View Single Post
Old 07-15-2015, 12:42 PM   #4861
Eugene Church
Hall Of Famer
 
Eugene Church's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Posts: 35,877
THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Monday, October 28, 2052

IPA FOURTH ALL-DECADE TEAM 2031-2040

RF: Bobby Gamble (2033-2047)
If there ever was a 5-tool player, the Fourth All-Decade Team right fielder, Bobby Gamble, was one... he hit at a .315 clip in his career with 530 homers, 1735 RBIs, scored 1864 runs and stole 453 bases in 17 seasons with the Sugar Valley Rattlers... 11 times Gamble was an All-Star, he captured 5 Ruthlandian Golden Bat trophies and 2 Golden Gloves... led his team to 4 division titles and one Pro Cup crown... Sugar Valley topped Southport in the 2045 Pro Cup championship series... Gamble has also been very successful as the skipper of the Rattlers, taking over in '47 from his legendary mentor, Gibby Bobkins... with Gamble at the helm Sugar Valley has won 5 straight Ruthlandian East pennants so far.

Yesterday in the IPA

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Friday, October 13, 2045

2045 IPA PRO CUP SERIES - Game 6

RATTLERS ROMP TO FIRST PRO CUP
Twice before in the club's history the Sugar Valley Rattlers had a chance to win the IPA Pro Cup... they failed both times... 2004 and 2024... but they were not to be denied this time... the underdog Rattlers smashed defending champ Southport 15-1 in game six to wrap up their first IPA title... Grand slam homers by Carl Ramsey and Delmer Campbell led the Rattler rampage that finished off the Sun Sox in six games... they got 6 runs in the top of the fifth and 8 more in the eighth to send the favored Sun Sox home to face a long, long winter.

Three pitchers combined for the victory... Joe Snow (1-3/4.40) fired 5 shutout innings and struck out 7, allowing 4 hits... with a 6-0 lead he was forced to leave the game because of a long rain delay... but Domenico Renterias continued the shutout with two more scoreless frames... and Sammy Hughes nailed it down, but did permit one run in 2 innings... alltogether Rattler pitchers struck out 13 Sun Sox... starter Gordon Forbes (0-1/5.40) was scorched for 5 runs in 6 innings for the loss.

Sugar Valley rapped out 14 hits with LF Bobby Gamble (.408) going 3-4 with 2 runs and 2 RBIs... 1B James Milton (.319) was 3-5 with 2 runs and an RBI... and RF Jeff Harvey (.284) going 2-5 with 2 runs and an RBI... CF Barney Lewis (.206) homered for the Sun Sox's only score.

It was quite a retirement party for Sugar Valley's Gibby Bobkins, who told the press, "What a way to call it a career... finally winning the Pro Cup."... Bobkins is retiring this year after being at the helm for 45 seasons... 32-year-old superstar outfielder Bobby Gamble will be his replacement... Gamble will continue to be an on-field player and doesn't plan to retire soon.

Bobkins said, "It's hard to beat a team that hits 27 homers in the playoffs... my Rattlers did a good job beating some pretty fair pitchers... Gamble is the greatest... he is the heart and soul of the team."

As happy as the Sugar Valley locker room was, the Southport clubhouse was somber and as quiet as a morgue... to a man they were hoping to win back-to-back Pro Cups for their beloved manager Charley Oscar, who is also retiring this year... Oscar gave hearty congratulations to Bobkins and his Rattlers, "They came in against the odds and proved they were the best team in the IPA this year... Gamble and Ramsey are truly gifted players... but the whole line-up is filled with tough outs... they made my great staff look ordinary."

Yesterday in the IPA

THE ISLANDIAN TIMES
Saturday, October 14, 2045

SV'S GAMBLE CHOSEN PRO CUP MVP
Bobby Gamble of the Sugar Valley Rattlers has done it all in his fabulous career - 3-time Ruthlandian MVP, 10-time All-Star, 5-time Golden Bat winner, Golden Glover, 3-time pennant winner - and now Pro Cup winner and Pro Cup Most Valuable Player. Gamble sparked the Rattlers to their first-ever IPA crown with a .408 BA, 5 homers, 15 RBIs, 14 runs and 13 walks. He was the overwhelming choice in a poll conducted by The Islandian Times. Three other Rattler players got a few scattered votes: pitcher Antonio Cedeno, who was 3-1 in 5 starts with a fine 2.33 ERA, outfielder Carl Ramsey (.253 BA) with 7 homers, 13 RBIs and 12 runs and pitcher Davey Brennan with a 4-2 mark in 6 starts with a 3.22 ERA.
Attached Images
Image Image 

Last edited by Eugene Church; 01-02-2016 at 05:14 PM.
Eugene Church is offline   Reply With Quote