ISLANDIAN PRO ALLIANCE (RUTHLANDIA and TYCOBBIA BASEBALL UNIONS)

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by jg2977

Sounds like it will be an incredibly exciting postseason!

Yep, it looks like a lot of teams have a chance with Rolling Hills obviously having the best chance... I think time is catching up with the Racers... it's been a great run for over a decade, but many of the stars have now lost some of their glitter... they can hold still hold their own but in years past, they dominated at bat... Rolling Hills only had one regular bat over the .300 mark... they used to all hit .300.

I always hate to see players in decline and that is what is happening to Rolling Hills... wouldn't be surprised if 2070 isn't a last hurrah for Mulbert (age 38), Stonich (age 36) and possibly Roubique (age 34)... Mulbert had a remarkable year... he batted .331 with 79 RBIs and 82 runs scored... he still fields well... and he made the All-Star team... Stonich had a poor year for him... he batted only .247, far below his .322 lifetime BA... but he still drove in 85 runs and hit 18 out of the park... also an All-Star Roubique homered 34 times and drove in 127 runs, but his batting average was only .271... that is the third straight season he failed to hit .300... but he can still run for his age and can still play the outfield... Roubique has said as long as he can run, he can play.

[Eugene Church]

Wednesday, October 1, 2070

CHANGING OF THE GUARD IN THE IPA PLAYOFFS?
Could the times be a-changing in the Islandian Pro Alliance?... a few teams are persistent postseason participants... yes, absolutely the Rolling Hills Racers are back for the 11th straight year... perennials like Wynnamac and Red Bluff are returning after short absences... but a couple of their recurring rivals and nemeses are missing... the tough Claxton Diamonds and the stout-hearted Southport Sun Sox somehow didn't make the cut this year... even the semi-regular and pesky Sligo Rovers and Marston Nine failed to qualify... it looks like a changing of the old guard... there is a new wave of vibrant challengers on the Islands' baseball horizon... Belair Beach is appearing for the first time since 2047... rare partaker White River is here... so are Turon, Valmara and Volusia, who have only made token appearances in the last decade... will the new vanguard knock off the oldtimers?

Once again the odds-on favorite to win the IPA Pro Cup Trophy is mighty Rolling Hills... the Racers are striving to repeat and win their second Pro Cup in a row... the Far Mountain Redhawks hold the record with three Pro Cups in a row... they did it in 2011, 2012 and 2013... only 4 other clubs have ever captured two back-to-back IPA titles, but Eastshore, Tuckanarra, Midway and Southport couldn't do it three consecutive seasons... the Elegants (now Cotton Kings) missed out in 2018, the Blue Jays (now Tiger Cats) failed in 2025, the Wolves came up short in 2055 and the Sun Sox couldn't do it 2067... do the aging Racers have enough left in the gas tank to pull it off and gallop off with their record-setting 8th Pro Cup?... incidentally, Rolling Hills had never won back-to-back Pro Cups.

Best Hitting Overall
1. Rolling Hills
2. Turon
3. Valmara

Best Scoring Runs:
1. Rolling Hills 902 R
2. Turon 820 R
3. Wynnamac 795 R

Best Hitting For Average:
1: Rolling Hills .271 BA
2. Turon .269 BA
3. Belair Beach .262 BA

Best Hitting For Power:
1. Valmara 170 HR
2. White River 160 HR
3. Rolling Hills 145 HR

Best On-Base Percentage:
1. Rolling Hills .346 OBP
2. Turon .342 OPB
3. Wynnamac .328 OBP

Best Pitching Overall
1. Volusia
2. White River
3. Turon

Best Earned Run Average:
1. Volusia 2.82 ERA
2. White River 2.87 ERA
3. Wynnamac 3.25 ERA

Best Home Runs Allowed:
1. Volusia 88 HRA
2. Rolling Hills 90 HRA
3. White River 116 HRA

Best Fielding Average:
1. Red Bluff .969 FA
1. Turon .969 FA
3. Wynnamac .965 FA

2070 Islandian Pro Alliance Pro Cup Prediction Poll

Rolling Hills Home Page (21 postseason appearances, 7 Pro Cups in 2029, 2031, 2048, 2060, 2062, 2067 and 2069)

1st: Rolling Hills Racers (101-53)
Obviously the Racers know how to win a Pro Cup... they have made a regular habit of winning it... age has taken its toll on Rolling Hills, they are not the young Racers of old or even recently, but they still have the offense to win... veterans Mulbert (38), Stonich (36) and Roubique (35) will have to perform with playoff vigor to win again... retirement is beckoning to all of them... the Racers are the best-hitting team in the postseason by quite a bit... 1 to 8 in the lineup, it's one good hitter after another... there is no letup... victory hinges on getting enough pitching... one strong point is their staff doesn't give up a lot of longballs... Lindell, Malbrough and especially Jordy Wales needs to pitch well... the bullpen has to do well, too... good work will be needed from the middle relievers and longtime closer Brownie Ashmore... Rolling Hills is not a good defensive team (.959 FA)... this could hurt them... good defense and good pitching go together.

Turon Home Page (21 postseason appearances, 4 Pro Cups in 2003, 2006, 2009 and 2018)

2nd: Turon Typhoons (99-55)
Turon is a rock-solid team with a good combination of batting, pitching and fielding... they will need good efforts from all three starters to overcome the scoring power of Rolling Hills... Mulroy, Malek and Pearl will be prime to their success... so will closer Edward Carlin... he will have to have a good postseason, too.

Valmara Home Page (26 postseason appearances, 4 Pro Cups in 2026, 2043, 2049 and 2050)

3rd: Valmara Vipers (97-57)
The Vipers could be a player in the postseason this year... they are a good all-around club... no real flaws... solid starters in Zajac, Kaminski and Rummel... good long reliever in Camden and strong closer in Mazur... some reliable sticks with Skarzynski, Santiago and Rynsburger... and some punch and power with Kozak, Viri and Lindmaa.

Wynnamac Home Page (17 postseason appearances, 2 Pro Cups in 2008 and 2055)

4th: Wynnamac Sundowners (99-55)
The Macs are another team that does almost everything well... they have no real weak spots... good batting order top to bottom... an important element in winning the Pro Cup... Wynnamac has better-than-average scoring, hitting, power, pitching and defense... and they don't give up a lot of homers... the Macs' rotation of Crafton, Royal and Mosley look good for the playoffs... and they have a strong closer in Mick Flanders.

[Eugene Church]

White River Home Page (12 postseason appearances, no Pro Cups)

5th: White River Rascals (96-58)
The Rascals are resting their hopes on superlative pitching and some good home-run power by Quick, Bowman and McTavish... Meaux, Maddux and Lucas are standout starters... actually all 8 hurlers on the staff are excellent... White River doesn't hit a lot for average... it depends on the longball... scoring is tough... the Rascals' defense is also bad... the worst in the playoffs with a .958 FA.

Red Bluff Home Page (11 postseason appearances, 2 Pro Cups in 2004 and 2057)

6th Place: Red Bluff Red Sox (93-61)
The Red Sox depend on their fine pitching (3.28 ERA) and strong defense (.969 FA)... bats are woeful with a .243 BA, worst of all the playoff teams... scoring is second worst (716 runs)... but most of the Red Bluff batting order can go deep... Goldsmith, Angeletti and McDade head up a good starting rotation... backed up by a quality relief corps with Gilbreath, Treadway and Cummings... they put up a 3.21 ERA this season between them.

Volusia Home Page (12 postseason appearances, 1 Pro Cup in 2001)

7th: Volusia Vigilantes (94-60)
The V's have a 2.82 ERA, tops in the IPA... the staff is anchored by Ojima, Cayton and Waldrep, all with ERAs under 3.00... it's a formidable rotation that doesn't allow a lot of home runs... the bullpen is also strong with an impressive 2.98 ERA... Conlin and Darrow anchor the relief corps... but Volusia hit only .252 for average, is the worst-scoring playoff team and has the fewest number of home runs... the Vigilantes scored only 692 runs and hit only 92 roundtrippers... in addition, the V's play poor defense (.961 FA)... the pitching will have to be out of this world for Volusia to win the Pro Cup Trophy... not likely to happen so say the soothsayers.

Belair Beach Home Page (8 postseason appearances, no Pro Cups)

8th: Belair Beach Sunbirds (91-63)
It would be a grand story of great delight if the Sunbirds soar to the greatest heights of IPA baseball and win the much-revered Pro Cup after an absence of 24 long, long seasons and capture their first-ever IPA crown... ah, that would be glorious indeed... that would be a great fairytale of great proportion... before we get carried away, let's check out the facts and see if this fable is real or not... we do know Belair Beach upended a harden Pro Cup perennial this year in the Ruthlandian South race... they dethroned the Claxton Diamonds, who had won the division for 8 consecutive seasons... the Sunbirds did it with a bevy of batters that could hit and score runs in abundance... Elbourne, De Jonker and Cochran are the top hitters... pretty much top to bottom in the lineup there is a fairly tough out... they don't depend on a few batters to provide the offense... they all produce... couple this with three quality arms like Hebb, Belzer and Edgworth on the mound staff and a very capable bullpen led by Goudeau and Arrissen and you have a competitive team... just ask the Valka Blackhawks, Claxton Diamonds and the other 5 clubs in the RU South... the Sunbirds are for real... can Belair Beach pull off this remarkable story and win the Pro Cup?... in a word - nope - but sometimes in the real world, dreams and fairytales come true... in the last decade the Karate Kids and the Ginza Ninjas did the highly unlikely in '59 and almost repeated in '60, unheralded Hartsdale won the Pro Cup in '63 and Claxton surprisingly upset heavily-favored Rolling Hills in '64... all things are possible in love and war and in the Islandian Pro Alliance.

2070 Islandian Pro Alliance Pro Cup Playoff Outlook:
Rolling Hills will top White River in a tense TU Title Round and Valmara will topple Belair Beach in a dramatic RU Title Round... the Vipers will put asunder the Racers' dream of back-to-back Pro Cups in a sizzling 7-game series... methinks, Rolling Hills is too old to win another Pro Cup... sadly, their magical and remarkable run is probably over... youth, vigor and vitality are on the side of the Vipers.

[jg2977]

I thought that the Racers were going for their 2nd IPA title in a row - they won last year in 2069, but Forest City upset them in 2068. They are going for 3 titles in 4 years since they won in 2067. Still very impressive if it happens.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by jg2977

I thought that the Racers were going for their 2nd IPA title in a row - they won last year in 2069, but Forest City upset them in 2068. They are going for 3 titles in 4 years since they won in 2067. Still very impressive if it happens.

Man, oh, man... what a mistake... you are right... I will have to revamp my season summary and go back and correct all references to a three-peat for the entire 2070 season.

Thanks for pointing this out.

[Eugene Church]

It didn't take too long to take out all of the three-peat references.

Let me know if I missed any.

[jg2977]

Originally Posted by Eugene Church

It didn't take too long to take out all of the three-peat references.

Let me know if I missed any.

Excellent - with team histories I like the information to be as accurate as possible.

I like to imagine the fan bases as they live through the ups and downs of their team. It's really cool when a team suffers through several playoff hearbreaks and many years of frustration, but then finally reaches the mountaintop with a title, like the 2004 Red Sox or 2016 Cubs. In my IPA the San Alejo Montaneros gave their fans their first championship after 51 seasons, and it happened in the most dramatic way possible, with a walk-off 10th inning home run in the final game.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by jg2977

Excellent - with team histories I like the information to be as accurate as possible.

I like to imagine the fan bases as they live through the ups and downs of their team. It's really cool when a team suffers through several playoff hearbreaks and many years of frustration, but then finally reaches the mountaintop with a title, like the 2004 Red Sox or 2016 Cubs. In my IPA the San Alejo Montaneros gave their fans their first championship after 51 seasons, and it happened in the most dramatic way possible, with a walk-off 10th inning home run in the final game.

jg2977, you are a man after my own heart.

We both love our unreal fictional teams and players.

[Eugene Church]

Thursday, October 2, 2070

PRO CUP FAVORED ROLLING HILLS WILL TRY TO REPEAT AS IPA CHAMP... RACERS SEEK 8TH PRO CUP TROPHY
It would be an understatement to say the Rolling Hills Racers are on a roll... actually they have been steamrolling through the last 11 seasons in the Islandian Pro Alliance... once again the Racers are in the postseason playoffs and their sights are set on winning their 8th Pro Cup trophy... playoff action get going this Friday with four games slated all across Islandia with 7 very capable ball clubs ready, willing and able to upset the Rolling Hills' applecart.

#1-ranked Rolling Hills (101-53) will be at home at the Midtown Base Ball Grounds against the #6 pick Red Bluff Red Sox (93-61) in a best-of-three Tycobbian Division Title Series... the IPA has revamped the playoff system and cut down on the number of games in the postseason... in recent years the IPA playoffs stretched into November... all three rounds will now be best-of-three... in the other Tycobbian clash it will be #2-rated Turon (99-55) at home at Typhoon Stadium against the #5 pick White River Rascals (96-58)... both first-round series will be hotly-contested with Rolling Hills and Turon favored, but only slightly.

In the Ruthlandian Union opening round it will be #3-ranked Valmara (97-57) entertaining #7 Volusia (94-60) at War Memorial Stadium and #8 Belair Beach (91-63) traveling to Granger Field to play the #4-rated Wynnamac Sundowners (99-55)... there are no clear-cut winners in any of the opening-round matchups.

[jg2977]

Originally Posted by Eugene Church

jg2977, you are a man after my own heart.

We both love our unreal fictional teams and players.

I'm enjoying my IPA as much as real life MLB, maybe even more!

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by jg2977

I'm enjoying my IPA as much as real life MLB, maybe even more!

Me, too.

[Eugene Church]

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[Eugene Church]

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[Eugene Church]

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[Eugene Church]

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[jg2977]

Would have loved to have watched the Valmara and Rolling Hills games live - exciting stuff!

I like Volusia's square logo. I think I have the same logo, just without the square.

[care4ameatball]

Rooting for the Sunbirds to win the big one, but they've got a tall task ahead.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by jg2977

Would have loved to have watched the Valmara and Rolling Hills games live - exciting stuff!

I like Volusia's square logo. I think I have the same logo, just without the square.

txranger did it... I added the white square so it would look better on the black background.

I'll see what I can do to get you a square logo... will use black or orange so it will look good in your white background.

[jg2977]

Originally Posted by Eugene Church

txranger did it... I added the white square so it would look better on the black background.

I'll see what I can do to get you a square logo... will use black or orange so it will look good in your white background.

Thanks, I appreciate that!

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by care4ameatball

Rooting for the Sunbirds to win the big one, but they've got a tall task ahead.

That would be nice, wouldn't it, care4ameatball.