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

Eugene Church · 08-24-2014, 10:42 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 21, 2048

RATTLERS WIN RU EAST AGAIN
The Sugar Valley Rattlers are very good at what they do... for the third time in the last four years they are the division champion of the Ruthlandian East... but it wasn't easy for the preseason favorite... they blew a 6-game lead at the halfway point by going a terrble 9-20 in July, falling 3 games behind Belle Plaine and a game back of Wynnamac... but the Rattlers got it in gear down the stretch going 37-10 the rest of the way to win by 9 games over runner-up Wynnamac, 11 better than Belle Plaine and 19 in front of fourth place Cold Creek... last year's champ Marston fell to a tie for fifth this season with Eastshore.

For the last 14 seasons Sugar Valley has won 5 pennants, finished second 6 times and third 3 times, always near the top and in contention... in its history 14 times the club has made the Pro Cup playoffs... but only once, in 2045, have the Rattlers claimed the IPA trophy... they are hoping to add another Pro Cup to their trophy case this season... Sugar Valley has excellent pitching with Antonio Cedeno (22-15/2.31), Joe Snow (19-4/2.29) and Cullen Winslow (18-7/2.47)... solid in the pen, too, with Domenico Renterias (13-9/2.35/10 saves)... though the Rattlers don't hit for high average, they do go deep well and can put runs on the boards, sparked by All-Star CF Carl Ramsey (.252/38/108/98), RF Bobby Gamble (.289/17/71/65), LF Walter Hanson (.311/18/77/62), RF Jeff Harvey (.258/25/73/60) and 3B Roger Hobbs (.249/21/75/81)... 9 players had 10 or more homers... rookie 1B Smokey Nix (.277/16/57/39) showed good power in a limited number of at-bats and 112 games.

The Wynnamac Sundowners wound up in second place this year with strong pitching and average bats... the W'Macs have won the Pro Cup one time... back in 2008... 7 times they have made the postseason... the last pennants came in 2042 and 2044... the Sundowners starting four is a good one with James Duncan (16-15/2.47), Milt Easterling (17-10/2.89), Sammy Hayes (18-16/3.15) and Shirai Nakamura (16-7/3.15)... the bullpen was fine until they lost closer Johnny Mitchell (11-4/1.92/13 saves) in September... offensively superstar RF Nioka Inkamara (.282/35/101/78) is still the main man with some help from 3B Duane Hudson (.302/6/43/83) and CF Darrell Donnelly (.267/13/58/66).

Third place Belle Plaine took the lead in July, but couldn't keep up with Sugar Valley's blistering run in August and September... still it was the Musketeers best season since 2041 when they came in a close second... sadly, the Muskies have never won a Pro Cup... only one time have they made the playoffs... that was years ago in 2009... Belle Plaine had the bats this year with a .291 team BA (2nd), topped only in the IPA by Crystal Lake (.295 BA)... the Musketeers led the IPA in scoring with 878 runs and finished second to Middlefield in home runs with 198... leading the attack was All-Star RF Lenny Buisson (.345/54/125/121), who led the IPA with 54 homers, was sixth in batting average (.354), second in scoring runs (121) and seventh in RBIs (125)... he also got plenty of support from All-Star 1B Chuck Gregory (.326/39/102/99), C Nuke Borg (.303/21/97/79) , CF Roy Myers (.296/19/65/73) and 2B Mac Lord (.329/7/62/108)... the Muskies had the muscle, but didn't have the pitching... although Henry Wade (20-6/3.97) put up 20 wins and Phil Lacy (18-16/2.95) gave them a lot of quality outings... closer Kurt Tandberg (8-7/2.40/13 saves) did a fine job in the bullpen.

The Cold Creek Catamounts had a very good run in the '30s and early '40s with 5 pennants... but of late they have just been a run-of-the-mill ballclub... on 8 occasions in the team's history the Catamounts have made the postseason... last appearing in 2041, when they finished second to Pro Cup champ North Hills, dropping an historic 7-games series... they have never won a Pro Cup... Rob Hutchins (23-9/2.66) and Andres Padilla (15-8/3.20/1 save) were the only bright spots in the rotation... at the plate it was rookie All-Star 2B Milt Swallow (.313/36/103/78), veteran 3B Joe Cochrane (.288/15/92/84), rookie CF Albie Forbush and rookie 1B Kinnojo Matsuzaki (.319/14/76/63).

After winning the RU East last year, the Marston Nine dropped back into mediocrity in a fifth place tie with Eastshore... both pitching and hitting suffered a relapse... Marston has made the playoffs 7 times, but never came home with a Pro Cup... Felix Delatte (14-14/3.37) and Jean-Noel Waldron (16-17/3.75) were the most dependable starters... Delatte was 24-6 the year before with a sparkling 2.52 ERA... while Waldron was 17-8... the most productive batters were rookie All-Star 2B Damien D'Amboise (.314/18/92/97), All-Star 3B Gary Armitage (.255/24/75/95), veteran star SS Stan Mila (.304/14/85/72) and LF D'Wayne Dotson (.248/20/72/91).

The Eastshore Elegants had another lackluster year... they haven't been to the playoffs since 2035, but the Elegants do possess two Pro Cups, winning in 2016 and 2017... Eastshore has played in the postseason 7 times... this year the Elegants had lousy hitting, fair starters and a strong bullpen... relievers Jody Friday (7-5/2.28/13 saves) and rookie Trent Niven (10-5/1.76/14 saves) had excellent seasons... Jimmy Phelps (21-14/3.53) and Ferrell Greenlaw (16-16/3.42) were capable starters... leading the light-hitting offense were RF Troy McFarland (.259/33/105/77), LF Bevan Shuler (.269/12/63/96) and 2B Joe Washington (.270/16/80/68).

For the third straight season the Beechwood Bobcats have wound up near the bottom... this year it was seventh place... the Bobcats don't have much pitching or hitting... the last playoff appearance was two decades ago in 2017... only 3 times has the club made the postseason playoffs... and they have no Pro Cups... vet Jimmy Herman (15-20/3.19) was the only effective starter... Tommy Banks (14-10/4.10) had the only winning record in the rotation... Terry Collins (8-1/2.24/12 saves) and Freddy Manale (4-3/3.35/15 saves) were the best in the bullpen... Gold Glove 2B Mike Mathews (.262/11/50/103) was the only regular with any good numbers... he scored 103 runs and stole 33 bases.

For the third time in the last four years the Elnora All-Stars found themselves near the bottom of the barrell in the RU East race... they came in last... the All-Stars are in a 14-year postseason playoff drought... the last pennant came in 2035... their only Pro Cup came two years prior in 2033... there's not a lot to brag about in Elnora... LF Enos Conrad (.322/13/74/67) is a career .338 hitter, but rarely put up any significant stats... at 36, eight-time All-Star and Gold Glover C Cannon Johnson (.276/16/69/67) may be showing some signs of age, but he still pulls his own weight quite well... at 37, 1B Joey Hagburn (.320/10/80/66) still makes good contact... the only starter with a winning record was Rick Lowe (16-13/4.04)... only vet Jamie Pananga (9-6/2.27/12 saves) did the job in the bullpen.

2048 Ruthlandian East Division Final Standings and Team Statistics

08-24-2014, 10:42 PM	#4342
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 36,061	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Monday, September 21, 2048 RATTLERS WIN RU EAST AGAIN The Sugar Valley Rattlers are very good at what they do... for the third time in the last four years they are the division champion of the Ruthlandian East... but it wasn't easy for the preseason favorite... they blew a 6-game lead at the halfway point by going a terrble 9-20 in July, falling 3 games behind Belle Plaine and a game back of Wynnamac... but the Rattlers got it in gear down the stretch going 37-10 the rest of the way to win by 9 games over runner-up Wynnamac, 11 better than Belle Plaine and 19 in front of fourth place Cold Creek... last year's champ Marston fell to a tie for fifth this season with Eastshore. For the last 14 seasons Sugar Valley has won 5 pennants, finished second 6 times and third 3 times, always near the top and in contention... in its history 14 times the club has made the Pro Cup playoffs... but only once, in 2045, have the Rattlers claimed the IPA trophy... they are hoping to add another Pro Cup to their trophy case this season... Sugar Valley has excellent pitching with Antonio Cedeno (22-15/2.31), Joe Snow (19-4/2.29) and Cullen Winslow (18-7/2.47)... solid in the pen, too, with Domenico Renterias (13-9/2.35/10 saves)... though the Rattlers don't hit for high average, they do go deep well and can put runs on the boards, sparked by All-Star CF Carl Ramsey (.252/38/108/98), RF Bobby Gamble (.289/17/71/65), LF Walter Hanson (.311/18/77/62), RF Jeff Harvey (.258/25/73/60) and 3B Roger Hobbs (.249/21/75/81)... 9 players had 10 or more homers... rookie 1B Smokey Nix (.277/16/57/39) showed good power in a limited number of at-bats and 112 games. The Wynnamac Sundowners wound up in second place this year with strong pitching and average bats... the W'Macs have won the Pro Cup one time... back in 2008... 7 times they have made the postseason... the last pennants came in 2042 and 2044... the Sundowners starting four is a good one with James Duncan (16-15/2.47), Milt Easterling (17-10/2.89), Sammy Hayes (18-16/3.15) and Shirai Nakamura (16-7/3.15)... the bullpen was fine until they lost closer Johnny Mitchell (11-4/1.92/13 saves) in September... offensively superstar RF Nioka Inkamara (.282/35/101/78) is still the main man with some help from 3B Duane Hudson (.302/6/43/83) and CF Darrell Donnelly (.267/13/58/66). Third place Belle Plaine took the lead in July, but couldn't keep up with Sugar Valley's blistering run in August and September... still it was the Musketeers best season since 2041 when they came in a close second... sadly, the Muskies have never won a Pro Cup... only one time have they made the playoffs... that was years ago in 2009... Belle Plaine had the bats this year with a .291 team BA (2nd), topped only in the IPA by Crystal Lake (.295 BA)... the Musketeers led the IPA in scoring with 878 runs and finished second to Middlefield in home runs with 198... leading the attack was All-Star RF Lenny Buisson (.345/54/125/121), who led the IPA with 54 homers, was sixth in batting average (.354), second in scoring runs (121) and seventh in RBIs (125)... he also got plenty of support from All-Star 1B Chuck Gregory (.326/39/102/99), C Nuke Borg (.303/21/97/79) , CF Roy Myers (.296/19/65/73) and 2B Mac Lord (.329/7/62/108)... the Muskies had the muscle, but didn't have the pitching... although Henry Wade (20-6/3.97) put up 20 wins and Phil Lacy (18-16/2.95) gave them a lot of quality outings... closer Kurt Tandberg (8-7/2.40/13 saves) did a fine job in the bullpen. The Cold Creek Catamounts had a very good run in the '30s and early '40s with 5 pennants... but of late they have just been a run-of-the-mill ballclub... on 8 occasions in the team's history the Catamounts have made the postseason... last appearing in 2041, when they finished second to Pro Cup champ North Hills, dropping an historic 7-games series... they have never won a Pro Cup... Rob Hutchins (23-9/2.66) and Andres Padilla (15-8/3.20/1 save) were the only bright spots in the rotation... at the plate it was rookie All-Star 2B Milt Swallow (.313/36/103/78), veteran 3B Joe Cochrane (.288/15/92/84), rookie CF Albie Forbush and rookie 1B Kinnojo Matsuzaki (.319/14/76/63). After winning the RU East last year, the Marston Nine dropped back into mediocrity in a fifth place tie with Eastshore... both pitching and hitting suffered a relapse... Marston has made the playoffs 7 times, but never came home with a Pro Cup... Felix Delatte (14-14/3.37) and Jean-Noel Waldron (16-17/3.75) were the most dependable starters... Delatte was 24-6 the year before with a sparkling 2.52 ERA... while Waldron was 17-8... the most productive batters were rookie All-Star 2B Damien D'Amboise (.314/18/92/97), All-Star 3B Gary Armitage (.255/24/75/95), veteran star SS Stan Mila (.304/14/85/72) and LF D'Wayne Dotson (.248/20/72/91). The Eastshore Elegants had another lackluster year... they haven't been to the playoffs since 2035, but the Elegants do possess two Pro Cups, winning in 2016 and 2017... Eastshore has played in the postseason 7 times... this year the Elegants had lousy hitting, fair starters and a strong bullpen... relievers Jody Friday (7-5/2.28/13 saves) and rookie Trent Niven (10-5/1.76/14 saves) had excellent seasons... Jimmy Phelps (21-14/3.53) and Ferrell Greenlaw (16-16/3.42) were capable starters... leading the light-hitting offense were RF Troy McFarland (.259/33/105/77), LF Bevan Shuler (.269/12/63/96) and 2B Joe Washington (.270/16/80/68). For the third straight season the Beechwood Bobcats have wound up near the bottom... this year it was seventh place... the Bobcats don't have much pitching or hitting... the last playoff appearance was two decades ago in 2017... only 3 times has the club made the postseason playoffs... and they have no Pro Cups... vet Jimmy Herman (15-20/3.19) was the only effective starter... Tommy Banks (14-10/4.10) had the only winning record in the rotation... Terry Collins (8-1/2.24/12 saves) and Freddy Manale (4-3/3.35/15 saves) were the best in the bullpen... Gold Glove 2B Mike Mathews (.262/11/50/103) was the only regular with any good numbers... he scored 103 runs and stole 33 bases. For the third time in the last four years the Elnora All-Stars found themselves near the bottom of the barrell in the RU East race... they came in last... the All-Stars are in a 14-year postseason playoff drought... the last pennant came in 2035... their only Pro Cup came two years prior in 2033... there's not a lot to brag about in Elnora... LF Enos Conrad (.322/13/74/67) is a career .338 hitter, but rarely put up any significant stats... at 36, eight-time All-Star and Gold Glover C Cannon Johnson (.276/16/69/67) may be showing some signs of age, but he still pulls his own weight quite well... at 37, 1B Joey Hagburn (.320/10/80/66) still makes good contact... the only starter with a winning record was Rick Lowe (16-13/4.04)... only vet Jamie Pananga (9-6/2.27/12 saves) did the job in the bullpen. 2048 Ruthlandian East Division Final Standings and Team Statistics Attached Images Last edited by Eugene Church; 08-24-2014 at 10:53 PM.