[Eugene Church]

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 16, 2058

Z'S EDGE FROGS, RED CAPS AND HAWKS IN TU NORTH
All year long in the Tycobbian North Division the race was intense and nerve-wracking... three teams, Luxora, Oxford and North Hills, played seesaw most of the season... there wasn't very much daylight between them the entire year... then suddenly, the preseason favorite Fairfax Frogs, leaped up and made them all sweat with a tremendous stretch-drive run... when the torrid race was final settled, it was the underrated Luxora Zorros (89-65), who rode high in the saddle and raced away with the TU North title... the Z's just barely held off the high-flying Frogs (88-66) by one game... two other contenders, Oxford (86-68) and North Hills (86-68), ended in a tie for third place, just 3 games off the pace.

1st Place: LUXORA ZORROS (89-65)
Preseason Rating: 6th Place
Last Year: 3rd Place (80-74) (8 GB)
Two Years Ago: 7th Place (69-86) (13 GB)
Outlook: In his 7th year at the helm of the Zorros, Kent Halloran won the Tycobbian North division flag, their first since 2031... the Z's have made the postseason 12 times, but have yet to capture the much-desired Pro Cup trophy... his club is on the rise with good hitting, scoring and home-run power... plus the mound staff is a good one... all the elements needed to win a Pro Cup... all of this came out of the blue... the Zorros were picked to finished 6th this year in the standings... surprise, surprise... they won the pennant... and now Luxora wants to win the whole shebang... the overall IPA championship.

Halloran has a fine foursome in his rotation with Juliano Machado (22-8/3.36), Jimmy Hollis (16-11/3.21), Paolo De Freitas (15-13/3.42) and Wallace MacPherson (15-14/3.72)... Luxora's only weakness is a so-so bullpen... Bartolo Baptista (2-5/3.60 ERA/31 saves/50 G) was somewhat erratic, but still had a lot of saves to his credit... this will hurt in the playoffs... Halloran has a slew full of run producers with 1B Wade Tibbs (.323 BA/28 HR/95 RBI/95 R/2 SB), C Francisco Queiro (.316/35/100/91), LF Marvin Harrelson (.289/25/77/103/13 SB), CF Vito Angeletti (.251/25/83/76), RF Omar Solis (.290/21/64/61) and 2B Ryo Nijo (.280/18/66/58/4 SB)... the Z's hammered 210 out of the park this year, second to Oxford's IPA-leading 260 roundtrippers... good pitching and lots of home runs is a good formula for success in the postseason.

2nd Place: Fairfax Frogs (88-66) (1 GB)
Preseason Rating: 1st Place
Last Year: 7th Place (72-82) (16 GB)
Two Years Ago: 6th Place (73-81) (9 GB)
Outlook: 26 years have come and gone since Fairfax was last blessed with a division championship... that was way back in 2033... lo and behold, the lily pads are in profuse abundance in Fairfax... and The Frog Pond is ablaze with delectable delicacies in the form of flying insects and such... for a change times are good for the Fairfax Frogs and they almost won the TU North... for 11 straight years they were a bad, second-division team... then, out of nowhere in the sportswriters' preseason poll, the Frogs were chosen as the best team in the Tycobbian North... and they might well be the best team, but they fell short of the pennant by only one game... the team started slowly, had a bad May, but then kick it in gear and went to town the rest of the year... all in all, it was a fantastic season for the Frogs and the longsuffering Fairfax fans... the Frogs have made the playoffs 8 times in their existence, but have not won a Pro Cup.

Second-year skipper Ken Hill has them firing on all cylinders since taking over in '57... many felt that Hill was too old for the job... he was a fine starter for the Frogs from 2010 to 2029, posting a 313-271 mark with a fine 3.03 career ERA... many felt that modern baseball had past him by... but the 68-year-old Hall of Famer has proven his critics wrong... Hill came close to winning the team's first pennant since 2033... Fairfax has the second best pitching in the Tycobbian Union... only Southport did better... and the Frogs have a little better-than-average offense... Hall has a heck of a staff with rookie Ronnie Custer (22-10/2.45), Claude Elliot (16-4/2.70), Clyde Sowers (14-13/3.29) and Norb Eberly (12-13/3.99)... his bullpen is well-stocked with excellent closer Val Jackson (2-2/1/54 ERA/38 saves/52 G)... the Frog attack is pretty good with the likes of rookie LF Ron Travis (.330/23/92/87/9 SB), SS Kirk Waner (.298 BA/23 HR/85 RBI/100 R/15 SB), CF Paddy Fenroy (.278/5/64/95/17 SB), rookie RF Rory Sutcliffe (.279/14/80/89/13 SB) and C Mike Mitchell (.280/13/66/77)... the future for Ken Hall and his Fairfax Frogs is looking mighty good... the Frog fans are leaping for joy!

3rd Place (tied): Oxford Red Caps (86-66) (3 GB)
Preseason Rating: 2nd Place
Last Year: 1st Place (88-66)
Two Years Ago: (2nd Place 78-76) (4 GB)
Outlook: For the previous 7 seasons Dennis Hartwig has had his Red Caps in the thick of things in the TU North pennant chase... 3 times they won it ('52, '53, '57) and 3 times they came close to winning it... Oxford has made the postseason playoffs 8 times in its history with one Pro Cup trophy (2007)... the present team can hit homers, score runs and get the job done on the hill... they just had some stiff competition this year.

Hartwig has a bunch of big bats and a potent arsenal... young star 1B Buddy Blackford (.28 BA/56 HR/132 RBI/115 R) had a massive year, topping the IPA with 56 homers and leading the Tycobbian Union with 132 RBIs and coming in third with 115 runs scored... other longballers were CF Frankie Beckwith (.287/45/102/80/8 SB, LF Showboat Lynn (.283/37/93/102/15 SB) and LF Wade McGrew (.332/24/50/52/3 SB)... on the hill it was starters Maury Statler (18-17/3.22), Dingo Willmon (17-14/3.87), Wiley Beckford (14-8/3.39) and Meldon Eddington (13-12/3.55)... the bullpen was in good hands with closer Pat McFarlane (3-5/2.36 ERA/29 saves/45 G) and Chucker Pitts (9-3/2.70 ERA/1 save/27 G).

3rd Place (tied): North Hills Hawks (86-66) (3 GB)
Preseason Rating: 5th Place
Last Year: 2nd Place (81-73) (7 GB)
Two Years Ago: 3rd Place (78-76) (4 GB)
Outlook: 13 times North Hills has won the TU North title... they did it 11 times from '34 to '45... also during that spectacular run the Hawks claimed 4 Pro Cups ('34, '36, '38, '41)... then they went into a bad funk for 6 years.

Now under the direction of Hall of Fame hurler David Michael (315-234/2.77) they have been revived a bit... North Hills wound up a very close third this season...Michael has good pitching with Eddy Salem (22-9/3.56), Zip Harben (15-14/3.12) and Johnny Kristoff (15-16/3.36)... the Hawks are just average at the plate... they hit for average, but have no punch... really lack the longball... Michael's best run producers are C Jared Creed (.303 BA/18 HR/89 RBI/70 R), 3B Sam Dunstone (.280/5/86/78/7 SB), LF Clifton Mahaffey (.301/10/75/88/22 SB), SS Pat Johnston (.276/3/72/73/12 SB), 1B Victor Bates (.317/7/62/82) and CF Cliff Butler (.317/34/56/14 SB)… the Hawks are flying high and are once again back in the TU North race.

5th Place: Hartsdale Hellcats (77-77) (12 GB)
Preseason Rating: 5th Place
Last Year: 5th Place (74-80) (14 GB)
Two Years Ago: 5th Place (74-80) (8 GB)
Outlook: the Hellcats have been stuck in a second-division rut for the last 6 seasons... for the 5th straight year they have finished 5th in the TU North Division... overall in their history they have done OK with 9 pennants and 1 Pro Cup... the last pennant came in '47, the only Pro Cup in '46... Hartsdale inproved a tad this year under first-year manager Emilian Burgess, a solid outfielder that spent 15 years in the IPA, 13 with the Hellcats (2040-2052)... he put up good numbers, batting .287 with 189 homers and 840 RBIs.

For the first time in 6 years Hartsdale broke even at 77-77... they stayed close to the frontrunners until June, then faded back into the second division... the Hellcats look good on paper... they score well, have good power and fine pitching... Chet Salsbury (17-13/3.35), Christopher Wolfe (16-15/2.99), Bradley Barr (15-9/3.62) and Tommy Johnson (11-10/3.57) give Burgess a good starting foursome... but he lacks a good bullpen... Hartsdale doesn't any great sticks, but they have a bunch of solid ones in 1B Al Wakefield (.282 BA/27 HR/96 RBI/90 R/4 SB), 3B Guido Pesci (.302/16/81/97/2 SB), LF Nathan Ivy (.286/15/80/67/19 SB), 2B Smokey Nix (.293/16/73/87/6 SB), SS Walt Ivy (.275/14/70/74/23 SB) and RF Harry Harlin (.266/18/65/44)... the Hellcats should be a contender next year in the IPA... an improved bullpen might just do it.

6th Place: Mahaska Haymakers (76-78) (13 GB)
Preseason Rating: 8th Place
Last Year: 6th Place (73-81) (15 GB)
Two Years Ago: 4th Place (75-79) (7 GB)
Outlook: the Haymakers have had little success in their IPA history... just 4 playoff appearances... the most recent one was years and years ago in '28... never won the IPA Pro Cup... the last winning season was in '52... rookie skipper Rocco Bertara made a little progress with an average offense and lackluster pitching... Bertara starred at shortstop for Mahaska from 2035 to 2054... he was a 2-time All-Star and 3-time Gold Glover... Bertara hit .279 in his career with 137 roundtrippers, 917 RBIs, scored 1258 runs and stole 204 bases... the sixth-place Haymakers are hoping to make a good run at the TU North first division next year... it might be a little longer before they win another division flag.

The Haymakers' top run producers are RF Dub Forrester (.285 BA/20 HR/99 RBI/88 R/8 SB), 1B Timothy Honor (.273/28/88/101/13 SB), C Stefano Matrisciano (.267/17/86/64) and 2B Elvis Gifford (.287/9/59/102/9 SB)... Mahaska has 3 decent starters with Marty Mobley (21-11/4.08), Pip Cordice (19-15/3.54) and rookie Luke Grantham (11-12/4.08)... and Cubby Darville (5-6/2.64 ERA/33 saves/49 G) is a solid and reliable closer.

7th Place: White River Rascals (75-79) (14 GB)
Preseason Rating: 4th Place
Last Year: 4th Place (78-76) (10 GB)
Two Years Ago: 1st Place (82-72)
Outlook: The Rascals have been to the postseason 11 times, but have never captured a cherished Pro Cup... tough times have now come to White River and manager Marty Blake... the Rascals have won 7 of the last 11 pennants in the TU North... Blake took over for the successful Mick Cronyn in '52 and has done a very good job with division crowns in '54, '55 and '56... but the Rascals dropped to 4th in '57 and to 7th this season... White River had mediocre pitching and an awful offense... the future is bleak and gloomy... but note White River is only 4 games under .500 and could very easily turn it around in the tightly-bunched Tycobbian North Division.

Blake has two fine starters in Greg Zacharie (17-17/2.80) and rookie Robby Ralston (13-8/3.06 ERA)... Glen Horton (14-21/4.03) and Wes Chadwick (13-10/4.13) give the Rascals a reliable #3 and #4... however, the White River bullpen needs some work... closer Butch Slattery (6-9/3.69 ERA/17 saves/39 G) had a rough season... except for home runs, the offense is pathetic... Blake has no reliable batters in his lineup... longtime star CF Pudge Tate (.281 BA/34 HR/80 RBI/88 R/9 SB) is still doing the job at 31, but he doesn't have much help... RF Jake Bohannon (.273/23/72/58/17 SB) and LF Jed Small (.234/24/69/40) provide a little pop every now and then, but don't hit for much average.

8th Place: Blue Lake Blue Sox (74-80)
Preseason Rating: 7th Place
Last Year: 8th Place (72-82) (16 GB)
Two Years Ago: 8th Place (59-95) (23 GB)
Outlook: It's been 11 years since the Blue Sox posted a winning season (2058)... only 3 times has Blue Lake made the playoffs... the last time they did, the Blue Sox won the whole kit and caboodle... they won the prestigious IPA Pro Cup in 2030... 4 of the last 5 seasons Blue Lake finished in the TU North basement... rookie manager Juan Luis Barcelona was hired this year... the team got better, but still was stuck in the cellar... the Blue Sox's offense perked up a bit under his guidance... the good news is the team is just 6 games under .500... a winning year may soon be on the horizon for Barcelona and Blue Lake.

Barcelona only has average hitting and scoring... and not a lot of power... and the Blue Sox pitching staff is second rate... his starters are pretty good with Dale Schubert (18-8/3.28), Weldon Nettleton (17-12/3.22), Hank Kingman (12-13/3.86) and Dookie Denton (13-14/4.13), but his bullpen is horrible with a skyhigh 4.65 ERA this year... Blue Lake does have some quality bats in its lineup with C Daryl Monaghan (.343 BA/13 HR/93 RBI/99 R/17 SB), who has the top batting average in the Tycobbian Union... 1B Victor McDuffen (.315/17/96/66) and 3B Billy Blue (.286/20/59/104) carry big sticks, too... other capable hitters are CF Steve Schueler (.311/1/60/95/25 SB) and 2B John Gilbert (.289/11/68/64).

2058 Tycobbian North Division Final Standings