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Eugene Church · 01-07-2015, 07:22 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, April 3, 2051

RASCALS WILL ROMP AGAIN IN TU NORTH
The White River Rascals won the Tycobbian North Division last year by an overwhelming 31 games... and the experts are predicting they will cruise through it again by a wide margin... at least by double digits... making it the third year in a row the Rascals have raked in the division flag... Hartsdale, Blue Lake, Luxora and Mahaska will do battle for the runner-up spot in the standings... White River is still smarting from being swept in the Pro Cup Finals last year by the Valmara Vipers... the Rascals have fallen two years in a row in the IPA title series to the Vipers... they would like nothing better than to claim it all this year... White River has never won a Pro Cup.

White River has just about the finest mound foursome in the IPA, headed up by the Tycobbian MVP Butch Slattery (26-8/2.41)... included in that awesome rotation are Nicky Palmer (24-8/2.92), Keil Trickett (21-8/3.98) and Clem Warren (19-16/2.70)... the bullpen is in good hands, too, with closer Todd Cole (9-8/2.45/16 saves)... at the plate the Rascals can rip the ball with Billy Joe Hickman (.257/39/112/96), Ryne Hyland (.275/32/87/93), Kenny Yarbrough (.294/22/75/92), Ryan Byrd (.263/22/90/81, Kunta Burton (.321/7/62.830 and Ruben Reaves (.281/16/60/87).

The Hartsdale Hellcats tied for second last year with Luxora... not a lot to brag about on the Hellcats... Perry Givens (16-15/3.66) was the only starter close to a winning record... Gil Younger (16-21/3.80) also gives them some quality starts... Emilian Burgess (.290/20/82/75) is the only consistent hitter on the club.

Last year's sixth place club, Blue Lake, is picked to move up to third place this season, but the Blue Sox have very limited talent... nothing on the mound and very little at bat except for rising star Jude Rupp (.302/19/95/83), 5-time All-Star Juan Luis Barcelona and Burl Baugh (.260/20/81/62).

Luxora was tied for second last year, but 12 games under the .500 mark... the Zorros are forecast for fourth place... it's been decades since the Z's made the playoffs... the last time was 2031... they still haven't won a Pro Cup or even come to close to one... no pitching to speak of and no bats to speak of, either... Emil Pasek (.288/23/84) and Tiago Chaves (.291/23/71/69) are the most productive bats.

Mahaska was fifth last season and could range from second to fifth this year... it's been a long, long time since they won a pennant... 2028 was years and years ago... still no Pro Cup in the Haymakers' trophy case... on the hill Boyd Hackman (18-17/3.06) and Pip Cordice (16-20/3.14) are pretty good young talents... the steady hitters are veteran Roger Lewis (.283/29/92/73), Goose Fulton (.272/15/85/81) and Gold Glove shortstop Rocco Bertara (.280/9/59/67)... Mahaska is just a fair-to-middling ball club.

Three clubs will battle in the bottom rungs of the Tycobbian North... after an unprecedented 11 division flags in 12 years and four Pro Cups, the North Hills Hawks have fallen on hard times... under .500 the last four seasons and seventh last year (36 GB)... sixth may be the best thing can do this year... Carver Dillon is the only good pitcher, a reliever... he was 14-9 in 81 appearances with 10 saves and a fine 2.91 ERA... Chuck Coltharpe (.309/31/85/107) is good talent... long-time veteran Tommy Vavas (.266/19/86/73) is still holding his own at age 38 after 19 seasons at second base... he is the last of the Pro Cup glory years.

The Oxford Red Caps came in fourth last year but with a losing record at 70-84 (32 GB) and seventh place is staring them in the face this year according to the preseason polls... no playoffs since 2007, the year they won their one and only Pro Cup... their best performers are starters Rudy Mellancamp (17-16/2.90) and Lou Ellison (20-15/3.77) and outfielder Mel Shadwell (.325/19/89/80).

It's been almost 20 years since the Fairfax Frogs made the postseason... for the last two seasons they have been deep in the TU North basement and this could be the third year in row... starter Shaun O'Riley (12-15/2.92) and reliever Lyle Linden (11-5/3.05/12 saves) are the best of the lot... Scott Courtney, a 5-time All-Star catcher, is the only threat they have... he batted .339 with 22 HRs, 75 RBIs and 77 runs... brand-new Hall-of-Famer John Velasco is the new Frogs' skipper, replacing Dane Wesner, who had been at the helm since '29.

SOUTHPORT FAVORED IN TU SOUTH AGAIN
Once again Southport is picked as the best club in the Tycobbian South Division... for the eighth time in 10 years they are expected to win the pennant... they are a very good club... the baseball experts say Southport will breeze to another division crown... Summerland, Colchester and Turon will put up the best resistance, but will be beaten by 10 or more games.

Not quite as good as White River, but Southport can still play the game... they are aging, but still in the race... the Sun Sox captured two Pro Cups in recent years, '44 and '47... top pitchers are Johnny Swanson (17-12/2.58) and Billy Hoover (19-13/3.12)... and Tom Chambers (22-11/3.33) and Brandon Delmore (17-10/3.90) are quality arms, too... the Sun Sox are extremely good in the bullpen with Troy Hill (14-5/1.85/21 saves) and Hal Combs (7-5/1.95/8 saves)... Southport is stocked well with reliable bats like Vasilis Vlachos (.293/27/93/78), Tony Patrano (.308/26/109/74), Nigel Colvin (.304/13/84/62), Owen Wallace (.288/4/60/94), Chris Jones (.304/4/55/90). and Zee Graham (.333/23/64/56)... Southport is a potential Pro Cup winner... they are a solid club.

The number-two pick Summerland Sunsets broke even last season and wound up a very distant fourth (21 GB)... much improved on the cellar finish in 2049 (40 GB)... improved hitting and pitching did the job... Jayson Hallstrom (23-14/2.79) is the ace and gets some help from Rudy Hilgendorf (17-13/3.42)... and Lanny Meredith is an up-and-coming 22-year-old despite his 11-20 record... Meredith posted a 3.22 ERA in almost 300 IP... Kenny Douglas (.263/32/96/90) and Alex Abbotson (.298/23/83/73) are the Sunsets' best bats... Summerland's last playoff appearance was in 2046... the Sunsets have never won a Pro Cup, but they came close in '40, losing a seven-game series to IPA champ Ranford.

The Colchester Elites were fifth last year (76-78 22 GB) and are the third choice this year... no great shakes on the mound with starters Lynwood Ginger (18-17/3.99) and Denzel Durand (16-16/3.75)... but they do have last year's TU Rookie of the Year 23-year-old Kelton McFalls, who burst on the scene with 43 homers, 113 RBIs and a .296 BA... and 21-year-old Eldon McLennan, a .321 hitter in his sophomore season with 13 homers, 76 RBIs, 101 runs and 37 SBs... McLennan was third in the IPA with 37 stolen bases... only Gilberto Spinoza of High Mesa was better with 41.

The Turon Typhoons were a distant third last year with a fine 84-70 record (14 GB)... it's been 12 years since their last postseason appearance, but the Typhoons do have a fabled history in the IPA with four Pro Cups ('03, '06, '09 and '18)... they also made the Finals in '10 and '17, but lost... Tom Fuller is a rock-solid starter at 22-10 and 3.19 ERA and closer Russell Mallory (12-2/1.81/12 saves) is a superb closer... the veteran bats are good with star Guido Gervasio (.288/24/83/80), star C. C Kingsford (.279/23/84/80), Wallace Sonnier (.285/26/77/63) and Buford Cloninger (.276/24/72.89)... youngster Neil Brandt (.293/24/77/57) is also a budding talent at catcher at age 24.

The San Alejo Montaneros won the pennant in 2049, but slipped to second place last year with a 90-64 mark (8 GB)... 2032 was the year of their only Pro Cup crown... still a very potent challenger to Southport with superstar starters Matt Bell (23-8/1.83), a three-time Golden Arm recipient, and Will McKinney (26-12/1.93), a two-time Golden Arm winner... both are 200-game winners and are still in the prime of their careers at age 31... they just need some help from starters three and four, Mickey Cronyn (10-12/4.29) and Benny Buckmaster (11-16/4.94)... need help in the bullpen, too... not much there... at the plate the Monties are pretty good, too, with former Golden Bat winner Royce Grantham (.272/30/95/100), star Paulo Teixeira (.311/30/104/102), Alanzo Grassi (.330/24/83/66), Benito Clemente (.25/10/62/99) and Erik Landau (.275/10/62/99)... San Alejo and Turon look like better contenders than Summerland and Colchester and should beat out the Sunsets and Elites for the runner-up and third spots in the standings.

The Ginza Ninjas have found a home in sixth place the last two seasons... 72-82 both years... 26 GB last year... no playoffs since 2031... and no Pro Cups ever in the club's history, though the Ninjas did play in the very first Pro Cup Finals and lost in a sweep to the Volusia Vigilantes... on the hill onlly Charley Waskins (16-12/4.76) had a winning record... Carlos Del Toro (12-18/3.49) had the best ERA in the starting rotation... and T. C. Gallimore (17-19/4.19) had the most victories... 37-year-old closer Timmy Hickens (10-5/2.34/17 saves) is still as tough as ever in the bullpen... outfield superstar, 9-time All-Star, three-time Gold Glover, Sogo Takagi (.315/32/96/114) is still a huge threat in the lineup at 37... he's a career .299 hitter with almost 500 homers and 1500 RBIs... he just doesn't have anyone to help him out... though Kuzuki Tamura (.297/4/65/63) and Kyle Estes (.267/13/95/69) are fair ballplayers... Ginza will still be a second-division team this season.

Arroyo Grande was last in 2050 (64-90 34 GB)... no pennants since 2024... and no IPA Pro Cups in its history... the Suns are just a bad team and franchise... Enrique Lopez (15-17/3.92) and Anthony Lombardi (13-19/4.14) are fairly good pitchers considering the short fences in Capet Stadium, which come in handy for sluggers like Norishige Ito (.284/46/121/120), Vince Kinston (.285/46/104/93) and Russell Taylor (.275/28/66/90)... Ito led the Tycobbian Union with 121 RBIs, tied with Miguel Romeros of Rolling Hills... Ito and Kinston were second in homers with 46, topped only by Nioka Inkamara of Bayview in TU, who hit 50... Johnny Wyatt led the IPA in homers with 57 for the Middlefield Roosters of the Ruthlandian Union.

Aftering winning the TU South Division crown in 2041 with a devastating offense, the Cape Coral Hurricanes have run aground and tapered off to a pretty much mediocre ballclub... they have settled near botton the last two seasons with identical 70-84 records, good for seventh place... the Hurricanes have never won a Pro Cup... they still score five runs a game but also give up five runs a game... top hitters are Scotty Jackson (.296/36/109/105), Teddy Plimpton (.237/19/95/96), Kent Mantle (.266/27/89/73), Tommy Jaggs (.310/14/86/53) and Dorson Crabbe (.281/11/66/69)... the best starters are vets Benton McCall (12-17/3.89) and Vernon Marks (15-16/3.97)... at age 37 closer Terry Baird (12-6/4/15/12 saves) had an off-year in the bullpen.

2051 Tycobbian Union North and South Divisions Preseason Predictions

01-07-2015, 07:22 PM	#4527
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,944	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Monday, April 3, 2051 RASCALS WILL ROMP AGAIN IN TU NORTH The White River Rascals won the Tycobbian North Division last year by an overwhelming 31 games... and the experts are predicting they will cruise through it again by a wide margin... at least by double digits... making it the third year in a row the Rascals have raked in the division flag... Hartsdale, Blue Lake, Luxora and Mahaska will do battle for the runner-up spot in the standings... White River is still smarting from being swept in the Pro Cup Finals last year by the Valmara Vipers... the Rascals have fallen two years in a row in the IPA title series to the Vipers... they would like nothing better than to claim it all this year... White River has never won a Pro Cup. White River has just about the finest mound foursome in the IPA, headed up by the Tycobbian MVP Butch Slattery (26-8/2.41)... included in that awesome rotation are Nicky Palmer (24-8/2.92), Keil Trickett (21-8/3.98) and Clem Warren (19-16/2.70)... the bullpen is in good hands, too, with closer Todd Cole (9-8/2.45/16 saves)... at the plate the Rascals can rip the ball with Billy Joe Hickman (.257/39/112/96), Ryne Hyland (.275/32/87/93), Kenny Yarbrough (.294/22/75/92), Ryan Byrd (.263/22/90/81, Kunta Burton (.321/7/62.830 and Ruben Reaves (.281/16/60/87). The Hartsdale Hellcats tied for second last year with Luxora... not a lot to brag about on the Hellcats... Perry Givens (16-15/3.66) was the only starter close to a winning record... Gil Younger (16-21/3.80) also gives them some quality starts... Emilian Burgess (.290/20/82/75) is the only consistent hitter on the club. Last year's sixth place club, Blue Lake, is picked to move up to third place this season, but the Blue Sox have very limited talent... nothing on the mound and very little at bat except for rising star Jude Rupp (.302/19/95/83), 5-time All-Star Juan Luis Barcelona and Burl Baugh (.260/20/81/62). Luxora was tied for second last year, but 12 games under the .500 mark... the Zorros are forecast for fourth place... it's been decades since the Z's made the playoffs... the last time was 2031... they still haven't won a Pro Cup or even come to close to one... no pitching to speak of and no bats to speak of, either... Emil Pasek (.288/23/84) and Tiago Chaves (.291/23/71/69) are the most productive bats. Mahaska was fifth last season and could range from second to fifth this year... it's been a long, long time since they won a pennant... 2028 was years and years ago... still no Pro Cup in the Haymakers' trophy case... on the hill Boyd Hackman (18-17/3.06) and Pip Cordice (16-20/3.14) are pretty good young talents... the steady hitters are veteran Roger Lewis (.283/29/92/73), Goose Fulton (.272/15/85/81) and Gold Glove shortstop Rocco Bertara (.280/9/59/67)... Mahaska is just a fair-to-middling ball club. Three clubs will battle in the bottom rungs of the Tycobbian North... after an unprecedented 11 division flags in 12 years and four Pro Cups, the North Hills Hawks have fallen on hard times... under .500 the last four seasons and seventh last year (36 GB)... sixth may be the best thing can do this year... Carver Dillon is the only good pitcher, a reliever... he was 14-9 in 81 appearances with 10 saves and a fine 2.91 ERA... Chuck Coltharpe (.309/31/85/107) is good talent... long-time veteran Tommy Vavas (.266/19/86/73) is still holding his own at age 38 after 19 seasons at second base... he is the last of the Pro Cup glory years. The Oxford Red Caps came in fourth last year but with a losing record at 70-84 (32 GB) and seventh place is staring them in the face this year according to the preseason polls... no playoffs since 2007, the year they won their one and only Pro Cup... their best performers are starters Rudy Mellancamp (17-16/2.90) and Lou Ellison (20-15/3.77) and outfielder Mel Shadwell (.325/19/89/80). It's been almost 20 years since the Fairfax Frogs made the postseason... for the last two seasons they have been deep in the TU North basement and this could be the third year in row... starter Shaun O'Riley (12-15/2.92) and reliever Lyle Linden (11-5/3.05/12 saves) are the best of the lot... Scott Courtney, a 5-time All-Star catcher, is the only threat they have... he batted .339 with 22 HRs, 75 RBIs and 77 runs... brand-new Hall-of-Famer John Velasco is the new Frogs' skipper, replacing Dane Wesner, who had been at the helm since '29. SOUTHPORT FAVORED IN TU SOUTH AGAIN Once again Southport is picked as the best club in the Tycobbian South Division... for the eighth time in 10 years they are expected to win the pennant... they are a very good club... the baseball experts say Southport will breeze to another division crown... Summerland, Colchester and Turon will put up the best resistance, but will be beaten by 10 or more games. Not quite as good as White River, but Southport can still play the game... they are aging, but still in the race... the Sun Sox captured two Pro Cups in recent years, '44 and '47... top pitchers are Johnny Swanson (17-12/2.58) and Billy Hoover (19-13/3.12)... and Tom Chambers (22-11/3.33) and Brandon Delmore (17-10/3.90) are quality arms, too... the Sun Sox are extremely good in the bullpen with Troy Hill (14-5/1.85/21 saves) and Hal Combs (7-5/1.95/8 saves)... Southport is stocked well with reliable bats like Vasilis Vlachos (.293/27/93/78), Tony Patrano (.308/26/109/74), Nigel Colvin (.304/13/84/62), Owen Wallace (.288/4/60/94), Chris Jones (.304/4/55/90). and Zee Graham (.333/23/64/56)... Southport is a potential Pro Cup winner... they are a solid club. The number-two pick Summerland Sunsets broke even last season and wound up a very distant fourth (21 GB)... much improved on the cellar finish in 2049 (40 GB)... improved hitting and pitching did the job... Jayson Hallstrom (23-14/2.79) is the ace and gets some help from Rudy Hilgendorf (17-13/3.42)... and Lanny Meredith is an up-and-coming 22-year-old despite his 11-20 record... Meredith posted a 3.22 ERA in almost 300 IP... Kenny Douglas (.263/32/96/90) and Alex Abbotson (.298/23/83/73) are the Sunsets' best bats... Summerland's last playoff appearance was in 2046... the Sunsets have never won a Pro Cup, but they came close in '40, losing a seven-game series to IPA champ Ranford. The Colchester Elites were fifth last year (76-78 22 GB) and are the third choice this year... no great shakes on the mound with starters Lynwood Ginger (18-17/3.99) and Denzel Durand (16-16/3.75)... but they do have last year's TU Rookie of the Year 23-year-old Kelton McFalls, who burst on the scene with 43 homers, 113 RBIs and a .296 BA... and 21-year-old Eldon McLennan, a .321 hitter in his sophomore season with 13 homers, 76 RBIs, 101 runs and 37 SBs... McLennan was third in the IPA with 37 stolen bases... only Gilberto Spinoza of High Mesa was better with 41. The Turon Typhoons were a distant third last year with a fine 84-70 record (14 GB)... it's been 12 years since their last postseason appearance, but the Typhoons do have a fabled history in the IPA with four Pro Cups ('03, '06, '09 and '18)... they also made the Finals in '10 and '17, but lost... Tom Fuller is a rock-solid starter at 22-10 and 3.19 ERA and closer Russell Mallory (12-2/1.81/12 saves) is a superb closer... the veteran bats are good with star Guido Gervasio (.288/24/83/80), star C. C Kingsford (.279/23/84/80), Wallace Sonnier (.285/26/77/63) and Buford Cloninger (.276/24/72.89)... youngster Neil Brandt (.293/24/77/57) is also a budding talent at catcher at age 24. The San Alejo Montaneros won the pennant in 2049, but slipped to second place last year with a 90-64 mark (8 GB)... 2032 was the year of their only Pro Cup crown... still a very potent challenger to Southport with superstar starters Matt Bell (23-8/1.83), a three-time Golden Arm recipient, and Will McKinney (26-12/1.93), a two-time Golden Arm winner... both are 200-game winners and are still in the prime of their careers at age 31... they just need some help from starters three and four, Mickey Cronyn (10-12/4.29) and Benny Buckmaster (11-16/4.94)... need help in the bullpen, too... not much there... at the plate the Monties are pretty good, too, with former Golden Bat winner Royce Grantham (.272/30/95/100), star Paulo Teixeira (.311/30/104/102), Alanzo Grassi (.330/24/83/66), Benito Clemente (.25/10/62/99) and Erik Landau (.275/10/62/99)... San Alejo and Turon look like better contenders than Summerland and Colchester and should beat out the Sunsets and Elites for the runner-up and third spots in the standings. The Ginza Ninjas have found a home in sixth place the last two seasons... 72-82 both years... 26 GB last year... no playoffs since 2031... and no Pro Cups ever in the club's history, though the Ninjas did play in the very first Pro Cup Finals and lost in a sweep to the Volusia Vigilantes... on the hill onlly Charley Waskins (16-12/4.76) had a winning record... Carlos Del Toro (12-18/3.49) had the best ERA in the starting rotation... and T. C. Gallimore (17-19/4.19) had the most victories... 37-year-old closer Timmy Hickens (10-5/2.34/17 saves) is still as tough as ever in the bullpen... outfield superstar, 9-time All-Star, three-time Gold Glover, Sogo Takagi (.315/32/96/114) is still a huge threat in the lineup at 37... he's a career .299 hitter with almost 500 homers and 1500 RBIs... he just doesn't have anyone to help him out... though Kuzuki Tamura (.297/4/65/63) and Kyle Estes (.267/13/95/69) are fair ballplayers... Ginza will still be a second-division team this season. Arroyo Grande was last in 2050 (64-90 34 GB)... no pennants since 2024... and no IPA Pro Cups in its history... the Suns are just a bad team and franchise... Enrique Lopez (15-17/3.92) and Anthony Lombardi (13-19/4.14) are fairly good pitchers considering the short fences in Capet Stadium, which come in handy for sluggers like Norishige Ito (.284/46/121/120), Vince Kinston (.285/46/104/93) and Russell Taylor (.275/28/66/90)... Ito led the Tycobbian Union with 121 RBIs, tied with Miguel Romeros of Rolling Hills... Ito and Kinston were second in homers with 46, topped only by Nioka Inkamara of Bayview in TU, who hit 50... Johnny Wyatt led the IPA in homers with 57 for the Middlefield Roosters of the Ruthlandian Union. Aftering winning the TU South Division crown in 2041 with a devastating offense, the Cape Coral Hurricanes have run aground and tapered off to a pretty much mediocre ballclub... they have settled near botton the last two seasons with identical 70-84 records, good for seventh place... the Hurricanes have never won a Pro Cup... they still score five runs a game but also give up five runs a game... top hitters are Scotty Jackson (.296/36/109/105), Teddy Plimpton (.237/19/95/96), Kent Mantle (.266/27/89/73), Tommy Jaggs (.310/14/86/53) and Dorson Crabbe (.281/11/66/69)... the best starters are vets Benton McCall (12-17/3.89) and Vernon Marks (15-16/3.97)... at age 37 closer Terry Baird (12-6/4/15/12 saves) had an off-year in the bullpen. 2051 Tycobbian Union North and South Divisions Preseason Predictions Attached Images Last edited by Eugene Church; 05-29-2020 at 08:00 PM.