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Eugene Church · 08-22-2012, 09:11 PM

2033 Ruthlandian Union South Final Recap

St. John Class Of The RU South
Manager Clayton Luck has had the St. John Crusaders near the top the last few seasons... This year the Crusaders made the move and won the Ruthlandian South by 6 games over San Dimas, Crystal Lake and Grand City... St. John took over early with a great May and maintained a comfortable lead throughout the year... defending division champ Claxton tumbled down to sixth this season. Preseason favorite Waleska flopped to fifth.

St. John (87-67) lacked longball power, but hit well, scored well, pitched well and was one of the best defensive clubs in the IPA with a .979 FA... Larry Urban (18-12/3.14), Zack Dowdle (19-13/3.54) and Nelson Hawthorne (16-16/3.47) all had solid seasons on the hill... top bat performers were CF Roger Haley (.287/16/92/69), 2B Byron Johannsen (.294/7/78/81), 3B Norm Murdoch (.294/6/86/49) and 1B Johnny Zahn (.301/6/57/75)... skipper Luck has a lot of steady ballplayers... the baseball scribes have picked the Crusaders to be the seventh-best club in this year's Pro Cup rankings in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES.

The San Dimas Rancheros (81-73) were tied for the runner-up spot with Crystal Lake and Grand City... none of them really challenged division winner St. John... manager Wesley Pate had fair hitting (.258-24th), so-so pitching (3.56-14th), average defense (.973 FA) and good scoring (686-12th tied) with modest power (131 HR-15th)... vets Joaquin Lima (18-15/3.55) and Hector Villa (14-14/3.71) were the staff leaders... the Rancheros lost one of their top hurlers when Jay Barajas (10-5/3.15) was lost in June for the season... Barajas would have made them a much stronger pennant contender... the offensive leaders were LF Clyde Chalmers (.295/5/47/71), 1B Barry McKnight (.284/24/74/74), 3B Glendon Pratt (.288/16/73/56), CF Klaus Stordahl (.284/14/69/69) and 2B Joey Harris (.267/14/53/100).

The Grand City Cybercats (81-73) are a club on the rise with some fine hitters and consistent starters... the Cycats hit for average (.262-17th), for power (150-7th) and score runs (713-5th)... manager Wade Joslin is still running the ballclub and has them poised for better things... the only thing that could hold the Crushers back is an aging mound staff... Ralph Teague (19-14/3.06) is his ace, but is 39 years old... Norm Dawson (15-16/3.03) is the number-two starter... leading the attack are LF Wes Marlowe (.259/30/85/77), RF Thomas Hall (.281/28/93/88), 2B Teddy Grantham (.272/23/84/86), 3B Dave Sulligent (.297/14/76/75) and 1B Mick Langston (.289/19/82/69)... all of them are fairly young and in their primes... Grand City is just average with the gloves with a .973 FA.

The Crystal Lake Crushers (81-73) hit well for average (.267-7th), but don't score enough runs (20th) and lack home-run power (113-28th tied)... defense is below par with a .970 FA... however, Crystal Lake climbed up from 8th in 2031 and 7th last season to a tie for second place this year... longtime skipper Baby George needs help offensively... he has good starters in Arnie Cason (19-12/3.33), Douglas Merrill (13-9/3.26), Denny Mills (15-17/3.35) and T. D. Burnham (14-19/3.44)... the bullpen is lousy except for Eddie Lang (8-4/2.65/25 saves)... the batting order is led by rookie C Stan Stanek (.340/28/105/89), who had a terrific year, RF Herm Taylor (.329/3/55/67), 1B Juku Truuvali (.304/19/65/60) and CF Augie Danka (.313/6/47/59)... rookie SS Mackie Cummings added 20 homers and 68 RBIs, but batted only .243.

For the first time in 12 years the Waleska Westerners (73-81) had a losing season... McGraw Johnson's club came in 14 games behind winning St. John and finished a disappointing fifth in the RU South... in preseason polls the Westerners were favored to win in a close race with Grand City... they can still score runs (7th) and have fair power with 129 homers (17th), but have trouble getting people out... the team ERA has soared to 4.12 (29th)... superstar LF Loco Dillinger (.314/44/137/97) still swings a strong bat at age 33 and topped the RU in homers and RBIs... but he didn't have the help he usually has... RF Niles Gregory (.261/27/94/104) had a productive year, but hit 66 points under his rookie season .327 mark... CF Mark Schumann (.287/9/52/80) was the only other reliable bat in the lineup... Terry Richards (16-16/3.39) and Kevin Meeks (16-19/3.47) were the most dependable pitchers... half the staff had ERAs over 5.00... the defense is mediocre with a .969 FA.

The Claxton Diamonds (72-82) came into the new season with high hopes... manager Dixie Baker had led them to the pennant and playoffs for the first time in a dozen years... 2033 was going to be a big year for the Diamonds... but it didn't happen... Claxton spiraled down to sixth place, 16 games out of the running... Claxton pitching went into the pits with the team ERA rising from 3.44 to 3.83... team batting average also fell from .280 to .264... Baker's mound mainstay Freddi Hahn (19-15/4.23) had trouble holding down the opposition... his hitters saved him from defeat quite a few times... new free agent from Valmara Richie Raeburn (10-20/3.89) had a very tough season and didn't pan out... 21-game winner Jerry Smith slipped to 5-7 with a 3.98 ERA and was traded in July to Oxford... the Diamonds still possess some solid hitters in 2B Gary Colton (.303/19/97/89), RF Ivan Krause (.298/32/90/78), 3B Jonas Weiss (.284/16/77/63) and 1B Brad Jenkins (.290/13/56/69)... Claxton's defense was subpar with a .970 FA.

The Valka Blackhawks (71-83) and the Belair Beach Sunbirds deadlocked for seventh and last place in the standings... this is the fifth successive year the Blackhawks have ended up at or near the bottom of the division... Valka has not made the postseason since 2018 and have had only 6 winning seasons during that span... manager Ron Landauer has no pitching to speak of with a skyhigh 4.46 ERA (32nd), but a very good offensive team with a .273 BA (3rd), 751 runs (2nd) and 139 homers (9th)... his lineup was chocked full of capable hitters, sparked by SS Leevi Viru (.338/23/85/101), 1B Mikk Kukk (.321/21/85/106), LF Luukas Palli (.308/19/62/63), 3B Ed Metzinger (.285/20/53/42) and RF Kenny Mitzusaka (.286/12/55/42)... none of the pitchers had good years... Villem Arumaa (13-13/4.10) topped the team in wins and ERA... Vanni Lakos (10-7/4.40/10 saves) was the best of the rest... defensively the Blackhawks are solid with a .975 FA.

Bad seasons continue to pile up for the Belair Beach Sunbirds (71-83), who haven't made the playoffs since 2016 and have only 3 winning seasons in that time frame... the best thing the Sunbirds do is hit a few home runs (135/12th)... the offense is just average (.264/13th)... they are ranked 17th in runs scored with 673... pitching is below league average at 4.08 (28th)... team fielding is also just average at .971... manager Little Jake Bungarooba's best bats belong to CF Bobby Meusel (.296/20/73/93), LF Pat Webb (.253/23/99/68), RF Phil Kerkman (.283/23/68/69) and 1B Kees Draeger (.253/18/51/68)... top pitchers were Joel Gregg (10-8/3.84), Jaden Bungarooba (10-10/3.93), Stefan Zeeman (16-19/3.90) and Rob Thrasher (15-19/4.05).

08-22-2012, 09:11 PM	#3267
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,820	2033 Ruthlandian Union South Final Recap St. John Class Of The RU South Manager Clayton Luck has had the St. John Crusaders near the top the last few seasons... This year the Crusaders made the move and won the Ruthlandian South by 6 games over San Dimas, Crystal Lake and Grand City... St. John took over early with a great May and maintained a comfortable lead throughout the year... defending division champ Claxton tumbled down to sixth this season. Preseason favorite Waleska flopped to fifth. St. John (87-67) lacked longball power, but hit well, scored well, pitched well and was one of the best defensive clubs in the IPA with a .979 FA... Larry Urban (18-12/3.14), Zack Dowdle (19-13/3.54) and Nelson Hawthorne (16-16/3.47) all had solid seasons on the hill... top bat performers were CF Roger Haley (.287/16/92/69), 2B Byron Johannsen (.294/7/78/81), 3B Norm Murdoch (.294/6/86/49) and 1B Johnny Zahn (.301/6/57/75)... skipper Luck has a lot of steady ballplayers... the baseball scribes have picked the Crusaders to be the seventh-best club in this year's Pro Cup rankings in THE ISLANDIAN TIMES. The San Dimas Rancheros (81-73) were tied for the runner-up spot with Crystal Lake and Grand City... none of them really challenged division winner St. John... manager Wesley Pate had fair hitting (.258-24th), so-so pitching (3.56-14th), average defense (.973 FA) and good scoring (686-12th tied) with modest power (131 HR-15th)... vets Joaquin Lima (18-15/3.55) and Hector Villa (14-14/3.71) were the staff leaders... the Rancheros lost one of their top hurlers when Jay Barajas (10-5/3.15) was lost in June for the season... Barajas would have made them a much stronger pennant contender... the offensive leaders were LF Clyde Chalmers (.295/5/47/71), 1B Barry McKnight (.284/24/74/74), 3B Glendon Pratt (.288/16/73/56), CF Klaus Stordahl (.284/14/69/69) and 2B Joey Harris (.267/14/53/100). The Grand City Cybercats (81-73) are a club on the rise with some fine hitters and consistent starters... the Cycats hit for average (.262-17th), for power (150-7th) and score runs (713-5th)... manager Wade Joslin is still running the ballclub and has them poised for better things... the only thing that could hold the Crushers back is an aging mound staff... Ralph Teague (19-14/3.06) is his ace, but is 39 years old... Norm Dawson (15-16/3.03) is the number-two starter... leading the attack are LF Wes Marlowe (.259/30/85/77), RF Thomas Hall (.281/28/93/88), 2B Teddy Grantham (.272/23/84/86), 3B Dave Sulligent (.297/14/76/75) and 1B Mick Langston (.289/19/82/69)... all of them are fairly young and in their primes... Grand City is just average with the gloves with a .973 FA. The Crystal Lake Crushers (81-73) hit well for average (.267-7th), but don't score enough runs (20th) and lack home-run power (113-28th tied)... defense is below par with a .970 FA... however, Crystal Lake climbed up from 8th in 2031 and 7th last season to a tie for second place this year... longtime skipper Baby George needs help offensively... he has good starters in Arnie Cason (19-12/3.33), Douglas Merrill (13-9/3.26), Denny Mills (15-17/3.35) and T. D. Burnham (14-19/3.44)... the bullpen is lousy except for Eddie Lang (8-4/2.65/25 saves)... the batting order is led by rookie C Stan Stanek (.340/28/105/89), who had a terrific year, RF Herm Taylor (.329/3/55/67), 1B Juku Truuvali (.304/19/65/60) and CF Augie Danka (.313/6/47/59)... rookie SS Mackie Cummings added 20 homers and 68 RBIs, but batted only .243. For the first time in 12 years the Waleska Westerners (73-81) had a losing season... McGraw Johnson's club came in 14 games behind winning St. John and finished a disappointing fifth in the RU South... in preseason polls the Westerners were favored to win in a close race with Grand City... they can still score runs (7th) and have fair power with 129 homers (17th), but have trouble getting people out... the team ERA has soared to 4.12 (29th)... superstar LF Loco Dillinger (.314/44/137/97) still swings a strong bat at age 33 and topped the RU in homers and RBIs... but he didn't have the help he usually has... RF Niles Gregory (.261/27/94/104) had a productive year, but hit 66 points under his rookie season .327 mark... CF Mark Schumann (.287/9/52/80) was the only other reliable bat in the lineup... Terry Richards (16-16/3.39) and Kevin Meeks (16-19/3.47) were the most dependable pitchers... half the staff had ERAs over 5.00... the defense is mediocre with a .969 FA. The Claxton Diamonds (72-82) came into the new season with high hopes... manager Dixie Baker had led them to the pennant and playoffs for the first time in a dozen years... 2033 was going to be a big year for the Diamonds... but it didn't happen... Claxton spiraled down to sixth place, 16 games out of the running... Claxton pitching went into the pits with the team ERA rising from 3.44 to 3.83... team batting average also fell from .280 to .264... Baker's mound mainstay Freddi Hahn (19-15/4.23) had trouble holding down the opposition... his hitters saved him from defeat quite a few times... new free agent from Valmara Richie Raeburn (10-20/3.89) had a very tough season and didn't pan out... 21-game winner Jerry Smith slipped to 5-7 with a 3.98 ERA and was traded in July to Oxford... the Diamonds still possess some solid hitters in 2B Gary Colton (.303/19/97/89), RF Ivan Krause (.298/32/90/78), 3B Jonas Weiss (.284/16/77/63) and 1B Brad Jenkins (.290/13/56/69)... Claxton's defense was subpar with a .970 FA. The Valka Blackhawks (71-83) and the Belair Beach Sunbirds deadlocked for seventh and last place in the standings... this is the fifth successive year the Blackhawks have ended up at or near the bottom of the division... Valka has not made the postseason since 2018 and have had only 6 winning seasons during that span... manager Ron Landauer has no pitching to speak of with a skyhigh 4.46 ERA (32nd), but a very good offensive team with a .273 BA (3rd), 751 runs (2nd) and 139 homers (9th)... his lineup was chocked full of capable hitters, sparked by SS Leevi Viru (.338/23/85/101), 1B Mikk Kukk (.321/21/85/106), LF Luukas Palli (.308/19/62/63), 3B Ed Metzinger (.285/20/53/42) and RF Kenny Mitzusaka (.286/12/55/42)... none of the pitchers had good years... Villem Arumaa (13-13/4.10) topped the team in wins and ERA... Vanni Lakos (10-7/4.40/10 saves) was the best of the rest... defensively the Blackhawks are solid with a .975 FA. Bad seasons continue to pile up for the Belair Beach Sunbirds (71-83), who haven't made the playoffs since 2016 and have only 3 winning seasons in that time frame... the best thing the Sunbirds do is hit a few home runs (135/12th)... the offense is just average (.264/13th)... they are ranked 17th in runs scored with 673... pitching is below league average at 4.08 (28th)... team fielding is also just average at .971... manager Little Jake Bungarooba's best bats belong to CF Bobby Meusel (.296/20/73/93), LF Pat Webb (.253/23/99/68), RF Phil Kerkman (.283/23/68/69) and 1B Kees Draeger (.253/18/51/68)... top pitchers were Joel Gregg (10-8/3.84), Jaden Bungarooba (10-10/3.93), Stefan Zeeman (16-19/3.90) and Rob Thrasher (15-19/4.05). Last edited by Eugene Church; 09-28-2012 at 08:27 PM.