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Eugene Church · 01-29-2013, 12:57 PM

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Sunday, April 1, 2035

IPA Set To Start 35th Season Tomorrow
Another exciting IPA season is set to go tomorrow all across the Islands as Year 35 gets underway. The baseball scribes are sharpening their pencils in readiness for the new season. In the Ruthlandian Union according to The Islandian Times preseason poll, the powers-to-be are Cold Creek, Wynnamac, Sugar Valley and Eastshore, all from the the RU East. The Fort Benton Defenders of the RU West were also given an outside chance to take the league title. Over in the Tycobbian Union, which has taken five of the last six Pro Cups looks like a great race between East Point, Tuckanarra, Chicopee, Fairfax and San Alejo. Reigning Pro Cup champ North Hills and Pro Cup finalist Crystal Lake were forecast to be also-rans this season.

Ruthlandian North

The Far Mountain Redhawks are the favorite to dethrone the last year's RU North winner, the Ranford Bulls. Kilkenny is also expected to be in the mix because of its strong pitching. The Redhawks finished a very close second to the Bulls last year. They lost long-time ace Jakob Wagner (20-12/2.77) to free agency to Rolling Hills in the TU, but picked up a solid replacement in Chad Cummings (17-14/2.43), who departed Ranford after five seasons. Two rookies RF Kyle Gottwald and C Gil Erwin should add strong punch to the Far Mountain lineup. Ranford is not as good as last year, but they still are a capable club with the likes of Jimmy Collins (21-9/3.38), Joah Satcher (9-9/3.17) and Rube Satcher (14-15/2.80) on the mound. The Bulls lost Cummings to free agency and have not re-signed their fine SS Sonny Statum (.285 BA), who is a free agent. All-Star/Gold Glove C Kyle Hunt (.257/7/49 RBI) has jumped ship and gone to Claxton. They did sign 40-year-old pitcher Duncan Welch (10-3/2.98), who was quite effective for St. John last year. Welch is a future HOFer with a great 320-221 career record with a super 2.67 ERA... Ranford will have the same problem this year as last year - no offense... 3B Alex Vanno (.280/27 HR/88 RBI/84 R) is the only dependable bat in the order.

Top performers for the LaGrange Sports are 29-year-old Ryan Janssen (21-14/3.09), 30-year-old Walt Thurber (17-14/2.99) and 31-year-old Mike York (11-17/3.72) on the hill... Janssen is 137-96 with a 3.10 ERA after 8 years... Thurber is 106-82 and a terrific 2.86 in his 11 seasons... York is 190-181 with a 3.00 ERA in his 12 years... best position players are 8-year-veteran RF Russell Watkins (.312/40 HR/104 RBI/87 R)... career-wise he sports a .296 BA with 231 homers and 732 RBIs... Watkins is 28... and 1B Chris Charbonnier (.293/31 HR/80 RBI/83 R) overall is .297 for average with 233 roundtrippers and 672 RBIs in his 9 seasons... Charbonnier is 30.

None of the other clubs look capable of contesting for the RU North pennant, but they do have some standout players:

Kilkenny Cats:
at 32 potential HOF-er Dave Whitaker (16-14/2.93) is a career 220-178 with a super 2.86 ERA for a team that seldom has a winning season... 3B-SS Leevi Viru (.286/20 HR/90 RBI/71 R) is a lifetime .319 hitter and 6-time All-Star in his 8 seasons, 7 of them with Valka... Viru is 28.

Ancona Red Elephants:
8-year vet Matt Loudermilk (18-20/3.11) has played for losing teams most of his IPA career, but is 129-137 with a solid 3.22 ERA at age 27... SS Tommy Richardson (.338/18 HR/65 RBI/85 R) shows fine potential after his first two seasons... he is 26 years old.

Valmara Vipers:
33-year-old relief specialist Ivan Guzek (2-1/3.02) and Garry Gronek (13-24/3.85) are quality hurlers... Guzek is a 12-year vet with a lifetime 96-50 mark with a great 2.62 ERA with 145 saves... after 5 seasons Gronek, age 27, is 79-89 with a 3.40 ERA... Guzek played for some real good Viper teams, while Gronek was 21-17 when Valmara won the RU North pennant in 2031 and was 18-18 when they finished fourth in 2032... the last two seasons have been downers for Valmara... RF Benny Hooper (.263/15 HR/69 RBI/74 R) has hit .300 in three of his five seasons as a starter... the 29-year-old Hooper is a lifetime .298 hitter with the Vipers in his 8 seasons.

Glasco Athletics:
talented 1B Kees Draeger (.258/17 HR/70 RBI/64 R) is Glasco's best ball player, but he may be nearing the end of a very good career... Draeger was with Belair Beach for 11 seasons and made the All-Stars on 7 occasions... he carry a lifetime .305 BA with 346 home runs and 1048 RBIs... at age 30 SS Greg Stone (.291/18 HR/72 RBI/70 R) is the A's most reliable batter... he is a .277 hitter in his 6 seasons.

Taranto Tars:
17-year veteran 2B Greg Murphy is beginning to show his age... Murphy batted only .249 with 9 HRs, 35 RBIs and scored 45 runs in 107 games... however in his career Murphy has been a solid .286 batter with 214 homers, 976 RBIs and has scored 1187 times... and he is going into this season as a regular in the lineup... 1B Pasquale Zavaglia, after playing in only 55 games from 2023 to 2026, was dropped from the roster for 5 years, but then he got a reprieve in 2032 and got a late start in the IPA, finally getting a chance at age 30... but Zavaglia came on with a big bang - 49 homers, 102 RBIs and a .287 BA... since then his numbers dropped to 30 home runs, 82 RBIs and a .275 average in 2033... last year to 26 homers, 72 RBIs and a .269 BA... the Tars' best player last year was 28-year-old CF Alonzo Venacio with a .283 BA, 23 HR, 63 RBI and 78 runs... in 5 seasons Venacio is batting .284 for an average.

My Ruthlandian North Forecast: Far Mountain should win and by a good margin over second place LaGrange and third place Ranford... the Sports get the nod over the Bulls because of better hitting... other five clubs are at a level below the three contenders.

01-29-2013, 12:57 PM	#3417
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,869	*THE ISLANDIAN TIMES* Sunday, April 1, 2035 IPA Set To Start 35th Season Tomorrow Another exciting IPA season is set to go tomorrow all across the Islands as Year 35 gets underway. The baseball scribes are sharpening their pencils in readiness for the new season. In the Ruthlandian Union according to The Islandian Times preseason poll, the powers-to-be are Cold Creek, Wynnamac, Sugar Valley and Eastshore, all from the the RU East. The Fort Benton Defenders of the RU West were also given an outside chance to take the league title. Over in the Tycobbian Union, which has taken five of the last six Pro Cups looks like a great race between East Point, Tuckanarra, Chicopee, Fairfax and San Alejo. Reigning Pro Cup champ North Hills and Pro Cup finalist Crystal Lake were forecast to be also-rans this season. Ruthlandian North The Far Mountain Redhawks are the favorite to dethrone the last year's RU North winner, the Ranford Bulls. Kilkenny is also expected to be in the mix because of its strong pitching. The Redhawks finished a very close second to the Bulls last year. They lost long-time ace Jakob Wagner (20-12/2.77) to free agency to Rolling Hills in the TU, but picked up a solid replacement in Chad Cummings (17-14/2.43), who departed Ranford after five seasons. Two rookies RF Kyle Gottwald and C Gil Erwin should add strong punch to the Far Mountain lineup. Ranford is not as good as last year, but they still are a capable club with the likes of Jimmy Collins (21-9/3.38), Joah Satcher (9-9/3.17) and Rube Satcher (14-15/2.80) on the mound. The Bulls lost Cummings to free agency and have not re-signed their fine SS Sonny Statum (.285 BA), who is a free agent. All-Star/Gold Glove C Kyle Hunt (.257/7/49 RBI) has jumped ship and gone to Claxton. They did sign 40-year-old pitcher Duncan Welch (10-3/2.98), who was quite effective for St. John last year. Welch is a future HOFer with a great 320-221 career record with a super 2.67 ERA... Ranford will have the same problem this year as last year - no offense... 3B Alex Vanno (.280/27 HR/88 RBI/84 R) is the only dependable bat in the order. Top performers for the LaGrange Sports are 29-year-old Ryan Janssen (21-14/3.09), 30-year-old Walt Thurber (17-14/2.99) and 31-year-old Mike York (11-17/3.72) on the hill... Janssen is 137-96 with a 3.10 ERA after 8 years... Thurber is 106-82 and a terrific 2.86 in his 11 seasons... York is 190-181 with a 3.00 ERA in his 12 years... best position players are 8-year-veteran RF Russell Watkins (.312/40 HR/104 RBI/87 R)... career-wise he sports a .296 BA with 231 homers and 732 RBIs... Watkins is 28... and 1B Chris Charbonnier (.293/31 HR/80 RBI/83 R) overall is .297 for average with 233 roundtrippers and 672 RBIs in his 9 seasons... Charbonnier is 30. None of the other clubs look capable of contesting for the RU North pennant, but they do have some standout players: Kilkenny Cats: at 32 potential HOF-er Dave Whitaker (16-14/2.93) is a career 220-178 with a super 2.86 ERA for a team that seldom has a winning season... 3B-SS Leevi Viru (.286/20 HR/90 RBI/71 R) is a lifetime .319 hitter and 6-time All-Star in his 8 seasons, 7 of them with Valka... Viru is 28. Ancona Red Elephants: 8-year vet Matt Loudermilk (18-20/3.11) has played for losing teams most of his IPA career, but is 129-137 with a solid 3.22 ERA at age 27... SS Tommy Richardson (.338/18 HR/65 RBI/85 R) shows fine potential after his first two seasons... he is 26 years old. Valmara Vipers: 33-year-old relief specialist Ivan Guzek (2-1/3.02) and Garry Gronek (13-24/3.85) are quality hurlers... Guzek is a 12-year vet with a lifetime 96-50 mark with a great 2.62 ERA with 145 saves... after 5 seasons Gronek, age 27, is 79-89 with a 3.40 ERA... Guzek played for some real good Viper teams, while Gronek was 21-17 when Valmara won the RU North pennant in 2031 and was 18-18 when they finished fourth in 2032... the last two seasons have been downers for Valmara... RF Benny Hooper (.263/15 HR/69 RBI/74 R) has hit .300 in three of his five seasons as a starter... the 29-year-old Hooper is a lifetime .298 hitter with the Vipers in his 8 seasons. Glasco Athletics: talented 1B Kees Draeger (.258/17 HR/70 RBI/64 R) is Glasco's best ball player, but he may be nearing the end of a very good career... Draeger was with Belair Beach for 11 seasons and made the All-Stars on 7 occasions... he carry a lifetime .305 BA with 346 home runs and 1048 RBIs... at age 30 SS Greg Stone (.291/18 HR/72 RBI/70 R) is the A's most reliable batter... he is a .277 hitter in his 6 seasons. Taranto Tars: 17-year veteran 2B Greg Murphy is beginning to show his age... Murphy batted only .249 with 9 HRs, 35 RBIs and scored 45 runs in 107 games... however in his career Murphy has been a solid .286 batter with 214 homers, 976 RBIs and has scored 1187 times... and he is going into this season as a regular in the lineup... 1B Pasquale Zavaglia, after playing in only 55 games from 2023 to 2026, was dropped from the roster for 5 years, but then he got a reprieve in 2032 and got a late start in the IPA, finally getting a chance at age 30... but Zavaglia came on with a big bang - 49 homers, 102 RBIs and a .287 BA... since then his numbers dropped to 30 home runs, 82 RBIs and a .275 average in 2033... last year to 26 homers, 72 RBIs and a .269 BA... the Tars' best player last year was 28-year-old CF Alonzo Venacio with a .283 BA, 23 HR, 63 RBI and 78 runs... in 5 seasons Venacio is batting .284 for an average. My Ruthlandian North Forecast: Far Mountain should win and by a good margin over second place LaGrange and third place Ranford... the Sports get the nod over the Bulls because of better hitting... other five clubs are at a level below the three contenders. Last edited by Eugene Church; 01-31-2013 at 10:28 PM.