OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - 1976

immortal50 · 12-03-2009, 11:14 AM

-side note- I will be going more in depth has seasons go on. Last night I did not have a lot of time to get pictures and what not so this is all I got for now
1976 - CHAMPIONS AGAIN

It was yet another incredible season in Indianapolis. A league record 13th championship for the club proving why the Kings are indeed the KINGS of the North American Baseball League. Steven Anderson walked in has a rookie head coach in Indianapolis and by the end of season put his mark in history has only the 3rd rookie coach to win the NABL Championship.

It was a season for the record books has the Kings opened up the season with a record 22 consecutive wins, making it already an uphill battle for the teams in the American Division. With the deadly batting and dynamite pitching, the team was a shoo-in for the title. However a small dip in form saw the team have a 15 game lead over the second placed team slip to a 3 game lead with only 8 weeks to go in the season.

But like all great Kings teams from the past, the club was able to pull through the rough patch and finish with an astonishing record of 110-52, a feat that has put them in the record books with the most wins in a season and fewest losses.

Anderson knew that it wasn't the regular season that mattered though once October rolled around, it was the teams form in the playoffs that mattered most. The Los Angeles Gunners were the first team to be humbled by the might of the Kings 3-1 in the first round of the playoffs. What faced the Kings next was probably the brightest 'young' team in the NABL, the Kansas City Hotspur, an expansion team that formed in the early 60's. Kansas City were having the best run of luck of any of the expansion teams since the lead began expanding in 1961. They had reached more playoffs than any other expansion team. Kansas City took game one, only for the Kings to take the next two games. But the Hotspur were wanting to make it to their first Championship series since the club began. They took a huge step by beating Indy in games 4 and 5 giving them a 3-2 lead in the series. But again the Kings proved that you need skill, determination, and little bit of luck to be champions and won the final two games in Kansas City to advance to a record 15th NABL Championship Series.

"I want to be like the great managers that managed this club before me, (Wilson) Garza and (Eduardo) Marin," Anderson told BNN reporters. "I believe this is the best Indianapolis team to have ever been assembled and I hope to make sure that we become Champions here soon."

High hopes were met with the best performance by any team in a Championship series. Never had any team swept through the final series like the Kings did this year. Their opponents were the National Division Champions, the Chicago Black Cats (8 times champions). With a few key players injured, Anderson knew he would have to call on some of his younger players to step up and help his side win another title. One of the players was 20 year old catcher Tyler Cox. During the four game rout of Chicago, Cox nailed 7 home runs, and had 15 runs other than his home runs. Game 4 took place in Indianapolis, a fitting place for Kings to be crowned. With the game tied at 0-0 Cox stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the 6th with a runner on 1st and 3rd. He connected with the pitcher's curve ball and sent it deep into center field and out into the stands for his 7th home run. 3-0 would be the final score and the ball club were Champions yet again.

"We are simply ecstatic," said a teary eyed Steven Anderson. "For me to have come in here and never coached a Major League side and for us to have had the season we had is remarkable. The players deserve all of the plaudits here. They worked hard and played for their lives this season and I believe it has all worked our for us. Now we gotta go and get ready and work on defending OUR title and try to make another run of five titles like the great team of the early 20's."

Anderson would go on and collect the manager of the year award, marking yet another record in the record book. The Kings now had a manager win the Manager of the Year Award nine times, and all of them have come after the Kings had taken home the NABL title.

But what lies ahead in 1977 for the Champions? Well only time will tell. The NABL is going to be expanding once again, with four new teams joining. The Toronto Ravens going in the National Division's Eastern Conference, the Minnesota Miners going in the National Division's Western Conference, the Baltimore Lighting going in the American Division's Eastern Conference, and the San Francisco Knights going in the American Division's Western Conference. So with new competition means finding new ways to defend a Championship, but Steven Anderson and the Indianapolis Kings believe that they can win a 14th league title and make it back-to-back championships for a fourth time.

12-03-2009, 11:14 AM	#2
immortal50 Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 21	-side note- I will be going more in depth has seasons go on. Last night I did not have a lot of time to get pictures and what not so this is all I got for now 1976 - CHAMPIONS AGAIN It was yet another incredible season in Indianapolis. A league record 13th championship for the club proving why the Kings are indeed the KINGS of the North American Baseball League. Steven Anderson walked in has a rookie head coach in Indianapolis and by the end of season put his mark in history has only the 3rd rookie coach to win the NABL Championship. It was a season for the record books has the Kings opened up the season with a record 22 consecutive wins, making it already an uphill battle for the teams in the American Division. With the deadly batting and dynamite pitching, the team was a shoo-in for the title. However a small dip in form saw the team have a 15 game lead over the second placed team slip to a 3 game lead with only 8 weeks to go in the season. But like all great Kings teams from the past, the club was able to pull through the rough patch and finish with an astonishing record of 110-52, a feat that has put them in the record books with the most wins in a season and fewest losses. Anderson knew that it wasn't the regular season that mattered though once October rolled around, it was the teams form in the playoffs that mattered most. The Los Angeles Gunners were the first team to be humbled by the might of the Kings 3-1 in the first round of the playoffs. What faced the Kings next was probably the brightest 'young' team in the NABL, the Kansas City Hotspur, an expansion team that formed in the early 60's. Kansas City were having the best run of luck of any of the expansion teams since the lead began expanding in 1961. They had reached more playoffs than any other expansion team. Kansas City took game one, only for the Kings to take the next two games. But the Hotspur were wanting to make it to their first Championship series since the club began. They took a huge step by beating Indy in games 4 and 5 giving them a 3-2 lead in the series. But again the Kings proved that you need skill, determination, and little bit of luck to be champions and won the final two games in Kansas City to advance to a record 15th NABL Championship Series. "I want to be like the great managers that managed this club before me, (Wilson) Garza and (Eduardo) Marin," Anderson told BNN reporters. "I believe this is the best Indianapolis team to have ever been assembled and I hope to make sure that we become Champions here soon." High hopes were met with the best performance by any team in a Championship series. Never had any team swept through the final series like the Kings did this year. Their opponents were the National Division Champions, the Chicago Black Cats (8 times champions). With a few key players injured, Anderson knew he would have to call on some of his younger players to step up and help his side win another title. One of the players was 20 year old catcher Tyler Cox. During the four game rout of Chicago, Cox nailed 7 home runs, and had 15 runs other than his home runs. Game 4 took place in Indianapolis, a fitting place for Kings to be crowned. With the game tied at 0-0 Cox stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the 6th with a runner on 1st and 3rd. He connected with the pitcher's curve ball and sent it deep into center field and out into the stands for his 7th home run. 3-0 would be the final score and the ball club were Champions yet again. "We are simply ecstatic," said a teary eyed Steven Anderson. "For me to have come in here and never coached a Major League side and for us to have had the season we had is remarkable. The players deserve all of the plaudits here. They worked hard and played for their lives this season and I believe it has all worked our for us. Now we gotta go and get ready and work on defending OUR title and try to make another run of five titles like the great team of the early 20's." Anderson would go on and collect the manager of the year award, marking yet another record in the record book. The Kings now had a manager win the Manager of the Year Award nine times, and all of them have come after the Kings had taken home the NABL title. But what lies ahead in 1977 for the Champions? Well only time will tell. The NABL is going to be expanding once again, with four new teams joining. The Toronto Ravens going in the National Division's Eastern Conference, the Minnesota Miners going in the National Division's Western Conference, the Baltimore Lighting going in the American Division's Eastern Conference, and the San Francisco Knights going in the American Division's Western Conference. So with new competition means finding new ways to defend a Championship, but Steven Anderson and the Indianapolis Kings believe that they can win a 14th league title and make it back-to-back championships for a fourth time. __________________ Tc