March 2002
25 March, 2002
Los Angeles. It's the day after the Academy Awards. Russell Crowe sits in a dark room. A non-famous enters.
Non-Famous Person: Hey.......... Russ........ Any chance of getting you out of this dark room today?
Russell Crowe: Darkness is my only friend today.
Non-Famous Person: Okay. I know you were disappointed to not win but winning it two years in a row is pretty much unheard of.
Russell Crowe: Tom Hanks did it.
Non-Famous Person: Well, yes but...
Russell Crowe: What? You think Tom Hanks is better than me?
Non-Famous Person: I'm not saying that.
Russell Crowe: Is it possible I'm not the greatest actor that's ever existed?
Non-Famous Person: Well...
Russell Crowe: Ron Howard won two Oscars last night. Ron Howard has more Oscars than me. Can you believe that? Ron Howard looks like a dirty condom and has more Oscars than me.
Non-Famous Person: Don't make me choose between you and Ron Howard. You know where my heart truly lies.
Russell Crowe: Fine, I just have some introspection to go through. This is some big stuff.
Non-Famous Person: Don't you have a baseball competition named after you? In Austria or something? What's going on with that?
Russell Crowe: What are you on about?
29 March, 2002
The chances of the Waikato River Bandits took a hit as Baseball's second highest paid player 1B Willem Ladds announced that he had been diagnosed with concussion and was on doctor's orders to stand down for the rest of the season. Pundits don't think they've got what it takes to make the playoffs without Ladds.
30 March, 2002
The Tasmania Tigers will hold the Abel Tasman Shield this season. The Shield will be awarded to the winner of the matches between the Tigers and the Tasman Sunbirds. Back in December, the 3 game series was played out in Hobart with the Tigers taking a 2-1 lead. The return series in Nelson saw Tasmania win the first two games to confirm their victory.
Stat Watch
We've abandoned our watch on 150+ RBI and the batting triple crown.
50 Home Runs? Ciaran Mackay (Bay of Plenty) is currently projected at 49. He's at 41 with a month to go.
20 Wins? Rex Courcha (Taranaki) has slipped to a projection of 19 so might narrowly miss out.
March Award Winners
Kiwi Batter of the Month: Kian Maclean (Taranaki, LF) was unstoppable as the Bulls picked up a 16-11 record in March. In 27 games, he averaged .450 with 7 home runs, 23 RBIs, and scored 21 runs.
Kiwi Pitcher of the Month: Baden Woodger (Tasman) had a record of 4-1 with an ERA of 1.54. In 41 innings he struck out 53, surrendering 22 hits and 7 walks.
Kiwi Rookie of the Month: Randolph Stranaghan (Taranaki, C) hit .465 with 2 doubles, 3 home runs, 8 runs, and 7 RBIs.
Kangaroo Batter of the Month: Rex Dulihanty (Adelaide, CF) put together a solid body of work for Adelaide. He hit .311 with 5 home runs, 21 RBIs, and 25 runs scored.
Kangaroo Pitcher of the Month: Willem Colcott (Queensland) is the first closer to pick up this award. He's bounced back after being suspended for 7 games back in January. During March he collected 10 saves, 16 strikeouts in 14 innings, and held the opposition to a .125 average. He had a 0.00 ERA and put up a 3-0 record.
Kangaroo Rookie of the Month: Hui Phan (Melbourne, CF) hit .363 with 1 home run, 6 RBIs, and 13 runs during March.
For the second month in a row, a team in the Australian conference has risen from 9th to 3rd over a month just to show how close it is. After the exploits of the Sharks in February, the Firebirds went 20-7 in March and are now in a great position to challenge for a playoff spot. Finally living up to their preseason hype.
Looking at the other teams in Australia, the Adelaide Zips keep a tight hold on their number one slot with a 7 game lead over the second placed Canberra Power. The Zips have had the best record (42-24) of any team since the All-Star break and are looking good. They are only one win away from making their pre-season prediction.
The Canberra Power have a strong hold on that second spot with a 9 game lead over the Firebirds.
The final two playoff spots looks like it'll be a 6-way battle. Queensland, Newcastle, Sydney, Geelong, Illawarra, and Tasmania are all with striking distance.
In New Zealand, the Bay of Plenty continue their rampage and hold a 7 game lead over the rest of the pack. 5 teams are trying to grab the final 3 spots: Canterbury, Auckland, Taranaki, Waikato and Otago.
Canterbury are performing above expectations. They're only two wins away from hitting their pre-season prediction in wins! That 8 game losing streak is a bit concerning though.