[Eugene Church]

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 21, 2048

LUMBERJACKS HOIST FIRST FLAG IN 38 YEARS
None of the current Forest City Lumberjacks was even born the last time the team won a pennant... 38 seasons have come and gone since that happened... for the first time since 2013 the 'Jacks finally are the champion of the Ruthlandian West... they were in a fight for the first half of the year, but Forest City pulled away in the last six weeks of the season beating the Sligo Rovers by 10 games, Rocky Rapids Snappers by 13 and Colfax Blasters by 15 games... last year's division winner Middlefield dropped to fifth this year, 19 games off the pace.

To win the pennant, Forest City had to set a new IPA team ERA standard... the Lumberjacks compiled a fantastic 2.41 ERA, breaking the Beechwood Bobcats' mark of 2.57 in 2026... Rusty Howard (21-12/1.65) was the club and the IPA leader with a brilliant 1.65 ERA, fifth best of all-time... others in the starting rotation included Richie Meyers (10-7/2.16/13 saves), Omar Cordero (21-8/2.31), John McKee (18-15/2.63) and Walter Gibbons (15-11/2.83/2 saves)... but the experts are saying the Lumberjacks will have trouble going far in the Pro Cup playoffs because of their very poor scoring... they just don't hit well... you are in trouble when your best bats are RF Otto Glintmeyer (.293/11/65/53), C Bob Brisdon (.292/13/63/57) and SS Timmy Tarbell (.286/13/56/75)... Forest City will take on the Sugar Valley Rattlers in first round postseason play... the Rattlers have strong pitching and can score runs and go deep... they pose a big threat to the Lumberjacks, who have to depend on great pitching and defense to get by..

It's been awhile since the Sligo Rovers had a good year... they took their last pennant in 2040, ranking no higher than fourth in the RU West standings until this season... the Rovers have been in the playoffs on 9 occasions with one Pro Cup trophy, won in 2021... good starters were the team's strong point... Mickey Walsh (21-13/2.24) and Randall Steele (20-14/2.78) were the prime starters with some help from Art Hacker (17-13/3.79) and Freddy Avery (14-15/3.55)... Sligo was in the same boat as Forest City... neither of them have any standout hitters... the Rovers' best were RF Sidney Elmore (.250/27/80/81), 1B Denny Simmons (.297/7/57/68) and SS Rex Mathis (.283/3/47/83)... Sligo was better offensively than Forest City.

For the 10th consecutive season the Rocky Rapids Snappers finished in the first division of the RU West... they won pennants recently in 2044 and 2046... the Snappers have one Pro Cup in the club's history... that came back in 2019... they have made the postseason just 6 times... this season Rocky Rapids had pretty decent pitching and average hitting, winding up in third place... they faded badly in the final six weeks of the season... All-Star Buster Noland (21-16/2.46) was the club leader on the mound... Jamie Taylor (17-16/2.78), a recent Golden Arm and league MVP, is still a top-notch pitcher, but needs better run support... Dirk Halstad (17-14/3.51) and Kevin Dillard (14-13/4.14) were the other two starters... the bullpen is not much... leading the Snappers at the plate were star 2B Marty Featherstone (.302/35/100/93), All-Star 1B Masaharu Kawasaki (.276/28/104/80), All-Star C Carney Kirkpatrick (.300/22/89/67) and 3B Duncan Musselwhite (.279/5/48/96).

Colfax came in fourth this year... its best season since winning the RU West flag in 2042... the Blasters have appeared in the Pro Cup playoffs 13 times with one IPA crown in 2010, the year they racked up an all-time IPA record of 107 victories... Colfax had average bats with average power this year with fair pitching... the main sticks were LF Robb Maddox (.309/14/63/86) and C Darrell Dillon (.280/32/106/83)... Dante Breeland (14-16/3.13) was the most reliable moundsman... but Rollie Abbott (16-9/3.78/10 saves) and Jorgen Krogstad (15-12/3.71/2 saves) had more wins.

Middlefield went from division champ to fifth place this season, mainly due to a decline in pitching and the Roosters also didn't hit and score as well as in the past, but they still hit a lot of home runs due to the band box they play in with its short fences...Middlefield hit 226 homers to lead the RU and were second to Red Bluff's 242 for the IPA lead... top guns were LF Norman Antonioni (.230/37/72/56), All-Star RF Sidney Conner (.263/35/86/67), CF Russell Martin (.274/30/84/94), 1B Cliff Patterson (.287/29/80/65), 2B Ike Gary (.241/26/78/91) and SS Jimmy Beach (.258/20/50/55)... Carroll Collier (21-11/2.18) excelled this year, but veteran stars James Long (16-17/3.50) and Larry Wheelhouse (15-17/3.52) endured off-seasons... Ricky Farris (6-7/2.39/16 saves) handled bullpen chores well... in its history Middlefield has made 12 appearances in the playoffs with one IPA title... that came long ago in 2005... the Roosters were Pro Cup runner-up last year, losing a seven-game set to IPA champ Southport.

Volusia fell from second place to sixth this season... they only have average pitching and hitting... the Vigilantes' last division crown came in 2043 and the only Pro Cup title came in the IPA inaugural season in 2001... 9 times the V's have made the postseason... Mateus Branco (14-12/3.89) was the only starter with a winning mark... Will Thompson (18-19/3.54) posted the most wins... however Drew Selby (12-18/3.22) was the most effective... 1B Kris Wilson (.298/21/75/66) had the club's best BA... CF Lonny Womack (.271/29/84/83) led with 29 homers, 84 RBIs and 83 runs... C George Ruffino (.273/26/61/72) was second in roundtrippers with 26.

For the second year in a row the Stoner Stars were 64-90 and wound up in seventh place... the Stars have never won a Pro Cup and have made the playoffs just 3 times... the last pennant came in 2030... Fred Gunn (14-13/2.80/4 saves) and Billy Horton (14-13/3.28/4 saves) were the staff leaders... Stoner only has mediocre batters... the best of the lot were LF Emmett Tread (.267/14/79/72) and 1B Morgan Miller (.288/11/76/69).

And for the fourth season in succession the Fort Benton Defenders finished in the RU West basement... only one time - 2037 - have they been to the postseason...still seeking its first Pro Cup... Dick Shepard (14-21/3.55) was the best starter, while Darius Kimberly (9-9/2.78/15 saves) was the best in the bullpen... the only solid bat in the lineup was 1B Todd Higginbotham (.277/19/82/61).

2048 Ruthlandian West Division Final Standings and Team Statistics