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THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 18, 2045
RECORD-SETTING RED SOX CHAMP AGAIN
The record-setting Red Bluff Red Sox boomed their way to their second Tycobbian East Division title in a row... the Red Sox established a new IPA home-run record with 283, totally shattering Arroyo Grande's old mark of 260 set in 2005... they made shambles of the pennant race by whipping High Mesa by 14 games and third place Midway by 19... Tuckanarra and Ozarka tied for the fourth spot, 21 games back in the race... with tremendous firepower and solid pitching Red Bluff will rank high in the Pro Cup predictions.
1. Red Bluff took its second straight division title... both seasons they came in with 95-59 records... the Red Sox will be appearing in their sixth postseason... they won their only Pro Cup years ago in 2004... the Red Sox can score runs (6th) and they have very good pitching (4th)... defensively they are just average (.972 FA)... the Red Sox have all the elements to do well in the postseason... all 8 regulars hit 16 or more homers, paced by superstar All-Star LF David Kelso (.289/65/130/111), the IPA leader with 65 homers, just one short of the league record... he was also fourth in RBIs and sixth in scoring runs... Kelso is Hall of Fame material with 437 homers in 12 seasons... 1B Josh Stevens (.252/43/91/96) smacked 43 homers, 3B Fran Blanchard (.291/36/90/94) had 36, C Phil White (.214/32/80/58) hit 32 home runs, SS Leemon O'Donovan (.262/27/79/74) numbered 27, CF Ike Sweetwater (.327/23/63/59) socked 23 out of the park, LF Jesse Shaw (.273/19/46/40) popped 19 HRs and 2B Big Boy Payne (.249/16/46/88) chipped in 16... Sweetwater and Shaw didn't play the first two months because of the player boycott... heading up the mound staff were Jud Cox (16-12/2.57), Mickey Rosen (17-8/3.00), Jack Wallace (12-6/3.64) and George Reynolds (18-12/3.61)... the top reliever was Carson Jamara (7-8/3.30/18 saves)... Jamara was ninth in saves this year in the IPA.
2. High Mesa went from fifth place with a 72-82 record in 2044 (23 GB) to the runner-up spot this year with an 81-73 mark (14 GB)... they stayed close to Red Bluff until July, this fell apart, playing below .500 in the second half of the year... only twice have the Cowboys been in the postseason... and that occurred in their first two seasons in the IPA... they won the Pro Cup in 2002... the Cowpokes have solid pitching (3.49-9th), but not a lot of offense... rookie sensation Lucius Quarles (17-14/1.65) had the best ERA in the IPA... rookie Steve Tolan (18-15/3.21) and Emil Nowak (16-9/4.03/1 save) were also dependable starters... !B Johnny Tallis (.258/34/96/64) led the club with 34 homers and 96 RBIs... All-Star 2B Randy Sweetland (.280/5/42/89) was the scoring leader with 89 runs... other contributors were SS Clifford Coleman (.254/29/76/64), 3B Wes McGovern (.265/23/74/86) and LF Clay Johnston (.279/27/73/62), who missed a third of the season due to the boycott.
3. Midway moved up from 66-88 and seventh place (29 GB) last year to 76-78 and third place this year (19 GB)... at the start of July the Wolves were in sixth place (6 GB) and still in the race, but they went on the fritz and tumbled down to 19 GB by season's end... Midway has never won a Pro Cup... they have only made the playoffs three times in the club history... 2027 was the last postseason appearance... the Wolves have decent pitching with Craig Anderson (19-19/3.54), Jeff Chandler (17-14/3.69), Rich Barstow (11-11/3.75) and Charlie Chase (16-19/2.89)... Sam Lewis (3-3/2.51/14 saves) is the best reliever... 2B Sollie Solomon (.307/2/45/81) led the team with a .307 BA... 3B Paul Butler (.253/15/67/86) has the most homers with 15... 1B Jerry Kennison (.283/11/85/55) had the most RBIs with 85... and LF Justin Morrison (.302/10/68/87) led with 87 runs.
4. Tuckanarra came in third in 2043 with a 76-78 mark (19 GB) and fourth this season with a 74-80 record (21 GB)... the Blue Jays were never in contention... the Tucks have made the playoffs 17 times, more than any other IPA franchise... they have also won three Pro Cups, topped only by Turon's four titles... the last pennant came in 2038 and the last Pro Cup in 2035... the Blue Jays have fair pitching and poor hitting... Ozzie Leslie (18-18/2.68) and Dickie Pittman (14-10/2.77) were two strong starters... and Yarran Nawajuk (18-14/3.70) was a dependable #3... at 37 Jack Rogers (8-6/2.56/12 saves) still does a good job in the bullpen... the offense stunk with a .244 BA (26th), 579 runs (29th-tied) and only 112 HRs (27th)... there really was no one on the team worth mentioning offensively... 32 players played this year... only one had enough bats to qualify for any stats awards... 1B Alister Simmons has the best BA on the club with a .311 mark and the most homers with 12... Simmons only had 196 ABs in 60 games... 1B Rodger Parsons had a .303 BA, but played in only 80 games and had 267 plate appearances... C Wally McMain (.244) was tops in RBIs with 50 and 2B Ricky Vincent (.284) paced the team with 129 hits, runs with 57 and 128 games.
4. Ozarka has been a middle-of-the-pack team the last four years... fourth or fifth each year... last year they were 75-79 in fourth (20 GB)... tied for fourth this year at 74-80 (21 GB)... the Nats have been to the postseason often with 15 playoff appearances... they have never won a Pro Cup, but the were in the Finals five times...the last Pro Cup appearance was 2020... the last division flag was 2040... the Naturals have a good offense with a .265 BA (7th), 705 runs (11th) and 162 homers (12th)... lackluster on the hill with a 3.86 ERA (24th)... at 37 All-Star SS Duffy Morrison (.328/35/110/116) had a career year... 1B Artie Clayton (.258/37/89/92) led the team with 37 roundtrippers... 2B Jimmy Woods (.323/20/71/54) and C Paul Beasley (.285/23/83/61) had good years, too... Billy Hill (18-9/3.72) topped the club in wins... Glen Jenkins (16-14/3.14) had the best ERA among starters... Pedro Gonzales (7-3/1.67/12 saves) was the bullpen standout.
6. South Fork has been a tough team in recent seasons... the Stallions won three straight TU East flags from 2041 to 2043... in 2042 they were Pro Cup champion... South Fork had a fine 93-61 season last year but lost a tough duel with division winner Red Bluff (2 GB)... this year was a total disappointment as they sunk to 73-81 and sixth place (22 GB)... the offense sputtered and the pitching suffered greatly... the three primary starters Jay Murphy (3-12/3.13), Big Murph McAlister (12-11/3.36) and Chris Sorensen (12-9/2.94) boycotted the first two months... 27-game winner Jay Murphy, the 2044 IPA MVP and Golden Arm winner, had a horrendous season... 2B Elton Jacoby (.296/28/99/85) and SS Pete Arnold (.304/12/59/93) were the only good bats... reliable LF Scotty O'Sullivan (.263/16/51/38) was a holdout and didn't join the team until June.
7. Hillsboro is the only franchise in the IPA to never make the playoffs... the Blazers came close in 2043, just two games out of first in third place with a 78-76 record... last year they were 70-84 and finished sixth (25 GB)... this year Hillsboro was also 70-84, winding up in the seventh spot in the standings (25 GB)... the Blazers have so-so pitching (3.66-18th) and terrible hitting (.239-31st)... but with fairly good power (150 HRs-18th)... Jamie Lee Bradley (19-11/3.00) and Ralph Quick (13-11/3.20) are solid starters... 1B Ernie Moxley is the club leader with a .292 BA, 41 HRs and 117 RBIs...CF Rick Willis (.253/16/53/88) topped the team with 88 runs... LF Jurrien Bellini (.267/18/42/69) boycotted the team for the first two months of the season.
8. East Point was the second-worst team in the IPA with a pathetic 50-104 record, good for last place (45 GB)... only Ancona of the Ruthlandian North had a poorer record at 48-106 (52 GB)... last year the Panthers put up a 59-95 mark, also good for last place (36 GB)... a .235 BA and a 4.40 ERA won't get you far in the IPA... Albert Sharpton (10-18/4.72) and Barney Benton (11-24/5.29) were the best of the lot in the starting rotation... it doesn't get any better at the plate... CF Wesley Garrett (.264/7/34/73) led with a .264 BA... 3B Paul Ferrell (.260/16/66/74) was the club leader in homers with 16 and 74 runs... he tied with LF Augie Elizondo (.258/13/66/49) with 66 RBIs... East Point has been a playoff team only five times and have yet to win the Pro Cup... the last Panther pennant came in 2039.
2045 Tycobbian East Final Standings and Team Statistics
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