ISLANDIAN PRO ALLIANCE (RUTHLANDIA and TYCOBBIA BASEBALL UNIONS) - Page 191

Eugene Church · 11-02-2013, 07:48 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 17, 2040

NORTH HILLS REIGNS SUPREME AGAIN IN TU NORTH
It's getting to be old hat... the North Hills Hawks won the Tycobbian North Division again for the seventh time and as per usual in fairly easy fashion... they whipped runner-up Mahaska by 8 games, third place Luxora and Fairfax by 11 games... the Hawks have won nine TU North flags in their history with three Pro Cups... they are now getting ready to try and win a fourth IPA title in the last seven seasons... North Hills captured the championship trophy in 2034, 2036 and 2038... and will be one of the favorites to win in 2040.

1. NORTH HILLS HAWKS (97-58): the Hawks put up the second-best record in the Tycobbian Union this year, topped only by Summerland in the Tycobbian Union with 98... Cold Creek of the Ruthlandian East led the IPA with 101 wins... North Hills does it with great pitching and adequate offense... registering a super 2.88 ERA (2nd)... only Summerland in the TU South was better with a brilliant 2.83 ERA... the Hawks' scoring could be better... they hit well with a .269 BA (7th), but lack scoring and firepower... North Hills scored only 676 runs (20th) and hit 135 HRs (23rd)... they are good defenders with a .975 FA.
Top Pitchers: 34-year-old southpaw Jeff Owens had a tremendous year with a 28-7 record and 2.48 ERA... He easily had the most wins in the IPA... last year's Golden Arm winner Tony Mack (20-14/3.03) won 20 games again... Frankie Lambert added a 19-14 mark with a strong 2.89 ERA... veteran Dave Michael was a good number four with a 13-12 record and a 3.30 ERA... the bullpen was outstanding, too, with Nelson Hooper (4-5/2.63/22 saves), Kyle Oliver (8-4/3.21/4 saves) and Joey Santini (5-1/2.02/3 saves).
Top Batters: superstar All-Star LF Adam Thurgood (.324/23/90/91) again led the club with help from some reliable hitters: 1B Ric Hamilton (.340/24/92/69), 2B Tommy Vavas (.289/14/62/91), CF Kris Anastas (.274/16/73/65) and 3B Jim McDermott (.280/12/67/62).

2. MAHASKA HAYMAKERS (89-65) (8 GB): for the third year in a row the Haymakers have come in second to North Hills... they have three pennants to their credit, but none since 2027... and the team is still looking for its first Pro Cup... pitching is good with a 3.57 ERA (7th), but not near the class of the Hawks... the Haymakers have better power with 164 HRs (14th) and a better offense with 730 runs (10th)... defense is good with a .976 FA.
Top Pitchers: the ace was well-traveled 34-year-old Freddy Pfeffer (17-14/3.06), who reached the 200-win milestone this season in his second year with Mahaska... he was stuck in the bullpen last year, but got his chance this year and did quite well... Pfeffer is 207-170 in his 14 seasons with a 3.06 ERA... another 34-year-old journeyman Jergen Fyelstad (21-10/3.46) posted the most wins on the team... vet Greg Douglas (14-8/3.58) was a quality number-three starter... in the bullpen Luke Cargill (9-7/2.53/26 saves) stood out with 26 saves, beaten only by Ronald Shaddock (12-6/2.27) with an IPA-leading 27 saves.
Top Batters: All-Star 2B Mikk Kukk (.330/22/83/93), RF Anton Hymel (.277/29/100/74) and rookie 1B Mark Graham (.290/19/60/61) were the only real threats in the batting order... the 25-year-old Graham came over in a July trade with Volusia of the Ruthlandian Union for 28-year-old SS Duane Blayney (.320/28/83/65) and could be a find... so far it looks like the Vigilantes got the best of the trade... time will tell... 19-year-old pitcher John Polk was also included in the deal.

3. LUXORA ZORROS (86-68) (11 GB): stuck in third place the last three years... the Z's have won the TU North eight times, but have never captured a Pro Cup... 2031 was their last postseason appearance... good all-around club with .268 BA (8th), 754 runs (6th), 215 HRs (3rd) and a 3.50 ERA (6th)... very good gloves with a .977 FA.
Top Pitchers: 34-year-old lefty Kent Halloran (19-14/2.16) is one of the best in the IPA... he had the second-best ERA next to IPA leader Jayson Hallstrom (24-7/2.08) of Summerland... 21-year-old Joao Damaso (13-13/3.66) and Roy Watson (14-13/3.86) were pretty fair starters, too... workhorse reliever Fernando Sanches (9-11/2.72/23 saves) appeared in 64 games.
Top Batters: club leaders were 29-year-old All-Star SS Joel Poche (.319/29/91/100) and 35-year-old LF Milt Powers (.278/31/97/79)... along with one of the comeback players of the year 37-year-old 1B Gerry Hathaway, who hit 35 homers, batted in 85 runs and scored 87 times, while batting a solid .289... 36-year-old 3B Todd Dubbins also contributed a .303 BA, 26 HRs, 63 RBIs and 62 runs.

3. FAIRFAX FROGS (86-68) (11 GB): another top-notch club that plays in a strong division... on paper the Frogs are really good except for HR power (110 HR-30th)... impressive pitching with a 3.41 ERA (3rd), very good offense with a .278 BA (2nd) and 747 runs (7th), plus excellent defense with a .978 FA... but year-after-year North Hills beats them out for the division flag... the Frogs have won the TU North on six occasions, most recently in back-to-back seasons in 2032 and 2033.
Top Pitchers: Lucien Vashon (21-17/2.94), Harold Dorman (20-14/3.35), and Scott Ray (10-2/2.47) are three very good starters... Bruno Statton (5-2/1.76/14 saves) did another great job in the bullpen this year.
Top Batters: the Frogs really need some power in the line-up... 1B Sal Mauk (.255) topped the team with 11 homers... and C Joe King (.290) and CF Eric Kusek (.278) had 10 each... the rest were Punch-and-Judy types: LF Bobby Joe Daniel (.343/3/77/83), RF Roger Krieger (.307/7/56/49), 2B Ferrell Dillard (.316/7/41/73) and SS Gilbert Miles (.276/6/76/84).

5. WHITE RIVER RASCALS (79-75) (18 GB): the Rascals have posted winning season the last four years, but have been stuck in the second division... they have only 4 division crowns in their history and no Pro Cups... the last playoff appearance was in 2027... the Rascals have fairly good pitching with a 3.67 ERA (10th), average hitting with .258 BA (17th) and 688 runs (17th), but very good HR power with 196 homers (7th)... but they have lousy defense with a .968 FA.
Top Pitchers: Paul Sardini (17-12/3.46), Trenton Anderson (19-15/3.76) and Mickey Cronyn (14-11/3.79) are better-than-average starters... 37-year-old Sardini has been around for 18 seasons and has compiled a 275-220 record with a standout 2.94 lifetime ERA.
Top Batters: CF Buford Cross (.304/22/81/84), RF Zachary Kriger (.299/12/40/96) and 3B Richie Cook (.297/17/58/61) are the best contact hitters, while the sluggers are C Stevee Dee Daniels (.245 BA) with a club-high 35 HRs, SS Warren McKenzie (.246) had 29 roundtrippers and a club-high 87 RBIs and LF Billy Joe Hickman (.264) chipped in with 26 HRs and 81 RBIs.

6. BLUE LAKE BLUE SOX (74-80) (23 GB): the Blue Sox have only two division flags in their history, but they do have one Pro Cup (2030)... that was the last postseason appearance... Blue Lake had four straight seasons over .500, but broke it this season by winding up in sixth place... the Blue Sox had pretty good pitching with a 3.62 ERA (9th), but suffer from a severe lack of offense with only a .254 BA (21st), 635 runs (28th) and only 107 homers (31st)... only average defensively with a .971 FA.
Top Pitchers: they boast three quality starters in Sal Mays (22-13/3.51), Andre Montrose (18-17/3.19) and Frankie Quinn (13-20/3.67)... 24-year-old Mays has won 20 games in four of his five seasons... 34-year-old Quinn has won 20 or more games nine times in his 14 seasons... overall he is 265-195 with a 3.05 ERA.
Top Batters: there are no standout sticks on the club... 2B Egon Ojamaa is the club leader with 20 HRs and 86 RBIs, but is batting only .235... LF Jack Ryan has the best BA with .306... CF Paddy Rajak (.264) is tops with 83 runs scored.

7. HARTSDALE HELLCATS (73-81) (24 GB): the Hellcats didn't raise any havoc in the TU North this year... not even a little heck... they are just a mediocre team with a .256 BA (20th), 125 HRs (28th) and a 3.91 ERA (20th)... after a one-year-reprieve in fourth place (81-73) last season, they are back in the second-division for the fifth time in six years... the Hellcats have never come close to a Pro Cup trophy, always eliminated in the opening rounds... have won only four pennants... the last was in 2029.
Top Pitchers: Freddie Whitaker (17-16/3.70) and Gil Younger (17-18/4.12) lead the staff in wins, while Wayne Dawson (16-20/3.45) had the best ERA among starters... 20-year-old Alfonso Cervera (4-6/2.86) was the best in the bullpen with 13 saves.
Top Batters: the only fair bats were SS Greg Melton (.270/16/87/85) and CF Darrell Nesbitt (.292/8/62/82).

8. OXFORD RED CAPS (47-107) (50 GB): the Red Caps were a terrible team, perhaps one of the worst in IPA history... they tied North Hills (2019) for the most losses in a season... last year they were 52-102... Oxford has won the division four times and even a Pro Cup (2007)... that was the last time they made the playoffs... the Red Caps hit only .239 (31st), scored only 554 runs (32nd) and posted a 4.96 ERA (32nd)... however, they are a good fielding club with a fine .977 FA.
Top Pitchers: rookie Tekkan Nishakawa (10-17/4.39) was the best starter... it got much worse after him.
Top Batters: the best of the lot were C Jayson French (.275/16/60/44), 2B Alonso Norris (.254/21/60/75) and CF Dalton Ward (.218/26/69/67).

Eugene Church · 11-03-2013, 08:09 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 17, 2040

OZARKA WINS TIGHT TU EAST RACE
In the tense Tycobbian East Division race, Ozarka got hot in the stretch drive with a 25-19 record and came away with title... the Naturals nipped High Mesa by one game... the Cowboys were on top going into the last six weeks but floundered badly at the end, going 17-27... Tuckanarra was a close third, just three games back... the East Point Panthers, the 2039 champ, came in fourth this year and trailed by five games... it really was a good race as South Fork, Red Bluff and Hillsboro all had their chances... they tied for fifth in the standings, just six games behind Ozarka.

1. OZARKA NATURALS (81-73): the Nats lived off their pitching and copped their 11th division crown and first in over 10 years... the last one came in 2030... Ozarka is still waiting for its first Pro Cup... it's not likely to come this year... the Nats are just an average club and are not forecast to go very far in the Pro Cup playoffs... the Naturals have good starters... they ranked fifth in Tycobbian Union with a 3.47 ERA... Ozarka was solid defensively with a .976 FA.
Top Pitchers: Glen Jenkins (18-15/2.16), Stan Carey (17-10/3.29) and Billy Hill (14-11/3.39) gave them three very capable starters... Jenkins was the Tycobbian strikeout king with 291 Ks.
Top Batters: 3B Jimmy Woods (.321/28/104/81) was the top performer and led the team in BA, HRs and RBIs... C Jaak Pajukivi (.279/24/81/58) and LF Lonnie Gillespie (.272/10/72/92) were only fair at best.

2. HIGH MESA COWBOYS (80-74) (1 GB): it was a wonderful turnaround season for the Cowpokes... they went from the cellar to the runner-up spot... they were a pathetic 57-97 in 2039... the Cowboys got good bang for the buck with 203 HRs (6th) and scored well with 725 runs (11th)... played very well on defense with a .977 FA, combined with much better pitching (3.77 ERA/15th), which was really something in their small ball park, it gave them a good chance to finally make the postseason after a long, long drought of almost 40 years... High Mesa made the playoffs lastly in 2002 and 2003 and even won the IPA title in 2002... however, when the going got tough, the Cowboys went 17-27 and fell one game short of their goal.
Top Pitchers: Dean Harris (21-15/3.14) and Warren Sackett (13-11/3.74) were the most effective starters... William Morris (6-3/3.45/12 saves) was the bullpen's best.
Top Batters: longballers led the way at the plate: All-Star 1B Clifford Coleman (.268/39/113/90), RF Corbett Brooks (.239/38/80/106) and All-Star LF Clay Johnston (.289/34/90/81).

3. TUCKANARRA BLUE JAYS (78-76) (3 GB): as one of the most successful IPA franchises with 11 division flags and three Pro Cups, the Bluebirds had their worst season in almost 15 years, yet were still in the race at the end and finished a very close third... their shortcoming was mainly on the mound... the Blue Jays posted a so-so 3.94 ERA (22nd)... they were good-to-average in the batter's box with a .267 BA (9th), 717 runs (13th) and 152 HRs (16th-tied)... only average with the gloves (.972 FA).
Top Pitchers; Junior Bristow (22-12/2.97) rallied from a 16-16 mark in 2039... Jeff Buttrum (15-19/3.37) struggled again for the second year... he was a 20-game winner in 2038... Bobby Reid (16-16/4.48) had the worst year in his 12 years in the league... Jack Rogers (6-8/2.57/17 saves) was the leader in the relief corps.
Top Batters: 35-year-old IPA icon All-Star RF Lorne Evans had two sub-par seasons when he hit .271 in 2038 and .260 last year, but he roared back with a .330 mark this season with 41 homers, 89 RBIs and 125 runs scored... C John Paul was the only other productive hitter with 26 HRs, 87 RBIs and a .279 BA.

4. EAST POINT PANTHERS (76-78) (5 GB): the Panthers, who sneaked in and stole the pennant last year from Tuckanarra, went into a funk this year, winding up in fourth place... for the first time in almost 15 years they had a losing record... about all the Panthers do well is hit homers (209-4th) and score runs (733-9th)... otherwise they are not very good with a .249 BA (27th) and a 4.35 team ERA (27th)... East Point played pretty fair defense with a .974 mark.
Top Pitchers: Darnell Slaughter (16-11/4.02) and Albert Sharpton (13-10/4.43) were the only starters with winning records... Johnny Moore (14-18/3.24) was one of the few with a respectable ERA... aging vets Frank Blair (9-19/5.53) and Dixie Brooks (4-0/2.57/1 save) are 35 and 34 respectively... Blair really had a bad year and Brooks was relegated to the bullpen after going 15-14 in 2039 with a poor 4.89 ERA... both of them are well over 200 victories in their careers.
Top Batters: leading the attack were free swingers 3B Dean O'Donnell (.242/30/81/70), 2B Tetsu Tanaka (.260/29/79/87), 1B Bert Henrich (.282/28/75/74), RF Max Lebowitz (.287/26/65/85), LF Ricky Urbina (.237/20/67/79), C Chris Cardinale (.266/19/66/58) and CF Andros Ciak (.240/18/63/52).

5. SOUTH FORK STALLIONS (75-79) (6 GB): this was the fifth consecutive second-division finish for the Stallions... they only have three pennants in their history with one Pro Cup trophy in 2025... this season just an average team with good power (180 HR-12th)... .260 BA (14th)... average pitching with a 3.80 ERA (17th)... average defense with a .972 FA... weak finish hurt them... 19-25 in the last six weeks.
Top Pitchers: the Stallions had three quality starters in Big Murph McAlister (22-11/2.47), Jay Murphy (17-9/3.16) and Billy Joe Clinton (13-14/3.38).
Top Batters: CF Scotty O'Sullivan (.278/47/113/92) was fifth in the IPA with 47 HRs... other sluggers were 1B Paul Sexton (.285/32/105/87), SS Jess Wilkerson (.273/27/97/70), 3B Elton Jacoby (.298/26/81/98).

5. RED BLUFF RED SOX (75-79) (6 GB): the Red Sox were similar to South Fork, but with worse pitching (4.38 ERA-28th)... they could go deep with 208 HRs (5th)... could score with 709 runs (15th), but batted only .251 (26th)... played solid defense with a .976 FA... wound up in the second division for the fourth year in a row... it's been almost 30 years since Red Bluff was in the playoffs (2009)... however, they do possess one Pro Cup trophy, won in 2004.
Top Pitchers: Jud Cox (21-15/3.47), Ayden Carmack (16-18/4.12) and Mickey Rosen (12-9/4.17) were the most dependable starters.
Top Batters: most of them didn't hit for much average, but did have some punch... RF David Kelso (.291/38/91/81) was the biggest threat... other reliable bats were LF Jesse Shaw (.283/27/67/99), 3B Fran Blanchard (.240/28/69/63), SS Leemon O'Donovan (.284/22/77/75), CF Ike Sweetwater (.229/23/78/95), 2B Gene Bates (.268/22/73/53), 1B Garris Aiken (.220/18/54/51) and C Allie Blackwell (.285/12/54/75).

5. HILLSBORO BLAZERS (75-79) (6 GB): for the seventh year in succession the Blazers were a second-division team... the Blazers and Kilkenny of the RU North are the only IPA franchises that have never been in the playoffs... it was another ho-hum year... they hit only .247 (28th), scored only 656 runs (26th-tied) with a 4.10 ERA (24th), but did hit 151 out of the park (19th)... the Red Sox were average defenders with a .974 FA.
Top Pitchers: Lee Dixon (16-13/3.84) and Valdon Riley (14-15/3.80) were the best starters... Scott Watkins (10-5/1.73/19 saves) had a super season in the bullpen.
Top Batters: All-Star 1B Claude Kingston (.255/47/118/86) came in fifth in the IPA home-run derby with 47... LF Jurrien Bellini (.271/28/90/88) and SS Scotty McNeil (.283/6/53/89) were also decent bats, too.

8. MIDWAY WOLVES (63-91) (18 GB): this was a very disappointing season for the Wolves... last year they surged up to second place and fell just one game short of their first pennant since 2027... expectations were up for 2040, but they never happened... nothing went right at the plate or on the mound as they tumbled all the way to last place... the team BA dipped from .260 to .242 (30th) and the ERA went from a respectable 3.61 to a poor 4.29 (26th)... defense was just average (.973 FA)... Midway has only been in the postseason three times and never has won the Pro Cup.
Top Pitchers: Charlie Chase (12-22/3.41) made the All-Star team, but had a terrible second half... Bobby Boy Wolf (16-16/4.27) topped the club in wins.
Top Batters: no great shakes at the plate... RF Bennett Cardwell (.318/9/61/55) topped the team in BA... 3B Albert Wherry (.275/23/81/71) had the most homers... and 1B Shaman Sakima (.265/21/83/82) had the most RBIs and scored the most runs.

Eugene Church · 11-04-2013, 04:04 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 17, 2040

DC REDBIRDS FLY BY ARLON AND BAYVIEW
After 27 frustrating years of failure, the Denton City Redbirds finally put together a season good enough to win the Tycobbian West Division... they took command of the race with a great 19-10 month in August to fly by defending champ Arlon and Bayview by three games... the Kenwood Wildcats came in fourth, winding up 7 games off the pace.

1. DENTON CITY REDBIRDS (86-68): the Redbirds were a power in the early days of the IPA, making the postseason eight times in the first 12 seasons of the league... six of those years they won the division... twice the Redbirds made it to the Pro Cup Finals, but didn't win... that was in 2005 and 2008... now Denton City is back again with a capable club that features good pitching with a 3.61 ERA (8th)... good bats with a .269 BA (5th), 757 runs (5th) and 185 HRs (9th-tied)... defense-wise they are only average with a .971 FA... Denton City could be a factor in the Pro Cup playoffs this year.
Top Pitchers: Francisco Salcido (21-14/3.43), Freddy Hogue (16-7/3.40), Troy McIntosh (17-14/3.28) and Kevin Blevins (13-6/3.82) were the main starters... Harry Elliot (4-9/3.13) was off-and-on in the bullpen, but he did save 21 games.
Top Batters: the Redbirds had a good core of hitters, sparked mainly by All-Star 1B Wayman Stetson with 43 homers, 136 RBIs, 98 runs and a .330 BA... Stetson wound up third in RBIs and eighth in home runs in the IPA... the other solid bats were C Felton Welch (.297/27/86/73), RF Pete Doyle (.272/24/75/111), SS Sammy Thornton (.306/4/74/92)... a new addition to the club was LF Sadaharu Uchiyama (.293/13/63/81), who was acquired in June in a trade with Ginza... he is 32 years old and a career .301 hitter and a Golden Glove outfielder.

2. ARLON CHAMPIONS (83-71) (3 GB): they went to the Pro Cup Finals last season, but were beaten out by the IPA champion Waleska Westerners in six games... the Champs have made the postseason only four times in history... a drop off in pitching played a role this year... the team ERA fell from 3.31 in 2039 to 3.74 in 2040... the bats were off a little, too, dipping from .262 to .257... however defensively Arlon was fine with a .977 FA.
Top Pitchers: Lanny Gray (21-7/2.31) was the ace with help from Peter Shannon (14-12/3.64) and Ronny Farnsworth (16-17/3.48)... Farnsworth had a down year... he was 21-8 in 2039 with a 2.64 ERA... Pat Stuyvesant (10-13/4.75/8 saves) was off as well... Stuyvesand was 20-9 last year.
Top Batters: RF Mark Cameron (.289/40/116/93), All-Star C Nick Shafer (.296/18/94/67), LF Charley Hastings (.306/17/50/114), 1B Robby Westin (.301/21/79/47).

2. BAYVIEW VIKINGS (83-71) (3 GB): better pitching moved the Viks up from fifth (17 GB) to the runner-up spot this season... 2016 was the last pennant... so this was a very exciting season for the fans... on the hill Bayview improved from 4.47 ERA to 3.83 (18th)... they are just an average club with a .258 BA (18th), but make up for it with 250 HRs, the best in the IPA and almost a new season record... 260 HRs by Arroyo Grande in 2005 is the all-time team record... leading the way with a record-breaking 66 HRs was superstar 2B Jerry Culpepper... he beat Jack Elliott's 65 for High Mesa in 2021... Culpepper has hit the 60 mark three times now with 63 in 2039 and 60 in 2037... in a truly superlative season Culpepper hit .334, third best in the Tycobbian Union... he also topped the IPA with 146 RBIs and 134 runs... Bayview had nine players with 10 or more homers... SS Andreas Stokke (.246/29/83/77) had 29, RF Roy Ricks (.330/28/81/92) hit 28, All-Star CF Ivar Nilssen (.287/25/84/66) popped 25, LF Derek Jorstad (.252/21/57/80) knocked 21 out of the park, 1B Barrett Bosch (.300/18/51/53) had 18, 3B Giles Butler (.231/16/50/58) totaled 16, C Dan Abbott (.227/10/46/42) chipped in 10 and OF Cleve Belton (.246/10/20/25) added 10... on the mound Vance Codsworth (23-13/2.78) had a standout season and got help from Lucky Luciano (17-11/4.13), Karl Magga (14-13/3.73) and Christy Kane (13-11/4.01)... on defense the Viks are just average with a .972 FA.

4. KENWOOD WILDCATS (79-75) (7 GB): the Wildcats faded in the final weeks of the season and ended up in the fourth spot in the standings... they were neck-and-neck for a good while... it's been 17 years since Kenwood made the playoffs, but they have come close in recent years... missing out by two games last year and also by two games in 2037... in 2030 they lost by only one game... 2024 was the last postseason year... the Wildcats have only two pennants in their history, but they chalked up a Pro Cup in 2014... Kenwood's strength is its pitching (3.45 ERA-4th)... the offense is a little less than average with 669 runs (22nd) and 129 roundtrippers (25th)... defense is good with a .974 FA.
Top Pitchers: Freddy Gooch (18-10/3.25) led in wins... Glen Murray (17-20/2.81) in ERA... and Ben Abramo (15-14/4.14) had some quality starts, too... Artemus Hale (4-5/1.83/13 saves) was the best reliever.
Top Batters: All-Star C Corky DiNozzo (.323/39/95/69) topped the team in BA, HRs and RBIs... 2B Country Crowder (.320/3/61/88) and LF Harry Tashina (.304/12/68/56) also had good years average-wise.

5. BAY ST. CLAIR BUCCANEERS (77-77) (9 GB): after four miserable years in last place or near last place, the Bucs broke even this year and came in fifth... they hit a respectable .265 (11th), scored 718 runs (12th) and had 131 HRs (24th) with a decent 3.86 ERA (19th)... the Buccaneers have seven TU West pennants in their history, but no Pro Cups... the last time they made the playoffs was in 2030.
Top Pitchers: John Karlsen (18-16/3.58), Mac Shaw (14-14/3.33)... in the bullpen Pete Cross (5-3/2.15/18 saves) did well.
Top Batters: at 35 star RF Cotton Cornwall (.314/20/85/86) had another solid season... he led the club in BA and RBIs, and tied for the HR lead... CF Gilbert Bauer (.262/19/60/94) had the most runs... 3B Bailey Holmsworth (.281/20/69/57) tied for the HR lead.

6. ROLLING HILLS REDS (75-79) (11 GB): the Reds got better in the second half of the season... still they only finished in sixth... last season the Reds were third... Rolling Hills has two Pro Cups to its credit (2029 and 2031)... plus eight pennants... but no playoffs since 2032... at the plate they are just an average ball club with a .259 BA (16th), 712 runs (14th) and 141 HRs (20th)... on the hill just so-so with a 3.79 ERA (16th)... with the gloves the Reds are fairly good with a .975 FA.
Top Pitchers: Johnny Howard (18-11/3.64) was the biggest winner... and 35-year-old Maury Cantrell (12-12/2.84) was the most effective starter... Matthew Christianson (11-17/3.57) slumped this season after posting a fine 20-11 mark last year... Travis Hooper (5-7/2.84/15 saves) was the top reliever.

7. LA CLAIRE LYNX (73-81) (13 GB): after two pennant-winning years back-to-back in 2037 and 2038, the Lynx have sunk deep into the second division the past two seasons... offensively they have not been the same ball club... the pitching has been good... and the defense very good with a .977 FA... they batted only .254 (22nd), scored 661 runs (24th-tied) and hit 137 HRs (22nd)... and the team ERA was 3.74 (14th).
Top Pitchers: at 36 Pat Kovacs (16-13/3.11) is still the ace... one of the all-time IPA greats he is closing in on 300 wins... lifetime Kovacs is 279-191 with a strong 2.79 ERA... he holds the record for strikeouts with 391 in 2028... 24-year-old Bruce Kinson (11-10/2.93) showed good progress this year... at 26 Marcel LaPlante (13-13/3.89) and 25-year-old Nelson Stubbs (13-20/4.27) had some quality strarts, too.
Top Batters: not much talent on the team... LF Billy Holland (.288/13/77/80) topped the club in RBIs and runs... 2B Sam Norman (.222/20/61.64) had the most homers... and RF Hank Morton (.338/5/43/66) has the best BA... 1B Phil Lyons (.293/18/60/55) showed some promise.

8. CHICOPEE BRAVES (50-104) (36 GB): since winning three straight pennants from 2034 to 2036, it's been all downhill for the Braves... this year was terrible with 104 losses and a last-place finish... pitching was atrocious with a 4.78 ERA (31st)... offense was pathetic, too, with only 560 runs (31st)... homers are down to 129 (25th)... defense is adequate with a .973 FA... Chicopee has only made the playoffs three times and has never won a Pro Cup trophy.
Top Pitchers: Jacy Hekaka (13-11/3.60) was the only decent starter.
Top Batters: no one worth mentioning... the best of the lot were 3B Kurt Gustavsen (.298/24/63/56), 1B Fred Phelps (.265/14/65/58) and C Augie Meaux (.254/12/58/57).

Eugene Church · 11-04-2013, 04:19 PM

2040 Ruthlandian Union Final Batting and Pitching Leaders

Eugene Church · 11-04-2013, 04:24 PM

2040 Tycobbian Union Final Batting and Pitching Leaders

Eugene Church · 11-04-2013, 11:56 PM

Sorry, I forgot to post this in the right order.

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 17, 2040

SUNSETS RISE IN TU SOUTH, WIN IN A ROMP
Sensational pitching by the Summerland Sunsets created a runaway in the Tycobbian South this season... the Sunsets made shambles of the pennant race by whipping second place Southport by 13 games, Ginza by 14 and San Alejo by 15 games... Turon, the winner for the previous two years, tumbled to fifth place, 21 games off the pace... Summerland really took charge in the second half with a torrid 52-20 record.

1. SUMMERLAND SUNSETS (98-56): the Sunsets won the most games in the Tycobbian Union with super slabwork: 2.83 team ERA, the best in the IPA... they didn't hit much (.243 BA-29th) or score much (661 runs-24th tied), but neither did the opposing teams... the Sunsets are also one of the best defensive teams with a .978 FA... this will be only the third playoff appearance in the club's history... the others were in 2005 and 2033... look for Summerland to shine in the postseason this year.
Top Pitchers: Jayson Hallstrom (24-7/2.08) led the Tycobbian Union in wins, ERA and shutouts (8)... Dutch De Boer (10-1/2.11) and Johnny Young (22-11/3.120 had strong seasons, too... the bullpen excelled as well with Ronald Shaddock (12-6/2.27/27 saves) and Pete Ashley (5-4/2.70/4 saves)... Shaddock was number one in saves in the IPA with 27.
Top Batters: RF Eamon O'Toole (.296/19/93/68), 1B Stan Terry (.290/14/69/70) and 2B Todd Cummins (.241/21/85/540 were the only decent hitters in the batting order.

2. SOUTHPORT SUN SOXX (85-69) (13 GB): this was the Sun Soxx's best record since back-to-back pennants in 2027 and 2028... they had a potent attack with a .270 BA (4th), 813 runs (2nd-tied), 171 HRs (13th) and adequate pitching with a 3.92 ERA (21st)... defensively they were lacking with a .970 FA.
Top Pitchers: Johnny Swanson (21-9/3.32) and Billy Hoover (18-18/3.45) were quality starters... Hal Combs (8-4/3.69/19 saves) was hit-and-miss in the bullpen.
Top Batters: leading the offense were 3B Craig Glennon (.259/43/136/91), 1B Eddy Douglas (.335/33/98/93) and 2B James Long (.299/26/73/72)... Glennon was third in the IPA with 43 homers and seventh in RBIs with 136.

3. GINZA NINJAS (84-70) (14GB): they shot up from seventh place in 2039 to third place this year... the Ninjas were 59-95 and 35 games out of the running last year... the team's last playoff appearance was in 2031... better hitting and better pitching made the difference... Ginza went from .259 to .273 (3rd) in BA and from 4.66 ERA to 4.23 ERA (25th)... they were second in scoring with 813 runs and fourth in homers with 218... and better-than-average with the gloves with a .975 FA.
Top Pitchers: Charley Waskins (15-10/3.53) was the most reliable starter... Timmy Hitchens (9-8/4.23/22 saves) made the All-Star team, but fizzled in the second half badly... yet he posted 22 saves.
Top Batters: LF Ichiro Kazumi (.343/19/80/97) won the TU batting crown with a .343 BA... All-Star CF Sogo Takagi (.298 BA) had a super season with 50 homers, 117 RBIs and 119 runs... Takagi was second to record-breaking Jerry Culpepper of the Bayview Vikings in homers... Culpepper broke Jack Elliott's all-time IPA mark with 66 this year... Elliott hit 65 in 2013 for High Mesa... other Ginza guns were All-Star Whip Harrell (.296 BA) with 32 HRs, 99 RBIs and 85 runs... 3B Sam Essex (.287 BA) with 31 roundtrippers, 100 RBIs and 91 runs... RF Scott Sparks (.247 BA) also chipped in with 27 HRs, 71 RBIs and 62 runs.

4. SAN ALEJO MONTANEROS (83-71) (15 GB): the Monties won four pennants in the last nine years and one Pro Cup in 2032... but this year they slipped a bit to fourth place... mainly because their pitching declined from a very good 3.02 ERA to 3.70 (12th)... San Alejo can still put runs on the scoreboard with a .266 BA (10th), 738 runs (8th) and 185 HRs (9th-tied)... mediocre defense with a .970 FA.
Top Pitchers: 21-year-old Matt Bell (20-15/2.89) topped the team in wins and ERA... Johnny Brown (15-11/3.17) was solid, too... but Benny Buckmaster (16-16/3.98) and Tommy Smith (11-15/4.27) had sub-par seasons... Buckmaster was 22-10 last year with a sparkling 2.53 ERA and Smith was 15-14 with a 3.20 ERA.
Top Batters: All-Star CF Dusty Rogan (.333/31/105/77) and C Filipe Zamora (.292/26/102/66) sparked the team at the plate... 1B Ted Hatch added 35 HRs and 83 RBIs, but batted only .232.

5. TURON TYPHOONS (77-77) (21 GB): after winning the TU South the past two years, the Typhoons' pitching went into the pits, rising up from 3.20 to 3.69 (11th)... the bats suffered, too, dropping from .277 to .264 (12th)... their offense is just average, despite 182 HRs (11th).,, defense is average, too, with a .973 FA.
Top Pitchers: Clyde Engstrom (15-15/3.34), Armin Boehm (16-14/3.65) and Nate Scottsdale (17-18/3.46) all had off-years... all were 20-game winners last season... Ralph Fulton (8-10/2.05/14 saves) was the best in the bullpen.
Top Batters: most of the regulars had sub-par seasons, though they had some good numbers. just not what they were accustomed to... 2B C. C. Kingsford (.294/30/93/85), RF Guido Gervasio (.278/29/95/83), CF J. P. Trevenot (.266/29/88/88), 3B Rafer Robertson (.287/26/89/66), SS George Jordan (.257/21/63/45).

6. CAPE CORAL HURRICANES (74-80) (24 GB): the 'Canes were fourth last year and fell to sixth this year... super bats with a .282 BA (1st), 821 runs (1st), 189 HRs (8th), but lousy on the hill with a 4.40 ERA (29th)... and bad on defense with a .969 FA.
Top Pitchers: Tommy Van Noord (17-17/3.20) was the only effective starter.
Top Batters: superstar All-Star RF William Snyder (.341/37/104/101) had another fine season with help from C Stan Ferguson (.341/29/88/86), 3B Rikky Van Dalen (.308/28/82/109), LF Paul Law (.298/26/87/103) and All-Star SS Joel Collins (.301/12/69/83).

7. COLCHESTER ELITES (64-90) (34 GB): a second-rate, second-division club for the fourth year in a row with a .252 BA (24th) and 4.49 ERA (30th)... but the Elites can handle the gloves well with a .976 FA.
Top Pitchers: Dan Scott (13-9/4.06) was the only decent starter... Tony Dazzi (8-4/2.74) was the only good reliever.
Top Batters: star All-Star RF Blake Barrister (.278/49/136/99), LF Chet Porter (.308/11/64/87) and 3B Joey Rogers (.284/14/74/86) pretty much carried the club offensively... Barrister came in third in the IPA with 49 HRs and 136 RBIs.

8. ARROYO GRANDE SUNS (59-95) (39 GB): the Suns are one of the worst teams in the IPA... they have finished near the bottom of the division for the seventh year in a row... the last three in the cellar... the Suns haven't been to the playoffs in 17 years (2023)... they hit only .237 (32nd) and have a mediocre 3.94 ERA (23rd)... but are a little better-than-average defensively with a .974 mark.
Top Pitchers: Mateus Castro (14-18/3.89), Anthony Lombardi (13-20/3.75) and Ramiro Marrero (12-15/3.61) are fairly decent starters with no run support... and Cody Simmons (3-6/2.52/17 saves) and Duane Russell (2-0/2.70) are pretty good relievers.
Top Batters: 3B Rene Jesclard is the club leader with 27 homers, 69 RBIs and 85 runs, but he batted a poor .235 for average... CF Rafael Montoya has the best batting average with .293... Montoya had 13 HRs, 44 RBIs and scored 62 runs.

Eugene Church · 11-05-2013, 02:12 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, September 18, 2040

HAWKS FAVORED OVER CC 'CATS IN PRO CUP
Only three teams return to the IPA Pro Cup playoffs this season. The Waleska Westerners were upset in a close race by Crystal Lake this year. So the Islandian Pro Alliance will have a new crownbearer. The North Hills Hawks from the Tycobbian Union and Cold Creek Catamounts and Sligo Rovers from Ruthlandia are back again in quest of the IPA Holy Grail - the Pro Cup trophy. Crystal Lake and Ranford will join them from the Ruthlandian Union, while the other Tycobbian clubs will be Summerland, Denton City and Ozarka.

The oddsmakers are forecasting a North Hills victory this year, the Hawks' third in the last six seasons... usually the favorite's role is the kiss of death in the postseason... the title usually goes to the team that gets hot in August and September and continues to play well into October... keep an eye on Summerland and Crystal Lake, if this is true. Both clubs were a sizzling 50-22 in the second half of the season.

PRO CUP POLL
1. NORTH HILLS (TU)
2. COLD CREEK (RU)
3. CRYSTAL LAKE (RU)
4. SUMMERLAND (TU)
5. DENTON CITY (TU)
6. SLIGO (RU)
7. OZARKA (TU)
8. RANFORD (RU)

1. NORTH HILLS HAWKS (97-58): the Hawks put up the second-best record in the Tycobbian Union this year, topped only by Summerland in the Tycobbian Union with 98... Cold Creek of the Ruthlandian East led the IPA with 101 wins... North Hills does it with great pitching and adequate offense... registering a super 2.88 ERA (2nd)... only Summerland in the TU South was better with a brilliant 2.83 ERA... the Hawks' scoring could be better... they hit well with a .269 BA (7th), but lack scoring and firepower... North Hills scored only 676 runs (20th) and hit 135 HRs (23rd)... they are good defenders with a .975 FA.
Top Pitchers: 34-year-old southpaw Jeff Owens had a tremendous year with a 28-7 record and 2.48 ERA... He easily had the most wins in the IPA... last year's Golden Arm winner Tony Mack (20-14/3.03) won 20 games again... Frankie Lambert added a 19-14 mark with a strong 2.89 ERA... veteran Dave Michael was a good number four with a 13-12 record and a 3.30 ERA... the bullpen was outstanding, too, with Nelson Hooper (4-5/2.63/22 saves), Kyle Oliver (8-4/3.21/4 saves) and Joey Santini (5-1/2.02/3 saves).
Top Batters: superstar All-Star LF Adam Thurgood (.324/23/90/91) again led the club with help from some reliable hitters: 1B Ric Hamilton (.340/24/92/69), 2B Tommy Vavas (.289/14/62/91), CF Kris Anastas (.274/16/73/65) and 3B Jim McDermott (.280/12/67/62).

2. COLD CREEK CATAMOUNTS (101-53): the 'Cats always have strong pitching, but this year they added rock-solid hitting to their arsenal... they batted .282 (2nd) and tallied 785 runs (5th), but hit only 111 homers (30th)... on the mound they were as good as ever with a 2.97 ERA (1st), third best in the IPA after Summerland (2.83) and North Hills (2.88)... defensively Cold Creek is very good with a .978 FA.
Top Pitchers: All-Star J. J. Gillespie (23-11/2.26) topped the 200-win milestone this season and is now 206-105 in 12 seasons with a fantastic 2.28 ERA... Gillespie's career ERA is the all-time best in the IPA... Gillespie topped the RU with a 2.26 ERA this season... Joey Baker (20-8/2.30) and Peter Heller (20-11/3.78) also chalked up 20-win seasons... and reliable Rob Hutchins (17-11/3.37) rounded out the starting foursome.
Top Batters: SS Jeremy Hall (.310/7/86/84), CF Guy St. Laurent (.253/32/99/88), C Rodney Marshall (.301/23/78/69).

3. CRYSTAL LAKE CRUSHERS (94-60): for the last five seasons Crystal Lake has languished in the second division, but in a surprise rise the Crushers moved up from fifth place to the top spot this season... by a wide margin they outhit and outscored everybody in the IPA with a .295 BA and 843 runs... defense is outstanding, too, with a .980 FA... this was the eighth pennant for the Crushers in their history with the most recent one in 2034... since they dethroned IPA champ Waleska this year, the Crushers just might surprise in the Pro Cup playoffs.
Top Pitchers: just enough pitching to get by with 36-year-old Arnie Cason (23-9/3.05) having the best year in his career... 35-year old vets Ken Lawson (20-12/4.09) and Douglas Merrill (18-11/4.26) benefitted often from the high-scoring offense.
Top Batters: RF Paul Dillon (.344/10/89/97), CF Jesse Walker (.344/0/49/92), All-Star LF Johnny Kennedy (.299/24/98/81), All-Star C Stan Stanek (.314/24/99/117), 1B Daryl Brady (.315/19/91/74), 3B Marv Roy (.283/16/88/74), SS Morten Jonassen (.310/1/57/72).

4. SUMMERLAND SUNSETS (98-56): the Sunsets won the most games in the Tycobbian Union with super slabwork: 2.83 team ERA, the best in the IPA... they didn't hit much (.243 BA-29th) or score much (661 runs-24th tied), but neither did the opposing teams... the Sunsets are also one of the best defensive teams with a .978 FA... this will be only the third playoff appearance in the club's history... the others were in 2005 and 2033... look for Summerland to shine in the postseason this year... Summerland really took charge in the second half with a torrid 52-20 record... could be a good omen.
Top Pitchers: Jayson Hallstrom (24-7/2.08) led the Tycobbian Union in wins, ERA and shutouts (8)... Dutch De Boer (10-1/2.11) and Johnny Young (22-11/3.120 had strong seasons, too... the bullpen excelled as well with Ronald Shaddock (12-6/2.27/27 saves) and Pete Ashley (5-4/2.70/4 saves)... Shaddock was number one in saves in the IPA with 27.
Top Batters: RF Eamon O'Toole (.296/19/93/68), 1B Stan Terry (.290/14/69/70) and 2B Todd Cummins (.241/21/85/540 were the only decent hitters in the batting order.

5. DENTON CITY REDBIRDS (86-68): the Redbirds were a power in the early days of the IPA, making the postseason eight times in the first 12 seasons of the league... six of those years they won the division... twice the Redbirds made it to the Pro Cup Finals, but didn't win... that was in 2005 and 2008... now Denton City is back again with a capable club that features good pitching with a 3.61 ERA (8th)... good bats with a .269 BA (5th), 757 runs (5th) and 185 HRs (9th-tied)... defense-wise they are only average with a .971 FA... Denton City could be a factor in the Pro Cup playoffs this year.
Top Pitchers: Francisco Salcido (21-14/3.43), Freddy Hogue (16-7/3.40), Troy McIntosh (17-14/3.28) and Kevin Blevins (13-6/3.82) were the main starters... Harry Elliot (4-9/3.13) was off-and-on in the bullpen, but he did save 21 games.
Top Batters: the Redbirds had a good core of hitters, sparked mainly by All-Star 1B Wayman Stetson with 43 homers, 136 RBIs, 98 runs and a .330 BA... Stetson wound up third in RBIs and eighth in home runs in the IPA... the other solid bats were C Felton Welch (.297/27/86/73), RF Pete Doyle (.272/24/75/111), SS Sammy Thornton (.306/4/74/92)... a new addition to the club was LF Sadaharu Uchiyama (.293/13/63/81), who was acquired in June in a trade with Ginza... he is 32 years old and a career .301 hitter and a Golden Glove outfielder.

6. SLIGO ROVERS (84-70): they went to the RU League Championship Series last year before falling to eventual Pro Cup winner Waleska... the Rovers have a big task in the first round... they are matched up against powerful Cold Creek, one of the Pro Cup favorites this year... Sligo is a little above average in scoring with 738 runs (12th) and on the mound with a 3.65 ERA (9th)... possesses the best defense in the RU West with a very good .978 FA.
Top Pitchers: All-Star Scotty Price (22-9/2.78) is the staff ace with help from Randall Steele (18-14/3.74) and Tom Pierson (16-14/3.36)... Richie Joyner (1-2/2.09/3 saves) did well in middle relief.
Top Batters: most productive bats were All-Star 1B Denny Simmons (.337/17/80/97), CF Joe McGarrett (.291/22/84/77), SS Neil Mitchell (.273/21/67/102) and LF Rudy Putnam (.297/15/59/78).

7. OZARKA NATURALS (81-73): the Nats lived off their pitching and copped their 11th division crown and first in over 10 years... the last one came in 2030... Ozarka is still waiting for its first Pro Cup... it's not likely to come this year... the Nats are just an average club and are not forecast to go very far in the Pro Cup playoffs... the Naturals have good starters... they ranked fifth in Tycobbian Union with a 3.47 ERA... Ozarka was solid defensively with a .976 FA.
Top Pitchers: Glen Jenkins (18-15/2.16), Stan Carey (17-10/3.29) and Billy Hill (14-11/3.39) gave them three very capable starters... Jenkins was the Tycobbian strikeout king with 291 Ks.
Top Batters: 3B Jimmy Woods (.321/28/104/81) was the top performer and led the team in BA, HRs and RBIs... C Jaak Pajukivi (.279/24/81/58) and LF Lonnie Gillespie (.272/10/72/92) were only fair at best.

8, RANFORD BULLS (80-74): up from third last year (11 GB)... the Bulls were the best in the weakest division in the IPA... only two clubs had winning records... third pennant in team's history... last was in 2034... not expected to do much in the playoffs... just an average ball club with .261 BA (19th), 646 runs (27th), 140 HRs (19th), 3.95 ERA (20th) and a .975 FA.
Top Pitchers: Ralph Hawk (20-14/2.62)
Top Batters: 3B Pete Bankston (.302/18/83/71), RF Dale Weston (.289/45/112/95).

Eugene Church · 11-05-2013, 03:24 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Wednesday, September 19, 2040

2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES -Game One

Ruthlandian Union

GILLESPIE BLANKS SLIGO IN OPENER 3-0
Two of the top twirlers in the IPA were matched up in the RU Division Series opener at Holmes Field in Cold Creek... Cold Creek's J. J. Gillespie won the battle with a 3-0 shutout, stopping Sligo on just one hit... in a brilliant game 23-game winner Gillespie fanned 10 Rovers and walked only two... third baseman Mel Dillard's eighth-inning double was the only hit... 22-game winner Scotty Price went the distance, giving up six hits and three runs... Cold Creek got all their runs in the first on an RBI single by Wayne Kenney and a two-run double by LF Jimmy Howell.

RANFORD RIPS CRYSTAL LAKE WITH 3-RUN 9TH
In game one of the RU Division Series at Crystal Lake, heavy underdog Ranford bulled its way past Crystal Lake 5-3 with a three-run ninth-inning uprising against the Crushers' relief corps... 3B Pete Bankston led the Bulls 10-hit attack with three hits, including a homer... LF Jamie Holcomb also homered... starters Ralph Hawk and Arnie Cason battled to a 2-2 draw with Hawk going six innings and Cason eight... Frank Yosarian (1-0) got the win with two scoreless inning and Miguel Mandina got the save with a runless ninth... closer Eddie Lane (0-1) was roughed up for three runs and suffered the loss... Ranford outhit Crystal Lake 10-9... SS Mackie Cummings led the Crushers with three hits.

Tycobbian Union

SUNSETS RALLY IN GAME 1, EDGE HAWKS 4-3
Playing game one at home at Sunset Stadium, Summerland edged Pro Cup favorite North Hills 4-3 by coming back in the late innings from a 3-1 deficit... 24-game winner Jayson Hallstrom (1-0) got the best of 28-game winner Jeff Owens by holding the Hawks to six hits and three runs in eight innings... Ronald Shaddock, the IPA saves leader, got another one with a perfect ninth... Owens (0-1) went the route and allowed four runs on seven hits.

REDBIRDS ROMP OVER NATS 7-2 IN FIRST GAME
At home at Douglas Denton Field, the Denton City Redbirds romped over Ozarka 7-2 in the first game of the the Tycobbian Division Series... they banged out 14 hits and were sparked by RF Pete Doyle with four hits and CF Sam Carson's three hits... 3B Rod Hunt got the Redbirds only homer... Troy McIntosh (1-0) notched the victory by tossing eight sharp innings... he permitted only three hits, but two of them were homers... McIntosh struck out five and walked two... C Jaak Pajukivi and 1B Omar Velazquez accounted for all of the Naturals' runs with solo homers... Glen Jenkins (0-1) caught the loss... he was ripped for 11 hits and four runs in his seven innings... he exited with Denton City up 4-2.

Eugene Church · 11-05-2013, 08:33 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Thursday, September 20, 2040

2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES -Game Two

Ruthlandian Union

STEELE EVENS SERIES, ROVERS OVER CC 'CATS 6-2
Sligo righthander Randall Steele fired a two-hit gem and evened up the RU Division Series at a game apiece... Steele tamed Cold Creek 6-2 in a route-going performance at Holmes Field, striking out four and walking four... SS Neil Mitchell (.222) struck the big blow of the game, a three-run homer in the second inning... the Rovers racked up 12 hits, 11 of them off losing pitcher Joey Baker (0-1), who allowed six runs in eight innings... 1B Denny Simmons (.375) went 3-for-5 for Sligo... and CF Joe McGarrett (.222) and Steele added two hits each for the winners... Cold Creek CF Guy St. Laurent (.250) had a solo homer.

BULLS BLAST CRUSHERS AGAIN, WIN GAME 2, TOO
Don't tell the Ranford Bulls they are not as good as the seven other teams vying for the IPA Pro Cup... for the second day on the road the Bulls put it to the heavily-favored Crystal Lake Crushers 6-1 to take a 2-0 lead in the RU Division Series... Ranford walloped 13 hits and won going away at Lakefront Stadium... in the first playoff start of his career Winston Moses (1-0) held hard-hitting Crystal Lake to one run and eight hits... he also had a three-run double that broke open a scoreless duel in the top of the sixth... he sent Ken Lawson (0-1) down to defeat... though he had 11 strikeouts, Lawson was shelled for 13 hits and six runs in seven innings... Moses (.750) and 3B Pete Bankston (.600) drilled three hits apiece for the Bulls... and three players had two each: 1B Maury Quave (.222), CF Roger Farnsworth (.222) and 2B Martin Satcher (.333).

Tycobbian Union

HAWKS SLIP BY SUNSETS 5-4, TIE SERIES
Game two of the Tycobbian Division Series was another nailbiter just like game one... North Hills fought back from 4-2 deficit after four innings to win 5-4 and tie up the best-of-seven series at a game apiece... Adam Thurgood's HR (.250), Jimmy Jay Ferguson's (.667) RBI triple and Skipper Shearer's sacrifice fly (.000) highlighted the decisive three-run sixth... winning pitcher Tony Mack (1-0) settled down after a rocky first four innings and blanked the Sunsets over the last five frames... Mack struck out seven and walked one, while giving up seven hits... left-hander Dutch De Boer started for Summerland, but left in third with a 2-1 lead... he departed with a muscle strain... Pete Ashley (0-1) relieved him and took the loss... he was banged around for four runs and four hits in three innings... the Hawks were led at the plate by 3B Jim McDermott (.429), who had two hits and two RBIs... LF Adam Thurgood (.250) also had a pair of hits... North Hills had nine hits and Summerland 7... the Sunsets were sparked by RF Eamon O'Toole (.571) with three hits and CF Antonio Vasquez (.375) with two hits... LF Russell Edwards (.333) had a two-run homer in defeat.

SALCIDO STOPS OZARKA 2-1, REDBIRDS UP 2-0
At age 35, 13-year Denton City veteran portsider Francisco Salcido finally chalked up his first postseason victory... he stopped the Ozarka Naturals 2-1 to give the Redbirds a 2-0 edge in the TU Division Series... Denton City won the first two games at their homepark Douglas Denton Field... Salcido limited the Nats to one run and seven hits in seven innings with four walks and seven Ks... 37-year-old Stan Carey (0-1) went the distance in defeat, permitting two runs on seven hits... C Felton Welch (.333) slammed a homer in the last of the seventh to bring home the win for the Redbirds... CF Russ Foster (1.000) went 3-3 to lead Denton City and 3B Rob Hunt (.500) was 2-3... 1B Omar Velazquez (.500) collected three hits for Ozarka.

Eugene Church · 11-05-2013, 10:02 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Friday, September 21, 2040

2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES -Game Three

Ruthlandian Union

ROVERS RALLY, TOP CC 'CATS 4-3 IN GAME 3
Apparently the Sligo Rovers are not going to just roll over and play dead for the favored Cold Creek Catamounts... they won 4-3 on their homegrounds at Silver Mountain Stadium and now have the lead in the RU Division Series two games to one.

The Rovers rallied with three runs in the bottom of the eight to pull out the victory... RF Pat Foreman's (.125) sac fly was the game-winner... Tom Pierson (1-0) worked eight innings and checked the Catamounts on three runs and six hits... he fanned four and issued two walks... Joey Hicks picked up the save when he retired the 'Cats in the ninth... Rob Hutchins (0-1) was sharp for the first seven frames and held a 3-1 lead, going into the eighth... then he fell apart and lost it... Hutchins surrendered four runs on five hits, walked five and struck out four.

CF Guy St. Laurent (.273) homered for the second straight day... it was a two-run shot in the sixth that gave Cold Creek a 3-1 lead.

RANFORD STUNS AGAIN, LEADS CL CRUSHERS 3-0
Can you believe it?... the unheralded Ranford Bulls ripped Crystal Lake for the third consecutive game and now need just one more win to send the Crushers home for the year... the Bulls blasted them 8-1 at Ranford County Stadium to grab a very surprising three games to none lead in the RU Division Series... Ranford was picked last in the Pro Cup poll, while Crystal Lake was ranked third and given a fair chance of winning it all.

Ranford got a standout performance from Lanny Smithers (1-0), who stifled the big bats of Crystal Lake on just four hits and a single run over his eight innings to beat Crusher veteran Douglas Merrill (0-1)... loser Merrill was tagged for five runs and five hits in six innings... he was behind 5-1 when he headed for the showers.

RF Dale Weston (.167) cracked a two-run homer and 2B Martin Satcher (.455) hit a solo job to spark the Bulls... Weston also had a two-run double in the third and four RBIs in all.

Tycobbian Union

SUNSETS SINK HAWKS 4-2, LEAD SERIES 2-1
In game three of the Tycobbian Division Series at the Hawk's Nest in North Hills, hurler Johnny Young pitched and hit visiting Summerland to a 4-2 triumph over the Pro Cup favorite... the Sunsets were the fourth pick in the Pro Cup poll and they now have a two to one lead in the series.

Young bent, but he didn't break... he gave up 10 hits in a complete game, but held the Hawks to just one earned run... Young (1-0) had six strikeouts and no walks... he also singled in two runs in the critical sixth when the Sunsets expanded their lead to 4-0 against losing pitcher Frankie Lambert (0-1)... RF Eamon O'Toole (.417) drove in the other two Summerland runs... Lambert went eight innings and was touched for four runs on five hits... he struck out seven and walked five.

OZARKA CLAIMS FIRST WIN, NATS NIP REDBIRDS 5-4
Down 2-0 in the TU Division Series after losing the first two on the road, the Ozarka Naturals found Ellie Ewing Stadium more to their liking when they knocked off Denton City 5-4 in game three and cut their lead to two games to one... but it was hard to pull off... the Nats built up a 4-1 lead after seven innings, then blew it and had to win in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the ninth on Jimmy Woods' bases-loaded RBI single off losing pitcher Harry Elliott (0-1), Denton City's third pitcher... the third Ozarka pitcher Leon Bernard (1-0) blew the save by giving up the two tying runs in the top half of the ninth, but he got the win anyway.

Ozarka was outhit 12 to 9 by the Redbirds... the Nats were led by 2B Mac Coleman (.143) and 1B Omar Velazquez (.500), both with a pair of hits and an RBI... C Jaak Pajukivi (.333) drove in two runs for the winners... topping the Redbirds' offense was C Felton Welch (.455) with three hits and two RBIs... he tied the score with a two-run shot in the ninth, his second homer of the series... three Denton players had two hits apiece: RF Pete Doyle (.462), SS Sammy Thornton (.273) and 1B Wayland Stetson (.250).

Eugene Church · 11-06-2013, 04:04 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Saturday, September 22, 2040

2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES - Game Four

RUTHLANDIAN UNION

GILLESPIE EVENS SERIE AT 2, 'CATS NIP ROVERS 3-2
On the road in Sligo for game four of the Ruthlandian Division Series, the Cold Creek Catamounts got another great win from star pitcher J. J. Gillespie... the stocky right-hander gave up a first-inning two-run home run to Denny Simmons, but nothing else until the ninth... Gillespie outpitched Scotty Price again, nipping him by a 3-2 count to even the series at two games each.

Gillespie (2-0/1.04) yielded two runs on eight hits, fanned eight and walked no one in his eight and two-thirds innings... Price was tough, but not tough enough... he tossed eight sharp innings, held the Catamounts to just four hits and one earned run with seven strikeouts and a walk... defense was his downfall... with one away in the top of the fourth LF Jimmy Howell (.200) reached second on an error by SS Neil Mitchell (.125) and scored the eventual-winning score on John-Michael Krikma's RBI single... that unearned run put Cold Creek ahead 3-1.

CF Guy St. Laurent (.267) smashed a two-run clout in the opening frame for the Catamounts other runs... Sligo picked up a run in the last of the ninth on Pat Foreman's base hit... with the score 3-2 and runners on first and second, George Bailey relieved Gillespie and got a game-ending double play for the save. 1B John-Michael Krikma (.300) led the 'Cats with two hits... C Don Tucker (.214) collected three hits for Sligo.

The Rovers were missing CF Joe McGarrett (.300) today... he injured his hamstring in yesterday's game and will miss at least six weeks and the rest of the playoffs... a big setback for the Sligo... they will miss McGarrett's big bat and defense... veteran Jim Lewellen will replace him in the batting order... Lewellen hit only .198 in a back-up role this season, but did hit 12 homers in 232 at bats... McGarrett batted .291 during the year with 22 HRs and 84 RBIs and is a Golden Glover in the outfield.

CRUSHERS STILL ALIVE, WIN 5-4 IN GAME 4
Hanging on by their finger tips, Crystal Lake squeezed out a 5-4 victory in 11 innings to remain alive in the RU Division Series against surprising Ranford... on the verge of being swept, the Crushers got their first win in four tries against the underdog Bulls... Paul Dillon was the hero with an RBI single off loser Miguel Mandina (0-1/0.00)... the run was not earned... Eddie Lane (1-1/6.75) blew his second save of the series, but got a reprieve and got credit for the win with the help of Mitchell Clarkson, who finished off the Bulls in order in the last of the 11th.

Crystal Lake picked up 14 hits in the game, paced by 1B Stan Dixon (.500) with 3-4... and CF Jesse Walker (.357) and RF Pat Dillon (.353) with two hits each...Ranford had nine hits... RF Dale Weston (.250) had a two-run homer in the first to top the Bulls... it was Weston's second one in the series.

TYCOBBIAN UNION

HAWKS' MCDERMOTT TIES SUNSETS WITH HR IN THE 11TH
Desparate for a win to tie the series, North Hills battled back with a tying run in the last of the ninth at the Hawk's Nest and then won it 5-4 in the 11th on Jim McDermott home run off losing pitcher Ronald Shaddock (0-1/6.75)... David Michael (1-0/0.00) got out of a bases-loaded, no-outs predicament to get the victory.

The North Hills bullpen almost blew it... starter Jeff Owens had a 3-0 lead after six innings as he stopped the Sunsets on four hits, struck out four and walked none in a fine outing... relievers Kyle Oliver and Nelson Hooper let the Sunsets go in front 4-3 in the eighth... the Hawks belted 13 hits and Summerland had 10... CF Kris Anastas (.412) went 3-for-5 to lead the Hawks... LF Adam Thurgood (.294) also added a pair of hits... Summerland 2B Norm Murdoch (.250) had two hits and two RBIs... RF Eamon O'Toole (.412) also banged out two hits and batted in a run.

NATS KNOT SERIES AT 2-2, RIP REDBIRDS 9-3
In game four at Ellie Ewing Field, Ozarka tore up Denton City 9-3 to knot the TU Division Series at two games apiece... the Naturals rattled the boards for 15 hits with 3B Jimmy Woods (.294) leading the attack with three hits and three RBIs... C Jaak Pajukivi (.412) chipped in with three hits and two RBIs... Glen Jenkins (1-1/2.63) got the first postseason win of his career... he worked six and two-thirds innings, allowed 2 unearned runs on six hits, struck out eight batters, but walked six in a shaky performance... the Nats shelled loser Troy McIntosh (1-1/6.57) for seven runs and 12 hits in four-plus frames.

Denton City got eight hits and were led by RF Pete Doyle (.444) with a homer and a single and C Felton Welch (.500) with a double, single and two runs batted in.

Eugene Church · 11-07-2013, 03:04 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Sunday, September 23, 2040

2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES - Game Five

RUTHLANDIAN UNION

CC 'CATS STOP SLIGO 4-0 IN 11 INNINGS
In game five of the Ruthlandian Division Series at Sligo, the magnificent mound corps of Cold Creek showed its stuff by blanking the Rovers 4-0 in 11 innings for a three games to two lead... Joey Baker, George Bailey and Harvey Fullerton combined on a seven-hit shutout... Baker worked eight innings, Bailey three and Fullerton closed it out in the 11th... Bailey (1-0/0.00) notched the win... Randall Steele held Cold Creek scoreless for eight and two-thirds innings... Bill Walker (0-1/4.50) took it on the chin in the four-run 11th and took the loss.

The Catamounts socked 13 hits... Lamont Cramer broke open the game with a two-run pinch-hit homer... later on in the inning RF Wayne Kenney (.227) and 3B Pat Ellis (.105) had RBI singles.

The series returns to Cold Creek for game six tomorrow afternoon... if necessary, game seven will also be there.

CL CRUSHERS CLIP BULLS 7-2 IN 12 INNINGS
Game five of the RU Division Series between Crystal Lake and Ranford also went extra innings before the Crushers bushwhacked the Bulls 7-2... doing the damage were CF Jesse Walker (.400) with an RBI single, a sacrifice fly by LF Johnny Kennedy (.083) and a three-run blast by RF Pat Dillon (.333)... reliever Mitchell Clarkson (1-0/0.00) chalked up the win with two scoreless innings, while Miguel Mandina (0-2) was the loser, the victim of the five-run explosion... Crystal Lake is now back in business, but still trails Ranford 3-2 in the series... the rest of the games will be played at Lakefront Stadium in Crystal Lake.

Crystal Lake bagged 15 base hits... Walker had three hits, two RBIs and scored two runs for Crystal Lake... Dillon had 2 hits and 3 RBIs... and 3B Marv Roy (.333) added two hits and scored twice... Ranford popped 12 hits in defeat with 1B Maury Quave (.250) getting three of them... and 3B Pete Bankston (.333), RF Emory Rice (.273) and C Arlo Guthrie (.238) all getting a pair of hits.

TYCOBBIAN UNION

KING CONKS HAWKS 4-0, SUNSETS IN THE LEAD
Game five of the TU Division Series started badly for the Summerland Sunsets, but ended up on a bright note... starter Dutch De Boer strained a muscle warming up and had to be replaced by Billy Hill, who promptly pitched them to a 4-0 shutout over powerful North Hills and a 3-2 lead in games... Hill (1-0/0.00) fired a three-hitter against the Pro Cup favorite, struck out five and also walked five... the Sunsets backed him with three double plays... Tony Mack (1-1/3.18) suffered the defeat, going eight frames and giving up three runs on six hits... Mack totaled eight Ks and issued four bases on balls.

Summerland got only eight hits and were sparked by 3B Norm Murdock (.316) with two hits and an RBI... King (.250) drove in two runs in the seventh with a single... Mark Brenneke (.167) got the final run in with a ninth-inning single.

Summerland will try and wrap up the series at home... they just need one win in two games to advance to the Tycobbian League Championship.

DC REDBIRDS DRUB OZARKA 10-3, UP 3-2 NOW
It was nip-and-tuck for seven innings in game five of the TU Division Series with Denton City holding a slim 3-2 lead over Ozarka... then the Redbird bats went to town and put three runs on the scoreboard in the top of the eighth and added four runs more in the ninth to totally drub the Nats 10-3... the win gave Denton City the series lead at three games to two.

The Redbirds pelted four Ozarka pitchers for 17 hits... LF Sadaharu Uchiyama (.222) paced the hit parade with two hits, including a three-run homer... 1B Wayman Stetson (.286) chipped in with three hits, a run and an RBI... and SS Sammy Thornton (.316) scored three times, had two hits and batted in a run.

Ozarka only got seven hits, all off starter Francisco Salcido (2-0/1.80)... Salcido went eight innings, walked four, fanned five and gave up only two earned runs... Lenny Evans relieved him in the ninth and set the Nats down in perfect order... the losing pitcher was Stan Carey, who kept the Redbirds in check... he left trailing 3-1 after six frames... Carey (0-2/1.93) permitted nine hits, but only one earned run.

The sixth game will be in Denton City tomorrow... and, if needed, Douglas Denton Field will be the site of the decisive finale.

Eugene Church · 11-07-2013, 11:45 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, September 24, 2040

2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES - Game Six

RUTHLANDIAN UNION

SLIGO FORCES 7TH GAME, TRIMS CC 'CATS 4-3
The Sligo Rovers have been a handfull for the Cold Creek Catamounts, the number-two choice to take the IPA Pro Cup this season... the number-six pick has now forced, a win-take-all seventh game in the Ruthlandian Division Series with a 4-3 triumph.

Back-to-back doubles in the top of the ninth by SS Neil Mitchell (.200) and 1B Denny Simmons (.308) decided game six at Holmes Field in Cold Creek... Sligo won despite four errors and careless defensive play... winner Tom Pierson (2-0/1.69) didn't allow an earned run in his eight innings... he permitted five hits, walked three and struck out three... Richie Joyner closed it out with a scoreless ninth and sealed the verdict... Tommy Wynn (0-1/4.50) lost it in relief of starter Rob Hutchins, who worked seven innings and gave up three runs on seven hits... Wynn allowed one run on two hits.

The Rovers collected nine hits to five for the Catamounts... 2B Howard Winston (.238) led them with three hits, including a two-run triple in the fourth... Mitchell (.200) also helped with two hits for the winners... RF Wayne Kenney (.240) was the 'Cats best bat with a two-run roundtripper in the first.

Game seven at Holmes Field in Cold Creek will feature both teams' aces, J. J. Gillespie (23-11/2.26) for Cold Creek and Scotty Price (22-9/2.78) for Sligo... this will be the third time they have opposed one another in this series... Gillespie shut out Price 3-0 in game one and edged him 3-2 in game four.

RANFORD UPSETS CRYSTAL LAKE
Not a lot of people gave Ranford much of a chance to beat Crystal Lake in the Ruthlandian Division Series, but they did... the Bulls upset the Crushers in six games to advance to the RU League Championship Series... Ranford did it with the help of three home runs to get past the Crushers 8-5 in game six on the road in Crystal Lake... the Crushers were ranked third in the Pro Cup poll, while poor ole Ranford ranked number eight, the least-likely team to succeed in the playoffs.

Ranford racked up 10 hits, sparked by homers by RF Dale Weston (.292), 3B Glen Ward (.125) and LF Jimmy Holcomb (.231)... Weston and Holcomb had three RBIs apiece... Crystal Lake also had 10 hits and was led by LF Johnny Kennedy (.103) with a three-run clout and C Stan Stanek (250) with a two-run homer.

Lanny Smithers (2-0/3.18) closed out the series with his second victory... he endured 10 hits, surrendered five runs, but survived, striking out six and walking two in a complete-game effort... Douglas Merrill (0-2/4.26) lost it though he only permitted three earned runs... Merrill was tagged for eight runs on 9 hits in six-plus innings... he also had six Ks and two walks.

Winning manager Chris Bernhoffer gave the credit to both his pitchers and hitters. "The whole team did what they had to do for us to win... the 8-3 advantage in homers was a big key, too."

Losing skipper Baby George told the scribes, "We didn't hit much in the first three games... their pitching was impressive... they shut down our offense very well... you can't lose the first three games of a series like we did and come back and win... it rarely happens."

TYCOBBIAN UNION

SUMMERLAND SENDS NORTH HILLS INTO THE SUNSET
The number-four pick in the Pro Cup poll, the Summerland Sunsets, upended the Pro Cup favorite North Hills in six games, capturing the Tycobbian Division Series and advancing to the Tycobbian LCS... the Sunsets sent the Hawks sailing off into the sunset with a 5-3 victory, helped out by Mark Brenneke's three hits and three RBIs and Johnny Young's fine pitching... the Sunsets ran up a 5-1 cushion after eight frames and then survived the Hawks' two-run rally in the ninth.

Both clubs totaled nine hits apiece... SS Mark Brenneke (.273) went 3-4, including a two-run homer... RF Eamon O'Toole (.400) had a couple of hits, one of them a solo swat... Young (2-0/1.06) had another strong outing, shutting down the Hawks on one run and seven hits in eight innings... Pete Ashley gave up the two runs in the ninth.

North Hills hit a pair of homers... 1B Rick Hamilton (.095) had a solo shot in the fourth and pinchhitter Jimmy Jay Ferguson (.286) cracked a two-run salvo in the ninth... Frankie Lambert (0-2/2.81) was the losing pitcher... he went all the way and was touched for five runs and nine hits, but only three of them were of the earned variety as the Hawks committed two miscues.

Sunset skipper Will Hackett told reporters, "Two very fine teams went at it hot-and-heavy... only one of us could win... fortunately it was us... we got a few more clutch hits than they did."

North Hills' manager Todd Simons lamented, "I love the Pro Cup playoffs, but I don't like losing... we pitched well... didn't hit well, but that's because the Sunsets have excellent pitching... the key factor to me was our sloppy defense... we gave away too many runs in close games to win... nine errors and eight unearned runs killed our chances."

NATS 9th-INNING RALLY KNOTS SERIES
Behind 2-1 heading into their last at-bat, Ozarka put up four big ones on the scoreboard and came away the victor 5-3 in game six at Douglas Denton Field in Denton City... Duffy Morrison had the big hit of the inning, a three-run bomb, that kept the Nats alive in the postseason and knotted the Tycobbian Division Series at three games each... game seven is slated tomorrow afternoon, also in Denton City.

25-year-old lefty Billy Hill (1-0/2.35) hurled another fine game, stopping the Redbirds on two runs and six hits and ending up with two walks and four strikeouts... the save went to Stacy Hubbens, in spite of allowing a run on three hits in the ninth.

Topping the Naturals at the plate was SS Duffy Morrison (.300) with two hits, a double and a homer, and three RBIs... LF Leland Cambridge (.273) pitched in with two RBIs.

Losing pitcher Freddy Hogue (0-1/5.40) did not have a good game... going all the way, he was slammed for five runs and seven hits, while fanning seven batters and walking two... CF Sam Carson (.294) drove in two runs in defeat, while C Felton Welch (.409) got his third homer of the series.

Game seven starters are Troy McIntosh (17-16/3.28) for Denton City and Glen Jenkins (18-15/2.16) for Ozarka... they faced one another in game one and four of the series... McIntosh prevailed 7-1 in the opener and Jenkins got revenge in game four 9-3.

Eugene Church · 11-08-2013, 06:28 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, September 25, 2040

2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES - Game Seven

RUTHLANDIAN UNION

SLIGO SURPRISES, KO'S COLD CREEK IN 7
Scotty Price saved the best for last... the Sligo ace tamed favored Cold Creek 5-1 in game seven of the Ruthlandian Division Series, halting them on one run and five hits for his first win in the Series... he had lost his first two starts... the Rovers eliminated the Catamounts four games to three... in the Pro Cup poll Cold Creek was the number-two choice and Sligo was ranked sixth.

Price (1-2/1.80) went the route, struck out three and walked none to best J. J. Gillespie in a battle of IPA Elite hurlers... Gillespie permitted five runs on seven hits in seven innings with seven Ks and three walks... Gillespie was breezing along with 1-0 lead after six innings, when the Rovers routed him with five runs in the seventh.

Sligo gathered in eight hits, led by RF Pat Foreman (.217) with a three-run homer and LF Rudy Putnam's (.121) two-run single... 1B Denny Simmons (.367) paced them with three hits in four tries.

The Rovers will now take on the Ranford Bulls in the Ruthlandian League Championship Series... the Bulls upset powerful Crystal Lake in first-round action.

Manager Eddie Keys of Sligo commented to the press, "Pierson, Price and Steele were awesome... thank goodness, we got enough runs to win... pitching dominated the series... we won and only batted .207."

Cold Creek skipper Scoop Lemieux agreed, "Eddie's starters were superb... you don't win many series when you hit .181."

TYCOBBIAN UNION

JENKINS BLANKS REDBIRDS, OZARKA ADVANCES
The Ozarka Naturals got a masterpiece from Glen Jenkins to advance to the Tycobbian League Championship Series against the Summerland Sunsets... in game seven at Denton City Jenkins (2-1/1.59) blanked the Redbirds 6-0 on four hits, struck out seven and walked four to capture the series four games to three... Denton City really helped with their downfall with seven errors that led to five unearned runs... Troy McIntosh (1-2/4.35) was the misfortunate loser... in eight-plus innings he allowed five of the six runs on six hits, but just one was legitimate.

CF Lonnie Gillespie (.160) and 3B Jimmy Woods (.296) each drove in two runs for the Naturals... and 2B Mac Coleman (.176) added two hits and scored twice for the winners.

A disgusted Trevor Tomlinson, the Denton City skipper, was beside himself at the press conference. "I don't even think Little Leaguers make seven errors in a game... we won't soon forget this game... come to think of it... Jenkins made us look like Little Leaguers at the plate, too."

Ozarka manager Frank Kiffin was elated, "What a wacky series... we lost the first two games and then came back and won it in seven... Jenkins and Hill pulled it out for us... Pajukivi and Woods got us enough runs to win it."

Eugene Church · 11-09-2013, 11:04 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Wednesday, September 26, 2040

POWERS MISSING IN IPA LCS
The jinx continues... The top three of the Pro Cup picks are already gone after first-round action in the IPA Pro Cup playoffs... Pro Cup favorite North Hills, number-two Cold Creek and number-three Crystal Lake have already bit the dust... the highest-rated team is number-four Summerland, who will take on number-seven Ozarka for the Tycobbian League Championship... number-six Sligo will vie with number-eight Ranford in the Ruthlandian LCS.

Summerland by virtue of its win over North Hills is touted the Pro Cup favorite now... the Sunsets have the best pitching staff in the Islands and they are expected to get by the Ozarka Naturals in the second round and then take on Sligo for the IPA crown... the Rovers get the nod over the unheralded Ranford Bulls for the Ruthlandian title and a spot in the Pro Cup Finals.

Eugene Church · 11-10-2013, 05:32 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Friday, September 28, 2040

2040 IPA LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game One

RUTHLANDIAN UNION

ROVERS TRIM BULLS 5-3 IN RU LCS OPENER
In the opening game of the Ruthlandian League Championship Series at Silver Mountain Stadium in Sligo, the hometown Rovers trimmed the Ranford Bulls 5-3 behind the fine pitching of Scotty Price, a 22-game winner in the regular season. Price (2-2/2.25) was not at his best, but he prevailed, holding Ranford to three runs on nine hits with two walks and five strikeouts... relievers Bill Walker and Gary Booth saved it for him... the save went to Booth as he sat down all five batters he faced in the eighth and ninth... Ralph Hawk (0-1/4.50), the Ranford starter, was the losing pitcher... he allowed four runs on five hits in six innings... and he was wild and walked six.

Sligo trailed in hits 9 to 8... LF Rudy Putnam (.139) and 3B Alex Faxon (.333) led the Rovers with two RBIs each... CF Jimmy Holcomb (.300) had three hits and an RBI for the Bulls and LF Maury Quave had a pair of hits and batted in a run... RF Dale Weston (.296) scored twice for the losers.

TYCOBBIAN UNION

SUNSETS 3 HRS TOO MUCH FOR NATS IN GAME ONE
In game one of the Tycobbian LCS at Sunset Stadium, three home runs powered Summerland to a 7-6 victory over Ozarka... Norm Van Kieken's three-run smash, Doug Maynard's two-run clout and Todd Cummins' solo shot accounted for six of the Rovers' runs... the winning pitcher was Ronald Shaddock (1-1/3.86) and the loser was Teddy O'Shea (0-1/9.00).

Leading Summerland 12-hit attack were 3B Norm Van Kieken (.429) with 2-4 and four RBIs and LF Doug Maynard (.400) with 3-5, two runs and two runs batted in... CF Antonio Vasquez (.286) also pitched in with two hits... Ozarka collected nine hits and were sparked by RF Bob Banachak (.154) with two hits, including a homer... 1B Omar Velazquez (.367) added two hits and scored two runs.

It was a back-and-forth game... the Nats jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, the Sunsets came back with two in the last of the second... Ozarka tied it up 2-2 in the fifth, fell behind 5-2 in the sixth, then regained the lead with four scores in the seventh, making it 6-5 in their favor... pitchhitter Todd Cummins' (.190) clutch homer tied it up in the bottom of the ninth... Van Kieken then won it with a bases-loaded single in the tenth that scored 1B Stan Terry (.194).

Eugene Church · 11-10-2013, 10:48 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Saturday, September 29, 2040

2040 IPA LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game Two

RUTHLANDIAN UNION

RANFORD HOLDS OFF SLIGO 7-5, SERIES EVEN AT 1-1
The Ranford Bulls put on their hitting shoes, banged out two homers and 13 hits to knock off Sligo 7-5 in the second game of the Ruthlandian Union LCS to knot it up at one game each in the best-of-seven series... Pete Bankston, Martin Satcher and Arlo Guthrie were the heroes at the plate and Lanny Smithers gutsied out his third postseason win.

1B Bankston (.351) carded four hits, including a homer and a double, two runs scored and an RBI... Satcher (.257) had a three-run roundtripper and a single... and C Arlo Guthrie (.276) scored twice, drove in a run and posted two hits... Sligo got seven hits with three of them for homers... 1B Denny Simmons (.395), LF Rudy Putnam (.175) and 3B Alex Faxon (.286) all went deep... two of them were one-run shots, while Faxon was good for three runs.

Lanny Smithers (3-0/3.91) worked into the ninth, giving up five runs and seven hits with 10 Ks and three bases on balls... After Smithers gave up the Faxon home run, cutting the Bulls' lead to just two runs, Miguel Mandina came in and fanned the final two batters for his second save in the playoffs... Tom Pierson was the losing pitcher... he was shelled for six runs and 10 hits in eight frames... Pierson (2-1/3.00) was trailing 6-2 when he left the game.

TYCOBBIAN UNION

OZARKA ZAPS SUMMERLAND 8-5 IN 10 INNINGS
On the road in Summerland for game two of the Tycobbian LCS, Ozarka pounded the Sunsets for 12 hits in an 8-5 decision, which tied it up at a game each... Omar Velazquez hammered a three-run homer in the tenth inning to decide it.

Velazquez (.389) continued his productive postseason with three hits and three RBIs for the Naturals... in addition to the game-winning homer, he also tripled... SS Duffy Morrison (.303) also got into the act with two RBIs and three hits... and LF Leland Cambridge (.200) batted in a pair of runs... Summerland 2B Norm Murdoch (.400) made his presence known with a perfect 4-for-4 day and two RBIs in defeat.

Reliever Dwight Albans (1-0/9.95) blew the save in the ninth, but got the win courtesy of Velazquez in the tenth... Albans tossed three innings and gave up a run... the Ozarka staff was aided by four double plays... Ronald Shaddock (1-2/10.80) was the loser... Duke De Boer went nine innings and was victimized by three Sunset errors that cost him two unearned runs... in all, De Boer was battered for five runs and 10 hits.

Eugene Church · 11-10-2013, 11:49 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Sunday, September 30, 2040

2040 IPA LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game Three

RUTHLANDIAN UNION

BULLS RALLY BY ROVERS 6-5 IN 11 INNINGS
No one except a few diehard Ranford fans gave the eighth-rated Bulls much of a chance in the Pro Cup playoffs, but they got past highly-favored and third-ranked Crystal Lake in round one, now in round two they have the upper hand on favored Sligo after three games with a 2-1 edge in games... the Bulls rebounded from a 4-0 deficit after five innings, tied it up in the last of the ninth, then fell behind 5-4 in the top of the 11th before winning 6-5 on Jamie Holcomb's sac fly in the last half of the frame... Sligo pretty much gifted the game to them with five unearned runs caused by four costly errors.

The Bulls piled up 10 hits in the win, led by RF Dale Weston (.371) with three hits and an RBI... LF Maury Quave (.265) added a pair of hits, scored two runs and batted in another one... the Rovers rapped out 13 hits, paced by RF Pat Foreman (.250) with two base hits and two RBIs... and by LF Rudy Putnam (.217) with 3-6, including a homer.

Winston Moses started and had a decent outing, yielding a dozen hits and four runs in eight innings... Moses was in trouble often, but worked his way out of it most of the time... the Rovers stranded 12 baserunners... Frank Yosarian (2-0/0.75) went the final three frames and notched the victory by allowing one run on one hit in three innings... Randall Steele started for Sligo... only one of the four runs he surrendered were of the earned variety... Steele rang up 12 strikeouts, walked four and was tagged for eight hits in nine and one-third innings... Bill Walker (0-2/3.18) couldn't close it out and suffered the loss.

TYCOBBIAN UNION

YOUNG HALTS NATS 6-2, SUNSETS LEAD SERIES
Summerland's vaunted pitching finally got on track in game three of the Tycobbian Union LCS when Johnny Young chalked up a 6-2 triumph over Ozarka that gave the Sunsets a two games to one lead... Young (3-0/1.04) was peppered for 10 hits, but he limited the Nats to only two runs, fanned five and walked two... he stranded 13 baserunners.

C Paco Dias (.333), inserted into the line-up for some punch, did just that... he drove in three runs... RF Eamon O'Toole (.421) also provided some offense with two singles and a double... after RBI singles by CF Lonnie Gillespie (.175) and 3B Jimmy Woods (.286) in the first frame, Young blanked the Nats the rest of the game... Ozarka starter and loser Stan Carey (0-3/3.86) was banged around hard by Summerland for six runs in just four-plus frames.

Eugene Church · 11-11-2013, 05:12 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, October 1, 2040

2040 IPA LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game Four

RUTHLANDIAN UNION

BULLS BLISTER ROVERS 10-1 FOR 3-1 LEAD
Maybe the Ranford Bulls are better than the critics think... the Bulls blistered one of the better pitchers in the IPA 10-1 at Ranford County Stadium to take a huge three games to one lead in the Ruthlandian LCS... one more win over the Sligo Rovers and it's on to the Pro Cup Finals... it's doubtful anyone predicted this to happen... the Bulls bombarded 22-game winner Scotty Price (2-3/3.41) for seven runs in five innings, while at the same time getting an impressive start from Ralph Hawk (1-1/3.25), who shut out Sligo for seven and two-thirds innings on seven hits... Hawk walked four and whiffed nine Rovers.

2B Martin Satcher (.302) and 3B Glenn Ward (.154) sparked the Bulls 12-hit attack... Satcher popped three hits, including a two-run triple... and Ward scored twice and cleared the bases with a three-run two-bagger... 1B Denny Simmons (.375) continues to be one of the few Rovers having a good postseason... Simmons went 2-for-5 and drove in their only run.

TYCOBBIAN UNION

SUMMERLAND BREEZES BY OZARKA 4-2, NEARS TU TITLE
Summerland snapped a 2-2 tie in the top of the seventh to defeat the Ozarka Naturals 4-2... Stan Terry singled in the go-ahead run and Eamon O'Toole added an insurance run with a deep sacrifice fly to send the Sunsets up three games to one in the Tycobbian LCS... all Summerland needs is one more win to advance to the IPA Pro Cup Finals.

The Sunsets got another strong outing from their elite pitching corps... Jayson Hallstrom (2-0/3.77) went the distance, stopping the Nats on two runs and five hits... the loss went to Glen Jenkins (2-2/2.65), who was hit hard for 12 hits, but he only gave up four runs, just two of the earned.

1B Stan Terry (.200), RF Eamon O'Toole (.429) and 3B Norm Van Kieken (.462) all had two hits and an RBI for Summerland... Van Kieken had the game's only homer...it was his second of the postseason... RF Bob Banachak (.313) went 3-for-3 for Ozarka.

Eugene Church · 11-11-2013, 05:51 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES

Around the Town in the IPA

RANFORD BULLS

Owner: Barnes Oil Company
President: O'Neal Buckman
GM: Paige Satcher
Manager: Chris Bernhoffer

The Ranford Valley has long been known for its rough and tumble lifestyle. During its early years the town of Ranford was a hamlet set up to offer merchant services to the soldiers at Fort Branagh which was built to protect the Valdar Bay gateway.

The army decided to consolidate all the island’s armed forces in Valmara in 1912. Ft. Branagh was abandoned and Ranford became a refuge for outlaws, gamblers and bootleggers. It was sometimes referred to as the "forgotten city" as much of Ruthlandia cut any existing ties to the area which was kept afloat by the economic backbone of barkeepers and gambling halls.

After the great revival of ’29, churches slowly started to outnumber the saloons and commerce and merchants from the mainland began to return and expand into Ranford. For the next 35 years Ranford’s reputation moved from a town of debauchery to being known as the hardest-working town in Ruthlandia. It was a well-earned distinction as those who toiled with the rough and rocky terrain were well-suited for the country’s lumber and manufacturing faction.

In the mid 1960’s oil was discovered inland and within five years extensive exploration had begun. In what seemed overnight, much of Ranford’s blue collar work force had joined the aristocracy.

Ranford has a diverse population with just about all ethnic groups in the Islands represented. They come from near and far to participate in the oil prosperity in the area. Ranford has become one of the most affluent cities in Ruthlandia, but has kept to its blue collar roots.

The early years of baseball in Ranford consisted of amateur teams made up of soldiers, sailors and ruffians from the area. Despite the amateur status of the teams, the games were taken very seriously and brawls often took place between players and fans alike. During the industrial years the team was known as the Outlaws, but in efforts to makeover the town’s reputation it was later changed to Bulls and stayed that way when the Islandian Pro Alliance was formed in 2001.

The owner of the Bulls is Cliff Barnes of the Barnes Oil Company. He inherited the company from his father, Digger Barnes. The Barnes have always had a running feud with the Ewing family that still continues to this day because Jock Ewing had swindled Digger out of his share of an oilfield partnership, when both were just getting started in the oil industry.

Barnes hired O'Neal Buckman as chief operating officer. Buckman had played for and managed Barnes Oil company teams in the amateur leagues for 30 years and had been quite successful. Buckman surprisingly hired a teammate of many years, Page Satcher, to be his manager. Satcher was a heck of a player, but had no experience as a manager. Satcher alway gave the appearance of not taking the game of baseball too seriously. Many baseball people questioned Buckman's choice for those reasons.
When grilled about this, Buckman just grinned and said, "Old Satch is gonna make you guys regret those words. He's gonna be a darn good manager. You just wait and see."

Satcher, who was a local star for the Ranford Outlaws back in the industrial league years and one of the best pitchers ever to throw a baseball. Satcher played into his 50s and never revealed his age, saying, "How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?" Not only was he good, but he was good with a quote. "I ain't ever had a job, I just always played baseball."

Another of his jewels was his work ethic. "I don't generally like running. I believe in training by rising gently up and down from the bench."

Satcher had the reputation for doctoring up the ball. "I never threw an illegal pitch. The trouble is, once in a while I would toss one that ain’t never been seen by this generation."

Asked what the secret of his success was, he would reply, "Just take the ball and throw it where you want to. Throw strikes. Home plate don’t move."

After two decades at the helm, Satcher retired as manager and became the team's GM. The current skipper is Chris Bernhoffer, who starred for Ranford for 14 years from 2002 to 2015, going 202-197 for mostly mediocre clubs... Bernhoffer posted a solid 3.37 ERA in his career... he was especially good in the playoffs with a 6-2 mark and a terrific 1.89 ERA in nine starts.

The Ranford Bulls play at Ranford County Stadium, a nondescript, but adequate ballpark. It probably won't be long before Barnes tries to outdo the Ewings and build a baseball Taj Mahal.

Ranford County Stadium (1953)

Capacity: 7,850

Dimensions:

Left Field Line - 315
Left Field - 362
Left Center - 382
Center Field - 402
Right Center - 382
Right Field - 362
Right Field Line - 315

11-02-2013, 07:48 PM	#3801
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Monday, September 17, 2040 NORTH HILLS REIGNS SUPREME AGAIN IN TU NORTH It's getting to be old hat... the North Hills Hawks won the Tycobbian North Division again for the seventh time and as per usual in fairly easy fashion... they whipped runner-up Mahaska by 8 games, third place Luxora and Fairfax by 11 games... the Hawks have won nine TU North flags in their history with three Pro Cups... they are now getting ready to try and win a fourth IPA title in the last seven seasons... North Hills captured the championship trophy in 2034, 2036 and 2038... and will be one of the favorites to win in 2040. 1. NORTH HILLS HAWKS (97-58): the Hawks put up the second-best record in the Tycobbian Union this year, topped only by Summerland in the Tycobbian Union with 98... Cold Creek of the Ruthlandian East led the IPA with 101 wins... North Hills does it with great pitching and adequate offense... registering a super 2.88 ERA (2nd)... only Summerland in the TU South was better with a brilliant 2.83 ERA... the Hawks' scoring could be better... they hit well with a .269 BA (7th), but lack scoring and firepower... North Hills scored only 676 runs (20th) and hit 135 HRs (23rd)... they are good defenders with a .975 FA. Top Pitchers: 34-year-old southpaw Jeff Owens had a tremendous year with a 28-7 record and 2.48 ERA... He easily had the most wins in the IPA... last year's Golden Arm winner Tony Mack (20-14/3.03) won 20 games again... Frankie Lambert added a 19-14 mark with a strong 2.89 ERA... veteran Dave Michael was a good number four with a 13-12 record and a 3.30 ERA... the bullpen was outstanding, too, with Nelson Hooper (4-5/2.63/22 saves), Kyle Oliver (8-4/3.21/4 saves) and Joey Santini (5-1/2.02/3 saves). Top Batters: superstar All-Star LF Adam Thurgood (.324/23/90/91) again led the club with help from some reliable hitters: 1B Ric Hamilton (.340/24/92/69), 2B Tommy Vavas (.289/14/62/91), CF Kris Anastas (.274/16/73/65) and 3B Jim McDermott (.280/12/67/62). 2. MAHASKA HAYMAKERS (89-65) (8 GB): for the third year in a row the Haymakers have come in second to North Hills... they have three pennants to their credit, but none since 2027... and the team is still looking for its first Pro Cup... pitching is good with a 3.57 ERA (7th), but not near the class of the Hawks... the Haymakers have better power with 164 HRs (14th) and a better offense with 730 runs (10th)... defense is good with a .976 FA. Top Pitchers: the ace was well-traveled 34-year-old Freddy Pfeffer (17-14/3.06), who reached the 200-win milestone this season in his second year with Mahaska... he was stuck in the bullpen last year, but got his chance this year and did quite well... Pfeffer is 207-170 in his 14 seasons with a 3.06 ERA... another 34-year-old journeyman Jergen Fyelstad (21-10/3.46) posted the most wins on the team... vet Greg Douglas (14-8/3.58) was a quality number-three starter... in the bullpen Luke Cargill (9-7/2.53/26 saves) stood out with 26 saves, beaten only by Ronald Shaddock (12-6/2.27) with an IPA-leading 27 saves. Top Batters: All-Star 2B Mikk Kukk (.330/22/83/93), RF Anton Hymel (.277/29/100/74) and rookie 1B Mark Graham (.290/19/60/61) were the only real threats in the batting order... the 25-year-old Graham came over in a July trade with Volusia of the Ruthlandian Union for 28-year-old SS Duane Blayney (.320/28/83/65) and could be a find... so far it looks like the Vigilantes got the best of the trade... time will tell... 19-year-old pitcher John Polk was also included in the deal. 3. LUXORA ZORROS (86-68) (11 GB): stuck in third place the last three years... the Z's have won the TU North eight times, but have never captured a Pro Cup... 2031 was their last postseason appearance... good all-around club with .268 BA (8th), 754 runs (6th), 215 HRs (3rd) and a 3.50 ERA (6th)... very good gloves with a .977 FA. Top Pitchers: 34-year-old lefty Kent Halloran (19-14/2.16) is one of the best in the IPA... he had the second-best ERA next to IPA leader Jayson Hallstrom (24-7/2.08) of Summerland... 21-year-old Joao Damaso (13-13/3.66) and Roy Watson (14-13/3.86) were pretty fair starters, too... workhorse reliever Fernando Sanches (9-11/2.72/23 saves) appeared in 64 games. Top Batters: club leaders were 29-year-old All-Star SS Joel Poche (.319/29/91/100) and 35-year-old LF Milt Powers (.278/31/97/79)... along with one of the comeback players of the year 37-year-old 1B Gerry Hathaway, who hit 35 homers, batted in 85 runs and scored 87 times, while batting a solid .289... 36-year-old 3B Todd Dubbins also contributed a .303 BA, 26 HRs, 63 RBIs and 62 runs. 3. FAIRFAX FROGS (86-68) (11 GB): another top-notch club that plays in a strong division... on paper the Frogs are really good except for HR power (110 HR-30th)... impressive pitching with a 3.41 ERA (3rd), very good offense with a .278 BA (2nd) and 747 runs (7th), plus excellent defense with a .978 FA... but year-after-year North Hills beats them out for the division flag... the Frogs have won the TU North on six occasions, most recently in back-to-back seasons in 2032 and 2033. Top Pitchers: Lucien Vashon (21-17/2.94), Harold Dorman (20-14/3.35), and Scott Ray (10-2/2.47) are three very good starters... Bruno Statton (5-2/1.76/14 saves) did another great job in the bullpen this year. Top Batters: the Frogs really need some power in the line-up... 1B Sal Mauk (.255) topped the team with 11 homers... and C Joe King (.290) and CF Eric Kusek (.278) had 10 each... the rest were Punch-and-Judy types: LF Bobby Joe Daniel (.343/3/77/83), RF Roger Krieger (.307/7/56/49), 2B Ferrell Dillard (.316/7/41/73) and SS Gilbert Miles (.276/6/76/84). 5. WHITE RIVER RASCALS (79-75) (18 GB): the Rascals have posted winning season the last four years, but have been stuck in the second division... they have only 4 division crowns in their history and no Pro Cups... the last playoff appearance was in 2027... the Rascals have fairly good pitching with a 3.67 ERA (10th), average hitting with .258 BA (17th) and 688 runs (17th), but very good HR power with 196 homers (7th)... but they have lousy defense with a .968 FA. Top Pitchers: Paul Sardini (17-12/3.46), Trenton Anderson (19-15/3.76) and Mickey Cronyn (14-11/3.79) are better-than-average starters... 37-year-old Sardini has been around for 18 seasons and has compiled a 275-220 record with a standout 2.94 lifetime ERA. Top Batters: CF Buford Cross (.304/22/81/84), RF Zachary Kriger (.299/12/40/96) and 3B Richie Cook (.297/17/58/61) are the best contact hitters, while the sluggers are C Stevee Dee Daniels (.245 BA) with a club-high 35 HRs, SS Warren McKenzie (.246) had 29 roundtrippers and a club-high 87 RBIs and LF Billy Joe Hickman (.264) chipped in with 26 HRs and 81 RBIs. 6. BLUE LAKE BLUE SOX (74-80) (23 GB): the Blue Sox have only two division flags in their history, but they do have one Pro Cup (2030)... that was the last postseason appearance... Blue Lake had four straight seasons over .500, but broke it this season by winding up in sixth place... the Blue Sox had pretty good pitching with a 3.62 ERA (9th), but suffer from a severe lack of offense with only a .254 BA (21st), 635 runs (28th) and only 107 homers (31st)... only average defensively with a .971 FA. Top Pitchers: they boast three quality starters in Sal Mays (22-13/3.51), Andre Montrose (18-17/3.19) and Frankie Quinn (13-20/3.67)... 24-year-old Mays has won 20 games in four of his five seasons... 34-year-old Quinn has won 20 or more games nine times in his 14 seasons... overall he is 265-195 with a 3.05 ERA. Top Batters: there are no standout sticks on the club... 2B Egon Ojamaa is the club leader with 20 HRs and 86 RBIs, but is batting only .235... LF Jack Ryan has the best BA with .306... CF Paddy Rajak (.264) is tops with 83 runs scored. 7. HARTSDALE HELLCATS (73-81) (24 GB): the Hellcats didn't raise any havoc in the TU North this year... not even a little heck... they are just a mediocre team with a .256 BA (20th), 125 HRs (28th) and a 3.91 ERA (20th)... after a one-year-reprieve in fourth place (81-73) last season, they are back in the second-division for the fifth time in six years... the Hellcats have never come close to a Pro Cup trophy, always eliminated in the opening rounds... have won only four pennants... the last was in 2029. Top Pitchers: Freddie Whitaker (17-16/3.70) and Gil Younger (17-18/4.12) lead the staff in wins, while Wayne Dawson (16-20/3.45) had the best ERA among starters... 20-year-old Alfonso Cervera (4-6/2.86) was the best in the bullpen with 13 saves. Top Batters: the only fair bats were SS Greg Melton (.270/16/87/85) and CF Darrell Nesbitt (.292/8/62/82). 8. OXFORD RED CAPS (47-107) (50 GB): the Red Caps were a terrible team, perhaps one of the worst in IPA history... they tied North Hills (2019) for the most losses in a season... last year they were 52-102... Oxford has won the division four times and even a Pro Cup (2007)... that was the last time they made the playoffs... the Red Caps hit only .239 (31st), scored only 554 runs (32nd) and posted a 4.96 ERA (32nd)... however, they are a good fielding club with a fine .977 FA. Top Pitchers: rookie Tekkan Nishakawa (10-17/4.39) was the best starter... it got much worse after him. Top Batters: the best of the lot were C Jayson French (.275/16/60/44), 2B Alonso Norris (.254/21/60/75) and CF Dalton Ward (.218/26/69/67). Attached Images Last edited by Eugene Church; 11-02-2013 at 07:59 PM.

11-03-2013, 08:09 PM	#3802
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Monday, September 17, 2040 OZARKA WINS TIGHT TU EAST RACE In the tense Tycobbian East Division race, Ozarka got hot in the stretch drive with a 25-19 record and came away with title... the Naturals nipped High Mesa by one game... the Cowboys were on top going into the last six weeks but floundered badly at the end, going 17-27... Tuckanarra was a close third, just three games back... the East Point Panthers, the 2039 champ, came in fourth this year and trailed by five games... it really was a good race as South Fork, Red Bluff and Hillsboro all had their chances... they tied for fifth in the standings, just six games behind Ozarka. 1. OZARKA NATURALS (81-73): the Nats lived off their pitching and copped their 11th division crown and first in over 10 years... the last one came in 2030... Ozarka is still waiting for its first Pro Cup... it's not likely to come this year... the Nats are just an average club and are not forecast to go very far in the Pro Cup playoffs... the Naturals have good starters... they ranked fifth in Tycobbian Union with a 3.47 ERA... Ozarka was solid defensively with a .976 FA. Top Pitchers: Glen Jenkins (18-15/2.16), Stan Carey (17-10/3.29) and Billy Hill (14-11/3.39) gave them three very capable starters... Jenkins was the Tycobbian strikeout king with 291 Ks. Top Batters: 3B Jimmy Woods (.321/28/104/81) was the top performer and led the team in BA, HRs and RBIs... C Jaak Pajukivi (.279/24/81/58) and LF Lonnie Gillespie (.272/10/72/92) were only fair at best. 2. HIGH MESA COWBOYS (80-74) (1 GB): it was a wonderful turnaround season for the Cowpokes... they went from the cellar to the runner-up spot... they were a pathetic 57-97 in 2039... the Cowboys got good bang for the buck with 203 HRs (6th) and scored well with 725 runs (11th)... played very well on defense with a .977 FA, combined with much better pitching (3.77 ERA/15th), which was really something in their small ball park, it gave them a good chance to finally make the postseason after a long, long drought of almost 40 years... High Mesa made the playoffs lastly in 2002 and 2003 and even won the IPA title in 2002... however, when the going got tough, the Cowboys went 17-27 and fell one game short of their goal. Top Pitchers: Dean Harris (21-15/3.14) and Warren Sackett (13-11/3.74) were the most effective starters... William Morris (6-3/3.45/12 saves) was the bullpen's best. Top Batters: longballers led the way at the plate: All-Star 1B Clifford Coleman (.268/39/113/90), RF Corbett Brooks (.239/38/80/106) and All-Star LF Clay Johnston (.289/34/90/81). 3. TUCKANARRA BLUE JAYS (78-76) (3 GB): as one of the most successful IPA franchises with 11 division flags and three Pro Cups, the Bluebirds had their worst season in almost 15 years, yet were still in the race at the end and finished a very close third... their shortcoming was mainly on the mound... the Blue Jays posted a so-so 3.94 ERA (22nd)... they were good-to-average in the batter's box with a .267 BA (9th), 717 runs (13th) and 152 HRs (16th-tied)... only average with the gloves (.972 FA). Top Pitchers; Junior Bristow (22-12/2.97) rallied from a 16-16 mark in 2039... Jeff Buttrum (15-19/3.37) struggled again for the second year... he was a 20-game winner in 2038... Bobby Reid (16-16/4.48) had the worst year in his 12 years in the league... Jack Rogers (6-8/2.57/17 saves) was the leader in the relief corps. Top Batters: 35-year-old IPA icon All-Star RF Lorne Evans had two sub-par seasons when he hit .271 in 2038 and .260 last year, but he roared back with a .330 mark this season with 41 homers, 89 RBIs and 125 runs scored... C John Paul was the only other productive hitter with 26 HRs, 87 RBIs and a .279 BA. 4. EAST POINT PANTHERS (76-78) (5 GB): the Panthers, who sneaked in and stole the pennant last year from Tuckanarra, went into a funk this year, winding up in fourth place... for the first time in almost 15 years they had a losing record... about all the Panthers do well is hit homers (209-4th) and score runs (733-9th)... otherwise they are not very good with a .249 BA (27th) and a 4.35 team ERA (27th)... East Point played pretty fair defense with a .974 mark. Top Pitchers: Darnell Slaughter (16-11/4.02) and Albert Sharpton (13-10/4.43) were the only starters with winning records... Johnny Moore (14-18/3.24) was one of the few with a respectable ERA... aging vets Frank Blair (9-19/5.53) and Dixie Brooks (4-0/2.57/1 save) are 35 and 34 respectively... Blair really had a bad year and Brooks was relegated to the bullpen after going 15-14 in 2039 with a poor 4.89 ERA... both of them are well over 200 victories in their careers. Top Batters: leading the attack were free swingers 3B Dean O'Donnell (.242/30/81/70), 2B Tetsu Tanaka (.260/29/79/87), 1B Bert Henrich (.282/28/75/74), RF Max Lebowitz (.287/26/65/85), LF Ricky Urbina (.237/20/67/79), C Chris Cardinale (.266/19/66/58) and CF Andros Ciak (.240/18/63/52). 5. SOUTH FORK STALLIONS (75-79) (6 GB): this was the fifth consecutive second-division finish for the Stallions... they only have three pennants in their history with one Pro Cup trophy in 2025... this season just an average team with good power (180 HR-12th)... .260 BA (14th)... average pitching with a 3.80 ERA (17th)... average defense with a .972 FA... weak finish hurt them... 19-25 in the last six weeks. Top Pitchers: the Stallions had three quality starters in Big Murph McAlister (22-11/2.47), Jay Murphy (17-9/3.16) and Billy Joe Clinton (13-14/3.38). Top Batters: CF Scotty O'Sullivan (.278/47/113/92) was fifth in the IPA with 47 HRs... other sluggers were 1B Paul Sexton (.285/32/105/87), SS Jess Wilkerson (.273/27/97/70), 3B Elton Jacoby (.298/26/81/98). 5. RED BLUFF RED SOX (75-79) (6 GB): the Red Sox were similar to South Fork, but with worse pitching (4.38 ERA-28th)... they could go deep with 208 HRs (5th)... could score with 709 runs (15th), but batted only .251 (26th)... played solid defense with a .976 FA... wound up in the second division for the fourth year in a row... it's been almost 30 years since Red Bluff was in the playoffs (2009)... however, they do possess one Pro Cup trophy, won in 2004. Top Pitchers: Jud Cox (21-15/3.47), Ayden Carmack (16-18/4.12) and Mickey Rosen (12-9/4.17) were the most dependable starters. Top Batters: most of them didn't hit for much average, but did have some punch... RF David Kelso (.291/38/91/81) was the biggest threat... other reliable bats were LF Jesse Shaw (.283/27/67/99), 3B Fran Blanchard (.240/28/69/63), SS Leemon O'Donovan (.284/22/77/75), CF Ike Sweetwater (.229/23/78/95), 2B Gene Bates (.268/22/73/53), 1B Garris Aiken (.220/18/54/51) and C Allie Blackwell (.285/12/54/75). 5. HILLSBORO BLAZERS (75-79) (6 GB): for the seventh year in succession the Blazers were a second-division team... the Blazers and Kilkenny of the RU North are the only IPA franchises that have never been in the playoffs... it was another ho-hum year... they hit only .247 (28th), scored only 656 runs (26th-tied) with a 4.10 ERA (24th), but did hit 151 out of the park (19th)... the Red Sox were average defenders with a .974 FA. Top Pitchers: Lee Dixon (16-13/3.84) and Valdon Riley (14-15/3.80) were the best starters... Scott Watkins (10-5/1.73/19 saves) had a super season in the bullpen. Top Batters: All-Star 1B Claude Kingston (.255/47/118/86) came in fifth in the IPA home-run derby with 47... LF Jurrien Bellini (.271/28/90/88) and SS Scotty McNeil (.283/6/53/89) were also decent bats, too. 8. MIDWAY WOLVES (63-91) (18 GB): this was a very disappointing season for the Wolves... last year they surged up to second place and fell just one game short of their first pennant since 2027... expectations were up for 2040, but they never happened... nothing went right at the plate or on the mound as they tumbled all the way to last place... the team BA dipped from .260 to .242 (30th) and the ERA went from a respectable 3.61 to a poor 4.29 (26th)... defense was just average (.973 FA)... Midway has only been in the postseason three times and never has won the Pro Cup. Top Pitchers: Charlie Chase (12-22/3.41) made the All-Star team, but had a terrible second half... Bobby Boy Wolf (16-16/4.27) topped the club in wins. Top Batters: no great shakes at the plate... RF Bennett Cardwell (.318/9/61/55) topped the team in BA... 3B Albert Wherry (.275/23/81/71) had the most homers... and 1B Shaman Sakima (.265/21/83/82) had the most RBIs and scored the most runs. Attached Images Last edited by Eugene Church; 11-04-2013 at 04:26 PM.

11-04-2013, 04:04 PM	#3803
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Monday, September 17, 2040 DC REDBIRDS FLY BY ARLON AND BAYVIEW After 27 frustrating years of failure, the Denton City Redbirds finally put together a season good enough to win the Tycobbian West Division... they took command of the race with a great 19-10 month in August to fly by defending champ Arlon and Bayview by three games... the Kenwood Wildcats came in fourth, winding up 7 games off the pace. 1. DENTON CITY REDBIRDS (86-68): the Redbirds were a power in the early days of the IPA, making the postseason eight times in the first 12 seasons of the league... six of those years they won the division... twice the Redbirds made it to the Pro Cup Finals, but didn't win... that was in 2005 and 2008... now Denton City is back again with a capable club that features good pitching with a 3.61 ERA (8th)... good bats with a .269 BA (5th), 757 runs (5th) and 185 HRs (9th-tied)... defense-wise they are only average with a .971 FA... Denton City could be a factor in the Pro Cup playoffs this year. Top Pitchers: Francisco Salcido (21-14/3.43), Freddy Hogue (16-7/3.40), Troy McIntosh (17-14/3.28) and Kevin Blevins (13-6/3.82) were the main starters... Harry Elliot (4-9/3.13) was off-and-on in the bullpen, but he did save 21 games. Top Batters: the Redbirds had a good core of hitters, sparked mainly by All-Star 1B Wayman Stetson with 43 homers, 136 RBIs, 98 runs and a .330 BA... Stetson wound up third in RBIs and eighth in home runs in the IPA... the other solid bats were C Felton Welch (.297/27/86/73), RF Pete Doyle (.272/24/75/111), SS Sammy Thornton (.306/4/74/92)... a new addition to the club was LF Sadaharu Uchiyama (.293/13/63/81), who was acquired in June in a trade with Ginza... he is 32 years old and a career .301 hitter and a Golden Glove outfielder. 2. ARLON CHAMPIONS (83-71) (3 GB): they went to the Pro Cup Finals last season, but were beaten out by the IPA champion Waleska Westerners in six games... the Champs have made the postseason only four times in history... a drop off in pitching played a role this year... the team ERA fell from 3.31 in 2039 to 3.74 in 2040... the bats were off a little, too, dipping from .262 to .257... however defensively Arlon was fine with a .977 FA. Top Pitchers: Lanny Gray (21-7/2.31) was the ace with help from Peter Shannon (14-12/3.64) and Ronny Farnsworth (16-17/3.48)... Farnsworth had a down year... he was 21-8 in 2039 with a 2.64 ERA... Pat Stuyvesant (10-13/4.75/8 saves) was off as well... Stuyvesand was 20-9 last year. Top Batters: RF Mark Cameron (.289/40/116/93), All-Star C Nick Shafer (.296/18/94/67), LF Charley Hastings (.306/17/50/114), 1B Robby Westin (.301/21/79/47). 2. BAYVIEW VIKINGS (83-71) (3 GB): better pitching moved the Viks up from fifth (17 GB) to the runner-up spot this season... 2016 was the last pennant... so this was a very exciting season for the fans... on the hill Bayview improved from 4.47 ERA to 3.83 (18th)... they are just an average club with a .258 BA (18th), but make up for it with 250 HRs, the best in the IPA and almost a new season record... 260 HRs by Arroyo Grande in 2005 is the all-time team record... leading the way with a record-breaking 66 HRs was superstar 2B Jerry Culpepper... he beat Jack Elliott's 65 for High Mesa in 2021... Culpepper has hit the 60 mark three times now with 63 in 2039 and 60 in 2037... in a truly superlative season Culpepper hit .334, third best in the Tycobbian Union... he also topped the IPA with 146 RBIs and 134 runs... Bayview had nine players with 10 or more homers... SS Andreas Stokke (.246/29/83/77) had 29, RF Roy Ricks (.330/28/81/92) hit 28, All-Star CF Ivar Nilssen (.287/25/84/66) popped 25, LF Derek Jorstad (.252/21/57/80) knocked 21 out of the park, 1B Barrett Bosch (.300/18/51/53) had 18, 3B Giles Butler (.231/16/50/58) totaled 16, C Dan Abbott (.227/10/46/42) chipped in 10 and OF Cleve Belton (.246/10/20/25) added 10... on the mound Vance Codsworth (23-13/2.78) had a standout season and got help from Lucky Luciano (17-11/4.13), Karl Magga (14-13/3.73) and Christy Kane (13-11/4.01)... on defense the Viks are just average with a .972 FA. 4. KENWOOD WILDCATS (79-75) (7 GB): the Wildcats faded in the final weeks of the season and ended up in the fourth spot in the standings... they were neck-and-neck for a good while... it's been 17 years since Kenwood made the playoffs, but they have come close in recent years... missing out by two games last year and also by two games in 2037... in 2030 they lost by only one game... 2024 was the last postseason year... the Wildcats have only two pennants in their history, but they chalked up a Pro Cup in 2014... Kenwood's strength is its pitching (3.45 ERA-4th)... the offense is a little less than average with 669 runs (22nd) and 129 roundtrippers (25th)... defense is good with a .974 FA. Top Pitchers: Freddy Gooch (18-10/3.25) led in wins... Glen Murray (17-20/2.81) in ERA... and Ben Abramo (15-14/4.14) had some quality starts, too... Artemus Hale (4-5/1.83/13 saves) was the best reliever. Top Batters: All-Star C Corky DiNozzo (.323/39/95/69) topped the team in BA, HRs and RBIs... 2B Country Crowder (.320/3/61/88) and LF Harry Tashina (.304/12/68/56) also had good years average-wise. 5. BAY ST. CLAIR BUCCANEERS (77-77) (9 GB): after four miserable years in last place or near last place, the Bucs broke even this year and came in fifth... they hit a respectable .265 (11th), scored 718 runs (12th) and had 131 HRs (24th) with a decent 3.86 ERA (19th)... the Buccaneers have seven TU West pennants in their history, but no Pro Cups... the last time they made the playoffs was in 2030. Top Pitchers: John Karlsen (18-16/3.58), Mac Shaw (14-14/3.33)... in the bullpen Pete Cross (5-3/2.15/18 saves) did well. Top Batters: at 35 star RF Cotton Cornwall (.314/20/85/86) had another solid season... he led the club in BA and RBIs, and tied for the HR lead... CF Gilbert Bauer (.262/19/60/94) had the most runs... 3B Bailey Holmsworth (.281/20/69/57) tied for the HR lead. 6. ROLLING HILLS REDS (75-79) (11 GB): the Reds got better in the second half of the season... still they only finished in sixth... last season the Reds were third... Rolling Hills has two Pro Cups to its credit (2029 and 2031)... plus eight pennants... but no playoffs since 2032... at the plate they are just an average ball club with a .259 BA (16th), 712 runs (14th) and 141 HRs (20th)... on the hill just so-so with a 3.79 ERA (16th)... with the gloves the Reds are fairly good with a .975 FA. Top Pitchers: Johnny Howard (18-11/3.64) was the biggest winner... and 35-year-old Maury Cantrell (12-12/2.84) was the most effective starter... Matthew Christianson (11-17/3.57) slumped this season after posting a fine 20-11 mark last year... Travis Hooper (5-7/2.84/15 saves) was the top reliever. 7. LA CLAIRE LYNX (73-81) (13 GB): after two pennant-winning years back-to-back in 2037 and 2038, the Lynx have sunk deep into the second division the past two seasons... offensively they have not been the same ball club... the pitching has been good... and the defense very good with a .977 FA... they batted only .254 (22nd), scored 661 runs (24th-tied) and hit 137 HRs (22nd)... and the team ERA was 3.74 (14th). Top Pitchers: at 36 Pat Kovacs (16-13/3.11) is still the ace... one of the all-time IPA greats he is closing in on 300 wins... lifetime Kovacs is 279-191 with a strong 2.79 ERA... he holds the record for strikeouts with 391 in 2028... 24-year-old Bruce Kinson (11-10/2.93) showed good progress this year... at 26 Marcel LaPlante (13-13/3.89) and 25-year-old Nelson Stubbs (13-20/4.27) had some quality strarts, too. Top Batters: not much talent on the team... LF Billy Holland (.288/13/77/80) topped the club in RBIs and runs... 2B Sam Norman (.222/20/61.64) had the most homers... and RF Hank Morton (.338/5/43/66) has the best BA... 1B Phil Lyons (.293/18/60/55) showed some promise. 8. CHICOPEE BRAVES (50-104) (36 GB): since winning three straight pennants from 2034 to 2036, it's been all downhill for the Braves... this year was terrible with 104 losses and a last-place finish... pitching was atrocious with a 4.78 ERA (31st)... offense was pathetic, too, with only 560 runs (31st)... homers are down to 129 (25th)... defense is adequate with a .973 FA... Chicopee has only made the playoffs three times and has never won a Pro Cup trophy. Top Pitchers: Jacy Hekaka (13-11/3.60) was the only decent starter. Top Batters: no one worth mentioning... the best of the lot were 3B Kurt Gustavsen (.298/24/63/56), 1B Fred Phelps (.265/14/65/58) and C Augie Meaux (.254/12/58/57). Attached Images

11-04-2013, 04:19 PM	#3804
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	2040 Ruthlandian Union Final Batting and Pitching Leaders Attached Images

11-04-2013, 04:24 PM	#3805
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	2040 Tycobbian Union Final Batting and Pitching Leaders Attached Images

11-04-2013, 11:56 PM	#3806
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	Sorry, I forgot to post this in the right order. THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Monday, September 17, 2040 SUNSETS RISE IN TU SOUTH, WIN IN A ROMP Sensational pitching by the Summerland Sunsets created a runaway in the Tycobbian South this season... the Sunsets made shambles of the pennant race by whipping second place Southport by 13 games, Ginza by 14 and San Alejo by 15 games... Turon, the winner for the previous two years, tumbled to fifth place, 21 games off the pace... Summerland really took charge in the second half with a torrid 52-20 record. 1. SUMMERLAND SUNSETS (98-56): the Sunsets won the most games in the Tycobbian Union with super slabwork: 2.83 team ERA, the best in the IPA... they didn't hit much (.243 BA-29th) or score much (661 runs-24th tied), but neither did the opposing teams... the Sunsets are also one of the best defensive teams with a .978 FA... this will be only the third playoff appearance in the club's history... the others were in 2005 and 2033... look for Summerland to shine in the postseason this year. Top Pitchers: Jayson Hallstrom (24-7/2.08) led the Tycobbian Union in wins, ERA and shutouts (8)... Dutch De Boer (10-1/2.11) and Johnny Young (22-11/3.120 had strong seasons, too... the bullpen excelled as well with Ronald Shaddock (12-6/2.27/27 saves) and Pete Ashley (5-4/2.70/4 saves)... Shaddock was number one in saves in the IPA with 27. Top Batters: RF Eamon O'Toole (.296/19/93/68), 1B Stan Terry (.290/14/69/70) and 2B Todd Cummins (.241/21/85/540 were the only decent hitters in the batting order. 2. SOUTHPORT SUN SOXX (85-69) (13 GB): this was the Sun Soxx's best record since back-to-back pennants in 2027 and 2028... they had a potent attack with a .270 BA (4th), 813 runs (2nd-tied), 171 HRs (13th) and adequate pitching with a 3.92 ERA (21st)... defensively they were lacking with a .970 FA. Top Pitchers: Johnny Swanson (21-9/3.32) and Billy Hoover (18-18/3.45) were quality starters... Hal Combs (8-4/3.69/19 saves) was hit-and-miss in the bullpen. Top Batters: leading the offense were 3B Craig Glennon (.259/43/136/91), 1B Eddy Douglas (.335/33/98/93) and 2B James Long (.299/26/73/72)... Glennon was third in the IPA with 43 homers and seventh in RBIs with 136. 3. GINZA NINJAS (84-70) (14GB): they shot up from seventh place in 2039 to third place this year... the Ninjas were 59-95 and 35 games out of the running last year... the team's last playoff appearance was in 2031... better hitting and better pitching made the difference... Ginza went from .259 to .273 (3rd) in BA and from 4.66 ERA to 4.23 ERA (25th)... they were second in scoring with 813 runs and fourth in homers with 218... and better-than-average with the gloves with a .975 FA. Top Pitchers: Charley Waskins (15-10/3.53) was the most reliable starter... Timmy Hitchens (9-8/4.23/22 saves) made the All-Star team, but fizzled in the second half badly... yet he posted 22 saves. Top Batters: LF Ichiro Kazumi (.343/19/80/97) won the TU batting crown with a .343 BA... All-Star CF Sogo Takagi (.298 BA) had a super season with 50 homers, 117 RBIs and 119 runs... Takagi was second to record-breaking Jerry Culpepper of the Bayview Vikings in homers... Culpepper broke Jack Elliott's all-time IPA mark with 66 this year... Elliott hit 65 in 2013 for High Mesa... other Ginza guns were All-Star Whip Harrell (.296 BA) with 32 HRs, 99 RBIs and 85 runs... 3B Sam Essex (.287 BA) with 31 roundtrippers, 100 RBIs and 91 runs... RF Scott Sparks (.247 BA) also chipped in with 27 HRs, 71 RBIs and 62 runs. 4. SAN ALEJO MONTANEROS (83-71) (15 GB): the Monties won four pennants in the last nine years and one Pro Cup in 2032... but this year they slipped a bit to fourth place... mainly because their pitching declined from a very good 3.02 ERA to 3.70 (12th)... San Alejo can still put runs on the scoreboard with a .266 BA (10th), 738 runs (8th) and 185 HRs (9th-tied)... mediocre defense with a .970 FA. Top Pitchers: 21-year-old Matt Bell (20-15/2.89) topped the team in wins and ERA... Johnny Brown (15-11/3.17) was solid, too... but Benny Buckmaster (16-16/3.98) and Tommy Smith (11-15/4.27) had sub-par seasons... Buckmaster was 22-10 last year with a sparkling 2.53 ERA and Smith was 15-14 with a 3.20 ERA. Top Batters: All-Star CF Dusty Rogan (.333/31/105/77) and C Filipe Zamora (.292/26/102/66) sparked the team at the plate... 1B Ted Hatch added 35 HRs and 83 RBIs, but batted only .232. 5. TURON TYPHOONS (77-77) (21 GB): after winning the TU South the past two years, the Typhoons' pitching went into the pits, rising up from 3.20 to 3.69 (11th)... the bats suffered, too, dropping from .277 to .264 (12th)... their offense is just average, despite 182 HRs (11th).,, defense is average, too, with a .973 FA. Top Pitchers: Clyde Engstrom (15-15/3.34), Armin Boehm (16-14/3.65) and Nate Scottsdale (17-18/3.46) all had off-years... all were 20-game winners last season... Ralph Fulton (8-10/2.05/14 saves) was the best in the bullpen. Top Batters: most of the regulars had sub-par seasons, though they had some good numbers. just not what they were accustomed to... 2B C. C. Kingsford (.294/30/93/85), RF Guido Gervasio (.278/29/95/83), CF J. P. Trevenot (.266/29/88/88), 3B Rafer Robertson (.287/26/89/66), SS George Jordan (.257/21/63/45). 6. CAPE CORAL HURRICANES (74-80) (24 GB): the 'Canes were fourth last year and fell to sixth this year... super bats with a .282 BA (1st), 821 runs (1st), 189 HRs (8th), but lousy on the hill with a 4.40 ERA (29th)... and bad on defense with a .969 FA. Top Pitchers: Tommy Van Noord (17-17/3.20) was the only effective starter. Top Batters: superstar All-Star RF William Snyder (.341/37/104/101) had another fine season with help from C Stan Ferguson (.341/29/88/86), 3B Rikky Van Dalen (.308/28/82/109), LF Paul Law (.298/26/87/103) and All-Star SS Joel Collins (.301/12/69/83). 7. COLCHESTER ELITES (64-90) (34 GB): a second-rate, second-division club for the fourth year in a row with a .252 BA (24th) and 4.49 ERA (30th)... but the Elites can handle the gloves well with a .976 FA. Top Pitchers: Dan Scott (13-9/4.06) was the only decent starter... Tony Dazzi (8-4/2.74) was the only good reliever. Top Batters: star All-Star RF Blake Barrister (.278/49/136/99), LF Chet Porter (.308/11/64/87) and 3B Joey Rogers (.284/14/74/86) pretty much carried the club offensively... Barrister came in third in the IPA with 49 HRs and 136 RBIs. 8. ARROYO GRANDE SUNS (59-95) (39 GB): the Suns are one of the worst teams in the IPA... they have finished near the bottom of the division for the seventh year in a row... the last three in the cellar... the Suns haven't been to the playoffs in 17 years (2023)... they hit only .237 (32nd) and have a mediocre 3.94 ERA (23rd)... but are a little better-than-average defensively with a .974 mark. Top Pitchers: Mateus Castro (14-18/3.89), Anthony Lombardi (13-20/3.75) and Ramiro Marrero (12-15/3.61) are fairly decent starters with no run support... and Cody Simmons (3-6/2.52/17 saves) and Duane Russell (2-0/2.70) are pretty good relievers. Top Batters: 3B Rene Jesclard is the club leader with 27 homers, 69 RBIs and 85 runs, but he batted a poor .235 for average... CF Rafael Montoya has the best batting average with .293... Montoya had 13 HRs, 44 RBIs and scored 62 runs. Attached Images

11-05-2013, 02:12 PM	#3807
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Tuesday, September 18, 2040 HAWKS FAVORED OVER CC 'CATS IN PRO CUP Only three teams return to the IPA Pro Cup playoffs this season. The Waleska Westerners were upset in a close race by Crystal Lake this year. So the Islandian Pro Alliance will have a new crownbearer. The North Hills Hawks from the Tycobbian Union and Cold Creek Catamounts and Sligo Rovers from Ruthlandia are back again in quest of the IPA Holy Grail - the Pro Cup trophy. Crystal Lake and Ranford will join them from the Ruthlandian Union, while the other Tycobbian clubs will be Summerland, Denton City and Ozarka. The oddsmakers are forecasting a North Hills victory this year, the Hawks' third in the last six seasons... usually the favorite's role is the kiss of death in the postseason... the title usually goes to the team that gets hot in August and September and continues to play well into October... keep an eye on Summerland and Crystal Lake, if this is true. Both clubs were a sizzling 50-22 in the second half of the season. PRO CUP POLL 1. NORTH HILLS (TU) 2. COLD CREEK (RU) 3. CRYSTAL LAKE (RU) 4. SUMMERLAND (TU) 5. DENTON CITY (TU) 6. SLIGO (RU) 7. OZARKA (TU) 8. RANFORD (RU) 1. NORTH HILLS HAWKS (97-58): the Hawks put up the second-best record in the Tycobbian Union this year, topped only by Summerland in the Tycobbian Union with 98... Cold Creek of the Ruthlandian East led the IPA with 101 wins... North Hills does it with great pitching and adequate offense... registering a super 2.88 ERA (2nd)... only Summerland in the TU South was better with a brilliant 2.83 ERA... the Hawks' scoring could be better... they hit well with a .269 BA (7th), but lack scoring and firepower... North Hills scored only 676 runs (20th) and hit 135 HRs (23rd)... they are good defenders with a .975 FA. Top Pitchers: 34-year-old southpaw Jeff Owens had a tremendous year with a 28-7 record and 2.48 ERA... He easily had the most wins in the IPA... last year's Golden Arm winner Tony Mack (20-14/3.03) won 20 games again... Frankie Lambert added a 19-14 mark with a strong 2.89 ERA... veteran Dave Michael was a good number four with a 13-12 record and a 3.30 ERA... the bullpen was outstanding, too, with Nelson Hooper (4-5/2.63/22 saves), Kyle Oliver (8-4/3.21/4 saves) and Joey Santini (5-1/2.02/3 saves). Top Batters: superstar All-Star LF Adam Thurgood (.324/23/90/91) again led the club with help from some reliable hitters: 1B Ric Hamilton (.340/24/92/69), 2B Tommy Vavas (.289/14/62/91), CF Kris Anastas (.274/16/73/65) and 3B Jim McDermott (.280/12/67/62). 2. COLD CREEK CATAMOUNTS (101-53): the 'Cats always have strong pitching, but this year they added rock-solid hitting to their arsenal... they batted .282 (2nd) and tallied 785 runs (5th), but hit only 111 homers (30th)... on the mound they were as good as ever with a 2.97 ERA (1st), third best in the IPA after Summerland (2.83) and North Hills (2.88)... defensively Cold Creek is very good with a .978 FA. Top Pitchers: All-Star J. J. Gillespie (23-11/2.26) topped the 200-win milestone this season and is now 206-105 in 12 seasons with a fantastic 2.28 ERA... Gillespie's career ERA is the all-time best in the IPA... Gillespie topped the RU with a 2.26 ERA this season... Joey Baker (20-8/2.30) and Peter Heller (20-11/3.78) also chalked up 20-win seasons... and reliable Rob Hutchins (17-11/3.37) rounded out the starting foursome. Top Batters: SS Jeremy Hall (.310/7/86/84), CF Guy St. Laurent (.253/32/99/88), C Rodney Marshall (.301/23/78/69). 3. CRYSTAL LAKE CRUSHERS (94-60): for the last five seasons Crystal Lake has languished in the second division, but in a surprise rise the Crushers moved up from fifth place to the top spot this season... by a wide margin they outhit and outscored everybody in the IPA with a .295 BA and 843 runs... defense is outstanding, too, with a .980 FA... this was the eighth pennant for the Crushers in their history with the most recent one in 2034... since they dethroned IPA champ Waleska this year, the Crushers just might surprise in the Pro Cup playoffs. Top Pitchers: just enough pitching to get by with 36-year-old Arnie Cason (23-9/3.05) having the best year in his career... 35-year old vets Ken Lawson (20-12/4.09) and Douglas Merrill (18-11/4.26) benefitted often from the high-scoring offense. Top Batters: RF Paul Dillon (.344/10/89/97), CF Jesse Walker (.344/0/49/92), All-Star LF Johnny Kennedy (.299/24/98/81), All-Star C Stan Stanek (.314/24/99/117), 1B Daryl Brady (.315/19/91/74), 3B Marv Roy (.283/16/88/74), SS Morten Jonassen (.310/1/57/72). 4. SUMMERLAND SUNSETS (98-56): the Sunsets won the most games in the Tycobbian Union with super slabwork: 2.83 team ERA, the best in the IPA... they didn't hit much (.243 BA-29th) or score much (661 runs-24th tied), but neither did the opposing teams... the Sunsets are also one of the best defensive teams with a .978 FA... this will be only the third playoff appearance in the club's history... the others were in 2005 and 2033... look for Summerland to shine in the postseason this year... Summerland really took charge in the second half with a torrid 52-20 record... could be a good omen. Top Pitchers: Jayson Hallstrom (24-7/2.08) led the Tycobbian Union in wins, ERA and shutouts (8)... Dutch De Boer (10-1/2.11) and Johnny Young (22-11/3.120 had strong seasons, too... the bullpen excelled as well with Ronald Shaddock (12-6/2.27/27 saves) and Pete Ashley (5-4/2.70/4 saves)... Shaddock was number one in saves in the IPA with 27. Top Batters: RF Eamon O'Toole (.296/19/93/68), 1B Stan Terry (.290/14/69/70) and 2B Todd Cummins (.241/21/85/540 were the only decent hitters in the batting order. 5. DENTON CITY REDBIRDS (86-68): the Redbirds were a power in the early days of the IPA, making the postseason eight times in the first 12 seasons of the league... six of those years they won the division... twice the Redbirds made it to the Pro Cup Finals, but didn't win... that was in 2005 and 2008... now Denton City is back again with a capable club that features good pitching with a 3.61 ERA (8th)... good bats with a .269 BA (5th), 757 runs (5th) and 185 HRs (9th-tied)... defense-wise they are only average with a .971 FA... Denton City could be a factor in the Pro Cup playoffs this year. Top Pitchers: Francisco Salcido (21-14/3.43), Freddy Hogue (16-7/3.40), Troy McIntosh (17-14/3.28) and Kevin Blevins (13-6/3.82) were the main starters... Harry Elliot (4-9/3.13) was off-and-on in the bullpen, but he did save 21 games. Top Batters: the Redbirds had a good core of hitters, sparked mainly by All-Star 1B Wayman Stetson with 43 homers, 136 RBIs, 98 runs and a .330 BA... Stetson wound up third in RBIs and eighth in home runs in the IPA... the other solid bats were C Felton Welch (.297/27/86/73), RF Pete Doyle (.272/24/75/111), SS Sammy Thornton (.306/4/74/92)... a new addition to the club was LF Sadaharu Uchiyama (.293/13/63/81), who was acquired in June in a trade with Ginza... he is 32 years old and a career .301 hitter and a Golden Glove outfielder. 6. SLIGO ROVERS (84-70): they went to the RU League Championship Series last year before falling to eventual Pro Cup winner Waleska... the Rovers have a big task in the first round... they are matched up against powerful Cold Creek, one of the Pro Cup favorites this year... Sligo is a little above average in scoring with 738 runs (12th) and on the mound with a 3.65 ERA (9th)... possesses the best defense in the RU West with a very good .978 FA. Top Pitchers: All-Star Scotty Price (22-9/2.78) is the staff ace with help from Randall Steele (18-14/3.74) and Tom Pierson (16-14/3.36)... Richie Joyner (1-2/2.09/3 saves) did well in middle relief. Top Batters: most productive bats were All-Star 1B Denny Simmons (.337/17/80/97), CF Joe McGarrett (.291/22/84/77), SS Neil Mitchell (.273/21/67/102) and LF Rudy Putnam (.297/15/59/78). 7. OZARKA NATURALS (81-73): the Nats lived off their pitching and copped their 11th division crown and first in over 10 years... the last one came in 2030... Ozarka is still waiting for its first Pro Cup... it's not likely to come this year... the Nats are just an average club and are not forecast to go very far in the Pro Cup playoffs... the Naturals have good starters... they ranked fifth in Tycobbian Union with a 3.47 ERA... Ozarka was solid defensively with a .976 FA. Top Pitchers: Glen Jenkins (18-15/2.16), Stan Carey (17-10/3.29) and Billy Hill (14-11/3.39) gave them three very capable starters... Jenkins was the Tycobbian strikeout king with 291 Ks. Top Batters: 3B Jimmy Woods (.321/28/104/81) was the top performer and led the team in BA, HRs and RBIs... C Jaak Pajukivi (.279/24/81/58) and LF Lonnie Gillespie (.272/10/72/92) were only fair at best. 8, RANFORD BULLS (80-74): up from third last year (11 GB)... the Bulls were the best in the weakest division in the IPA... only two clubs had winning records... third pennant in team's history... last was in 2034... not expected to do much in the playoffs... just an average ball club with .261 BA (19th), 646 runs (27th), 140 HRs (19th), 3.95 ERA (20th) and a .975 FA. Top Pitchers: Ralph Hawk (20-14/2.62) Top Batters: 3B Pete Bankston (.302/18/83/71), RF Dale Weston (.289/45/112/95). Last edited by Eugene Church; 11-17-2013 at 06:46 PM.

11-05-2013, 03:24 PM	#3808
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Wednesday, September 19, 2040 2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES -Game One Ruthlandian Union GILLESPIE BLANKS SLIGO IN OPENER 3-0 Two of the top twirlers in the IPA were matched up in the RU Division Series opener at Holmes Field in Cold Creek... Cold Creek's J. J. Gillespie won the battle with a 3-0 shutout, stopping Sligo on just one hit... in a brilliant game 23-game winner Gillespie fanned 10 Rovers and walked only two... third baseman Mel Dillard's eighth-inning double was the only hit... 22-game winner Scotty Price went the distance, giving up six hits and three runs... Cold Creek got all their runs in the first on an RBI single by Wayne Kenney and a two-run double by LF Jimmy Howell. RANFORD RIPS CRYSTAL LAKE WITH 3-RUN 9TH In game one of the RU Division Series at Crystal Lake, heavy underdog Ranford bulled its way past Crystal Lake 5-3 with a three-run ninth-inning uprising against the Crushers' relief corps... 3B Pete Bankston led the Bulls 10-hit attack with three hits, including a homer... LF Jamie Holcomb also homered... starters Ralph Hawk and Arnie Cason battled to a 2-2 draw with Hawk going six innings and Cason eight... Frank Yosarian (1-0) got the win with two scoreless inning and Miguel Mandina got the save with a runless ninth... closer Eddie Lane (0-1) was roughed up for three runs and suffered the loss... Ranford outhit Crystal Lake 10-9... SS Mackie Cummings led the Crushers with three hits. Tycobbian Union SUNSETS RALLY IN GAME 1, EDGE HAWKS 4-3 Playing game one at home at Sunset Stadium, Summerland edged Pro Cup favorite North Hills 4-3 by coming back in the late innings from a 3-1 deficit... 24-game winner Jayson Hallstrom (1-0) got the best of 28-game winner Jeff Owens by holding the Hawks to six hits and three runs in eight innings... Ronald Shaddock, the IPA saves leader, got another one with a perfect ninth... Owens (0-1) went the route and allowed four runs on seven hits. REDBIRDS ROMP OVER NATS 7-2 IN FIRST GAME At home at Douglas Denton Field, the Denton City Redbirds romped over Ozarka 7-2 in the first game of the the Tycobbian Division Series... they banged out 14 hits and were sparked by RF Pete Doyle with four hits and CF Sam Carson's three hits... 3B Rod Hunt got the Redbirds only homer... Troy McIntosh (1-0) notched the victory by tossing eight sharp innings... he permitted only three hits, but two of them were homers... McIntosh struck out five and walked two... C Jaak Pajukivi and 1B Omar Velazquez accounted for all of the Naturals' runs with solo homers... Glen Jenkins (0-1) caught the loss... he was ripped for 11 hits and four runs in his seven innings... he exited with Denton City up 4-2.

11-05-2013, 08:33 PM	#3809
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Thursday, September 20, 2040 2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES -Game Two Ruthlandian Union STEELE EVENS SERIES, ROVERS OVER CC 'CATS 6-2 Sligo righthander Randall Steele fired a two-hit gem and evened up the RU Division Series at a game apiece... Steele tamed Cold Creek 6-2 in a route-going performance at Holmes Field, striking out four and walking four... SS Neil Mitchell (.222) struck the big blow of the game, a three-run homer in the second inning... the Rovers racked up 12 hits, 11 of them off losing pitcher Joey Baker (0-1), who allowed six runs in eight innings... 1B Denny Simmons (.375) went 3-for-5 for Sligo... and CF Joe McGarrett (.222) and Steele added two hits each for the winners... Cold Creek CF Guy St. Laurent (.250) had a solo homer. BULLS BLAST CRUSHERS AGAIN, WIN GAME 2, TOO Don't tell the Ranford Bulls they are not as good as the seven other teams vying for the IPA Pro Cup... for the second day on the road the Bulls put it to the heavily-favored Crystal Lake Crushers 6-1 to take a 2-0 lead in the RU Division Series... Ranford walloped 13 hits and won going away at Lakefront Stadium... in the first playoff start of his career Winston Moses (1-0) held hard-hitting Crystal Lake to one run and eight hits... he also had a three-run double that broke open a scoreless duel in the top of the sixth... he sent Ken Lawson (0-1) down to defeat... though he had 11 strikeouts, Lawson was shelled for 13 hits and six runs in seven innings... Moses (.750) and 3B Pete Bankston (.600) drilled three hits apiece for the Bulls... and three players had two each: 1B Maury Quave (.222), CF Roger Farnsworth (.222) and 2B Martin Satcher (.333). Tycobbian Union HAWKS SLIP BY SUNSETS 5-4, TIE SERIES Game two of the Tycobbian Division Series was another nailbiter just like game one... North Hills fought back from 4-2 deficit after four innings to win 5-4 and tie up the best-of-seven series at a game apiece... Adam Thurgood's HR (.250), Jimmy Jay Ferguson's (.667) RBI triple and Skipper Shearer's sacrifice fly (.000) highlighted the decisive three-run sixth... winning pitcher Tony Mack (1-0) settled down after a rocky first four innings and blanked the Sunsets over the last five frames... Mack struck out seven and walked one, while giving up seven hits... left-hander Dutch De Boer started for Summerland, but left in third with a 2-1 lead... he departed with a muscle strain... Pete Ashley (0-1) relieved him and took the loss... he was banged around for four runs and four hits in three innings... the Hawks were led at the plate by 3B Jim McDermott (.429), who had two hits and two RBIs... LF Adam Thurgood (.250) also had a pair of hits... North Hills had nine hits and Summerland 7... the Sunsets were sparked by RF Eamon O'Toole (.571) with three hits and CF Antonio Vasquez (.375) with two hits... LF Russell Edwards (.333) had a two-run homer in defeat. SALCIDO STOPS OZARKA 2-1, REDBIRDS UP 2-0 At age 35, 13-year Denton City veteran portsider Francisco Salcido finally chalked up his first postseason victory... he stopped the Ozarka Naturals 2-1 to give the Redbirds a 2-0 edge in the TU Division Series... Denton City won the first two games at their homepark Douglas Denton Field... Salcido limited the Nats to one run and seven hits in seven innings with four walks and seven Ks... 37-year-old Stan Carey (0-1) went the distance in defeat, permitting two runs on seven hits... C Felton Welch (.333) slammed a homer in the last of the seventh to bring home the win for the Redbirds... CF Russ Foster (1.000) went 3-3 to lead Denton City and 3B Rob Hunt (.500) was 2-3... 1B Omar Velazquez (.500) collected three hits for Ozarka.

11-05-2013, 10:02 PM	#3810
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Friday, September 21, 2040 2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES -Game Three Ruthlandian Union ROVERS RALLY, TOP CC 'CATS 4-3 IN GAME 3 Apparently the Sligo Rovers are not going to just roll over and play dead for the favored Cold Creek Catamounts... they won 4-3 on their homegrounds at Silver Mountain Stadium and now have the lead in the RU Division Series two games to one. The Rovers rallied with three runs in the bottom of the eight to pull out the victory... RF Pat Foreman's (.125) sac fly was the game-winner... Tom Pierson (1-0) worked eight innings and checked the Catamounts on three runs and six hits... he fanned four and issued two walks... Joey Hicks picked up the save when he retired the 'Cats in the ninth... Rob Hutchins (0-1) was sharp for the first seven frames and held a 3-1 lead, going into the eighth... then he fell apart and lost it... Hutchins surrendered four runs on five hits, walked five and struck out four. CF Guy St. Laurent (.273) homered for the second straight day... it was a two-run shot in the sixth that gave Cold Creek a 3-1 lead. RANFORD STUNS AGAIN, LEADS CL CRUSHERS 3-0 Can you believe it?... the unheralded Ranford Bulls ripped Crystal Lake for the third consecutive game and now need just one more win to send the Crushers home for the year... the Bulls blasted them 8-1 at Ranford County Stadium to grab a very surprising three games to none lead in the RU Division Series... Ranford was picked last in the Pro Cup poll, while Crystal Lake was ranked third and given a fair chance of winning it all. Ranford got a standout performance from Lanny Smithers (1-0), who stifled the big bats of Crystal Lake on just four hits and a single run over his eight innings to beat Crusher veteran Douglas Merrill (0-1)... loser Merrill was tagged for five runs and five hits in six innings... he was behind 5-1 when he headed for the showers. RF Dale Weston (.167) cracked a two-run homer and 2B Martin Satcher (.455) hit a solo job to spark the Bulls... Weston also had a two-run double in the third and four RBIs in all. Tycobbian Union SUNSETS SINK HAWKS 4-2, LEAD SERIES 2-1 In game three of the Tycobbian Division Series at the Hawk's Nest in North Hills, hurler Johnny Young pitched and hit visiting Summerland to a 4-2 triumph over the Pro Cup favorite... the Sunsets were the fourth pick in the Pro Cup poll and they now have a two to one lead in the series. Young bent, but he didn't break... he gave up 10 hits in a complete game, but held the Hawks to just one earned run... Young (1-0) had six strikeouts and no walks... he also singled in two runs in the critical sixth when the Sunsets expanded their lead to 4-0 against losing pitcher Frankie Lambert (0-1)... RF Eamon O'Toole (.417) drove in the other two Summerland runs... Lambert went eight innings and was touched for four runs on five hits... he struck out seven and walked five. OZARKA CLAIMS FIRST WIN, NATS NIP REDBIRDS 5-4 Down 2-0 in the TU Division Series after losing the first two on the road, the Ozarka Naturals found Ellie Ewing Stadium more to their liking when they knocked off Denton City 5-4 in game three and cut their lead to two games to one... but it was hard to pull off... the Nats built up a 4-1 lead after seven innings, then blew it and had to win in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the ninth on Jimmy Woods' bases-loaded RBI single off losing pitcher Harry Elliott (0-1), Denton City's third pitcher... the third Ozarka pitcher Leon Bernard (1-0) blew the save by giving up the two tying runs in the top half of the ninth, but he got the win anyway. Ozarka was outhit 12 to 9 by the Redbirds... the Nats were led by 2B Mac Coleman (.143) and 1B Omar Velazquez (.500), both with a pair of hits and an RBI... C Jaak Pajukivi (.333) drove in two runs for the winners... topping the Redbirds' offense was C Felton Welch (.455) with three hits and two RBIs... he tied the score with a two-run shot in the ninth, his second homer of the series... three Denton players had two hits apiece: RF Pete Doyle (.462), SS Sammy Thornton (.273) and 1B Wayland Stetson (.250). Last edited by Eugene Church; 11-05-2013 at 10:19 PM.

11-06-2013, 04:04 PM	#3811
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Saturday, September 22, 2040 2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES - Game Four RUTHLANDIAN UNION GILLESPIE EVENS SERIE AT 2, 'CATS NIP ROVERS 3-2 On the road in Sligo for game four of the Ruthlandian Division Series, the Cold Creek Catamounts got another great win from star pitcher J. J. Gillespie... the stocky right-hander gave up a first-inning two-run home run to Denny Simmons, but nothing else until the ninth... Gillespie outpitched Scotty Price again, nipping him by a 3-2 count to even the series at two games each. Gillespie (2-0/1.04) yielded two runs on eight hits, fanned eight and walked no one in his eight and two-thirds innings... Price was tough, but not tough enough... he tossed eight sharp innings, held the Catamounts to just four hits and one earned run with seven strikeouts and a walk... defense was his downfall... with one away in the top of the fourth LF Jimmy Howell (.200) reached second on an error by SS Neil Mitchell (.125) and scored the eventual-winning score on John-Michael Krikma's RBI single... that unearned run put Cold Creek ahead 3-1. CF Guy St. Laurent (.267) smashed a two-run clout in the opening frame for the Catamounts other runs... Sligo picked up a run in the last of the ninth on Pat Foreman's base hit... with the score 3-2 and runners on first and second, George Bailey relieved Gillespie and got a game-ending double play for the save. 1B John-Michael Krikma (.300) led the 'Cats with two hits... C Don Tucker (.214) collected three hits for Sligo. The Rovers were missing CF Joe McGarrett (.300) today... he injured his hamstring in yesterday's game and will miss at least six weeks and the rest of the playoffs... a big setback for the Sligo... they will miss McGarrett's big bat and defense... veteran Jim Lewellen will replace him in the batting order... Lewellen hit only .198 in a back-up role this season, but did hit 12 homers in 232 at bats... McGarrett batted .291 during the year with 22 HRs and 84 RBIs and is a Golden Glover in the outfield. CRUSHERS STILL ALIVE, WIN 5-4 IN GAME 4 Hanging on by their finger tips, Crystal Lake squeezed out a 5-4 victory in 11 innings to remain alive in the RU Division Series against surprising Ranford... on the verge of being swept, the Crushers got their first win in four tries against the underdog Bulls... Paul Dillon was the hero with an RBI single off loser Miguel Mandina (0-1/0.00)... the run was not earned... Eddie Lane (1-1/6.75) blew his second save of the series, but got a reprieve and got credit for the win with the help of Mitchell Clarkson, who finished off the Bulls in order in the last of the 11th. Crystal Lake picked up 14 hits in the game, paced by 1B Stan Dixon (.500) with 3-4... and CF Jesse Walker (.357) and RF Pat Dillon (.353) with two hits each...Ranford had nine hits... RF Dale Weston (.250) had a two-run homer in the first to top the Bulls... it was Weston's second one in the series. TYCOBBIAN UNION HAWKS' MCDERMOTT TIES SUNSETS WITH HR IN THE 11TH Desparate for a win to tie the series, North Hills battled back with a tying run in the last of the ninth at the Hawk's Nest and then won it 5-4 in the 11th on Jim McDermott home run off losing pitcher Ronald Shaddock (0-1/6.75)... David Michael (1-0/0.00) got out of a bases-loaded, no-outs predicament to get the victory. The North Hills bullpen almost blew it... starter Jeff Owens had a 3-0 lead after six innings as he stopped the Sunsets on four hits, struck out four and walked none in a fine outing... relievers Kyle Oliver and Nelson Hooper let the Sunsets go in front 4-3 in the eighth... the Hawks belted 13 hits and Summerland had 10... CF Kris Anastas (.412) went 3-for-5 to lead the Hawks... LF Adam Thurgood (.294) also added a pair of hits... Summerland 2B Norm Murdoch (.250) had two hits and two RBIs... RF Eamon O'Toole (.412) also banged out two hits and batted in a run. NATS KNOT SERIES AT 2-2, RIP REDBIRDS 9-3 In game four at Ellie Ewing Field, Ozarka tore up Denton City 9-3 to knot the TU Division Series at two games apiece... the Naturals rattled the boards for 15 hits with 3B Jimmy Woods (.294) leading the attack with three hits and three RBIs... C Jaak Pajukivi (.412) chipped in with three hits and two RBIs... Glen Jenkins (1-1/2.63) got the first postseason win of his career... he worked six and two-thirds innings, allowed 2 unearned runs on six hits, struck out eight batters, but walked six in a shaky performance... the Nats shelled loser Troy McIntosh (1-1/6.57) for seven runs and 12 hits in four-plus frames. Denton City got eight hits and were led by RF Pete Doyle (.444) with a homer and a single and C Felton Welch (.500) with a double, single and two runs batted in.

11-07-2013, 03:04 PM	#3812
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Sunday, September 23, 2040 2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES - Game Five RUTHLANDIAN UNION CC 'CATS STOP SLIGO 4-0 IN 11 INNINGS In game five of the Ruthlandian Division Series at Sligo, the magnificent mound corps of Cold Creek showed its stuff by blanking the Rovers 4-0 in 11 innings for a three games to two lead... Joey Baker, George Bailey and Harvey Fullerton combined on a seven-hit shutout... Baker worked eight innings, Bailey three and Fullerton closed it out in the 11th... Bailey (1-0/0.00) notched the win... Randall Steele held Cold Creek scoreless for eight and two-thirds innings... Bill Walker (0-1/4.50) took it on the chin in the four-run 11th and took the loss. The Catamounts socked 13 hits... Lamont Cramer broke open the game with a two-run pinch-hit homer... later on in the inning RF Wayne Kenney (.227) and 3B Pat Ellis (.105) had RBI singles. The series returns to Cold Creek for game six tomorrow afternoon... if necessary, game seven will also be there. CL CRUSHERS CLIP BULLS 7-2 IN 12 INNINGS Game five of the RU Division Series between Crystal Lake and Ranford also went extra innings before the Crushers bushwhacked the Bulls 7-2... doing the damage were CF Jesse Walker (.400) with an RBI single, a sacrifice fly by LF Johnny Kennedy (.083) and a three-run blast by RF Pat Dillon (.333)... reliever Mitchell Clarkson (1-0/0.00) chalked up the win with two scoreless innings, while Miguel Mandina (0-2) was the loser, the victim of the five-run explosion... Crystal Lake is now back in business, but still trails Ranford 3-2 in the series... the rest of the games will be played at Lakefront Stadium in Crystal Lake. Crystal Lake bagged 15 base hits... Walker had three hits, two RBIs and scored two runs for Crystal Lake... Dillon had 2 hits and 3 RBIs... and 3B Marv Roy (.333) added two hits and scored twice... Ranford popped 12 hits in defeat with 1B Maury Quave (.250) getting three of them... and 3B Pete Bankston (.333), RF Emory Rice (.273) and C Arlo Guthrie (.238) all getting a pair of hits. TYCOBBIAN UNION KING CONKS HAWKS 4-0, SUNSETS IN THE LEAD Game five of the TU Division Series started badly for the Summerland Sunsets, but ended up on a bright note... starter Dutch De Boer strained a muscle warming up and had to be replaced by Billy Hill, who promptly pitched them to a 4-0 shutout over powerful North Hills and a 3-2 lead in games... Hill (1-0/0.00) fired a three-hitter against the Pro Cup favorite, struck out five and also walked five... the Sunsets backed him with three double plays... Tony Mack (1-1/3.18) suffered the defeat, going eight frames and giving up three runs on six hits... Mack totaled eight Ks and issued four bases on balls. Summerland got only eight hits and were sparked by 3B Norm Murdock (.316) with two hits and an RBI... King (.250) drove in two runs in the seventh with a single... Mark Brenneke (.167) got the final run in with a ninth-inning single. Summerland will try and wrap up the series at home... they just need one win in two games to advance to the Tycobbian League Championship. DC REDBIRDS DRUB OZARKA 10-3, UP 3-2 NOW It was nip-and-tuck for seven innings in game five of the TU Division Series with Denton City holding a slim 3-2 lead over Ozarka... then the Redbird bats went to town and put three runs on the scoreboard in the top of the eighth and added four runs more in the ninth to totally drub the Nats 10-3... the win gave Denton City the series lead at three games to two. The Redbirds pelted four Ozarka pitchers for 17 hits... LF Sadaharu Uchiyama (.222) paced the hit parade with two hits, including a three-run homer... 1B Wayman Stetson (.286) chipped in with three hits, a run and an RBI... and SS Sammy Thornton (.316) scored three times, had two hits and batted in a run. Ozarka only got seven hits, all off starter Francisco Salcido (2-0/1.80)... Salcido went eight innings, walked four, fanned five and gave up only two earned runs... Lenny Evans relieved him in the ninth and set the Nats down in perfect order... the losing pitcher was Stan Carey, who kept the Redbirds in check... he left trailing 3-1 after six frames... Carey (0-2/1.93) permitted nine hits, but only one earned run. The sixth game will be in Denton City tomorrow... and, if needed, Douglas Denton Field will be the site of the decisive finale. Last edited by Eugene Church; 11-07-2013 at 03:07 PM.

11-07-2013, 11:45 PM	#3813
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Monday, September 24, 2040 2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES - Game Six RUTHLANDIAN UNION SLIGO FORCES 7TH GAME, TRIMS CC 'CATS 4-3 The Sligo Rovers have been a handfull for the Cold Creek Catamounts, the number-two choice to take the IPA Pro Cup this season... the number-six pick has now forced, a win-take-all seventh game in the Ruthlandian Division Series with a 4-3 triumph. Back-to-back doubles in the top of the ninth by SS Neil Mitchell (.200) and 1B Denny Simmons (.308) decided game six at Holmes Field in Cold Creek... Sligo won despite four errors and careless defensive play... winner Tom Pierson (2-0/1.69) didn't allow an earned run in his eight innings... he permitted five hits, walked three and struck out three... Richie Joyner closed it out with a scoreless ninth and sealed the verdict... Tommy Wynn (0-1/4.50) lost it in relief of starter Rob Hutchins, who worked seven innings and gave up three runs on seven hits... Wynn allowed one run on two hits. The Rovers collected nine hits to five for the Catamounts... 2B Howard Winston (.238) led them with three hits, including a two-run triple in the fourth... Mitchell (.200) also helped with two hits for the winners... RF Wayne Kenney (.240) was the 'Cats best bat with a two-run roundtripper in the first. Game seven at Holmes Field in Cold Creek will feature both teams' aces, J. J. Gillespie (23-11/2.26) for Cold Creek and Scotty Price (22-9/2.78) for Sligo... this will be the third time they have opposed one another in this series... Gillespie shut out Price 3-0 in game one and edged him 3-2 in game four. RANFORD UPSETS CRYSTAL LAKE Not a lot of people gave Ranford much of a chance to beat Crystal Lake in the Ruthlandian Division Series, but they did... the Bulls upset the Crushers in six games to advance to the RU League Championship Series... Ranford did it with the help of three home runs to get past the Crushers 8-5 in game six on the road in Crystal Lake... the Crushers were ranked third in the Pro Cup poll, while poor ole Ranford ranked number eight, the least-likely team to succeed in the playoffs. Ranford racked up 10 hits, sparked by homers by RF Dale Weston (.292), 3B Glen Ward (.125) and LF Jimmy Holcomb (.231)... Weston and Holcomb had three RBIs apiece... Crystal Lake also had 10 hits and was led by LF Johnny Kennedy (.103) with a three-run clout and C Stan Stanek (250) with a two-run homer. Lanny Smithers (2-0/3.18) closed out the series with his second victory... he endured 10 hits, surrendered five runs, but survived, striking out six and walking two in a complete-game effort... Douglas Merrill (0-2/4.26) lost it though he only permitted three earned runs... Merrill was tagged for eight runs on 9 hits in six-plus innings... he also had six Ks and two walks. Winning manager Chris Bernhoffer gave the credit to both his pitchers and hitters. "The whole team did what they had to do for us to win... the 8-3 advantage in homers was a big key, too." Losing skipper Baby George told the scribes, "We didn't hit much in the first three games... their pitching was impressive... they shut down our offense very well... you can't lose the first three games of a series like we did and come back and win... it rarely happens." TYCOBBIAN UNION SUMMERLAND SENDS NORTH HILLS INTO THE SUNSET The number-four pick in the Pro Cup poll, the Summerland Sunsets, upended the Pro Cup favorite North Hills in six games, capturing the Tycobbian Division Series and advancing to the Tycobbian LCS... the Sunsets sent the Hawks sailing off into the sunset with a 5-3 victory, helped out by Mark Brenneke's three hits and three RBIs and Johnny Young's fine pitching... the Sunsets ran up a 5-1 cushion after eight frames and then survived the Hawks' two-run rally in the ninth. Both clubs totaled nine hits apiece... SS Mark Brenneke (.273) went 3-4, including a two-run homer... RF Eamon O'Toole (.400) had a couple of hits, one of them a solo swat... Young (2-0/1.06) had another strong outing, shutting down the Hawks on one run and seven hits in eight innings... Pete Ashley gave up the two runs in the ninth. North Hills hit a pair of homers... 1B Rick Hamilton (.095) had a solo shot in the fourth and pinchhitter Jimmy Jay Ferguson (.286) cracked a two-run salvo in the ninth... Frankie Lambert (0-2/2.81) was the losing pitcher... he went all the way and was touched for five runs and nine hits, but only three of them were of the earned variety as the Hawks committed two miscues. Sunset skipper Will Hackett told reporters, "Two very fine teams went at it hot-and-heavy... only one of us could win... fortunately it was us... we got a few more clutch hits than they did." North Hills' manager Todd Simons lamented, "I love the Pro Cup playoffs, but I don't like losing... we pitched well... didn't hit well, but that's because the Sunsets have excellent pitching... the key factor to me was our sloppy defense... we gave away too many runs in close games to win... nine errors and eight unearned runs killed our chances." NATS 9th-INNING RALLY KNOTS SERIES Behind 2-1 heading into their last at-bat, Ozarka put up four big ones on the scoreboard and came away the victor 5-3 in game six at Douglas Denton Field in Denton City... Duffy Morrison had the big hit of the inning, a three-run bomb, that kept the Nats alive in the postseason and knotted the Tycobbian Division Series at three games each... game seven is slated tomorrow afternoon, also in Denton City. 25-year-old lefty Billy Hill (1-0/2.35) hurled another fine game, stopping the Redbirds on two runs and six hits and ending up with two walks and four strikeouts... the save went to Stacy Hubbens, in spite of allowing a run on three hits in the ninth. Topping the Naturals at the plate was SS Duffy Morrison (.300) with two hits, a double and a homer, and three RBIs... LF Leland Cambridge (.273) pitched in with two RBIs. Losing pitcher Freddy Hogue (0-1/5.40) did not have a good game... going all the way, he was slammed for five runs and seven hits, while fanning seven batters and walking two... CF Sam Carson (.294) drove in two runs in defeat, while C Felton Welch (.409) got his third homer of the series. Game seven starters are Troy McIntosh (17-16/3.28) for Denton City and Glen Jenkins (18-15/2.16) for Ozarka... they faced one another in game one and four of the series... McIntosh prevailed 7-1 in the opener and Jenkins got revenge in game four 9-3.

11-08-2013, 06:28 PM	#3814
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Tuesday, September 25, 2040 2040 IPA DIVISION SERIES - Game Seven RUTHLANDIAN UNION SLIGO SURPRISES, KO'S COLD CREEK IN 7 Scotty Price saved the best for last... the Sligo ace tamed favored Cold Creek 5-1 in game seven of the Ruthlandian Division Series, halting them on one run and five hits for his first win in the Series... he had lost his first two starts... the Rovers eliminated the Catamounts four games to three... in the Pro Cup poll Cold Creek was the number-two choice and Sligo was ranked sixth. Price (1-2/1.80) went the route, struck out three and walked none to best J. J. Gillespie in a battle of IPA Elite hurlers... Gillespie permitted five runs on seven hits in seven innings with seven Ks and three walks... Gillespie was breezing along with 1-0 lead after six innings, when the Rovers routed him with five runs in the seventh. Sligo gathered in eight hits, led by RF Pat Foreman (.217) with a three-run homer and LF Rudy Putnam's (.121) two-run single... 1B Denny Simmons (.367) paced them with three hits in four tries. The Rovers will now take on the Ranford Bulls in the Ruthlandian League Championship Series... the Bulls upset powerful Crystal Lake in first-round action. Manager Eddie Keys of Sligo commented to the press, "Pierson, Price and Steele were awesome... thank goodness, we got enough runs to win... pitching dominated the series... we won and only batted .207." Cold Creek skipper Scoop Lemieux agreed, "Eddie's starters were superb... you don't win many series when you hit .181." TYCOBBIAN UNION JENKINS BLANKS REDBIRDS, OZARKA ADVANCES The Ozarka Naturals got a masterpiece from Glen Jenkins to advance to the Tycobbian League Championship Series against the Summerland Sunsets... in game seven at Denton City Jenkins (2-1/1.59) blanked the Redbirds 6-0 on four hits, struck out seven and walked four to capture the series four games to three... Denton City really helped with their downfall with seven errors that led to five unearned runs... Troy McIntosh (1-2/4.35) was the misfortunate loser... in eight-plus innings he allowed five of the six runs on six hits, but just one was legitimate. CF Lonnie Gillespie (.160) and 3B Jimmy Woods (.296) each drove in two runs for the Naturals... and 2B Mac Coleman (.176) added two hits and scored twice for the winners. A disgusted Trevor Tomlinson, the Denton City skipper, was beside himself at the press conference. "I don't even think Little Leaguers make seven errors in a game... we won't soon forget this game... come to think of it... Jenkins made us look like Little Leaguers at the plate, too." Ozarka manager Frank Kiffin was elated, "What a wacky series... we lost the first two games and then came back and won it in seven... Jenkins and Hill pulled it out for us... Pajukivi and Woods got us enough runs to win it."

11-09-2013, 11:04 PM	#3815
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Wednesday, September 26, 2040 POWERS MISSING IN IPA LCS The jinx continues... The top three of the Pro Cup picks are already gone after first-round action in the IPA Pro Cup playoffs... Pro Cup favorite North Hills, number-two Cold Creek and number-three Crystal Lake have already bit the dust... the highest-rated team is number-four Summerland, who will take on number-seven Ozarka for the Tycobbian League Championship... number-six Sligo will vie with number-eight Ranford in the Ruthlandian LCS. Summerland by virtue of its win over North Hills is touted the Pro Cup favorite now... the Sunsets have the best pitching staff in the Islands and they are expected to get by the Ozarka Naturals in the second round and then take on Sligo for the IPA crown... the Rovers get the nod over the unheralded Ranford Bulls for the Ruthlandian title and a spot in the Pro Cup Finals. Last edited by Eugene Church; 11-09-2013 at 11:08 PM.

11-10-2013, 05:32 PM	#3816
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Friday, September 28, 2040 2040 IPA LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game One RUTHLANDIAN UNION ROVERS TRIM BULLS 5-3 IN RU LCS OPENER In the opening game of the Ruthlandian League Championship Series at Silver Mountain Stadium in Sligo, the hometown Rovers trimmed the Ranford Bulls 5-3 behind the fine pitching of Scotty Price, a 22-game winner in the regular season. Price (2-2/2.25) was not at his best, but he prevailed, holding Ranford to three runs on nine hits with two walks and five strikeouts... relievers Bill Walker and Gary Booth saved it for him... the save went to Booth as he sat down all five batters he faced in the eighth and ninth... Ralph Hawk (0-1/4.50), the Ranford starter, was the losing pitcher... he allowed four runs on five hits in six innings... and he was wild and walked six. Sligo trailed in hits 9 to 8... LF Rudy Putnam (.139) and 3B Alex Faxon (.333) led the Rovers with two RBIs each... CF Jimmy Holcomb (.300) had three hits and an RBI for the Bulls and LF Maury Quave had a pair of hits and batted in a run... RF Dale Weston (.296) scored twice for the losers. TYCOBBIAN UNION SUNSETS 3 HRS TOO MUCH FOR NATS IN GAME ONE In game one of the Tycobbian LCS at Sunset Stadium, three home runs powered Summerland to a 7-6 victory over Ozarka... Norm Van Kieken's three-run smash, Doug Maynard's two-run clout and Todd Cummins' solo shot accounted for six of the Rovers' runs... the winning pitcher was Ronald Shaddock (1-1/3.86) and the loser was Teddy O'Shea (0-1/9.00). Leading Summerland 12-hit attack were 3B Norm Van Kieken (.429) with 2-4 and four RBIs and LF Doug Maynard (.400) with 3-5, two runs and two runs batted in... CF Antonio Vasquez (.286) also pitched in with two hits... Ozarka collected nine hits and were sparked by RF Bob Banachak (.154) with two hits, including a homer... 1B Omar Velazquez (.367) added two hits and scored two runs. It was a back-and-forth game... the Nats jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, the Sunsets came back with two in the last of the second... Ozarka tied it up 2-2 in the fifth, fell behind 5-2 in the sixth, then regained the lead with four scores in the seventh, making it 6-5 in their favor... pitchhitter Todd Cummins' (.190) clutch homer tied it up in the bottom of the ninth... Van Kieken then won it with a bases-loaded single in the tenth that scored 1B Stan Terry (.194).

11-10-2013, 10:48 PM	#3817
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Saturday, September 29, 2040 2040 IPA LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game Two RUTHLANDIAN UNION RANFORD HOLDS OFF SLIGO 7-5, SERIES EVEN AT 1-1 The Ranford Bulls put on their hitting shoes, banged out two homers and 13 hits to knock off Sligo 7-5 in the second game of the Ruthlandian Union LCS to knot it up at one game each in the best-of-seven series... Pete Bankston, Martin Satcher and Arlo Guthrie were the heroes at the plate and Lanny Smithers gutsied out his third postseason win. 1B Bankston (.351) carded four hits, including a homer and a double, two runs scored and an RBI... Satcher (.257) had a three-run roundtripper and a single... and C Arlo Guthrie (.276) scored twice, drove in a run and posted two hits... Sligo got seven hits with three of them for homers... 1B Denny Simmons (.395), LF Rudy Putnam (.175) and 3B Alex Faxon (.286) all went deep... two of them were one-run shots, while Faxon was good for three runs. Lanny Smithers (3-0/3.91) worked into the ninth, giving up five runs and seven hits with 10 Ks and three bases on balls... After Smithers gave up the Faxon home run, cutting the Bulls' lead to just two runs, Miguel Mandina came in and fanned the final two batters for his second save in the playoffs... Tom Pierson was the losing pitcher... he was shelled for six runs and 10 hits in eight frames... Pierson (2-1/3.00) was trailing 6-2 when he left the game. TYCOBBIAN UNION OZARKA ZAPS SUMMERLAND 8-5 IN 10 INNINGS On the road in Summerland for game two of the Tycobbian LCS, Ozarka pounded the Sunsets for 12 hits in an 8-5 decision, which tied it up at a game each... Omar Velazquez hammered a three-run homer in the tenth inning to decide it. Velazquez (.389) continued his productive postseason with three hits and three RBIs for the Naturals... in addition to the game-winning homer, he also tripled... SS Duffy Morrison (.303) also got into the act with two RBIs and three hits... and LF Leland Cambridge (.200) batted in a pair of runs... Summerland 2B Norm Murdoch (.400) made his presence known with a perfect 4-for-4 day and two RBIs in defeat. Reliever Dwight Albans (1-0/9.95) blew the save in the ninth, but got the win courtesy of Velazquez in the tenth... Albans tossed three innings and gave up a run... the Ozarka staff was aided by four double plays... Ronald Shaddock (1-2/10.80) was the loser... Duke De Boer went nine innings and was victimized by three Sunset errors that cost him two unearned runs... in all, De Boer was battered for five runs and 10 hits.

11-10-2013, 11:49 PM	#3818
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Sunday, September 30, 2040 2040 IPA LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game Three RUTHLANDIAN UNION BULLS RALLY BY ROVERS 6-5 IN 11 INNINGS No one except a few diehard Ranford fans gave the eighth-rated Bulls much of a chance in the Pro Cup playoffs, but they got past highly-favored and third-ranked Crystal Lake in round one, now in round two they have the upper hand on favored Sligo after three games with a 2-1 edge in games... the Bulls rebounded from a 4-0 deficit after five innings, tied it up in the last of the ninth, then fell behind 5-4 in the top of the 11th before winning 6-5 on Jamie Holcomb's sac fly in the last half of the frame... Sligo pretty much gifted the game to them with five unearned runs caused by four costly errors. The Bulls piled up 10 hits in the win, led by RF Dale Weston (.371) with three hits and an RBI... LF Maury Quave (.265) added a pair of hits, scored two runs and batted in another one... the Rovers rapped out 13 hits, paced by RF Pat Foreman (.250) with two base hits and two RBIs... and by LF Rudy Putnam (.217) with 3-6, including a homer. Winston Moses started and had a decent outing, yielding a dozen hits and four runs in eight innings... Moses was in trouble often, but worked his way out of it most of the time... the Rovers stranded 12 baserunners... Frank Yosarian (2-0/0.75) went the final three frames and notched the victory by allowing one run on one hit in three innings... Randall Steele started for Sligo... only one of the four runs he surrendered were of the earned variety... Steele rang up 12 strikeouts, walked four and was tagged for eight hits in nine and one-third innings... Bill Walker (0-2/3.18) couldn't close it out and suffered the loss. TYCOBBIAN UNION YOUNG HALTS NATS 6-2, SUNSETS LEAD SERIES Summerland's vaunted pitching finally got on track in game three of the Tycobbian Union LCS when Johnny Young chalked up a 6-2 triumph over Ozarka that gave the Sunsets a two games to one lead... Young (3-0/1.04) was peppered for 10 hits, but he limited the Nats to only two runs, fanned five and walked two... he stranded 13 baserunners. C Paco Dias (.333), inserted into the line-up for some punch, did just that... he drove in three runs... RF Eamon O'Toole (.421) also provided some offense with two singles and a double... after RBI singles by CF Lonnie Gillespie (.175) and 3B Jimmy Woods (.286) in the first frame, Young blanked the Nats the rest of the game... Ozarka starter and loser Stan Carey (0-3/3.86) was banged around hard by Summerland for six runs in just four-plus frames. Last edited by Eugene Church; 11-11-2013 at 12:12 AM.

11-11-2013, 05:12 PM	#3819
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Monday, October 1, 2040 2040 IPA LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - Game Four RUTHLANDIAN UNION BULLS BLISTER ROVERS 10-1 FOR 3-1 LEAD Maybe the Ranford Bulls are better than the critics think... the Bulls blistered one of the better pitchers in the IPA 10-1 at Ranford County Stadium to take a huge three games to one lead in the Ruthlandian LCS... one more win over the Sligo Rovers and it's on to the Pro Cup Finals... it's doubtful anyone predicted this to happen... the Bulls bombarded 22-game winner Scotty Price (2-3/3.41) for seven runs in five innings, while at the same time getting an impressive start from Ralph Hawk (1-1/3.25), who shut out Sligo for seven and two-thirds innings on seven hits... Hawk walked four and whiffed nine Rovers. 2B Martin Satcher (.302) and 3B Glenn Ward (.154) sparked the Bulls 12-hit attack... Satcher popped three hits, including a two-run triple... and Ward scored twice and cleared the bases with a three-run two-bagger... 1B Denny Simmons (.375) continues to be one of the few Rovers having a good postseason... Simmons went 2-for-5 and drove in their only run. TYCOBBIAN UNION SUMMERLAND BREEZES BY OZARKA 4-2, NEARS TU TITLE Summerland snapped a 2-2 tie in the top of the seventh to defeat the Ozarka Naturals 4-2... Stan Terry singled in the go-ahead run and Eamon O'Toole added an insurance run with a deep sacrifice fly to send the Sunsets up three games to one in the Tycobbian LCS... all Summerland needs is one more win to advance to the IPA Pro Cup Finals. The Sunsets got another strong outing from their elite pitching corps... Jayson Hallstrom (2-0/3.77) went the distance, stopping the Nats on two runs and five hits... the loss went to Glen Jenkins (2-2/2.65), who was hit hard for 12 hits, but he only gave up four runs, just two of the earned. 1B Stan Terry (.200), RF Eamon O'Toole (.429) and 3B Norm Van Kieken (.462) all had two hits and an RBI for Summerland... Van Kieken had the game's only homer...it was his second of the postseason... RF Bob Banachak (.313) went 3-for-3 for Ozarka.

11-11-2013, 05:51 PM	#3820
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,973	THE ISLANDIAN TIMES Around the Town in the IPA RANFORD BULLS Owner: Barnes Oil Company President: O'Neal Buckman GM: Paige Satcher Manager: Chris Bernhoffer The Ranford Valley has long been known for its rough and tumble lifestyle. During its early years the town of Ranford was a hamlet set up to offer merchant services to the soldiers at Fort Branagh which was built to protect the Valdar Bay gateway. The army decided to consolidate all the island’s armed forces in Valmara in 1912. Ft. Branagh was abandoned and Ranford became a refuge for outlaws, gamblers and bootleggers. It was sometimes referred to as the "forgotten city" as much of Ruthlandia cut any existing ties to the area which was kept afloat by the economic backbone of barkeepers and gambling halls. After the great revival of ’29, churches slowly started to outnumber the saloons and commerce and merchants from the mainland began to return and expand into Ranford. For the next 35 years Ranford’s reputation moved from a town of debauchery to being known as the hardest-working town in Ruthlandia. It was a well-earned distinction as those who toiled with the rough and rocky terrain were well-suited for the country’s lumber and manufacturing faction. In the mid 1960’s oil was discovered inland and within five years extensive exploration had begun. In what seemed overnight, much of Ranford’s blue collar work force had joined the aristocracy. Ranford has a diverse population with just about all ethnic groups in the Islands represented. They come from near and far to participate in the oil prosperity in the area. Ranford has become one of the most affluent cities in Ruthlandia, but has kept to its blue collar roots. The early years of baseball in Ranford consisted of amateur teams made up of soldiers, sailors and ruffians from the area. Despite the amateur status of the teams, the games were taken very seriously and brawls often took place between players and fans alike. During the industrial years the team was known as the Outlaws, but in efforts to makeover the town’s reputation it was later changed to Bulls and stayed that way when the Islandian Pro Alliance was formed in 2001. The owner of the Bulls is Cliff Barnes of the Barnes Oil Company. He inherited the company from his father, Digger Barnes. The Barnes have always had a running feud with the Ewing family that still continues to this day because Jock Ewing had swindled Digger out of his share of an oilfield partnership, when both were just getting started in the oil industry. Barnes hired O'Neal Buckman as chief operating officer. Buckman had played for and managed Barnes Oil company teams in the amateur leagues for 30 years and had been quite successful. Buckman surprisingly hired a teammate of many years, Page Satcher, to be his manager. Satcher was a heck of a player, but had no experience as a manager. Satcher alway gave the appearance of not taking the game of baseball too seriously. Many baseball people questioned Buckman's choice for those reasons. When grilled about this, Buckman just grinned and said, "Old Satch is gonna make you guys regret those words. He's gonna be a darn good manager. You just wait and see." Satcher, who was a local star for the Ranford Outlaws back in the industrial league years and one of the best pitchers ever to throw a baseball. Satcher played into his 50s and never revealed his age, saying, "How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?" Not only was he good, but he was good with a quote. "I ain't ever had a job, I just always played baseball." Another of his jewels was his work ethic. "I don't generally like running. I believe in training by rising gently up and down from the bench." Satcher had the reputation for doctoring up the ball. "I never threw an illegal pitch. The trouble is, once in a while I would toss one that ain’t never been seen by this generation." Asked what the secret of his success was, he would reply, "Just take the ball and throw it where you want to. Throw strikes. Home plate don’t move." After two decades at the helm, Satcher retired as manager and became the team's GM. The current skipper is Chris Bernhoffer, who starred for Ranford for 14 years from 2002 to 2015, going 202-197 for mostly mediocre clubs... Bernhoffer posted a solid 3.37 ERA in his career... he was especially good in the playoffs with a 6-2 mark and a terrific 1.89 ERA in nine starts. The Ranford Bulls play at Ranford County Stadium, a nondescript, but adequate ballpark. It probably won't be long before Barnes tries to outdo the Ewings and build a baseball Taj Mahal. Ranford County Stadium (1953) Capacity: 7,850 Dimensions: Left Field Line - 315 Left Field - 362 Left Center - 382 Center Field - 402 Right Center - 382 Right Field - 362 Right Field Line - 315 Attached Images