[Eugene Church]

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Friday, May 1, 2054

NOTHING NEW IN RU WEST, ROOSTERS REIGN
The Middlefield Roosters (18-6) have been the best in the west for almost a decade, copping 7 Ruthlandian West Division flags... they are currently on a string of 5 pennants in a row... after a month of play the red-hot Roosters have built up a 3-game edge over runners-up Sligo (15-9) and Rocky Rapids (15-9)... and they are 7 games better than fourth place Fort Benton (11-13)... the Rovers and Snappers were their main competition last season, but didn't really offer much of a challenge... Sligo (90-64) was second and 9 GB and Rocky Rapids (84-70) third and 15 games back.

First place Middlefield (18-6) is still a powerhouse with a fine attack and better-than-average pitching... this year manager Ricky Tinker's Roosters top the RU in scoring runs with 148 and are second in homers with 27... as a team they are hitting .284 (3rd)... on the hill they rank 14th with a 3.72 team ERA... RF Trip Agarn (.365 BA/4 HR/20 RBI/14 R/2 SB) is off to a great start... backed up in the batting order by superstar CF Johnny Wyatt (.256/5/19/13), SS Stan Radzikowski (.316/4/16/22/7 SB), C Johnny McDonald (.306/2/15/11), 1B Skyler Hanson (.301/0/10/17/3 SB) and 2B Gil McCormick (.324/0/8/13)... ranging from 33 to 39, the starters are old, but effective, at least for Hollis Dale (5-0/2.45) and James Long (4-0/2.70)... the other two, Carroll Collier (3-2/6.31) and Larry Wheelhouse (3-3/5.20) had poor Aprils... and closer Norm Coventry (2-1/0.00/5 saves/12 G) is off to a great start in the bullpen... Tinker badly needs some infusion of youth on his mound staff... still Middlefield still has enough to make a run at its third Pro Cup... the Roosters won it in 2005 and 2052... and were one of the favorites to win it last year.

Manager Les Patterson has a fine pitching corps in Sligo... the Sligo Rovers (15-9) are second this season with a superb 2.72 ERA, headed up by starters Bruce Belden (3-3/2/56), Mitch Taylor (3-0/1.29), Mickey Walsh (3-2/3.38) and Tiger Snodgrass (3-2/3.80)... and Aydan Evans (2-1/1.77/2 saves/7 G) is strong in the bullpen, too... however, the Rovers can't hit a lick, batting a lowly .257 (17th), scoring few runs (30th) and hitting few homers (30th)... the best of the lot are 3B Paddy Dunham (.284 BA/1 HR/11 RBI/13 R), LF Artie Hartwell (.308/0/8/7/5 SB) and 2B Rex Mathis (.261/0/5/13/2 SB), CF Merle Bliss (.258/2/9/11/5 SB) and SS Clancy Beaufort (.292/1/7/5)... Sligo wastes a lot of quality starts because of its inferior offense... tough to win a division that way.

The Rocky Rapids Snappers (15-9) are tied for second place in the RU West, trailing Middlefield by 3 games... skipper Junior Noland (169-144/3.44 ERA), a fine Sligo pitcher in his day, has molded a pretty capable crew... his staff has posted an impressive 2.80 ERA (3rd)... and the team is fairly good at the plate with a .271 BA (11th), 104 runs (16th-tied) and 19 homers (16th-tied)... 25-year-old Clay Callaghan (4-1/1.08) has been brilliant in his first two seasons and is off to a great start this year... all-time great Jamie Taylor (4-2/3.08) is also doing well at age 37... he is 304-216 in his career with a splendid 2.54 ERA... the other two starters Sammy Sterling (2-2/3.58) and Ernie Starcher (2-3/3.91) have given Rocky Rapids some quality starts, too... the Snappers' offense is sparked by 1B Deke Lundy (.358 BA/3 HR/12 RBI/7 R), LF Billy Martindale (.314/3/15/16/5 SB), star 2B Marty Featherstone (.269/2/10/13), SS Craig Minton (.323/2/13/17/2 SB) and C Pat Stennett (.256/3/13/8)... Rocky Rapids on paper looks to be better than Sligo this season because of its more productive offense.

For the last 12 seasons the Fort Benton Defenders (11-13) have wound up deep in the second division of the RU West, finishing last 7 times... only once in the club's dismal history has it made the playoffs and that was in 2037... but this season manager Augie Marquis has them fourth in the standings... however, they are already 7 games behind Middlefield... but this is nothing to shout about... the Defenders are just fair at the plate and on the hill, ranking 23rd in run scoring and 19th in ERA... Zeke Yoder (2-2/3.04) and Mark Chester (3-2/4.00) are his best starters... not much talent beyond them in the rotation... in the bullpen Darius Kimberly (2-2/2.08/1 save/11 G) has been solid so far... leading the offense are SS Lucien Lindsey (.322 BA/2 HR/10 RBI/11 R/4 SB), CF Teddy Keyes (.245/0/12/16/7 SB) and RF Dingo Mantle (.278/2/8/13)... don't expect much from Fort Benton again this year... not a lot of talent present.

The fifth-place Forest City Firebirds (10-14) are 8 GB, skippered by Rich Barstow, who labored on the mound for years in obscurity and with bad teams... still he managed 269 wins and 295 losses with a pretty fair 3.79 career ERA... Barstow has been fairly successful with 7 first-division finishes in the last 8 years... the last postseason appearance was 2048... the Firebirds have never won a Pro Cup and have only made the playoffs on 5 occasions... they are just average bats and poor pitchers... not a good recipe for success in the IPA... 2B John Foley (.319 BA/1 HR/10 RBI/17 R/2 SB), CF Randy Snow (.304/0/8/14/1 SB) and SS Ziggy Regan (.280/1/5/14/4 SB) are just fair hitters with no power... Craig Hurley (4-1/3.95) is the only reliable starter... there is nothing in the bullpen... the second division is the most likely spot for Forest City this year... 5th or 6th may be the best they can do.

Tubby Tarkanian, a journeyman catcher, is at the helm of the Volusia Vigilantes (9-15)... and it looks like the V's are on the decline... they are tied for sixth place in the RU West, 9 GB... the Vigilantes ended up third in 2052 with an 82-72 mark (24 GB) and fifth last season with 76-78 (23 GB)... but the pitching and offense is very bleak thus far... both of them are on the downside... Mateus Branco (2-2/2.20) is the ace of the staff with some help from Cloyd Queen (2-3/3.83)... Dan Hunt (1-2/1.59/2 saves/10 G) is solid in the bullpen... at the plate the V's are paced by 3B Teddy Cornelius (.306 BA/1 HR/11 RBI/17 R), RF Jimmy Robinson (.273/4/10/11) and C Ben Billings (.276/2/9/11)... Volusia have been to the playoffs 9 times... the last RU West flag came in 2043... the Vigilantes do have a Pro Cup trophy... they captured the inaugural Pro Cup in the first IPA season in 2001, defeating the Ginza Ninjas.

The Colfax Blasters (9-15) are also in sixth place... Mitch Fullerton is in charge of the club... they can score runs with a .279 BA (6th), ranking 9th in scoring and 16th in roundtrippers, but they are terrible in the pitching department with an atrocious 5.43 ERA (32nd)... Colfax has ended up deep in the second division the last two seasons with 64-90 (7th) and 75-79 (6th) records in '52 and '53... the Blasters may be worse this year... 13 times the team has made the postseason playoffs... most recently in '42... Colfax has won only one Pro Cup... that was in 2010 with one of the greatest teams in IPA history... the Blasters registered a whopping 107 wins that year... Colfax picked up a fine RF Stan Kovalenko (.313 BA/1 HR/10 RBI/19 R/2 SB) from Bay St. Clair for two players... other quality bats are 1B Nicky Yorke (.283/4/17/17) and 3B Nigel Colvin (.354/1/9/13)... spot starter Jorgen Krogstad (3-0/3.82/12 G) is the only pitcher worth mentioning... all the other have ERAs way over the 5.00 mark.

The Stoner Stars (8-16) are last in the RU West, managed by Fletch Fowler... he has average pitching (17th) and lousy hitting (32nd)... the Stars have only made 3 appearances in the postseason with the last pennant coming way back in '29... Stoner has never won a Pro Cup... Kade Crow (1-3/3.00) and Al Raver (2-3/3.50) are the only effective pitchers and LF Steve Brunson (.325 BA/3 HR/14 RBI/8 R/2 SB) the only reliable bat in the lineup... SS Mac Lord (.283/0/11/12) and RF Sammy Bierman (.250/2/13/9) are the best of the rest... Stoner was 7th last year with a 72-82 record (27 GB) and 75-79 (31 GB) in '52... things don't look so good this year so far.