BNN Report
News from the CBO, Minors, BCAC, and CYL
by Nat Wright-Kawolski
1 May 2309
The May Super Post
CBO Players of the Month
NCA Hitter - The Slog Ghouls fans believe they've got a talented young star in Kilometers Davis.
He did nothing to dissuade that notion in April, as he hit .407 with 10 home runs, 25 RBIs and 19 runs scored.
The end result was the first baseman being named the North Charles Association Batter of the Month.
SCA Hitter - Ken Debate made his presence known as one of the best young stars in the South Charles Association this past month.
The Jamaica Plain Red Rockets left fielder shined through the month of April and has won the Batter of the Month award.
The 24-year-old hit .346 with 10 home runs, 26 RBIs and 18 runs scored.
NCA Pitcher - The Easy Town Assaultrons felt very secure when they sent Major Tom Brennan out to the hill last month. The 28-year-old starter went after North Charles Association hitters with a vengeance and earned April's Pitcher of the Month award.
He went 4-0 with a 3.02 ERA as he struck out 29 in 41.2 innings over 5 starts.
SCA Pitcher - Tony Bertha left little doubt in the minds of South Charles Association officials that he should be named April's Pitcher of the Month for his outstanding performance.
"I wasn't always confident at the start of a game," said Bertha. "Sometimes it's hard to get into the flow -- the calls aren't going your way or you're trying to spot your pitches too much. You just have to relax and use what you've been taught all your life -- get back to basics -- good mechanics, control, location, keep the ball down."
The 32-year-old tossed 40.2 innings of quality baseball -- going 5-0 with a 2.21 ERA and 18 strikeouts.
NCA Rookie - Kilometers Davis earned April's Rookie of the Month honors in the North Charles Association for last month's performance. The boyish The Slog first baseman might be wet behind the ears, but he's proving that he has what it takes to play at this level.
Davis hit .407 with 10 home runs, 25 RBIs and 19 runs scored this past month on his way to winning the award.
SCA Rookie - Youngster Steve Mirv emerged as the latest South Charles Association Rookie of the Month today. The young man from Goodneighbor deserved the honor, batting .246 with 3 home runs and 12 RBI. Is the month of April a harbinger of things to come or just a fluke? We'll find out someday, but for now, we'll just let Mirv enjoy the limelight.
MML Analysis
We are a month into the 2309 season, and the players trying to vie for a spot back on a CBO roster seem to be the players standing out the most. At the same time, there are some youngsters who could see their first call up to the CBO soon.
In the standings, division leaders at the end of April are the Burlington Ferals, Finch Farm Shamrocks, Providence Warlocks, and a tie between the Braintree Robobrains and Warwick Mirelurks.
1B Jackie Shepherd of Braintree (NB) appears to be the player most on his way to an MVP season with a .486 average, 6 home runs, 23 RBI, and an MML-best 1.7 WAR. Shepherd was never able to catch on to the Party Boys since being traded there from Quincy following the 2306 season. However, the 29-year-old has been a force for the Robobrains the past three seasons.
MML Players of the Month
LL Hitter - It's perhaps an award he'll win many more times through his career, as at age 22 Earhole Watson has a lot of baseball ahead of him.
But for now the young Finch Farm Shamrocks star can enjoy the numbers he put up in April, which have garnered him the nod as the Legends League Batter of the Month.
His breakout month featured a .365 average with 9 home runs, 30 RBIs and 21 runs scored.
SL Hitter - Hester Mechanist may be much younger than other hitters in the Stars League, but he performed like a seasoned veteran in April to win the Batter of the Month award.
The 21-year-old Warwick first baseman hit .450 with 9 home runs, 23 RBIs and 20 runs scored.
LL Pitcher - Lynn Fortune Finders starter Wicked Good O'Malley has collected the Legends League Pitcher of the Month award for a run of lights-out performances.
"This town really appreciates it when you're going well," said O'Malley. "They might boo you when you're getting knocked around, but they love you when you're mowin' them down."
In April the 29-year-old compiled a 5-0 record in 5 starts with a 3.96 ERA. He threw 36.1 innings, fanning 34 while walking 23.
SL Pitcher - The Stars League hitters didn't have a chance in April when the Warwick Mirelurks manager wrote "Cochrane" on the lineup card. Outing after outing, Homeslice Cochrane held teams in check and usually got a win.
He excelled with a 4-0 mark and 2.74 ERA in 4 starts. The talented Mirelurks star pitched 23 innings, fanned 13 and held opposing teams to a .253 average.
For his superb mound work Cochrane was named the SL Pitcher of the Month by the baseball writers.
BMU Analysis
The season is still early in the BMU with teams only having played nine games each thus far. Division leaders are the Brockton Irish; Sanctuary Hills Zetans, Woburn Bobbleheads, Mystic Pines Raybathers, and Littleton Ragers in the Cambridge League; Plymouth Pilgrims and West Roxbury Mole Rats in the Downtown Boston League; and Mayoral Shelter Tricentennials.
GBRL Analysis
Like the BMU, the GBRL season is still young, thus no players of the month just yet. Early divisional leaders are the Lynn Woods Bloatflies; Union Hope Lifegivers and Corvega Flamers in the Northwest Division; Hyde Park Stingwngs and Park Street AntAgonizers in the Southeast Division; and Pioneer Park Hackers.
BCAC Analysis
The BCAC enters its second season with a lot of exciting baseball from the "smarter" baseball players in the Commonwealth. Early players to watch include SS Togie Pitt, Fr, Harvard (.451/3/22/1.3 WAR) and SP Freon McMahan, Fr, Mass Bay (2-2, 3.23, 1.1 WAR).
The Harvard Crimson and Tufts Jumbos lead the North Division, while the Commonwealth Terriers have a three-game lead in the South Division.
BCAC Players of the Month
BCAC Hitter - For a rookie just breaking in, Homer Chronicler certainly put together a successful month. It was good enough to win the BCAC Batter of the Month award for April.
The 18-year-old first baseman for the Bunker Hill Globalists hit .429 with 9 home runs, 20 RBIs and 22 runs scored.
BCAC Pitcher - Long John Abadie dazzled opponents on his way to the Boston Collegiate Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Month award for April.
Posting a 4-0 record and a 2.31 ERA, the Northeastern Huskies starter held opposing hitters to a .233 batting average while striking out 17 in 23.1 innings and giving up 6 walks.
CYL Analysis
The CYL's first season (though they are maintaining the records of the BYDL) is more than halfway done. With just over a month and 36 games to go, there is still plenty of time for teams to make a move up or down the standings. Current divisional leaders are in order of record per region are: the Beantown Sprouts, Needham Radstorm, North Charles Bank Goonies, and Beerthirty Sippers in the North Region and the Thompson Heights Earthlings, Brown Bubblers, Eastham Rads, and Wareham Comets in the South Region.
CYL Players of the Month
NR Hitter - Even though he is a newcomer to Commonwealth Youth League, Sincere Grey put up some good numbers in April and earned the NR Batter of the Month award.
He was one of Beantown's offensive leaders with a .406 average in 26 games. He also racked up 9 home runs, 25 RBIs, and 20 runs scored.
Presently Grey is batting .330 with 11 home runs and 33 RBIs. He has played in 40 games and scored 26 times.
SR Hitter - Harwich Fishheads fans may just have witnessed a star player blossoming before their eyes in April.
Cole Apse put up a remarkable month at the age of 14 and has been named the South Region Batter of the Month.
For the month, Apse hit .407 with 9 home runs, 25 RBIs and 21 runs scored.
Hitting .397 to date, Apse has 14 home runs and 34 RBIs. He has played in 40 games.
NR Pitcher - The Pitcher of the Month for April has been picked and the North Region award went to Beantown hurler, Alex Language.
During the month, Language was impressive with a 1.69 ERA and 7 wins and no losses. In 48 innings he struck out 54 and gave up 26 hits and 23 walks.
Checking out his stats for the season, Language has racked up 8 wins and no losses in 11 starts, posted a 1.95 ERA, and struck out 87 batters in 73.2 innings.
SR Pitcher - Last month was a very good one for Melvin Terminator of Wareham. So good that he has been picked as the Pitcher of the Month in the South Region.
Terminator throttled league hitters the entire month, completing April with an impressive 6-0 mark and a 0.96 ERA in 6 starts with 56 strikeouts in 47 innings.
This season Terminator has compiled a 8-2 record with a 1.46 ERA.