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Eugene Church · 01-11-2018, 10:35 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, May 1, 2056

NO BIG SURPRISES IN THE IPA
Four of the favorites are in first place after the first month of play in the Islandian Pro Alliance and in most cases the other four are well within striking distance of first place... all of the divisions have good, tight races so far... so almost everyone in the IPA still has high hopes for the new year... as they say, "Hope springs eternal"... especially in baseball.

TARS, REDHAWKS TIED IN RU NORTH
Preseason favorite Taranto (16-10) and last year's champ Far Mountain (16-10) did very well in April and are deadlocked at the top of the Ruthlandian North, but they have bunches of competition... Valmara (14-12) and Ranford (14-12) are tied for third place... LaGrange (13-13) and Kilkenny (13-13) are fifth with breakeven records... seventh place Ancona (11-15) had a poor April... and last place Glasco (6-20) was awful.

Taranto (16-10) and Far Mountain (16-10) both have outstanding pitching staffs and are heads-and-shoulders above the other six clubs... the Tars are ranked second in the RU with a superb 2.83 ERA... Valerio Rossi had a brilliant beginning with a 6-0 mark and a 2.29 ERA for the Tars in the first month... others in the rotation ace Phil Castle (2-3/3.75), Freddy De Angelis (2-1/3.38), and Chris Gallo (3-3/3.70) are holding their own... at the plate RF Lenny Buisson (.364/7 HR/8 RBI/17 R), CF Vito Lombardi (.358/3 HR/10 RBI) and 3B Mark Trupiano (.326/3 HR/11 RBI), 2B Gaetano Palombo (.284/3 HR/14 RBI) and C Niccolo Parisi (.266/3 HR/13 RBI) have been supplying the runs... all of them are off to a good start... none of the talented rookies had a good April, but the Tars didn't need them.

The Far Mountain Redhawks (16-10) still can't hit a lick, but they sure stand out on the mound... both starters and bullpen are doing very well... third in the RU with a 2.90 team ERA... top arms are Eldon Bittner (4-2/1.19), Ryan Kolb (4-1/3.06), Stan Smith (1-2/3.29) and Benny Van (3-4/3.67)... the Redhawks get most of their scoring from star CF Ox Gless (.281/3 HR/13 RBI/14 R/4 SB), SS Carl Allardyce (.294/3 HR/12 RBI/10 R/1 SB) and sophomore 3B Luke Hazlett (.300/2 HR/12 RBI/11 R/1 SB)... only one rookie doing well... good-fielding 2B Gunter Albrecht (.255/2 HR/11 RBI)... the Redhawks had a very good month.

It was a pretty good month for the third place Valmara Vipers (14-12) in spite of the so-so pitching... only Primo Sirak (4-2/2.44) and 20-year-old second-year man Smoke Dillane (4-2/3.29) did well in the rotation... others will have to step it up if the Vipers want to contend with Taranto... 30 home runs was the reason Valmara has a winning record, sparked by C Karol Koska (.261/5 HR/19 RBI), LF Boyd Holmes (.308/4 HR/9 RBI) and young 1B Timmy Binford (.314/3 HR/17 RBI)... and sophomore 2B Vladimir Szymanski (.278/2 HR/10 RBI/13 R) also helped out.

The third place Ranford Bulls (14-12) have a solid offense with a .280 BA, but lackluster pitching... the top bat was LF Jedd Blodgett (.315/2 HR/11 RBI/23 R/8 SB), who really had a fine April... Blodgett is in his second season and only 21 years old... other contributors were SS Gonzie Spencer (.267/5 HR/14 RBI/14 R), SS John Billingsley (.286/2 HR/15 RBI/12 R) and CF Joey Hawkins (.300/2 HR/12 RBI/7 R/3 SB)... and platooned against lefties, RF Ethan Padgett (.594/2 HR/12 HR) was super in 9 games... only Dutch Hawood (5-1/1.60) had a good month on the hill... 38-year-old superstar ace Ralph Hawk (2-2/4.18) only had a fair month... totally unlike him... is age catching up with him?... and yes, Martin Futch (2-0/0.00/2 saves/7 G) is still a great closer... 24-year-old rookie right-hander Primo Uzzo (1-1/2.45) looked strong in his first two starts... let's see how he does in May... to be a serious pennant contender the Bulls needs help in the starting rotation.

Fifth place LaGrange (13-13) broke even for April and they were just about the worst offensive team in the Ruthlandian Union... but they had pretty good pitching... Amos Wadsworth (3-3/3.22), J. T. Dwyer (2-3/4.06) and Rodger Gagnier (1-3/2.95) are a solid set of starters... and the Sports have three other possibles in Elvis Capell (0-0/3.55), Rudy Bonnett (1-0/2.55) and Pat Causey (1-2/2.55)... things are looking brighter for LaGrange on the mound, but they need some bats... you can't win without a few runs... the future is dismal when your top batters are only somewhat decent... the team leaders are 1B Billy Broadway (.290/3 HR/9 RBI/9 R) and C Teddy Tottingham (.284/1 HR/6 RBI/5 R).

April was a good month for the Kilkenny Cats (13-13)... but they are absolutely the poorest batting team in the entire IPA with a pathetic .217 BA... not much more than mediocre on the mound with a 4.04 ERA... so don't expect them to stay this high in the standings for long... the Cats have been last in the RU North the last two years... Billy Joe Wooster (4-2/3.00) and Carroll Hudsmith (2-0/3.19) were solid the first month of the season... time and arm trouble may mean the end for longtime ace Glen Caswell (3-1/4.63)... he's 38 and missed all of last year... workhorse Braydon Washbourne (0-4/3.96) is a reliable starter, but things didn't go well for him in April... pitched well, but didn't get a break... you know you are going to have trouble scoring runs when your top hitters are SS Rex Parkhill (.293/1 HR/10 RBI/11 R/10 SB) and RF Clyde Cooper (.262/2 HR/12 RBI/14 R/4 SB)... and the big RBI guy 1B Ryan Reagan hit only .153 in April, but did hit 5 homers and drive in 11 runs and score 15 runs.

After the initial month of play the Ancona Red Elephants (11-15) are in seventh place, about where they are forecast to end up... just a drab and ho-hum team... but they do have an exciting rookie hurler in 21-year-old Yanni Bubas (2-2/2.98), coupled with a couple of dependable vets like Hank Worsley (3-3/3.74) and Roger Kostas (2-3/4.91)... a fair starting rotation... and Chet Shelton (0-2/1.93/4 saves/8 G) is a fireballer of the first degree in the bullpen... Ancona is just fair at the plate with the likes of LF Rusty Northcutt (.321/6 HR/14 RBI/11 R/3 SB), RF Franco Briganti (.310/3 HR/12 RBI) and 19-year-old rookie C Robin Hargroder (.286/2 HR/12 RBI/15 R)... looks like a long season in Ancona.

Not a lot went right for the hapless Glasco Athletics (6-20) in the first month of the season... the A's are a serious challenger for the worst team in the IPA... their 36-year-old ace Evan Walsh (1-4/4.30) is getting long in the tooth and struggling badly on the hill... but two youngsters, Herb Goodman (3-2/3.93) and rookie Monte France (2-4/3.06) show some potential... Goodman is in his sophomore season at age 21... France is a freshman and 22... Royce Blackstreet (0-0/2.51/11 G) just got promoted to the starting rotation after doing well in the bullpen... he's only 20... the future looks good in Glasco as far as the starters... there's nothing in the bullpen now... batting-wise the Athletics are having a real tough time putting runs on the scoreboard... they sport a .251 BA... LF Callum Slattery (.330/3 HR/13 RBI/15 R/3 SB), a .325 career batter in his fifth season, is a top-notched threat with some help from C Gordy Glisson (.306/2 HR/10 RBI/9 R) and 3B Allen Spears (.323/0 HR/9 RBI/13 R)... a reliable bat 2B Ross McFalls (.189/4 HR/13 RBI) has been slow to start this season... the offensive outlook is not very good for Glasco.

01-11-2018, 10:35 PM	#5645
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,749 Blog Entries: 1	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Monday, May 1, 2056 NO BIG SURPRISES IN THE IPA Four of the favorites are in first place after the first month of play in the Islandian Pro Alliance and in most cases the other four are well within striking distance of first place... all of the divisions have good, tight races so far... so almost everyone in the IPA still has high hopes for the new year... as they say, "Hope springs eternal"... especially in baseball. TARS, REDHAWKS TIED IN RU NORTH Preseason favorite Taranto (16-10) and last year's champ Far Mountain (16-10) did very well in April and are deadlocked at the top of the Ruthlandian North, but they have bunches of competition... Valmara (14-12) and Ranford (14-12) are tied for third place... LaGrange (13-13) and Kilkenny (13-13) are fifth with breakeven records... seventh place Ancona (11-15) had a poor April... and last place Glasco (6-20) was awful. Taranto (16-10) and Far Mountain (16-10) both have outstanding pitching staffs and are heads-and-shoulders above the other six clubs... the Tars are ranked second in the RU with a superb 2.83 ERA... Valerio Rossi had a brilliant beginning with a 6-0 mark and a 2.29 ERA for the Tars in the first month... others in the rotation ace Phil Castle (2-3/3.75), Freddy De Angelis (2-1/3.38), and Chris Gallo (3-3/3.70) are holding their own... at the plate RF Lenny Buisson (.364/7 HR/8 RBI/17 R), CF Vito Lombardi (.358/3 HR/10 RBI) and 3B Mark Trupiano (.326/3 HR/11 RBI), 2B Gaetano Palombo (.284/3 HR/14 RBI) and C Niccolo Parisi (.266/3 HR/13 RBI) have been supplying the runs... all of them are off to a good start... none of the talented rookies had a good April, but the Tars didn't need them. The Far Mountain Redhawks (16-10) still can't hit a lick, but they sure stand out on the mound... both starters and bullpen are doing very well... third in the RU with a 2.90 team ERA... top arms are Eldon Bittner (4-2/1.19), Ryan Kolb (4-1/3.06), Stan Smith (1-2/3.29) and Benny Van (3-4/3.67)... the Redhawks get most of their scoring from star CF Ox Gless (.281/3 HR/13 RBI/14 R/4 SB), SS Carl Allardyce (.294/3 HR/12 RBI/10 R/1 SB) and sophomore 3B Luke Hazlett (.300/2 HR/12 RBI/11 R/1 SB)... only one rookie doing well... good-fielding 2B Gunter Albrecht (.255/2 HR/11 RBI)... the Redhawks had a very good month. It was a pretty good month for the third place Valmara Vipers (14-12) in spite of the so-so pitching... only Primo Sirak (4-2/2.44) and 20-year-old second-year man Smoke Dillane (4-2/3.29) did well in the rotation... others will have to step it up if the Vipers want to contend with Taranto... 30 home runs was the reason Valmara has a winning record, sparked by C Karol Koska (.261/5 HR/19 RBI), LF Boyd Holmes (.308/4 HR/9 RBI) and young 1B Timmy Binford (.314/3 HR/17 RBI)... and sophomore 2B Vladimir Szymanski (.278/2 HR/10 RBI/13 R) also helped out. The third place Ranford Bulls (14-12) have a solid offense with a .280 BA, but lackluster pitching... the top bat was LF Jedd Blodgett (.315/2 HR/11 RBI/23 R/8 SB), who really had a fine April... Blodgett is in his second season and only 21 years old... other contributors were SS Gonzie Spencer (.267/5 HR/14 RBI/14 R), SS John Billingsley (.286/2 HR/15 RBI/12 R) and CF Joey Hawkins (.300/2 HR/12 RBI/7 R/3 SB)... and platooned against lefties, RF Ethan Padgett (.594/2 HR/12 HR) was super in 9 games... only Dutch Hawood (5-1/1.60) had a good month on the hill... 38-year-old superstar ace Ralph Hawk (2-2/4.18) only had a fair month... totally unlike him... is age catching up with him?... and yes, Martin Futch (2-0/0.00/2 saves/7 G) is still a great closer... 24-year-old rookie right-hander Primo Uzzo (1-1/2.45) looked strong in his first two starts... let's see how he does in May... to be a serious pennant contender the Bulls needs help in the starting rotation. Fifth place LaGrange (13-13) broke even for April and they were just about the worst offensive team in the Ruthlandian Union... but they had pretty good pitching... Amos Wadsworth (3-3/3.22), J. T. Dwyer (2-3/4.06) and Rodger Gagnier (1-3/2.95) are a solid set of starters... and the Sports have three other possibles in Elvis Capell (0-0/3.55), Rudy Bonnett (1-0/2.55) and Pat Causey (1-2/2.55)... things are looking brighter for LaGrange on the mound, but they need some bats... you can't win without a few runs... the future is dismal when your top batters are only somewhat decent... the team leaders are 1B Billy Broadway (.290/3 HR/9 RBI/9 R) and C Teddy Tottingham (.284/1 HR/6 RBI/5 R). April was a good month for the Kilkenny Cats (13-13)... but they are absolutely the poorest batting team in the entire IPA with a pathetic .217 BA... not much more than mediocre on the mound with a 4.04 ERA... so don't expect them to stay this high in the standings for long... the Cats have been last in the RU North the last two years... Billy Joe Wooster (4-2/3.00) and Carroll Hudsmith (2-0/3.19) were solid the first month of the season... time and arm trouble may mean the end for longtime ace Glen Caswell (3-1/4.63)... he's 38 and missed all of last year... workhorse Braydon Washbourne (0-4/3.96) is a reliable starter, but things didn't go well for him in April... pitched well, but didn't get a break... you know you are going to have trouble scoring runs when your top hitters are SS Rex Parkhill (.293/1 HR/10 RBI/11 R/10 SB) and RF Clyde Cooper (.262/2 HR/12 RBI/14 R/4 SB)... and the big RBI guy 1B Ryan Reagan hit only .153 in April, but did hit 5 homers and drive in 11 runs and score 15 runs. After the initial month of play the Ancona Red Elephants (11-15) are in seventh place, about where they are forecast to end up... just a drab and ho-hum team... but they do have an exciting rookie hurler in 21-year-old Yanni Bubas (2-2/2.98), coupled with a couple of dependable vets like Hank Worsley (3-3/3.74) and Roger Kostas (2-3/4.91)... a fair starting rotation... and Chet Shelton (0-2/1.93/4 saves/8 G) is a fireballer of the first degree in the bullpen... Ancona is just fair at the plate with the likes of LF Rusty Northcutt (.321/6 HR/14 RBI/11 R/3 SB), RF Franco Briganti (.310/3 HR/12 RBI) and 19-year-old rookie C Robin Hargroder (.286/2 HR/12 RBI/15 R)... looks like a long season in Ancona. Not a lot went right for the hapless Glasco Athletics (6-20) in the first month of the season... the A's are a serious challenger for the worst team in the IPA... their 36-year-old ace Evan Walsh (1-4/4.30) is getting long in the tooth and struggling badly on the hill... but two youngsters, Herb Goodman (3-2/3.93) and rookie Monte France (2-4/3.06) show some potential... Goodman is in his sophomore season at age 21... France is a freshman and 22... Royce Blackstreet (0-0/2.51/11 G) just got promoted to the starting rotation after doing well in the bullpen... he's only 20... the future looks good in Glasco as far as the starters... there's nothing in the bullpen now... batting-wise the Athletics are having a real tough time putting runs on the scoreboard... they sport a .251 BA... LF Callum Slattery (.330/3 HR/13 RBI/15 R/3 SB), a .325 career batter in his fifth season, is a top-notched threat with some help from C Gordy Glisson (.306/2 HR/10 RBI/9 R) and 3B Allen Spears (.323/0 HR/9 RBI/13 R)... a reliable bat 2B Ross McFalls (.189/4 HR/13 RBI) has been slow to start this season... the offensive outlook is not very good for Glasco. Last edited by Eugene Church; 01-16-2018 at 09:26 PM.