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Eugene Church · 02-05-2012, 10:32 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Tuesday, June 18, 2030

2030 Ruthlandian South Mid-Season Recap

Crushers Top Super-Tight RU South
Only 3 games separate first place and fourth place in the super-tight Ruthlandian South pennant race... Crystal Lake has a narrow one-game lead over runners-up Waleska and Grand City with fourth-place St. John just 3 games off the pace... in fact only 2 teams in the division seem to be out of the race this year... fifth-place San Dimas is only 7 games behind and sixth-place Valka trails by just 8 games... a hot streak or two could put them right back in the chase.

Defending Champ and Best Offense: Crystal Lake
The Crystal Lake Crushers won the flag last year, dependent on strong hitting and fairly good pitching... same thing this year with a .288 BA (1st) and a 3.42 team ERA (8th)... highest-scoring club in the RU with Herm Taylor (.314), All-Star Carl Bentley (.348), Tommy Trent (.332) and Sterling Hall (.359) in the batting order... biggest shortcoming is its bad bullpen (5.83 ERA)... three fine starters with All-Stars Arnie Cason (12-6/2.22) and T. D. Burnham (12-5/2.69)... also lost stalwart Duncan Welch (19-14) to South Fork via free agency... but got a revitalized Ben Garvik (11-5/3.14) to replace him... Garvik couldn't make the roster last year after two poor seasons in a row, but after a year off, he's back and the best he has ever been.

For the ninth successive year Waleska is one of the top three teams in the standings and will surely contend for the division flag... the team is hitting .272 (7th) and is 4th in scoring... excellent pitching, too, with a 3.02 ERA (3rd)... superstar All-Stars Roy Hobbs (.333) and Loco Dillinger (.288) still lead the offense... All-Star Terry Richards (12-3/1.94) and Wild Bill Butler (9-5/3.96) again head up the mound staff.

Most Improved Team: Grand City
The Grand City Cybercats started the season with a great 21-7 April, but have cooled off considerably... still they are tied for second, only a game out... lost two starters to injury... the Cybercats feature power hitting with 80 home runs (2nd) and are 3rd in scoring... paced by All-Star Thomas Hall (17 HR), All-Star Wes Marlowe (15 HR) and Mick Langston (16 HR)... pitchers Danny Denver (12-20/4.04) and Charley Chishom (11-5/2.98) will miss the entire season... free agents Kip Day (10-8/4.11) and Billy Ray (6-7/3.45) have been good replacements... All-Star reliever Lefty Frizzell (1-2/1.50/11 saves) has solidifed the bullpen.

Improved offense has moved St. John up from the second division... the fourth-place Crusaders boast a .284 team BA (3rd) and are ranked 2nd in scoring runs... top hitters are All-Star Brad Maddox (.356), All-Star Roger Lanier (.336), Leon Clendennon (.323) and Joey Daigrepont (.317)... needs help in the pitching corps... signed free agent plum, Loris Plooster (4-7/4.59), but he fractured his elbow in June and will be lost for the year... 3.86 team ERA (22nd) is the the big problem... Jeremy Vincent (6-2/2.70) and vet Don Baillie (9-5/4.14) are carrying the club, along with reliever Nelson Hawthorne (4-2/1.66/6 saves).

Best Pitching: San Dimas
If fifth-place San Dimas can find some hitting, the Rancheros could move up in the standings... they are ranked 4th in pitching with a 3.06 ERA with good starters and quality relievers... Miguel Valdes (10-6/1.95), Joaquin Lima (8-6/2.96) and veteran Shannon White (9-7/3.58) lead the way on the hill... Ramon Escobar (.281) and Gregg Mathis (.277) are the most reliable bats.

Best Defense: Valka
The season started well for the Valka Blackhawks with a 17-11 mark, but they faltered in May... now the Blackhawks have slipped to sixth place... pitching is the dilemma with a 4.17 team ERA (29th)... Villem Arumaa (7-5/4.10) is the best of the lot... Valka can hold its own at the plate with a .262 BA (13th) and is ranked 7th in runs and 9th in homers with 64... All-Star Leevi Viru (.324), All-Star Olari Ojastu (.302) and Jaak Pajukivi (.310) are the Blackhawks best threats... the Blackhawks are the best fielding club in the IPA with a superb .987 FA.

The Claxton Diamonds and the Belair Beach Sunbirds are already way back in the pennant hunt and don't appear to be capable of contending this season... the Diamonds are in seventh place and 12 games behind, while the Sunbirds are in the basement and 16 games out of first place... Claxton has good starting pitching with a 3.20 team ERA (6th), led by Jarno Berkman (4-2/1.96) and Freddi Hahn (6-7/2.87)... but the bullpen is bad with a 4.20 ERA (28th)... the Diamond offense is batting only .250 (26th)... home runs supply most of the scoring with 70 (5th), pace by Pete Banks (17 HR) and Ivan Krause (15 HR).

Belair Beach ranks near the bottom in almost everything with a .250 BA, 51 homers and a 4.07 ERA... free agent Fernando Melendez (7-1/3.06) and vet Daniel Ferguson (6-9/2.78) are solid starters, but have little help... 8-year standout Kees Draeger is the only run producer... Draeger has 11 homers, 35 RBIs and a .286 batting average.

02-05-2012, 10:32 PM	#2960
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 36,058	*THE ISLANDIAN TIMES* Tuesday, June 18, 2030 2030 Ruthlandian South Mid-Season Recap Crushers Top Super-Tight RU South Only 3 games separate first place and fourth place in the super-tight Ruthlandian South pennant race... Crystal Lake has a narrow one-game lead over runners-up Waleska and Grand City with fourth-place St. John just 3 games off the pace... in fact only 2 teams in the division seem to be out of the race this year... fifth-place San Dimas is only 7 games behind and sixth-place Valka trails by just 8 games... a hot streak or two could put them right back in the chase. Defending Champ and Best Offense: Crystal Lake The Crystal Lake Crushers won the flag last year, dependent on strong hitting and fairly good pitching... same thing this year with a .288 BA (1st) and a 3.42 team ERA (8th)... highest-scoring club in the RU with Herm Taylor (.314), All-Star Carl Bentley (.348), Tommy Trent (.332) and Sterling Hall (.359) in the batting order... biggest shortcoming is its bad bullpen (5.83 ERA)... three fine starters with All-Stars Arnie Cason (12-6/2.22) and T. D. Burnham (12-5/2.69)... also lost stalwart Duncan Welch (19-14) to South Fork via free agency... but got a revitalized Ben Garvik (11-5/3.14) to replace him... Garvik couldn't make the roster last year after two poor seasons in a row, but after a year off, he's back and the best he has ever been. For the ninth successive year Waleska is one of the top three teams in the standings and will surely contend for the division flag... the team is hitting .272 (7th) and is 4th in scoring... excellent pitching, too, with a 3.02 ERA (3rd)... superstar All-Stars Roy Hobbs (.333) and Loco Dillinger (.288) still lead the offense... All-Star Terry Richards (12-3/1.94) and Wild Bill Butler (9-5/3.96) again head up the mound staff. Most Improved Team: Grand City The Grand City Cybercats started the season with a great 21-7 April, but have cooled off considerably... still they are tied for second, only a game out... lost two starters to injury... the Cybercats feature power hitting with 80 home runs (2nd) and are 3rd in scoring... paced by All-Star Thomas Hall (17 HR), All-Star Wes Marlowe (15 HR) and Mick Langston (16 HR)... pitchers Danny Denver (12-20/4.04) and Charley Chishom (11-5/2.98) will miss the entire season... free agents Kip Day (10-8/4.11) and Billy Ray (6-7/3.45) have been good replacements... All-Star reliever Lefty Frizzell (1-2/1.50/11 saves) has solidifed the bullpen. Improved offense has moved St. John up from the second division... the fourth-place Crusaders boast a .284 team BA (3rd) and are ranked 2nd in scoring runs... top hitters are All-Star Brad Maddox (.356), All-Star Roger Lanier (.336), Leon Clendennon (.323) and Joey Daigrepont (.317)... needs help in the pitching corps... signed free agent plum, Loris Plooster (4-7/4.59), but he fractured his elbow in June and will be lost for the year... 3.86 team ERA (22nd) is the the big problem... Jeremy Vincent (6-2/2.70) and vet Don Baillie (9-5/4.14) are carrying the club, along with reliever Nelson Hawthorne (4-2/1.66/6 saves). Best Pitching: San Dimas If fifth-place San Dimas can find some hitting, the Rancheros could move up in the standings... they are ranked 4th in pitching with a 3.06 ERA with good starters and quality relievers... Miguel Valdes (10-6/1.95), Joaquin Lima (8-6/2.96) and veteran Shannon White (9-7/3.58) lead the way on the hill... Ramon Escobar (.281) and Gregg Mathis (.277) are the most reliable bats. Best Defense: Valka The season started well for the Valka Blackhawks with a 17-11 mark, but they faltered in May... now the Blackhawks have slipped to sixth place... pitching is the dilemma with a 4.17 team ERA (29th)... Villem Arumaa (7-5/4.10) is the best of the lot... Valka can hold its own at the plate with a .262 BA (13th) and is ranked 7th in runs and 9th in homers with 64... All-Star Leevi Viru (.324), All-Star Olari Ojastu (.302) and Jaak Pajukivi (.310) are the Blackhawks best threats... the Blackhawks are the best fielding club in the IPA with a superb .987 FA. The Claxton Diamonds and the Belair Beach Sunbirds are already way back in the pennant hunt and don't appear to be capable of contending this season... the Diamonds are in seventh place and 12 games behind, while the Sunbirds are in the basement and 16 games out of first place... Claxton has good starting pitching with a 3.20 team ERA (6th), led by Jarno Berkman (4-2/1.96) and Freddi Hahn (6-7/2.87)... but the bullpen is bad with a 4.20 ERA (28th)... the Diamond offense is batting only .250 (26th)... home runs supply most of the scoring with 70 (5th), pace by Pete Banks (17 HR) and Ivan Krause (15 HR). Belair Beach ranks near the bottom in almost everything with a .250 BA, 51 homers and a 4.07 ERA... free agent Fernando Melendez (7-1/3.06) and vet Daniel Ferguson (6-9/2.78) are solid starters, but have little help... 8-year standout Kees Draeger is the only run producer... Draeger has 11 homers, 35 RBIs and a .286 batting average. Attached Images Last edited by Eugene Church; 02-06-2012 at 11:33 PM.