 9 HR, 57 RBIs and a .319 BA in 102 games... Wildcat ace Jody Gentry (21-16/2.74) had a fine comeback season at age 34 after going a horrible 8-25 in 2027, but suffered an undetermined injury in his last start in September... Claude Watson was the number two man with a 20-8 mark and a 4.10 ERA. Despite being 10 games out of first and in third place, the talented Rolling Hills Reds (84-70) still had a good season... statistically they might have been the best team in the league... Matty Christianson's club hit .274 (4th) and scored 772 runs (6th)... however the Reds lacked power, hitting just 128 homers (29th-tied)... they were strong on the hill with a 3.65 team ERA (3rd), especially in the bullpen where they compiled a 2.42 ERA (1st)... All-Star Errol Gaudet led the staff with a 21-13 record and a 3.15 ERA... All-Star Johnny Brown also chipped in with an 18-10 mark with a 3.57 ERA... Rolling Hills best bats were 1B Billy Christianson (.322/16/114/110), LF Pat Webb (.304/31/125/95), RF Bobby McConnell (.322/5/41/92) and CF Scotty Yiska (.279/19/68/107)... it's surprising the Reds didn't win their fourth consecutive division title... I guess stats don't always tell the truth. The Arlon Champions (78-76) were just an average ballclub and ended up in fourth place... Rocco Belasario's Champs were 16 games out of first... they batted .255 (17th), had some clout with 181 home runs (13th) and posted a 4.04 team ERA (13th)... Dorsey Peters (19-9/4.11) and Stan Svoboda (18-12/4.34) were the best arms... top bats were 1B Artie Anderson with 38 roundtrippers, 108 runs batted in and a .271 BA... 2B Ryan Hicks had a solid season with a .311 BA, 23 HR, 97 RBI and 86 runs... CF Del Carpenter batted .268 with 21 HR, 81 RBI and 78 runs... SS Johnny Madigan scored 109 runs, but hit just .257 for average. Fifth place Bayview (75-79) has not made the postseason since 2016 and hasn't made the first division in the last six seasons... skipper Chancey Quibedeaux's Vikings hit well with a .270 BA, 750 runs (12th) and 190 homers (9th-tied), but could use some help on the hill, mainly in the bullpen (5.05/30th)... Tommy Wynn (21-14/3.78) was the club leader on the mound, while in the batter's box it was All-Star RF Wayne Kenney with an excellent year, batting .351 with 38 home runs, 113 RBIs and scored 96 runs... 20-year-old rookie LF Roy Ricks sparkled with a .306 BA, 24 HR, 87 RBI and 103 runs... other solid hitters were CF Knut Valen (.282/25/77), 1B J. R. Hawkins (.267/22/74/84), SS Bobby Nordahl (.283/18/75/81) and C Wesley Cash (.245/25/82/73). After third place finishes the last two seasons, the Chicopee Braves (69-85) fell to sixth place and 25 games back... Chicopee has never made the playoffs in its 27 years in the IPA... the Braves have come very close four times, in 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2020... manager Harry Fleetfoot had good bats with a .266 BA (10th), 758 runs (9th) and 187 HR (11th), but pitiful pitching with a 4.89 team ERA... the Braves big bats belonged to RF Charlie Jensen (.305/36/104/110), 1B Gary Burchfield (.314/27/86/76), LF Sakima Shaman (.282/33/92/105), 2B Takota Littlefeather (.281/11/65/102), SS Robby Johnson (.280/15/73/55) and C Vinny Anderson (.250/21/84/63)... Fleetfoot's most effective pitcher was Frank Mullins with a 17-15 record, but a high 4.47 ERA. The Bay St. Clair Buccaneers (68-86) eight-game string in the first division came to an end this season... the Bucs fell out of sight to seventh place, 26 games out... Guy Rondre's mound staff let him down badly this season as they soared to a 4.25 ERA, up from 3.04 the year before... the loss of Eddie Lasky (4-8 4.59) in late May didn't help things... 36-year-old Lasky is 247-213 in 16 seasons, twice a 20-game winner and the TU Pitcher of the Year in 2023 with a 25-8 mark... Lasky is also a 5-time Golden Glover... Rondre did have two decent starters in vet Greg Moss (17-15/3.25) and rookie Danny Darby (12-9/3.39), who replaced Lasky on the roster in June... the Buccaneer batting order had four 30-homer hitters: LF Chris Blanton (.265/39/95/90), 1B Jerry Todd (.309/36/96/78), RF Neil Lamont (.255/35/89/83) and 2B Terry Adams (.293/32/74/83). The cellar-dwelling Denton City Redbirds (56-98) were probably the worst club in the IPA this year... manager Lavon Gooch's team ranked near the bottom in almost all categories, chalking up a .235 BA (32nd) and a 5.02 ERA (31st)... Glenn Hamilton (12-24/3.74) was the only decent pitcher in the rotation... none of the batters hit well... the best of the lot was RF Don Smithers with 21 homers and 61 RBIs, but he hit just .239 for average... that's how bad the Redbirds were this season... it's been 15 years since Denton City was in the playoffs. Last edited by Eugene Church; 12-04-2011 at 10:25 PM.