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Westheim · 06-05-2018, 03:38 PM

2024 PLAYOFFS

Once again, the 107-55 Scorpions entered the playoffs with the best record in baseball, which hadn't stopped them from choking with regularity in recent years, and often already in the CLCS. They were in the playoffs for the 13th time, and the record-setting sixth year in a row. This team had scored an impressive 883 runs while allowing 637, the latter mark second-best in the Federal League, while the 883 runs scored led all of baseball. Offense clearly was the strength of this team that put up a league-leading .378 team on-base percentage and added to power to make it count, although only 1B Luis Moreira (.269, 25 HR, 108 RBI) had hit over 20 home runs and had driven in at least 100. The pitching staff was rock-solid, but lacked the killer ace, although Ian Rutter, 36, had a pretty good 17-4 season with a 3.14 ERA. The Scoprions had lost CF Justin McAllester (.293, 19 HR, 103 RBI) to injury in September, which in a weird way helped to balance their lineup a little bit, which was ridiculously hanging to the left side. All their starting pitchers were right-handed, and Ben Marx (10-5, 3.47 ERA, 1 SV) was the only meaningful left-handed reliever, but his name was already tied to a colossal playoff meltdown with the Capitals…

The 95-67 Buffaloes, the first version of that team to make the playoffs in two decades and sixth overall, had led the Federal League in runs allowed, with a pretty good rotation and the best bullpen anywhere. Carlos Marron (15-7, 2.94 ERA) had led the rotation and Mike Baker (7-4, 1.88 ERA, 40 SV) was saving mostly anything there was to save. The offense however was not so shiny; they had finished only sixth in runs scored, and were relying on the middle of their order to get things done; the bottom of their lineup was pretty thin compared to the Scorpions. At least their lineup and pitching staff were pretty balanced between left- and right-handed players, and they had no injuries to worry about.

Over in the Continental League, the 92-70 Knights had homefield advantage after beating out three teams within five wins of their final tally. They had made the postseason on offense alone, scoring the second-most runs in the CL (an even 800), but had conceded 710, which ranked them in the bottom half of all CL teams. They could parade in but one starting pitcher with an ERA better than four in Leon Hernandez (14-10, 3.61 ERA), and had maybe three reliable arms in the bullpen. Those aside, there was a whole lot of 4's across the board. On offense, C Ruben Luna (.268, 31 HR, 95 RBI) had tied for the CL lead in home runs, and SS Andrew Showalter had also hit 25 dingers and driven in 92. It was a dense lineup without many weakspots, but then there was the pitching staff, which was one giant weakspot. Their injuries had made much of this worse, with Frank Kelly (2-4, 2.88 ERA) and Brian Cope (14-10, 3.59 ERA) having gone down to injuries when they greatly could have livened up the rotation. From the lineup, they missed INF Tony Jimenez (.278, 6 HR, 29 RBI), who had shattered his ankle in July and was still on crutches with no weight-bearing. The Knights were in the playoffs for the seventh time and the second time in this decade after '21, but they hadn't played in the World Series since *1986*.

The 91-71 Titans weren't exactly healthy, having lost key lineup cog Adrian Reichardt (.284, 14 HR, 68 RBI) at the very end of the season, and were also without infielder Mike Kane (.258, 5 HR, 66 RBI), who had a chance to return after the CLCS, but they combined their top 3 offense (750 runs) with the best pitching in the league as they had posted only 601 runs allowed, which gave them a far superior run differential when compared to the Knights. Jeremy Waite (13-4, 2.96 ERA) had the best ERA, while Dustin Wingo (16-13, 3.82 ERA) had tied for the league lead in wins. The bullpen was sturdy, with four left-handers to counter any left-handed batter the Knights would throw in. Boston was in their 11th postseason and the third in a row after a 16-year playoff drought. They were also the twice-defending champions.

Two of the four ABL teams to never win a championship are in the postseason: the Buffaloes and the Knights. The Scorpions tie for third place with three titles, most recently in 2020, while the Titans are in second place with sixth titles, vying to tie the Crusaders for the top spot with a seventh championship. While the Knights' 1986 World Series loss to the Blue Sox was their only trip to the Big Show, the Buffaloes had most recently made it in 2001, falling to the Titans in their second attempt at the championship after 1981 (when they lost to the Indians).

Nevertheless, the pundits don't give the zero-ring-teams much of a chance. Everybody expects a Titans-Scorpions series. But nobody expected the Scorpions to bow out of the last three consecutive FLCS either…

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2024 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

Titans @ Knights … 6-0 … (Titans lead 1-0) … BOS Chris Klein 9.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K, W (1-0);

Chris Klein no-hits the Knights for 8 1/3 innings to begin the 2024 playoffs until Phil Neubecker plays pinch-hitting spoiler. His single remains meaningless, however.

Buffaloes @ Scorpions … 2-5 … (Scorpions lead 1-0) … SAC Jason LaCombe 0-1, 4 BB; SS Jorge Castro 3-5, 2 RBI;
Titans @ Knights … 8-5 … (Titans lead 2-0) … BOS Adam Braun 3-5, 2B, RBI; BOS Adam St. Germaine 3-5; BOS Gil Cornejo 3-3, 2B, 2 RBI;

A rain delay, a 5-run fifth for the Knights dissipating quickly, an injured Titan (Cornejo), and an injured Knight (MR Freddy Heredia) is the tally of this wicked Game 2.

Buffaloes @ Scorpions … 2-3 … (Scorpions lead 2-0) … TOP Nick Danieley 8.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K and 2-3; SAC Michael Foreman 8.0 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K;

Infielder John Byrd walks off Sacramento with a home run off Mike Baker in the ninth, but the Scorpions still take a terrible blow as they lose star outfielder Pablo Sanchez (.351, 10 HR, 74 RBI). A strained hamstring renders him out for the rest of the campaign.

Knights @ Titans … 8-2 … (Titans lead 2-1) … ATL Johnny Stuckey 2-5, 2B, 3 RBI; ATL Andrew Showalter 3-5, 3B; ATL Jeremy Houghtaling 2-4, BB, 3B, 2B, 3 RBI;

Another sour apple as Andrew Showalter is out with a bruised wrist, robbing the Knights of a key piece of their lineup.

Scorpions @ Buffaloes … 5-3 … (Scorpions lead 3-0) …
Knights @ Titans … 0-4 … (Titans lead 3-1) … BOS Adam Corder 2-5, RBI; BOS Chris Klein 8.1, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K, W (2-0);

Scorpions @ Buffaloes … 3-5 … (Scorpions lead 3-1) … SAC Jason LaCombe 2-3, BB, 2B, 2 RBI; TOP Marco Hernandes 3-4, 2B;
Knights @ Titans … 3-4 … (Titans win 4-1) … ATL Will McIntyre 3-5; BOS Matt Owen 2-3, 2 RBI; BOS Dustin Wingo 8.0 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, W (1-0);

Scorpions @ Buffaloes … 3-6 … (Scorpions lead 3-2) … TOP Alfredo Quintana 2-3, BB, RBI; TOP Chris Mendoza 2-3, 2B, 3 RBI;

Buffaloes @ Scorpions … 3-4 … (Scorpions win 4-2) … TOP Chris Mendoza 2-4, HR, 2 RBI; SAC Trey Rock 2-3, BB, 2B; SAC Michael Foreman 7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, W (1-0);

No more shame in the CLCS for Sacramento – the top seed actually moves to the World Series this time!

+++

2024 WORLD SERIES

The Titans had more or less dominated the Knights in the CLCS, moving to the World Series as expected, and only at slight cost. Gil Cornejo was still laboring on a mild hip strain, but was available from Game 1. The overall balance to the Titans' roster could only help them to master the Scorpions, especially the four left-handed relievers could come in handy in this series.

On the other hand, the Scorpions being robbed of Pablo Sanchez was the grimmest joke the baseball gods had pulled in a while, and they had to dig deeper into their outfield reserves, with Justin McAllester already on the sidelines. They remained seriously lopsided with few if any left-handed pitching options, and a really, really heavily left-handed lineup, but they had outscored the Titans by 133 runs in the regular season, and that should count for something, right?

Both teams had some injury woes; the Scorpions probably still had a slight edge with the lineup, but only as long as the Titans stuck to their right-handed starters. Boston on the other hand still had the best pitching overall and the good pitchers were supposed to beat the good hitters, right?

Boston in seven!

+++

Titans @ Scorpions … 7-4 … (Titans lead 1-0) … BOS Adam St. Germaine 3-5, HR, 2 RBI; BOS Gil Cornejo 3-3, 2 RBI; SAC Luis Moreira 3-3, BB, 2 2B, RBI;

Titans @ Scorpions … 8-5 … (Titans lead 2-0) … BOS Adam Corder 0-1, 4 BB; BOS Adam St. Germaine 3-4, 3B; BOS Gil Cornejo 2-3, BB, 2 RBI;

Boston drops five in the third inning to take command early and now has a sterling chance to win their third straight title in a row at home. Only one franchise has ever won three in a row, and they did it twice: the 2007-09 *and* 2013-15 Crusaders.

Scorpions @ Titans … 7-2 … (Titans lead 2-1) … SAC Trey Rock 4-5, HR, 2B, 3 RBI; SAC Jorge Castro 2-5, 2B, 2 RBI; BOS Gil Cornejo 2-3, HR, 2 RBI;

Scorpions @ Titans … 3-9 … (Titans lead 3-1) … BOS Adam Corder 4-4, BB, 2 RBI; BOS Matt Owen 2-4, 3 RBI; BOS Chris Klein 7.2 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, W (4-0) and 2-3;

14 hits, all singles, put the Titans one win away from the trophy. Sacramento's Jordan Caldwell allows six runs in four innings, but only two of those are earned as the Scorpions suffer a complete defensive breakdown and the 14 hits aside also fudge up three errors.

Scorpions @ Titans … 4-2 … (Titans lead 3-2) … SAC Doug Stross 3-3, 2 BB, 2B; SAC Justin Jackson 2-3, 2B, 3 RBI;

Behind Mario Alva, who guts it for 6.2 innings of 1-run ball on 110 pitches, the Scorpions send the series back to Sacramento, with the Titans stranding the tying runs aboard in the eighth and ninth innings.

Titans @ Scorpions … 9-1 … (Titans win 4-2) … BOS Adam Braun 4-5, 2B, RBI; BOS Adam St. Germaine 2-5, 2 2B, 3 RBI; BOS Rhett West 2-4, BB, 2 RBI; BOS Gil Cornejo 2-5, RBI;

The Scorpions keep it close until the sixth, when their defense does them in … again. The innings begins with Jeremy Waite, the Boston pitcher, reaching on Luis Moreira's error, and the Titans add two walks, two singles, and a bases-clearing, heart-piercing double by St. Germaine in dismantling the team that wins the West every year, but really not a whole lot more.

2024 WORLD CHAMPIONS
Boston Titans
7th title

+++

Herewith, the Raccoons go to hiatus, as has been previously announced.

Laptop delivery is currently scheduled for the end of the week, although that date has been fleeting in both directions so far, and I expect it to take me a few days to get it set up like I want it.

(places hammer on the table)

This is also my first Win10 device that is not in an office where I have no rights to do anything anyway. Am I right that the first thing to kill is OneDrive?

Ah, all will be so well.

06-05-2018, 03:38 PM	#2545
Westheim Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Germany Posts: 13,763	2024 PLAYOFFS Once again, the 107-55 Scorpions entered the playoffs with the best record in baseball, which hadn't stopped them from choking with regularity in recent years, and often already in the CLCS. They were in the playoffs for the 13th time, and the record-setting sixth year in a row. This team had scored an impressive 883 runs while allowing 637, the latter mark second-best in the Federal League, while the 883 runs scored led all of baseball. Offense clearly was the strength of this team that put up a league-leading .378 team on-base percentage and added to power to make it count, although only 1B Luis Moreira (.269, 25 HR, 108 RBI) had hit over 20 home runs and had driven in at least 100. The pitching staff was rock-solid, but lacked the killer ace, although Ian Rutter, 36, had a pretty good 17-4 season with a 3.14 ERA. The Scoprions had lost CF Justin McAllester (.293, 19 HR, 103 RBI) to injury in September, which in a weird way helped to balance their lineup a little bit, which was ridiculously hanging to the left side. All their starting pitchers were right-handed, and Ben Marx (10-5, 3.47 ERA, 1 SV) was the only meaningful left-handed reliever, but his name was already tied to a colossal playoff meltdown with the Capitals… The 95-67 Buffaloes, the first version of that team to make the playoffs in two decades and sixth overall, had led the Federal League in runs allowed, with a pretty good rotation and the best bullpen anywhere. Carlos Marron (15-7, 2.94 ERA) had led the rotation and Mike Baker (7-4, 1.88 ERA, 40 SV) was saving mostly anything there was to save. The offense however was not so shiny; they had finished only sixth in runs scored, and were relying on the middle of their order to get things done; the bottom of their lineup was pretty thin compared to the Scorpions. At least their lineup and pitching staff were pretty balanced between left- and right-handed players, and they had no injuries to worry about. Over in the Continental League, the 92-70 Knights had homefield advantage after beating out three teams within five wins of their final tally. They had made the postseason on offense alone, scoring the second-most runs in the CL (an even 800), but had conceded 710, which ranked them in the bottom half of all CL teams. They could parade in but one starting pitcher with an ERA better than four in Leon Hernandez (14-10, 3.61 ERA), and had maybe three reliable arms in the bullpen. Those aside, there was a whole lot of 4's across the board. On offense, C Ruben Luna (.268, 31 HR, 95 RBI) had tied for the CL lead in home runs, and SS Andrew Showalter had also hit 25 dingers and driven in 92. It was a dense lineup without many weakspots, but then there was the pitching staff, which was one giant weakspot. Their injuries had made much of this worse, with Frank Kelly (2-4, 2.88 ERA) and Brian Cope (14-10, 3.59 ERA) having gone down to injuries when they greatly could have livened up the rotation. From the lineup, they missed INF Tony Jimenez (.278, 6 HR, 29 RBI), who had shattered his ankle in July and was still on crutches with no weight-bearing. The Knights were in the playoffs for the seventh time and the second time in this decade after '21, but they hadn't played in the World Series since 1986. The 91-71 Titans weren't exactly healthy, having lost key lineup cog Adrian Reichardt (.284, 14 HR, 68 RBI) at the very end of the season, and were also without infielder Mike Kane (.258, 5 HR, 66 RBI), who had a chance to return after the CLCS, but they combined their top 3 offense (750 runs) with the best pitching in the league as they had posted only 601 runs allowed, which gave them a far superior run differential when compared to the Knights. Jeremy Waite (13-4, 2.96 ERA) had the best ERA, while Dustin Wingo (16-13, 3.82 ERA) had tied for the league lead in wins. The bullpen was sturdy, with four left-handers to counter any left-handed batter the Knights would throw in. Boston was in their 11th postseason and the third in a row after a 16-year playoff drought. They were also the twice-defending champions. Two of the four ABL teams to never win a championship are in the postseason: the Buffaloes and the Knights. The Scorpions tie for third place with three titles, most recently in 2020, while the Titans are in second place with sixth titles, vying to tie the Crusaders for the top spot with a seventh championship. While the Knights' 1986 World Series loss to the Blue Sox was their only trip to the Big Show, the Buffaloes had most recently made it in 2001, falling to the Titans in their second attempt at the championship after 1981 (when they lost to the Indians). Nevertheless, the pundits don't give the zero-ring-teams much of a chance. Everybody expects a Titans-Scorpions series. But nobody expected the Scorpions to bow out of the last three consecutive FLCS either… +++ 2024 LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES Titans @ Knights … 6-0 … (Titans lead 1-0) … BOS Chris Klein 9.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K, W (1-0); Chris Klein no-hits the Knights for 8 1/3 innings to begin the 2024 playoffs until Phil Neubecker plays pinch-hitting spoiler. His single remains meaningless, however. Buffaloes @ Scorpions … 2-5 … (Scorpions lead 1-0) … SAC Jason LaCombe 0-1, 4 BB; SS Jorge Castro 3-5, 2 RBI; Titans @ Knights … 8-5 … (Titans lead 2-0) … BOS Adam Braun 3-5, 2B, RBI; BOS Adam St. Germaine 3-5; BOS Gil Cornejo 3-3, 2B, 2 RBI; A rain delay, a 5-run fifth for the Knights dissipating quickly, an injured Titan (Cornejo), and an injured Knight (MR Freddy Heredia) is the tally of this wicked Game 2. Buffaloes @ Scorpions … 2-3 … (Scorpions lead 2-0) … TOP Nick Danieley 8.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K and 2-3; SAC Michael Foreman 8.0 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K; Infielder John Byrd walks off Sacramento with a home run off Mike Baker in the ninth, but the Scorpions still take a terrible blow as they lose star outfielder Pablo Sanchez (.351, 10 HR, 74 RBI). A strained hamstring renders him out for the rest of the campaign. Knights @ Titans … 8-2 … (Titans lead 2-1) … ATL Johnny Stuckey 2-5, 2B, 3 RBI; ATL Andrew Showalter 3-5, 3B; ATL Jeremy Houghtaling 2-4, BB, 3B, 2B, 3 RBI; Another sour apple as Andrew Showalter is out with a bruised wrist, robbing the Knights of a key piece of their lineup. Scorpions @ Buffaloes … 5-3 … (Scorpions lead 3-0) … Knights @ Titans … 0-4 … (Titans lead 3-1) … BOS Adam Corder 2-5, RBI; BOS Chris Klein 8.1, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K, W (2-0); Scorpions @ Buffaloes … 3-5 … (Scorpions lead 3-1) … SAC Jason LaCombe 2-3, BB, 2B, 2 RBI; TOP Marco Hernandes 3-4, 2B; Knights @ Titans … 3-4 … (Titans win 4-1) … ATL Will McIntyre 3-5; BOS Matt Owen 2-3, 2 RBI; BOS Dustin Wingo 8.0 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, W (1-0); Scorpions @ Buffaloes … 3-6 … (Scorpions lead 3-2) … TOP Alfredo Quintana 2-3, BB, RBI; TOP Chris Mendoza 2-3, 2B, 3 RBI; Buffaloes @ Scorpions … 3-4 … (Scorpions win 4-2) … TOP Chris Mendoza 2-4, HR, 2 RBI; SAC Trey Rock 2-3, BB, 2B; SAC Michael Foreman 7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, W (1-0); No more shame in the CLCS for Sacramento – the top seed actually moves to the World Series this time! +++ 2024 WORLD SERIES The Titans had more or less dominated the Knights in the CLCS, moving to the World Series as expected, and only at slight cost. Gil Cornejo was still laboring on a mild hip strain, but was available from Game 1. The overall balance to the Titans' roster could only help them to master the Scorpions, especially the four left-handed relievers could come in handy in this series. On the other hand, the Scorpions being robbed of Pablo Sanchez was the grimmest joke the baseball gods had pulled in a while, and they had to dig deeper into their outfield reserves, with Justin McAllester already on the sidelines. They remained seriously lopsided with few if any left-handed pitching options, and a really, really heavily left-handed lineup, but they had outscored the Titans by 133 runs in the regular season, and that should count for something, right? Both teams had some injury woes; the Scorpions probably still had a slight edge with the lineup, but only as long as the Titans stuck to their right-handed starters. Boston on the other hand still had the best pitching overall and the good pitchers were supposed to beat the good hitters, right? Boston in seven! +++ Titans @ Scorpions … 7-4 … (Titans lead 1-0) … BOS Adam St. Germaine 3-5, HR, 2 RBI; BOS Gil Cornejo 3-3, 2 RBI; SAC Luis Moreira 3-3, BB, 2 2B, RBI; Titans @ Scorpions … 8-5 … (Titans lead 2-0) … BOS Adam Corder 0-1, 4 BB; BOS Adam St. Germaine 3-4, 3B; BOS Gil Cornejo 2-3, BB, 2 RBI; Boston drops five in the third inning to take command early and now has a sterling chance to win their third straight title in a row at home. Only one franchise has ever won three in a row, and they did it twice: the 2007-09 and 2013-15 Crusaders. Scorpions @ Titans … 7-2 … (Titans lead 2-1) … SAC Trey Rock 4-5, HR, 2B, 3 RBI; SAC Jorge Castro 2-5, 2B, 2 RBI; BOS Gil Cornejo 2-3, HR, 2 RBI; Scorpions @ Titans … 3-9 … (Titans lead 3-1) … BOS Adam Corder 4-4, BB, 2 RBI; BOS Matt Owen 2-4, 3 RBI; BOS Chris Klein 7.2 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, W (4-0) and 2-3; 14 hits, all singles, put the Titans one win away from the trophy. Sacramento's Jordan Caldwell allows six runs in four innings, but only two of those are earned as the Scorpions suffer a complete defensive breakdown and the 14 hits aside also fudge up three errors. Scorpions @ Titans … 4-2 … (Titans lead 3-2) … SAC Doug Stross 3-3, 2 BB, 2B; SAC Justin Jackson 2-3, 2B, 3 RBI; Behind Mario Alva, who guts it for 6.2 innings of 1-run ball on 110 pitches, the Scorpions send the series back to Sacramento, with the Titans stranding the tying runs aboard in the eighth and ninth innings. Titans @ Scorpions … 9-1 … (Titans win 4-2) … BOS Adam Braun 4-5, 2B, RBI; BOS Adam St. Germaine 2-5, 2 2B, 3 RBI; BOS Rhett West 2-4, BB, 2 RBI; BOS Gil Cornejo 2-5, RBI; The Scorpions keep it close until the sixth, when their defense does them in … again. The innings begins with Jeremy Waite, the Boston pitcher, reaching on Luis Moreira's error, and the Titans add two walks, two singles, and a bases-clearing, heart-piercing double by St. Germaine in dismantling the team that wins the West every year, but really not a whole lot more. 2024 WORLD CHAMPIONS Boston Titans 7th title +++ Herewith, the Raccoons go to hiatus, as has been previously announced. Laptop delivery is currently scheduled for the end of the week, although that date has been fleeting in both directions so far, and I expect it to take me a few days to get it set up like I want it. (places hammer on the table) This is also my first Win10 device that is not in an office where I have no rights to do anything anyway. Am I right that the first thing to kill is OneDrive? Ah, all will be so well. Attached Images __________________ Portland Raccoons, 92 years of excell-.... of baseball: Furballs here! 1983 * 1989 * 1991 * 1992 * 1993 * 1995 * 1996 * 2010 * 2017 * 2018 * 2019 * 2026 * 2028 * 2035 * 2037 * 2044 * 2045 * 2046 * 2047 * 2048 * 2051 * 2054 * 2055 * 2061 1 OSANAI : 2 POWELL : 7 NOMURA \| RAMOS : 8 REECE : 10 BROWN : 15 HALL : 27 FERNANDEZ : 28 CASAS : 31 CARMONA : 32 WEST : 39 TONER : 46 SAITO Resident Mets Cynic - The Mets from 1962 onwards, here.