Wednesday, October 28, 2076
PRO CUP FAVORITE MACS SLIGHT PICK OVER MONTIES IN IPA PRO CUP SERIES
The best two baseball clubs in the Islandian Pro Alliance survived the first two rounds of diamond warfare and now are pitted up against one another... #1 Wynnamac and #2 San Alejo will go toe-to-toe for the IPA Pro Cup Trophy, the ultimate prize in the Islands beginning this Saturday afternoon at Granger Field in Wynnamac... the Macs have chalked up 3 Pro Cups in its history, while the Montaneros have only collected one... the Sundowners claimed it in 2008, 2055 and 2070... IPA Pro Cup trophies are very hard to come by... San Alejo has only managed to win one... that was years ago in 2032... the oddsmakers have made Wynnamac a slight favorite... they are the choice of the baseball pundits and experts in a tight series... the best-of-seven series will probably last 6 or 7 games... the Macs get the homefield advantage... they were 96-58 in the regular season... that was the best overall record in the Islandian Pro Alliance this season... the Monties compiled the second-best mark at 94-60.
Looking at each team's assets and liabilities, here's how the two Pro Cup challengers shape up... Wynnamac hits better for average, while San Alejo has more power... call it equal overall offensively... both clubs feature a rock-solid lineup throughout the batting order... team speed is pretty equal... they both can run and steal bases... however, both teams have good catchers with good arms... the mound corps appears to be about the same in quality, both starting rotation and bullpen... the most glaring difference is in defense... the Macs are much better than the Montaneros... the Sundowner starters as a group are superior to the Montanero starters... Priit Laur, Noel Arboneaux and Don Brick are more steady and consistent than their San Alejo counterparts... give the Monties some added points in the talent evaluation because of Sebastian Solis... he is the only bonifide ace pitcher on either team... he is a stud... it will be tough for Solis to win 3 games in the series... his pitching mates Philip English and Ronald Milsap have to come up with one or 2 victories between them for San Alejo to prevail... give the Wynnamac bullpen a slight favoring with more depth... they have one more trusty arm than the Montaneros with Rufus Crafton, Jason Irons and Clarence Marlowe... San Alejo usually just depends on two relievers for most of the work, Lando Vargas and Rollie Taft... the Macs also have an advantage with a solid group of bench players... it is a little better than the Monties.
It's time to just flip a coin to choose the victor... it's just too close to call... the 2076 Islandian Pro Alliance Pro Cup Series should be a crackerjack series and go to the limit of 7 games... Wynnamac and San Alejo are well-balanced teams and well-matched... it should be an exciting climax and finish to a fine season.
