6 September 2309
Grand Hotel Sweeps, Wins 2309 SPA Series
It's official! The Grand Hotel Atoms are the proud possessors of the Season Pass Association championship trophy. They claimed it with a 11-3 win over the Victory Cave Crickets to defeat them in the series 4-0.
Atoms manager Eric Schneider said, "This is the perfect end to a perfect season." Commenting on the year he continued, "We had good players ... and that's the bottom line. They worked hard, played hard, hustled ... and they had fun."
During the Vim! League Harbor Division regular season, Grand Hotel finished first in the standings with a record of 50-40.
The Atoms won both games at Victory, 6-3 and 15-9. They then won both games at home, 4-1 and 11-3.
In Game 1, LF Might Dward earned Game MVP honors by going 4 for 5 with a home run, three runs, and two RBI. Dward finished the series by batting 13 for 19 (.684) with two triples, a home run, two walks, a stolen base, seven runs, and two RBI.
In Game 2, 3B Danny Pineda earned Game MVP honors with a 3 for 5 performance with a double, a walk, three runs, and four RBI.
SP Jalen Elder was the star of Game 3, pitching 7.0 innings while allowing six hits, an earned run, and a walk, and striking out five in the victory.
Game 4's top honor went to C Adam Henderson when he went 3 for 4 with a double, a home run, a walk, two runs, and three RBI.
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Nuka News Update
Reporting on the NWL, APL, NWLR, and BBL Leagues
by Evan Guy
6 September 2309
Victory Prevails over Orange
The Victory Cave Crickets are champions, today and forever. The Cave Crickets topped the Orange Tourists 7-0 at John-Caleb Bradberton Honorary Field today to claim the Nuka Series crown.
"Nobody can take this away from us, not ever," said series MVP and left fielder Edgar Virus after his club had sealed the victory. "We worked hard and we accomplished our goal."
The atmosphere was electric as the newly-crowned champs stormed the field at the conclusion of the game. Fans cheered, gloves flew in the air, high fives and hugs were the order of the day.
"From day one of spring training, I could see it in their eyes," said Victory manager Mauricio Luna. "The players had that look of intensity, of hunger, of a desire to accomplish something great, and today they did that. They're champions of the world."
The Cave Crickets took the series 4-1. The new titleholders completed the regular season with a first-place finish in the North Bradberton Division and a 53-37 record.
APL Award Winners are:
It was a season to remember for Petit Frenchman. He was one of the most dangerous men in the league when he had a bat in his hand, and the Amusement Park League announced today that he has won the Most Valuable Player Award for 2309.
The Bradberton first baseman dominated opposing pitchers with a .337 batting average, 23 doubles, 1 triple, 36 home runs and 83 RBIs while compiling a .400 on-base percentage and scoring 77 runs.
He received 6 first place votes out of a possible 8. Right Maker of the Dry Rock Gulch Convicts finished second in voting with 2 first place votes, while Bran Maverly of the Dry Rock Gulch Convicts finished third.
Player - Team - First Place - Total Points
Petit Frenchman - Bradberton Disciples - 6 - 102
Right Maker - Dry Rock Gulch Convicts - 2 - 82
Bran Maverly - Dry Rock Gulch Convicts - 0 - 63
Jake Roth - Nuka Bottling Plant Pack - 0 - 49
Goonie Downtown - Safari Adventure Gazelles - 0 - 43
Kyle Lullaby - Safari Adventure Gazelles - 0 - 33
Lips Lightfoot - Grandchester Flying Ants - 0 - 32
Chris Washington - Nuka Bottling Plant Pack - 0 - 16
Main Man Stagfoot - Nuka Bottling Plant Pack - 0 - 14
Ian Motherson - Kiddie Kingdom Cappies - 0 - 11
Travis Phillips - Galactic Zone G-Force - 0 - 11
Kevin Halibut - Safari Adventure Gazelles - 0 - 7
Kyle Tinker - Nuka Town Operators - 0 - 5
Mike Carrasco - Nuka Town Operators - 0 - 2
Mint Julep Takedown - Safari Adventure Gazelles - 0 - 2
This year the top vote-getter for the 2309 Pitcher of the Year Award was Saw Valdez of the Nuka Town Operators, who finished with an outstanding 4-2 mark and an impressive 3.09 ERA.
In his award-winning season, the 24-year-old Operators star hurled 46.2 innings, chalking up 42 strikeouts and 21 walks, and limited hitters to a .270 batting average.
He received 5 first place votes out of a possible 8. Dusty Wilcox of the Kiddie Kingdom Cappies finished second in voting with 1 first place vote, while Nick Bolinger of the Kiddie Kingdom Cappies finished third.
Player - Team - First Place - Total Points
Saw Valdez - Nuka Town Operators - 5 - 35
Dusty Wilcox - Kiddie Kingdom Cappies - 1 - 28
Nick Bolinger - Kiddie Kingdom Cappies - 0 - 20
Lackadaisical Macnamara - Dry Rock Gulch Convicts - 1 - 13
Jackson Tafoya - Safari Adventure Gazelles - 0 - 13
Danny Cautious - Nuka Bottling Plant Pack - 1 - 7
Rig Hendley - Grandchester Flying Ants - 0 - 6
Mike Grubb - Nuka Town Operators - 0 - 3
Wee Hughie - Grandchester Flying Ants - 0 - 3
Eric Jacobs - Nuka Bottling Plant Pack - 0 - 3
Beau Hamilton - Dry Rock Gulch Convicts - 0 - 2
Salvatore Rojas - Nuka Bottling Plant Pack - 0 - 2
David Orangeman - Galactic Zone G-Force - 0 - 1
Gabe Faulhaber came out of the bullpen and worked through tough situations all year, and for his performance he's been named the recipient of the Amusement Park League Reliever of the Year Award for 2309.
The 31-year-old out of Chelmsford, Massachusetts captured the award with 1 save in 25 relief appearances, 22 strikeouts in 35 innings and a record of 3 wins and 1 loss to go with his 2.57 ERA.
"I'm thankful, it's a great honor," he told Baseball News Network.
He received 8 first place votes, as a unanimous winner. Randall Timmons of the Safari Adventure Gazelles finished second in voting, while Travis Stealy of the Dry Rock Gulch Convicts finished third.
Player - Team - First Place - Total Points
Gabe Faulhaber - Kiddie Kingdom Cappies - 8 - 40
Randall Timmons - Safari Adventure Gazelles - 0 - 20
Travis Stealy - Dry Rock Gulch Convicts - 0 - 6
Cup Bowers - Safari Adventure Gazelles - 0 - 4
Chris Jolly - Galactic Zone G-Force - 0 - 2
Vim! View
Veracious, Vivacious, Vainglorious Vision of the Vim! Leagues
by Vikky Vail
6 September 2309
Atoms Crowned Champions of Vim! League
It was all about winning for the Grand Hotel Atoms -- and win they did.
There was nothing fancy in how they went about it, players said, they just prepared mentally and physically and then went out and played baseball.
"We did the little things right and we did the big things right," said catcher Adam Henderson, who was named series MVP. "Now we're the league champions."
Grand Hotel defeated the Echo Lake Harbormen by a score of 8-3 at The Lumber Yard to take the series 4-3.
"Sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you make your own luck," said Grand Hotel manager Eric Schneider. "We got lucky a few times, but mostly we did the right things by being prepared for each game and playing the game the way it's meant to be played."
It's party time in Southwest Harbor. The confetti is flying and residents are smiling.
The Southwest Harbor Rippers have reached the mountaintop, capturing the 2309 Mount Desert Island Series today. They defeated the Eagle's Cove Harpooners 9-7 at The Lumber Yard to officially wrap up the series 4-3.
Asked how it feels to be a champion, center fielder Nute Gunray was to the point.
"It feels great, like a million bucks. I'm so happy right now, not just for me but for all the guys," he said. "We put a lot of work into this and deserve to be champions."
The team is planning a victory parade and fan appreciation day later in the week. Southwest Harbor finished the regular season 59-31 and claimed first place in the Small Bertha Division.