Friday, October 28, 2067
SLIGO'S ARNETT AND KENWOOD'S MACEDO NAMED IPA MOST VALUABLE PLAYERS FOR 2067
There are 800 players on the 32 regular season Ruthlandian Union rosters and 800 players on the regular season Tycobbian Union rosters... it is quite an honor to be acclaimed the Ruthlandian Union and the Tycobbian Union Most Valuable Players... this year it's a dream come true for Eddy Arnett of the Sligo Rovers and Gabriel Macedo of the Kenwood Wildcats, the recipients of this year's highest awards bestowed by the Island Pro Alliance.
It was a terrific season for Eddy Arnett... the 28-year-old left fielder paced the Sligo Rovers another Ruthlandian West pennant... he was recently named the RU Golden Bat, given to the top hitter in the league... now Arnett has been boosted to another elite level... in only his second season in the IPA he is the 2067 Ruthlandian Union Most Valuable Player... in his first season Arnett was awarded the RU Rookie of the Year honor... this year in 153 games Arnett stood out with a .340 batting average, which was second best in the league... he ranked second in hits with 212... second in RBIs with 122... and 7th in thefts with 46... Arnett's stats showed 32 doubles, 4 triples and 36 roundtrippers.
The best all-round player in the Tycobbian Union was Kenwood's slugging right fielder Gabriel Macedo... at age 33 it was his best season ever... he was the top gun for the highest-scoring club in the IPA... Macedo led the TU and the IPA with 66 homers, 128 runs and 160 RBIs, while batting a lofty .346, second in the TU to Rolling Hills' Teddy Stonich... Stonich batted .353 and kept Macedo from winning the prestigious Triple Crown... this year's Tycobbian Union MVP led the Wildcats to a third-place finish in the TU West... Macedo has played in the IPA for 11 seasons with a .314 career average, 360 homers and 1014 runs batted in... this was his first MVP trophy.
Runner-up to Arnett was this year's RU Golden Arm Award winner, Mark Meisner of the Claxton Diamonds... the 31-year-old portsider led them to a fifth consecutive division flag in the RU South with a 97-57 mark, the best record in the Ruthlandian Union and second in the IPA, topped only by powerhouse Rolling Hills with 100 victories... Meisner led the IPA with 22 wins... overall he was 22-6 with a fine 2.58 ERA... lifetime Meisner is a three-time Golden Arm winner... he is an 11-year veteran with a 110-47 record and a splendid 2.33 ERA.
Arnett also beat out Claxton's talented third baseman Fred Hahn for the Ruthlandian MVP trophy... Hahn sparked the Diamonds to another banner season... they won their 5th RU West pennant in a row... Hahn batted .338 in 150 games with 23 homers and 90 RBIs... he is one of the cornerstones of the Claxton success in the last decade... career-wise Hahn has compiled a .303 batting average in his 13 seasons with 270 homers and 1071 RBIs.
Gabriel Macedo had two strong challengers in the Tycobbian MVP competition... number two in the poll was San Alejo's standout right fielder Dominque Juban... at age 28 he was a huge reason for the Monteneros' success this year with a .334 BA in 153 games with 39 homers, 116 RBIs, 119 runs scored and 24 stolen bases... overall in his 6-year career Juban is a .309 hitter with 114 homers and 534 RBIs... Juban was a prime reason the Monties knocked off Southport in the TU South pennant race... the Sun Sox had won the the IPA Pro Cup the last two seasons.
Third in the Tycobbian MVP balloting was Rolling Hills' gifted center fielder Hugo Sutton... at 27, he has already helped his club win two Pro Cups in 2062 and 2067... they almost won it in 2064, but were upset by Claxton in 7 games... the Racers have won the pennant in each of his 6 seasons... this season Sutton played in 153 games, batted .325 with 34 homers, 126 RBIs, 122 runs scored and stole 26 bases... in his career Sutton has hit .326 with 156 homers and 675 RBIs... he received the 2063 TU Most Valuable Player Award.