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Eugene Church · 12-08-2010, 12:40 AM

The Islandian Times
Monday, September 17, 2018

2018 Tycobbian South Final Recap

Typhoons Blow Away TU South
For the third year in a row the mighty Turon Typhoons have overwhelmed the Tycobbian South... Whitey Richburn's crew won 102 games and had the best record in the IPA... the Typhoons won by whopping 17 games over runner-up Arroyo Grande... Turon is blessed with outstanding pitching and solid hitting, ranking in the top three in most categories... Shane Farmer had a fantastic season with a 29-3 record, setting a new IPA standard for most victories, topping Ernie Watkins 28 wins in 2006, when he was playing for Rocky Rapids... the 36-year-old Farmer got a late start in the IPA and has played only 2 years, but he has certainly made his presence known... Farmer was 24-11 last year... the Typhoons long-time ace Nicky Engstrom was his usual self with a 2.59 ERA, but he failed to win 20 games for the first time in his 8-year career... Engstrom was 18-13 this season... Richburn has two other capable starters in veterans Ted Farentino (18-13 3.72) and James Stuart (14-5 3.80)... closer Merle Studebaker (4-7) was inconsistent, but saved 34 games and posted a 3.32 ERA... at the plate Turon's top sticks were the heralded 5-time All-Star 1B Clyde Kingsford (.338/44/143/114), who led the IPA in RBIs, talented CF Mac McCurnan (.304/32/89/123/37 SB) and gifted newcomer RF Dominick DiCaprio (.297/29/107/76)... Richburn has Turon primed for another strong run at the IPA Pro Cup... this could be the year of the Typhoons... Turon has appeared in 5 Pro Cup Finals, won 3 times and and almost won the other two times, losing in 7 games both times... They were edged out last year four-games-to-three by the Pro Cup champion Eastshore Elegants, who came back from a 3-2 deficit to take the title. In 2010 the Typhoons blew a 3-1 lead and fell to the Colfax Blasters.

Despite finishing far behind Turon, it was a fine season for the Arroyo Grande Suns with its best year ever with an 85-69 record... manager Cyclone Cobb parlayed good starting pitchers and a great closer into a very successful campaign... coupled with 198 home runs (2nd)... rookie Sixto Zamora (19-11 3.38), vet Miguel Aguilera (18-14 3.93) and second-year man Earl O'Reilly (13-13 2.61) were a fine rotation... closer Jason Patrick (7-2) had a standout season with 32 saves and a microscopic 0.78 ERA... offensively the Suns were led by sophomore C Gary Troxell (.325/43/117/95), who was even better than his outstanding Rookie of the Year season... Troxel hit 48 points higher and increased his homer and RBI output... and super gloveman SS Andy Pearson (.315/17/61/98) also provided some bat support.

Charley Oscar led his Southport Sun Sox to a third place spot in the standings... they were 7th last year... the Sun Sox finished 10 games above .500... 82-72 is the best mark the team has ever achieved in the club's 17-year history... Southport depended on two fine starters in Bob Montgomery (23-9 2.23) and Wilcy Lord (17-13 3.29), along with superb closer Danny Fontaine (4-7), who registered 27 saves with a very impressive 1.84 ERA... Oscar needs much more offense to compete for the top spot... the Sun Sox have only two quality hitters in 1B Bill McCann (.284/24/96) and CF Walt Muller (.302/20/79)... Southport has a long, long way to go.

It was not a good year for Uncle Robbie Wilbertson and the Colchester Elites, who slipped below .500 and into fourth place... the Elites were 26 games off the pace... Wilbertson's best hurlers were Jon McGinn (17-15 3.68), Don Green (13-13 3.65) and strong closer Don Richard (5-7), who chalked up 28 saves with an excellent 1.68 ERA... Colchester had a weak offense... only 38-year-old 1B Harlan Roscoe (.330/18/83) provided much in the way of production... it looks like Roscoe is finally slowing down after 17 fine seasons in the league... his power numbers are down quite a bit.

One of the better TU South franchises, the Cape Coral Hurricanes, have fallen on hard times with lackluster pitching and hitting... this year the Hurricanes were 28 games behind Turon in fifth place... just two years ago skipper Marty Pedroza led them to a very strong second to Turon and the 'Canes won the division in 2015... last year they slid down to fourth... even the all-time IPA leader in victories and strikeouts Cody Burg is feeling the pain... Burg was a poor 13-21 this season with a very mortal 3.66 ERA... Burg is 323-212 in his 18 years with a great 2.66 career ERA... only closer Bobby Maas (4-2) has remained a prime-time player with 33 saves and a brilliant 1.53 ERA... As a team Cape Coral batted only .251 (23rd) and compiled a so-so 3.91 team ERA (23rd)... vet Tank Tucker was Pedroza's biggest winner with a 15-21 mark and a 3.88 ERA... his best bat belonged to 1B Dick Walker, who hit .293 with 19 homers and 73 RBIs... the Hurricanes are certainly not the quality year-to-year contender of a few years ago.

The Summerland Sunsets just simply couldn't hit and wound up in sixth place, 33 games back in the race... Will Hackett's club hit only .245... however, the Sunset staff was a good one with Ryan McGhee (15-13 3.37) and Sparky DeWey (15-17 3.64)... it was an especially painful season for 18-year veteran Denny Coulon, who pitched 18 complete games, compiled a very strong 2.48 ERA, yet had only a 9-23 mark to show for it... Coulon is 283-258 lifetime with a stout 2.90 ERA... Rarely in his 18-year career has Coulon has the fortune to play for a strong contender... He played his first 7 seasons in Bay St. Clair, who had some good clubs, but has since languished in obscurity in Summerland... bullpen ace Leon Mullin is a big plus... Mullin was 4-4 with 30 saves and a very good 2.42 ERA... Hackett does have one truly fine ballplayer in LF Vann Kelder, who smacked 40 homers, drove in 104 runs and scored 106 times in his second season... however, Kelder is already 35 and probably doesn't have many more years left.

The Ginza Ninjas took a quite a jolt this year and fell all the down to seventh place in the TU South, 34 games behind... lousy hitting did it... the Ninjas batted only .248 and ranked 31st in run scoring... manager Huroko Uchiyama had fair pitching, headed up by his ace Joji Azuma (17-15 2.55), who put up 18 complete games... in the batter's box old reliable C Crash Davis always puts up quality numbers... this year he again led the team with a sparkling .321 BA, 25 homers and 83 runs batted in... the 24-year-old Davis has made the TU All-Star team all 6 years he has been in the IPA.

For the fifth year in succession the poor San Alejo Montaneros were doomed to the cellar, winding up way, way back and 43 games behind pennant-winning Turon... manager Marcellino Zuniga ranked near the bottom with a pathetic .243 BA (31st)... the Montaneros didn't have much pitching either... starter Chad Gilmore (9-21 3.28) and closer Robby Franks (4-6 2.68) were Zuniga's only quality arms... Franks had 16 saves... San Alejo's best bats are only mediocre... 2B Ron Felker (.273/20/68/97) and 1B Dominique Poirot (.265/20/78/89) provided the little offense the Montaneros had.

12-08-2010, 12:40 AM	#2170
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,924	The Islandian Times Monday, September 17, 2018 2018 Tycobbian South Final Recap Typhoons Blow Away TU South For the third year in a row the mighty Turon Typhoons have overwhelmed the Tycobbian South... Whitey Richburn's crew won 102 games and had the best record in the IPA... the Typhoons won by whopping 17 games over runner-up Arroyo Grande... Turon is blessed with outstanding pitching and solid hitting, ranking in the top three in most categories... Shane Farmer had a fantastic season with a 29-3 record, setting a new IPA standard for most victories, topping Ernie Watkins 28 wins in 2006, when he was playing for Rocky Rapids... the 36-year-old Farmer got a late start in the IPA and has played only 2 years, but he has certainly made his presence known... Farmer was 24-11 last year... the Typhoons long-time ace Nicky Engstrom was his usual self with a 2.59 ERA, but he failed to win 20 games for the first time in his 8-year career... Engstrom was 18-13 this season... Richburn has two other capable starters in veterans Ted Farentino (18-13 3.72) and James Stuart (14-5 3.80)... closer Merle Studebaker (4-7) was inconsistent, but saved 34 games and posted a 3.32 ERA... at the plate Turon's top sticks were the heralded 5-time All-Star 1B Clyde Kingsford (.338/44/143/114), who led the IPA in RBIs, talented CF Mac McCurnan (.304/32/89/123/37 SB) and gifted newcomer RF Dominick DiCaprio (.297/29/107/76)... Richburn has Turon primed for another strong run at the IPA Pro Cup... this could be the year of the Typhoons... Turon has appeared in 5 Pro Cup Finals, won 3 times and and almost won the other two times, losing in 7 games both times... They were edged out last year four-games-to-three by the Pro Cup champion Eastshore Elegants, who came back from a 3-2 deficit to take the title. In 2010 the Typhoons blew a 3-1 lead and fell to the Colfax Blasters. Despite finishing far behind Turon, it was a fine season for the Arroyo Grande Suns with its best year ever with an 85-69 record... manager Cyclone Cobb parlayed good starting pitchers and a great closer into a very successful campaign... coupled with 198 home runs (2nd)... rookie Sixto Zamora (19-11 3.38), vet Miguel Aguilera (18-14 3.93) and second-year man Earl O'Reilly (13-13 2.61) were a fine rotation... closer Jason Patrick (7-2) had a standout season with 32 saves and a microscopic 0.78 ERA... offensively the Suns were led by sophomore C Gary Troxell (.325/43/117/95), who was even better than his outstanding Rookie of the Year season... Troxel hit 48 points higher and increased his homer and RBI output... and super gloveman SS Andy Pearson (.315/17/61/98) also provided some bat support. Charley Oscar led his Southport Sun Sox to a third place spot in the standings... they were 7th last year... the Sun Sox finished 10 games above .500... 82-72 is the best mark the team has ever achieved in the club's 17-year history... Southport depended on two fine starters in Bob Montgomery (23-9 2.23) and Wilcy Lord (17-13 3.29), along with superb closer Danny Fontaine (4-7), who registered 27 saves with a very impressive 1.84 ERA... Oscar needs much more offense to compete for the top spot... the Sun Sox have only two quality hitters in 1B Bill McCann (.284/24/96) and CF Walt Muller (.302/20/79)... Southport has a long, long way to go. It was not a good year for Uncle Robbie Wilbertson and the Colchester Elites, who slipped below .500 and into fourth place... the Elites were 26 games off the pace... Wilbertson's best hurlers were Jon McGinn (17-15 3.68), Don Green (13-13 3.65) and strong closer Don Richard (5-7), who chalked up 28 saves with an excellent 1.68 ERA... Colchester had a weak offense... only 38-year-old 1B Harlan Roscoe (.330/18/83) provided much in the way of production... it looks like Roscoe is finally slowing down after 17 fine seasons in the league... his power numbers are down quite a bit. One of the better TU South franchises, the Cape Coral Hurricanes, have fallen on hard times with lackluster pitching and hitting... this year the Hurricanes were 28 games behind Turon in fifth place... just two years ago skipper Marty Pedroza led them to a very strong second to Turon and the 'Canes won the division in 2015... last year they slid down to fourth... even the all-time IPA leader in victories and strikeouts Cody Burg is feeling the pain... Burg was a poor 13-21 this season with a very mortal 3.66 ERA... Burg is 323-212 in his 18 years with a great 2.66 career ERA... only closer Bobby Maas (4-2) has remained a prime-time player with 33 saves and a brilliant 1.53 ERA... As a team Cape Coral batted only .251 (23rd) and compiled a so-so 3.91 team ERA (23rd)... vet Tank Tucker was Pedroza's biggest winner with a 15-21 mark and a 3.88 ERA... his best bat belonged to 1B Dick Walker, who hit .293 with 19 homers and 73 RBIs... the Hurricanes are certainly not the quality year-to-year contender of a few years ago. The Summerland Sunsets just simply couldn't hit and wound up in sixth place, 33 games back in the race... Will Hackett's club hit only .245... however, the Sunset staff was a good one with Ryan McGhee (15-13 3.37) and Sparky DeWey (15-17 3.64)... it was an especially painful season for 18-year veteran Denny Coulon, who pitched 18 complete games, compiled a very strong 2.48 ERA, yet had only a 9-23 mark to show for it... Coulon is 283-258 lifetime with a stout 2.90 ERA... Rarely in his 18-year career has Coulon has the fortune to play for a strong contender... He played his first 7 seasons in Bay St. Clair, who had some good clubs, but has since languished in obscurity in Summerland... bullpen ace Leon Mullin is a big plus... Mullin was 4-4 with 30 saves and a very good 2.42 ERA... Hackett does have one truly fine ballplayer in LF Vann Kelder, who smacked 40 homers, drove in 104 runs and scored 106 times in his second season... however, Kelder is already 35 and probably doesn't have many more years left. The Ginza Ninjas took a quite a jolt this year and fell all the down to seventh place in the TU South, 34 games behind... lousy hitting did it... the Ninjas batted only .248 and ranked 31st in run scoring... manager Huroko Uchiyama had fair pitching, headed up by his ace Joji Azuma (17-15 2.55), who put up 18 complete games... in the batter's box old reliable C Crash Davis always puts up quality numbers... this year he again led the team with a sparkling .321 BA, 25 homers and 83 runs batted in... the 24-year-old Davis has made the TU All-Star team all 6 years he has been in the IPA. For the fifth year in succession the poor San Alejo Montaneros were doomed to the cellar, winding up way, way back and 43 games behind pennant-winning Turon... manager Marcellino Zuniga ranked near the bottom with a pathetic .243 BA (31st)... the Montaneros didn't have much pitching either... starter Chad Gilmore (9-21 3.28) and closer Robby Franks (4-6 2.68) were Zuniga's only quality arms... Franks had 16 saves... San Alejo's best bats are only mediocre... 2B Ron Felker (.273/20/68/97) and 1B Dominique Poirot (.265/20/78/89) provided the little offense the Montaneros had. Last edited by Eugene Church; 12-08-2010 at 12:24 PM.