ISLANDIAN PRO ALLIANCE (RUTHLANDIA and TYCOBBIA BASEBALL UNIONS)

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 22, 2027

2027 RU North Mid-Season Standings and Team Batting

Pro Cup Champ Valmara Still Dominant In RU North
Not a lot of change in the Ruthlandian North standings from last year... Pro Cup Champ Valmara Vipers are way ahead at mid-year with a 7-game edge over Far Mountain and 10 games up on third place Ancona... Last year's four tops teams are the same... no big surprises in the division... Taranto may be the most-improved club, moving up from seventh last season... could sneak into the first division.

Valmara's strong pitching is leading the way with a 3.24 team ERA, fifth best in the RU... vets Billy Ray (8-5 2.71), Chris Phillips (8-3 2.57) and All-Star closer Ivan Guzek (5-0 2.10) are having fine years... Guzek has saved 16 games... Vipers are not great at the plate (.245 BA- 26th)... best bats are LF Sonny Oliver (.302/18/50/42) and rookie 2B Alex Leclerc (.268/0/23/47)... Leclerc is great with the glove and has stolen 26 bases... rookie OF Reno DiBendetto (.287/4/13/13) is a solid backup and is doing well in his first season.

Runner-up Far Mountain has two All-Stars in starters Jeff Cooper (12-5 2.04) and Jakob Wagner (11-3 1.99)... but has a lousy bullpen with a 4.34 ERA (27th)... only average hitting with a .254 BA (13th)... 2B Johnny Becker (.333/4/22/47) and C Roger Webb (.275/5/51/33) lead the offense... no new blood this season... no rookies made the squad.

Third place Ancona traditionally noted for its bats, has fine pitching this year (3.11-3rd), starters and bullpen, but little offense (.246/23rd)... Kyros Halkias (8-6 2.31), Razzy Angelis (8-7 3.05) and Vince Arndt (6-8 3.45) are quality arms... Kenny Nikas (5-2 2.91) is solid in the bullpen with 11 saves... offensively All-Star RF Donnie Lewis (.335/5/34/54) is having a standout season with solid help from IPA great and All-Star LF Kenny Willard (.289/12/54/41)... only two rookies, neither had done much so far.

Youngsters Manny Mateo (9-5 2.94) and Willie Walters (7-2 3.52) are fourth place Ranford's top starters... rookie Kris Webb (4-1 3.25) is showing promise as a spot starter... the Bulls best bats are All-Star C Kyle Hunt (.343/3/35/29) and CF Thomas Strickland (.337/10/35/34)... rookie LF Percy Whitehead (.297/0/26/32) has impressed, too.

Fifth place Taranto's top performers have been All-Star pitcher Rob Bailey with an 11-5 mark and 2.77 ERA and All-Star 3B Cody Wilson with 12 homers, 54 RBIs and a .274 BA... fragile and oft-injured Bailey was obtained in a trade with San Dimas... Bailey has held very well so far... All-Star twirler Niles Wooten heads up the sixth place LaGrange Sports staff with a 10-5 record and a 3.15 ERA, while rookie Alex Gillespie is 10-6 with a 2.51 ERA... another Sport rookie CF Russell Watkins is batting .321 at mid-season with 12 roundtrippers and 40 runs batted in... in Kilkenny the seventh place Cats have been paced by vets CF Ronnie Roussell (.302/9/31/34) and starter Dave Whitaker (10-7 3.94), plus rookies Dean Harris (7-7 3.45) and James Crockett (7-10 3.43)... Last place Glasco's best players are Jimmy Nichols (6-5 3.03) and free agent signee Luka Abromowitz (8-6 3.34) on the hill and 1B Garris Aikens (.292/11/34/53), C Eddy Martin (.310/3/30/33) and RF Warren Steele (.295/8/42/32).

RU North Forecast:
Looks like Pro Cup crownbearer Valmara has too much overall talent... should win in a breeze... Far Mountain, Ancona, Ranford and Taranto will fight it out for second place... LaGrange might contend for first division spot, too.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 22, 2027

2027 Ruthlandian South Mid-Season Standing and Team Stats

6-Team Brawl In RU South
At the All-Star break it's a ding-dong dandy in the Ruthlandian South with two teams deadlocked for the top spot and four more hovering like vultures ready to swoop in and grab the crown... last year's runner-up Waleska and the San Dimas Rancheros are tied for first, just one game ahead of third place Crystal Lake... three games up on fourth place Valka... only four games ahead of fifth-place Grand City... with last season's flag winner St. John 5 games back and in sixth... only seventh place Claxton and last place Belair Beach seems to be out of the race.

It's the bats that make the Waleska Westerners go this season (.268 BA-4th)... Manager McGraw Johnson has a bevy of them in his batting order, sparked by an IPA icon and All-Star CF Roy Hobbs with a .375 BA, 15 homers and 48 RBIs... Hobbs leads the IPA in hits with 110 and 58 runs... Kenwood's Babe Hankins sports the best batting average in the IPA with a .383 mark in the Tycobbian Union... also lending strong support at the plate are LF Loco Dillinger (.392/14/48/57), 1B Glenn Childress (.311/4/49/50), SS Jose De Leon (.309/6/47/31) and RF Wilson James (.295/5/32/50)... Waleska's best bets on the hill are rookie fireballer Wild Bill Butler (13-5 3.96), who really lives up to his name with a 100 mph fastball, 137 Ks and 108 walks in 139 innings... along with fine closer Jarred Laclair (1-1) with 13 saves and a 1.16 ERA.

Skipper Wesley Pate in San Dimas relies on his mound corps with two splendid rookies Miguel Valdes (12-5 2.76) and Joaquin Lima (10-5 3.13) and veteran Shannon White (9-7 3.54), mixed in with a quality closer like Matt Stevens (2-3) with 16 saves and a 2.60 ERA... CF Ray Ford (.280/9/47/37) and LF Andre Venturella (.277/12/36/39) top the offense.

The Crystal Lake Crushers dropped out of the RU South first division last year, falling to fifth place, but they have come back this season and are currently in third place, just a game off the pace... manager Baby George has several good starters and a decent offense... on the mound T. D. Burnham (8-3 2.85) has taken the lead... longtime ace Duncan Welch (8-9 3.60) has struggled in the first half of the season... at age 33 Welch's ERA has soared way above his lifetime 2.31 ERA... rookie Arnie Cason (4-1 2.20) has been effective in his 16 starts and taken up some of the slack, but doesn't go deep in the game and has had a lot of no decisions because of a bad bullpen... CF Herm Taylor (.324/1/21/49) and RF Teddy Dietrich (.333/5/31/40) are the top contact hitters with power supplied by 1B Josh George, who has a club-high 12 homers and 46 RBIs with a .259 BA... George is the skipper's 21-year-old son, playing his second season with the team.

Last year the Valka Blackhawks were near the bottom of the division... but this year new manager Ron Landauer has them fourth in the standings and only 3 games out... the Blackhawks have moved up into contention because of the influx of some fine new rookies infielders in the batting order, who also handle the gloves very well... 3B Leevi Viru (.281/6/34/32) and 1B Andy Preston (.283/4/34/24) have been good additions to veteran RF Tonu Viks (.307/8/30/50), C Don Pontros (.281/5/36/25) and 2B Kusta Savisaar (.317/1/26/25)... reliever Earl Davidson (0-1) has really stood out since being given the closing role this year... Davidson has notched 17 saves, tops in the RU and third in the IPA and has posted a brilliant 1.23 ERA... Valka has two capable starters with Adam Aru (11-6 3.26) and Glenn Cadman (10-8 3.89) in the rotation.

Wade Joslin's Grand City Cybercats are fifth best in the RU South and boast the top offense in the RU with a .276 BA and 381 runs, ranking first in both categories... they are the highest-scoring club in the IPA... but his Cybercats pitching staff has been terrible with a 4.66 team ERA, the worst by far in the IPA this year... still they trail the leaders by just four games ... Grand City has a formidable lineup with All-Star CF Thomas Hall (.331/20/63/57), who is second in homers and RBIs in the IPA, topped only by Sugar Valley's great Dean Woods... Woods has hit 26 out of the park and driven in 83 runs... vet RF Nick Baldini (.321/2/18/49), vet C Ben Stern (.324/1/28/25) and SS Jared Lundquist (.282/1/23/40) don't hit for power, but they get on base for a couple of slugging rookie first sackers Mick Langston and Maury Rice... Langston has slammed 15 home runs, batted in 58 and scored 40 times... his backup Rice has delivered a .421 BA with 10 homers and 28 runs batted in,while starting only 9 games... pitching-wise, All-Star closer Ralph Teague has excelled with a 5-1 mark, splendid 0.96 ERA and 10 saves... the only decent starter has been rookie Charley Chisholm (8-7 3.66).

St. John was the surprise winner of the RU South last season... manager Clayton Luck had super pitching (2.79 ERA), but this year it is only fairly average at 3.68 (17th)... but the hitting has perked up considerably from .258 to .270 (3rd)... and the Crusaders are still within striking distance, 5 games behind in the pennant race at mid-year... 2B Byron Johannsen (.359/1/20/27), 1B Roger Lanier (.343/7/37/47) and LF Joey Daigrepont (.319/10/44/34) are the bat leaders with help from All-Star C Phil Olafsen (.278/7/34/30) and 3B Cody Francis (.277/9 HR/29/29)... starters Don Baillie (8-7 3.37) and Dave Carnera (7-7 3.49) have been Luck's most effective starters... and bullpen ace Nelson Hawthorne (5-4) has claimed 14 saves and put up a strong 2.43 ERA.

Neither seventh place Claxton, nor last place Belair Beach are expected to contend this season... the Diamonds are 9 games back and the Sunbirds 11 games behind... Jack Vogel is manager Stacy Engel's top pitcher with an 8-5 record and a solid 3.28 ERA... LF George McKay has racked up 18 homers and 44 runs batted in to go with his .328 BA to top the bats... but no one else in the lineup has been much of a threat.

The only thing the Belair Beach Sunbirds do well is go deep... the Birds have smacked 71 roundtrippers and are 4th in the RU... overall hitting is only average with a .252 mark (15th)... on the hill, not so good either with a 4.26 team ERA (30th)... superstud All-Star 1B Kees Draeger is having another fine season with a .344 BA, 19 homers, 50 RBIs and 48 runs scored... RF Carlos Gomez chipped in with 14 home runs and 41 RBI, but is batting a lowly .221 for average... top pitcher on the club is 38-year-old Denny Whitaker (6-8 3.21).

RU South Forecast:
Waleska will manage to hold off San Dimas in the second half and take the pennant... Grand City will beat out Valka for third place... Crystal Lake will be fifth, followed by St. John, Claxton and Belair Beach.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 22, 2027

2027 Ruthlandian East Mid-Season Standings and Team Stats

Bobcats Blows 'Em Away In RU East
For the second straight season the Beechwood Bobcats are breezing through the Ruthlandian East with a big 8-game bulge at mid-year... Sugar Valley and Marston are far back and tied for second place... Eastshore is fourth and 9 games out... Elnora and Belle Plaine are deadlocked in fifth, trailing by 11 games with Cold Creek 13 games back in seventh. Last place is held by Wynnamac, 17 games behind.

Beechwood has the second-best record in the RU at 46-27, topped only by Valmara's 49-24 in the RU North... Bret George's Bobcats have strong pitching with a 3.08 team ERA (2nd) and solid bats with a .260 BA (10th)... good defense, too, with a .977 FA... All-Star Ken Arby (13-5 1.80), the IPA ERA leader, is the top hurler with help from Maury Patterson (12-5 3.74)... Bill Curtis (7-5 3.32) and Ken DeGraw (6-6 3.72) are quality arms, too... Roy Pitts (3-2) has 8 saves and super 1.83 ERA in the bullpen... leading the Bobcats at the plate are All-Star CF Vic Valenti (.305/14/54/52), still going strong at 34 and a future HOF-er... RF Jojo Davis (.348/2/22/54) and 3B Skipper Smith (.303/5/36/36).

Longtime infield favorite Danny Church took over for Johnny Walters in Marston and he's got the Nine on the rise... last year they were 6th, this year tied for the runner-up spot... Marston has a .262 BA (7th) and a 3.34 team ERA (7th)... Ronald Schmitt (9-5 2.69) is the ace... while Bobby Daniel (5-3) has moved into the closer role after working as a spot starter and reliever in the first half... Daniel has 11 saves and a 2.76 ERA... new starters Doug Hansack (3-0 1.81) and Fernando Melendez (2-2 2.78) both are showing promise... All-Star 3B George Varsh (.336/2/38/31), All-Star Lonnie Trekell (.295/16/55/42) and star CF Russ Woodward (.315/12/33/51) spark the attack.

The Sugar Valley Rattlers fell way down to seventh last year, but have surprised this year, climbing up into the RU East first division... two rookie hurlers Jeremy Blanchard (9-6 2.74) and Wes Weaver (7-5 3.27) have helped to improve Gibby Bobkins' club this season... All-Star 1B Dean Woods is having an extraordinary season with 26 homers and 83 RBIs, both are the best in the IPA, while hitting .361... CF Lindsay Deal is also doing well with 18 roundtrippers, 54 RBIs and a .284 BA.

Killer Brewster has four capable starters in Eastshore, but nothing in the bullpen... Randy Boone (11-6 3.05), Melvin Key (8-5 3.05), Dalton Porter (8-7 3.40) and Lenny Hynoski (5-6 3.28) can hold their own... the Elegants don't have much in the batter's box with the top producers being LF Larry Lowe (.280/3/28/41) and RF Ivan Borkowski (.282/13/40/34).

The fifth-place Elnora All-Stars best pitchers are starter Freddy Pfeffer (6-4 3.41) and closer Joel Bassett (2-0) with 15 saves and a super-low 1.17 ERA... All-Star CF Travis Glass (.294/18/52/42) and rookie RF Pettis Pentleton (.292/6/30/46) are the top bats.

Dave Torregrossa has some good hitters in Belle Plaine with All-Star SS Slick Hammill (.293/8/36/39), 3B Tyler Verret (.312/12/43/35), C Derek Roman (.297/10/39/35) and LF Owen Newman (.293/11/38/40)... not a lot on the hill for the Musketeers... Leonard James is the best starter with a 7-7 mark and a 4.02 ERA with recent addition Luc Monjeau (4-2 3.64) showing some good results so far.

The Cold Creek Catamounts reached fourth place last season, but hasn't continued the improvement, dropping this season to seventh... Trip Holmes' mound corps is fairly good, but the team is not much offensively... rookie Tommy Smith (6-5 2.51) has stood out this season... Jamie Gustafson (7-10 3.01) and Joey Christianson (7-9 3.32) have been hurt by poor run support... All-Star 1B Steve Daniels (.305/14/46/40) has been one of the few good bats.

The Wynnamac Sundowners have really relapsed this year, falling from second to the cellar... Matt Donnelly had sensational pitching last season, but not this year... young Jason Meeks (9-6 3.02) is the only reliable starter in the rotation as Vets Jerry Meeks (5-10 4.76) and Lon Marshall (4-9 4.43) have stumbled badly in 2027... LF Lil Hoss Burkhalter (.301/14/39/45), 3B Dorak Aranda (.313/4/30/39) and C Lee Leslie (.283/10/37/31) have been the providing the offense.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 22, 2027

2027 Ruthlandian West Mid-Season Standings and Team Stats

Rovers, Roosters, Blasters, Stars Vie For RU West
Big change in the Ruthlandian West pennant race this year... last year Middlefield blitzed everybody and won in a cakewalk by 11 games over Stoner and 17 better than Sligo... Much closer race this season with five teams in the hunt... The Sligo Rovers are the top dog with a game lead over defending champ Middlefield, 2 over Colfax and 5 in front of Stoner... Even fifth place Fort Benton is within hailing distance, 7 games off the pace.

Manager Eddie Keys' Sligo Rovers have the best team ERA in the RU with a 2.95 ERA (1st)... All-Star Lee Patterson (11-5 2.61), Lou Page (7-5 2.89), Earl Perkins (6-4 2.85) and rookie Christien Trudeau (6-2 2.90) are all under 3.00 in ERA... offense is the main shortcoming with a .242 BA (22nd) and 29th in scoring... most reliable bats are 1B Johnny Sackett (.302/3/27/40), CF Daryl Collins (.284/11/48/31) and RF Teddy Brunet (.316/11/34/30).

The second-place Middlefield Roosters have won the last 4 division titles and are a big threat to win it again... skipper Bailey Norcross used to just let the hitters win it for him, now the pitchers are more than doing their part... the Roosters have put up a 3.20 team ERA (4th) and the sluggers are still going deep regularly with 83 homers (2nd)... that's a good formula for success... starters Glenn Tackett (10-3 2.82) and Danny Denver (11-5 3.62) lead the mound staff... Waylon Hillman has 16 saves and a fine 2.28 ERA, but is only 1-6 this year... recently-promoted starter Judson Davis (3-2 1.93) could be a vital cog this year if he can pitch as well as a starter as he has as a reliever... the Roosters don't hit much for average, but do well enough... most productive batters are 1B Paul Smiley (.254/16/41/38), LF Floyd McClellan (.267/15/38/34), 3B Stu Butterworth (.279/10/33/28) and RF Vic Ivarsson (.299/9/23/30).

The Colfax Blasters have a new manager, Ilya Szabo, who replaces Clem Rogers this season... Szabo is an IPA Hall-of-Famer, ranking 7th all-time with a 327-210 record... He starred for the Blasters for 19 years... Colfax is not particularly impressive, but they are in third place and right up there with the big boys, Sligo and Middlefield... This is the first time in 11 years the Blasters have been in the hunt... give the credit to starters Smoky Rogers (9-3 3.01), Cliff James (10-5 3.79) and James Elliott (10-7 3.34)... Szabo has to scrounge for runs with the likes of CF Hal Granders (.286/7/33/48) and 1B Doug Kirkwood (.276/5/45/37).

The fourth-place Stoner Stars with Benny Stern at the helm are getting by with average overall pitching and pretty good batting... the Stars are 5 games over .500 and just 5 games out of first place... Raul Hidalgo (9-7 2.35) and rookie Darrell Geoffrey (4-6 2.42) are very good starters... in the batter's box 1B Fletch Fowler (.257/11/58/37) and 3B Jeff Henderson (.294/8/42/36) are the main threats and RBI guys... catcher P. J. Blake (.333/1/25/29) and CF Al Rispone (.307/5/38/49) hit for average, but don't have much punch.

Robbie Brooks is in charge of the Fort Benton Defenders, long a division doormat... they edged into the first division for the first time in years last season, sneaking in fourth... good things were expected this season, but so far haven't materialized... Brooks only has so-so pitching and lousy scoring... rookie Frankie Quinn (6-7 2.70) and Augie Marquis (7-7 3.49) are quality arms and good starters and closer Kurt Cobb (3-3) handles the bullpen duties well with 10 saves and a 2.45 ERA... 1B Brad Jenkins (.322/4/38/23), 2B/SS Jerome Cox (.346/3/18/22) and LF Stan Saunders (.285/7/31/36) are the best contact hitters, while CF Vince Boylan provides the power with 13 homers and 42 RBIs, but is hitting only .246.

The other three teams in the RU West will be trying to stay out of the cellar... The Volusia Vigilantes and Forest City Lumberjacks are tied for sixth and trail by 11 games... hapless Rocky Rapids is in the basement and 14 games back... Volusia has good rookies in pitcher Cisco Almeira (8-9 3.17) and 1B Joao Rosales (.290/8/41/32), but little else... Forest City is 3rd in home runs with 77, led by CF Fred Weldon (.291/14/39/42) and 1B Barry McKnight (.287/15/46/37)... remarkable rookie Doug Cox (9-4 2.55) and new closer Greg Kelley (2-1 1.69) are the only quality pitchers on the Lumberjacks staff... poor Rocky Rapids may be headed for the worst season in its history... rookie Matt Loudermilk (7-9 3.20) tops the pitching corps and 3B Paul Shelton (.275/9/28/37) is the Snappers best bat.

RU West Forecast:
The Middlefield Roosters have good pitching and good power and will win the RU West... but the Sligo Rovers may give them a tussle with its fine pitching staff... it may not be a runaway the way it has been in three of the last four seasons for the Roosters... the Stoner Stars and Colfax Blasters should battle it out for the third spot... we give the edge to the Blasters pitching... the Stars with the good bats will be fourth... Forest City's offense should move it up to fifth place past Fort Benton... Volusia will probably wind up seventh... and Rocky Rapids will have the cellar all to themselves again this year.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 22, 2027

2027 Tycobbian North Mid-Season Standings and Team Stats

Zorros Soar To Top In TU North
What an unbelievable turnaround in the Tycobbian North - Luxora has gone from last to first this year... at the All-Star break the Zorros are in a tightly-jammed four-team fight with Mahaska, White River and Hartsdale... the Haymakers and Rascals are all knotted up in second place, just a game back in the race with the Hellcats right on the heels of everybody, only 2 games behind... at the top of the second division it's Fairfax fifth, 8 games out... Oxford sixth, 9 games back... North Hills seventh, 10 behind... and Blue Lake pulling up the rear 15 games off the pace.

A new skipper and a bunch of top-notch youngsters have turned the Luxora Zorros into a serious contender... Lacey Tompkins replaced Cristo Viaconte this season and has done wonders with great pitching and a little firepower at the plate... the Z's starting rotation consists of four pitchers under the age of 23, headed up by Toby White (9-4 2.12), Tommy Ellefsen (7-2 2.36), Fabio Medeiros (9-7 2.91) and Benny DeVito (8-9 3.06)... in the closer role is 23-year-old Paulo Da Gama (4-0) with 8 saves and a 1.15 ERA... altogether the staff has compiled a terrific 2.77 team ERA (3rd)... batting-wise the Zorros have hit 71 homers (5th) and are ranked in the middle in scoring (13th) with a .246 BA (15th)... 1B Gerry Hathaway (.313/13/46/29) is the only real threat in the lineup... but All-Star C Pete Gibbs (.260/8/26/33) helped out a bit with the bat and played great defense as always... the pitchers will have to win the pennant for them.

Last year's flag winner and Pro Cup runner-up, the Mahaska Haymakers, are hanging very close, tied with the White River Rascals for second place, trailing by just a game... Rusty Tanussa's Haymakers are 7th best with a fine 3.08 team ERA, 5th in hitting with a .264 BA and 7th in run scoring... they are a force to be reckoned with... Mahaska has three strong starters, paced by Sammy Kafelnikov (12-6 2.69), Arno Vainmaa (8-4 2.85) and James Allington ( 5-5 2.63)... plus a solid closer in Victor Stravinsky (5-4) with 12 saves and a 2.59 ERA... Tanussa has a rock-solid batting order with All-Star Todd Tarnovsky (.318/12/51/44), RF Travis Tuttle (.298/13/39/46), 1B Paul Davies (.304/9/40/26) and CF Pasha Yablonski (.296/3/28/45).

The White River Rascals under Mick Cronyn have made great strides this year with its mound corps, improving from 3.67 to 2.91 (4th)... another plus is decent power-hitting with 65 roundtrippers (8th)... closer Jeffrey Floyd (2-3) has been superlative with an IPA-leading 19 saves this year with a 1.13 ERA... starters Paul Sardini (10-6 2.34), Lou McKenzie (5-3 2.45), Ron Hendrix (8-8 3.30) and rookie Gregg Moore (3-0 3.38) have performed quite well, too... all-time great IPA 1B Marty Blake (.289/12/42/41) made the All-Star team for the 7th time in his career... CF Hal Littleton (.308/5/18/38) supplied some offense, too.

Longtime Hartsdale manager Zim Donner retired after 26 seasons and was replaced by a former Hellcat 3B Kendry Moulton, who played 23 years with the club and is a possible Hall-of-Famer... Moulton was a 7-time All-Star with 527 homers and a .297 career BA... better pitching has the Hellcats in contention this season with a 3.21 team ERA (10th), sparked by youngsters Donovan Lee (9-4 3.53), two rookies Eric Isenhart (4-1 1.60), Lou Chylak (6-7 2.75) and 39-year-old vet Jim Starks (6-6 3.15)... closer Chris Marvin (3-5) has been brilliant with a 0.57 ERA and 15 saves... a sore point is the Hellcats hitting... LF Nicky Carpenter (.273/8/38/33), CF Ken Wessel (.260/6/39/35) and 1B Johnny Scott (.248/10/37/43) are the best RBI men, but don't hit much for average.

The fifth-place Fairfax Frogs were a distant second last season to Mahaska... skipper Dane Wesner's club has improved at the plate with a .262 mark (7th), but has gone south on the mound, falling to a 3.99 ERA (29th)... not likely to contend this season... Frog bat leaders are rookie CF Eric Kusek (.291/3/50/40), 2B John Velasco (.321/5/28/47), vet RF Randall Crawford (.296/8/45/34), LF Alton Dale (.269/10/37/51) and rookie 1B Kent Harmon (.287/6/43/26)... no one has stood out on the mound.

The Oxford Red Caps are in sixth place in the TU North standings, but not going anywhere... very poor hitting and average pitching won't do it... vet Carmine Scalise (7-9 3.42) is about the only effective starter... Kenny Gorham (9-7 4.29) has been spotty and inconsistent... after years in the bullpen Arnie Bradshaw has been converted to starting and has done well with a 4-5 mark and impressive 2.59 ERA... manager Mack Spencer has only one quality hitter and he's having the worst season in his career... LF Dennis Hartwig is batting a lowly .278 with 11 homers, 31 RBIs and 39 runs... a 5-year man Hartwig averages .338, 25 homers, 100 RBIs and 120 runs scored per season... not likely to reach them this year.

The North Hills Hawks prospered last year and wound up third, but manager Masaichi Okawa has seen his hitting and offense go from bad to worst and fallen down to seventh place... his mound corps has faltered, too... 1B Robby Boyce leads the club with a .304 BA with 9 homers, 29 RBIs and 26 runs... topping the twirlers are Terry Costanza (7-7 3.29), Rich Hanson (5-5 3.00) and veteran reliever Tony Haverkamp (5-3) with 10 saves and a 2.25 ERA... Haverkamp is 40 and in his 17th season.

Blue Lake is mired deep in the TU North basement at mid-year, 15 games off the pace... it's the sixth successive season near the bottom of the division... Former Blue Sox CF Rich Hilliard has taken over for the retiring Cobb Tyson this year... not much has changed except the pitching is better, but the batting is worse... the club future is looking a little brighter with young hurlers Chris Landry (10-7 2.57), rookie Billy Trakas (7-6 2.47) and Doug Kirkpatrick... the trio have been quite effective as starters, but can't with without some run support... Blue Lake starters have posted a pretty fair 3.40 ERA (13th)... rookie CF Chris Halley (.309/1/13/32) is the only quality bat, but has very little power... the Blue Sox are hitting only .231 (25th) with 42 homers (29th)... they are in dire need of some quality hitters.

TU North Forecast:
The Mahaska Haymakers are the class of the division and one of the best teams in the Tycobbian Union and IPA... the Haymakers will take charge in the second half and pull away from the pack... Luxora's too strong on the hill and will hold on to second place... White River will challenge the Zorros, but wind up third... the Z's pitchers are just too tough... the Rascals are almost in their league, but not quite... Hartsdale doesn't have the hitting to compete with Luxora and White River and will have to settle for fourth place... the Fairfax Frogs will finish fifth, Oxford sixth, North Hills seventh and Blue Lake last.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 22,2027

2027 Tycobbian South Mid-Season Standings and Team Stats

Wide Open Race In TU South
The closest pennant race in the IPA is in the Tycobbian South where only 5 games separate first place from seventh place with the last place team only 8 games back... At the season's halfway mark the Colchester Elites, Cape Coral Hurricanes and the Arroyo Grande Suns are all even and deadlocked for first place... The Turon Typhoons are just 2 games off the pace in fourth place... the Summerland Sunsets and Southport Sun Sox are tied for fifth and trail by only 3 games... the San Alejo Montaneros are seventh in the standings and just 5 games behind... and in last place 8 games out are the defending division champ the Ginza Ninjas.

Colchester depends on good starting pitching and the home-run ball for success... Uncle Robbie Wilbertson has four capable starters in the Elites rotation... Mike Kierkegaard (8-4 3.19), Mac Flowers (7-9 3.30), Brandy Snow (5-7 3.13) and Cholly Burdette (5-6 3.25) all give quality starts... Colchester is 6th in homers with 69 and 6th in scoring, but only 22nd with a poor .239 BA... last year's TU MVP 1B Steve Burns (.304/9/40/37) is the Elites best batter... LF Jim Lewellan (.232/15/43/47) and rookie RF Cleve Belton (.246/17/45/44) provide the longballs, but don't hit for much average.

Perennial power Arroyo Grande has been in the top three teams for the last 10 years and won the division on 4 occasions... the Suns are high up in the standings, but manager Cyclone Cobb's club no longer has the high-scoring attack... they still hit homers, but don't hit for average or score like they have in recent years... the Suns are number two with 80 home runs, but are batting only .240 (21st) and are ranked 13th in runs... 1B Rusty Vizcarra (.222/16/43/33), All-Star C Gary Troxell (.258/16/42/36), LF Eduardo Villanueva (.272/9/32/29) and 2B Andy Pearson (.248/5/31/350 are all having subpar seasons... but it may be due to improved pitching quality in the IPA this season, which seems to have stepped up to another level... rookie hurlers are really putting up some good numbers this year... the Suns top pitchers are Paco Morales (8-4 3.51) and Chico Huerta (7-3 3.68), pretty good numbers in small Capet Stadium, where homers fly out with great regularity... defensively the Suns are one of the best in the IPA with a .980 FA.

It has been 11 years since the Cape Coral Hurricanes won the TU South... the team has been near the bottom for most of those seasons... but improved pitching, defense and hitting has got them in the running this year under new manager Flipper Bird, who replaced Huggy Miller... Miller retired after leading the club for 26 seasons... the 'Canes are batting .265 (3rd), are 8th in runs and have a 3.52 team ERA (16th)... CF Dan Isenberg (.280/13/51/46) leads the way offensively with help from 2B Neil Hennon (.292/0/34/36), SS Sam Young (.280/4/37/33) and RF Bill James (.296/3/33/29)... third-year LF Jan Krammer has moved into the starting lineup and hit .369 with 3 homers and 20 RBIs in 34 starts... on the mound the Hurricanes have three fine starters in All-Star Mike Rinaldi (12-4 2.83), Randy Burns (10-7 3.04) and rookie Izaak Booten (7-3 3.35)... number four starter Karl Zenger (6-9 3.94) has been off and on, but effective at times... Cape Coral's bullpen needs drastic improvement to remain in contention in the second half... the Hurricane defenders handle the gloves very well with an impressive .980 FA.

The Turon Typhoons are in fourth place, just 2 games out of first, a big improvement over last year's seventh-place finish... manager Whitey Richburn has good hitting, fair pitching and poor defense (.969 FA)... at age 38 all-time IPA great Nicky Engstrom is now within 3 games of tying the IPA record for victories... Engstrom is 366-179 in his 18 seasons (Cape Coral's Cody Burg has the record with 369-264)... this season he is still Turon's ace with an 8-5 mark and a strong 2.60 ERA... Sal Quattrone (7-6 3.16) and James Newland (7-7 3.59) are also solid starters... it's the bullpen that is killing the Typhoons... they are absolutely last in the league with an horrendous 4.87 ERA (32nd)... the club is batting .262 (8th) and is 9th in scoring runs, paced by vet 1B Michael Page (.284/16/50/40) and 3B Grant Odom (.317/3/26/35).

Skipper Will Hackett's Summerland Sunsets are tied for third, only 3 games behind the leaders... the Sunsets have super starting pitching with a 2.43 ERA (1st), headed up All-Star Scotty Ellison (11-6 1.86), Willie Baldwin (8-6 2.59) and rookie Ron McDonald (6-6 2.47)... number four man Jorn Heese (2-4 1.73) has looked very good in his 6 starts since being promoted to a starter... Hackett needs help in his relief corps... offense is a problem for the Sunsets with a poor .236 BA (23rd)... vets CF Joe DeLucca (.284/8/32/40) and SS Gregg Proctor (.276/10/38/31) are Summerland's best run producers... defense is lousy with a .966 FA.

The Southport Sun Sox are tied for third, just 3 games out... manager Charley Oscar has solid pitching with veteran starters Al Laclair (9-5 2.38) and Don Pascioni (7-7 2.95) and a strong bullpen... overall the Sun Sox staff has chalked up a fine 3.26 ERA (12th) with an excellent 2.44 ERA (5th) in the relief corps... closer Joel Shepard (3-4) has 13 saves and a 2.28 ERA... the best bats are LF Rick Cabrini (.325/3/24/48), RF Lorne Evans (.270/19/42/440 and 1B Kyle Ross (.258/8/32/32).

The San Alejo Montaneros are in seventh place and only 5 games behind the TU South leaders... skipper Alberto Herrera has a pretty fair hitting team that scores well, but lacks pitching... The Monties are batting at a .260 pace (10th) and are 10th in runs with 61 homers (13th)... on the hill they have a 3.92 team ERA (27th)... top batters are SS Leon Clendennon (.291/6/26/37), 3B Bubby Blackwell (.296/6/25/33), CF Mitch Payne (.282/7/32/18), RF Lou Browning (.267/6/33/26) and 1B Ramon Escabedo (.252/7/37/37)... John Kaltenbach (8-5 3.48) and rookie Juan Carlos Granados (7-4 3.83) are the staff leaders.

What's wrong in Ginza with the Ninjas... skipper Huroko Uchiyama has won the flag in three of the last four years, but this season his club has flopped miserably and fallen into the cellar, 8 games off the pace... pitching is the problem with a 3.80 team ERA (22nd)... the starters are especially bad with a 4.32 ERA (31st)... Ninja ace Daniel Ferguson with 20 wins in 3 of his 4 seasons is only 4-10 this year with a 3.48 ERA... it's 2.62 in his career... star closer Ken Kichida is 1-4 with a high 3.92 ERA... but Ginza has some decent hitters in All-Star 1B Johnny O'Rorke (.291/15/45/40), RF Sadaharu Uchiyama (.292/4/26/33), standout rookie All-Star CF Cotton Cornwall (.295/13/49/47) and C Crash Davis (.278/6/24/31).

TU South Forecast:
We're gonna go with the Arroyo Grande Suns to pull out a pennant in the very tightly-bunched TU South... the Suns are experienced, score runs, play excellent defense and have fairly good pitching... runs are especially hard to come by in the league this season, so good hitting might be the key... Cape Coral is a good all-around ball club and will wind up in second place... Summerland's great pitching should get them the third spot... Colchester has four fine starters, coupled with a decent offense... the Elites should make fourth place and the first division... Turon and Southport will contend for the fifth spot with the Typhoons offense giving them the edge... the Sun Sox will end in sixth place, followed by San Alejo in seventh and Ginza is destined for the cellar.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 22, 2027

2027 Tycobbian East Mid-Season Standings and Team Stats

EP Panthers Surprise Team In TU East
There is a new addition to the top contenders in the Tycobbian East this season - the surprising East Point Panthers, who have surged from near the bottom to the top and have swapped places with last year's champ Tuckanarra... the downtrodden Panthers are in first place, ahead of the usual leaders, second place South Fork, third place Ozarka and fourth place Midway... At mid-season East Point has a narrow one-game lead over the Stallions... 2 games up on the Naturals... and 3 ahead of the Midway Wolves... Red Bluff and High Mesa are tied for sixth and trail by 6 games with defending champ Tuckanarra having a miserable season and have tumbled down to seventh, 7 games off the pace... Hillsboro is in last place and 11 games out.

Great pitching has led to a resurgence in East Point for brand new manager Karol Zodoka... four quality starters, none over the age of 22, Jack Bolden (7-6 2.45), Dixie Brooks (9-9 2.83), Frank Blair (6-2 2.68) and rookie Joe Foley (6-4 2.99) have turned the Panther franchise around... Zodoka made wholesale changes in the pitching staff and it has really paid dividends... East Point has a terrible .228 team BA, but does have some power with 72 homers (4th)... two other youngsters provide what few runs the Panthers score... 1B Tetsu Tanaka (.280/16/39/45) and SS Bob O'Brian (.278/8/32/25)... vet CF Kenko Aoki has smacked 16 homers and driven in 41 runs, but he is hitting a lousy .191 for average, far below his career .255 BA.

The South Fork Stallions have dreadful hitting with a .225 team BA (30th), but counter it with some fine mound work... Duroche "Lips" Leon's top twirler is his super closer, All-Star Richie Raeburn (6-1) with 15 saves and a microscopic 0.31 ERA... his best starters are Bill Massey (7-6 3.00), Ozz Gatsby (6-4 3.45), Oklahoma Crane (6-9 3.05) and Gary Price (6-7 3.88)... Vets LF Patric Giles (.229/12/29/35) and CF Shelby Glasscock (.202/11/50/45) are the only run producers on the team, but they don't hit for much of an average.

Improved pitching has gotten the Ozarka Naturals on the rise again after 4 seasons in the second division... Joe Mac Carney's club hits for average with a very good 2.65 mark, but with little power... All-Star Marty Lane has been carrying the team with a fantastic 15-3 record and a 3.01 ERA... veteran fireballer Howard Hutch is 8-6 with a 3.17 ERA... Hutch is the IPA strikeout king with 164 in 150 innings... the Nats have a solid core of contact hitters: CF Ted Price (.296/9/52/35), 1B George Jenkins (.262/9/44/42), All-Star SS James Couch (.295/6/32/41), 3B Nick Rembert (.302/3/22/38), RF Ken Mayberry (.316/1/18/29), 2B Ed Ford (.286/2/31/33) and LF Ryomo Nakayama (.288/1/21/37).

Fourth place Midway is no great shakes on the hill (24th-3.87 ERA) or at the plate (.244 BA/16th), but do hit with some power (68 HR-7th)... skipper Cochise Chandler's top pitchers are All-Star Bobby Dorignac (11-6 2.54) and Cary Snead (6-3 3.32)... the Wolves have a few good bats, led by All-Star 3B Rusty Graves (.311/7/38/31) and 1B Cal Hunter (.269/8/16/40)... Chandler needs his vets SS Jug Slavin (.227), LF Johnny Lee (.211) , C Sammy Murphy (.230) and 2B Rob Gigler (.202) to turn it up in the second half... none of them are close to their lifetime averages.

The Red Bluff Red Sox are tied for sixth with the High Mesa Cowboys... both clubs are 7 games under .500 at the All-Star break... horrendous hitting is the culprit for the Red Sox and manager Bucky Frizzell... a .221 BA (31st) just won't cut it in any league... however Red Bluff has solid pitching with a 3.15 team ERA (8th)... the starters are especially talented, but don't get any run support at all... Rod Westfall (6-7 2.63), rookie Jack Phillips (4-9 2.82), rookie Denny Mills (7-8 3.18) and Tony Serna (7-11 3.33) always give Frizzell quality starts... star 2B James Mack (.263/15/15/35) and LF Corbett Brooks (.257/9/25/30) have to provide most of the offense.

Like the rest of the IPA, the High Mesa Cowboys have suffered severely in the batter's box with the rise in pitching this season... Frisky Franks has seen his club drop drastically at the plate, hitting only .230 this year (26th)... luckily the Cowpokes still play in a little venue and still poke a few home runs (76 HR-3rd)... the IPA all-time swing king Jack Elliott is even down in the dumps with a paltry .249 BA, 100 points under his career average... Elliott still hits with authority with 18 roundtrippers, 47 RBIs and 47 runs scored... power-hitting RF Bill Andrews is way down this season, too... Andrews is batting only .198, but has 15 home runs, 45 RBIs and scored 41 runs... 3B Freddy Franks (.271/6/30/38) and 2B Roland Campbell (.261/8/37/33) are also having so-so seasons.

Down in Tuckanarra the Blue Jays are full of woe and despair, unaccustomed to laboring in seventh place in the TU East standings... manager Carlton "Lefty" Stevens has won three of the last four division crowns and his club is the defending titlist... but this year the Blue Jays team ERA has shot way up and the team BA has gone way down... they won't go too far with a 3.98 ERA (28th) and a .241 BA (19th)... veteran stars Quinn Starr (8-7 3.22) and Glynn Starr (6-6 4.04) are Stevens' top arms... Tuckanarra got back Croc Wedgedale this year after an absence almost a year... a 20-game winner in 2024 Wedgedale missed half of last season and the first month of this year... He is 2-1 in 4 starts with a 3.88 ERA and will have to regain his form of 3 years ago for the Blue Jays to challenge in the pennant race... classic closer Archie Desmond (0-1 3.55) has lost his job at age 37... 25-year-old Gene O'Reilly has done a credible job with 15 saves and a 2.45 ERA, but is only 1-4 record-wise... SS Jed Turchin is the best batter by far with a .327 BA, 5 HR, 25 RBIs and 20 runs scored... star 3B Koora Nawajuk has been reliable with a .283 BA, 6 HR, 32 RBI and 39 runs... so has SS Narra Gilyinju with 13 homers, 45 RBIs and 38 runs, but he is hitting only .237... vets 1B Lynn Starr (.234), LF Danny Redd (.212) and newcomer via free agency 2B Eddie Darby (.218) are having notoriously poor seasons... Tuckanarra is only 7 games back in the race and could easily get back in the hunt, if the veterans catch fire and play up to potential.

The Hillsboro Blazers, skippered by Rawhide Marshall, are headed for a second-straight basement finish... the Blazers have absolutely the worst hitting the IPA has ever seen with a .214 batting average (32nd) and ranked last in scoring, too... Marshall's pitching is OK with a 3.71 team ERA (18th)... Terry Berryhill (7-9 3.29) is the best hurler the Blazers have to offer... 1B Larry Guichard (.253/11/30/32) is the only decent bat Hillsboro has.

TU East Forecast:
It should be a heck of pennant race in the Tycobbian East with even seventh place Tuckanarra having a chance to take it... East Point has extraordinary pitching and is the pick to prevail... South Fork's mound corps should give the Panthers a battle... the Stallions will wind up a close second... don't count anybody out in this wide open race... Tuckanarra will get back into it when its veteran bats rebound in the season's second half and finish in the third spot in the standings... Ozarka will hit well enough to come in fourth... Midway will be fifth... followed by sixth place Red Bluff... seventh place High Mesa... with hapless Hillsboro in the cellar for the second season in a row.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 22, 2027

2027 Tycobbian West Mid-Season Standingsn and Team Stats

2-Team Tussle In TU West Between Reds And Bucs

It only halfway into the season, but the race is over for 6 teams in the Tycobbian West... The Rolling Hills Reds and the Bay St. Clair Buccaneers are easily the class of the division... all the other clubs are also-rans as far the the pennant is concerned this year... they are going to have to wait until next year... The Reds and the Bucs are going at a blistering pace... they each could win a 100 games this season... at the All-Star hiatus Rolling Hills has a slight one-game edge over Bay St. Clair... the Chicopee Braves are 11 games back in third place and the Arlon Champions are fourth and 12 out... both clubs are playing well, but can't keep up with the red-hot Reds and Buccaneers.

Manager Matty Christianson has a superb ball club with 5 All-Stars... his Rolling Hills Reds seem to have it all... except for power (35 HR-31st tied)... they are number one in pitching with a fantastic 2.59 team ERA and also in batting with a sky-high IPA best .280 BA.

Starters: All-Star Kenny Leonard (14-3 2.50), All-Star Errol Gaudet (12-4 2.03), Sal Jordan (10-5 3.18) and rookie Johnny Brown (8-2 2.17)
Bullpen: All-Star closer Bobby Morris (3-1) with 17 saves and a minuscule 0.92 ERA.
Batters: All-Star 1B Billy Christianson (.326/8/53/55), All-Star LF Pat Webb (.289/7/46/40), rookie CF Scotty Yiska (.302/3/16/49) and SS Tony Ptacek (.265/10/45/30)

The Bay St. Clair Buccaneers with Guy Rondre at the helm are right up there with the Reds... the Bucs bats at a .253 clip (12th), but lead the league in scoring runs (378) and home runs (81)... strong pitching, too, with a 3.04 team ERA (5th)... and a fine set of relievers (2.62 ERA-8th).

Starters:All-Star Greg Moss (12-4 2.19), Wally Hudson (9-7 3.24) and recent addition Dale Hunter (5-3 1.86)
Bullpen: Marv Thomas (2-1) with IPA-leading 19 saves and an impressive 1.27 ERA
Batters: 1B Jerry Todd (.297/16/55/39), All-Star C Cruz Andrade (.305/12/47/42), LF Neil Lamont (.292/14/31/39) and 2B Terry Adams (.275/9/39/38)

It's been a good season for the third place Chicopee Braves and skipper Harry Fleetfoot... the Braves are 9 games over .500, but trail by 11 games... Fleetwood has average hitting (.251 BA-13th) and good pitching with a 3.24 team ERA (11th)... not much in the way of offense, 20th in runs (301) and 24th in homers (46).

Starters: Bob Ferguson (10-4 2.03), Frank Mullins (10-8 3.10) and Kyle Preston (8-5 3.38)
Bullpen: needs help... 3.77 ERA (22nd)
Batters: All-Star Charlie Jensen (.323/9/40/41), All-Star 3B Takota Littlefeather (.348/2/16/36) and rookie Sakima Shaman (.275/6/38/37)

Hall-of-Famer Rocco Belasario has taken the reins of the Arlon Champions after the retirement of Gary Louis and the team is really on the rise... good hitting has quickly turned them into a good ball team... the Champs are up from 8th place last season to fourth place this year, 12 games off the pace and 7 games over the .500 mark... Arlon is batting .263 (6th) with 65 homers (8th-tied) and 2nd in scoring runs (363)... defensively they are tied for first in the IPA with Colfax (.982 FA)... the team ERA is only 3.82 (23rd).

Starters: rookies Roger Cummings (10-4 2.59) and Raydon Burks (8-5 3.35) have given Arlon a huge boost, too
Bullpen: middle reliever Buddy Palmer (6-2 2.06) has stood out with 6 saves... otherwise Belasario needs help in the pen
Batters: LF Del Carpenter (.320/7/37/32), 2B Ryan Hicks (.297/5/35/43), RF Bailey Brupbacher (.277/14/38/47), All-Star SS Johnny Madigan (.281/2/29/47) and CF Carlos Quintana, who has 14 homers, 42 RBIs and 41 runs, but is hitting just .229 for average

Looking at the rest of the TU West... the La Claire Lynx are in the fifth spot, 18 games behind... new skipper Zeppy Deshotel has 3 All-Stars... plus many solid bats in his lineup with a .271 team BA (2nd), good scoring with 347 runs (4th) and fair power with 63 homers (12th)... not much on the mound though with a 4.16 team ERA (31st)... pitching is holding the Lynx back.

Starters: Pat Kovacs (9-5 3.19) and Ryan Brown (9-5 3.76)
Bullpen: closer Alvar Vickers (1-2) with 9 saves and a strong 1.74 ERA
Batters: All-Star and superstar SS Flash Devlin (.309/9/40/47), All-Star RF Kelly Chamberlain (.329/8/34/47), All-Star LF Carroll Candy (.301/10/47/36), 3B Darren Jardoin (.326/5/25/32), 2B Norman Petitjean (.300/6/38/29), CF Jimmy Roberts (.289/3/22/42) and C Tom Krebs (.264/10/35/24).

Manager Aaron Hankins' Kenwood Wildcats hit for average with a .261 BA (9th), but don't have much else... don't score well (22nd), little power with 35 HRs (31st-tied) with a mediocre mound staff (3.87 ERA-25th)... the Wildcats are sixth in the standings, 19 games behind leading Rolling Hills.

Starters: Trigger Rogers (10-4 3.16)... veteran ace Jody Gentry is having a down year with a 3-13 mark and a 3.39 ERA
Bullpen: closer Scott Bohn (0-2) has saved 16 games and posted a fine 1.63 ERA
Batters: Hankins' son, RF Babe Hankins, is having a great season with an IPA-leading .382 BA, 12 HRs, 48 RBIs and 52 runs scored... SS Jeff Lang has done well in his freshman year with a .277 BA, 4 HRs, 33 RBIs and 31 runs.

It's been a long first season for rookie manager Lavon Gooch of the Denton City Redbirds, who retired Ford Whiteman after 26 years... Whiteman had great success with 6 TU West pennants and 8 postseason appearances in his first 11 seasons, but little since... Gooch inherited a perennial second-division team with weak hitting and pitching... the 'Birds are in seventh place and 22 games out in the pennant chase.

Starters: Glenn Hamilton (9-8 2.76) is a fine starter
Bullpen: closer Johnny Duncan (1-3) is a strong reliever with 14 saves and a standout 1.11 ERA
Batters: rookie Luis Camacho tops the team with a .293 BA with 5 homers, 32 RBIs and 28 runs scored... not much in the way of offense after him

After four consecutive losing years in Bayview, longtime skipper Walter Johanssen is gone and replaced by Chancey Quibedeaux, one of the Vikings all-time greats... things are worst than ever with Bayview in the TU West basement and 30 games behind... Quibedeaux has terrible hitting with a pathetic .229 team BA (29th) and horrible pitching with a 4.31 team ERA (32nd).

Starters: rookie Tommy Wynn is the best of the lot with a 6-6 record and a 3.64 ERA
Bullpen: not much in the relief corps... closer Frank Shelton is just 1-5 with 8 saves and a 2.81 ERA
Batters: 5-year vet RF Knut Valen tops the club with .294 average... Valen has 7 homers and a team-high 41 RBIs... longtime star CF Davey Krueger has really slumped this year at age 38... Krueger, an 8-time All-Star, is hiting a lowly .204 this year... ditto for 38-year-old 1B Rafael Garza, a .311 career batter, who is down to .250 this season.

TU West Forecast:
Well, we will find out if a good team with great pitching can beat a good team with good pitching, hitting and power... Rolling Hills and Bay St. Clair are both fine clubs... We give the edge to the Reds because of some really outstanding pitching... it will be a very close race with the Buccaneers coming in second... Chicopee will beat out Arlon for third place with the Champions fourth... La Claire has more talent and will finish fifth ahead of Kenwood... Denton City has seventh all to themselves and Bayview has a tight hold on the basement.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, June 22, 2027

IPA All-Stars Picked, Game Tomorrow At Valmara

Nothing is for certain about the 2027 Islandian Pro Alliance All-Star Game. It might be dominated by top-notch pitching performances. Or it could turn into a home run derby. Who knows? Pitch by pitch, inning by inning, the game could feature a little of both -- six strikeouts in a row by a nasty southpaw -- or a 3-homer day for some superstar slugger -- plus great catches, thrills, chills and spills -- all the great and the unexpected things that can happen in a baseball game. The only thing for certain is that, with this group of fine all-stars, the fans will really enjoy the show. The 27th IPA All-Star Classic is set for tomorrow afternoon at War Memorial Stadium, the home of the defending Pro Cup champion Valmara Vipers. Tycobbia has won 18 of the 26 games played so far, but Ruthlandia is on a 2-game winning streak.

Heading up the RU Stars will be IPA legend Roy Hobbs, who was named for the 12th time in his career. Other multiple honorees are Vic Valenti (9th), Slick Hammill (7th), Les Patterson (7th), Kenny Willard (6th), Donnie Lewis (5th), Dean Woods (4th), Kyle Hunt (3rd), George Varsh (3rd), George McKay (3rd), Travis Glass (3rd), Kees Draeger (3rd), Jeff Cooper (2nd), Johan Wagner (2nd) and Rod Bailey (2nd). Two rookies made the RU squad: Miguel Valdes and Ross Whittier.

Superstar Flash Devlin tops the TU Stars with 11 All-Star appearances, followed by Marty Blake with 7, Errol Gaudet with 5, James Couch 4, Gary Troxell with 4, Pete Gibbs 4, Jerry Todd with 3, Pat Webb with 3, Rusty Graves 3, Johnny Madigan twice, Bobby Dorignac twice, Greg Moss twice, Bob Ferguson twice and Johnny O'Rorke twice. Cotton Cornwall was the only rookie selected for the TU All-Stars this season.

This year, the Ruthlandian Union will be represented by these All-Star performers:
SP J. Cooper (FM) (12-5 2.04)
SP M. Valdes (SD) (12-5 2.76)
SP K. Arby (BEE) (13-5 1.80)
SP R. Bailey (TAR) (11-5 2.77)
SP L. Patterson (SLI) (11-5 2.61)
SP J. Wagner (FM) (11-3 1.99)
SP N. Wooten (LAG) (10-5 3.15)
CL R. Teague (GC) (5-1/10 SV/0.96)
CL I. Guzek (VLM) (5-0/16 SV/2.10)
C B. Babineaux (LAG) (.276/1/27/31)
C K. Hunt (RAN) (.343/3/35/29)
C P. Olafsen (STJ) (.278/7/34/30)
1B D. Woods (SV) (.361/26/83/53)
1B K. Draeger (BB) (.344/19/50/48)
1B S. Daniels (CCR) (.305/14/46/40)
2B L. Trekell (MAR) (.295/16/55/42)
3B J. Becker (FM) (.333/4/22/47)
3B G. Varsh (MAR) (.336/2/38/31)
3B C. Wilson(TAR) (.274/12/56/36)
SS J. De Leon (WLK) (.309/6/47/31)
SS S. Hammill (BP) (.293/8/36/39)
SS R. Whittier (STJ) (.273/11/38/40)
CF R. Hobbs (WLK) (.375/15/48/58)
LF G. McKay (CLX) (.328/18/44/42)
LF K. Willard (ANC) (.289/12/54/41)
CF T. Hall (GC) (.331/20/63/57)
CF V. Valenti (BEE) (.305/14/53/52)
RF D. Lewis (ANC) (.335/5/34/54)
RF T. Glass (ELN) (.294/18/52/42)
.

While the Tycobbian Union best will be these stars:
SP K. Leonard (RH) (14-3 2.50)
SP M. Lane (OZK) (15-3 3.01)
SP M. Rinaldi (CC) (2-4 2.83)
SP B. Dorignac (MDW) (11-6 2.54)
SP S. Ellison (SUM) (11-6 1.85)
SP E. Gaudet (RH) (12-4 2.03)
SP G. Moss (BSC) (12-4 2.19)
SP B. Ferguson (CHI) (10-4 2.03)
CL B. Morris (RH) (3-1/17 SV/0.92)
CL R. Raeburn (SF) (6-1/15 SV/0.31)
C C. Andrade (BSC) (.305/12/47/42)
C G. Troxell (AG) (.258/16/42/36)
C P. Gibbs (LUX) (.260/8/26/33)
1B J. O'Rorke (GIN) (.291/15/45/40)
1B J. Todd (BSC) (.297/16/55/39)
1B M. Blake (WR) (.289/12/42/41)
2B T. Littlefeather (CHI) (.348/2/16/36)
2B T. Tarkovsky (MAH) (.318/12/51/44)
2B T. Tanaka (EP) (.280/16/39/45)
3B B. Christianson (RH) (.326/8/53/55)
3B R. Graves (MDW) (.311/7/38/31)
SS J. Couch (OZK) (.295/6/32/41)
SS F. Devlin (LC) (.309/9/40/47)
SS J. Madigan (ARL) (.281/2/29/47)
LF P. Webb (RH) (.289/7/46/40)
LF C. Candy (LC) (.301/10/47/36)
CF T. Price (OZK) (.296/9/52/35)
CF C. Cornwall (GIN) (.295/13/49/47)
RF B. Hankins (KEN) (.382/12/48/52)
RF C. Jensen (CHI) (.323/9/40/41)
RF K. Chamberlain (LC) (.329/8/34/47)
.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, June 23, 2027

RU Stars Rally, Win 3rd Straight 7-5
At War Memorial Stadium in Valmara, the Ruthlandian All-Stars rallied late for a 7-5 victory over the Tycobbian All-Stars... it was the RU Stars third triumph in a row in the 27th IPA All-Star Classic... CF Thomas Hall (Grand City) tied the score at 5-all in the top of the eighth with a solo homer, then SS Jose De Leon (Waleska) drilled a tie-breaking double for the winning score... the RU All-Stars tacked on an insurance run in the ninth on a Vic Valenti (Beechwood) single and a triple by 1B Kees Draeger (Belair Beach)... rookie Miguel Valdes (San Dimas) notched the win with a scoreless seventh inning with the loss going to Bobby Dorignac (Midway), who was slammed for a pair of runs in the eighth.

The RU Stars picked up 11 hits, while the TU Stars collected 8... Ruthlandia's CF Roy Hobbs (Waleska) and CF Thomas Hall (Grand City) had the game's only homers... De Leon captured the Most Valuable Player Award... 2B Todd Tarkovsky (Mahaska) and 3B Billy Christianson (Rolling Hills) each had 2 hits for the losers... Hobbs and Draeger smacked 2 hits apiece for the winners... Ruthlandia still trails 18-9 in the All-Star Series.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, September 1,2027

2027 Ruthlandian Union September Standings

Vipers, Bobcats Clinch North And East, 2 Races Tight In South and West
Defending Pro Cup champion Valmara and Beechwood are making a return trip to the postseason. The Vipers easily won the RU North and the Bobcats made shambles of the RU East. However in the other two RU divisions four clubs in each are still contending going into the final three weeks of the season.

In the RU South the Waleska Westerners and Crystal Lake Crushers are tied for first place, but the San Dimas Rancheros are breathing down their necks, just 2 games back. Fourth place Valka still has hopes, but trail by 5 games. Of the four ball clubs the Crushers are playing the best ball and are given the best chance to win the pennant.

Over in the RU West it's a snarling dogfight, too. Middlefield is just barely ahead with a one-game lead over Sligo and Colfax. Fourth place Fort Benton is still contending, only 4 games off the place. It should be a hair-raising finish as all four teams are playing their best ball of the year. August was very good for all of them. The defending division champ Roosters have been through it before and it might give them a slight edge in a very close race.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, September 1, 2027

2027 Tycobbian Union September Standings

Pennants Up For Grabs In TU Divisions
Heading into the final month of the season everything is still up for grabs in the Tycobbian Union. Nobody has secured a playoff spot yet. All four divisions will go down-to-the-wire.

The closest race is in the TU West where Rolling Hills and Bay St. Clair have been in a season-long battle. The Reds and Bucs are deadlocked for the top spot going into the last 16 games of the year. Rolling Hills has great pitching and will be hard to beat.

Four clubs are challenging in the TU South. The leader is the Colchester Elites, who are 2 games up on Southport, 3 in front of Arroyo Grande and 5 better than defending TU South division champion Ginza. Look for Colchester to prevail with its solid starting pitching and good home-run power.

There are four contenders still in the playoff hunt in the TU East. The Midway Wolves are in first place, 2 games ahead of the runner-up East Point Panthers, 4 and 5 in front of third place Ozarka and fourth place South Fork. The Panthers have 2 games to make up, but the experts think their superior pitching will win out in the battle with the Wolves.

Up in the TU North White River will have to have a mild breakdown to lose. The Rascals with three fine starters and a few good bats have a 4-game bulge over the second place Mahaska Haymakers and Luxora Zorros. The Rascals will have to be wary of the defending division champ Mahaska, who have a well-balanced club with fine pitching and strong bats. People are shaking their heads in bewilderment. They don't don't see how the Haymakers are that far behind White River. On paper Mahaska appears to be the better team. The Luxora Z's can hold their own on the hill, but lack the offense to get past White River and Mahaska.

Tycobbian Union Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Wednesday, September 1, 2027

IPA September Stats Leaders
The Ruthlandian Union batting crown is up in the air. Two players, Roger Lanier of St. John, and perennial winner Roy Hobbs of Waleska are running neck-and-neck with Lanier having a 4-point edge going into the final three weeks of the campaign. Lanier is batting .357 to .353 for Hobbs, a 4-time winner. The Waleska superstar has the lead over Lanier in hits 205 to 203. Crystal Lake's Herm Taylor is also in the chase with 194 hits. In home runs Belair Beach's Kees Draeger is currently number one with 38, followed closely by Dean Woods of Sugar Valley with 36 and George McKay of Colfax with 33. Tops in RBIs is Woods with 116. Ancona's Alekos Kotas and Kenny Willard are number two and three and trailing with 107 and 100 respectively.

Pitching leaders are Beechwood's Ken Arby with 25 wins and teammate Maury Patterson with 24. Third best is Valka's Adam Aru and Waleska's Will Bill Butler with 23 victories each. If he can squeeze in enough starts, Arby has a slim change to make history this year and become the first 30-game winner in IPA history. Turon's Shane Farmer won 29 in 2018. The top ERA belongs to Arby at 2.08 with Far Mountain's Jakob Wagner at 2.25. In third is Far Mountain's Jeff Cooper with a 2.45 ERA. The saves leader is Waylon Hillman of Middlefield with 36. Matt Stevens of San Dimas is second with 31. Two are tied with 30: Milt Flanagan of Sligo and Ivan Guzek with Valmara. The all-time saves mark is 41 set in 2019 by Jeff Jernigan of the Crystal Lake Crushers.

There isn't much of a contest in the Tycobbian Union batting race. Babe Hankins of Kenwood is way ahead of runner-up Rick Cabrini of Southport. Hankins is batting .353 to Cabrini's .327. Rolling Hills Billy Christianson is third with a .322 BA. Hankins also a substantial margin with 197 hits to Cabrini's 185. Christianson is third with 183. In longballs it's quite a battle with five contenders: Lorne Evans (Southport) and Kerry Sterling (Oxford) tied for first place with 39, Jack Elliott (High Mesa) with 38, Kenji Aoki (East Point) at 36 and Michael Page (Turon) 35. It's even more competitive in RBIs with 10 in contention, led by Aoki with 103. There are 9 others within 8 of the leader.

The pitching leaders will probably go down to the last day of the season, too. Ozarka's Marty Lane has the most wins with 25. Bobby Dorignac of Midway has posted 23 with three tied at 22 apiece: Errol Gaudet (Rolling Hills), Kenny Leonard (Rolling Hills) and Frank Mullins (Chicopee). The top ERAs belong to Greg Moss (Bay St. Clair) with a 2.17, Al Laclair (Southport) with 2.30 and Jack Bolden (East Point) with a 2.34 ERA. Also within striking distance are Scotty Ellison (Summerland) at 2.41 and a pair at 2.42: Toby White (Luxora) and Errol Gaudet (Rolling Hills). The number one bullpen ace is Bobby Morris (Rolling Hills) with 32, followed by Jeffrey Floyd (White River) with 30 and three others with 28: John Nelson (Arroyo Grande), Marv Thomas (Bay St. Clair) and Pete Woods (High Mesa).

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, September 21, 2027

IPA Final Statistics (Players)

Ruthlandian Union

Batting Average:
Roger Lanier (St. John) .355
Roy Hobbs (Waleska) .348
Kyle Hunt (Ranford) .344

Home Runs:
Kees Draeger (Belair Beach) 40
Dean Woods (Sugar Valley) 40
George McKay (Colfax) 35

RBIs:
Dean Woods (Sugar Valley) 121
Alekos Kotas (Ancona)109
Loco Dillinger (Waleska) 102
Thomas Hall (Grand City) 102

Wins:
Ken Arby (Beechwood) 28-8 2.33
Maury Patterson (Beechwood) 26-11 2.90
Adam Aru (Valka) 24-12 3.01

ERA:
Ken Arby (Beechwood) 28-8 2.33
Jeff Cooper (Far Mountain) 2.40
Johan Wagner (Far Mountain) 2.47

Saves:
Waylon Hillman (Middlefield) 37
Matt Stevens (San Dimas) 33
Earl Davidson (Valka) 31
Milt Flanagan (Sligo) 31
Ivan Guzek (Valmara) 31

Strikeouts:
Wild Bill Butler (23-14 3.40 298 K
Maury Patterson (Beechwood) 26-11 2.90 287 K
Ken Arby (Beechwood) 28-8 2.33 286 K

Tycobbian Union

Batting Average:
Babe Hankins (Kenwood) .354
Bill Christianson (Rolling Hills) .321
Rick Cabrini (Southport) .320

Home Runs:
Lorne Evans (Southport) 42
Kerry Sterling (Oxford) 41
Jack Elliott (High Mesa) 39

RBIs:
Kenji Aoki (East Point) 108
Shelby Glasscock (South Fork) 106
Johnny O'Rorke (Ginza) 106
Pat Webb (Rolling Hills) 106

Wins:
Marty Lane (Ozarka) 27-7 2.80
Bobby Dorignac (Midway) 25-11 2.56
Errol Gaudet (Rolling Hills) 24-8 2.31

ERA:
Greg Moss (Bay St. Clair) 21-8 2.14
Al Laclair (Southport) 22-11 2.24
Errol Gaudet (Rolling Hills) 24-8 2.31

Saves:
Bobby Morris (Rolling Hills) 34 1.54
Jeff Floyd (White River) 31 1.83
Pete Woods (High Mesa) 31 2.29

Strikeouts:
Howard Hutch (Ozarka) 13-17 3.69 326 K
Roger Hart (High Mesa) 12-19 3.29 312 K
Emil Kaltenborn (High Mesa) 19-11 2.54 309 K

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, September 21, 2027

Hankins Is TU Batting Champ
Babe Hankins was at the head of the class in the Tycobbian Union this year. The standout Wildcats right fielder posted a .354 average to capture the batting crown. Hankins went to the plate 590 times and collected 209 hits, including 34 doubles, 2 triples and 27 home runs. This season's batting leader also drove in 93 runs, scored 103 times and played in 145 games.


St. John's Lanier Takes Home RU Batting Honors
The Ruthlandian Union batting race ended with St. John's Roger Lanier on top with a .355 average. The Crusaders first baseman was officially named the winner today. For the season he totaled 206 hits, 18 home runs with 85 RBIs and 108 runs scored. At the award ceremony Lanier told reporters the key to his hitting success this season. "I stayed focused and tried to get a hit in every at-bat."

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, September 21, 2027

2027 IPA Final Standings

[Eugene Church]

2027 Tycobbian Union Final Standings

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, September 21, 2027

Sun Sox Slip By Suns 5-4 For TU South Title
The Tycobbian South had to go 155 games this season to determine its winner. The Southport Sun Sox and Arroyo Grande finished the regular season tied for first place and had to play an extra game to decide the division... The Sun Sox came away with a stirring 5-4 comeback victory on RF Lorne Evans 10th-inning home run... Southport had to rally from a 4-0 deficit after 6 innings, tying it up with 4 runs in the last of the seventh... relievers Rob Ricks and Joel Shepard gave the Sun Sox three shutout innings late in the game with the victory going to closer Shepard (10-5 1.44), who worked the tenth. The Suns John Nelson (7-8 1.52) surrendered the pennant-winning homer to Evans and suffered the defeat.

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, September 22, 2027

2027 Ruthlandian North Final Recap

Vipers Wins RU North Again, 4th In 5 Years
The best team in the Ruthlandian North again this year was the defending IPA Pro Cup titleholder, the Valmara Vipers... Manager Jet Kazmarek's club easily cruised to its fourth pennant in the last five years... They whipped runner-up Ancona by 9 games and had the second-best record in the RU with 97-57. Only Beechwood was better at 98-56... solid pitching, outstanding defense (.981 FA) and productive bats paved the Vipers way... several rookies have moved into the starting lineup and made Valmara even better than last year.

Valmara Vipers (97-57): 1st Place (First Place last year)
Starters:
Billy Ray (15-11 2.74), Pavel Volkov (16-12 3.43), Clem Carmouche (17-15 3.56) and Chris Phillips (17-8 3.69)

Bullpen:
All-Star Ivan Guzek (9-0/1.43/31 saves)

Batters:
CF Teddy Szymanski (.283/25/90/91), LF Sonny Oliver (.292/28/92/79)

Rookies:
C Floyd Randolph (.247/18/85/71), 2B Alec Leclerc (.268/0/46/98)

Ancona Red Elephants (88-66): 2nd Place - 9 GB (2nd last year - 11 GB)
Manny Mickens' offense didn't put up the numbers his clubs usually do... yet his pitching stood out for the second year in a row... strong defensively with a .978 FA... Big Red slumps in May and August gave Valmara an easy time.

Starters:
Razzy Angelis (20-14 2.79), Kyros Halkias (17-15 2.88), Hal Holmes (14-13 3.40), Vince Arndt (15-15 3.44)

Bullpen:
Kenny Nikas (7-3/1.80/30 saves)

Batters:
All-Star RF Donnie Lewis (.320/7/50/120), SS Vic Zaro (.295/2/52/77), All-Star Kenny Willard (.287/23/101/90), 1B Alekos Kotas (.259/19/109/75), 3B Todd Nasso (.2578/21/83/89)

Rookies:
Reliever Frank Reid (6-1 2.42)

Far Mountain Redhawks (84-70): 3rd Place - 13 GB (3rd Place last year- 18 GB)
Alex Groveland's mound corps was better, strong starters, but the bats were bad... good with the gloves with .978 FA.

Starters: All-Star Jeff Cooper (22-11 2.40), All-Star Jacob Wagner (21-12 2.47), Frankie Moreland (14-11 2.98)

Bullpen:
Weak in the bullpen... closer Hans Becker was 0-9 with 25 saves and a 4.00 ERA

Batters:
All-Star 2B Johnny Becker (.280/9/51/84)

Rookies:
RF Jess Haydn (.273/3/38/38)

Taranto Tars (81-73): 4th Place - 16 GB (7th last year - 31 GB)
Taranto got a good lift from having pitcher Rod Bailey for the entire season and better relief work... however, Tommaso Lazzorda's hitters were not much of a threat, except to hit homers with 127 (10th)... still the Tars had a winning season 8 games over .500.

Pitchers:
All-Star Rod Bailey (20-13 2.88), Alfredo Barsotti (15-10 4.34)

Batters:
All-Star 3B Cody Wilson (.285/19/100/77), 2B Greg Murphy (.301/15/67/84), 1B Denny Zaffino (.235/24/96/65)

Rookies:
Paulie Pieroni (9-8 3.77)

Ranford Bulls (75-79): 5th Place - 22 GB (4th last year - 19 GB)
The Bulls hit well, but didn't score a lot, ranking first with a .273 BA and 21st in runs... with less than average pitching (3.86 ERA- 22nd)... very good on defense with a .981 FA

Pitchers:
Manny Mateo (17-15 3.07), Scotty Simmons (15-11 3.26)

Bullpen:
Manager Rick Fargnoli needs a lot of help with a 3.76 ERA (22nd)

Batters:
All-Star C Kyle Hunt (.344/9/73/61), 1B Elton Graff (.312/8/61/70), CF Thomas Strickland (.294/19/66/62), SS Terry Kerr (.261/18/86/65)

Rookies:
LF Percy Whitehead (.305/2/53/74)

Glasco Athletics (74-80) 6th Place - 23 GB (8th last year - 36 GB)
Manager Charles Darby saw modest mound improvement this year and his hitters improved some, too... it got the A's out of the cellar... good power with 129 homers (8th) and good gloves (.977 FA), but not much else.

Pitchers:
Luka Abromowitz (17-12 3.14), Jimmy Nichols (16-12 3.67), Darien Russell (15-19 3.45)

Bullpen:
closer needed for incumbent Rusty McIntosh (1-9 3.44)... young relievers Jim Butler (3-1 2.87) and Sam Gilmore (6-5 2.59) showed promise

Batters:
RF Warren Steele (.314/18/85/67), 1B Garris Aiken (.285/19/77/101), C Eddy Martin (.307/14/70/66)

Rookies:
SS Skippy Shearer (.244/11/52/50), PH/1B Wallace Buchanan (.303/4/14/11)

Kilkenny Cats (70-84): 7th Place - 27 GB (5th last year 22 GB)
Skipper Kevin McPhail got much improved pitching but his club really fizzled at the plate... the Cats are the worst hitting team in IPA history with a .221 BA... they broke Cold Creek's old record of .228 set in 2024... on the hill the Cats sparkle with a 3.21 team ERA (5th)... the Cats are fine defenders, too, with a .977 FA.

Pitchers:
Dave Whitaker (20-13 3.01), Dean Harris (13-15 3.05)

Bullpen:
Sherm Innis (3-9/2.56/27 saves)

Batters:
CF Ronnie Roussell (.271/15/55/61)

Rookies:
SS Johnny Gentry (.268/16/82/65)

LaGrange Sports (69-85): 8th Place - 28 GB (6th last year - 26 GB)
The LaGrange Sports are on a bad run - no pennant since 2008 and nothing but second-division finishes since 2012... Quincy Peterson's club is prone to poor hitting and mediocre pitching with lousy relievers... fielding is average (.976 FA).

Pitchers:
All-Star Niles Wooten (20-13 3.32), Mike York (15-16 3.06)

Bullpen:
terrible bullpen with 4.75 ERA (32nd)

Batters:
1B Chris Charbonnier (.307/18/64/57)

Rookies:
SP Alex Gillespie (16-18 3.41), RF Russell Watkins (.286/24/86/68), C All-Star C Bernard Babineaux (.273/11/58/73)

[Eugene Church]

The Islandian Times
Tuesday, September 21, 2027

2027 Ruthlandian South Final Recap

CL Crushers Win Out In RU South
Going into the last 10 days of the Ruthlandian South it was a four-team scramble, finally won by the Crystal Lake Crushers, who finished one game ahead of the hard-closing Valka Blackhawks, just 2 in front of favored Waleska and 3 up on the San Dimas Rancheros. Only the Blackhawks played .500 ball, winning 7 of its final 10. The other three contenders did not play well. Crystal Lake was the best with a 4-6 mark. Waleska was a terrible 2-8 and Sam Dimas only 4-6. All of them had their chance to take the pennnat. Last year's division winner St. John dipped to fifth this year, 7 games off the pace.

Crystal Lake (83-71) manager Baby George used his bats to climb up from fifth to first this season... his Crushers were 3rd with a .266 team BA and 4th in scoring... sparked by CF Herm Taylor (.343/2/58/101), 1B Josh George (.284/25/97/95) and 3B Carl Bentley (.269/10/91/74)... T. D. Burnham (21-8 3.00), Duncan Welch (19-15 3.49) and rookie Arnie Cason (13-7 3.30) topped the pitchers... Keith Hunter was a pretty fair closer with 30 saves, but a 4-7 record and a 3.12 ERA... George is blessed with a solid defense (.977 FA)

The Valka Blackhawks (82-72) rose up from 7th place to the runner-up spot this season and came within a bee's knee of winning the division... productive hitting and better pitching helped manager Ron Landauer's turnabout... the Blackhawks batted .259 (11th), were 5th in scoring and posted a 3.73 team ERA (17th)... on defense, the Blackhawks are sure-handed with a .979 FA... Adam Aru (24-12 3.01) and Glenn Cadman (22-16 3.57) paced the starters, while Earl Davidson (1-4) led the bullpen with 31 saves and a 2.44 ERA... at the plate rookie 3B Leevi Viru (.277/17/89/72) and RF Tonu Viks (.288/15/65/96) led the lineup.

The Waleska Westerners (81-73) flopped right when it mattered most, losing 7 of its last 8 games and wound up in third place, after being the favorite to win it this season... skipper McGraw Johnson's team led the division for most of the year... it was the Westerners mound corps that faltered... the offense still put runs on the scoreboard with a .264 BA (6th), were 5th in homers with 135 and topped the RU in scoring... one weakness is defense with a .973 FA... superstar All-Star CF Roy Hobbs (.348/30/93/124) paved the way with lots of help from LF Loco Dillinger (.300/33/102/113), 1B Glenn Childress (.288/8/96/93), RF Wilson James (.298/11/63/90) and All-Star SS Jose De Leon (.288/9/88/75... rookie Wild Bill Butler (23-14 3.40) more than lived up to his nickhame and had trouble finding the strike zone, but nobody could hit him... Butler led the RU with 298 strikeouts... Rick Dunham (12-6 3.06) moved up into a starting role for the first time in his 7 years in the league and did quite well... veteran Jarred Laclair is a brilliant closer, who posted 25 saves with a superb 1.40 ERA and a 4-3 record.

For the fourth successive season the San Dimas Rancheros (80-74) ended up in fourth place in the RU South standings... skipper Wesley Pate saw his club stumble down the stretch by dropping 3 of its final 4 games... the Rancheros are just an average ball club, but they play fine defense with a .978 FA... Pate has a good starting rotation, headed up by rookie Joaquin Lima (20-14 3.49), All-Star rookie Miguel Valdes (21-14 3.29) and veteran Shannon White (18-17 3.69)... closer Matt Stevens saved 33 games and was 4-3 with a very impressive 1.51 ERA... San Dimas suffered at the plate, batting only .248 (20th)... CF Ray Ford was the most reliable bat, batting only .272 BA... but Ford hit 25 homers, drove in 98 runs and scored 87 runs... 3B Hector Cuellar chipped in with a .272 BA, 10 homersm, 75 RBIs and 67 runs.

The St. John Crusaders (76-78) were a dismal fifth this year after a marvelous 2026, when they won 98 games and captured the division... they tied with Grand City this season, both 7 games out... great pitching turned sour this season, rising up from 2.79 to a 3.54 ERA.. Clayton Luck's best starter was Don Baillie (16-12 3.05)... Glenn Pierce went from 20-9 to 10-15 this year... closer Nelson Hawthorne fell off some, too... he was 8-9 with 27 saves and a 2.30 ERA... last year Hawthorne was outstanding with an 1.88 ERA, 32 saves and a 7-3 mark... the Crusaders hit for average (.262 BA-9th), but don't score well (29th)... only LF Joey Daigrepont stood out with a .283 average, 21 homers, 93 RBIs and 64 runs.

The Grand City Cybercats (76-78) were managed by Wade Joslin, who guided them to a fifth-place tie this season after a third-place finish last year... the Cybercats can hit (.273 BA-2nd) and score with the best of them (2nd)... plus they have a little power (117 HR-17th), but Joslin's club falls flat on its face on the hill with a horrible 4.55 team ERA (32nd)... Joslin put his excellent closer in as a starter to try and help the situation... Teague was an All-Star closer this year... He was 10-5 overall with a 2.67 ERA... in 7 starts Teague was 4-2... as a closer he was 5-2 with a 1.56 ERA and 15 saves... rookie Charley Chisholm (16-16 3.72) was the Cybercats best starter... when it came to hitting Joslin was all smiles with All-Star CF Thomas Hall (.321/28/102/107), rookie 1B Mick Langston (.268/29/96/88), SS Jared Lindquist (.304/2/60/84), RF Nick Baldini (.289/5/50/90) and C Rob Stern (.309/3/58/50).

The Claxton Diamonds (65-89) were again near the bottom in seventh place... it was another rough season for longtime skipper Stacy Engel... the Diamonds haven't been a contender for years since winning back-to-back pennants in 2018 and 2019... Engel retired at the end of this season and will be replaced by his bench coach and former Diamond outfielder Dixie Baker... Baker starred for Claxton from 2001 to 2014... he won 3 Gold Gloves, hit .266 in his career with over 350 homers and 1000 RBIs...Baker made the first All-Star team in 2001... not much talent in Claxton... the cupboard is bare with only All-Star LF George McKay (.300/35/91/84) and Jack Vogel (16-10 3.59).

Another tough year for manager Marty Pedroza in Belair Beach (60-94) as his Sunbirds swooned from sixth to eighth in the RU South... bad pitching is the culprit... rookie starter Rob Thrasher (13-18 3.36) was the best in Pedroza's rotation... Sunbird superstar All-Star 1B Kees Draeger has to carry the offense all by himself... in another super season Draeger did it all with 40 homers, 100 runs batted in, scored 98 runs, while batting at a .337 clip... Draeger tied with Sugar Valley slugger Dean Woods for the RU home run crown.