Monday, July 6, 2076
5 TIGHT RACES IN IPA AT MIDSEASON... 3 DIVISIONS NOT SO CLOSE SO FAR
In the Islandian Pro Alliance a 6-game lead at midseason is a good spot to be in... three teams are enjoying pretty comfortable leads... the San Alejo Montaneros (55-28), Stoner Silver Sox (51-32) and Tuckanarra Tiger Cats are the hottest teams going this season so far... the other 5 division leaders are having a tougher go of it with a bunch of teams hanging close to them... let's take a quick gander at the 8 divisions in the IPA and see what's happening at the midpoint of the 2076 season.
2076 Ruthlandian Union Midseason Review
SURPRISING VALMARA TOPS RU NORTH IN 4-TEAM BATTLE
The Valmara Vipers were forecast to have a losing season and picked to finish seventh in the Ruthlandian North Division... nope, the crystal ballers were wrrrrrong... Valmara is paying no attention to the baseball polls... it looks like the Vipers are a little better than seventh place... they have slithered much higher in the standings... Valmara (47-35) is in first place with a 3 and a half-game edge over runner-up Glasco (44-39) halfway through the season... and they have two other clubs breathing down their back... tied for third place are last year's division champion Ranford Bulls (43-40) and Far Mountain Redhawks (43-40)... solid hitting and modest pitching is doing it so far for Valmara... the big question: can the Vipers continue to play like this... or will they give into the pressure of the higher-rated reputations of their rivals?... thus far, the longballin' Vipers are having a ball, sparked by Arkadi Viri (.287 BA/19 HR), Stefan Skarzynski (.317 BA/8 HR), Tomek Zak (.273 BA/17 HR), Ozzie Santiago (.381 BA/5 HR) and Janko Janowski (.247 BA/12 HR)... on the hill veterans Jaromir Kaminski (15-2/3.27 ERA) and Milosz Mazur (10-4/3.08 ERA) are enjoying fine seasons.
LAST YEAR'S WINNER VALKA IN A TIGHT RU SOUTH RACE WITH 3 OTHERS
The perennial power Valka Blackhawks with no finish lower than second place and 3 RU pennants in the previous 8 seasons is right up where they usually are -- in first place -- but not by much... preseason favorite Waleska (46-37) is just 2 games off the pace... the third place Crystal Lake Skippers (45-38) are just 3 games out... and fourth place Grand City (42-40) is only 4 games behind... Crystal Lake won the IPA Pro Cup just two seasons ago and most of that team is still intact, dangerous and well-regarded... this is going to be a darn good race... the Blackhawks won it last year by 3 games over the Skippers... Valka is a potent team... they are hitting nearly .300 as a team and have 4 solid starters and a good bullpen... top performers in the batting order are Olev Kotil (.314 BA/9 HR/54 RBI), Jimmy Czarnecki (.332 BA/5 HR/40 RBI), James Ray Hanna (.316 BA/10 HR/37 RBI) and Markko Petrov (.284 BA/9 HR/50 RBI)... top pitchers are starters Jalen Whitmire (9-6/3.30 ERA) and Ron Honore (7-6/3.53 ERA)... and Dorsey Burnette (7-2/1.30 ERA) is strong in relief.
COLD CREEK UNLIKELY LEADER IN RU EAST
The pollsters didn't see the Cold Creek Raccoons coming, either... they were a losing team last year at 73-81 and 24 games behind and picked no better than 6th this season... SHAZAM!... Cold Creek has turned into a bonifide contender... they don't look like a flash in the pan... the Raccoons top the league in scoring and rank high in batting average, homers and ERA... Dude Gurley (.351 BA/16 HR/82 RBI), Kurt Bernheisel (.300 BA/15 HR/69 RBI), Patrick Boatman (.327 BA/12 HR/42 RBI) and Company are for real... so are their fine starters: J.Z. Small (10-4/2.71 ERA), Orin Wessex (10-2/2.97 ERA) and Leon Blocker (10-6/2.63 ERA)... preseason-favored Wynnamac (48-34) is right on the heels of the Raccoons, just 3 and a half-game back... third place Sugar Valley (44-38), fourth place Elnora (44-39) and last year's division winner Marston (44-39) are all within striking distance... no telling what might happen in the second half of the season.
STONER 6-GAME UP IN RU WEST OVER COLFAX... SLIGO 3RD
The Sligo Rovers ran away with the Ruthlandian West last year and even almost won the IPA Pro Cup trophy, coming second to Rolling Hills... 'twas not going to be that way this year according to the peerless pundits... it would a very close race between Sligo, Stoner and Fort Benton with the Silver Sox slightly favored over the Rovers and the Defenders... at midyear this season Stoner (51-32) has had its way with a 6-game margin over the Colfax Black Sox (45-38)... Colfax has come out of nowhere this season... the Black Sox were a losing team a year ago and forecast to wind up near the bottom this season... Sligo (43-39) is pretty much the same feisty team as last year, but they are nor scoring runs like they used to... Stoner is putting a lot of runs on the scoreboard and tops the Rovers by 7 and a half games at midseason... the Silver Sox lineup features five .300 batters, paced by Tony Bellina (.338 BA/0 HR/50 RBI), Brayden Earwood (.321 BA/0 HR/27 RBI), Nat Churchill (.318 BA/5 HR/32 RBI), Dave Farragut (.304 BA/14 HR/53 RBI) and Coy Magruder (.302 BA/1 HR/30 RBI)... plus Curtis Russell (.291 BA/13 HR/41 RBI) is having a fine season, too... veteran Bobby West (9-4/3.31 ERA) and Leon Landers (8-7/3.56 ERA) head up the starting rotation... leading the Stoner bullpen is Coby Sessions (7-4/3.29 ERA/11 saves/36 games)... Darryl Edmonds (10-4/3.64 ERA) has done well as a starter and reliever.
2076 Ruthlandian Union Midseason Standings
