The Stallions are the first team eliminated this season.
This 12th-inning walk-off defeat to the Waikato Morepork sealed their fate.
The first RBI of the season came from right fielder Erik Ferguson. It was the top of the 1st against the Auckland Sharks -- the two hitters before him had reached base with a single and a walk. Ferguson smoked the ball to right field, and the runner on second beat the throw home. The Stallions went on to win.
Life was good for that brief moment -- and then it got bad. By July, the team had decided to trade away their expiring contracts, and Ferguson could do nothing but watch.
With eight wins, Chris Forbes led the team in pitching victories -- but he was traded to the Tasman Suns in July. In fact, the current starting rotation is almost completely different from the one they opened the season with. Butch Stockton is the only thread of consistency left, and they’ve only gotten 38 innings out of him as injuries have dominated his season.
The most iconic moment for the Stallions was 38-year-old LF John Uku hitting for the cycle against the Otago Penguins in early April. They won that game and improved their record to 4–4. That was the last time they’d sit at .500.