World Baseball League: Following the Sheffield Mountain Hares

[dinosauryoshi]

Editors note: I’ll be writing this ‘blog’ in the character of someone called Finn, who lives in Sheffield (England), and started this blog in the year 2058, 18 years after the inception of the World Baseball League, and 3 years after the league’s 3rd expansion, which included the Sheffield Mountain Hares - the subject of this blog. I live in Sheffield, England, and have been following the MLB for a couple of years now. Thus I’m no expert, and welcome any feedback on how I could more clearly summarise games, and talk about stats etc. I have a young son, and another baby on the way, so time is limited, but the aim is essentially to follow the Sheffield Mountain Hares in this league with series by series posts (and short summaries of individual games) whenever I get time to write them. I’ll also do some looking across the massive league at intervals, and write about things that people request on here (again, if I have time!). I’ve really enjoyed making this league and following it on OOTP, so I hope some of you will enjoy following the Mountain Hares with Finn. Oh, and I'm just watching, never taking control of the team.

Before I slip into character, I also wanted to give a special shout out to @20_range who has made loads of amazing logos for me on my thread here, but also to others such as @tx_ranger and @low who have tailored logos (or I have tailored my teams to their existing logos).

Finn isn’t some larger than life, mad character I’ve invented, he’s essentially just me living in Sheffield in this alternate universe in 2058, where baseball has gained a level of popularity across the globe.

I hope you all enjoy - dinosauryoshi

INTRO POST

Hi all,

Finn here. I’ve been a baseball fan for a couple of years now, following my local Sheffield Mountain Hares when the league expanded and added them in 2056. I wanted to start a baseball blog following my beloved team, introducing others to the league as a whole, and the team. This is a bit of an intro post about the history of the league and how it works, but if you already know all that, and are here to learn more about, and follow, the Sheffield Mountain Hares, do skip right on ahead to the next post.

A very brief history

As you probably know, the MLB collapsed in the early 2030s following multiple lockout seasons, and disagreements between owners, players and the league. This coincided (not coincidentally) with a huge rise in the popularity of baseball across the globe buoyed by that smash-hit TV-Drama we all know, with other popular professional leagues popping up in countries like England, Germany, Argentina (I could go on...) Out of the MLB’s ashes came a large group of players/coaches - and a few of the outlier owners - who started to rally for the creation of a new, bigger baseball league where the idea of a ‘World Series’ really was as advertised. Following significant momentum, and the largest crowdfunding effort ever seen (billions of dollars), the creation of a World Baseball League was set in motion in 2035, including the announcement of the first 112 teams from across the globe. These were chosen based on applications (many backed by their respective governments given the potential prestige having a team in this huge venture would gain), with an aim of having a good representation across the globe.

Over the next 5 years the teams set about building their stadiums or repurposing old stadiums, and investing in grass roots baseball in their areas, ready for the league to start off proper in 2040. Teams were drafted from scratch in 2040 based on a pool of players playing in temporary independent leagues created across the globe following the announcement of the WBL in 2035, as well as those from already established leagues in many countries (which had agreed to get folded into the WBL).

In recognition of the fact that much of the groundswell of support for the birth of the WBL (and the subsequent crowdfunding) came from North America, two of the league’s 8 divisions are dedicated to the region. There are no limits to the amounts of teams per country, and this is largely based on the support a country has for the league and their team(s), and the strength of a team’s application. The league has since been expanded three times (each time adding one team to each of the eight divisions), with the latest expansion happening at the start of this, the 2058, season.

Philosophy

The league is a non-profit league. All teams are run by a panel of 5 elected members, and overseen by the league itself. Any profits made by the team and league are put back into the local and national community through charities and organisations chosen by each individual team. I’ll explain this in more detail in a later post, especially as it relates to the Mountain Hares.

Part of the criteria for joining the league is setting out a strong philosophy for how this money will be used. Media rights are split equally between every team in the league, and all streaming is done through one platform - with no blackouts etc - to make this easy to manage, and to make it easily accessible throughout the globe. Prices are very reasonable, and the WBL streaming service has quickly become the most highly subscribed sports channel in the world, providing the league with much of its revenue.

Teams of course keep their own gate revenues and have some freedom in setting ticket prices, though these need to be approved by the league board as a whole, and so are kept very reasonable. They also have the freedom to setup sponsorship deals. Due to the relatively small amount of teams per amount of people interested in viewing them, many teams have lottery systems in place to draw who will get to attend certain games. Stadiums are generally close to full for most games, though a little less so in the USA, where the concentration of teams is much larger.

Divisions, playoffs and world series winners

The league has a hard salary cap, which is reviewed every year to ensure fair payment to players. Players and their families are well looked after in housing villages provided by the teams, given many players are playing far away from their home countries.*

The league currently has 8 divisions of 17 teams, split into two conferences: the Americans and Oceania (TAO) and Europe, Asia and Africa (EAA). These divisions and teams are listed at the bottom of this post, including when any expansion teams were added. Given the huge success of the league as a whole, the WBL made it clear with the most recent expansion that the goal is to reach at least 20 teams in each division, but that expansion will happen no more frequently than once every three years.

The playoffs have changed numerous times over the years as the WBL settles for its preferred format. The current format gives the top two teams in each division automatic playoff places, with the top teams receiving a first-round bye. There are then 4 more wildcard teams added from each conference, and these play the 2nd placed teams in the first wildcard round.

The full list of World Series winners and losers is set out below (as Year - TAO team vs EAA team). There have been 16 different winners over the 18 years of the league so far, with only the New Orleans Jazz and Yaoundé Cannons winning more than one title, with two each. So far, 12 titles have been won by TAO teams, and 6 by EAA teams. Unsurprisingly given the country has by far the most teams, teams from the USA have the most wins of any country, with 5. The teams in bold are the World Series winners.

2040 New Orleans Jazz vs Addis Ababa Lions
2041 San José Sloths vs Rome Legion
2042 New Orleans Jazz vs St Petersburg Pelicans
2043 São Paulo Gold Sox vs Manila Snakes
2044 Sydney Kangaroos vs Antananarivo Lemurs
2045 Vancouver Hummingbirds vs Pyongyang Grasshoppers
2046 Kansas City Meadowlarks vs Madrid Mallards
2047 Colorado Blue Spruce vs New Taipei City Magpies
2048 Toronto Gray Jays vs Vienna Music
2049 Juarez Cacti vs Vienna Music
2050 Asunción Pampas Foxes vs St Petersburg Pelicans
2051 Quito Cinchonas vs Dhaka Mammoths
2052 Miami Swordfish vs Shenzhen Peanuts
2053 Calgary Tartans vs Yaoundé Cannons
2054 Bogota Condors vs Yaoundé Cannons
2055 Calgary Tartans vs Johannesburg Springboks
2056 Lima Cavies vs Kano Camels
2057 Tijuana Stouts vs Kabul Caracals

Rookie draft

The rookie draft works as you’d expect, the lowest ranked teams get the first picks. The only difference to MLB drafts of old is there is now a region lock to the first three rounds (where essentially teams can only pick players from their own continents). After an expansion, the expansion teams usually get to ignore this ‘region lock’ for their first three years. Expansion teams also automatically get the first picks in the year when they are added.

Regular season schedule

I won’t go into massive detail here, but every team plays one home and away series (consisting of 3 games) against the teams in their division, and the rest of the series are against others in their conference, as well as those outside of their conference. The out of division games are weighted every year based on the previous year’s performance using some clever trickery that is beyond me.

THE TEAMS

THE AMERICAS AND OCEANIA (TAO)


North America West
Las Vegas Jacks
Portland Jackalopes
Idaho Owls
Los Angeles Stars
Honolulu Seahawks
Calgary Tartans
Alaska Moose
Montana Smokey Bears
Albuquerque Chiefs
California Waveriders
Salt Lake City Skiers
Arizona Wrens
Vancouver Green Sox
Colorado Blue Spruce
Tijuana Stouts (2052 expansion)
San Diego Stingrays (2055 expansion)
Winnipeg Caribou (2058 expansion)

North America East
Montreal Miracles
Chicago Hoppers
Atlanta Eagles
New Orleans Jazz
Toronto Gray Jays
St Louis Coyotes
Philadelphia Grouse
Boston Bluebirds
Nashville Rockabillys
Miami Swordfish
Washington Presidents
Kansas City Meadowlarks
New York Raccoons
Memphis Steamers
Houston Apollos (2052 expansion)
New Jersey Jellyfish (2055 expansion)
Dallas Cosmopolitans (2058 expansion)

South America
Asuncion Pampas Foxes
La Paz Doves
Caracas Macaws
Medellin Monkeys
Montevideo Jaguars
Rio de Janeiro Redeemers
Bogota Condors
Santiago Flamingos
Sao Paolo Gold Sox
Lima Cavies
Cordoba Silversmiths
Quito Cinchonas
Salvador Toucans
Buenos Aires Apples
Brasilia Travelers (2052 expansion)
Porto Alegre Winemakers (2055 expansion)
Manaus Jaguars (2058 expansion)

Central America and Oceania
Port Moresby Manatees
San Jose Sloths
San Pedro Sula Fire
Mexico City Aztecs
Juarez Cacti
San Salvador Volcanoes
Melbourne Whales
Havana Cafecitos
Guatemala City Armadillos
Managua Motmots
Panama City Poets
Sydney Koalas
Tegucigalpa Savannah
Auckland Kiwis
Santo Domingo Dolphins (2052 expansion)
San Juan Garitas (2055 expansion)
Perth Fairywrens (2058 expansion)

EUROPE, ASIA AND AFRICA (EAA)

Europe
Vienna Whistlers
St Petersburg Pelicans
Zurich Mountaineers
Kyiv Terrapins
Warsaw Kings
Rome Legion
Bucharest Sounds
Madrid Mallards
Paris Black Cats
London Gentlemen
Minsk Bison
Berlin Bears
Budapest Red Squirrels
Moscow Blizzard
Stockholm Orcas (2052 expansion)
Sheffield Mountain Hares (2055 expansion)
Athens Philosophers (2058 expansion)

Africa
Cairo Pharaohs
Addis Ababa Lions
Kano Camels
Lagos Moons
Casablanca Gray Wolves
Khartoum Rhinos
Johannesburg Scholars
Dar es Salaam Giraffes
Antananarivo Lemurs
Abidjan White Elephants
Yaounde Cannons
Nairobi Lilacs
Kinshasha Leopards
Luanda Red Caps
Ouagadougou Stallions (2052 expansion)
Nouakchott Sand Sox (2055 expansion)
Cape Town Penguins (2058 expansion)

West & South East Asia
Mumbai Directors
Bangkok Eels
Tehran Goats
Jakarta Dragons
Baghdad Chukars
Dubai Hyenas
Phnom Penh Jackhammers
Istanbul Spice
Karachi Seafarers
Manila Snakes
Dhaka Mammoths
Hanoi Mopeds
Yangon Peacocks
Bengaluru Bytes
Riyadh Bedouins (2052 expansion)
Patna Roosters (2055 expansion)
Ashgabat Akhal-Tekes (2058 expansion)

Central and East Asia
New Taipei City Magpies
Kabul Caracals
Seoul Crabs
Beijing Pandas
Hiroshima Express
Shanghai Peaches
Almaty Blue Sox
Hong Kong Songbirds
Singapore Mariners
Guangzhou Rams
Shenzhen Peanuts
Pyongyang Grasshoppers
Tokyo Octopi
Kuala Lumpur Tigers
Busan Oysters (2052 expansion)
Ulaanbaatar Cavalry (2055 expansion)
Osaka Blossoms (2058 expansion)

[dinosauryoshi]

Next up (over the next few days) - a season preview for the Sheffield Mountain Hares, including pre-season predictions and off-season acquisitions.

[dinosauryoshi]

Logo by @20-range

A brief history of the Mountain Hares

Sheffield won its bid for a team in 2055, having shown one of the highest AAA attendances for its team (an affiliate of the London Gentlemen at the time). The team name is a nod to the Peak District National Park, which neighbours the city and features the England’s only population of mountain hares.

A purpose built stadium, Kingfisher Park, was built and completed in late 2057, positioned in the heart of the city a stone’s throw from the popular Pound’s Park and its famous Heron and Kingfisher mural by local artist Peachzz, which she finished when the park was opened in 2024. It features a bunch of small trees behind its centre-field wall, as a tribute to the city’s pride about being Europe’s tree capital, as well as the city’s proximity to the Peak District. The stadium is named after the popular local bird, which can be spotted on the River Don, which flows through the city.

A lot of the Sheffield Mountain Hares’ non-profit work is with sustainability organisations working in Peak District National Park, but they also work with with local charities to help the homeless, and giving significant funding to the local Children’s Hospital, which has since made it one oof Europe’s leading hospitals. They pride themselves on being entirely sponsored by local businesses, including many of the city’s excellent coffee shops, many of which have a stand in areas of the stadium on gamedays

Performance

[/b]Having joined the league in 2058, the Mountain Hares have a losing record of .471, finishing 12th in the division in both of their first two seasons, and 8th in the 2057, where for the first time they didn’t post a losing record, coming out 81-81. They are still one of the lower payroll teams, well below the salary cap, though it is increasing. The panel of 5 owners is known for prioritising the team’s impact using its profits in the local area, and so we’re unlikely to see a high payroll unless more money comes in through sponsorship deals, which has started to happen with a couple of high profile sponsors. The team is a below average market-size team, due to the fact there is already another more established team in England, the London Gentlemen.

Last year saw second-baseman Abdul-Karim bin Jameel, who also became the team’s first all-star, break the teams’ single-season WAR record, with an impressive 5.9. The team’s home run record stands at a pretty low 28, set by Romain Martin (now of the Panama City Poets) in the team’s inaugural season. The league record is all the way up at 75.

Pre-season predictions

OOTP’s pre-season predictions have the team ending up in 10th place at the end of the season with a 80-82 record, though I’m (perhaps falsely) optimistic that we’ll do better than that. The same pre-season predictions have Moscow Blizzard coming out on top of the Europe division.

The players

I’ll give a brief summary of the projected starting players in each position, as well as the starting rotation, before a quick summary of what we can expect from the bull-pen.

Position players

Catcher -Adam Koehler (24 - USA) - from New Orleans, Koehler is an elite defensive catcher, though his offense is just a tick above average. He finished last season with one of the team’s highest WARs (4.3), hitting 15 home runs and batting .259.*

First base -WIllie Perez (37, USA, RHB) - Willie Perez’s arrival over the offseason has created much excitement. Though two decent prospects were traded for him, and Perez is only signed on a one year deal, it’s generally agreed that the excitement of having one of the league’s best players over the last decade plus at Kingfisher Park makes it worth it. He has 9 all-star appearances in his career (and bear in mind with this many players in the league, and only one all-star team per conference it is very hard to get in) and is a great contact and power hitter. His WAR ratings at his last three seasons at the Montana Smokey Bears were 5.7, 6.7 and 4.5, suggesting he might be starting to drop off slightly given his old age, but his 53 home runs last year was the second most in his career. His defensive abilities have never been his strong point, and they’re dropping with age, but there’s a lot of buzz around the Hares that Perez can put up a great offensive season, and perhaps beat a lot of the team’s current offensive single-season records, including that home-run one mentioned earlier.

Second base -*Abdul-Karim bin Jameel (34, Afghanistan, RHB) - the team’s star last season, getting the team’s first all-star appearance since joining the league, bin Jameel put up a Hares record 5.9 WAR last season, hitting 21 home runs and batting .290. He has superb plate discipline, above average power and good contact ability. He’s also a very reliable defender, even if his arm is rather weak. A real fan-favourite.

Third base - Jose Garay (31, Brazil) -a switch-hitter, with slow speed, average power and contact, and decent plate discipline. He’s not going to set the world alight, but he is reliable both behind the plate and as a defender.

Short Stop - Dam De (28, Burma, RHB) - this position is worryingly open, though reports suggest the 28 year old Burman will get a shot at the position. He’s only ever posted negative WAR in the WBL. His strongest attributes are his eye for the strike-zone and his defence, but they’re only average. A definite weak spot in the lineup, which some fans are frustrated has not been addressed.

Left fielder -Kolya Saetgaliev (26, Belarus, RHB) - The 5’9 Belarussian Kolya moved to Sheffield from the Madrid Mallards last season and posted an impressive 1.9 WAR in only 51 games for the Hares. I hope he can continue that pace, though a batting average of .355 looks unsustainable looking at the underlying numbers. He has decent home run power and above average contact over his career.

Centre fielder -Jason Portman (28, USA, RHB) - Very good defensively, Portman is only average at the plate with very little home run power but a decent eye.

Right fielder -Sergio Rutz (32, Honduras, LHB) - a big, 6’5 200 pound Honduran from San Pedro Sula, Rutz is a good defender, excelling at chasing down balls in the outfield, and has good power with contact skills a tick above average. He was signed as a free agent in the off-season, and posted a WAR of 2.8 last season for the Kuala Lumpur Tigers, where he hit for .276 and a solid 22 home runs.

Starting rotation -a definite area of weakness

#1 - Globbe Marinello (34, Italy, RHP) - the Italian right-hander was acquired in the offseason via a trade with the Panama City Poets, he has undeniable talent, but his commitment and loyalty are often called into question, and he’s been known to be a disruptive presence in the locker-room. He’s the kind of pitcher you’d expect in the back-half of a rotation, which doesn’t bode so well, but he has six good pitches, with the slider being his best, and a fastball velocity of 95-97. He’s also good at limiting walks. He posted a WAR of 1.8 last year, and an ERA of 3.49.*

#2 Rafael Guzman (30, Croatian, RHP) - known for the movement he gets on his pitches, and his very high ground-ball rate. He put up a WAR of 2.4 for the Hares last season, with an ERA of 4.96

#3 Yushua bin Saqr (28, Algeria, LHP) - Posting a 2.6 WAR and 4.53 ERA in 33 games for the Hares last season, the Algerian is known for his filthy curveball. The rest of his stuff isn’t quite good enough to make up for his low fast-ball velocity of 92mph. He’s the only left-handed pitcher in the rotation.

#4 Mototomi Motoyanagi (33, Japan, RHP) - a first round pick by the Jakarta Dragons in 2046, he’s never quite lived up to his potential, though had a decent career there before joining the Hares in 2056. With the Hares he’s been fairly reliable, with a WAR of between 2 and 3, and ERAs around 4. Known for his great change-up, his mediocre fastball and poor control can often let him down.

#5 Jonathan Baca (37, Guatemala, RHP) - a crafty pitcher who has no pitch that is particularly reliable for outs but works his way round with decent control. He was signed as a free agent in the off-season, and his age is a definite concern, especially given his ERA of 5.37 last year at the Miami Swordfish, where he only made 11 starts. The kind of guy who should probably be an emergency pitcher, not in the starting rotation...

The bullpen

The Hares’ bullpen is projected below average, though the pen’s youth has some people optimistic about it in the future. The 26 year old Nigerian right-hander Tekle-Mariam Lekimeju, acquired in the expansion draft, is projected as the strongest performer, though all eyes are on 24 year old closer Alois Herzog from Austria who has been putting in solid performances over the last two years for the Hares, and is projected to jump up a level this year. Others likely to make plenty of appearances are Australian 26 year old Christos Budd, and Marshal Islander Mikala Enosa.

Next up - we’ll follow the Hares first series of 2058, at the Nouakchott Sand Sox

[20_range]

Happy to see it - always wonder about the league structure. I always play utopian futures, too.

[dinosauryoshi]

SMH logo by @20_range, NSS logo by @txranger - I know the 'A' needs changing to an N...


The Hares headed to Mauritania for their first series of 2058 to head off against the Sand Sox. Added as part of the same expansion as our beloved Hares, the Sand Sox are also still looking for their first playoff appearance.

Stats are presented underneath each game as thumbnails, click to view each one. I just didn't want massive tables taking up all my posts, but happy to change approach if people would prefer it presented differently

Game 1
Things started off well for the Hares as Jeff McBurrows floated a 2-run home-run to deep-left field following a walk from bin Jameel. Unfortunately 4 singles in a row and some good base-running from Chien Danh meant the Sand Sox tied things up immediately after. McBurrows put the Hares ahead again at the top of the 3rd with another home run, but Marinello continued to struggle and gave up three singles and a double, in a 3 run inning that put the Hares down 5-3.

The Hares brought in right-hander Evan Shepherd in the fifth inning, and at the top of the 6th the Hares tied things up with a Jason Portman single with the bases loaded, but that’s where the positives ended. With a combination of endless singles as our pitching continued to struggle, good base running, and a Kamarupa Visvanathan 2-run homer, the Sand Sox took the game 10-5.



Game 2
Rafael Guzman put in a very solid start, recovering from giving up 2 runs in the first inning to holding the Sand Sox to no runs for the next 5. The bullpen then shut out the remaining 3 innings. Unfortunately, the Mountain Hares offence was not on form at all, hitting only a few singles spread across the innings in a manner that they were never a threat. Sand Sox starter Dumadi Kartodirdjo never looked in any trouble and we lost 2-0.



Game 3
Leftie Yushua bin Saqr wasn’t helped by our fielding when the Sox went 1-0 up in the first inning, but he did manage to limit the damage leaving two runners on base. Gildun Chatuluku of the Sox made bin Saqr pay for a lead-off walk in the second with a double, making the score 2-0 as the Hares offense failed to get going. Superstar signing Willie Perez gave the travelling fans something to cheer about in the top of the fourth with a 409 foot home run to centre-field, straight into the giant sandpit the Sox have there, his first home-run for the club, and we all hope the first of many. Unfortunately Chienh Danh continued to be our nemesis and smashed a double at close to 100mph at the bottom of the 8th which pitcher Christos Budd could only watch fly past him into centre field, letting Leon Gomez run two bases to home to give a final score of 3 - 1 to the Sand Sox as they completed an opening sweep of the Hares.



Quick thoughts
0-3, not the best start for sure - but there are some positives here. McBurrows and Perez are off to good starts, there’s some promising starting pitching too, we just need a decent pitching performance to align with a good batting one and I’m sure we can get that first win. Fielding has been a bit of a mess, but hopefully that improves as the team plays together more. It's too early to talk about player's season stats, or our place in the standings at this point, but I'll start doing that from the third series or so.

Next up - we're at home against the Warsaw Kings

[dinosauryoshi]

SMH logo by @20_range, WK logo by @low

Warsaw was our next destination for the Hares’ first divisional series. The Kings won the Europe division in 2052, and were runners up in 2043 and 2053.

Game 1

SP - Mototomi Motoyanagi

Motoyanagi’s first start of the season went promisingly, giving up only 1 run in six innings, a 363 foot home run to switch-hitter Chris Hamilton which sailed out at deep left-field. He was supported well by the Mountain Hares’ offence with Willie Perez smashing his second home-run of the season to left-field, earning Sheffield two runs at the bottom of the 1st, and another run on a sacrifice fly by Dam De - bringing in Jose Garay - gave Sheffield a 3-1 lead at the bottom of the second. Dam De continued to help the side with a solo home run at the bottom of the 5th, making it 4-1. Motoyanagi left to a standing ovation after the 6th inning, and Sheffield’s relivers held the fort well, giving up only one further run on a Qaraja bin Khair al Din double in the 9th inning, by which point a Kolya Saetgaliev sacrifice fly and a solo home run by Sergio Rutz, a 400 foot bomb to the treehouses behind centre field, had pretty much cemented the Hares’ first win of the season, 6-1.



Game 2

SP - Nestor Barrios

Nestor Barrios left the game for righty Jonothan Baca after the third inning, at which point the Hares had a 1-0 lead on an Adam Koehler solo home run in the 2nd, out of deep right-field. Abdul-Karim bin Jameel hit his first home run of the season in the third, a shot to deep left field. Bin Jameel’s stellar performance continued with a double to deep centre field, which Jeff McBurrows helped him turn into a run with his own double. The Kings clawed back some of Sheffield’s lead in the sixth with a three-run inning started by a Winstron Boostra home run bomb to left centre-field, and capped by four singles in a row, adding two runs and making the score 4-3 to the Hares. Jonathan Baca took the game home after that stumble, giving up no further runs as the Hares added three more in the eighth inning, with singles by Garay and Koehler, and a walk by Portman setting things up for a bin Jameel single to bring home two-runs, giving the Hares a solid win at 7-3.



Game 3

SP - Giobbe Marinello

Marinello struggled again giving up seven runs in five innings, incluidng a 439 foot bomb by Nermin Ljotic) in which the offence couldn’t get anything going. He was replaced by RHP Omari Peart in the 6th, and him and other bullpeners let up only one further run in the rest of the game, a Da-xia Huang home run to left-field. The offence could only make up 2, a Sergio Rutz run on a Chase Clem double in the 6th, and a home run by Burman catcher Min-Had Nien, his first of the year in the 7th. Final score: 8-2.



Quick thoughts

It’s still too early to look at any depth into the team’s stats, but this was a promising series win (and 2-4 sure looks better than 0-3), though Marinello’s struggles do have me somewhat concerned about our ace.

Next up, the Hares are at the Minsk Bison.

[dinosauryoshi]

SMH logo by @20_range, Bison logo by @low - struggling to find bigger version

Game 1

SP - Rafael Guzman

Things started well for the Hares as Kolya Saetgaliev smashed a solo home run 435 feet over the deep leftfield fence in the game’s first at-bat and bin jameel followed this up with a single and base steal, scoring on a Jeff McBurrows single. The Bison hit back with a solo home run by Cristian Carsen in the first, and equalised with a Yin-zhen Ni double in the second. Three-runs by the Bison and only one by the Minsk a 5-3 lead going into the 6th, which was when the Hares put their foot on the accelerator. Adam Koehler hit a home-run to deep centre-field, followed by Kolya Setgaliev’s second homer of the game, giving the Hares a 6-5 lead, which was further increased by an Adam Koehler sacrifice fly, and Kolya Saetgaliev’s third home-run of the game (a club record), giving the Hares a much needed 8-5 victory.



Game 2

SP - Joey Jameson

Following the high-scoring of game one, game two took a different turn. Going to extra innings with a score of 2-2 at the end of the 9th, with two solo home runs (by Segio Rutz and Adam Koehler respectively) making up our side of the score. It only took one further inning to decide the game, as reliever Mikala Enosa was brought on by the Hares, and gave up the bullpen’s only run on a Jordan Gutierrez walk-off single. A crushing defeat for the Hares, 3-2.



Game 3

SP - Mototomi Motoyanagi

The Hares’ offence spluttered in their attempt to win the series, managing only one run (a single from bin Jameel bringing in bin Abdul in the 8th) while the Bison hit Motoyanagi for two, and reliever Christos Budd for 1, making a final score of 3-1.



And so we’re 3-6.

[dinosauryoshi]

SMH logo by 20_range, ZM logo by @low

Game 1

SP - Giobbe Marinello

A solid outing from Marinello, following two duds, as he pitched seven innings, only giving up two runs, both on a Gigi Silivasi homer in his last inning. The Hares weren’t exactly firing on all cylinders but did get two runs on a Garay homer, and a Rutz single. 2-2. A solo home run by Zurich star Jake West on a Jonathan Baca fastball in the 8th won the game for the Mountaineers 3-2.



Game 2

SP - Rafael Guzman

I’m afraid I don’t have time to describe the endless action in this one, but we lost 10-7, take a look at the box scores!



Game 3

Sergio Rutz and Dam De homers helped the Hares notch up 5 runs in 9 innings, unfortunately the Bison matched them helped by another Jake West hom-run. The Hares put themselves in a good spot when a single by Usamah Kadin brought in the zombie runner, but unfortunately a run of singles in the 10th by the Bison meant they walked off 7-6 to complete the sweep and leave the Hares 3-9 for the season.



Next up, we're taking on the St. Petersburg Pelicans

[dinosauryoshi]

SMH logo by @20_range, SPP logo by @low

Game 1

SP Yushua bin Saqr

It’s about time we did some winning around here and game one in Russia proved fruitful. Perez led the way, getting out of a slump by going 3-5 with a home run in the third and double in the first. Usamah Kadin played his part by pulling us away from the Pelicans in the 6th, with a two-run homer that cemented the final score at 6-4. Bin Saqr gave up 4 in 5 innings, walking 3 and collecting 3 Ks.



Game 2

SP - Mototomi Motoyanagi

Perez seems to like it in Russia, getting no less than 5 hits as the Hares beat out the Pelicans 7-2 (tying the Hares record), his heroics included a three-run home run in the first inning. Motoyanagi has been the Hares’ best pitcher to open the season, but he tied the club’s record, with 8 walks in one game, though he only gave up one run in 5.1 innings.



Game 3

SP - Giobbe Marinello

The Hares completed an unexpected sweep of the Pelicans with a 5-2 win. Perez had a decent game going 2-4, but with no RBIs he wasn’t the catalyst for this win. Garay and Saetgaliev get that award, with a two-run homer each. Having struggled to start the season, Marinello put in a solid performance, giving up only one run in seven innings, with a very impressive 11 strikeouts and no walks.



The sweep takes us to a more respectable, but still disappointing, 6-9 record. We’ll take a look at the pitching and batting stats next, as we will every 15 games or so.

[dinosauryoshi]

Every 15 games or so we’ll take a look at the team’s pitching and batting stats. I’ll sort the tables by WAR, as I’m a big fan of it, but of course for these early tables it has a little less meaning, particularly on the pitching front. I’ll probably throw in a fielding table in future too, because I’m nice.

Batting



Having started the season cold, a few superb games from superstar signing Willie Perez have put him up among the team’s top performers, with an average of .333 and OPS of 1.025, as well as a team leading 5 home-runs and 9 RBIs. It’s Rutz who comes out on top so far though with a very impressive .352 average and 1.017 OPS in 54 at bats. He’s notched up 3 home runs and 6 RBIs. Adam Koehler also deserves a mention here, though his high WAR is more related to his defensive ability than his offensive statistics, as you can see, he has still hit 3 home-runs and batted in 6 RBIs.

On the less impressive side of things, last year’s superstar Abdul-Karim bin Jameel has made a poor start, racking up an awful batting average of .180, and an OPS of .521. He has hit 7 RBIs, though that seems more a function of luck than anything else given his other statistics. Dam De has been the team’s worst fielder so far, with a whooping 11 errors in 15 games, and his batting hasn’t helped either, meaning he is a rather spectacularly bad -0.5 WAR at this stage of the season. We’ll see how long he lasts if this performance level continues.

Pitching



Ok, I forgot to put FIP as one of the listed stats, I will make sure I do this in future, as it gives am much better picture as to why Marinello’s WAR is higher than anyone else’s, even though he has a high ERA. Essentially he’s been particularly let down by some dodgy fielding. I’m not going to go into this table massively at this point, as the sample sizes are very small (only a few appearances for most), but it does paint a fairly good picture of our pitching so far. Overall it’s a bit better than I was expecting at the start of the season. I’m a big fan of a pitcher weighted roster, which isn’t exactly the way the Hares have gone in the past (or now), but this little table does at least give me some confidence that we’ll not be giving up 10 runs a game, though Guzman is threatening to do that in his starts so far.

[dinosauryoshi]

SMH and SJG logos by @20_range

The San Juan Garitas sit at the bottom of their division, so I hope this is an opportunity to pick up a couple of wins for the Hares. We're off to Puerto Rico!

Game 1

SP - Rafael Guzman

Starting pitcher Rafael Guzman fulfilled his part of the bargain, helping the Sheffield Mountain Hares stymie the San Juan Garitas, 5-2, pitching a complete game in only 95 pitches, and giving up just two runs in a dominant performance. On the batting side of things Chase Clem had a big run-scoring double for the Mountain Hares in the bottom of the fifth inning. With Sheffield leading 2-1 and a runner on 1st, he got a changeup from 30-year old right-handed pitcher Marco Gonzalez and swatted a double to left-center. It was his 2nd double of the season, and more importantly, it put the Mountain Hares ahead, 3-1. A Sergio Rutz one-run homer in the 6th didn’t hurt either, and we ended up running away with it 5-2.

Player of the game - Rafael Guzman



Game 2

SP - A. Herzog

The Hares continued their great recent form to thrash the Garitas 10-2. . Our standout performer was bin Jameel, who went 1 for 3 with a home run and 3 walks, while scoring 3 runs and driving in 2 for the Mountain Hares. Alois Herzog earned the win to go to 1-0. He allowed 1 run on 5 hits, with 3 walks and 6 strikeouts in 5 innings of work. Willie Perez, who finished 5th in The Americas and Oceania Conference in extra base hits with 85 in 2055, chipped in a 2-run single for Sheffield in the bottom of the second, as well as a homer in the 6th. Jose Garay and M Nien also pitched in with their own home-runs in a welcome rout at Kingfisher park.

Player of the game - Abdul-Karim bin Jameel



Game 3

SP - Yushua bin Saqr

What on Earth is going on? Another win? With superstar Willie Perez rested Yushua bin Saqr put in a good shift as we completed an impressive sweep of the ailing San Juan Garitas (now 5-13) at Kingfisher Park. The Mountain Hares won the game, 4-1, working their way out of trouble in the top of the ninth. The score was 4-1, Sheffield, with one out. San Juan, with runners on 1st and 2nd, was mounting a threat. Mario Sanchez dug in at the plate, but on a first pitch changeup, he popped out to E Shephard, who took the game home for Sheffield, who are now .500 and 9-9, after a 6 game win streak.

Player of the game - Yushua bin Saqr



I’m delighted, Perez continues to be on a heater, and we’re looking much more consistent on the pitching front. We must temper our expectations though given the Garitas are looking like one of the worst teams in the league at the moment. Our next series against the Moscow Blizzard, who top our European division, should help to show us where we stand.

[dinosauryoshi]

We’re off to play the Blizzard, the wonderful Blizzard of.... er, Moscow. Moscow lead the European division at the moment, having made the playoffs last season, so they’re a force to be reckoned with, coming into the game with a very strong 14-4 record. Personally, I’ll be happy if we get one win!


Both logos by @20_range


Game 1

SP - Mototomi Motoyanagi

The Hares put up a decent fight, but ultimately succumbed to the Blizzard with American starter Josh Peters surrendering just one run in six innings. Trailing 4-2, the Hares had the bases loaded in the top of the ninth, but Farid bin Abdul failed to make Liberian Closer Tariq Kafele pay, grounding out in a 4-3 play. Our Cuban short-stop Josh Flores did manage to notch up his first home run of the season though, a 346 foot looper to deep left-field.

Player of the Game - Josh Peters (Moscow Blizzard)



Game 2

SP - Giobbe Marinello

In a scoreline that no one expected, the Mountain Hares thrashed the blizzard 10-1 in a night of clear skies in a cool mid-day game in Moscow. Team Batting WAR leader Sergio Rutz slugged two home runs, driving in four runs while, Marinello allowed only one run, flaming through eight innings in 100 pitches to drop his ERA to a more respectable 4.85. Koehler mirrored Rutz’s performance, with two home-runs and four RBIs himself in what was a fun day for the Sheffield fans who’d made the journey to Moscow.

Player of the Game - Sergio Rutz



Game 3

SP - Rafael Guzman

With the series tied, and coming off a wonderful victory in the last game, the tides turned as the Blizzard took the series with a 6-1 win at a packed Manul Stadium, in another mid-day game with clear skies. Moscow’s French pitcher Fiorentin Guerin gave up just one run in seven innings, before Indian Qhanran Latesh continued the Hares’ woes, giving up nothing in the final two innings. Guzman gave up six in just 5.1 innings for the Hares, in a game where we only managed a paltry 3 hits, dropping us below .500 again at 10-11, as the Blizzard keep their place atop the European Division with an excellent 15-5 record.

Player of the Game - Florentin Guerin (Moscow Blizzard)



Next up, we're hosting the new expansion team the Athens Philosophers here at Kingfisher Stadium!

[dinosauryoshi]

both logos by @20_range

For the first time ever, the Philosophers make the trip to Sheffield. They're coming into the series 8-13, the kind of record which is to be expected from an expansion team in its first season.

Game 1

SP - Alois Herzog

The series didn’t start as we’d hoped, with Chamkanni smashing a home run straight into the kids’ treehouses behind centre-field in the third inning, one of three runs given up by Alois Herzog in his 6 innings. Home runs from Perez and Rutz, the team’s RBI and Home run leaders respectively weren't enough to make up the deficit. The final score was 5-4.

Player of the game: Lebna Ogunkeye (Athens Philosophers)





Game 2

SP - Yushua bin Saqr

Hares’ batting just about put enough runs on the table to capitalise on a superb outing from bin Saqr, who let up just 1 run in 6.1 innings, racking up eight strikeouts while giving up no walks, he now sits on a very respectable 2.86 ERA. Keohler made sure the Hares limped over the line, with a run-scoring double in the sixth (his first double of the season), painting the eventual final score of 2-1 on the scoreboard.

Player of the game: Yushua bin Saqr



Game 3

SP - Mototomi Motoyanagi

Sheffield got themselves back to .500 with a 4-2 win over the Philosophers to take the first ever series between the teams. It was another fine pitcher’s outing that won it for the Hares, this time from Mototomi Motoyanagi, giving up only one run on four hits. Evan Shepard continued his fine form as a closer, notching up his fifth save, working around two walks in the final inning. Pitching counts for nothing if no one hits though right? Fortunately the struggling Abdul-Karim bin Jameel pulled out one of his better performances this season, batting in two runs, including a run in the bottom of the three-run fourth inning, as the Hares went on to win 4-2.

Player of the game: Mototomi Motoyanagi



Next up, we’re taking on the Madrid Mallards, who are a few wins ahead of us in the standings.

[dinosauryoshi]

SMH logo by @20_range MM logo from @cephasjames pack...

We welcome the Mallards, who are sitting on a healthy 14-10 record, to Kingfisher Stadium in another European Division match-up.

Game 1

SP - Giobbe Marinello

Madrid’s 26 year old Frenchman Michel Clerc - 3rd pick in the 2054 draft and one of the league’s rare two-way players - put in a great game on the mound. He yielded no runs in his six innings, notching up five strikeouts. He also hit 1 for 3, and gained two walks behind the plate. It was the Mallards’ two-run second inning that proved enough to squash the Hares, who didn’t manage a single run all game, as the offence faltered and they lost the game 3-0.

Player of the Game: Michel Clerc (Madrid Mallards)



Game 2

SP - Rafael Guzman

The Mallards are rolling, and in a cloudy day at Kingfisher stadium they rolled right over the Hares again, this time thanks to a veritable feast of doubles and triples. Pang Liu led the batting charge, going 3-6 with a home-run, two singles and 2 RBIs, the Chinese second baseman has been solid for the Mallards ever since he arrived from the Cordoba Silversmiths in 2053, notching up an all-star appearance in 2054. The majority of the Hares’ batting line-up did get a hit, and bin Jameel going 3 for 5 was particularly promising. Koehler’s sailing home-run in the bottom of the ninth was the team’s highlight, but it was too little too late as the Hares succumbed to another defeat, 8-4.

Player of the Game: Pang Liu (Madrid Mallards)



Game 3

SP - Alois Herzog

You don’t win games giving up 11 runs, and indeed the Hares failed to do so even with their strongest offensive display of the series. Things were tied at an entertaining 6-6 going into the 9th, when Filipino Nestor Barrios put the exclamation point on an awful game for the Hares’ bull-pen, giving up 5 runs leading to the Hares losing the game 11-6. The Mallards had some pretty great batting across the board, but Indian Shyamal Mittur was the highlight, going 2 for 4 with a home-run and a walk and 3 RBIs. Mitch Cooper hit a 3-run home run in the 4th on his debut for the Hares, but in the end we were comfortably swept in the series.

Player of the Game - Shyamal Hittur (Madrid Mallards)



The Mountain Hares are left 12-15, and sit in 12th place in the European Division. The Mallards improve to a very solid 17-10, and rocket their way to 3rd place in the division. We're back at Kingfisher park next to take on the Shenzhen Peanuts, who currently sit 12th in the Central and East Asia Division.

[dinosauryoshi]

As is customary every 15 games, let's look at the team's stat leaders, ordered by WAR.

Batting



Sergio Rutz still leads the way with a very impressive 1.137 OPS, as Perez also continues to put up good offensive numbers, but is hampered on the WAR front a little by his ailing defence. Bin Jameel’s batting average is slowly creeping up, but he’s still posting a negative WAR at this point, and mediocre stats across the board, which given his great season last year, he’ll be very disappointed with.

Pitching



On the pitching front Yushua bin Saqr has been the most reliable, something also evident in the amount of wins he’s notched up. Perhaps most impressive is that he’s only given up one home run in six starts. Marinello has been less spectacular, but leads the team in strikeouts with 34, as he consistently gives the team a chance of winning with his starts. At the other end, Guzman is the most disappointing, with a terrible 8.54 ERA, and the lowest strikeout rate of anyone of the starting rotation.

Fielding





Defensively, Portman and Saetgaliev lead the way, with Rutz also rock solid. Unsurprisingly, Willie Perez has been a negative at first base, something he’s thankfully made up for with his solid offense. Overall this doesn’t paint the best picture of the Hares’ defense, and shows how, in general, they’re not helping our pitchers!

[dinosauryoshi]

Editors note: I've posted this in the wrong order, it should have come before the last post about stats, anyway pretend they're in the right order...

The Peanuts come to Sheffield with a 13-15 record, perhaps they'll try the famous peanut and chocolate yoghurt down at Clive's Yoghurt Emporium? They'd be daft not to.


SP logo by @low, SMH logo by @20_range

Game 1

SP - Yushua bin Saqr

Sergio Rutz continued to lead the team, going a super 4-5 with a towering home run, a triple, and two singles, driving in three of the Hares’ nine runs. Willie Perez drove in two with a double in the eighth. Yushua bin Saqr was taken out after the fifth having given up three by the end of the fifth inning. The Hares went through four members of the bullpen as they gave up three runs before Evan Shepherd righted the ship and pitched a no-run final inning to cement a 9-6 victory for the Hares.

Player of the game: Sergio Rutz




Game 2

SP - Motoyanagi

Motoyanagi gave up all of the Peanuts’ five runs in the first six innings before the bullpen came in and shut them out for the last four innings, but it wasn’t enough. The Hares managed only three runs, all driven in by Saetgaliev who went 2-4 on the day with a double and a single as the side crumbled to a 5-3 loss, leaving them 13-16 on the season. Miletic took the player of the game award, going 2-4 with two doubles that drove in three runs for the Peanuts.

Player of the game: Dragoljub Miletic (Shenzhen Peanuts)




Game 3

SP - Giobbe Marinello

Marinello provided easily the best starting pitcher performance of the series for the Hares, going six innings and giving up only one run, five hits and two walks while flaming five strikeouts. The offense took full advantage with Sergio Rutz going 3-5 with a home run and double, driving in another four to take his season total to 21, leading the team. Flores, Portman and Perez all went 2-4 driving in three runs between them as the Hares thrashed the Peanuts 13-2, taking the series 2-1, and improving their record to 14-16.

Player of the game - Sergio Rutz

[dinosauryoshi]

The Black Cats sit with a 16-15 record as they head to (hopefully) sunny Sheffield for an early May series at Kingfisher Park.


PBC and SMH logos by @20_range

Game 1

SP - Rafael Guzman

Rafael Guzman put in a superlative performance, giving up only one run and hit in eight innings as the Hares opened the series with a comfortable 7-2 victory over the Black Cats in a cloudy day at Kingfisher Field. Bin Jameel, Koehler, Flores and Portman all got two hits each, and things were over when the Black Cats’ bullpen gave up four runs in the game’s last two innings.

Player of the game: Rafael Guzman




Game 2

SP - Herzog

Herzog gave up five runs in 4.1 innings before being pulled, when Pop, Baca and Shepard capably took over to give up only two further runs in the remaining innings. Thankfully the Mountain Hares offence was firing on all cylinders, in particular Willie Perez, who is quickly becoming a fan favourite with his dry after-match interviews, and wry smiles. Perez hit 3 for 5 with a home run and a double, driving in three runs. Rutz continued his excellent form with his own home run as he went two for four, with two runs batted in. On the Black Cats side, it was looked like a bad day from the off, when opener Szewcyk was getting smashed all over the park, giving up seven runs in just 1.2 runs. Considering that, the final score of 11-7 to Sheffield is one they probably would have taken. Most importantly, this brought the Hares back to .500 at 16-16.

Player of the game: Willie Perez



Game 3

SP - Yushua bin Saqr

Anton Sedlacek put together a complete game, giving up just five hits and two walks as he gave easily his best performance of the season. The Black Cats offense was led by a towering performance from S. Cote who punctuated a good offensive performance from his team with a towering home run in the ninth as the Hares failed to grab a rare opportunity to go above .500.

Player of the game: Anton Sedlaceck (Paris Black Cats)



Next we invite the Berlin Bears to Kingfisher Park in another European Division clash as the Hares continue in their quest to finish their first season above .500.

[dinosauryoshi]

In the final game of a lengthy home stand, the Hares invite the Berlin Bears to Kingfisher Park.


both logos by @20_range

Game 1
⁠⁠⁠
SP - Giobbe Marinello

Sheffield Mountain Hares starter Giobbe Marinello pitched effectively against the Berlin Bears at Kingfisher Park. The right-hander spearheaded his team's 6-5 win. Marinello gave up 4 hits and no walks over 7 innings, allowing just 1 run. With the win, the Mountain Hares go back to .500 at 17-17

On the offensive side Usamah Kadin had a big 2-run double for the Mountain Hares in the bottom of the seventh inning. With Sheffield leading 4-1 and runners on 2nd and 3rd, he got a fastball from Amud Morceli and swatted a double to left-center. It was his 5th double of the season, and more importantly, it put the Mountain Hares ahead, 6-1. The Bears hit the Hares’ bullpen for four in the final two innings, but we held on for a great 6-5 win.

Player of the game: Giobbe Marinello



Game 2

SP - Mototomi Motoyanagi

The Mountain Hares came out absolutely firing to get themselves above .500 with a 15-5 drubbing of the Berlin Bears with the crowd singing the praises of Willie Perez throughout the game. Perez went 3-4 with 2 home runs, a double, and a walk, while scoring 4 times and driving in 4 for the Mountain Hares in the win. With Sheffield leading 11-3 in the bottom of the seventh, Perez came up to bat against Berlin pitcher Austin Gwaltney. Perez hit a fastball to left-field for a 3-run home run. His 10th home run of the season put the Mountain Hares on top, 14-3. Mototomi Motoyanagi held the Bears to 2 runs on 3 hits over 5.2 innings, while striking out 7 and walking 5. Flores, bin Jameel, Saetgaliev and Kadin all contributed with two RBIs each.

Player of the game: Willie Perez



Game 3

SP - Raphael Guzman

The Mountain Hares couldn’t complete a surprise sweep as they suffered a 8-3 home loss in the final game of the series. The game was highlighted by the performance of Berlin center fielder Liben Kibaki. Brock Lewis, the winning pitcher, is now 2-1. He went 8 innings, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits, while fanning 4 and walking 4. Berlin raised its record to 21-16 with the win. Berlin right fielder Kasib Butrus contributed a timely at-bat in the top of the first. With two down, he hit a sinker to right field for a 2-run single. It was his 17th hit of the season and put the Bears ahead, 3-0. Guzman went on to give up a further three runs, before being taken off after his third inning, and it was an uphill battle from there that the Hares lost convincingly.

Player of the game: Liben Kibaki (Berlin Bears)

[dinosauryoshi]

The Hares are off to Rome's magnificent Testudo stadium, Rome sit a couple of wins ahead of us in the standings, and so we're in for a bit of a battle... (get it?).


SMH logo by @20_range, RL logo by @low

Game 1

SP - Alois Herzog

Alois Herzog put on a good show, allowing no runs in 7.1 innings, but the Hares offence spluttered, hitting only 1 run in nine innings. This still looked like it might be enough until a Matt Lent double to right-field drove in Nate Underhill in the bottom of the ninth, taking the game to extra innings. The decisive blow was delivered by American Rob Smith at the bottom of the 11th when he hot a bases clearing double off 37 year old Guatemalan Jonathan Baca to win the game for Rome, sending the stadium into raptures.

Player of the game: Alois Herzog



Game 2

SP - Yushua bin Saqr

The Hares fell to their third consecutive defeat, losing 4-2. Once again, it was the offence mainly to blame, as bin Saqr went a strong seven innings, giving up all of the Legion’s runs. The Hares batters only hit for two, coming from bin Jameel and Saetgaliev while Jen-kan Sha’s two-run homer for the Legion was the offensive highlight of the game.

Player of the game: Yushua bin Saqr



Game 3

SP - Giobbe Marinello

Well, the offense finally got something done, but guess what? You got it, the pitching was lacklustre as the Hares fell to their fourth straight defeat, completing a sweep by the Rome Legion. Marinello had a disastorous start, giving up eight runs all in the second inning after the Hares had taken a 4-0 lead in the first inning. Marinello was taken off, and the rest of the pitchers did right the ship somewhat, but stil lgave up a further 6 runs, leading to an eye-watering 14-7 score. Koehler and Castro hit home-runs for the Hares, but it wasn’t enough to touch the onslaught that a hungry Rome offense was dishing out.

Player of the game: Jon Sabido (Rome Legion)



This leaves us at a disappointing 18-21, while Rome end the series at .500. Next up we’re off to Romania to take on Bucharest Sounds, a team very much in playoff contention.

[dinosauryoshi]

We're off to Bucharest, well the team are, I'll be sat here in Sheffield watching it on my glorious WBL subscription, probably with a yoghurt. Anyway, the Sounds are looking good, contending for the European division title, and so I'm expecting a very tough series...


both logos by @20_range

Game 1

SP - Mototomi Motoyanagi

A win!! Sergio Rutz continued his great season with a 3 RBI game, including a towering home run in the eighth inning off Sounds reliever Blackmond. Motoyanagi gave up 4 runs on 6.2 innings and Baca shut out the Sounds for the rest. A solid start to our visit to Bucharest.

Player of the game: Sergio Rutz



Game 2

SP - Guzman

Guzman struggled, giving up 4 runs in 5.1 innings, before seemingly the entirety of our relieving core held the Sounds to two in the rest of the game’s innings. The offense managed to put together 12 hits (Koehler was 3 for 5), unfortunately they were all singles, and rarely came at the opportune time, and so only Garay and Kadin actually managed to bat anyone in, with one each, and so we lost 6-3. On the other side, Johnny Pedelty was on fire, going 2 for 3 with a home run, as well as two walks.

Player of the game: Johnny Pedelty (Bucharest Sounds)



Game 3

SP - Alois Herzog

The Hares suffered another 6-3 loss, bringing the Sounds to a division-topping 26-17, with another strong performance from Pedelty, who managed to get 2 RBIs in his only at bat of the game, as he pinch hit for Green in the 8th, Green had himself hit a run scoring sacrifice fly in the third inning. On the Hares pitching side of things, Herzog put in a decent performance, giving up three runs in 6 innings, while Barrios gave up three runs in the 7th, without getting anyone out, to be swiftly replaced by the more successful Enosa. Sounds’ Foul Ambidwile got player of the game, going 3 for 4 - all singles.

Player of the game: Foul Ambidwile (Bucharest Sounds)



A 2-1 loss to a team as good as Bucharest Sounds isn't too disappointing. I'll take it.